Chapter 187 The lives of barbarians are not human lives

Bruce's expression was grave. "The goal is fine, but the method is very problematic."

He then told the officer that he insisted on speaking with the president in person.

But this was rejected by the other party.

Bruce grew anxious and, in a moment of desperation, threatened, "If you don't let me see the president, I'll terminate the project immediately!"

The leading officer immediately pulled out his pistol and pointed it at Bruce's head.

Ning Hai was startled and quickly took a few steps back.

Facing the dark muzzle of a gun, Bruce showed no fear. "I have the core data and research technology for time travel in my hands. If I die, you can forget about continuing your research."

“Professor Bruce, think about your family,” the leading officer said coldly.

Bruce's expression changed slightly, but he still held his head high and said, "I think my family will understand me."

Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate.

A blond man in a black suit walked into the conference room unhurriedly.

"Put down your gun," the blond man commanded calmly.

The officer listened to him and promptly put his gun away.

The blond man glanced at Professor Bruce, then at Ning Hai, and then smiled. "Professor, Mr. Ning Hai, please sit down."

Ning Hai didn't know this person; this was their first meeting. But it was clear that the blond man already knew something about him.

So he sat down silently.

Bruce remained standing, frowning as he asked, "Who are you?"

The blond man sat down, put his feet up on the conference table, and said casually, "You can call me Mr. M. The president is very busy. If you want to say something to him, just tell me."

Bruce knew that he would never be able to see the president.

Left with no other option, they could only ask the other party, "Are you planning to plunder the land beyond the portal?"

“That’s right,” the blond man said decisively without beating around the bush, “We’ve discovered the world from over two thousand years ago, so of course we have to take all the resources from there.”

"Mr. M, what about those indigenous tribal residents?"

"It's very simple. They are all barbarians. If you can drive them out, then drive them out. If you can't drive them out, then kill them. If necessary, that world must also become the territory of the United States."

"I knew it!" Bruce shouted, veins bulging on his forehead, his hands gripping the table. "I object to what you're doing!"

Ning Hai thought to himself, "So this is what the professor was worried about."

The whole world knows how the United States was founded and how it prospered.

Sure enough, centuries later, the elites who control the country still maintain the same style as their ancestors.

Faced with Professor Bruce's roar, the blond man smiled and asked, "Professor, what do you think should be done?"

Bruce replied without hesitation, “Times have changed. We should obtain the resources we need from that world in a peaceful way.”

"A peaceful way? For example?" The blond man crossed his fingers, his expression meaningful.

Professor Bruce glanced at Ning Hai, then said very seriously, "On the other side of our planet, across the ocean to the East, China, their methods are worth learning from."

"Is that so?" The blond man narrowed his eyes slightly. "How did they do it?"

Professor Bruce said:

"In recent decades, more and more resource-rich but underdeveloped areas have been willing to risk offending our country, the United States, to provide resources to China. This is because China can help them improve their lives, and the people in those areas are increasingly unable to tolerate the United States' military plundering, which has led to the United States losing its former dominant control. Aren't you aware of this?"

The blond man smirked coldly. "Of course we know."

Professor Bruce was even more furious. "If you understand this, why not use this method to develop another world? Why resort to violent plunder? Aren't the indigenous tribes in that world from over two thousand years ago human beings? Their lives matter too! Moreover, they were the masters of that land!"

The blond man gave him a look as if he were an idiot. "I've said it before, they're just a bunch of barbarians. Barbarian lives don't count as human lives. That was the world more than two thousand years ago. There were no nations on the entire American continent yet. Even the few empires that had emerged on another continent couldn't possibly be our match. We don't need to exchange resources with barbarians by helping them develop."

“Mr. M…”

"Professor Bruce!" The blond man's face suddenly darkened. "Would you build hives for the wild bees and give them pollen when you're collecting wild honey, using these helpful methods to obtain their consent before taking the honey?!"

Bruce argued forcefully, "We are dealing with indigenous tribal residents, living, breathing people! Not wild bees!"

The blond man scoffed, "Is there a difference?"

Bruce was so angry that he didn't know how to refute the analogy. He could only reiterate that if the military resorted to force to seize the project, he would absolutely not cooperate in advancing the time travel project, even if it meant threatening his family and his life.

Seeing his stubbornness, the blond man patiently said, "Professor, don't forget, you are from the United States, and the interests of the United States are above all else."

“Country M is already very powerful!” Bruce said firmly.

"I don't want the United States to continue like it did a hundred years ago, relying on massacring natives and plundering resources to build its nation and grow stronger! Now we can obtain the resources we need from that world peacefully!"

"As you said, Mr. M, in that world, no empire could rival us. Don't you think we have even less reason to plunder through violence?"

"Moreover, no other country in the world besides us can go there, so we don't need to worry about anyone else competing with us for it! Isn't that right?"

"We are civilized people, so why do we keep doing things that are inhumane?!"

After a barrage of questions, Professor Bruce was exhausted, his face flushed and panting heavily.

Ning Hai was worried that his heart couldn't take it at his age, so he quickly put a chair behind him and helped him sit down.

Ning Hai had no say in the huge divisions within the M country, nor did he want to, lest he get himself involved. He only wanted to use this opportunity to rescue his daughter and wife from China.

The daughter's situation is relatively easy to handle, since it hasn't escalated to the level of a criminal case yet.

Professor Bruce has already offered assistance, and my daughter will be fine soon.

However, his wife was convicted of attempted murder and altering a will, which is a more serious issue.

Furthermore, although Professor Bruce was capable of using his connections to help, he refused, saying that his wife had committed a crime and should be punished, therefore he would not provide any further assistance in that regard.

Ning Hai planned to help the professor advance his time travel project while simultaneously trying to persuade him.

Who knows, after a while, the professor might finally agree to help, considering his contributions and hard work? Even if it's just to get his wife's sentence reduced by a few years, that would be something.

But now it seems that if the professor and the top officials of the US country cannot reach a consensus, affecting the progress of the project, this hope will be dashed...

The meeting room remained quiet for a long time.

The blond man waited until Bruce calmed down before slowly speaking, "My dear Professor Bruce, what you said makes some sense. But haven't you felt that our country's position as the world's number one is not so secure? You are also one of our elites, and you shouldn't be like the lower class of the United States, still foolishly believing that no country on this planet can shake the United States' position as the world's hegemon."

As he said this, the blond man gave Ning Hai a meaningful glance.

Ning Hai panicked a little and said, "Mr. M, as you know, I have been wanted by China, and... as a core participant in the experimental project, I have also obtained your country's citizenship. I am now a citizen of M country, and I will always be a citizen of M country."

The blond man laughed. “Mr. Ninghai, there’s no need to be so nervous. Of course I trust you. I’m glad you can express your position so clearly. Rest assured, in our free country, you are the safest person.”

Ning Hai secretly breathed a sigh of relief and forced a flattering smile.

“Mr. M, of course I know that China has become our strongest rival. Their development speed is unprecedented and they are on the verge of catching up with us,” Professor Bruce said as he pondered. “It is precisely because I have witnessed the miracles created by China that I believe their cooperative approach with less developed countries and regions is the right one. We should learn from them now and stop being arrogant.”

The blond man said calmly, "So do you think, given the current world situation, we still have time to use their methods to win over more and more countries in the world that are on their side?"

“This…” Professor Bruce hesitated.

The blond man tapped the table with his finger. "Let me tell you, it's too late. Our top-level think tank has concluded that the US is rapidly declining, while China's development trend remains strong. Countless industries in which we once led the world are being overtaken by China, and we are increasingly powerless to cope."

Professor Bruce gritted his teeth and said, "Then let's cooperate well with China. Even if we lose our position as the world's number one country and lose our control over the world, it's still better than going against China. Besides, they are indeed trying to make the world more peaceful and better."

The blond man sneered, "When the United States can no longer dominate the world, its perpetually insatiable super-rich individuals and conglomerates will no longer be able to plunder wealth from the world. This is worse than death for them. Do you think those who control the United States can accept this?"

Bruce looked grim; he wanted to say something, but didn't know how to answer.

The blond man continued, “Thank God, we’ve found a world that hasn’t been severely depleted by modern civilization. Its abundant resources can help the US maintain its firm control over the globe. And now, we can only keep up with, or even surpass, China’s development speed through plunder. Professor Bruce, it’s not that I’m unwilling to take a peaceful and gradual approach, it’s just that our great US doesn’t have that much time left. But I can do my best to minimize casualties among the ancient people in that world.”

After saying this, the blond man looked expectantly at Bruce, hoping to change the stubborn professor's attitude.

Bruce pondered for several minutes, then slowly stood up, adjusted his glasses, and said seriously:

“I know people like you all too well. Once you start plundering, you won’t let the people of that world go. You will use modern weapons to crush a world that is more than two thousand years behind us, and ruthlessly drain all available resources. And there, no force can stop you.”

"If it means sacrificing the lives of all humanity in the world to maintain the so-called world number one position of the United States, I'm sorry, I can't do it."

“Mr. M, please leave and inform His Excellency the President that the time travel project is now over. I will disband the laboratory and destroy all related data.”

These words made Ning Hai's expression change.

But the blond man remained calm, only a fleeting, elusive glint of cold light flashing in his blue-gray eyes.

After Professor Bruce finished speaking, he left the conference room immediately.

Ning Hai hurriedly got up to chase after him, but after taking a few steps, he stopped and returned to the blond man's side. He bent down and smiled apologetically, saying, "Mr. M, Professor Bruce just hasn't figured it out yet. I'll go and persuade him. Don't worry, he has devoted his life to the research on time travel, and it's impossible for it to end like this."

The blond man revealed an appreciative expression. "Mr. Ning Hai, you must be the person who knows the most about that black sphere that can open the portal between time and space, besides Professor Bruce, right?"

Ning Hai thought to himself, even Professor Bruce hadn't figured out how that thing worked, and the way to activate the black ball was something he and his experimental team had figured out little by little with the confidential data provided by Bruce. That made sense.

So he nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, and in some practical aspects, I know more about them than he does. Apart from some core data, I still need him to give it to me."

Upon hearing this, the blond man smiled.

“My dear Mr. Ning Hai,” he stood up, patted Ning Hai on the shoulder, and said meaningfully, “I hope you can completely persuade Professor Bruce to obey our arrangements. If you do, I can guarantee that through national negotiations, you can reunite with your wife and daughter as soon as possible, and your whole family can enjoy a rich and free life in the United States in the future.”

Ning Hai's eyes widened instantly, and he exclaimed with ecstatic joy, "Yes, yes, yes! I will definitely do it!"

The blond man took out a card with a phone number printed on it and put it into Ning Hai's breast pocket. "Well then, Mr. Ning Hai, I'll be waiting for your good news."

The blond man then left with several officers.

Ning Hai was so excited that he was trembling all over. He ran back and forth in the conference room several times before he could calm himself down.

Although we don't know exactly what Mr. M's position is, judging from what just happened, he is at least a very powerful person working for the president of country M.

If we can get on this good side, why would we need to rely on Professor Bruce for help?

Ning Hai carefully kept the contact information the other party gave him and quickly headed straight for Professor Bruce's office.

At that moment, Professor Bruce was sitting dejectedly on the sofa, smoking one cigarette after another in silence.

Seeing Ning Hai rushing over excitedly, he rubbed his forehead and reminded him in a stern tone:

"Ninghai, if you're here to persuade me to follow Mr. M's arrangements, then say nothing more and please don't bother me. I don't want this matter to affect our friendship."