Players Invade Cyberpunk-Chapter 715 - 230: The Poorer, the More Particular (Part 2)
As for themselves.....
They're worthless.
But luckily, when these people saw Lin Miao holding a stack of business cards as thick as a deck of playing cards, they suddenly remembered what they were here for and began persuading Lin Miao.
Some wanted the Horizon Corporation to go public
Some wanted Lin Miao to abandon his plans to enter Taiping Continent
Some wanted Lin Miao to accept their loans, even if the interest is just a bit lower
Each had their own agenda, but ultimately they couldn't escape the word "money."
Among them, someone even hinted to Lin Miao that if he agreed to relinquish control of the company, he could receive a staggering amount of money and could even stay in the company as a mascot if he wished.
But to their disappointment, Lin Miao agreed to none, didn't even speak, just waited until they were parched from talking and then returned their respective business cards.
Knowing they were making fools of themselves, one by one they had no choice but to sullenly take back their cards, cursing the ungrateful person in front of them in their hearts and preparing to report their work status to their bosses.
They didn't know what ideals were, they only knew that the guy in front was an idiot who wouldn't even lift his hand with a mountain of gold before him.
Then it was time for the main event.
"I thought Mr. Dong would go home to spend New Year's with his family today and wouldn't be coming."
Leaning against the floor-to-ceiling window, Lin Miao curiously observed the middle-aged man with graying hair, who looked older compared to the last meeting.
"In our line of work, we're always at the beck and call of our superiors, there's no such thing as time off, even during New Year's we can't find peace."
Dong Hui sighed, not mentioning the previous matters regarding Zheng Shichang.
"Unlike you, Mr. Lin, stirring things up with the Chaotic Blade Association, venturing into Dog Town, and still having time to hold a New Year party to relax with your employees, though I'm curious what commotion you'll be causing in Night City after the New Year."
Lin Miao glanced at him
"You don't know? I thought you knew everything."
"What can we know?"
Dong Hui shook his head
"I only know what I ought to know, and not a single word of what I shouldn't."
"Heh."
Lin Miao wasn't sure if he was deflecting or genuinely ignorant, gesturing to the other to look at Zheng Shichang, who was pretending to talk with colleagues while frequently glancing in their direction.
"Your people don't seem very competent." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖
Then he asked suggestively
"Is he the only one, or are they all like this?"
"It's quite common."
"Sounds like…. Things aren't looking too good for you guys."
"Times have changed, Mr. Lin, people have to look forward. Nowadays, not many believe in those things anymore. Once the older generation is gone, nobody can stop the torrential flow."
"And you?"
"I'm just a spineless turncoat, whichever way the wind blows, I follow."
"...."
"Can you tell me about your side?"
"Which aspect do you mean?"
"Start from the beginning, I heard your civil war was very intense, even the South Sea was ignored. In such circumstances, did it really happen?"
"Hmm…."
Dong Hui hummed a bit, seemingly pondering whether to speak the truth, and after a few seconds, he slowly began
"I hadn't been born at that time; the specifics are what I've heard from my grandfather. Of course, it's just casual talk from me and casual listening from you, not substantial."
"Just say it. Could this be a secret?"
"The old man said that fight had to be fought, whether they wanted to or not, or we wouldn't have made it till today."
"Do you know what was the greatest blow to people of their generation?"
Lin Miao thought for a moment, such matters usually boil down to two situations, internal strife or external threats, but the former wouldn't have led to today's circumstances, so it must be...
"Soviet Union?"
"Correct."
Dong Hui nodded helplessly
"The old man mentioned until his death, lamenting why the Soviet Union didn't just perish outright, saying it'd be clean to die once and for all."
"Regardless of whether its end was through fragmentation, collapse from the Cold War, or being defeated into demise by the West in a hot war, any outcome should not be the present one...."
Lin Miao understood Dong Hui referred to Soviet Petrochemical defeating the Soviet government and turning it into its puppet.
"Seems like this matter hit you pretty hard."
"Hard is an understatement."
Dong Hui smiled bitterly, even though he hadn't experienced that era personally, he could sense the despair from his grandfather's shattered beliefs.
"In the old man's words, the demise of the Soviet regime was inevitable, everyone knew it, but whether through self-collapse or being defeated by NATO could be seen as results of diverging from its path, yet being internally dismantled by Soviet Petrochemical and turned into a capitalist puppet was an unacceptable outcome for people of their generation."
"Because no matter what, that red flag represented the stance of a faction, it was the biggest card of that camp, and it just changed like that in the end."
Lin Miao could imagine the scene, probably similar to when the Qin stood against the Six kingdoms, only for Qin Shihuang to suddenly surrender and even actively call for recruits for the Six kingdoms, which surely would've been a massive blow to the Qin people.
Of course, if replaced with Lao Song, it'd be another story.
"In those years, suicides and betrayals soared, forcing the people at that time to lock themselves back up, and the planned openness was forcibly interrupted."
"But such measures are merely ostrich tactics; once the trend is set, it's not easy to alter. More and more people stood up to shout for free market, free trade, cheers for capitalism, including some originally staunchly believing officers....."
