[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer":3,"chapter-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-658":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Cyberpunk: Cross-dimensional Science and Engineering",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1152649,1495,"Chapter 652 - 623: The Young Couple (Part 1)","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-658",658,"\u003Cp>\"Welcome back to News 54, bringing you the latest broadcast.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"NCPD raises the flag of Night City once again in Taiping State—the armed police have built a barricade here in Taiping State, where for years the flag of Night City had not been seen, facing off against Dog Town.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This has caused some concern among the locals. After years of maintaining peace following the turmoil of war, there is fear that NCPD’s aggressive actions may disrupt the tranquility, potentially sparking a new war.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"WNS News brings you the latest broadcast: Terrorists infiltrate Taiping State, escalating the situation.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Recently, the organized crime group known as the ’Hamburg Criminal Group’ has entered Taiping State, and there are reports that the group has moved into Dog Town, attempting to escalate tensions in the area.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The deployment of armed police by NCPD has undoubtedly aggravated the conflict, and there are claims that the security groups outsourced by NCPD are small-scale security firms that do not meet Level One security qualifications. Moreover, it’s said that some members of these groups bear a striking resemblance to known gang members with criminal records, heightening concerns...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the streets of Night City, Mackinaw trucks drove past one after another—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They didn’t even pretend anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More accurately, these weren’t classic Thunder Mclaren Mackinaws; the size of a Thunder Mclaren Mackinaw was obviously smaller than these big trucks. More importantly, while the Thunder Mclaren Mackinaw was truly a rugged and durable big pickup, it wouldn’t be fitted with heavy machine guns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the \"Mackinaw Mammoth.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rich fuel type 2 was burning. The deafening sounds of sports cars that usually filled the streets had quieted down. All that could be seen was a fleet of NCPD armored pickups parading through the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sitting in each pickup was something the people of Night City feared at night: gangs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People would curse corporate products for being expensive, the working conditions poor, and company employees for looking down on others. But if you encounter a company employee on the street or know someone who works for a company, you would still have to respectfully compliment them for their success and the company’s good benefits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gangs were different: they were all dogs; anyone who got mixed up with a gang had ruined their life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Live long enough and you’ll see anything. NCPD has finally stopped pretending, mixing up with gangs...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man on the roadside, carrying tools and holding a child’s hand, hurried toward the subway station.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His child, about ten years old, looked at the large pickups with admiration: \"Dad, those cars are really cool, right...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cool? I warn you to study hard and stay away from these guys. Work hard to get a certificate and become a technician in a company—job security.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But those cars are really cool!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cool? A scam for subsidies, what a joke. Mackinaw spins off the entire new hybrid engine concept pickup from Thunder Company...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Have you seen an electric car? Trash, that’s what they are. Buy one now, and you won’t know where to get it repaired when it breaks down.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But the car is really cool!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hey, did you hear me when I told you to focus on your studies just now?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The child lowered his gaze and said rebelliously, \"Join a company... but the top student in class—his dad was laid off by Ye Group last week!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You ungrateful child...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David and his mother Gloria stood by the roadside and happened to witness this scene, as well as the convoy driving past—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gloria had seen how intensely David had been watching, but now as a mother, she was at a loss for what to say.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although she didn’t know exactly what David was doing, he was earning quite a bit. He had managed to pay off all her long-standing credit card debts and even got a new Mackinaw Pika, which, although it looked rundown, had a much better power output, ride experience, and interior space compared to the old Canary G240.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When her child couldn’t do anything while still in school, she had always had high hopes for David and always believed that only by following her own experience and avoiding detours could he have a good life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when David began to venture into society, to earn money to support the family, she suddenly found herself at a loss for words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David exclaimed, \"That car is so cool.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes,\" Gloria nodded in agreement, although she didn’t understand cars, but that one really seemed to ooze a sense of security, \"It feels much more impressive than the Emperor Ragnar that the NCPD used to employ.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No doubt, Mom, you might not know, the NCPD has already started using combat exoskeletons, and pick-up trucks can be quickly modified into mobile armories; they’re very effective...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"David, how come you know so much about it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uh...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David was suddenly at a loss, and Gloria, who had long realized that her son’s work couldn’t possibly be easy, shifted the conversation half out of worry and half out of resignation:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What about that girl who often works with you? I remember her name is Lucy, how are things progressing with you two?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David scratched his head, suddenly embarrassed, \"Mom, I... I feel like our relationship is getting better, but I always feel like she’s hiding something from me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Girls are like that; it means she’s a girl with a story, sensitive in her thoughts...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You should take more care of your relationship with her, and as for the affairs of Taiping State and the NCPD, it’s better to be less involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Exoskeletons, heavy machine guns... those things look like they’re for going to war.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beep beep—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as she finished speaking, a Mackinaw Mammoth came charging over, honking its horn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant armored pickup’s engine roared as if hammering on people’s hearts, and its enormous bulk made passersby’s hearts skip a beat; on the road, no car owners would want to share the lane with them...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vehicles on both sides either pulled over or sped away, quickly clearing a path through the crowded streets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vehicle was headed towards David.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David’s expression suddenly became awkward because he saw that the driver was Man, and Lucy was sitting in the passenger seat...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This car wasn’t something ordinary citizens could buy, or rather, they couldn’t buy it at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Didn’t this just confirm that he had indeed been engaging in very dangerous mercenary work all along?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vehicle pulled over to the curb, and Man rolled down the window, flashing a big white smile at David, \"David, get in, we’ve got work... uh, cool car, right? Come on, big brother will take you for a spin.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David’s scratching of his head intensified as he began to communicate frantically with his mother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucy, sitting in the passenger seat, watched Gloria and observed the mother and son’s interaction without saying a word, her thoughts unknown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was only after David had struggled to persuade his mother that she finally spoke up:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t anything dangerous. We’re just driving around in clothes, transporting supplies, and attending a few meetings at City Hall...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David’s mom, if you watch the news, you should know that the NCPD recently imposed security control over Taiping State, and some supplies need to be delivered there; we’re just helping to transport the goods.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Transporting goods...\" Gloria paused for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Right, transporting goods, we might even get seen on TV at some point. It’s legitimate work, outsourced by the NCPD.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>David gave Lucy a thumbs-up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That explanation was good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Official outsourcing, legitimate work, respectable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Parents always like their children doing these kinds of jobs.\u003C\u002Fp>",1278,"2026-06-03T12:33:34.019Z","2026-06-03T12:33:40.482Z",1,"novelbin.me","988a8f3c43b6f902e2b93c179b66ff2df1873d6a97332eb543c5b7c015cb0fcc","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-659","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-657",1068,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fcyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-cover.jpg"]