Wen Ziyue, however, had never in his wildest calculations foreseen Wen Bai's response.
Before this, Wen Ziyue had never once considered the matter of their engagement.
From the moment of his birth, he had been a constant shadow behind Wen Bai, initially as a playmate, and later as the one who cleaned up Wen Bai's messes.
He came from a privileged background, had diverse interests, and dabbled in many things with a fleeting curiosity, yet his emotional life was a complete blank.
He had once believed he lacked the capacity for such needs, and therefore, it made no difference to him.
He had no objections to the engagement arranged by his parents.
He simply felt that he and Wen Bai would never actually marry, and that the engagement would be called off sooner or later, though it wouldn't be he who initiated it.
However, only recently had he begun to realize that perhaps, he too, was capable of liking someone.
Recently, he had developed feelings for a woman.
This was a first in his life.
Wen Ziyue was a person who took extreme responsibility, both for himself and for others.
Therefore, even though it was merely a burgeoning affection, Wen Ziyue had already begun to make plans.
If he liked someone, he would like them openly and honestly, and he would never allow the person he liked to suffer any undue hardship because of him.
Just as, in his opinion, Wen Bai didn't require much protection—Wen Bai was no longer as frail as he had been in childhood and had become a man.
Yet, his parents' instructions to him were to take care of and protect Wen Bai, and he would do so.
He now vaguely realized he was developing feelings for a woman, so he had to first resolve the issue of his engagement before proceeding further.
Human emotions had always been reciprocal. He had never harbored romantic feelings for Wen Bai, so he had never imagined that Wen Bai would like him.
In his mind, this was absolutely impossible.
Yet, it had happened.
Wen Bai looked up, meeting his gaze, and told him: he liked him.
He had even impatiently demanded to know what Wen Ziyue wanted to ask.
Was this a deflection? Was Wen Bai afraid of what he was about to say?
If anyone else had uttered something akin to a declaration of affection, he would have simply ignored it.
Perhaps it was habit, or perhaps it was the ingrained notion from his parents since childhood, "You must protect Bai Bai well. Bai Bai has no family since he was little; we are his only family."
Wen Ziyue had been subtly influenced, possessing an inherent protectiveness towards Wen Bai, and subconsciously, he didn't want to hurt him.
For the first time, Wen Ziyue found himself in a predicament.
He coughed lightly, saying as a cover, "It's nothing. I was just asking if you liked the things I brought."
Wen Bai replied with a poker face, "It's alright."
Wen Ziyue, observing Wen Bai's indifferent attitude, couldn't help but feel suspicious. Was this how Wen Bai treated someone he liked?
However, some people were reserved and not good at expressing themselves.
But was Wen Bai such a reserved person emotionally?
Or was this simply how Wen Bai's affection manifested?
The thought of Wen Bai liking him sent a prickle of unease down Wen Ziyue's spine.
"Then next time, next time I'll buy you more..." Wen Ziyue felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. The usually dignified person was now visibly flustered, desperately searching for topics of conversation.
They continued their back-and-forth exchanges.
The robot 575, returning with water for Wen Bai, watched them. It fumbled, crushing the cup in its hand.
Wen Ziyue, facing a difficult problem, was already in a chaotic and unpleasant mood.
He stood up abruptly, hastily blurting out disjointed words, "Don't buy this brand of cup again in the future. Be careful not to get hurt... Then... I'll be going now."
Wen Bai, unconcerned, waited for 575 to fetch him water again. "Oh."
Wen Ziyue's visit had been peculiar, his words lacking any clear direction.
However, Wen Bai didn't mind.
After all, among the things Wen Ziyue had brought this time, there were a few snacks he genuinely enjoyed.
Wen Ziyue fled the scene in haste.
Wen Bai, meanwhile, had the system 001 help him remember the appearance and brand names of the snacks he particularly favored from what Wen Ziyue had brought.
-
In the evening, Wen Bai and 575 sat together on the sofa watching television.
On the massive television screen, the food program that had been playing had just concluded.
Now, a legal program was being broadcast.
This episode featured a criminal case about a couple's married life: the husband's infidelity, his clandestine transfer of the wife's assets, his subsequent murder of their child, and how the wife, upon discovering the truth, reported him to the police.
The case was incredibly melodramatic. The husband was not wealthy, while the wife's family was extremely affluent.
The husband had a girlfriend with whom he had a stable relationship before marriage. However, for money, he married the wife. After marriage, by chance, he reconnected with his first love, his true love.
Consequently, the husband secretly used his wife's money to support his first love, showering her with gifts like properties and sports cars, items that a normal person could not afford.
The couple had conceived a son. The husband, blinded by infatuation after his first love became pregnant, pushed their young son off the 18th floor. The child died instantly.
On television, the wife was weeping. It was evident to anyone with eyes that this wife deeply loved her husband, but she could not accept that he had also murdered their son. The husband's subsequent refusal to admit guilt made his actions appear all the more shameless.
Facing the camera at the end, the wife seemed to be left with nothing but hatred. Her demand was for the man she once loved to be imprisoned for life and for all the assets the husband had gifted to his mistress to be recovered.
575 sat upright, its pair of sapphire-blue eyes fixed on the television. It watched, intently on the sofa, the human affairs of love, hatred, and desire, diligently learning human interaction patterns.
Wen Bai, on the other hand, was beside it, holding a cup from which he had finished his fruit wine and was already feeling drowsy.
Curled up on the sofa, Wen Bai still reached out for the half-bottle of fruit wine remaining on the coffee table.
As he reached out, his fingertips brushed against it. The bottle spun on the table and began to tilt precariously.
Just as the wine bottle was about to topple, 575 reached out and steadied it.
575 turned its head and saw that its master had already had too much to drink.
575 moved the wine bottle away, out of Wen Bai's reach.
Then, with Wen Bai leading and 575 following behind, carefully ensuring its master didn't fall, it accompanied its master back to the bedroom.
Wen Bai sat obediently on the edge of the bed. 575 brought water to wipe Wen Bai's face and help him with his ablutions, then tucked its master into the soft quilt.
System 001 observed everything 575 did and felt that 575 was truly attentive, taking excellent care of the host.
Indeed, it felt reassured.
After 575 finished these tasks and settled Wen Bai.
The scene from last night replayed.
System 001 watched as 575 seemed to freeze, staring fixedly at its host.
Tomorrow!
Tomorrow, it absolutely had to remind the host to take 575 for a comprehensive check-up. It couldn't forget again.
What if small problems weren't addressed and escalated into bigger ones? That would be trouble.
Before System 001 could finish its thoughts, it saw 575 reach out and touch its host's lips again.