Lin Wenhua's attitude caught everyone present completely off guard.
At the very least, they had not expected him to compromise so quickly, or to be the first to express approval of Xu Shi's stance.
Was he really not going to negotiate any further?
But this was not the time to dwell on that. Seeing Lin Wenhua make his position clear, the others stopped hesitating and raised their hands one after another.
"Looks like no one has any objections."
Xu Shi smiled faintly and clapped his hands. "Then let us welcome the new head of the Technical Department once again, Miss Gu Yi."
As he spoke, he pulled Gu Yi to his side, putting on a very intimate appearance.
Miss Black Rabbit was still dazed, forcing a stiff smile as she stood there at a loss.
Seeing this, the others offered their lukewarm congratulations as well.
"Thank you very much for your support, Uncle Lin."
Amid the applause, Xu Shi turned to look at Lin Wenhua.
"Chairman Xu cares so deeply about the group. Naturally, I must give you my full support."
Lin Wenhua said calmly, "If your father could see this, I imagine he would be very gratified."
"Indeed."
Xu Shi responded, then ignored him and greeted the distracted Jiang Fengshan on the other side. "Manager Jiang, you recovered quickly from your illness."
"...Ah, yes, yes."
Jiang Fengshan snapped back to his senses and hurriedly put on a flattering smile. "Medical technology is quite advanced these days."
"That is true. You're getting on in years, so you really should watch your health."
Xu Shi nodded. "Otherwise, if one day... don't blame me for being blunt, but if you were gone, what would happen to the group? Right?"
After leaving him with a meaningful look, he got up and departed.
"Th-This... why?"
Even after leaving the company and getting into Xu Shi's car, Gu Yi was still in a daze.
"Why what?"
Xu Shi knowingly asked.
"I mean, you... why did you have me become the head of the Technical Department?"
Miss Black Rabbit shook her head, her words full of disbelief.
When Bastard Xu had told her to attend the meeting, her first thought had been that he was going to humiliate her utterly in front of everyone.
After all, that fit Xu Shi's usual style perfectly... She had worried about it for several days.
Yet she had never expected things to turn out like this. This development was completely beyond her expectations.
Did that mean she had... become one of the upper echelons of a top conglomerate?
The Technical Department might not carry quite as much weight, but it was still a position ordinary people could never reach even in a lifetime.
At the very least, she had never dreamed of something like this—if someone had told her this would happen two weeks ago, she would have laughed at them all day.
Gu Yi felt as if she were stepping on cotton, lightheaded and overwhelmed by a sense of unreality.
"I told you, ability is what I value."
Xu Shi chuckled. "And I have to admit, you are the most skilled hacker I have ever seen."
Not to mention a hacker Ascendant with a specialized ability.
Gu Yi's abilities had naturally reached his hands long ago, matching the original story down to the smallest detail.
"Data Supercomputer"—it manifested as an extraordinary aptitude for learning information technology, along with an exceptional capacity for personal concentration.
In other words, she was a born genius hacker.
In fact, she had awakened her ability years ago. Otherwise, there was no way she could have toyed with more than half the companies in Night City all by herself.
However, she did not know it herself, and the Inspection Bureau's pursuit had slowed the growth of her ability considerably.
But for now, it was more than enough.
And if he remembered correctly, after undergoing Re-Ascension in the middle of the story, she alone would be capable of fighting more than a dozen AI programs with extremely high computational power.
"But... do you really feel safe leaving something like this to me?"
Miss Black Rabbit blinked. "Aren't you afraid I might sabotage things behind your back?"
"I trust that you won't do that."
The teasing look vanished from Xu Shi's face at once, replaced by an earnest expression. "Or do you really want to spend the rest of your life hiding in the gutters with the identity of a wanted criminal?"
Gu Yi fell silent at those words. They had truly struck at her heart.
Her previous life had been exciting enough, but constantly hiding from the Inspection Bureau's manhunt was not sustainable.
She had to be cautious in everything she did, and everyone looked like an undercover officer... That was how she had developed her fear of crowds.
And she suddenly realized something—Xu Shi seemed never to have mentioned her identity as Black Rabbit to anyone else.
Compared to the wanted criminal lurking in the shadows online, the name Gu Yi was astonishingly clean.
And if it was only one hacking attack... just as he had said before, with a conglomerate backing her, it would not be a problem.
"You..."
Thinking that, her feelings suddenly became complicated when she looked at Xu Shi again.
Xu Shi merely narrowed his eyes and smiled as he nodded.
Just as you thought.
"Then... if you put it that way... all right."
After not hesitating for long, Miss Black Rabbit stammered, "I'll try... not to cause you trouble."
"I'm glad you think that way."
Xu Shi hooked a finger around her collar, leaned closer, and smiled wickedly. "Besides, if you really do try anything, do you think I can't deal with you?"
The instant he released it, a faint electric current made Gu Yi shudder.
"...You [civilized language]! I'll fight you!"
Gu Yi froze for a moment, then pounced at him, trying to bite him.
Xu Shi burst out laughing.
It had to be said, among all the female leads, Gu Yi was undoubtedly the easiest to handle.
After all, she was the most typical kind who grew with time. If he waited until the middle of the story, after she had undergone her transformation, she would not be much worse than Xia Wuyou.
But right now, she was merely a timid, naive hacker girl. As long as he found the right approach, breaking through her emotional defenses would take no time at all.
The fact that she could ask such a question proved that she would not do something like that.
Not to mention that he had used his ability... Although it seemed unnecessary, Chairman Xu still adhered to the principle that a ninety-eight percent chance was equivalent to courting death, so he had influenced her with "Malice Entropy."
She was increasingly becoming what he wanted her to be.
Listening to the playful scuffling from the back seat, Su Lin, who was driving, quietly sighed.
How should she put it... It felt as though the young master had matured very quickly, and his methods of manipulating people's hearts had become impeccable.
He had truly mastered the carrot-and-stick approach.
It was not that this was bad. As the ruler of a top conglomerate, he had to be proficient in such things... But she still felt something indescribable in her heart.
...Forget it, forget it. The young master had to grow up eventually.
After silently comforting herself, she resumed her usual stern expression.
"By the way, where are we going?"
Having realized she could not beat Bastard Xu, Miss Black Rabbit gave up resentfully, but she noticed something else as well.
This was not the way back to the dormitory.
"I'm moving you somewhere else."
Xu Shi straightened his clothes. "You've been exposed before those old men. The staff dormitory is no longer safe."
"They will not show you mercy because you are talented. They will do everything they can to make you disappear from this world."
Those old fossils occupying their positions did not care about the company's development anyway.
Rather than recruit her, they might as well kill her outright. That way, Xu Anbang could naturally return to his former position, and even if it was not him, there would be someone else.
As for why Xu Shi was so certain...
It was because he was preparing to do something similar himself.
Before you continue