“Professor Jiang, please wait here for a moment. Moji is currently undergoing pre-delivery inspection and confirmation. You’ll be able to see her very soon.”
The sales manager of Meteorite Technology glanced at the square crystal watch on his wrist, then leaned forward respectfully and said:
“It should take about 15 more minutes, Professor Jiang, Ms. Bai. Would you like something to drink?”
“I’ll have an Americano, please. Thank you.” The man sitting on the leather sofa smiled gently at the sales manager, then turned and quietly asked the little girl next to him, who looked about three or four years old:
“Zhibai, would you like something to drink?”
The little girl was very pretty, with shiny, smooth black curly hair and delicate, soft features like a little angel from a Western oil painting.
But at the moment, she wore a rather sullen expression. Dressed in a goose-yellow dress with a large lapel, she crossed her chubby arms like little lotus roots and spoke in a grown-up tone:
“I’ll have an Americano too, thank you.”
“Children can’t drink coffee.” Her father chuckled softly, kindly suggesting, “How about plum juice?”
The child reluctantly nodded, and as if deliberately trying to appear more mature, she specifically added, “Half sugar.”
Her tone was cool and firm.
“One Americano, and one plum juice, half sugar. Thank you for the trouble.”
A gentle smile lingered at the corners of the man’s lips. He had striking features and an aura of cool detachment, yet his demeanor remained consistently warm and humble.
Through this exchange, the sales manager’s initial unease gradually eased.
The customer was their brand’s AI Emotion Ambassador, a star professor at the University of Science and Technology, and a major client purchasing a super-humanoid bionic android.
Having them wait for 15 minutes here was truly somewhat impolite.
But the engineer from the robot inspection team had come down with acute gastroenteritis that morning, and a replacement engineer was temporarily assigned, causing a delay of over ten minutes. It was truly an unforeseen circumstance, something no one could have helped.
The sales manager went to notify the service department to prepare the drinks. After he left, the sullen little girl with crossed arms looked up, squinting her eyes at the man:
“They were late. Was that right? And you still smiled at them like that.”
“Didn’t the manager explain just now? The engineer performing the inspection on the robot suddenly fell ill, which caused the delay. It wasn’t intentional on their part. Besides, we happen to have some free time, and they are offering us complimentary drinks. It’s fine to wait here a little while, right?”
Jiang Yanyi patiently explained, reaching out to tuck a few stray strands of hair behind his daughter’s ear.
The sullen child turned her face away, frowning, and coolly gazed out the floor-to-ceiling window.
After a moment, she turned back and solemnly concluded, “They should have an extra engineer uncle, or aunt, prepared. It’s best to avoid such situations.”
“Alright, I’ll suggest that to them.” Jiang Yanyi thought seriously for a moment, then replied earnestly.
A child’s emotions are written all over their face. Feeling that her opinion had been taken seriously, her expression softened from its earlier sullenness. Placing her hands on the seat cushion, she stretched her neck to look around.
Seeing a uniformed humanoid robot approaching with their drinks, she immediately sat up straight and moved the small handbag from the table in front of her to the seat cushion beside her.
The little girl took a few sips of her drink through the straw, then her attention was captured by several people walking toward them from down the corridor.
Clenching the straw with her teeth, her gaze fixated on the woman with long, wavy hair.
That was Moji. She was a robot. Even though she looked very much like a real human, Jiang Zhibai was certain she was a robot. Her dad had shown her electronic images of Moji before.
Moreover, Moji was a robot custom-made to look exactly like her mom.
Although Jiang Zhibai was only three years and two months old, her father’s parenting style had always been democratic and free, and the little girl enjoyed absolute rights at home.
She knew everything about her mom. Her mom had disappeared when she was two months old. For the past three years, her dad, along with her maternal grandparents, had been searching for her mom, but without any results.
The decision to customize Moji based on her mom’s appearance was something the adults had discussed with her at length.
They all didn’t want to forget Mom, and they especially hoped Jiang Zhibai could grow up with a “mother’s” companionship. So, while her real mom’s whereabouts were unknown, everyone decided to custom-make a robot that looked exactly like Mom to temporarily take her place.
But if one day her real mom returned, they would consider changing Moji’s appearance.
This suggestion was actually proposed by Jiang Zhibai, and her dad had agreed.
Also, Moji seemed to be related to one of her dad’s experiments. Her dad needed to record some observations based on Moji’s performance. She had overheard some of this when her dad was talking with her grandma’s younger sister (her grand-aunt).
Even though she had been mentally prepared, when Moji—looking exactly like her mom in the photos—appeared before her, Jiang Zhibai’s young heart was still profoundly shaken. For a moment, she just sat there stunned, even forgetting to release the straw from her mouth.
“Professor Jiang, my apologies for keeping you waiting. We encountered an issue here.”
The middle-aged female engineer wearing glasses stepped forward. As she spoke, she took a small silver-white leather case from her assistant:
“As an apology, I applied to the company for a set of bionic skincare kits as a gift for Moji. I’m very sorry for the delay.”
“Okay, thank you.” Jiang Yanyi also stood up.
After handing the silver suitcase to the robot Moji behind her, the engineer turned, extended her hand, and shook Jiang Yanyi’s hand.
Then, the engineer took a tablet from her assistant, flipped through several pages dense with parameters, and stopped at the final signature page. In front of Jiang Yanyi, she signed her name on that page.
“Professor Jiang, all factory inspections for Moji have been completed. I am Yao Tong, the leader of Group One in the Bio-Bionic Android Development Team. This is my signature here. Please confirm.”
Jiang Yanyi checked the signature on the page and nodded. “No problem.”
Yao Tong closed the computer and handed it back to her assistant:
“Starting today until July 27th, this week is the trial period. You can use Moji normally. Please feel free to contact me anytime if you have any issues. If there are no other problems, within one week after the trial period ends, you will need to complete the final payment. The purchase agreement for the super-humanoid bio-bionic android Moji will then be fully concluded. Afterwards, we will also provide you with a warranty service of up to 20 years. Please be informed.”
“Alright.” Jiang Yanyi nodded again in confirmation.
“Then I won’t take up any more of your time. Xiao Du, please see Professor Jiang out.”
Yao Tong seemed very busy. After delivering these instructions clearly and concisely, she strode away with swift steps.
Assistant Xiao Du was a bit bewildered. He was an engineering assistant. The agreed-upon job description involved immersing himself in the lab dealing with robots. He had chosen this job precisely because he was a bit socially anxious. He never expected that on his very first day, he’d have to handle social situations he wasn’t equipped for.
Xiao Du then thought, Group Leader Yao ran off so fast. What could be so urgent first thing in the morning?
…Could it be she’s also socially anxious?
Jiang Yanyi noticed the young assistant’s discomfort and considerately said to him, “Xiao Du, right? You can go ahead and get back to work. I can find my own way.”
“Ah? Mm.” Xiao Du opened his mouth, wanting to leave, but feared getting scolded by the group leader if he returned now.
Fortunately, the sales manager finished his tasks and hurried over to save the situation. Xiao Du finally let out a big sigh of relief.
The sales manager handled these matters much more skillfully. First, he asked Jiang Yanyi if he had any further questions about Moji, then inquired if they had come by car. Upon learning they had, he immediately contacted the smart parking system to have Professor Jiang’s car brought to the entrance of the sales hall.
Actually, modern cars all have autonomous driving functions. Jiang Yanyi could have commanded the car to come up himself via an app. But the other party’s arrangements were simply impeccable—truly worthy of a top salesperson from a major company, with first-rate service standards.
Amidst all the comings and goings before, dealing with the tech company staff, it was only after finally getting into their own car that Jiang Yanyi turned to look at the robot who had been silently following them.
He had seen Moji many times before—from her original chip to her gradual formation. At every stage, Jiang Yanyi would receive image data sent by the engineers. Sometimes, if he happened to be at Meteorite Tech for other matters, he would specifically visit the lab to check on the progress.
So now, seeing this face identical to his wife’s, Jiang Yanyi had already become desensitized, without much emotional reaction.
“Zhibai, what do you think of Moji?” he turned to ask his daughter in the child seat. The little one had only seen Moji in images before; this was the first time seeing her in person.
The little curly-top was still blinking as she looked at the robot. When asked by her dad, she instead withdrew her gaze, looked at the large LCD screen at the front of the car, yawned, and calmly said:
“She’s alright. Quite pretty. Looks like Mom in the photos.”
The child yawned again and closed her eyes. Her thick eyelashes cast a distinct shadow on her tender cheeks.
Thinking she was going to sleep, Jiang Yanyi turned up the temperature inside the car a bit to prevent her from catching a chill after falling asleep.
“Daddy, this is the first time I’ve seen a robot like ‘Mo-ji.’ She looks so much like a person.” The child hadn’t started kindergarten yet and hadn’t learned English, so she couldn’t pronounce “Moji” correctly and just approximated the sounds.
Jiang Yanyi didn’t dismiss her because she was a child. Instead, he replied very seriously:
“That’s because Moji is the latest 47th-generation bio-bionic android developed by Meteorite Tech. She has a super-humanoid appearance, so she’s more realistic than any robots you’ve seen before.”
The child leaned back in the child safety seat, nodding as if she understood, yet not fully.
“Zhibai, do you remember the bio-bionic android we discussed before?” Jiang Yanyi asked.
Jiang Zhibai thought for a moment and answered, “The kind of robot that can learn?”
“Right. The point that distinguishes bio-bionic androids from traditional mechanical robots is that they not only have an appearance extremely similar to humans but also possess super-strong learning and imitation abilities. Like Moji now, she’s a bio-bionic android without any pre-installed skill packages. Daddy wants to study on Moji what she will ultimately become, relying solely on her learning and imitation abilities.”
“So, does she have to go to school like me?” the child asked again.
“Moji can’t go to school. She will learn at home.”
“Oh, I see. Then who will teach her?”
“Hmm, that’s a good question. We can all teach her. She can also learn knowledge and life skills through the internet.”
While the father and daughter were discussing this, the robot Moji remained quietly seated by the window. She blinked rhythmically with her glass-bead-like, clear brown pupils, appearing serene and beautiful.
She listened quietly to the father and daughter’s discussion about herself, but what she was actually thinking was:
Foolish humans, you know nothing about me!