Chapter 172 The Northern Situation

Chapter 172 The Northern Situation

The press conference room was located on the second floor of the hotel. After the press conference, Qingniao Pharmaceutical hosted a banquet for the attendees.

As an important joint venture partner of Qingniao Pharmaceutical, City Lord Gong also attended, still accompanied by his daughter and son-in-law.

This new product launch not only attracted many media outlets but also representatives from the medical and research departments of various bases. Many were old acquaintances of City Lord Gong and Wu Zhou, exchanging pleasantries in the banquet hall.

Zhou Yun and Ye Yuqing walked into the VIP room of the banquet hall, and inevitably, someone asked Gong Yanqing, "Is that General Ye from the Lindong Base? He actually came?"

Gong Yanqing glanced over and smiled, "Yes, I heard he is also a judge for this year's psychic tournament."

Someone laughed, "A psychic tournament with an ordinary person as a judge? Online, people joke that Guixu City is currying favor with Ye Yuqing."

In fact, the online comments were harsher, suggesting that it was a case of kowtowing to the powerful, as most judges were city leaders, alliance members, or military dignitaries.

Gong Yanqing said, "I'm not fully aware of the details, but I've heard that General Ye is exceptionally skilled in strategy, a top-notch tactical expert. Even General Guan holds him in high regard. This competition includes team battles in special arenas, and in terms of tactics, a psychic evaluator might not be as authoritative as him."

The other person suddenly understood, "So that's the case. I thought Guixu City and Lindong Base were like two kings who never meet. But now it seems the rumors might be true? Did General Guan really save General Ye?"

Gong Yanqing replied, "I don't know about that. I see both General Guan and General Ye as people who separate public and private matters. We focus solely on project cooperation."

The person trying to probe for information was somewhat disappointed. Gong Yanqing was slippery and experienced. In fact, everyone noticed that his health and spirits were improving day by day, his daughter and son-in-law were no longer talking about divorce, and they appeared to be a loving couple again. His nephew had suddenly passed away from an acute illness. People couldn't help but speculate that he must have undergone a crystal core implantation and was now cured.

So, was the rumor true that the case of the crystal core implantation for someone with amputated limbs and blindness was Ye Yuqing? What exactly is the relationship between Lindong Base and Guixu City? What role does the alliance military play? Were the crystal core barrier and crystal core firearm developed under the alliance military's directive to decentralize power from Lindong Base?

Outside, people were buzzing, all considering their next steps for cooperation based on their interests.

Inside the VIP room, however, it was a very small, private banquet, attended by the Nirvana team and a few others, including Qin Sheng.

The table was set with extremely expensive seafood dishes and fine wines. Ye Yuqing smiled and said, "I had Xiao Ling specially select the best and airlift them here. Today's banquet is my way of repaying everyone for their previous care."

Taoist Master Yunyin said, "General Ye, you already hosted us when we visited Lindong. You're too kind. After all, we were paid. It's all business, all business, haha."

Ye Yuqing smiled, "In the promotional video for the arena, Taoist Master, your demon-subduing thunder was quite impressive."

Taoist Master Yunyin laughed, somewhat embarrassed, "Oh, it was nothing, just average. Director Liu did a great job. Before the apocalypse, we would never have had the chance to appear in Director Liu's films... Life is fulfilling, and I got to satisfy my acting itch."

Ye Yuqing smiled and glanced at Hua Rou, who was sipping water elegantly, "Miss Hua, you also appeared in the video. That dog, was it Dr. Zhou's Comet? But I remember you have water powers, don't you?"

Hua Rou smiled shyly, "Yes, but the director said at that moment, there needed to be light for the effect to be good, to create a feeling of past peaceful days shining in memory."

Ye Yuqing: "..."

Hua Rou continued, "After Teacher Zhang added the lighting effects, the audience thought I had light powers. The director said it was fine, as acting doesn't have to be completely accurate. Not everyone who plays an emperor is actually an emperor. Director Liu even said I had talent and suggested I act in more films."

Ye Yuqing smiled, thinking that Director Liu clearly understood the current logic, and nodded, "That’s quite reasonable. Miss Hua, if you want to act more, Lindong Base can also invest."

Hua Rou said, "I'm not really sure. Brother Shen said to have fun if I want, but studying comes first. He wants me to go to Guixu Academy and get my diploma before anything else."

Ye Yuqing glanced at Shen Lan, who was eating melon seeds while watching Master Xinhai and Mr. Yao Huan play chess, and smiled, "That's a sound principle. Education is indeed crucial. I thought Guixu Academy would be a large, comprehensive university. Why are there so few departments? If you need investment, I can also sponsor. Establishing a school is a significant endeavor."

Zhou Yun explained with a smile, "You can't eat an elephant in one bite. It's also hard to manage and achieve results. We plan to focus on the research of psychic powers and the application of mutated plants and animals that emerged after the apocalypse, concentrating on cultivating talent in these areas."

Ye Yuqing said, "No wonder. I was wondering why there was no medical department. Later, I noticed it was included in the psychic applications department, with only two majors: mutated pharmacy and psychic medicine applications."

Zhou Yun said, "These two majors already cover a very broad range, requiring a lot of faculty and equipment. In the era of psychics, both light and wood powers can be used for healing. Treating psychics and ordinary people are new fields, mostly interdisciplinary. If we followed the old medical subdivisions, it would be too complicated. It's better to combine them and start from there."

Ye Yuqing nodded in approval, "It's indeed completely different. Today, you also released new drugs and the crystal core mental seal. Just this alone could make a mark in medical history."

Zhou Yun said, "General Ye, with all this flattery, is there something you need my help with?"

Ye Yuqing smiled, "Not really, but for some reason, rumors have spread outside that Guan Yuanfeng and I are bitter rivals. Someone sent me a private letter trying to win me over to take action against Guixu City. I'm a bit concerned about your safety, Dr. Zhou, so I had someone seal the letter and deliver it to General Guan, and I specifically reminded him to increase security measures."

Zhou Yun was somewhat surprised; Guan Yuanfeng hadn't mentioned this at all. Ye Yuqing continued, "I heard that Dr. Zhou recently demonstrated his abilities by capturing several people. Any breakthroughs in the interrogations?"

Shen Lan, who had been listening, looked over and said, "There's progress. They weren't targeting Guixu, but they left some crucial evidence with us, fearing it might leak. It's already snowing in the north, and the so-called Northern Federation has split into several organizations. Things are about to get chaotic there."

Ye Yuqing nodded, "Yes, the alliance military has ordered us to prepare for intervention, but General Guan is taking wedding leave, so the responsibility lands on me."

Zhou Yun: "..."

As they were speaking, a waiter opened the VIP room door, bowed, and invited the guests in. Guan Yuanfeng entered with Qin Mu and Zhu Zhuan, catching the tail end of the conversation. He casually remarked, "My Southwest Military Region is the most remote, and your East is the closest. If not you, then who?"

Ye Yuqing laughed, "I just wanted to know when the wedding is scheduled, so I can arrange my schedule. I’ll do my best to attend."

Zhou Yun said, "Guixu starts in September, and the arena competition spans fifteen days, so the wedding is set for October, after these two major events." Originally, they had thought to wait until after the New Year, next spring, but Guan Yuanfeng felt the autumn weather was nice, and spring would be busy with farming. Plus, if they encountered a winter with heavy snow, it wouldn't be very comfortable.

Ye Yuqing thought about his military duties and said, "The schedule is a bit tight, but I'll try to make it back. As for the arena competition, I was originally supposed to be a tactical judge, but I probably won't be able to participate."

Guan Yuanfeng was indifferent, "I’ll let Xiao Jiang handle it." He sat down next to Zhou Yun, and the others also took their seats to start the banquet.

During the banquet, Guan Yuanfeng and Ye Yuqing steered clear of military talk, instead discussing light-hearted topics and future plans.

When the banquet ended, Guan Yuanfeng said to Ye Yuqing, "The leader of Mobei City wants to meet with you."

Ye Yuqing was startled, "What for? I’ve hardly interacted with her."

Guan Yuanfeng said, "I suggested it since you’re in charge of northern operations." He turned to see Zhou Yun still talking with Yao Huan, so he waved a greeting and took Ye Yuqing out first.

The leader of Mobei City, Liang Fang, was chatting with Ren Yuefei in the office of the Southwest Military Region Headquarters. Seeing Guan Yuanfeng bring Ye Yuqing in, she quickly stood up and smiled, "Hello, General Ye."

She teased, "So it turns out General Guan and General Ye really get along well. I was misled by rumors before, thinking you two were like fire and water, harboring preconceptions."

Ren Yuefei coolly remarked, "Actually, it's not exactly a preconception."

Liang Fang: ...

Ye Yuqing laughed, "Dongjun has done me a great favor."

Guan Yuanfeng sat down expressionlessly, "Enough small talk, let’s get down to business."

Liang Fang couldn't help but laugh, understanding that the enigmatic Dongjun had acted as a mediator. It seemed that Ye Yuqing and Guan Yuanfeng still didn't get along well. So, the mysterious Dongjun wasn't, as rumors suggested, under Guan Yuanfeng's control, but rather seemed capable of resolving the conflicts between these two military giants, enabling them to coexist without conflict?

Of course, Liang Fang knew well that in this world, there’s no alliance or feud without a reason—it’s all about interests.

Dongjun could mediate because there were interests that made them tolerate each other.

But Ye Yuqing was easy to understand; he was known to prioritize interests. What about the usually upright and righteous Guan Yuanfeng, who was willing to compromise? She couldn't help but recall seeing Guan Yuanfeng with a young man at a specialty stall during her time at Zhongzhou Base.

She had noticed because Guan Yuanfeng was usually stern and unsmiling, but in front of that young man, he was gentle and natural, completely shedding his severity. Could that young man be Dongjun? He appeared too young; a scholar responsible for numerous research breakthroughs must be more learned and older, right?

Liang Fang, who had previously discovered shadow hemp through Dongjun, was now even more curious.

But her focus now was elsewhere: "Mobei is a small, independent base, located in the far north, a harsh and uninhabited place that was never taken seriously before. It only sheltered our elders and fellow villagers, huddling together to stay warm, just scraping by."

"But since the shadow hemp industry was announced, Mobei City has been thriving. However, after the deputy governor arrived in the Northern Base, they insisted on increasing our taxes, arguing that other northern bases have larger populations and are struggling, while Mobei has a small population and substantial shadow hemp profits, so we should share the wealth."

"I'm not indifferent to the plight of other bases. When Zhenbei Base was in trouble, we also donated food, clothing, and crystal cores while we were starving. We also sent psychics to support them. But now we're struggling ourselves, and they’ve abruptly doubled our tax burden, and they're forcing our psychics to take turns serving in the Northern Base. Mobei is a small city, almost always in snowstorms. If our psychics leave, we could be besieged by mutant creatures and hordes at any time!"

Ye Yuqing smiled to soothe Mayor Liang Fang's emotions: "Mayor Liang, don't get too worked up. Doesn't General Peng intervene? Although he is a bit rigid, he is not unreasonable."

Ren Yuefei said, "Well, he’s just too rigid. To prove his support for the alliance government, as soon as the Deputy Governor arrived, he handed over all administrative affairs to him. I think he was just scared of the paperwork, so he dumped it all on the Deputy Governor."

Mayor Liang Fang shook her head, her face still filled with indignation: "Because of this matter, the Northern Free Federation privately contacted me—specifically, the Lord of Angry Dragon City approached me with very generous conditions... In a moment of weakness, I agreed to join the Free Federation and break away from the alliance."

She glanced uneasily at the three generals present, only to see that all three remained expressionless. Guan Yuanfeng had already heard about it, while the other two didn’t even change their smiles, like this rebellion was no big deal to them.

Ye Yuqing patiently asked, "What happened next?"

Liang Fang said, "Actually, I didn't do much. I just sponsored them with some shadow hemp and dark crystal cores. But later, when Guixu City released the crystal core cannon and shield, the Northern Free Federation started pressuring me to provide more dark crystal cores while also asking me to contact Guixu City for the blueprints of the cannon and shield."

"I thought about how Lord Dongjun had shown great kindness to Mobei City, so I didn't agree. They flipped out, waving the contract I signed in my face."

"I had to agree on the spot, buying time. After returning, I only said I was in the process of contacting them. Later, I heard that Angry Dragon City had fallen, and the blueprints were snatched by the Shanxiao Team. Someone from the Free Federation approached me, ordering me to send people to Guixu to get the blueprints back. They also threatened me, saying that if the blueprints fell into the hands of the alliance military, Mobei City would be wiped off the map, possibly becoming the first target of a crystal core cannon strike."

Liang Fang glanced at Guan Yuanfeng: "After thinking it over, I realized I messed up in the first place. Moreover, I trust General Guan and Lord Dongjun's character. I figured I’d better come clean first, so Mobei City doesn’t get dragged into this. That's why I took this opportunity, under the pretext of bringing people to participate in the arena competition, to explain everything to General Guan. To the Northern Free Federation, I only said I was here to find a chance to retrieve the blueprints."

Ye Yuqing smiled: "Such a small matter? Simple, leave it to me."

Liang Fang, who had been feeling heavy-hearted, felt somewhat relieved upon hearing Ye Yuqing's words: "Thank you, General Ye."

Guan Yuanfeng said, "It is indeed a small matter. Let's resolve it quickly so you can still attend my wedding."

Liang Fang was startled: "General Guan is getting married? Congratulations!"

Guan Yuanfeng replied with restraint, "Yes, the wedding is in October. You are welcome to stay here and attend the wedding before returning."

Ye Yuqing and Ren Yuefei exchanged glances, both holding back their laughter.