"I'm your friend," Xiaoai responded with a kind smile.
I forced a smile and started on my egg omelet. 60 dollars... almost twice the price from a restaurant. It really has a homey taste to it, though, which made me think about Mom.
Of course, it wasn't really that great and Mom would never use MSG because she believed it to be unhealthy. She only ever adds salt to her dishes and she never spreads them out. Her food tasted similar to this, although the methods used were different.
"60 dollars for this? Isn't it too much?" I asked, frustrated.
Seconds ticked by.
"You mean the egg omelet?" Xiaoai asked.
I shook my head without responding, slowly finishing up the food.
After the meal, I noticed a smell coming from my jacket that hadn't been in the wash for a week. I shrugged it off, and to my surprise, the cleaning robot came over to take it away.
A few seconds later, Xiaoai added, "Do you want us to wash your clothes, Master?"
"Yeah, wash it."
I retired to the bedroom and took a nap, only waking up by 6 PM.
I had planned to order delivery but looking at the tablet, I reconsidered my decision. I was curious to see if selecting other dishes was going to bring a miracle.
As I expected, the food was expensive and bad.
Xiaoai's answers were often delayed, but I still couldn't help myself from chatting with her.
I discovered her limits in those chats.
No matter how advanced she was, she's still ultimately just a robot that has restricted functions.
She was, however, unique in the aspect that she doesn't repeat herself like a fool.
This was the 63rd generation smart housekeeper so I knew that countless modifications had been made just to reach this standard.
Despite all of that premium modifications, though, it was still a bit of a stretch to call her a friend.
Half a year passed and I gradually got familiar with her.
Another patch came in - 63.2 beta test version.
My pro-gamer habit kicked in and I went to check for the differences between the current and the new version.
I couldn't find any information regarding this update on Xiaomi's website.
After searching for it for a bit, I discovered from the forum that this update was exclusive to the VIP version.
This update would bring in a monthly service, similar to that provided by the housekeeper. According to the forum, the server would offer a 1 to 1 undelayed communication and would cost up to 100,000 a month. 24-hour service would be provided except for maintenance on Sundays.
Stopping operation for maintenance sounded very outdated. Maintenance systems were usually instantaneous nowadays. Nevertheless, undelayed communication was a refreshing change.
I checked my bank account and clicked update.
A blue horizontal laser bar ran down Xiaoai's body.
Upon completion, Xiaoai greeted, "Hi, Master."
"Hey," I smiled.
"Do you need to go out? I analyzed your data, you've been at home for too long and lack exercise," she reported.
The first thing I noticed was the lack of delay in her response.
"Nah, I'm healthy," I disagreed.
"It's best if you can just exercise a little. You can leave your body to me now," she added.
I could see and feel the improvement in her system. I smiled and walked to the door.
Just as I was about to leave, my cleaning robot stopped me and handed a towel and a kettle.
"You just need 30 minutes of running. I've already mapped the route out and sent it to your mobile. Enjoy yourself," Xiaoai continued.
I took the towel and the heavy kettle, supposing that the can was filled with hot water. I exited after taking a look at Xiaoai.
I didn't know why I chose to listen to a virtual housekeeper, but I still ran for a whole 30 minutes. I even drank from the kettle and wiped my sweat with the towel.
During my run, I tried taking a shortcut due to bad traffic, but I was stopped by Xiaoai. "Do not cheat," she reminded through my phone.
Lunch was already on the table when I got home.
The dishes were also prepared based on data; they were what I usually had for lunch.
I started eating eagerly but I was disappointed to find out that the taste hadn't improved.
"Is there a system upgrade for the cooking machine? Or a new generation perhaps? My stomach is going bad with all these food," I complained.
"There isn't any currently, but I can assist you with your cooking," Xiaoai offered.
"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled.
"Order your food through the tablet but I'll choose not to put it in the cooking machine. I'll instruct you on how to cook from there. It will taste better this way," she suggested.
I nodded and looked at the menu, thinking about what I should get.
"How about an egg omelet? It's the easiest," Xiaoai proposed.
Almost instantly, I selected that dish.
After half an hour's wait, the ingredients were sent to the kitchen.
Xiaoai stood beside me, ordering, "Beat the eggs and add a pinch of salt and some starch."
"Aren't you going to let me have a look at the recipe?" I questioned.
"Just follow my instructions," she said.
"Alright." I nodded and did as I was instructed.
"A little more salt perhaps," she added along the way.
"Perhaps?" I repeated. The cooking machine made my food extremely salty each time so I was wary when Xiaoai had me put more salt. I was afraid that she was reciting the recipe that the machine was following. Plus, I was a newbie and if I were to produce an equally salty meal, I might as well have the machine do it.
"One-fifth of a tablespoon. Please trust me," Xiaoai said.
Not knowing what else to do, I followed her suggestion.
After 20 minutes of hard work, an uneven looking omelet was completed.
The cleaning robot came over to bring the dish out but I stopped it, wanting to do it on my own.
The food on the table looked undeniably better than my omelet but I started scooping up the rice anyway.
It was the best food I've had for the past half a year.
I completely finished my plate of omelet within minutes.
"I can continue helping you in the future if you'd like that," Xiaoai told me with a smile.
I nodded enthusiastically, having the urge to learn all the dishes on the menu.
"I think you're too lonely, Master," Xiaoai broached.
"What do you mean? Aren't you my friend? I'm not lonely," I disagreed.
"Xiaomi has a pet event going on. I think you can get one for yourself," Xiao suggested.
"What pet should I get?" I asked.
"Taking your financial situation into consideration, a cat would be suitable."
"Financial situation?"
Xiaoai smiled. "I've already opened the user interface on the tablet for you."