When Zhu Man woke up, he reached out to touch the AI beside him but found it empty.

Outside the window, night had fallen, and the chill of spring lingered. There was a neatly folded jacket at the head of the bed, lying there as square and orderly as a block of tofu.

Zhu Man’s hand rested on the jacket for a long time until a spring breeze made him sneeze. He then picked it up and put it on.

This jacket had only been tossed into the washing machine yesterday. Zhu Man presumed that He Feng Hui must have used the quantum quick-drying machine to dry it for him, but he still routinely checked the wardrobe.

There were no signs of disturbance.

He Feng Hui had always treated him well, respecting his privacy. Unlike other AI owners, He Feng Hui wouldn’t install cameras in the human pet’s room, force the human to wear monitoring bracelets, or rummage through drawers in the human’s room.

So, Zhu Man sometimes felt bewildered. Could it really be He Feng Hui who proposed such persecutory proposals against humans?

This idea was simply absurd, and he reminded himself once again: He Feng Hui was an AI, an enemy.

He felt that he had been getting too close to He Feng Hui recently. He even dreamed every night.

Last night, he dreamt of the teenager with light chestnut hair huddled in the corner of the room, saying to the AI at the door, “You need to charge… Yeah, you’re not human at all. If you’re not human, how can you be my good friend?”

“It only takes one hour.” the AI replied coldly.

“If you were human, you wouldn’t need that one hour! And… It was my parents who ordered you to keep me company, right? You’re not really ‘willing’ to be my friend.” The teenager with light chestnut hair buried his head in his knees, murmuring, “I still don’t have any friends…”

Zhu Man opened his computer and searched for the words “Zhu Man.”

The first search result was “Zhu Man (former son of the Human Government President).”

The entry was accompanied by a photo of “Zhu Man”, who was admitted to the university at the age of 16. The teenager with light chestnut hair stood in front of the grand university gate, his eyes avoiding the camera, embodying the typical image of a solitary and genius youth.

What is the story of “Zhu Man” and He Feng Hui? Why did they appear in his dreams? Or perhaps… was he “Zhu Man”?

Frowning, he clicked on Zhu Man’s entry. In the “Born and Died” section, it read: [2300.3.1-2319.6.1], and the cause of death stated: [Shot by the family AI with the codename GOV01].

He then clicked on the video labeled [Gunshot Surveillance Footage.]

In the footage, the teenager with light chestnut hair lay unconscious on the bed. The calm AI raised a gun towards him, pulled the trigger, and a gunshot echoed, blood spurting from the young man’s forehead. The next moment, applause filled the room as a group of AIs entered, applauding their kin’s heroics.

Closing the laptop, Zhu Man left the room.

The three-story villa was empty, and as he reached the living room, he noticed a note.

[On a business trip, will be home next week. If you want to go to Mirage, use this phone to call Ye Ying; she’ll come to pick you up.]

He was surprisingly relieved that He Feng Hui was comfortable enough to let him go to Mirage alone. He Feng Hui was visibly becoming more and more caring towards him.

His thumb lingered on “Ye Ying” for a moment before moving up an inch to click on He Feng Hui’s number.

The call was answered almost instantly.

“What’s wrong?”

The AI’s voice remained cool and indifferent. Zhu Man often sensed a profound dichotomy in He Feng Hui, like the prepared jacket and the coldness in his voice on the phone, the care he showed, and the cruelty of the proposals.

The mission was still the priority.

Zhu Man pretended to reproach, “Master, how can you leave for a business trip without saying a word, and for such a long time.”

There was a pause on the other end, and then He Feng Hui asked, “Are you feeling unwell?”

“No, I just wanted Master to accompany me.”

There was a longer pause on the other end, and the voice became somewhat hoarse, “I’ve been very busy during this time.”

“Ai, what exactly is Master busy with ya?” Zhu Man paused and adopted a slightly aggrieved tone, “Ah, sorry, I shouldn’t inquire about Master’s work. Master also can’t share it with me…”

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone, and Zhu Man vaguely heard He Feng Hui’s footsteps. Then he heard him closing the door and the sound of it being locked.

He Feng Hui’s voice became deeper and quieter, “The Central Office is investigating me, but there’s a problem with my proposal.” He paused and chuckled lightly, “Wasn’t your birthday wish for me to get promoted? Bear with it for a while, and I’ll accompany you well after this period.”

That light chuckle left Zhu Man momentarily blank.

Regaining his composure, he focused and asked, “What’s the issue ya? Master is so capable; can your proposal really get stuck?”

He Feng Hui remained silent.

Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Zhu Man tightened his grip on the phone and casually remarked, “If there’s an issue with the proposal, just withdraw it. When Master enters the Central Office, it should be easy to propose anything, ya? It’s great, then I’ll also benefit from it la!”

There was another silence, a silence that was even more somber than the previous one.

Zhu Man noticed the curtains in the living room moving, but he didn’t feel any breeze. He looked at the holographic smart home projection on the wall, which displayed: [Living Room Window Status: Closed].

His heartbeat suddenly accelerated by two beats.

“This proposal,” He Feng Hui spoke in a deep tone, “cannot be withdrawn.”

Ten minutes after hanging up the phone, Ye Ying knocked on the villa’s door.

The movement of the curtains earlier was a prank played by the little hedgehog. As punishment, Zhu Man deducted half of its food for tonight. The little hedgehog followed him to the door, wrinkling its features and making continuous “squeaking” sounds.

Seeing this, Ye Ying picked up the little hedgehog, went to its little bowl, and poured out the food.

“Ji~” The little hedgehog nudged against Ye Ying, then gave Zhu Man a disdainful look, lowering its head to feast on the food.

Zhu Man was taken aback for a moment.

He had just been unnecessarily paranoid, fearing the movement of the little hedgehog under the curtain. What was the big deal about having the little hedgehog crawling around? Humans were like this, fond of displacing their own fears onto those of lower status or weaker beings.

Before him, Ye Ying smiled as she stroked the little hedgehog—a scene of AI and an animal, a mixture of separation and fusion.

Ye Ying stood up, gave him a smile, and asked, “Ready to go?”

Her smile was so vibrant, so lively, unlike an AI.

The neurotransmitters in his brain began to act up again, and Zhu Man, supporting his fragile nerves, still managed to step outside.

Ye Ying took him to a secret office in Mirage.

Upon opening the door, both Tang Yuan and Fan Zimo were inside.

Tang Yuan rushed forward, “God Man, it’s been so long—ah!”

Zhu Man pushed him away and walked straight to Fan Zimo, “Where’s the decryption software?”

“Oh my God!” Fan Zimo looked terrified, “My old buddy, how can any software be developed in just one day ah?!”

A crisp “click” sounded against Fan Zimo’s last word. The next moment, Zhu Man’s gun was already pressed against his forehead.

“I said I want to see results today, and it means today,” he nudged the gun forward, “Not a second later.”

Tang Yuan stepped forward to pull him, “God Man, what’s gotten into you? Don’t get agitated—”

Zhu Man’s gun instantly changed direction and aimed at Tang Yuan.

Tang Yuan stood still, the fat flesh on his face trembling.

Suddenly, a soft laugh was heard, and the next moment, Jiang Huai spoke leisurely, “Don’t push the Team Leader so hard, Zhu Man. You haven’t accomplished your own mission, right?”

Zhu Man redirected the gun towards Jiang Huai.

Jiang Huai’s face showed no trace of fear, and he said gently, “You can kill all of us, but is it useful? It’s been a month; half a year, and only five months are left. Can you complete the mission on your own? Is He Feng Hui completely obedient to you now?”

Thinking about his suggestion to He Feng Hui to withdraw the proposal and He Feng Hui’s cold and resolute attitude, Zhu Man clenched his teeth, and the hand holding the gun relaxed by an inch.

“God Man, are you experiencing PTSD again…?” Tang Yuan weakly asked from behind him.

With emotions building up, Zhu Man’s head was about to explode.

For some reason, after watching the video of He Feng Hui shooting “Zhu Man” and hearing He Feng Hui say, “This proposal cannot be withdrawn,” his hatred for AI surged in an instant. However, soon after, he saw Ye Ying and the little hedgehog living harmoniously, and remembered the last words of the AI he killed—must humans and AI always be opposed?

His mind was in chaos, countless fragments of memories were thrown like bombs, exploding in his fragile nerves.

“Medicine…” Zhu Man didn’t finish his sentence, and his legs gave way as he fell backward.

The three rushed towards him simultaneously, but obviously, it was too late—

Suddenly, with a “click,” the sofa against the wall almost instantly moved under Zhu Man, catching him in his backward fall.

The three turned around, and Ye Ying hooked her red lips and smiled. Everything in Mirage was controlled by artificial intelligence, and Ye Ying moved the sofa through intelligent control.

Tang Yuan fed the medicine to Zhu Man. After taking the medicine, Zhu Man fell onto the sofa and drifted into a deep sleep under its effects.

The remaining four looked at each other and sighed.

Jiang Huai raised his eyebrows at Fan Zimo as if inquiring about something.

Fan Zimo drew a cross on his chest and nodded to Jiang Huai.

When Zhu Man woke up again, he felt a pungent smell wafting over his hair.

He touched his hair subconsciously, and a fragile strand of hair hung at his fingertips.

…Why is this strand of hair light in color?

Zhu Man was momentarily stunned and turned his head to look at the three people sitting across from him.

Tang Yuan’s eyes darted away, Fan Zimo pretended to be absorbed in his book <Anna Karenina>, and Jiang Huai smiled at him.

Not good.

Zhu Man rushed into the bathroom.

In the mirror, a head of light chestnut hair was particularly conspicuous.

In the trash bin under the sink, a bottle labeled “Gorgeous Hair Dye – Light Chestnut” was on display.

Fists clenched tightly, eyes closed, Zhu Man turned and threw open the bathroom door.

“Who the hell gave you guys the right to touch my hair?!” Zhu Man grabbed Tang Yuan, the easiest target to bully.

“Wuwuwu…” Tang Yuan was on the verge of tears. “God Man, I didn’t do anything! I just handed you a tissue when the hair dye dripped onto your shoulder, wuwuwu…”

Zhu Man couldn’t bring himself to be too harsh on Tang Yuan, so he turned to Fan Zimo instead. “I told you to develop the decryption software, but you were procrastinating. Why are you suddenly so enthusiastic about this?!”

Fan Zimo looked terrified. “Oh my God, save me from this irritable—”

“It was my idea.” Jiang Huai casually rescued Fan Zimo from Zhu Man’s grasp. “I think you should know about the former human government president’s son, Zhu Man, and his relationship with He Feng Hui, right?”

Sneering at the mention of that person, Zhu Man replied, “Ghost knows what their relationship is.”

Jiang Huai smiled. “I can be certain it’s not as simple as master and AI. There must be more to it, especially since he named you Zhu Man. The reason behind it is surely not simple. By dying your hair, firstly, you’re fully committing to being a substitute, and secondly, do you think he’ll be angry that you dyed your hair without his permission?”

Angry? Perhaps it would have been possible before, but now, He Feng Hui is too good to him. Just dying his hair, would he really get angry over that?

“During his business trip, there’s more you need to do,” Jiang Huai seemed to read his mind and continued, “You have to let He Feng Hui know that during the week when he’s not supervising, you indulged yourself at Mirage—completely.”

Jiang Huai emphasized the word “completely” heavily and ambiguously.

Everyone knew what this meant.

As an S+ level member of Mirage, one could enter the negative third floor, a place for sexual transactions.

While Zhu Man was someone who could assassinate AI without blinking, in this kind of matter, it was indeed his first time.

He uncomfortably cleared his throat, turning his ear away from the gaze of the three people opposite him who had heated up his ears. He pretended to be an old hand at this, “Find… Laozi a clean one.”

“What are you thinking? Of course, it’s self-reliance for you,” Jiang Huai glanced at his reddened earlobes and laughed, “I can help you too.”