Chapter 308

At 7:46, the Living Area's broadcast rang.

"Attention all residents, the originally scheduled Agricultural Technology Expo will open early tomorrow at 9 a. m.; please have relevant teams arrive promptly to debug equipment."

Sha Zhu squatted at the canteen back door eating a sesame cake, hearing the broadcast and almost choking. He patted his chest, stuffed the last bite into his mouth, and hurried back to the Tech District in three quick steps. On the way he met Zhao Yang emerging from the greenhouse, holding a palm-sized black box, walking while looking down at the screen.

"Did you hear that?" Sha Zhu asked, out of breath, "It's moved up?"

Zhao Yang nodded: "Just got the notice, saying the Ministry of Agriculture experts temporarily adjusted their schedule, arriving at eight this morning."

"Eight o'clock?!" Sha Zhu stamped his foot, "My robot's arms were only welded last night past midnight! The battery isn't fully charged yet!"

"What's the rush." Zhao Yang shoved the box into his arms, "Just plug this in first—the emotion resonator is already calibrated, just plug and go."

Sha Zhu took the box, turning it over, "Can this thing really tell if the vegetables are thirsty?"

"It's not about hearing, it's reading electrical signals." Zhao Yang said, pushing open the exhibition hall door, "When plants lack water, insufficient light, or root pressure, they produce specific bioelectric fluctuations, just like a person's heartbeat quickens when nervous. Our machine is a 'crop doctor'."

The exhibition hall lights had just come on; several rows of shelves stood neatly, and at the front was a person‑high iron lump—the Agri‑Assist Robot, with a round camera head, a body like an insulated bucket, two thin mechanical legs, and rubber‑covered feet to avoid crushing seedlings.

Sha Zhu pressed the black box against the robot's chest with a "click" sound effect locking in. The screen lit up, displaying: "Emotion perception module activated."

"Not bad." He exhaled, casually patted the robot's shoulder, "Today you'd better pull through—don't conk out after just two hops."

Zhao Yang opened the control panel, linked to the tomato plants in the greenhouse. The screen instantly showed a smooth waveform.

"Look, this is normal." He pointed at the curve, "If it's hungry or thirsty, the line jumps up like a puffed‑up cat."

Sha Zhu leaned in: "What's it thinking about right now?"

"It says… the sunlight's nice today, it wants to bask a bit."

"Hey, that's pretty enjoyable." Sha Zhu chuckled.

At 8:05 a. m., the exhibition hall door was pushed open; three people in gray jackets entered, the leader about fifty, hair neatly combed, holding a briefcase, his gaze sweeping the room and finally landing on the robot.

"Is this the 'Smart Agri‑Assist System' you reported?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm He Yuzhu—everyone calls me Sha Zhu." He hurried forward, "Are you the Ministry of Agriculture expert? Welcome, welcome!"

"Surname Zhang, Acceptance Team." The expert nodded, opened his notebook, "First, tell me what this machine can actually do."

"Plowing, inspecting, fertilizing, supplemental lighting, pest control—it does it all." Sha Zhu puffed his chest, "The key is, it can 'understand' crops."

"Understand?" Expert Zhang raised his eyebrows, "Can crops even have emotions?"

"Not emotions, but physiological feedback." Zhao Yang interjected, "We've fitted it with an emotion resonator that monitors the plants' stress signals in real time."

Expert Zhang was skeptical: "Then demonstrate one."

"All right." Zhao Yang walked to the control console, "We're now simulating a dry environment, shading for thirty minutes, to see how the machine reacts."

Having said that, he pressed a button; the greenhouse's shade panel slowly closed. On the screen, the previously steady waveform began to tremble, its amplitude gradually increasing.

"See that? The tomatoes are panicking." Sha Zhu pointed at the screen, "Their heart rate is spiking."

"Isn't this just data fluctuation?" a young expert muttered quietly.

"Then let's try something concrete." Zhao Yang pressed another key, "Activate the automatic intervention program."

No sooner had he spoken than the robot's eyes flashed, its wheels turned, and it rolled straight to the mock field, raised its mechanical arm, opened the small light on its head, and shone it on a leaf. Then its rear speaker softly played the tune of "Jasmine," drifting out gently.

"Is it playing music?" Expert Zhang stared, stunned.

"It's for soothing." Zhao Yang explained, "Experiments show that calming melodies help plant electrical signals recover faster."

Sure enough, the jittery line on the screen gradually smoothed out.

Expert Zhang stared for half a minute, then suddenly laughed: "Interesting, but does this prove it 'understands'?"

"There's another trick." Sha Zhu grinned, leaned into Zhao Yang's ear, and whispered something.

Zhao Yang hesitated: "That's not in the plan."

"Give it a try!" Sha Zhu winked, "If it works, it'll be a blast!"

Zhao Yang shook his head, but still tapped the keyboard, entering a new command.

"Preset action: when the system detects that the crops have recovered health, execute celebratory behavior."

The robot paused for a second, then suddenly lifted both arms high, raised its left leg, twisted its right, and burst into a rice‑planting dance in place—its camera head opening and closing like a drumbeat, its mechanical legs pumping, rhythm spot‑on, ending with a spin that nearly toppled it.

The whole venue fell silent for two seconds, then burst into laughter.

Expert Zhang laughed hardest, leaning on the desk and slapping his thigh: "Oh my goodness! This farm machine can even breakdance?"

"This is human‑machine emotional interaction design!" Sha Zhu stood straight, dead serious, "Work should be done earnestly, and joy should be expressed too, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" someone nearby replied, "When we harvest corn later, does it still have to sing the two lines 'Sister, you sit at the bow'?"

The laughter grew louder.

Expert Zhang wiped the corner of his eye, took a deep breath, finally suppressed his laugh, though the corners of his mouth were still upturned. He closed the notebook and said to the accompanying staff, "Record this: the system's response is sensitive, the feedback mechanisms are varied, and control is stable." After a pause, he added, "It is highly innovative, and the human‑machine interaction design has promotional value."

He turned his head toward Sha Zhu and asked, "Kid, can this thing really go underground?"

"Concrete, mud, sand—anywhere it can run." Sha Zhu slapped his chest, "Waterproof, shock‑proof, and even a stupid donkey can't step on it."

"Alright." Expert Zhang extended his hand, "Here's the preliminary approval letter; I'll send it to your email later."

The two shook hands as sparse applause began to ripple.

A reporter suddenly emerged from somewhere, hoisting a camera and pushing forward: "Engineer Zhao Yang! Could you explain the principle of the emotional resonator?"

Zhao Yang was just about to speak when his phone vibrated. He pulled it out, and the Screen lit up, displaying a meeting invitation:

【Global Technology Summit·Metaverse Venue】

Time: Tomorrow 10:00

Identity verification in progress…

He remained silent, tightened his grip on the phone, and looked up at the ceiling lights of the exhibition hall.

Sha Zhu was still gesturing to the reporter, "Next time we can teach it to dance Latin, give it an international flair!"

"We'd have to learn not to split ourselves apart by doing a split jump first," Zhao Yang said softly.

Sha Zhu turned back and glared at him, "What did you say?"

"I said," Zhao Yang smiled, "the folk dance is pretty good, down-to-earth."

As Expert Zhang walked out of the exhibition hall, he glanced back. The robot had already stopped its dance, stood neat and proper at the edge of the field, its camera head slowly turned, scanning the next plant.

Sunlight slanted in from the high window, falling on its glossy shoulder.