Chapter 88: The Tmall Genie Intelligent Call Assistant Goes Online
In the past two days, Chu Qing and Xie Yunting had finalized the betrothal gifts list. They had also selected the wedding house—a grand villa in City H, very close to H University.
Only now did Chu Qing understand why Xie Sicheng wanted to join Haisheng Group. Chi Wang was only a sophomore, with a birthday on July 6th, making him a Cancer. He would just turn nineteen after completing his postpartum confinement.
It would be two more years before he graduated from H University. Xie Sicheng was graduating this year; joining Haisheng was his best option; otherwise, a long-distance relationship wouldn’t be feasible.
Chu Qing fretted, “He’s already twenty-five weeks along. I remember that babies can be born as early as thirty-seven weeks—they won’t necessarily wait the full ten months. That means the due date is in twelve weeks. We can’t just sit around doing nothing, can we?”
Xie Yunting remained silent; there was no need for him to interject at this moment.
Chu Qing continued, “Although Sicheng asked me not to come over to avoid adding psychological pressure, wouldn’t it be even stranger if I only showed up when Chi Wang is about to give birth?”
“Besides, I can’t suddenly appear to take care of him during his confinement. Would it make sense for a nanny to look after him during that time? As his mother-in-law, shouldn’t I be the one to care for him?”
Xie Yunting finally spoke up, “Chi Wang is a boy. What are you going to take care of?”
Chu Qing retorted, “Then you go take care of him.”
Xie Yunting: “…”
It wouldn’t be appropriate for him either.
Chu Qing insisted, “In any case, we can’t just sit here! We need to take action.”
Xie Yunting suggested, “Then let’s go talk to Xiao Fu about the wedding arrangements.”
Chu Qing felt a bit apprehensive about Xiao Fu. Although he was polite to her, his behavior was always rather extreme, and she knew he didn’t get along well with Sicheng.
This time, Sicheng had gotten his younger brother pregnant; the Xie family was at fault. She didn’t even know how to face Xiao Fu.
Chu Qing said, “Let me ask Sicheng whether Xiao Fu knows about this.”
She called Xie Sicheng, but he didn’t answer. Instead, Chi Wang picked up the phone. “Hello, Xie Sicheng isn’t here right now. Could you call back later?”
Chu Qing: “!”
She pinched her voice and asked, “Where did he go?”
Chi Wang looked at the incoming call display—it was just a string of numbers without a name saved. He continued, “He’s busy at the moment and can’t come to the phone. Or do you have any message? I can tell him when he returns.”
Chu Qing deliberately asked, “And who are you?”
Chi Wang scratched his head. At this time, Xie Sicheng was taking a shower. His phone was casually left on the bed. Seeing it ring, Chi Wang had picked it up.
Since the call had no name saved, Chi Wang wasn’t sure if it was a wrong number. If it was important, not answering wouldn’t be good, so he decided to pick up.
Hearing the person on the other end ask who he was, Chi Wang decided to be playful and replied, “I’m the Tmall Genie Intelligent Call Assistant. May I ask who you are?”1
Chu Qing: “…”
She was amused by Chi Wang and couldn’t stop laughing, making Chi Wang feel a bit embarrassed. He wanted to say it was just a joke, but before he could, Chu Qing responded, “I’m his mother. Didn’t he save my number?”
Chi Wang: “…”
Oh no, it turns out that Sicheng didn’t even save his mother’s contact!
Chi Wang tried to cover for him. “Oh, he did save it—as ‘Empress Mother.'”
Chu Qing: “…”
Alright, clearly, he hadn’t saved it.
Chu Qing said, “Well then, Tmall Genie Intelligent Call Assistant, may I ask if Xie Sicheng has a girlfriend?”
Chi Wang: “…”
She actually believed him?
Chi Wang hesitated for a moment and slowly said, “I think he does.”
Chu Qing pressed, “You think?”
Chi Wang replied, “Since I’m just an AI call assistant, I’m not entirely sure. I suggest you ask him directly.”
Chu Qing: “…”
She laughed heartily. “Alright, I’ll ask him directly then. Well, Call Assistant, I’m hanging up now, okay?”
Chi Wang said, “Alright, bye.”
After Chu Qing hung up, her eyes sparkled as she looked at Xie Yunting. “Did you hear that? Isn’t that child adorable?”
After realizing that it was Chi Wang who had answered the call, she had immediately put it on speaker so that Xie Yunting could hear their future son-in-law’s voice.
Xie Yunting nodded. The voice was fresh and clear, sounding like a young person.
He was also starting to realize that their son had been somewhat beastly.
Chu Qing mimicked Chi Wang’s tone, “I’m the Tmall Genie Intelligent Call Assistant~ Oh my, how can he be so cute, this child!”
She was so happy she couldn’t contain herself. “Look at how at ease he is with everyone. Even when I said I was Sicheng’s mother, he didn’t get nervous and even joked with me. Isn’t he just adorable?”
Xie Yunting: “…Calm down.”
He didn’t quite understand why Chu Qing found it so endearing. He was just surprised to see her so excited, which softened his heart a bit. He insincerely agreed, “Yes, very cute.”
Chu Qing continued, imitating Chi Wang, “I suggest you ask him directly~ He’s just feeling shy. Although he didn’t show it, I could sense he was a bit embarrassed. Can you believe he’s Xiao Fu’s brother? It’s unbelievable—they are complete opposites. How could Yang Qingdai give birth to such a child? How is she so capable?”
Xie Yunting: “…”
Calm down, please.
This is going too far. They haven’t even met yet, and she’s already being charmed to the point of fainting.
If they meet in person, will there be any place for him in the family?
*
After hanging up the phone, Chi Wang had no idea that his mother-in-law was on the verge of being charmed to death by him. He just thought he had made a little joke but didn’t expect that the caller was actually Sicheng’s mother, so he didn’t dare clarify.
Chi Wang still felt a bit resistant to meeting the parents. It’s reasonable to be apprehensive, right? After all, everything has a process. How can he have just confirmed his relationship with Sicheng and then meet the parents shortly after?
Although, perhaps he should meet them. If he waits until he’s about to give birth, wouldn’t that be ridiculous?
Well, better to delay it for now.
Chi Wang put down the phone, and not long after, Xie Sicheng came out of the shower. He had washed his hair and spent a long time blow-drying it in the bathroom. When he came out, he hadn’t noticed that Chi Wang had answered a call for him.
It was Chi Wang who brought it up proactively. “Your mom called you just now. I answered it.”
Sitting down on the bed, Sicheng paused upon hearing this and asked, “What did you say to her?”
Chi Wang laughed. “At first, I didn’t even know it was your mom. Why didn’t you save her number?”
Sicheng: “…”
He replied calmly, “There was a time when she liked to call me every day. If I saved her contact, I’d have to answer. Without saving it, I could treat all calls equally.”
Chi Wang: “…”
He gave Sicheng a disapproving look. “Isn’t that just deceiving yourself?”
Sicheng: “…”
He didn’t respond.
Not answering calls was indeed impolite, but during that time, his insomnia was severe, and manners didn’t seem that important.
Sicheng said, “Help me save her contact.”
Chi Wang picked up Sicheng’s phone and added a contact for the number that had just called, labeling it as “Mom.”
Sicheng glanced at it and said, “Delete one character.”
Chi Wang asked, “Why?”
Sicheng: “…Never mind.”
After saving the contact, Chi Wang told him, “She probably needs something from you. You should call her back.”
Sicheng said, “Okay.”
He took his phone and left the room to call Chu Qing back. She answered quickly, “Hello.”
“Do you need something?” he asked.
Chu Qing’s voice still carried traces of excited laughter. “Listen to how you’re talking. Can’t I call even if there’s nothing? Are you with Chi Wang now?”
“Yes.”
“What were you doing just now?”
“Taking a shower.”
Chu Qing continued, “A shower? So, are you two sleeping together?”
“Yes.”
Chu Qing: “…”
Yes, yes, yes—is that all you can say?
Talking to Sicheng drained her enthusiasm, so she got straight to the point. “Does Xiao Fu know that Chi Wang is carrying your child?”
Sicheng paused. “He knows.”
Chu Qing asked, “Have you discussed marriage with Chi Wang?”
Sicheng said, “Let’s not talk about that for now.”
Chu Qing understood. For Chi Wang, marriage might be too soon.
Having gotten her answers, Chu Qing didn’t feel like talking to Sicheng anymore and hung up the phone.
Comparisons are odious. When Sicheng is compared to Chi Wang, he’s utterly dull. Chi Wang is still the adorable one.
After being hung up on by Chu Qing, Sicheng’s brows relaxed a bit. He returned to the room to find Chi Wang doing a handstand on the bed. His two straight legs were propped against the wall at the head of the bed. The hem of his pajamas had slid up to his chest, exposing a large area of snow-white skin, and his round belly was fully visible.
Sicheng: “…”
His pupils contracted sharply, and his heart leaped into his throat.
He strode over without saying a word, kicked off his shoes to climb onto the bed, and grabbed Chi Wang’s ankles to bring him down.
After lowering him, he asked sternly, “Why are you doing such a dangerous move?”
Half of Chi Wang’s body was lying across Sicheng’s lap, his arms still stretched out straight beside his head. His belly was still exposed, and Sicheng reached out to pull down his pajama top, covering his stomach, and gently patted it.
“It’s not dangerous. I know what I’m doing,” Chi Wang said innocently. “I just feel like my limbs are stiff, so I moved a bit. Was my handstand standard?”
He sat up and showed off to Sicheng, lifting his leg up to his ear. “Look, I can still do this.”
Sicheng: “!!”
His pupils shrank again. “Stop that. Doesn’t your stomach feel uncomfortable?”
Chi Wang laughed. “No, it doesn’t! I’m very flexible. See? I didn’t touch the baby.”
There was indeed space in the middle; he hadn’t pressed against his belly.
Chi Wang lowered his leg and then showed Sicheng how flexible his arms were. For example, his thumb could touch his wrist, and his fingers were very nimble, moving like snakes.
But soon he lost interest in demonstrating and wanted to do a somersault on the bed. Before he could, Sicheng held him down.
Sicheng said, “…If you’re really bored, why not play some games?”
Chi Wang thought about it. “Okay.”
He took out two devices and showed Sicheng his multitasking skills, playing a duo match using both his hands and feet.
Sicheng: “…”
It was clear that Chi Wang was bored out of his mind.
Sicheng suddenly said, “Do you want to play golf this weekend?”
Chi Wang was momentarily stunned but managed to carry on a three-way conversation. “At Milky Way?”
Sicheng said, “Yes.”
Chi Wang hadn’t been to the Milky Way Golf Club in a long time. With Sicheng bringing it up, he became interested. “Let’s go!”
He added, “I even took a mentor there. He was quite dedicated to me.”
Seeing his enthusiasm, Sicheng’s brows relaxed a bit. “Then let’s score a hole-in-one and give him a red envelope.”
Chi Wang laughed, “Right! I’ll give my mentor a big red envelope then.”
As they chatted, the game’s kill announcements sounded:
“First Blood!”
“Double Kill!”
Chi Wang’s cheeks flushed with excitement. “Look! I got a double kill!”
He glanced down. It was the hero Lanling King2 that Chi Wang was controlling with his toes, achieving a double kill.
Sicheng: “…”
- Tmall Genie (Ti?n M?o J?ng Líng): A smart speaker and virtual assistant developed by Alibaba, similar to Amazon’s Alexa. Chi Wang is pretending to be an AI assistant.
- Lanling King (Lán Líng Wáng): A hero character from the mobile game King of Glory (also known as Honor of Kings), popular in China.
