Chapter 232: Chapter 185: Cutting-edge Summit 2
Kicking someone while they’re down—that was the Big Business Alliance’s style.
Liu Weicai nodded and filled Lin Qi in on some more details. "Chairman Liu has already told you a great deal. The main party that proposed this summit was indeed Si Pharmaceutical. From what I know, Si Pharmaceutical spun off a massive portion of its business and handed it over to the Big Business Alliance’s Permanent Council, paying a price unimaginable to the average person. That’s how they secured the opportunity for this summit."
"Dumping low-end potions, recovering funds, and colluding with other large corporations to wage corporate war—that’s all probably just a pretense, a fig leaf for the Permanent Council."
"And while this summit may look like it’s helping the Si Clan, it’s actually just about redividing the interests in the Asian Administrative Region’s Pharmacy Domain."
"How much the Si Clan gets will come down to their own skill and luck. They have absolutely no hope of returning to their peak; at best, this will just allow them to continue clinging to life."
"But for us at United Pharmaceutical, this summit is a real blow, a ruthless move on Si Li’s part."
The information Liu Weicai provided gave Lin Qi a deeper understanding of the power plays between the major corporations.
Interests, after all, were always relative.
When the Si Clan collapsed, most corporations could get a piece of the pie. But when a pack of wolves divides the kill, no one’s share is particularly large.
But the Si Clan chose to cut off a limb to save the body, proactively giving the lion’s share of the profits to a stronger party in exchange for a chance to keep their flame alive.
Most importantly, through this scheme, the Si Clan had managed to transform the Extraordinary Materials—which the Liu Clan had legitimately transferred to United Pharmaceutical—into interests that were now up for grabs.
On the surface, it was just business no matter who Liu’s Heavy Industries gave their share to. But curbing United Pharmaceutical’s growth was tantamount to creating more breathing room for the Si Clan.
This move by Si Pharmaceutical, cutting off a limb to save the body, was a case of killing three birds with one stone, achieving three separate objectives.
Truly worthy of a veteran corporation, to be able to hang on even at this stage.
Si Li really was a ruthless man.
Lin Qi nodded, finally understanding the full story behind the summit.
’The personal danger on this trip should be minimal.’
’The real danger is to the corporations themselves.’
"Thank you, Liu Weicai. I think I understand now."
Lin Qi thanked Liu Weicai again. Without this inside information, it would have taken Lin Qi a long time to figure everything out.
He might have even had to tap into intelligence from the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps.
Liu Weicai waved a hand dismissively. For members of the Liu Clan, none of this was a secret.
Those of them in management had to understand the purpose behind the company’s decisions the moment an assignment was given.
"You would have found out about all this sooner or later anyway. Given your relationship with General Manager Liu, you’ll have heavy responsibilities to bear in the future."
"However, this summit is also an opportunity for you. If you can make a name for yourself there, it should take a great deal of pressure off General Manager Liu."
Liu Weicai had clearly misjudged Lin Qi and Liu Xuan’s relationship, assuming they were deeply in love and that it wouldn’t be long before Lin Qi married into the Liu Clan.
Unfortunately, Lin Qi and Liu Xuan’s relationship was nothing like what Liu Weicai imagined.
It was limited to friendship, but a rather special kind.
After bidding farewell to Liu Weicai, Lin Qi returned to the Pharmacy Laboratory.
The moment he walked through the door, Lin Qi saw Elder Dong.
Elder Dong seemed to be waiting for him.
"You’re heading to Alliance City, aren’t you?"
This was the first thing Elder Dong asked the moment he saw him.
This surprised Lin Qi.
’Even Elder Dong knows?’
’Could Elder Dong actually be some kind of hidden, well-connected figure?’
"How did you know?"
Lin Qi was always direct with Elder Dong. The old man was a schemer, but at his age, the only thing he schemed about was his retirement.
"When an old man has lived for so many years, he’s bound to have a few friends, isn’t he?" Elder Dong tried to act mysterious, but he couldn’t hold it in for long before spilling the beans. "Greenfield City has been reopened. I heard it from a friend inside Si Pharmaceutical."
"I figured that our United Pharmaceutical would probably receive an invitation to the summit, and looking over our Pharmaceutical Department, Chairman Liu would most likely have no choice but to take you."
’Whoa, so Elder Dong has connections like that?’
Lin Qi’s curiosity was piqued. He asked, "Elder Dong, have you heard some inside information?"
Elder Dong’s information channels were completely different from the Liu Clan’s, so he might know things that even Liu Weicai wasn’t privy to.
’Of course, Liu Xuan probably knows, but she wouldn’t tell me the details.’
’Liu Xuan was never one for talking to me much anyway.’
Dong Wenlong sat down on a lab chair, cleared his throat, and said, "I wouldn’t go so far as to call it inside information, but some rumors have certainly been making the rounds in our circle of old-timers."
Lin Qi was instantly all ears. Dong Wenlong was likely willing to tell him this because he saw him as a well-connected person.
This was related to the old man’s grand retirement plan; he wouldn’t be joking about something like this.
Dong Wenlong didn’t bother making any demands; he just went on with his story. "I heard that before Greenfield City was reopened, Si Pharmaceutical held an internal selection."
"The goal was to select A-level Researchers, supposedly to attend a summit in Alliance City. You must know more of the specific details than I do."
"What I know are Si Pharmaceutical’s internal selection criteria. I heard the selection was mainly based on research efficiency for A-Class Potions. The few who were chosen also met with Si Li and were required to write a paper on the spot and give a conference-style presentation."
"It looks like the selection focused on two main areas: practical skills and academic ability."
Elder Dong had spoken, but it was as if he hadn’t said anything at all.
’Aren’t those the two most important skills for a researcher, anyway?’
But upon careful consideration, he could pick out some subtle details.
"Are you saying the summit might require researchers from the participating major corporations to demonstrate their research capabilities and academic reporting skills?"
The summit was the Si Clan’s creation in the first place; they were bound to know more of the details than anyone else.
Dong Wenlong quickly backpedaled. "I didn’t say anything! That’s all your own speculation!"
With that said, Dong Wenlong sat off to the side, his mission accomplished.
Lin Qi nodded pensively. After thanking Dong Wenlong, he sat down at his own station and began to flip through research materials on A-Class Pharmacy.
Following this line of thought, it seemed Lin Qi was actually a perfect fit to attend the summit.
In terms of practical skills, with his Spiritual Vision, Lin Qi feared no one.
As for overall academic ability, that seemed to be his weak point. After all, he hadn’t been studying Pharmacy for very long and hadn’t read a large number of related academic papers.
But if he were to pick any sub-field within A-Class Pharmacy, he could leverage the advantage his Spiritual Vision gave him to effortlessly write a mountain of papers and talk circles around any A-level Researcher until their head spun.
Dong Wenlong’s recent dazed state was a prime example; Lin Qi’s daily questions had practically fried his brain.
After figuring this all out, Lin Qi felt a surge of confidence.
’It’s just a trip to Alliance City. I can make a major splash at the summit, as long as I ensure my own safety.’
’According to company policy, this should be worth a nice sum of points.’
’If this trip goes well, maybe by the time Liu Xuan and I return to Red Fruit City, I’ll have a new title to my name.’
’Like ’Minor Shareholder of United Pharmaceutical,’ for example.’
He continued to review the documents until it was time to leave work.
Just like yesterday, Dong Wenlong watched Lin Qi leave, then waited a moment before departing himself.
Standing in the elevator, Lin Qi temporarily put the summit out of his mind.
He wasn’t leaving for the summit until tomorrow. Tonight, he had more important things to do.
First, he was going to give the Mo University Camp a little taste of the shock and awe of a Cyber Prosthetic Body.
And second was the Mimicry of the Ning Xinzi sample.
Lin Qi had timed everything perfectly today, leaving himself enough time to perform one complete Mimicry in the Doomsday World.
If he could obtain more data on Ning Xin, then after arriving in Alliance City, he could consider contacting Capitalist and Jingang through Guang Ling, giving himself more options to act.
