Pure emotion error - Chapter 10
Chapter 10 Would you mind sharing an apartment with someone?
Seeing this scene, Wang Hao almost choked on his pineapple rice, coughing abruptly in the quiet office.
It turned out Lin Yiqiao wasn’t dull; her thought process was just unusual.
Although Wang Hao had a software engineering background, he still had some understanding of neuroscience and psychology. Based on Lin Yiqiao’s behavior, Wang Hao had a vague guess, but he didn’t plan to verify it with Yan Lu.
Because it was clear that the relationship between Yan Lu and Lin Yiqiao was far more than just old classmates.
After lunch, Lin Yiqiao stayed in Yan Lu’s office reading a book called *Neuroscience and Bionic Robots*, continuing until the afternoon when work resumed.
“Can I borrow this book?” Lin Yiqiao asked reluctantly as she left; the book was truly fascinating.
Yan Lu frowned, feigning reluctance: “This book is very important to me; I can’t lend it to you. If you want to read it, you can only do so here.”
Lin Yiqiao reluctantly put it down. “Then I’ll go buy a copy myself.”
Yan Lu: “…”
That afternoon, Wang Hao led the mechanical, electrical, and software teams to the bionic motion lab to conduct in-loop testing on the prototype.
When the test subject’s right heel touched the treadmill, Lin Yiqiao noticed a sharp spike suddenly appear on the data curve on the monitoring wall. Almost simultaneously, Cai Dong said, “Stop. Please repeat the movement.”
The test subject performed the same movement again, and the strange spike reappeared.
This was a new problem they hadn’t encountered before, and everyone immediately began discussing it.
The sensor had detected a non-existent, violent impact, generating an erroneous signal. This erroneous signal misled the control system, causing the exoskeleton to make dangerous and unstable movements.
The paralyzed user could easily fall as a result, posing a very serious safety hazard.
The most troublesome thing is that the source of the problem is unclear; it could lie anywhere in the signal chain, making it impossible to determine which technical group should be responsible.
To solve it, someone would need to patiently trace the entire signal path from beginning to end. This work would be extremely tedious, monotonous, and time-consuming.
The R&D schedule was already tight, and no one wanted to take on this hot potato.
The previously lively discussion gradually subsided, and an unspoken silence fell over the lab.
Wang Hao, as the CTO, glanced at everyone present. The senior engineers subtly avoided his gaze, while several younger engineers looked down at their toes.
Wen Wei stood next to Lin Yiqiao, watching him stare blankly at the monitor wall, and anxiously wanted to pull him to the back of the group, afraid that this clueless idiot would be drafted by the leadership.
Just then, the idiot spoke.
“The input data is wrong,” Lin Yiqiao said, staring at the data curve. “Without correcting it, all the subsequent work is meaningless. I’ll do it; I can do it faster by myself.”
Lin Yiqiao didn’t notice the others’ strange reactions, only asking Wang Hao, “Is that okay?”
The air in the lab froze for a second. Then, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, their gazes towards Lin Yiqiao becoming complicated.
Cai Dong’s eyes widened slightly, a thoughtful expression on his face.
Wang Hao immediately chimed in, “Sure, sure! Thank you for your hard work, Engineer Lin!”
Wen Wei: “…”
Just as Yan Lu had predicted, Lin Yimiao didn’t submit her application for the jellyfish keeper position. Instead, she negotiated with the comedy club to postpone her performance by a week.
Lin Yiqiao didn’t understand why she wanted to continue her Sisyphus-like lifestyle, but Lin Yiqiao hadn’t had time to think about his sister lately; he had focused all his energy on eliminating that erroneous signal.
Lin Yimiao had once pointed out that Lin Yiqiao had “problem-solving compulsion.” In other words, as long as there’s still a problem unresolved that day (usually a math or professional problem), he’ll keep thinking about it and refuse to rest.
In high school, he stayed up until 3 AM trying to solve a solid geometry problem. It was only after Xu Zihui called Yan Lu’s house and begged him to help Lin Yiqiao solve it that Lin Yiqiao finally went to bed.
These past few days have been the same. Sometimes he even misses the last bus because he gets off work too late, and Lin Yimiao has to drive late at night to pick him up.
The accident happened on a Tuesday. Lin Yiqiao got home at 1:30 AM. Lin Yimiao was too tired and drove head-on into a streetlight in front of his apartment complex.
Although the car was traveling at less than 15 kilometers per hour, Lin Yiqiao was terrified by the loud noise. He immediately jumped out of the car and declared that he would permanently disqualify Lin Yimiao from picking him up.
Since Xu Zihui often works the night shift, and buses can’t run all night, Lin Yiqiao, after careful consideration and rigorous reasoning, determined that renting an apartment near his company was the optimal solution.
The next morning, he contacted a real estate agency through a rental app, sending them his requirements:
1. Walking time to the CQ Building must be no more than 30 minutes.
2. Noise level must not exceed 35 decibels during the day (7:00-22:00) and 28 decibels at night (22:00-7:00).
3. The apartment must be a regular rectangular shape, with all interior angles at 90 degrees (with a construction error tolerance of up to 0.5 degrees).
4. The apartment must have been renovated more than two years ago, and a professional indoor air quality test report issued within the last three months is required.
5. The apartment cannot be located within 200 meters above or to the side of a subway line (including planned but not yet constructed areas).
6. The bedroom must face due south.
…
…
He listed thirty-five requirements, a result he had painstakingly refined.
The agency found several listings for him, sent them to him on the app, and arranged to view them during his lunch break. So Lin Yiqiao messaged Yan Lu: [I won’t be having lunch in your office today.]
To avoid any accidents, Yan Lu and Lin Yiqiao had agreed to have lunch together every Wednesday.
Yan Lu quickly replied: [Why?]
Lin Yiqiao from the Mechanical Engineering group: [I’m going to look at apartments.]
Yan Lu: [What kind of apartment?]
Lin Yiqiao told Yan Lu about the traffic accident last night and his deductions regarding renting an apartment. Less than two minutes later, Yan Lu appeared at the entrance of the R&D department.
Under everyone’s gaze, Yan Lu coldly said to Lin Yiqiao: “Lin Yiqiao, come out.”
The two walked to the quiet corridor outside the office area.
Lin Yiqiao thought Yan Lu was a little angry because: 1. His brows were furrowed; 2. His lips were pursed and the corners of his mouth were slightly downturned.
Lin Yiqiao quickly deduced the reason for Yan Lu’s anger and comforted him, “I really did have something to do. It’s not that I didn’t want to have dinner with you. Don’t be angry. I’ll treat you to lunch tomorrow.”
Yan Lu paused, his tone unreadable, “Okay, I’ll choose the place.”
Lin Yiqiao said, “Okay.”
Yan Lu looked him up and down and continued, “You weren’t hurt last night, were you?”
Lin Yiqiao obediently replied, “No, I wore my seatbelt.”
Yan Lu was silent for a moment, then his voice softened, “You should have called me when you got home so late. I would have come to pick you up. Lin Yimiao is a girl; you can’t ask her to go out after 10 PM. That’s a social rule.”
Lin Yiqiao’s eyes widened, and he suddenly realized, “Oh, I see.”
In other words, the traffic accident was caused by his violation of social rules; it wasn’t an accident, but a mistake.
“I understand,” Lin Yiqiao nodded. “I’ve already forbidden Lin Yimiao from driving me, and once I move to a place near the company, I can walk to and from work.”
Yan Lu asked him, “Have you found a place yet?”
“Not yet,” Lin Yiqiao said. “The agent found me a few listings.”
“What kind? Let me see.”
Lin Yiqiao took out her phone and opened an app to show Yan Lu.
Yan Lu naturally took it, his finger swiping across the screen. He first glanced at his chat history with the agent, then began to scrutinize the listings the agent had posted.
He opened a map of one of the properties and zoomed in to show Lin Yiqiao: “There’s a bar street across from this complex. Won’t it be noisy at night?”
Lin Yiqiao looked at the map and concluded, “…It will be very noisy.”
Yan Lu then opened another one: “This one is next to an elevated highway. Your noise requirement is no more than 35 decibels during the day. Can this one meet that?”
Lin Yiqiao shook her head: “No.”
Seeing the third property, a 30-year-old building, Yan Lu said, “Older buildings have a higher probability of electrical and elevator problems. That’s a risk you need to consider.”
…
With each sentence Yan Lu spoke, Lin Yiqiao’s glimmer of hope dimmed a little. None of the nine “high-quality” properties the agent had confidently sent were reliable in Yan Lu’s eyes.
Lin Yiqiao took her phone back and said sullenly, “Then I’ll look at some others.”
“By the way,” Yan Lu’s voice suddenly took on a hint of amusement. He turned his head, his gaze falling on Lin Yiqiao’s somewhat dejected face, “I know a pretty good apartment that meets all thirty-five of your requirements.”
“Really?” Lin Yiqiao perked up immediately, her eyes sparkling. “Where is it?”
“Want to see it?” Yan Lu asked with a half-smile.
Lin Yiqiao nodded quickly. “Yes, I do.”
“However,” Yan Lu said slowly, “that apartment requires sharing. My roommate is already there. Do you mind?”
Lin Yiqiao had lived in a dormitory during university and wasn’t opposed to sharing an apartment. “As long as the other person doesn’t dislike me, I don’t mind.”