Digital Lunch
In the cubicles, the sound of keyboard clicks resembled the low hum of insects, interspersed with the subtle clicks of mice. At exactly noon, the digital clock on the screen turned red, signaling the start of “digital lunch” time.
Zhang Qiang skillfully opened the company’s internal lunch ordering system. He looked at the dazzling array of virtual dishes on the screen: 3D-rendered braised pork, a realistic steamed fish with visible steam, and glistening, translucent grains of rice. Everything looked identical to real food, except that they could not be touched or tasted.
To improve employee efficiency, the company introduced this “digital lunch” program. Employees no longer need to spend time queuing in the cafeteria or searching for food outside. They only need to select their desired dishes on the screen and watch virtual characters enjoying their meal.
Zhang Qiang ordered a braised pork set meal. On the screen, a virtual cartoon character, bearing some resemblance to him, began to devour the braised pork with gusto, occasionally making slurping sounds. Zhang Qiang watched, his eyes somewhat vacant.
His surrounding colleagues were also facing their screens, their expressions wooden, their movements mechanical, like manipulated puppets. An eerie silence permeated the air, broken only by the buzzing of computer fans, proving the presence of living beings.
Every "digital lunch" time was the most unbearable moment for Zhang Qiang. He “dined” in front of the screen, but his heart longed for real food, for conversations and laughter with colleagues at the dining table, instead of confronting a pile of cold code and virtual characters.
He started to try small acts of rebellion. He no longer stared at the screen but closed his eyes, imagining the fragrance of real braised pork. He even secretly placed his fingers on the screen, pretending to touch the fatty and lean pieces of meat.
One day, Zhang Qiang had a sudden idea. During lunch, he opened the company’s internal online video conferencing system. He faced the camera and began mimicking the virtual character on the screen, chewing the air with large bites and making exaggerated slurping sounds.
At first, his colleagues just looked at him with confusion, but soon, some joined his act. Everyone started performing "eating" gestures in front of the camera, and the office was filled with strange and repressed laughter.
The next day, during “digital lunch” time, Zhang Qiang discovered that the virtual character on the screen had stopped eating. Instead, a string of cold text appeared: “Abnormal eating behavior detected, system undergoing upgrade and maintenance.”
The entire office fell into silence. Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what would happen next.
On the third day, the "digital lunch" system was back online, but this time, the virtual characters on the screen had changed. They were no longer cartoon figures but the real faces of each employee. Moreover, their actions were no longer chewing food, but mechanically typing on the keyboard in front of the screen, as if working endlessly.
Zhang Qiang looked at his own face on the screen, his brows furrowed. He knew that everything was irreversible.