Dealing with the Oranges and Monkeys / The Final Wrap-Up

The current head of the Kaslana family, the head of the Oceania branch, and the president's most beloved granddaughter all stood behind him.

"Hold me accountable? What rank are you people?"

Yaqing had notified them the night before to come back and back him up. He looked teasingly at the grim-faced board.

"I, Yaqing, have bled for the president and rendered service to Schicksal. What gives a few decrepit old fossils like you the right to throw your weight around here? The film's script is none of your business. If you want to know, bring the president here and ask me yourself!"

Turning the tables, Yaqing slammed his hand down on the table.

Theresa and Siegfried stared at Yaqing in shock. What? He was this arrogant now?!

"My old friend, as you wished, I am here."

That familiar, airy yet gentlemanly voice was nothing like the grotesque imitation of Cyberlutia.

Yaqing's body stiffened.

Dealing with the Oranges and Monkeys

Yaqing stiffened and abruptly turned toward the voice. Someone had somehow taken the previously vacant seat of honor. It was a somewhat blurry virtual projection, the latest technology researched by Schicksal—and one that had yet to be fully perfected.

"Teacher..." Yaqing was genuinely frightened now.

Otto's virtual projection smiled teasingly. "What teacher? How many times have I told you? Address me by my title while at work."

"Yes, President."

Otto nodded and looked toward the board. The old oranges who had calmly been drinking tea moments ago were already panicking. Even the hands holding their cups trembled.

"Why was I unaware that Schicksal Headquarters had a senior management meeting today?" Otto's tone betrayed no emotion as he continued teasingly. "Or has the board decided that it can bypass me and rule Schicksal with an iron fist?"

"President, we never..." Alekszm Fischer hurriedly spoke up.

Otto raised a hand, stopping the old man's explanation. Smiling, he said, "I do not need to hear your explanations. I have already seen your choice. In the following meeting, I will not take either side and will ensure true impartiality."

When Otto mentioned impartiality, Alekszm Fischer seemed to see hope. Yet the board's elders, who understood Otto's character, had already furrowed their brows. It all felt far too simple.

Yaqing, Theresa, and Siegfried exchanged glances.

"Yaqing Schariac!" Alekszm Fischer raised his head proudly like a little dog that had found someone to back him up. His gaze at Yaqing was filled with a malicious smile.

Leaning back in his cushioned chair, Yaqing smiled, closed his eyes, and gestured with one hand. "Go on. I'm listening."

"Regarding your suspected defamation of President Otto Apocalypse in the film project you collaborated on with Anti-Entropy Entertainment, do you admit it?!"

Alekszm Fischer did not slam the table again, but his voice remained equally stern and forceful.

"Keep going." Yaqing did not answer and instead told him to continue.

"Regarding your suspected damage to Schicksal's reputation in the film project you collaborated on with Anti-Entropy Entertainment, do you admit it?!"

"Anything else?"

"What?" Alekszm Fischer froze.

"Nothing more?" Yaqing folded his hands on the table. "Since there is nothing more, let's discuss these so-called crimes of mine. First, I did not defame the president. Second, the president reviewed the script. Finally, I do not believe the actions depicted in the film's plot defamed the president."

The moment those words left his mouth, not only was the board stunned, but Theresa, Siegfried, and Wendy beside him also widened their eyes. They were not surprised that Otto had seen the script. They were shocked that Yaqing could so confidently claim it was not defamation.

If that did not count as defamation, what did?

Otto nodded. "I did indeed read the script, and I also recognized Yaqing's wisdom. I myself do not consider it defamation, because I cannot imagine a world without Kallen."

Otto looked utterly serious, not finding his own words the slightest bit mushy.

"Now, regarding your second accusation—damaging Schicksal's reputation? How should I put this? If you define Valkyries fighting for all that is beautiful in the world as defamation, then I find it difficult to offer any assessment of you." Yaqing shook his head. His gaze at Alekszm carried pity, but the next second, it was full of mockery.

"Or are you jealous, Alekszm? Jealous that they can fight for all that is beautiful in the world? How about this? Go to Thailand for an operation, and I promise to write a role specifically for you in the film."

"S-Rank Valkyrie Alekszm Fischer. What do you think?"

With just a few casual remarks, Yaqing completely broke Alekszm's composure.

"Pfft." Theresa could not help laughing, but no one blamed her. Her status spoke for itself.

"Yaqing Schariac!" Alekszm Fischer had been pampered since childhood. When had he ever suffered such humiliation? He panted heavily and let out a beastlike growl.

"I'm here."

"I..."

"Alekszm Fischer, get out!" Before Alekszm could start cursing, one of the board's elders finally spoke. If Alekszm cursed during a Schicksal senior management meeting, that family would likely be finished.

"Yes." Alekszm came to his senses and silently left the meeting room.

"Board members," Yaqing suddenly said. "Since you cannot find anything, stop keeping your eyes on me. If you push me too far, you know the consequences."

Yaqing's methods were too ruthless. Though it would be difficult for him to take down the entire board alone, he could still peel off a layer of their skin and make them hurt. The price would only be a mild scolding from Otto.

The meeting ended on an unpleasant note. Otto left first, followed by the board's elders. Yaqing said, "Sorry for making you rush back to headquarters."

"It is fine, Teacher. Your matters are the most important." Wendy hurriedly waved her hand.

"Yaqing, we're family, so don't say things like that. If I had not come, Cecilia would have given me a hard time." Since the film's release, Siegfried and Yaqing's relationship had eased considerably.

"Honestly, why hasn't Grandpa dealt with those old geezers yet? I can't stand the sight of them." Theresa said irritably.

Siegfried understood. It was not that Otto did not intend to act. He had chosen to leave the board in place as Yaqing's whetstone.

"Come on. You worked so hard to come back. Dinner is on me tonight."

"Awesome!"

The four of them left the meeting room and ran into Cyberlutia Schariac, who had not yet left. However, he no longer wore his earlier frivolous, teasing expression. His face looked utterly terrible.

"What, found out you're being transferred back to the Africa branch?" Yaqing smiled.

"You did this?!" Cyberlutia raised his head. His eyes were bloodshot as he clenched his fists and charged forward.

Theresa fearfully hid behind Yaqing.

Siegfried instinctively stepped in front of him, but Yaqing pushed him aside.

Yaqing grabbed Cyberlutia and twisted hard. A crisp crack rang out. Cyberlutia's face turned pale as he let out a piercing howl. Yaqing disgustedly dusted off his hands and stepped on the man's chest.

"Keep your cool. You still have a lot to learn."

"If they can elevate you, I can crush you to death under my foot."

"Remember to get your arm set at a hospital before your assignment. Don't leave yourself with any lasting problems. After all, medical technology in Africa is quite backward."

Yaqing left, ignoring Cyberlutia lying on the floor like a dead dog.

Inside Siegfried's luxury car.

Theresa looked at Yaqing in confusion. "Since when were you this good at fighting?"

"I learned a little from someone at the courtyard."

"Teacher, I won't be having dinner tonight. I need to return to the Oceania branch as soon as possible. I'm afraid that if I'm gone too long, those old oranges won't be able to restrain themselves again."

"Wendy, is it really that urgent?" Theresa looked at Wendy with concern. After all, Wendy had graduated from St. Freya Academy.

"Sorry, Principal..."

"Fine, Wendy. I'll send someone over to help you in a few days."

The Final Cleanup

The next day, Theresa had finally returned to Schicksal Headquarters, only for Yaqing's sake. This made Otto and Kallen, who had always wanted Theresa to visit home more often, jealous. They forcibly made Theresa stay behind.

Facing Theresa's pitiful plea for help from Kallen's embrace, Yaqing could only pretend not to see it. President Otto's eyes, carrying a hint of killing intent, were truly intimidating.

He boarded a plane back to the Far East alone.

That afternoon, when he once again set foot on the Far East's soil, Yaqing felt completely relaxed. He had specifically asked a driver to pick him up at the airport and take him back to Golden Courtyard in the suburbs.

"Back already?" Mobius, wearing dinosaur pajamas, sat on the living room sofa, cracking sunflower seeds while watching a cartoon on television with great interest.

"Yeah, I've seen this cartoon too." Yaqing sat beside Mobius, watched the show, grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, and said, "Wasn't he a lumberjack at first? When did he switch to being a tour guide?"

"He changed jobs ages ago. It's been six or seven years already." Mobius basked in the sunlight, looking utterly lazy.

While cracking sunflower seeds, the chairman of a Schicksal subsidiary and a biochemistry doctor whose work was in textbooks watched an entire episode of a cartoon made for children.

"So? I heard Schicksal's internal board is extremely discordant." Mobius paused the cartoon. Her smiling face was pure and pretty. If a stranger did not know Mobius, they might truly think she was an innocent white lotus.

"Why care about them? They're just a bunch of monkeys jumping around." Yaqing found the sunflower seeds a little dry, so he picked up a piece of fruit from the coffee table, wiped it on his casual clothes, and took a bite.

"Sure enough, you and I are the same kind of person deep down." Mobius tilted her head at Yaqing, her small pink tongue licking her vivid red lips.

"No, Senior Mobius. Please continue watching your cartoon. I'll go upstairs and change clothes first. I still need to head to the company soon." Yaqing got up and left.

Mobius pursed her lips, picked up the remote, and continued watching the cartoon.

Yaqing went upstairs and encountered Su in the corridor.

"Su, are you off today?" Yaqing asked.

Su had just come out of the gym and wore a tank top. Normally, Yaqing could not tell, and had thought Su had a skinny build. But now, seeing Su's arm muscles and the abs beneath his tank top, Yaqing's eye twitched. He had no doubt Su could punch him to death.

"Yeah. Only on my days off do I have time to exercise." Su narrowed his eyes, his tone as gentle as ever.

Seeing Su, Yaqing suddenly seemed to think of something. His eyes immediately lit up.

An actor?

Wasn't this the perfect actor?

Yaqing instinctively wanted to put an arm around Su's neck, but stopped when he noticed Su was drenched in sweat. He withdrew his hand and said, "Su, are you interested in becoming an actor? Sign a contract with me and become a rising actor?"

Su looked puzzled, not understanding what Yaqing meant. "No. I do not like being high-profile, and the hospital's affairs are too busy. I cannot spare the time to become an actor."

Su refused.

Yaqing was not surprised at all, since the invitation had merely been a spur-of-the-moment idea.

After showering and changing into a somewhat formal outfit, Yaqing came downstairs to the living room and saw Mobius curled up asleep on the sofa, with the cartoon still playing on the television.

"Mobius looks more like a girl when she's asleep."

Yaqing brought down a blanket from upstairs and gently covered Mobius with it.

"Oh, Yaqing, you're back~?" Elysia, having finished her day's livestream, came downstairs and looked at Yaqing in surprise.

"Shh." Yaqing, crouching beside the sofa, made a quiet gesture.

"Oh, oh, oh." Only then did Elysia notice the sleeping Mobius. Happily, she said, "Dr. Mobius is so cute when she's asleep. It would be even better if she wore a little dress."

Yaqing shook his head. Just as he stood and prepared to leave, he felt someone hook a finger around his.

"Don't go..." Mobius murmured in her sleep. Her fair, slender right hand held Yaqing's finger as her beautiful brows furrowed, as though she were having a nightmare.

"Yaqing, it seems Mobius doesn't want you to leave yet?" Elysia wore an auntie-like smile.

Yaqing crouched down.

"Klein, don't go..." Mobius blew a snot bubble.

Yaqing's smile stiffened slightly as he grabbed Elysia's hand.

"Hey, hey, hey!"

Elysia deliberately lowered her voice, only to discover that Mobius had somehow gone from holding Yaqing's finger to grabbing hers.

Yaqing smiled at the flustered Elysia. Of course, he knew Elysia only talked big. If she actually had to get close to someone, she would probably die of embarrassment. He whispered, "Elysia, sorry for the trouble, but I still have work this afternoon."

Elysia puffed up her cheeks at Yaqing's departing back, then looked at the sleeping Mobius and helplessly crouched down. "Honestly..."

Yaqing returned to the underground parking garage.

Many luxury cars that could only be seen at world-class auto shows were parked in the garage. Most had been bought by Eden, and she had never even driven several of the cars worth tens of millions.

Yaqing found his own luxury car in a corner. It was not cheap either, but compared to Eden's collection, it was clearly nothing special.

Yaqing drove to the company.

On the company's top floor, Salome reported that the promotional teaser video was ready, but the visual effects and modeling would take at least another month or two to complete, before November.