Deceitful Game

Chapter 231 The Awakened Wildness

"...What did you say?"

Mingpo almost laughed in anger, her voice rising slightly: "Do you think the company is a park, where you can come and go as you please? You were right not to send a message! You'd better not have told anyone about this, or your name might be next on my to-do list."

How could the "Big Eight" possibly let employees leave?

Every employee harbors some secrets, more or less. Even if they don't, they have connections within the company. These are all resources. If they leave, they might take these resources with them; if they join another giant, it's as if that giant gains these resources. It's a zero-sum game.

The departure of a mid-to-low-level leader can have a butterfly effect, potentially causing problems that force higher-ups to step down.

While it's not uncommon for members of the "Big Eight" to leave and start their own small companies, those were essentially sent away for making mistakes. These smaller companies still maintain close ties with the headquarters. Although they are completely different companies in terms of shareholding structure, some influence can be exerted without the need for shares.

Sometimes, all it takes is a phone call.

After finishing her rant, Mingpo let out a deep sigh.

If Mingpo were a smoker, he would probably be taking a deep drag right now. But Mingpo's lungs are artificial, and they don't have an addictive mechanism. If this were before he had his prosthetic lungs replaced, that one puff of smoke might have made him cough up blood.

That's how fragile amber used to be.

"……never mind."

Mingpo waved her hand helplessly and with a sense of powerlessness: "Which house do you want to go to? I'll give you some advice on an escape route."

"I want to go to Chaodu to take a look," Ai Shiping said.

"Nonsense!"

Mingpo was so angry her hair almost stood on end: "Have you ever been to Chaodu? You want to go there? Do you even know what kind of place that is? I thought some big shot was offering you an olive branch, but it turns out you're just thinking about eating 'Daphne branches'."

Daphne odora branches... those are biological weapons for assassination issued by the Executive Department.

It looks like a thumbtack and can be fired with a special nail gun. But it is actually a type of nano-drone.

Its tip has a numbing effect, so even if it hits the skin, there will be no pain; at most, it will feel like a mosquito bite. After the nanotoxin is injected, the nail will be pulled out and self-destruct. Such a tiny wound will likely heal in less than two hours. After that, the victim will die painlessly once they fall asleep. It will appear as if they died suddenly in their sleep, without even a visible wound.

This method of assassination has one characteristic.

That means those killed by the fragrant branch cannot have their memories extracted. Even if killed by a deceiver, they cannot become a new deceiver.

Gaotian Life is, after all, a company with extensive research in the field of "memory," and its protection in this area is among the strongest in the industry.

If Ai Shiping were to flee to another powerful entity, they might offer him some protection out of consideration for his past generosity. But if he were to go to Chaodu, he would undoubtedly face certain death.

He had far too much information in his head.

Although these may seem like useless information... the new employee files he handles and the personal information of his HR staff are extremely valuable. If this intelligence were to fall into the wrong hands, they could secretly contact, threaten, or bribe these employees, thus planting spies within the company.

"Do you know that if the information in your head is leaked, or even if there's a possibility of it being leaked, your entire department could be wiped out! Have you forgotten your damned kindness at this point? Or do you think your freedom is more important than their lives?" Mingpo demanded sharply, "What are you thinking?!"

"...I know, I know."

Ai Shiping covered his forehead in pain and lowered his head: "I just... can't take it anymore."

"At first, I thought your job was too hard and I definitely couldn't handle it. I thought this kind of office work was perfect for me... But now I realize that my job is no different from yours. I'm responsible for sending hopeful miners into the mine, and you're responsible for bringing back the escaped miners from outside."

"It doesn't necessarily mean they'll be brought back."

"It's usually scrapped unless it performs very well," Mingper added.

"Performance"

Ai Shiping raised his head and glared at Mingpo: "That's for measuring machines! Not for describing people!"

"So what?"

Mingpo calmly retorted, "We're in different companies, different departments. But we wear the same coats, the same collars, use the same chairs, and have the same brand of prosthetics. You don't really think one department is that much better than the other, do you? I can say this: if such a good job existed, it wouldn't be your turn. With your carefree and naive personality, your disregard for rules, even if you were hired, you'd be dragged down and fired long ago."

"...You're too arrogant, Mingpo. You weren't like this before."

Ai Shiping's gaze toward Mingpo was more one of sadness than anger.

"I have no time to be without arrogance, brother."

Mingpo said calmly, his face expressionless, "In fact, the fact that I'm talking to you right now is already breaking the rules. Because I've taken on an urgent job and have to rush to Nest City to eliminate them."

He picked up his slightly cold coffee and took a sip.

The coffee is basically pure sweet.

Gao Tian Life Insurance employees are given a fixed amount of sugar each week, and they are not allowed to go out to buy it. This is also part of their "health philosophy." They force all employees to live a healthy lifestyle that is low in sugar, salt, and fat, which is also part of their external publicity materials.

Ai Shiping has loved sweets and spicy food since he was a child.

However, he was quite patient. He would save up his sugar and put it in a drawer. He would only take it out when something good happened to him, and use it to make himself a cup of sweet coffee as a reward. But if someone wanted it, he would generously lend it to them... He was always like this, giving away his favorite things to others.

Ai Shiping worked in human resources at Gaotian Infrastructure for five years. His salary kept increasing, and his drawer was filled with more and more candy... but fewer and fewer people came to ask for candy.

Even Mingpo knew that Ai Shiping hadn't changed, but his subordinates always felt that he had.

Perhaps they've just started to feel afraid. Afraid of his rapid rise to power, and also afraid that he might suddenly fall from grace.

Birds that fly too fast or have too beautiful plumage are always easy to shoot down. Those who get too close to them won't benefit. "Can you take me with you?"

Suddenly, Ai Shiping spoke up and asked, "You said I don't understand Chaodu... I want to go with you to take a look."

Upon hearing this, Mingpo did not get angry.

He simply raised an eyebrow and slowly put down his coffee.

"This is against the rules."

"I know. But you should have a way, right?"

"..."

Mingpo laughed arrogantly: "Of course. Who do you think I am?"

Seeing Ai Shiping's boldness, Mingpo was actually pleased.

Such a bold act of defiance against the company... this thrilled Mingbo.

It was as if something deep within the bloodline had been awakened.

In the past, Mingper only felt this sense of relaxation when he was killing someone.

Mingpo snapped his fingers and downed his coffee in one gulp. Some undissolved sugar residue remained at the bottom of the cup.

The floor-to-ceiling window opened, and the hovercar stopped inside by itself.

"Get in the car."

Mingpo said lazily, "Grab your gear, model student. I'll take you for a spin in the wild."

"Let me show you a world you've never seen before."