Chapter 265 Naked Threat

Qiao Lan had no idea about the twists and turns inside their laboratory. She only knew that she had caught Zhou Ping, and thus received special care from Ms. Fu, the chief expert, head of the laboratory, and director of the core research institute. So she felt very happy and thought that this encounter with Zhou Ping was quite worthwhile.

She also wanted a better deal.

After expressing her gratitude to the director for personally taking care of Xiao Tang, Qiao Lan brought up Zhou Ping again: "Do you really want to fire him? He seems to have a very high level of scientific research and is very innovative. Don't you think it's a pity?"

Director Fu shook his head: "Not a pity! Not a pity!"

Zhou Ping was talented, but no one dared to keep him. It was like a landmine nestled nearby. Who knew if he'd one day decide his place wasn't pure enough and leave for a more authentic institution? When hiring officials, the broader situation was paramount. They couldn't just look at personal qualities, but also their state of mind. Safeguarding was paramount, lest a single misstep impact people's livelihoods.

When Qiao Lan heard this, he rolled his eyes and thought to himself, if you don’t want it, then I won’t be polite.

After returning from visiting Xiao Tang, Zhou Ping was still tied up in bed. Qiao Lan told him the result of the handling by the higher-ups.

Upon learning that she was fired, Zhou Ping, who had just woken up from a coma, immediately burst into tears and let out a desperate cry like a wolf howl.

He had finally gotten this job opportunity! And it was ruined just like that...

He was crying here, while Qiao Lan and Yin Wanying were watching the fun from the side, and they also exchanged their thoughts through spiritual communication.

"Sister, how is it?"

"It's okay. I didn't sense any resentment or hatred from him. He was just very desperate and sad."

"Are you so desperate that you want to commit suicide?"

"Yeah, a little."

"Ah, that's great."

Qiao Lan was secretly delighted.

People are most easily persuaded in this state.

So he smiled at Zhou Ping and said, "Alright, stop crying, you're just a pure scientist. You're lucky to be alive. Given your situation, if I hadn't specifically pleaded with the commander, would you still be lying in bed like this? Someone would have taken you away long ago! According to the rules, you're supposed to be sent to a construction site to do hard labor. Many Saint Yes and Temple prisoners are working there moving bricks. Even if you're doing hard labor, we'll let you off. Otherwise, your work experience would be enough to get you sentenced to death!"

Zhou Ping's wailing stopped abruptly when she heard this. She asked in astonishment, "You're begging for mercy? Why are you begging for me?"

"Because I covet your beauty?"

Qiao Lan chuckled, "Come on, you have no choice. Either you ignore my kindness and accept official punishment to work at a construction site carrying bricks. It's tiring, but you'll have food to eat and won't starve to death. Or, come with me and do scientific research for me."

Zhou Ping stared at Qiao Lan blankly.

"Why, you can work for Saint Yes, but you can't work for me? Do you look down on us?" Qiao Lan took out the Blackwater Town management document that Wei Jianshe had given her from her pocket and threw it in front of Zhou Ping. "Look carefully, see clearly."

Zhou Ping opened her tear-stained eyes wide and read the few short lines on the alloy document over and over again, chewing on them repeatedly before she finally understood what was going on.

The small town next to City C was about to become a private territory, and this lord was standing in front of him, inviting him to do scientific research for the town?

What kind of development can a small, broken town possibly produce? What kind of scientific research can it produce?

Qiao Lan knew what Zhou Ping was thinking from the look on her face at a glance.

His face darkened as he spoke, "Don't think you're wasting your talent by working for me. I don't hire just anyone. So what if you have a little scientific talent? If your character isn't good enough, I still won't want you. If it weren't for the test just now, which showed you didn't harbor much hatred towards me, do you think I would have asked to take you in?"

Zhou Ping shuddered when he heard this and glanced at Yin Wanying. Then he remembered that she could sense his emotions.

He was a little scared.

If he had put the blame for his dismissal on Qiao Lan, thinking that she was the one who exposed his past and caused his dismissal, and hated her... I'm afraid she would have handed him over to the authorities for punishment.

Thank God, he was slow to react. He was so sad about losing his job that he didn't think about holding anyone accountable.

"I... I certainly don't harbor any hatred towards you. Although you recognized me and reported me to the higher-ups, I was fired because I actually worked for Saint Yes. You were merely the trigger, and I understand that clearly. When we do scientific research, the most crucial thing is to distinguish between primary and secondary causes and consequences."

Zhou Ping expressed her opinion honestly and changed the way she addressed Qiao Lan.

"Oh, are you promising me?" Qiao Lan asked.

"...Thank you for your invitation. I will go to your town to work."

Zhou Pingsi quickly realized the situation, and although she was helpless, she had to accept the reality.

You can't really be a laborer moving bricks to build infrastructure, because then you'll never get ahead.

He lost a valuable job opportunity and wanted to commit suicide in despair, but suddenly another job opportunity fell upon him. Although it might not be a good opportunity... it was better than nothing.

Qiao Lan stepped forward and untied him, saying with a smile, "Alright, then we'll be in the same camp from now on. As long as you work hard on your scientific research and contribute to the development of Blackwater Town, I won't treat you unfairly—whether it's living conditions or scientific research conditions, I'll make sure you're satisfied."

Zhou Ping smiled politely.

The smile was a little bitter.

Would he be able to satisfy his scientific research conditions? Even the officials dare not boast about this. Alas.

"Your real name is Zhou Ping, right?"

"yes."

"So will you be a man or a woman in this town from now on?"

"Well……"

Zhou Ping thought about it and said that it was fine to maintain her current state as a middle-aged woman.

Qiao Lan let him do what he wanted. It didn't matter whether he was a man or a woman, as long as he could do the work.

He took out a hamburger from his pocket and gave it to Zhou Ping as a reward for joining the company.

Zhou Ping took a look and saw it was the classic Double Ji burger from M's, the simplest small burger he had ever disdained to eat. But in the apocalypse, this thing was extremely rare.

"Aren't you two going to eat?"

He took the burger and before wolfing it down, he was quite polite and asked Qiao Lan and the others politely while holding back his saliva.

"No, we have something better to eat." said Qiao Lan.

Zhou Ping immediately grabbed the hamburger and started to eat it.

After finishing a burger, he felt much better and his thoughts changed a little bit - if the scientific research conditions in Blackwater Town were not good enough, the living standard, and most importantly, the diet, could be acceptable, then, that would be fine.

Yin Wanying suddenly said quietly, "Aunt Zhou, I hope you can enjoy your life in Blackwater Town in the future. If you're not happy, you can leave at any time. Oh, hehe."

Zhou Ping's mood, which had just relaxed, suddenly became tense.

Yin Wanying didn't say these words with her mouth, but communicated them with her mind, and they suddenly rang in his mind.

The fear that was previously dominated by Yin Wanying's mental search surfaced in his mind again.

This... this is a naked threat.

"Leave at any time" was a lie. Yin Wanying was warning him not to have second thoughts, or else her mental attack would instantly destroy him. Could it be that he couldn't get off this pirate ship once he got on it???

"I will definitely be happy. Thank you, thank you..." Zhou Ping really wanted to thank her whole family.

Knock knock knock, someone was knocking on the door from outside.

Qiao Lan opened the door. Director Fu was standing outside, followed by two... eh? The expert guards who had been with Zhao Bing before?

The two people who had fought with her and were exposed by her?

"What are you doing?" Qiao Lan looked at Director Fu, the current chief scientific research officer, in confusion.