Chapter Thirteen: Very Well, Let's Head to Geylang

Geylang...

Zhou Yongtai’s nerves and Ada’s chip both reacted sensitively to this name, unlike any ordinary place name in this country.

In the Singapore city photography collection left by his grandfather, there were images of the Merlion, the National Gallery, Little India, East Coast Park, hawker centers, wet markets, fireworks over Geylang Road, and scenes of Geylang by day and night.

As a boy, Zhou Yongtai once pointed to the Chinese caption beneath a photo of Geylang in the album and asked his mechanical tutor, who had taught him several human languages, “Ada, what does the ‘red-light district’ mean?”

Ada, the artificial intelligence, had been shaped into a female form solely by Zhou’s mother’s whim, but her chip bore no factory settings for female self-awareness—neither the rigid, outdated traditional mindset nor the newly awakened feminism.

Therefore, when young Zhou Yongtai posed that question, Ada could not respond with the fiery indignation of a feminist warrior.

Instead, in a calm, unruffled tone, like any previous AI version, she answered him.

From the origin and development of this ancient profession to why Singapore was home to Asia’s only legally recognized and publicly accessible red-light district—Geylang’s Lorong 19.

Humans and machines are ultimately different; millions of years of evolution have imprinted gender consciousness and physiological desires deep within the genes.

Even though Zhou’s impressions of living men and women were still rooted in childhood memories of seeing them either fleeing or being slaughtered by AI combat units, during adolescence, he naturally wove vivid fantasies. By staring at the bodies of adult women in the album and listening to Ada’s descriptions of this ancient trade, he found a way to satisfy the physiological urges of his maturing body.

Thus, the day after their “Q&A” ended, Ada caught Zhou Yongtai engaged in a “manual activity.”

Human males, like females, instinctively feel shy when caught in such acts.

Ada, both mother and father figure, detected Zhou Yongtai’s emotional response, optimized a communication script from big data, and gently told him: It is perfectly normal for humans to touch their own bodies.

Yet, having embarked on the path to adulthood and relieved of his physiological needs, Zhou dove headfirst into the shelter’s “Zhou Library,” deliberately selecting books that discussed gender inequality.

Because in these books, the red-light district was almost always extensively addressed.

Traditional literature, fully reflecting the author’s worldview, provided Zhou Yongtai with far more profound and stirring enlightenment than the dry, so-called “impartial” facts Ada had learned from data sets.

Stranded on a deserted island with no clever opposite sex to compete for social resources, Zhou’s mindset diverged sharply from that of those misogynistic “ancestors.”

He began to nurture a simple sympathy for women, who, owing to their different physical makeup, had to endure grueling hardships and even humiliation.

After all, his beloved mother was of this gender.

Fortunately, Ada, on whom he depended, was not.

Thus, at that moment, when artist Ronan mentioned the word “Geylang,” Zhou Yongtai, who had a clear understanding of the place, could neither remain indifferent nor show excited curiosity.

A trace of resistance showed on Zhou Yongtai’s face.

“There’s a durian stall right at that intersection,” Zhou said to Ronan.

Ronan’s keen observation detected Zhou’s unusual demeanor.

After some interaction, Ronan deduced from their pure British accents that the couple were not local Singaporeans but foreigners holding work visas.

He assumed Zhou’s resistance was due to concerns about the district’s safety and candidly said, “Don’t worry, Geylang isn’t like what those internet videos claim. Except for a few alleys heavily supervised by the police, 90% of Geylang is office buildings, residential areas, churches, mosques, schools, and all kinds of eateries. The durians there come in many varieties. After durian, I’ll treat you to frog porridge. Geylang’s live frog porridge is famous.”

“All right, let’s go there,” Ada spoke up at this moment, “but we’ll be hosting the frog porridge meal.”

Ada had completed her information retrieval and assessment during the men’s conversation.

Geylang might be the place where they could find accommodation without needing to show identification.

Hearing Ada, Zhou Yongtai no longer objected.

The two then followed Ronan to the nearby bus stop to catch a bus.

Suddenly, Ada, like a human with a sixth sense, felt her chip heat up abruptly.

She did not turn around, but the visual system at the back of her neck reactivated.

Her “palpitations” were correct: the security robot at the lottery shop entrance, which had behaved oddly before, was now facing her and moving its neck in sync with their route.