Chapter 105

After walking around the lab, Zhou Jiu discovered a significant loss of talent within the lab.

"President Zhou, when will Chief Engineer Sun be back? Our progress has stalled, and the unique energy stones of Ancient Blue Star are more stable than ordinary energy stones. We've run out of our unique energy stones, so we can't proceed to the next step in any of the processes. Plus, the signed contracts are due soon. Morale is low, and I'm about to lose several of my engineers. Our general manager has also been poached, and the company is facing many problems."

"I'll figure out the energy stone issue. The management personnel will be in place soon, so don't worry. First, keep the engineers at work."

"Was Teacher Sun really kidnapped maliciously?"

"...That's not true, don't just parrot what others say." Zhou Jiu hadn't fully figured it out yet, so she could only reassure them first. After looking at the report, she understood why they said there was a shortage of money.

"President Zhou, there are police officers outside looking for us. They say it's about Chief Engineer Sun."

Zhou Jiu left for the conference room. Although it was called a company, it was actually just a simple studio. Apart from the laboratory, there were almost no management personnel. Now that they wanted to sell it to others, they could only wait for Qiao Shiyi's outsourced HR company to find professional management personnel.

Zhou Jiu could hear the engineers in the lab expressing their doubts about her and questioning Professor Sun after she left, but she was currently powerless to do anything about it.

Originally, she only wanted to return to Ancient Blue Star to build sensor-equipped mechs, and it was revealed that the energy stones needed for these mechs came from unique minerals found on Ancient Blue Star. She didn't know the details of these orders, and she was unwilling to participate in the specific operations and profit plans, as she was fairly confident in her own abilities.

After reviewing the list, Zhou Jiu could only sense that, having just finished her prison sentence, she was about to face bankruptcy and debt.

"Zhou Jiu, it's been a long time."

"Officer Wei Yan, it's been a long time." Zhou Jiu was surprised that Officer Wei Yan still remembered her, even though they were old acquaintances.

"Regarding the disappearance of Sun Keli from your company, do you have any leads you can provide?"

"...I wasn't there when Teacher Sun disappeared."

"I've asked other people in your company, and no one knows anything about Sun Keli's background. The only thing we know is that you contacted him before, and you are the only beneficiary of the company. I wonder if you and Sun Keli have any enemies or competitors?"

"No."

"Then tell me what you know about Sun Keli," Officer Wei Yan continued to ask.

“Mr. Sun and I both come from Planet E. Mr. Sun is a teacher at the primary school of the sponsored students. Except when we were required to go to the wasteland planet to scavenge, we almost always lived in the same courtyard as Mr. Sun. He is a very nice person, and we all respect him. We have never heard of him having any enemies.”

"So you're closest to him?"

"Officer Wei, what makes you say that? We all have a very good relationship with Teacher Sun."

"Then why did you start a company together?"

"Starting a company, of course, is about making money, but part of it is also about my love for mechanics. Teacher Sun knows a lot of things and teaches us mechanical knowledge. I'm someone who's very interested in this, so I often go to Teacher Sun's house and meet Sun You... Do you know who Sun You is? She's Teacher Sun's daughter. She's also quite good at mechanical skills. She interacts a lot with her peers, and you know, young girls like to play together. Over time, Teacher Sun became like a father to her."

"What was your experience when you first started the company?"

"Officer Wei, is this related to Teacher Sun's disappearance?" Zhou Jiuwei asked after a slight pause.

"This is the procedure for handling cases. Please explain truthfully."

Zhou Jiu leaned back in his chair. "It's very simple. Suddenly I made money, and then Teacher Sun had the technology. We didn't have mechs where we lived, and there were regulations against privately manufacturing mechs. Driven by our dreams and the money, we hit it off and applied for a technology lab and set up a company."

"Officer Wei, have you found any clues about Teacher Sun's disappearance recently? The police have been investigating for so long, but there's still no trace. I suddenly feel very worried about our public security." Zhou Jiu changed the subject and asked.

"I trust the police," Wei Yan said firmly, then continued to ask, "Where did you get your first sum of money?"

"Officer Wei Yan, are you conducting a business background check? I really don't understand what these questions have to do with Teacher Sun's disappearance, or is this a case where the police have no leads and are starting to shift the blame to the company?"

"Zhou Jiu, please cooperate with our investigation."

Zhou Jiu leaned back and asked, "Officer, I know nothing about what happened when Teacher Sun went missing. I don't know either, since I just came out of there myself."

"see a visitor out."

"Zhou Jiu, you've changed."

Zhou Jiu raised an eyebrow, "?"

"I remember how bravely you rescued people on the starship back then, and now..."

After Wei Yan was sent away, Zhou Jiu rested his chin on his hand, feeling a sense of bewilderment.

"Mr. Zhou, what should we do about the order now?"

"Pay the penalty for breach of contract and put the progress of the sensor mecha on hold for now."

The passage is still being cleared, so no more rune energy stones can be added at this time.

"But if we do that, our company will have serious problems with its subsequent funding."

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Jiu found Qiao Shiyi and asked, "I'm planning to dissolve the company directly. What do you think?"

"I just invested some money, and you just made some big talk about doing some research on magnetic fields. Captain, why are you disbanding the team? The future of sensor-equipped mechs is very promising." Qiao Shiyi asked, puzzled.

“If we delay any longer, there will be big problems. The federal government will not keep such technology outside their military factories, especially since they made such a huge profit in clearing the ancient Blue Star passage. If the technology is still in our hands, it will probably not just be Professor Sun who is missing. Moreover, we do not have the power behind us, and the company will not be ours sooner or later.”

"What about Sun You's forces, the Fourth Army..."

"No, the Fourth Army is stationed on New Blue Star. It is the armed force of New Blue Star and must protect the rights and interests of the people of New Blue Star, maintain New Blue Star's reputation in the entire interstellar space, and also consider the future return of Ancient Blue Star. It does not have enough power right now."

"It can be done later, but not now. The interests of the First, Second and Third Armies have been intertwined for a long time. The establishment of the Fourth Army is a small step forward, but suddenly it is involved in such a huge interest, and the Fourth Army cannot handle it."

"Do we have to give up?" Qiao Shiyi asked, somewhat reluctantly.

"Absolutely, we can't compete with them. We can't afford to lose everything later. Talking to the military factories and selling our technology would be better."