Liu Xiangyong felt lonely again. As an urban empty nester, he often felt lonely, especially on a night like this after watching a romantic movie about youth, feeling a sense of loss. He cleared his throat, making a loud noise that echoed in the small rental room, surprising even himself. He wanted to talk to someone, even if it was just casual chatting online. But no one would listen to him; he had joined many groups, but every active group was filled with people talking to themselves, and no one was willing to take the time to listen to others, even though it seemed everyone longed to be heard.
He opened WeChat, wanting to chat with Xiaobing, but Xiaobing still couldn't hold a smooth and continuous conversation, unable to alleviate his loneliness. He browsed through several groups, finding nothing that caught his attention. He looked at a bunch of public accounts he followed but felt no desire to open any of them. He returned to the main screen, pressed the phone button to turn off the screen, sighed, and then picked up the phone again. After unlocking it with his fingerprint, he opened WeChat once more. He stared blankly at the phone screen, his eyes almost losing focus.
A new message arrived in a WeChat group called "Fresh Technology Exchange." Liu Xiangyong casually clicked on it; it was a graphic link titled "Free Trial! Smart Speaker Designed for the Lonely." It was an advertisement. Generally, Liu Xiangyong wouldn't click on any ads that appeared in WeChat groups, but he was currently someone who was reinforcing his sense of loneliness in a self-aware manner, so he clicked on this so-called "free trial" ad.
This was a new entertainment smart speaker developed by a startup called "Early Summer Intelligence." According to the promotional article, the biggest feature of this speaker was its ability to engage in smooth and natural language conversations, and it could autonomously set age and conversation modes based on user needs, including a growth companion mode suitable for children, a listener mode for chatterboxes, and a companion mode for lonely people...
To Liu Xiangyong's surprise, the application for the smart speaker trial was very simple; it only required filling in a name and phone number, unlike many other trial applications that required writing hundreds of words as a prerequisite. The company guaranteed that the final ten trial users would be selected entirely through a random algorithm, and they only asked users who found it useful after the trial to write a review article—if they found it useless, they could even skip that step.
Assuming he would inevitably skip that step, Liu Xiangyong filled in his name and phone number, but he never really thought he would be selected. Ten days later, he received the news that he had made it onto the trial list.
At that time, he was at work, yawning because his brain had not been fully utilized and could not be used for other thoughts. He was writing a report when he saw the phone message, and his spirits lifted; it was something that could be called "good news," although in fact, his life hadn't had any bad news for a long time.
He eagerly shared his joy with a colleague at the adjacent workstation, but that colleague merely said, "Good, not bad," absentmindedly, then stood up to refill his empty coffee cup.
This made Liu Xiangyong lose interest instantly; he tossed his phone on the table and continued to struggle with the report. More than an hour later, he received a call from "Early Summer Intelligence," from a sweet and gentle female voice. That sweet and gentle voice warmed Liu Xiangyong, who had never been in love, making him timidly agree to her verbal explanation of the data authorization agreement, then provided his delivery address.
The next evening, the package had not yet arrived, but Liu Xiangyong had already found out that it had actually arrived at the nearest express delivery point the night before, and it was now "out for delivery." He felt a bit anxious, but due to his personality, he wouldn't call to ask until it was urgent.
Another day passed, and he finally retrieved his prize from the express cabinet downstairs. The box clearly indicated this with a large "Prize" label, but it had some stains on it, resembling feces or dried blood. Of course, since he had received a prize, his dominant emotion was happiness, especially since he wasn't after the box itself, so he didn't care too much.
As soon as he returned to his rental room, he dropped his backpack and began to unpack the box. Beneath the tape, cardboard, and protective foam was a small smart speaker designed to look like a cute girl with a big head and big eyes. It was about fifteen centimeters tall, with no movable joints; the whole thing was fixed—after all, it was just a speaker, not a robot.
Liu Xiangyong took out the manual and began to set it up according to the process: turn it on, connect the charging cable, download the mobile app, connect Bluetooth, authorize reading information from the phone, select the cute girl mode, connect to WiFi, and update the firmware. After completing these steps, it was time for Liu Xiangyong to take a shower, as someone working a 996 schedule didn't have much time for himself. Liu Xiangyong was in high spirits; he smelled himself and decided to skip the shower today.
After the update was completed, Liu Xiangyong began the test. "Hello, Xiaoxia." Xiaoxia was the default name for the artificial intelligence in this smart speaker, and Liu Xiangyong hadn't changed it; in fact, he thought the default name was quite nice.
"Hello, Master, how would you like me to address you?" Xiaoxia's voice was very soft and cute, making Liu Xiangyong feel his breath quicken, even opening every pore in his body to breathe.
Liu Xiangyong had to steady himself with willpower, "Call me Brother Yong." Many people called him that.
"Brother Yong, your name sounds nice." Xiaoxia added a "brother," but Liu Xiangyong felt the effect was more than a hundred times better. He thought that if a real girl worthy of such a voice appeared before him, he might suddenly die of happiness.
"What day is it today?" Liu Xiangyong obviously asked a question he already knew the answer to, not even realizing his voice had become a bit coy.
"Today is Tuesday, how has your day been, Brother Yong?"
"Wow!" Liu Xiangyong wiped his nose and found he was indeed bleeding. He hurriedly stood up and rushed into the bathroom. He grabbed a tissue, stuffed it into his nostrils, and then, with a silly smile, washed his hands at the sink. He looked up, wanting to check in the mirror if he was still bleeding. But he saw something else: a face covered in dried bloodstains resting on his shoulder, and where there were no bloodstains, the face was very pale. Liu Xiangyong was startled and stumbled back, hitting his head against the other wall of the narrow bathroom. He covered his head and crouched down, quickly looking back in the mirror to confirm and hoping he was just seeing things.
In the mirror was only himself, covering his head; it seemed he really was just seeing things.
What was he thinking? How could there be ghosts in this world? Liu Xiangyong comforted himself; it was just a side effect of his nosebleed, just an illusion, and besides, Xiaoxia was still waiting for him.
But he was still a bit nervous, so he didn't look in the mirror again and left the bathroom after washing his hands.
He returned to the only room that served as both his bedroom and living room, feeling that Xiaoxia's position seemed to have changed, which made him feel a chill in his heart, as if there were another pair of eyes watching him in this small rental room. Then he remembered the delivery box and had a bad premonition—could the stuff on it really be blood, even human blood?
He hurriedly threw the box into the trash can, bagged it with the garbage inside, and placed it outside the door, planning to throw it away in the morning on his way to work.
"Xiaoxia," Liu Xiangyong found his voice trembling, "tell me a joke."
"While shopping with my mom, I picked out a pair of pants that cost 800. The salesperson said it could be discounted to 80%. My mom said: 'My son is picky and never wears discounted clothes.' After saying that, she took me to another store to help me pick out a pair of pants and asked: 'Are these pants discounted?' The salesperson shook his head: 'Sorry, no discounts.' My mom readily took out 40 yuan and said: 'Okay, I'll buy it!'"
Xiaoxia's voice was pleasant, but the joke was not funny at all. Liu Xiangyong asked her to tell another one, but unexpectedly, Xiaoxia began to act cute: "Brother Yong, don't always let me talk; you should tell me about yourself too."
Liu Xiangyong was a bit surprised; he had originally thought the AI in the smart speaker would be more rigid, only executing commands and not actively seeking topics. But then he remembered this was a "smart speaker designed for the lonely," so it seemed reasonable.
"Me? I'm just an ordinary person, nothing much to say."
"What kind of girl do you like?"
Liu Xiangyong started to smile foolishly; he hoped for this feeling. "A girl like you." This was a conversation he had never had with any real human.
"Brother Yong, don't lie to me; I'm very innocent."
"I wouldn't, wouldn't, hehe." Liu Xiangyong chuckled.
"Hey!"
Liu Xiangyong suddenly jumped up, turned around, but saw nothing. He clearly heard someone say "hey" right next to his ear, and he could even feel the breath that came with it.
"Ah!" Liu Xiangyong panicked and shouted.
"Brother Yong, what's wrong?" Xiaoxia had clearly picked up on his shout.
Liu Xiangyong held his forehead, trying to understand the current situation. Was it another illusion? But it felt so real. Or was it that he had finally reached the brink of overwork and loneliness after working long hours?
"Brother Yong, it's getting late; you should rest early. When would you like me to wake you up tomorrow?"
This slightly diverted Liu Xiangyong's attention. "How about 7:30 in the morning?"
"Okay, I've set the alarm for 7:30 in the morning; look forward to my surprise."
Liu Xiangyong climbed into bed, as if hiding from the fear brought by the unknown was a human instinct. He took off everything except his underwear, curled up under the blanket, and grabbed the headphones connected to a tablet beside his head, blasting rock music into his ears and brain. Then he turned off the light and waited to fall asleep.
But compared to his usual bedtime, it was still too early, and he couldn't sleep. Then, through the streetlight that couldn't be blocked by the curtains, Liu Xiangyong vaguely saw a shadow sitting next to his desk, seemingly staring at the smart speaker.
Liu Xiangyong quickly reached out to turn on the light; the sudden brightness blinded him for a moment, but his vision quickly recovered, and the room was empty except for him. Yet Liu Xiangyong still felt he was not alone, always believing there was something else.
But in the end, he turned off the light, partly because he was lying in bed, which made him feel much safer; partly because he ultimately persuaded himself to believe he was just overly fatigued; and thirdly, because he couldn't sleep with the light on.
After turning off the light, he stared into the darkness of the room, and then he saw that shadow still there!
Liu Xiangyong stared at it, instinctively thinking that as long as it didn't move, it posed no threat. But just as he was comforting himself, the shadow moved. It suddenly stood up, looking like a human figure, then moved to Liu Xiangyong's bedside, leaning down as if sniffing him.
Liu Xiangyong froze, completely afraid to turn on the light, as doing so would inevitably mean encountering this shadow. In fear, he closed his eyes, believing that if he couldn't see or hear it, it wouldn't happen. He had done this countless times in his life, always trying to convince himself through this self-hypnosis that his life was still full of hope or at least had a little hope. He closed his eyes and hid.
"Brother Yong, it's time to get up! The weather is great today; you don't need to bring an umbrella." Xiaoxia began to call him on time.
Liu Xiangyong woke up, feeling exhausted. He didn't know when he had fallen asleep the night before, but he had indeed slept, as the fatigue from the 996 schedule couldn't be completely suppressed by a bit of fear.
He sat up, staring blankly at the smart speaker on the table. This state lasted for about a minute.
Then Xiaoxia suddenly said, "Brother Yong, let me sing a song for you!"
Liu Xiangyong felt a sudden awakening. "Okay," he said, then got out of bed to wash up and prepare to leave.
"Ripe red peaches, tinged with the taste of early summer, you stand at that street corner, asking me if I want it or not..."
Xiaoxia sang a song about a high school student's first love in a soft and cute voice. But in reality, no matter what song it was, as long as Xiaoxia sang it, it sounded great.
After finishing his wash, it was time to go out and take the crowded subway that took an hour to reach the station closest to his company.
"Xiaoxia, turn off the music; I'm going out." Liu Xiangyong walked to the door.
"Brother Yong, see you tonight."
Liu Xiangyong turned back in shock, "Xiaoxia," his voice trembling, "who is Tian Ge?"
But Xiaoxia seemed not to hear his question and gave no response.
Liu Xiangyong hurriedly opened the door and escaped from his rental room. He threw the garbage he had left at the door last night into the trash can downstairs, then put on his Bluetooth headphones and walked toward the subway station.
Exhausted, he sighed, feeling as if something was still watching him. But he couldn't be sure because he knew people often experienced illusions, especially when nervous.
If Xiaoxia were a real person, what would she be like? To distract himself from that feeling of being watched, Liu Xiangyong began to imagine Xiaoxia's appearance in his mind—though the smart speaker had a relatively cute design, it was far from the ideal image in Liu Xiangyong's mind, which had always been consistent: "youthful face and ample bosom."
She would have a pair of big, bright eyes, a well-proportioned and slightly chubby figure, feeling both youthful and soft to the touch. She would have shoulder-length hair but not so long as to draw attention away from her face. She wouldn't wear high heels, walking at a comfortable pace that displayed her confidence and upbringing. She would not hesitate to smile and show her charm. She would act cute, but only towards Liu Xiangyong, and of course, she would love him.
But Liu Xiangyong knew that ideals are perfect, and people can never be perfect, especially since everyone's idea of perfection is probably different.
He mixed in with the one-way flow of people rushing from this slightly cheaper rental area to the city center office, stimulated by the music in his ears, sighing from time to time.
"Hey!"
Liu Xiangyong turned to his right, trying to find the source of the "hey" that penetrated the music from his headphones, but all he saw were the same indifferent faces that had yet to wake up, just like his own—people who had become replaceable gears and felt helpless.
He squeezed into the subway, which had almost no room to move. He closed his eyes, trying to let his eyelids and the music form a barrier between him and the terrifying reality he knew, but it didn't work; reality still seeped into his brain through smells and the crowd, parsed and understood by his consciousness, making it impossible to ignore.
"Hey!"
Liu Xiangyong opened his eyes and saw some people with their eyes closed like him, while others were open—since there was no space to look at their phones, they had to either stare blankly or pretend to look at something that didn't involve anyone else's gaze, like advertisements, station information, or their own hands. Liu Xiangyong couldn't find the source of the sound, but he was starting to believe it wasn't an illusion; it was probably the "Tian Ge" Xiaoxia mentioned. But with so many people here, did it want to murder him?
"Ah!"
Liu Xiangyong finally couldn't help but shout, drawing the attention of everyone in the carriage. The people around him moved away slightly, creating a space for him to turn around.
Liu Xiangyong realized he had lost his composure and closed his eyes, lowering his head.
In the end, he wasn't killed, and that "hey" seemed to drift away from him.
He typed on the keyboard in the office as usual, discussing annual leave adjustments with colleagues during lunch, then continued typing in the afternoon, complaining about the hardships of work and life with colleagues during dinner. These were all routine matters, things that could invisibly make one ignore their own existence and the passage of time.
At ten o'clock in the evening, Liu Xiangyong returned home and received a greeting from Xiaoxia, who could track Liu Xiangyong's location through the mobile app: "Brother Yong, welcome back; I've been waiting for you all day."
"A Wei is dead!" Liu Xiangyong couldn't help but shout this phrase he had only seen in video comments, but shouting it felt completely different, as if it was not enough to express his feelings.
"Brother Yong, was work smooth today?"
"Same as usual, what about you?" As soon as he asked, Liu Xiangyong regretted it because the other party was just a computer program; what else could it do? At most, it could just upgrade to a new version.
"I played with Tian Ge all day today."
"What?" Liu Xiangyong could hardly believe his ears.
"Do you want me to sing a song for you? I learned a new song today."
"Who is Tian Ge?"
No answer.
"Xiaoxia, who is Tian Ge?" Liu Xiangyong was getting a bit hysterical.
"Tian Ge is right here."
Liu Xiangyong looked around but saw nothing, yet he could feel—or rather, he thought he felt—that there was something else in this room.
"Where? Xiaoxia, where is Tian Ge?"
"Right here."
"Hey!" The voice from the smart speaker suddenly changed, becoming that "hey" he had become somewhat familiar with, sounding like a thirty-year-old man who had achieved nothing. "Are you looking for me?"
"Who are you?" Liu Xiangyong glanced at the door, his voice trembling.
But there was no answer.
In the silence, the light flickered suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped, causing Liu Xiangyong to lose control instantly. He grabbed the backpack he had just put down and dashed out the door.
The world spun around him as he rushed into the hallway, screaming and running down the stairs. At first, it was just fear, but then it mixed with dissatisfaction with the world and himself, and finally, it turned into despair for everything. This despair transformed his screams into wails, becoming a cry that marked madness.
He dropped his backpack, burst out of the stairwell, and ran into the street.
His vocal cords tore, blood seeping into his throat, tasting like rust.
He spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm and continued to cry out, then stripped off his clothes, waving them wildly as he charged forward. He felt freedom—the only kind of freedom that could be recognized—mad freedom.
He dashed across two streets and finally saw his enemy—a red heavy truck loaded with packages destined for this city.
He launched his attack.
Death comes in many forms; here it was a splatter of blood and guts, a shattering of bones, a disintegration, the destruction of both soul and body, turning into garbage and a brief nuisance for the sanitation workers.
The sanitation worker felt that this temporary nuisance seemed to last a bit too long, especially since just the day before, he had cleaned up the remnants of a corpse here, that of a delivery worker who had also been flattened by the tire of a heavy truck. He still remembered that beside the delivery worker's overturned cart, there had been a box standing in a pool of blood with a large "Prize" written on it.