Otherworld Girl Development Guide

"Theo is the same, studying artificial intelligence..." Theo said in a monotone tone, "...I'm also going to participate in the sixth-generation fighter project."

It hasn't been long, and he's already hanging out with Versailles Yang.

"You guys are really amazing," Zhou Mingrui said sincerely. Maybe the sixth-generation fighter jet for the rabbit could really be completed under their hands.

Only three countries on Earth have successfully developed fifth-generation fighter jets. Fifth-generation fighter jets require a complete supporting industry, much like the barrel theory. If one link fails, problems will occur. It is rare for countries like India to have every link fail.

If you can't build it, you can't build it; no amount of boasting will change that.

If fifth-generation fighter jets are already facing such difficulties, then sixth-generation fighter jets are even more challenging. Right now, even the concept of sixth-generation fighter jets is very vague, as this is already uncharted territory that even the United States has not yet entered.

If even sixth-generation fighters are like this, Zhou Mingrui thought about seventh-generation and eighth-generation fighters... It would probably require the combined power of the entire Earth and countless hours to develop them.

Ten years is considered a short time to develop a new generation of fighter jets; it can take twenty, thirty, or even fifty years.

At that stage of development, the role of a single genius is no longer significant; what is needed is a large group of "geniuses" to drive the progress of human technology.

Hearing Zhou Mingrui say this, Lingdang and Tio gripped Zhou Mingrui's hands slightly tighter, and sweet smiles appeared on the two little girls' faces. It was Zhou Mingrui who made them who they are, and compared to those children who died at the hands of the cult, they are happy and grateful.

Soon the group arrived at the restaurant entrance. Zhou Mingrui handed the invitation to the waiter, who then examined it.

After confirming that the information was correct, I looked at the group of people and was slightly puzzled. The number of people didn't quite match up. However, since it was the young lady who invited them, having a few more wouldn't be a problem. As the young lady of IBC, inviting a few more people to dinner was just a drop in the ocean.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this way please..."

Upon entering the hotel, Zhou Mingrui discovered that the interior decoration was extremely luxurious, with gold as the main color and some matte black accents... It was nothing short of lavish!

Then Zhou Mingrui saw some people who were obviously rabbits flirting with the girls in Krobel... It seems that these immigrants came prepared!

The waiter led Zhou Mingrui into the most upscale room in the hotel, which surprised him. He wondered if Ellie's salary could cover it, but then he thought it might be Mayor Doyle's banquet, and the mayor's salary should be fine.

After the waiter opened the door, he gestured for the young lady to enter: "Sir, you've arrived. Miss is waiting for you in this room."

"Thank you."

You're welcome. Enjoy your meal.

The waiter bowed slightly and left. Zhou Mingrui led the two children into the private room and froze on the spot. It wasn't Ellie in the room, but another woman he didn't recognize.

Zhou Mingrui, holding a child in each hand, gave a polite yet slightly awkward smile: "Uh... who are you?"

Chapter 57 Pshaw~

"Uh...who are you?"

Zhou Mingrui looked at the blonde woman in the private room. She was wearing a smart red work outfit on her upper body, with a white shirt underneath, and an expensive-looking emerald necklace around her neck. She was also wearing a white skirt on her lower body.

Unlike Ellie, this girl exudes an air of dominance and is definitely a powerful woman.

"My name is Mary, the daughter of the IBC president, and also Ellie's childhood friend..."

After revealing her identity, Mary smoothed her curly hair at the back of her head, her purple eyes fixed on Zhou Mingrui, and gestured for him to sit opposite her.

Zhou Mingrui then realized that he had misunderstood. This young lady was not the same as that young lady. He must ask clearly next time. But since the other party was Ellie's best friend, and he was already there... this could be considered a necessary social obligation.

He first pulled out chairs for the two little girls and gestured for them to sit down before sitting down himself and looking directly at Ellie's best friend, Miss Mary.

"My name is Zhou Mingrui. May I ask why Miss Mary summoned me here?"

Zhou Mingrui asked directly and simply. He didn't know any of those evasive tactics, and besides, now was not the time for evasiveness. This was like meeting the parents, and the correct way to deal with the questions was to answer them directly.

"Mr. Zhou Mingrui, there's no need to be so formal. Just call me Mary. I invited you here today to meet the good friend Ellie mentioned..."

After emphasizing the words "good friends," Mary clapped her hands to signal the waiter to bring the food, while her purple eyes scrutinized Zhou Mingrui: "...I am very grateful to you for saving Ellie..."

Mary said sincerely that Ellie had gone out alone into the extremely dangerous Abyss Sea; if she hadn't encountered the Shangqiu people, she would definitely have died at sea. However, that wasn't all she wanted to say. Mary changed the subject, staring into Zhou Mingrui's eyes, and asked:

"...Even if you saved Ellie, if you're just toying with her feelings, although I don't have any great abilities, I still have some tricks up my sleeve!"

Mary narrowed her eyes, a dangerous glint in them. As the heiress of IBC International Bank, she could still cause some trouble for Shangqiu, such as financial retaliation or a media offensive in the newspapers.

“I’m a responsible person, and Ellie is a good girl…” Zhou Mingrui said earnestly, “…The great writer Zhou Shuren from Shangqiu also said: All dating that is not for the purpose of marriage is just playing around.”

That's why they say an interview is necessary; only a face-to-face conversation can reveal what kind of person the other person is... Mary sensed Zhou Mingrui's sincerity, and her gaze softened slightly.

Mary was also a little curious about how Ellie could fall for a divorced man with children. But it didn't matter that he had children; with Ellie's personality, she would be a good mother in the future, and there wouldn't be any stepmother abusing the children.

Mary shifted her gaze from Zhou Mingrui to Lingdang and Tio. Her amber eyes stared at Mary with a fierce yet adorable look, filled with resistance, or rather, hostility.

Mary's womanly intuition told her that these two little girls were not easy to deal with.

Where is the child's mother?

“Mother?” Zhou Mingrui was taken aback for a moment before realizing what Mary meant. He reached out and touched Bell and Theo’s heads: “I’m not married yet, but they are important family to me.”

Mary looked into Zhou Mingrui's eyes again, waiting for his further explanation.

Zhou Mingrui looked up at Mary. Given her status as the heiress of IBC Bank, even if she had never met the D∴G Cult, she should have heard of them.

“They are children we rescued from the cult, and I adopted them.”

Mary narrowed her eyes the moment she heard the word "cult," then said as if she understood, "Northern Shangqiu?"

"Correct."

Zhou Mingrui confirmed Mary's guess: the deep crater in the northern part of the Bel Kingdom was a branch of the Order, but it has now been turned into a man-made tourist attraction.

"Is that so..."

She had heard of the cult, after all, given her status, she would inevitably come into contact with some shady dealings. However, she only knew that the cult was bribing some officials. It was alright in Krobel, but the worst affected areas were the Rebonian Empire and the Republic of Calva.

Mary's gaze softened as she looked at Theo and Bell. The fact that Zhou Mingrui was willing to adopt them proved that he was not a bad person at heart. It seemed that the children who were taken away by the cult must have had a very bad experience.

At least he passed her test in terms of character; the remaining qualities still need to be observed.

Why didn't Ellie come today?

“Her…” Mary sighed when she spoke of Ellie: “…She didn’t pursue a proper political career, but insisted on joining that support department. All she does is rescue cats and dogs or help the poor solve their problems. Now that you’ve come, she’s even busier.”

Zhou Mingrui learned some of these things through his correspondence with Ellie. In short, the mayor's granddaughter was working as a beat cop, and she was really working hard for her ideals, trying to change the current situation in Clober.

Zhou Mingrui was wondering if he should help Ellie. Previously, Shangqiu had not traded with Krobel, so it was difficult to sell many things there. Now that the two sides had signed a bilateral trade agreement, other terms would be signed next.

Some "civilian" equipment could be sold, such as bipedal versions of the Type 59 police aircraft, along with rotorcraft transport planes, which could be quickly deployed in the urban area of ​​Krobel. This would be very helpful in maintaining order in Krobel and would also allow for testing of police equipment.

"Alright, we'll have more time to get to know each other in the future, so let's eat."

Mary smiled and gave Zhou Mingrui a serious look. Since he knew about the cult, it meant that his identity was not as simple as it seemed. Perhaps he was a big fish. Regardless of his specific identity, it was a good thing for Ellie.

Mary picked up her utensils and began to eat the exquisite dishes on her plate. Seeing her actions, Zhou Mingrui breathed a sigh of relief. At least he had passed the test of Ellie's best friend.

At the dinner table, whether the other person touches their chopsticks or not is very important. If they think you're not a good person, they will absolutely not eat a single bite of food. Simply put, they won't get on your side.

"Then I shall respectfully comply."

Seeing Zhou Mingrui pick up his cutlery, the two kittens beside him exchanged a glance and obediently began to eat as well. Both sides tacitly avoided discussing Shangqiu and IBC Bank, as this meeting was a private one.

In an instant, the atmosphere at the dinner table became harmonious.

Chapter 58 Undercurrents

Dinner ended quickly, and the only thing that made Zhou Mingrui feel a little awkward was that he was having dinner with Ellie's best friend while caring for his two children...

Mary put down her cutlery, elegantly wiped her mouth with a napkin, and then stood up.

"Well then, Mr. Zhou Mingrui, it was a pleasure to have dinner with you. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."

"Wait a minute..." Zhou Mingrui called out to Mary, who was about to leave.

Is there anything else?

Mary looked at Zhou Mingrui with a puzzled expression. Zhou Mingrui took a gift box out of his pocket and handed it to her. After taking the gift box, Mary glanced at Zhou Mingrui in surprise.

"Consider this a small gift to thank you for the invitation," Zhou Mingrui said with a smile.

"I didn't realize Mr. Zhou was such a gentleman. Well then, I wish you a pleasant trip to Krobel."

After giving a graceful bow, Mary turned and left.

Zhou Mingrui got up and prepared to leave with the two kittens. He thought the restaurant was nice, and decided to have a candlelight dinner with Ellie next time.

"We should go now. Is there anywhere you'd like to go?"

Bell and Theo shook their heads. Zhou Mingrui glanced at the clock on the wall. It was only nine o'clock at night. He decided to take them for a walk some more.

Walking through the nighttime entertainment district, many people were coming from the Rainbow Theatre Company. It seemed that Ilya the Golden Sun and Morishia the Silver Moon had finished another musical performance.

After buying two street snacks, Zhou Mingrui sat on a seat for passersby with his two kittens. He looked up at the sky, and Lingdang and Tio leaned against him.

"I have a plan, are you interested in participating?"

Upon hearing this, Bell and Tio looked up at Zhou Mingrui.

at the same time.

The residence of Congressman Hart in Klopp County.

Speaker Hart, who had just finished the first day of talks, was repeatedly reading Shangqiu's white paper, occasionally jotting down important information from it in his notebook.

Hart is no fool to have reached the position of speaker; on the contrary, he is very capable and not much worse than Mayor Doyle.

After flipping through the white paper several times, Halt frowned slightly, got up, walked to the bookshelf, and pulled out a cut-out newspaper from the Kingdom of Bel.

Hart glanced at the headline "Striving for a Well-Off Society in the Kingdom of Bel" published in an inconspicuous corner of the newspaper, and his heart sank... Shangqiu's philosophy was completely different from that of the Rebonian Empire, the Republic of Calva, and Krobel; it was an unfamiliar philosophy.

After a knock on the door, an assistant entered the office. Because of Representative Halt's special status, the assistant visited several of Speaker Halt's supporters.

"How is it?" Speaker Hart asked without looking up as he read the article.

"Speaker, they hope to secure the exclusive distribution rights for some daily necessities supplied by Shangqiu."

Halt's assistant stood behind him and whispered, "Shangqiu's products are of high quality and low price. As long as we secure the agency rights, we believe we can quickly capture market share, kick out other competitors, raise prices, and then use Krobel's resources to continuously exchange for Shangqiu's goods, ensuring their monopoly."

“I understand, but this is not easy to handle. Mayor Doyle will not let us take over the entire agency rights, and I don’t think Shangqiu will give us the entire agency rights either.”

As his old rival, Speaker Hart knows Mayor Doyle well and he will definitely try his best to improve the treatment of the poor in Krobel. What he has been doing this year is improving the income of the poor.

His granddaughter also joined the newly formed, not-so-promising support department, actively working in the old city... Recently, she has gained considerable popularity among the poor, and even some ordinary people are very fond of Ellie. The support rate for the mayor's faction among the lower classes is gradually increasing.

This made Hart feel uneasy, as if something terrible was about to happen... something that would terrify all the councilors.

"Speaker Hart, should we take some... measures?" the assistant asked hesitantly.

Congressman Hart abruptly turned to look at his assistant, his brows furrowing slightly. The assistant's words were not unfounded, indicating that some people behind the scenes had ulterior motives.