Did Chu Kuang release a short story?
Upon receiving this notification, many fans' initial reaction was - -.
Did Chu Kuang release a fan fiction of "Net King" on the Tribe?
Such thoughts were normal.
Some authors liked to use the Tribe to publish free extras they hadn't intended to publish officially, and to interact with readers.
However, Chu Kuang was obviously not one to engage much with fans.
As everyone entered the Tribe following the push, they realized that it was nothing special at all; Chu Kuang had simply written a micro-fiction.
"It would have been great if it were an extra from 'Net King'."
At this point, "The King of Nets" had reached its second volume, and the fan base was still quite large. Many were disappointed to find that it wasn't an extra.
For example, Zhu Ming, a high school student in the mountain city of Qinzhou, was a big fan of the novel "The King of Nets".
"You should read more substantial books."
Zhu Ming's sister, Zhu Hui, always opposed her younger brother's penchant for youth fantasy novels, so she took the opportunity to scold him.
Zhu Hui harbored a bias against youth fantasy novels.
She had read this genre before, where the protagonist would often travel to another world, surrounded by a bevy of beautiful girls every day, and ultimately all the girls would become the protagonist's wives. Occasionally, the text contained some adult content...
"I've told you before."
Her younger brother retorted, "The King of Nets" is different from those novels. It's about tennis. Professional players say it's really good. Many girls also enjoy this novel."
"Is that so?"
Zhu Hui was skeptical.
She sat in front of the computer, her brother's Tribe account logged in: "Didn't you say Chu Kuang just posted a short story? He's your favorite writer. I want to see what he wrote."
"Short stories aren't youth fantasy novels."
"As long as they're written by the same person."
"Then you read 'Net King', I have a physical copy."
"Don't bother, sometimes you can understand a person through their words." Zhu Hui said this and opened the short story titled "Artificial Beauty" and began reading.
The content was indeed brief.
The story begins with a bar owner seeing his bar on the brink of closure and desperately creating a beautiful robot that could accompany guests for drinks. Since this robot girl determined the fate of the bar, the owner took great pains to ensure she was beautifully and convincingly crafted.
Her porcelain-like skin was unmatched by any young woman's, so lifelike that it could fool anyone.
People who didn't know the truth would think it was the most delicate skin they had ever seen!
When customers saw the young and beautiful girl behind the bar counter, they flocked to greet her.
When asked her name and age, she could still respond with a smile, but if asked anything further, she couldn't answer.
Yet, no one realized she was a robot.
Thus, the bar gained popularity.
More and more people frequented the bar, inviting this beauty for drinks.
The boss stood behind the counter, occasionally squatting down to collect wine from the plastic tube at the feet of the robot beauty, then selling it to customers fairly.
The customers remained oblivious to this secret.
["This girl looks young and can hold her liquor well. I imagine she must be in great health and won't pester the guests. Whenever the guests ask her to drink, she always obliges, yet never gets drunk.]
Customers pondered.
Zhu Hui in front of the computer was somewhat surprised.
Chu Kuang's imagination was rather intriguing.
There seemed to be a hint of irony in the text, suggesting that people only focused on appearances and didn't care about substance at all, hence why they admired a beautiful robot without exercising any critical judgment.
But how would the story progress?
As this thought crossed her mind, Zhu Hui saw the following text:
[Among these customers, there was a young man who fell in love with the beautiful robot lady at first sight. He went to this bar every day to invite the robot lady for drinks. Despite his persistent efforts to court Miss Booker, it was all in vain. Undeterred, he pursued Miss Booker even more fervently, ordering only the most expensive wine in the bar, and even depleting his savings entirely.
This paragraph was also somewhat ironic, with a touch of inexplicable practical significance.
The young man who fell in love with Miss Robot, at first sight, was akin to some hapless soul who would squander his savings to reward streamers with instant noodles.
But the story took an unexpected turn.
Could it be that robots were developing human emotions after all?
If that were the case, Zhu Hui would be disappointed.
Because it seemed too commonplace.
She continued reading eagerly: [Ultimately, the young man had to resort to using the money at home when he couldn't afford the alcohol. Annoyed by this, his father reprimanded him: "Never come here again! Stop wasting money at that wretched place! Here, take this money to pay, and remember, this is the last time!"]
The last time. Taking the money, the young man went to the bar. In a farewell gesture, he toasted frequently and invited Miss Robot to drink copiously.
He professed his love once more.
But the robot's mind was empty, like an empty vessel. The seemingly lifeless beauty would only respond according to her preprogrammed language.
The youth didn't receive the response he desired.
[Quietly, he retrieved a deadly poison from his pocket, sprinkled it into a wine glass, then filled another glass with wine and offered it to Miss Robot. He watched as Miss Robot lifted her head, drained the poisoned wine, and fell limp.]
"Too ruthless?"
Zhu Hui in front of the computer suddenly felt her heart race. The ardent alcoholic's love had driven him to kill. Had the robot lady been real, wouldn't she have been poisoned to death by the youth?
She pondered.
But the next paragraph sent shivers down Zhu Hui's spine:
[As the young man left, the boss boisterously addressed the remaining customers: "From now on, drinks are on the house!"]
Though it was a treat, the boss wouldn't suffer. Night after night, no more customers would come, and the liquor the boss poured for everyone was merely the wine reclaimed from the plastic tube at Miss Booker's feet, costing next to nothing.
What!
Almost forgot!
The liquor Miss Robot drank would eventually be recycled by the boss and sold to other customers. Essentially, everyone in the bar that day had imbibed a lethal concoction!
Zhu Hui was deeply moved.
The short story had concluded; the final paragraph read:
[The customers and staff in the bar reveled in merriment. Toasts were exchanged, and drinks were had. Even the boss was swept up in the jovial atmosphere. He slowly raised his glass at the counter and savored his drink.]
All descriptions came to an abrupt halt.
But what happened next needn't be imagined; this was the author's omission, yet it left a more profound impact!
"They're all dead."
This ending took Zhu Hui completely by surprise, prompting her to exclaim, "They're all dead!"
"What?" asked her younger brother, puzzled.
Zhu Hui didn't answer. Instead, she logged into her own Tribe account, followed Chu Kuang, and then said:
"Chu Kuang is a truly talented author. His novels... they're definitely worth reading."