Chapter 78 2/2

Online discussions continued, and in reality, one robotic guide dog after another was sent to various households.

In a typical family of three, the parents nervously watched as their eight-year-old took step by step toward the front, almost reaching the wall. When the child was about to touch the wall, the big dog beside her made a soft sound, gently taking the hem of her clothes and guiding her to turn.

The child smoothly turned and successfully reached the master bedroom.

Watching their child, the parents were both smiling and tearful. “It works! It really works!”

In front of a house, a young person took a deep breath, saying to the large dog in his hand, “Lele, take me to Lake West Park.”

Lele barked happily, striding forward with its four mechanical legs, guiding the way. Every time it was about to turn, it would make a sound, take a few steps forward, look back at its owner, and then continue forward.

They walked for a full forty-three minutes. In these forty-three minutes, they passed seven traffic lights, climbed two steps, and encountered no accidents along the way. Everything went smoothly, and they arrived at Lake West Park.

The young man smelled the fragrance of grass in the park and couldn’t help but laugh while hugging the big dog.

Behind him, his friends who had been following were also happily approaching, continuously patting the big dog. “Good dog! Amazing!”

In a relatively small town, an elderly person frowned and hesitated to take the dog leash. “Why spend this money? I’ve been blind for most of my life, used to it. Just forget it.”

“Oh, come on, give it a try. You can use it for ten days. I’ve already entered your information, information about your home, and the places you often visit. In the future, if you want to go somewhere, just tell it.”

“For these ten days, as long as you don’t intentionally damage it, you can return it. Try it for ten days, and if you still don’t want it, I’ll refund it.”

The children left, and the elderly person, who had lost their spouse a long time ago, sat alone at home, planning to watch TV. Fumbling around, they couldn’t find the remote control.

The elderly person guessed that their grandson probably used it and didn’t put it back in place. They had to search around reluctantly.

“Hey, where could this little guy put a remote control?”

“Woof…” Suddenly, the sound of the big dog came from beside them, startling the elderly person living alone. It took them a second to remember that this was the robotic guide dog their children bought for them. What a waste of money. At this age, who needs this?

While they were thinking, the body was suddenly nudged by the big dog, and then they felt the dog’s head come over, putting a remote control in their hands.

The elderly person: “…”

They touched the remote control, not returning to their senses for a long time.

“Hey! Can you hear me?”

“Woof…”

“You can really hear, huh? If you have ears, you can hear. Hey! Go help me get the blanket on the sofa; do you know what a blanket is? It’s long, soft, and quite big.”

“Woof!”

“Why are you growling at me? Oh dear, you really brought the blanket. You even know this; you’re quite clever.”

“Woof woof…”

“Praising you for being clever, and you’re acting spoiled. Why does a robotic dog have a temper? Okay, okay, stop nudging; just patting your head makes you behave. You really are a dog.”

After another ten days, the elderly person’s children were talking on the phone.

The older brother said, “It’s been ten days. Should we go ask Dad if he wants to keep that robotic dog?”

The younger sister laughed uncontrollably. “Why ask? If Dad really didn’t want it, he would have called us to return it a long time ago. If he doesn’t say anything, it means he wants it.”

“Hey, brother, you haven’t seen it. I heard from our second aunt that Dad treasures that robotic dog. He takes it everywhere and doesn’t look like the person who didn’t like going out before. If Second Aunt didn’t stop him, he would want to go fishing. He even named it ‘Da Huang.’ Yes, Dad gave that name to the dog.”

Customers like this outspoken elderly person were not few. Most of them were elderly, visually impaired people, and most didn’t have their own guide dogs.

Regardless of the economic cost of a well-trained guide dog, taking care of a dog’s food, drink, and other needs was challenging for them.

Moreover, blind individuals’ dependence on guide dogs far exceeded that of ordinary pets. When the guide dog passed away, many people fell into deep sorrow from which they couldn’t escape.

Robotic dogs didn’t have these issues. They were mechanical products. They might break, need part replacement, or even factory repair, but in terms of lifespan… Who knows who will outlive whom?

When Star’s robotic guide dog series was first released, people were surprised to find many blind individuals walking with D1 series robotic dogs on the streets.

Regardless of the country, there were quite a few blind individuals for various reasons. They simply didn’t go out often because it was too dangerous.

And precisely because blind individuals appeared more frequently, people gradually understood the economic sacrifice Sheng Quan made by lowering the price of D1.

Sheng Quan: No, not at all; I’m rolling in money.

She had indeed made a fortune recently.

The D1 series, after deducting costs and labor, barely made any profit. But the other series had a different story!

Anyway, she seized a point: the practical D1 could be as cheap as possible, but for other series with more entertainment features, they had to be expensive—not just expensive, but also limited in quantity.

This might sound like a reverse operation, but the effect was remarkably significant.

The reasonably priced D1 maintained stable sales. Most customers needed careful consideration before purchasing. However, for the entertainment-oriented robotic dogs, even at a high price, sales continued to rise.

The most expensive D5 series, priced at one million per dog, almost sold out every time it was released due to quantity restrictions and the option for global customers to place orders.

But Sheng Quan also expressed understanding. What made “Interstellar War” the most satisfying was that Tian Ying used powerful effects to show the audience a “real” future world from the beginning.

And in the modern world of three thousand years ago, set fifty years in the future from the real world, some technologies that people currently possess or will soon possess were vividly displayed in the movie, almost perfectly evoking people’s longing for powerful technology.

At this moment, the robotic dogs that appeared in the movie demonstrated their might.

The more the movie became a global sensation, the more sales of Star’s robotic guide dog series soared.

This might be the most expensive and also the best-selling “merchandise” in history.

While Sheng Quan was making big profits, not everyone felt, “Good for you, Sheng Dong, you deserve to get rich.” It was fine in Huaxia because of the “low price” of the D1 series, and the people had a very favorable impression of Star.

Even those without blind family members admitted that Sheng Quan’s actions were worthy of admiration.

But media from other countries that didn’t enjoy this benefit didn’t see it the same way.

They felt that blind people buying robotic guide dogs was understandable. After all, blind individuals who have more convenient and efficient assistance products shouldn’t be obstructed by anyone. Their main points were: “Choosing to purchase expensive mechanical products for companionship and entertainment solely because of the popularity of a movie, is it a result of the public being swayed by public opinion?”

In other words, “Interstellar War” became so popular that fans were mindlessly buying “merchandise” regardless of the price. On the other hand, from the perspective of Star, who sells entertainment-oriented robotic dogs at such high prices, wasn’t this just profiting? The guide dogs for the blind could be sold so cheaply in their own country; why could the “merchandise” for pets be so expensive?

Just as these questioning reports had been circulating for about half a month, an incident occurred in Country A.

A middle-aged man with antisocial personality disorder stormed into a school and indiscriminately shot at students. When he entered a classroom to attack, a teacher’s D3 robotic pet dog blocked a fatal bullet for her.

After scanning and assessing the current situation, the robotic dog tackled the criminal, pinning him down and preventing him from causing further harm to others.

The news shocked the entire country.