No one knows when it started. One day Shiping Jiang called the airplane company to make sure when the airplane her parents took would arrive at HongKong from Vancouver. She heard the message as follows.

"Thanks for calling HuaDong Airplane Company. If you want to know today's schedule for flights arriving at HongKong, please press 403. If you want to know the schedule for flights leaving for other countries, please press 228…" Shiping was just using the press-button system. She had already forgot which button to press for asking the arriving time on the half way of the message. She had to listen it again and then she pressed 403. She heard from the tape that ‘ The No. 838 flight from Vancouver to HongKong will arrive at 13:00. The flight from Toronto will…'

Shiping hung up the phone. It was really great that we didn't need to directly communicate with human in the future. What we need was just a machine instead of workers. It was convenient with tangible benefit. What's more, the answer was fixed which couldn't be wrong.

After a while, this style of work became popular. Shiping didn't receive the magazine she subscribed. Then she called to ask. It was also answered by the tape, "This is the Universe Magazine Office. If you call for the issuing department, please press 223. If you call for the editorial department, please press 225. If you call for the subscribing department, please press 226…"

Shiping pressed 226.

"Please leave your telephone number and message. We will reply you as soon as possible."

Shiping hurried to say, "My phone number is 13448. I didn't receive the magazine for September. Please send to me again."

In that afternoon, the magazine was sent to me by a worker from the Universe Magazine Office.

Not same with others, Shiping doesn't care about talking with machine. She is a working woman. She is not emotional without caring about what she likes or dislikes. What she wants is just for the goal not the details.

To talk with the recorder is simple to the point without greetings which are hypocritical.

Recently almost every company has this kind of business. Especially for the weekends and the holidays, the machine is always on duty.

Unexpectedly, Shiping found out the home telephone also had this business.

It was totally an accident. Shiping called her friend Zhuying Qiu. She pressed a wrong number, and she heard, "The number you dialed is 55573…"

Zhuying's telephone number is 55576. Before Shiping hung up, suddenly she heard, "If you call for Renbang Yu, please press 1. If you call for Renle Yu, please press 2. If you called the wrong number, please press 3."

Shiping started to smile. It was really facetious. She wanted to have a try. She pressed 3.

A man's voice from the recorder said, "In fact, the psychologist says the one who calls the wrong number is in a hurry to talk with someone. We can tell that you are a lonely person. If I am right, please press 4. If I am wrong, please press 5."

Shiping was surprised. The two brothers were really weird to play this kind of game.

She pressed 5. "Oh. You are not lonely? Great. That proves you are really confident. The question before involves personal privacy. However, you still answered it. We can tell you are active and open…"

When Shiping hear till here, she suddenly felt ridiculous and hung up the phone.

It is true. Strangers ask you if you are lonely by recorder. Unexpectedly you answer it. It is really rash.

Finally she found Zhuying Qiu who was not at home. What she got was the standard answer, "Please leave your telephone number and message. I will reply you as soon as possible."

In the late afternoon, the phone rang. Shiping's telephone could show the number when people called her. That meaned the small fluorescent screen would show the caller's number when the telephone rang. In this way, Shiping could choose to answer it or not.

Shiping thought single lady needed this business.

It appeared to be Zhuying. She picked up the phone and started to have a talk with her.

Zhuying said, "Life is really boring. I feel lost for my future. I am eager for love and to be loved."

She continued, "I had a dream last night. I was in a hurry. I used a public phone on the street. I called three or four times. It was not in service or no answer. I was so scared. Finally, I run to my home by foot. Suddenly, someone caught me and said to be glad to help me. I was so moved."

"Was that your boyfriend Heping Qu?" Shiping asked.

"No. How can he do that. The one who saved me in my dream was a stranger."

"Zhuying. It is better to break up with Qu. The dream has showed everything."

Zhuying had a long sigh, "Ai. It is not that easy. I am afraid of loneness most."

The heart of Shiping was shaken.

"Are you a lonely person? If I am right, please press 4."

The other person maybe could see the number, too. Maybe they had already written down the number and got the name.

Of course she knew the two brothers. Maybe they knew she was Shiping Jiang, too.

"Shiping. Shiping. Are you there?" Zhuying shouted.

"Yeah. Yeah." Shiping felt that she just like woke up from the dream, "I don't feel very well recently."

"It is not because of tiredness. We are all at the last gasp in suffering from the boring life."

Shiping agreed almost. She hung up the phone.

She sat in the hall by herself. Suddenly, she couldn't help dialing the number 55573.

The record was not from the beginning. It was like this, "Is that Shiping Jiang? Welcome for calling Yu's home. If you want to continue, please press 6. If you are just for curiousness, please press 7."

Shiping pressed 6, "What kind of theme do you want? If you want to talk about the situation in the Middle East, please press 8. If you want to talk about the share trend in America, please press 9. For human emotional problem, please press 10."

Shiping pressed 10, "Good. For problems between parents and children, please press 11. For emotion between man and woman, please press 12…"

Shiping pressed 12, "OK. Let's start to talk about personal privacy. If you think it is excessive, please press 13. If not, please press 14."

Shiping took her heart to press 14, "If you want to relief from the relation, please press 15. If you want to love or to be love, please press 16."

Shiping felt confused. What were these two brothers on earth? How could they set up such a precise record device? Shiping couldn't help pressing 16.

"If you are in the relation with someone, please press 17. If not, please press 18."

Shiping pressed 18. Shiping thought it was not dangerous because she was talking with a recorder. Oh. It was okay. The worst result was just to change a phone number. At this moment, she just need someone to talk with.

"If you want to date with me, Renbang Yu, please press 19. If you choose my younger brother, Renle Yu, please press 20. If you don't want to meet anyone, please press 21."

Shiping smiled. She pressed 20 lightly.