Free Web NovelChapter 204: Chapter 171: Scanning and Short Circuit
King Arthur and Lin Qi had a pleasant conversation.
Based on their previous conversations, King Arthur believed Lin Qi had a relatively mysterious background within the Asian Administrative Region.
For example, there was the laboratory Lin Qi mentioned that had developed a new type of Potion.
To this day, news of the new Potion had still not spread.
This new type of Potion was also epoch-making, especially since Lin Qi had revealed that a new A-Class Potion had already entered the experimental phase. The potential profits were enormous—enough to create an intercontinental mega-corporation.
For such a product, with such mature technology, to have been kept under wraps for so long was astonishing.
King Arthur suspected Lin Qi’s background was quite strong, and that he likely had the Ability to get involved in Ninghang Technology’s collaborative project.
This was what led to her invitation.
But what King Arthur could never have guessed was that long before her invitation, Lin Qi had already gotten involved in the Ninghang Technology project. His name had even been submitted on the roster.
Lin Qi put his wristband away, went to the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face, and then lay back down on his bed to rest.
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The next day, Lin Qi woke up on time, following his usual routine.
When he left his room, he didn’t see Liu Xuan.
He left the villa, boarded a flying vehicle, and arrived at the company’s docking bay right on schedule.
Only after getting out of the flying vehicle did Lin Qi see Liu Xuan.
They greeted each other as usual, but just then, Elder Dong happened to be passing by.
He looked at Lin Qi and Liu Xuan, his expression a little awkward.
Elder Dong’s expression was somewhat stiff.
’What’s with these two?’
’Are they engineering these "chance" encounters on the company roof right when it’s time to clock in every day?’
’How is anyone supposed to get to work like a normal person?’
’I just want to clock in on time!’
’What did I ever do to deserve this?’
If this started happening every day, Elder Dong wasn’t sure he could avoid getting on the Chairman’s bad side. She might think he was ruining the romantic mood between her and Lin Qi.
If the Chairman decided to make things difficult for him then, it would be a huge pain.
After some painful deliberation, Elder Dong decided that to avoid this situation in the future, he would leave two minutes earlier.
He would move his clock-in time to 9:57 AM!
’Two extra minutes of work a day is almost eight hundred minutes a year—more than ten hours.’
’I still have ten years until retirement. That’s over a hundred extra hours of work, which is like working five whole extra days!’
’How many five-day periods does a person get in their life? I’ve just lost five days of my life. The pain! It’s too much!’
Elder Dong sulked in the elevator, nursing his secret sorrow.
Lin Qi, who was in the same elevator, didn’t notice Elder Dong’s despair.
The elevator doors slowly slid open. Elder Dong stepped out first, then suddenly realized Lin Qi hadn’t moved.
Turning back to look at Lin Qi, Elder Dong’s expression was puzzled. "You don’t even have to go to your post?"
His expression shifted from confusion to shock, and then slowly, to envy.
’Where is Lin Qi going?’
’Could it be that clocking in is just a formality, and now he’s heading off to find the Chairman...?’
HISS... ’Is this something I should even know?’
Elder Dong felt he had said too much.
Lin Qi found Elder Dong’s behavior a bit odd, but he didn’t try to hide anything. "My duties have been reassigned," he said. "I’m on an inter-departmental joint project. The work site is on the fourth floor."
’So that’s how it is.’
The mix of forty percent envy, thirty percent confusion, twenty percent alarm, and ten percent indignation that had been brewing in Elder Dong’s heart instantly vanished.
’Looks like even if you’re favored by the Chairman and offer up your body, you still have to clock in and work.’
’Is this Cyber Capital?’
’If even Lin Qi can’t escape exploitation, what chance do I have?’
"Five days of my life, gone! Five whole days..."
Muttering to himself, Elder Dong turned and shuffled toward the lab.
Lin Qi thought Elder Dong was being weird. ’Lost five days of his life? Is he sick or something?’
Shaking his head, Lin Qi dismissed the thought as the elevator doors closed.
The elevator arrived at the fourth floor and came to a smooth stop. The doors opened, and Lin Qi stepped out.
A familiar scent filled his nostrils—the smell of special alloys used to manufacture Prosthetic Bodies, mingled with the lubricating fluid for their components.
In other words, it was the scent of the Prosthetic Engineering Department.
It was identical to the smell at the Red Fruit Weapon Research Institute—almost the exact same formula.
After a moment of reflection, Lin Qi followed the directions from the company email to find the door number.
H4-401, a large-scale comprehensive research area. It was a massive laboratory that took up a third of the entire floor.
The ceiling was even twice the height of a normal lab, as the space had been opened up to include the fifth floor as well.
"Xiaolin, over here, over here! What took you so long? The project briefing is about to start."
Lin Qi checked the time. It was exactly 10:00, still a few seconds away from 10:01.
’I’m not even late!’
Though he thought this, Lin Qi didn’t let it show on his face.
Instead, he smiled at the man who had called out. "Uncle Wei, sorry about that. The elevator was a bit crowded and made a few extra stops."
The man speaking to Lin Qi was none other than Wei Wutao, the current head of United Pharmaceutical’s Prosthetic Engineering Department.
Hearing Lin Qi’s explanation, Wei Wutao didn’t scold him. He even went along with the excuse, saying, "The company really is short on elevators. Even though we’re United Pharmaceutical now, we came from Liu’s Heavy Industries, a company that specializes in machinery. How can we be lacking elevators? I’ll report this to Chairman Liu later. We can’t let elevators hinder our work efficiency."
Lin Qi’s excuse was flimsy, but Wei Wutao’s response was even more ridiculous.
Nearby, all the employees from the Prosthetic Engineering Department involved in the new project stared at their own feet, pretending they hadn’t heard a word their boss just said.
