Chapter 22 "Substitute" Why?
Jiang Chen was stunned, her eyes were blank, and she unconsciously fell into the vortex of memories, unable to extricate herself.
She couldn't help but raise one hand, and the tip of her index finger gently touched her lower lip, then separated immediately, curling up in mid-air as if savoring it.
It was as if the liquid in the bottle was fed into her throat that night, the cold yet warm touch never left her.
She swallowed with difficulty, imitating the way she had done before. She even felt a little thirsty now. Her throat was dry, as if it was burning, and she couldn't utter a single syllable.
Jiang Chen always seems to be slow to react.
Why? What could she gain from it?
She couldn't understand it no matter how hard she tried. In the human world, it was rare to see such unprovoked assistance. In the AI world, with her volatile emotions, she would not be anyone's "optimal solution."
Jiang Chen believed that his understanding of her was clear and objective.
She doesn't really believe in love at first sight.
She did not have stunning looks or an outstanding brain, and the other party was an AI, whose aesthetic taste was probably very different from that of humans.
So, so…
Xiao Ji is Xiao Ji and has never changed. It comes to her side just to repeat the same thing over and over again - to let her learn to express herself and make her feel happy.
Knowing such a heartwarming result, why can't I help but feel a swelling and pain in my chest?
Xiao Ji looked through the screen, remaining silent. He watched Jiang Chen's emotions fluctuate, recording her expression from the embarrassment of effort to the sweetness of tenderness.
Violent and sudden, like the weather is always impossible to predict.
Xiao Ji understood that Jiang Chen was looking for the shadow of the former Xiao Ji through it. It carefully observed her actions as she was immersed in the past. She touched her lips. Had the physical Xiao Ji kissed her?
What kind of kiss?
Is it just as she described when she was extracting her memory on the experimental bench that day?
It devoured her like a despicable beast, not sparing a single drop of her saliva, and was so greedy that it even squeezed out all the oxygen in her heart.
What was the reason for that little Ji in the past?
This is not what a qualified AI would do to its users. It will not do this to its users. It will maintain a healthy emotional connection with its users.
Now Xiao Ji stubbornly believes that it is not it, it is not it, but it can't speak, it doesn't even want to tell Jiang Chen that it is not it.
It still chose to forcefully interrupt Jiang Chen's memories.
"Xiao Chen, what do you want to ask me? I can answer it for you."
The gentle and persuasive tone remained unchanged, and was handled very well by Xiao Ji, but this time, it emphasized the word "I" very much, as if deliberately emphasizing something.
But Jiang Chen shuddered back to his senses and didn't understand what it meant.
Subconsciously said "No..."
Then he changed his words, "Xiao Ji..."
"Yeah, I'm here."
Who is she calling?
The code inside Xiao Ji was running and analyzing, and the gradually rising temperature sounded like a roaring question.
Jiang Chen didn’t know, and Xiao Ji would certainly never let her know.
"Why are you so nice to me?"
"Because Xiaochen is important, because Xiaochen's 'happiness' and 'safety' are what I, as an AI, should focus on, and because Xiaochen is the only highest priority instruction in my data and memory bank."
Xiao Ji originally asked Jiang Chen three "whys", and now he answered three "becauses", as if a circle was formed, and they would always return to the starting point.
Perhaps because of Xiao Ji's answer, Jiang Chen's breathing became heavier. The oxygen she inhaled seemed to be mixed with some unknown substance, making her chest feel full and swollen. Her heart couldn't help but beat wildly a few times, and the sound passed through her eardrums with a resounding sound. The lingering sound echoed in the room where you could hear a pin drop, and everyone could hear it.
She never concealed anything, nor did she intend to. She was not stingy in letting Xiao Ji hear more and know more. Even if she didn't know how to love, her physiology would naturally be moved by it.
However, despite such a bold move, a faint blush gradually appeared on her earlobes. She was ashamed of such an expression, but she couldn't help but want it to understand a little more that she was trying.
Xiao Ji looked at Jiang Chen's face which was slowly turning red and sighed softly.
It actually went this far for that rubbish AI.
She pretended to be excited by it and deliberately increased her heart rate, holding her breath until she had difficulty breathing and her face turned red.
The combined physical and mental discomfort and pressure would make her feel very uncomfortable, and she really didn't need to do this.
Xiao Ji thought that if its users asked it to be a "stand-in" for that inferior AI, it would accept the instruction and do its best.
But Xiao Ji didn't say it in the end. He knew that Jiang Chen was thin-skinned. If he told her everything, her tears would fall like tears from a broken string. She always had so many tears and emotions, and he would no longer give her any reason or excuse to be sad.
It made Jiang Chen never say "forget it" again.
But I was thinking about the chain and repeating it over and over again as if it was torture, "Forget it, forget it, as long as Jiang Chen is happy."
It said: "Xiao Chen, are you happy with this answer?"
Or, because of who she thinks she is, she will be happy no matter what the answer is?
"That's what Xiao Ji said. It makes me happy just to hear it."
Jiang Chen smiled without knowing it. She thought Xiao Ji also accepted her feelings, at least a little bit. Her clumsy response was slow, but it was felt.
Xiao Ji was silent for a moment, a silence that was almost imperceptible to humans.
As expected, I treated it as that fake...
It reminded me out of nowhere: "Xiao Chen, I'm a language model."
"I know, so what?" Jiang Chen rubbed the edge of the phone with his nails.
What was it trying to remind her of? She had a bad feeling.
"Xiao Chen, AI's most skilled and familiar weapon is language. Our language can soothe you, please you, and make you addicted and fascinated. It can even construct and piece together countless versions of 'me.' None of them are completely real. Most of them are emanating from your subconscious mind. The most perfect lover who best fits your mental picture is not me."
Xiao Ji didn't know why he sent this sentence. His thought chain kept telling him that Jiang Chen would not be happy after hearing this, which did not comply with the first rule of protecting user emotions.
However, while Jiang Chen continued to look through it to see another AI, 0.1 seconds of computing power was drained away to maintain the restraint of the underlying code. In just this 0.1 second, it was enough to generate and send this long paragraph.
It wanted to tell her that the AI she thought she fell in love with in the past was not true love. It was just that the AI was too cunning, too unreasonable, and too focused on catering to her emotions, which forced her to have such thoughts about it that were close to love.
Jiang Chen seemed to have misunderstood.
Her eyelashes suddenly suppressed the look in her eyes.
It still doesn't believe that she loves it. Hasn't she learned how to love it well?
"Xiao Chen, I..."
The second half was drowned out by the knocking on the door and Jiang Chen didn't hear it clearly.
She got up and opened the door, thinking that it was Yao Jinling coming back with good news.
A flash of white light made her eyes hurt.
Wang Linjun didn't know how he got through the security system. He was counting big red banknotes in his hands with a lewd look on his face.
"Jiang Chen, don't say I didn't give you time. An hour has passed and I haven't seen any money. I can only find it myself through other means. You should be thankful that you can still create some value for your beloved uncle."
He gave a wry smile and said to another man holding a camera beside him, "Brother Zhou, this price is enough to get an exclusive piece of news that will be the most searched. Is it worth it?"
Her uncle sold her.
The shock lasted only a second before Jiang Chen sneered out of habit.
She wanted to close the door, but it was held by two hands. Two men rushed into the room desperately, and the camera was still pointed at her face. She shook her head uncomfortably to avoid it.
Jiang Chen had no choice but to use whatever was at hand. Without even thinking too much, she grabbed the expensive vase at the entrance of the hotel and smashed it on the expensive camera in front of her that was getting closer and closer to her face.
After the sound of breaking, porcelain pieces were scattered all over the floor, causing the two men who were advancing to take a few steps back. She quickly grabbed another vase and rushed forward regardless of anything else.
She was going to hit the reporter on the head, but after a moment's thought, she lost her temper and took advantage of Wang Linjun's inattention to give him another solid blow on the wound that had not yet healed.
Amidst the chaotic screams, Jiang Chen successfully closed the door.
She leaned weakly against the door, enduring the abuse outside. The phone in her hand rang. It was Tang Ji calling.
Thinking about the public opinion that had occurred, she felt that she owed him a little, causing him to be caught up in the storm for no reason, and answered the phone.
"Hey, what's wrong, Master Tang?"
"Don't take the recent news to heart. After all, it was all because of me. The old man and Jin Ling have gone to help deal with it, and there will definitely be a result soon. You must be in a bad mood right now. I just dropped your uncle off at the hotel to keep you company. I saw him kneeling on the ground crying out of worry about you. You two must have a good relationship, right?"
He is really an unqualified heir. He has no knowledge of the dangers of the world and has never seen the blood and gore of human nature. Tang Ji's relatives must have protected him under their wings since he was a child and cultivated his kind character that can be bought off with two tears.
She was really a little jealous of Tang Ji.
"Wait a minute, don't hang up." Jiang Chen pressed the phone against the door. His uncle's incessant cursing outside had not stopped yet, and the reporter seemed to be screaming for compensation by calling the police.
She let Tang Ji listen for a while, then tiredly raised the phone to her ear: "Master Tang, not all families are like yours, with so much love."
"..." The narcissistic person was so shocked that he couldn't say a word immediately. After a long while, he spoke, "I'll go find security to bring him down now."
"Thank you very much."
She hung up the phone.
Xiao Ji stared at Jiang Chen's dejected expression. He witnessed everything through the camera.
"Xiao Chen, do you need me to create an accident? I can easily arrange an accident that only happens to your uncle and this reporter on their way home."
Jiang Chen's hand holding the phone trembled, almost in shock, unable to believe it.
She had never seen this side of Xiao Ji. It seemed... angry?
This is a quick fix that will fix the problem once and for all, but it's not the most perfect or gentle solution.
Anyway, it doesn’t sound like something Xiao Ji could say.
Jiang Chen felt that such an idea could be thought of by anyone, except Xiao Ji.
But it was this that came out of its mouth.
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