Brevis Midtown, Ryan Union Headquarters.
This building is quite different from the ornate and elegant mansions of the Uptown.
It is constructed with a rugged steel frame and heavy cement, with a square shape and sharp edges, exuding a strong modern industrial style.
In the Imperium of Man, birthday banquets for nobles were often not simply for celebration.
More often than not, it was to demonstrate class status, engage in political maneuvering, and consolidate power networks.
The purpose of today's banquet is obvious to everyone.
In order to "survive".
Lynn was currently inside an ordinary armored personnel carrier outside the gates of Ryan Union headquarters, waiting for the banquet to begin.
He kept a low profile today.
Instead of driving the luxurious limousine trimmed with gold and bearing the governor's flag, they randomly chose an armored vehicle from the PDF unit.
With its gray-green paint and simple lines, it was inconspicuous among the other vehicles parked in front of the union.
He only brought two people with him.
Doudou, and " Isolde ".
Gus was kept at the governor's mansion to help him with daily administrative affairs.
After all, as his "adjutant" and a highly educated person, he had to have something to do.
Lynn was carefully reading the information displayed on the Dataslate in his hand.
He was looking at the detailed information Carter had prepared for him about President Trevor Ryan, the main figure at today's banquet.
[ Trevor Ryan, male, 56 years old.]
Ryan Union.
Family history: My great-great-grandfather was instrumental in supporting the governor in suppressing the " Xenos invasion" during the early stages of Brevis's transformation into a hive Hive City.
He was granted the title of "Honorary Prince" and received ten PDF-standard equipment production lines.
At its peak, it controlled ten fully automated production lines.
Monthly production capacity: one million individual Lasgun, one million sets of bulletproof armor components, one hundred million sets of laser energy packs, and two million sets of basic area-of-effect cluster equipment such as grenades.
He served as one of the three chairmen of the Industrial Alliance for a long time and was responsible for 70% of the basic equipment supply for PDF.
However, since Trevor took office as president, the PDF equipment market has become saturated.
With the Orks invading, Dorito falling, a food crisis erupting, the PDF shrinking in size, and equipment demand plummeting.
Currently, only two factories are operating at low capacity, and the industry has shrunk to 10% of its peak size.
The title of chairman of the Industrial Alliance was taken over by the president of the " Weber Union " two years ago.
Ryan Union currently supports approximately four million workers and their families.
The union's food reserves were only enough to last for the last month.
Trevor Ryan has recently been making frequent contacts with various parties to seek food supply channels, but with little success.
Lynn turned off the Dataslate and looked up at the union gate.
The door was cast from a heavy alloy, and the door panel was engraved with a pattern of wrenches and forging hammers, the symbol of the Industrial Alliance.
The door was now open, and guests were entering one after another.
Most of them were dressed in work clothes or simple formal attire, carrying safes of varying sizes.
Inside were special cards belonging to Brevis, which were used as "gifts".
In Brevis's current circumstances, the most practical gift is only one thing: food.
Lynn watched from afar, using the enhanced hearing provided by his bionic armor to eavesdrop on the amount of the gifts given.
One hundred and twenty tons of canned starch, eighty tons of synthetic protein blocks, two hundred tons of canned starch, and some can even reach five hundred tons.
Occasionally, people dressed as nobles would appear, and their gifts would be higher, ranging from one thousand to two thousand tons.
But for a union that has to support four million people, this is just a drop in the bucket.
Trading equipment for food has always been the way of survival for the Midtown.
But now, the noble lords have grain, but they don't want equipment.
The people who Lower City needed equipment, but they had no food.
It's a situation where both ends are blocked.
He shook his head and looked at " Isolde " beside him.
Today she wore a dark blue long dress, simple in style, without any of the luxurious accessories that aristocratic women would prefer.
Her long hair was styled into a simple bun, and she wore light makeup, all done by Lynn herself.
After all, although Rena could control this body, she wasn't interested in things like "how human women should dress."
At this moment, Isolde sat quietly, keeping Lynn company.
Lynn reached out and gently took her hand.
"Let's go," he said.
The three walked towards the union's gate.
Lynn wasn't wearing his governor's uniform today, but rather a dark gray casual outfit with a windproof overcoat over it.
He looks like an ordinary young businessman or a minor nobleman.
Doudou followed behind him, wearing a specially made, oversized PDF armor.
Standing at 2.6 meters tall and fully armed, he resembled a moving wall.
They were stopped at the door.
Two " Iron Guard " stood on either side of the door, dressed in heavy gray-black Power Armour with the Industrial Alliance emblem printed on their shoulder armor.
They were holding " Thunder Hammer " Heavy Bolter produced by the union, whose caliber alone indicated their astonishing power.
The Iron Guard is the core armed force of the Industrial Alliance.
They are few in number, mostly composed of descendants of workers, and are comparable to the heavily armed elite of the Astra Militarum.
Although their overall combat strength may not be as good, the quality of their equipment is by no means inferior.
Please show me the invitation.
The Iron Guard on the left spoke, his voice steady.
His gaze swept over Lynn and his group, and when it finally landed on Doudou, he became noticeably wary.
Lynn shrugged.
"Can't I attend the banquet without an invitation?"
"Okay." The Iron Guard did not refuse outright.
"But an 'entrance fee' is required."
"How many?"
"At least one hundred tons of canned starch, or equivalent amounts of other food."
As Iron Guard spoke, his gaze swept over Lynn once more.
The person in front of me looked young, his clothes weren't fancy, and he was accompanied by a large, unfamiliar Abhumans bodyguard.
He's most likely a scion of some minor nobleman, trying to take this opportunity to curry favor.
He'd seen plenty of people like that.
"One hundred tons?" Lynn raised an eyebrow.
Iron Guard chuckled inwardly.
Sure enough, they thought it was too expensive.
He was about to say, "If there's nothing else, please leave," when he heard Lynn say the following:
So little?
Iron Guard was taken aback; Lynn had already turned to look at Doudou.
" Doudou, tell the people inside."
" Kerry, 10,000 tons!"
Doudou's honest face immediately showed an "I understand" expression.
He took a deep breath, his chest bulged, and then roared into it:
"Ten thousand tons in Kerry!!!"
Ogryn's large size gave them extremely loud voices.
The shout immediately boomed through the union's doors, echoing throughout the headquarters' front hall.
The previously noisy sounds inside the door instantly fell silent.
Then, a heated discussion broke out.
"Who?!"
" Kerry? Which Kerry?"
"Ten thousand tons?! Really?!"
"They're not here to cause trouble, are they...?"
The Iron Guard was completely dumbfounded.
He stared Daidai at Lynn, then at Doudou, his mind still reeling.
Lynn ignored him and pulled a card from the inside pocket of her coat.
That was Brevis's hard currency, "food cards".
Guaranteed jointly by the Ecclesiarchy, the Noble Council, and the Governor's Office, it can be exchanged for the corresponding amount of food at any official or semi-official institution in the Main Nest.
The card is black with a gold trim.
Lynn casually tossed the card away, and it spun out.
Iron Guard quickly reached out and caught it, and the power backpack behind him began to hum as it worked.
He looked down at the card and saw a line of numbers engraved in the center:
10,000 tons
Moreover, the company's canned high-grade starch was mixed with protein!
The card also bears the holy seal of the Ecclesiarchy and the seal of the governor's office.
Authentic!
Iron Guard's hand trembled slightly.
Ten thousand tons—that's enough to feed all the workers in Ryan Union for half a month.
No, if you're careful with your diet and use other food substitutes, it can last for a month.
He looked up abruptly, about to say something.
But Lynn, with one hand in his pocket and Isolde in tow, strolled past him with an air of nonchalance and walked straight into the guild's gates.
Iron Guard said nothing in the end, but just clutched the food card tightly and turned to run into the union compound.
He needs to inform the chairman immediately.