Chapter 210: To Pry Someone Away in Person

The dangerous wager with Lilith was merely a minor interlude in Qin Feng's grand blueprint; he delegated subsequent monitoring and response tasks to Su Wenqian and relevant departments, then refocused his primary energy on the construction of the Deep Space Mothership and the forging of his own strength.

The New Era functioned like a precise and efficient machine, operating at full speed under Qin Feng's will.

Several days later, a technical symposium on the miniaturization of the New Energy Core was held at Conference Center No. 1 in the Core Technology Zone of the New Era; attendees included relevant experts from the Science Council and several senior Academicians from Dragon Country's Supreme Academy of Science—part of the deep collaboration between the New Era and Dragon Country.

During the mid-session break, participants gathered in small groups in the Rest Area, enjoying tea and snacks while discussing the difficult points raised in the previous session.

Su Wenqian, as Qin Feng's administrative assistant and one of the primary coordinators for New Era's cooperation with Dragon Country, was engaged in quiet conversation with the head of Dragon Country's delegation, the esteemed materials science titan Chen Academician.

Today, Su Wenqian wore a well-tailored dark gray business suit that accentuated her competent yet elegant silhouette; she wore no excessive adornments, yet her clear, refined features, composed demeanor, and those piercing, perceptive eyes made her stand out distinctly among the crowd; she was not only Qin Feng's right hand, but her exceptional abilities in project management and resource coordination had long earned high recognition from both internal members and partners.

At that moment, a faint commotion arose at the entrance of the Rest Area.

A young man in a wine-red suit, his hair slicked back and his face possessing a delicate, androgynous beauty, entered unchallenged, flanked by a retinue of assistants and bodyguards; his gaze swept the room, then locked precisely onto Su Wenqian, a self-satisfied smile curling on his lips as he strode directly toward her.

This man was Zhao Yuan, President of the Asia-Pacific Region of the Pandora Group and one of Lilith's trusted confidants.

"Miss Su, a pleasure," Zhao Yuan ignored Chen Academician beside her and extended his hand to Su Wenqian with deliberate familiarity, "I've long heard of Mr. Qin's assistant—capable and beautiful—and now that I see you, the reputation is entirely deserved."

Su Wenqian's eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly, but out of courtesy, she lightly shook his hand and immediately withdrew it. "Director Zhao, we didn't schedule a meeting."

"My apologies for the intrusion, Miss Su," Zhao Yuan retracted his hand, his smile unchanged, yet his gaze swept over her like a scanner, "Your grace is truly captivating—I couldn't resist the urge to introduce myself. I've come today first to convey Miss Lilith's greetings to Mr. Qin, and second, to have a word with you."

He paused, leaning slightly forward, lowering his voice with an alluring tone: "Miss Su, such talent as yours, confined to the role of an assistant, is truly… a waste of potential. Pandora has always been desperate for talent; someone like you is precisely what we dream of."

He snapped his fingers, and an assistant immediately handed him a sleek tablet.

Zhao Yuan turned the tablet toward Su Wenqian; it displayed an extremely generous letter of intent for employment.

"All you need to do is nod, and the position of Chief Operating Officer for Pandora's Asia-Pacific Region awaits you—salary, equity, resource allocation authority—all listed here, guaranteed to exceed your current compensation by more than tenfold. Moreover," Zhao Yuan's voice dripped with persuasion, "at Pandora, you'll have a far grander stage, far greater freedom to express yourself, rather than merely serving as someone's… appendage."

These words were an outright, brazen attempt to poach her—and subtly belittled Qin Feng, implying Su Wenqian was underutilized and oppressed within the New Era.

The surrounding chatter instantly died down; all eyes turned toward them. New Era staff wore expressions of anger, while the Dragon Country Academicians exchanged glances, visibly astonished.

Chen Academician frowned, about to speak up and intervene for Su Wenqian, when he saw her raise a hand slightly, signaling him not to interfere.

Su Wenqian's expression remained unchanged, still as calm and unruffled as ever; she didn't even glance at the tablet, her cold gaze fixed on Zhao Yuan as if watching a tedious farce.

"Finished?" she said coolly.

Zhao Yuan's smile froze. Su Wenqian's reaction was entirely unexpected—no longing, no anger, not even a ripple of emotion, only a kind of… almost pitying calm?

"Miss Su, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity…" Zhao Yuan tried to continue.

"Director Zhao," Su Wenqian interrupted him, her voice low but clear enough to carry across the entire Rest Area, "first, I have no interest whatsoever in the position or compensation you've offered."

"Second," she paused, her gaze sweeping over Zhao Yuan and his aggressive entourage, her tone laced with barely perceptible mockery, "you—or rather, Ms. Lilith behind you—have made a fundamental error."

"An error?" Zhao Yuan frowned.

"Do you believe loyalty can be bought with money and titles?" Su Wenqian's voice remained calm, yet her words cut like a cold blade, "In your eyes, am I Mr. Qin's 'appendage'? Perhaps. But you will never understand that to follow beside the Master, to witness and participate in what he has forged, is itself the highest honor and fortune."

In her eyes, for the first time, a clear, unmistakable emotion emerged—unreserved, unwavering faith and loyalty.

"Tenfold compensation? Chief Operating Officer?" Su Wenqian shook her head slightly, as if hearing an absurd joke, "Even if you placed the entire Pandora Group before me, it would be worth less than handling one trivial task for the Master."

"As for a stage?" She lifted her chin slightly, her gaze passing beyond Zhao Yuan, as if gazing past the New Era toward the vast sky and ocean, and further still toward the Deep Space Giant Ship slowly taking shape in the dry dock, "The Master's stage is the stars and seas. My stage is simply to do my utmost along the path he has charted."

"Now," Su Wenqian returned her gaze to Zhao Yuan, whose face had turned grim, and made a polite "please" gesture, "Director Zhao, if you have no other official business, kindly leave. This is the Core Technology Zone of the New Era—unwelcoming to uninvited personnel, especially those attempting to disrupt order."

Silence.

The entire Rest Area was utterly still.

New Era staff breathed slightly deeper, their eyes filled with excitement and pride; this was the leader they followed—even his assistant possessed such dignity and integrity!

Chen Academician and the Dragon Country Academicians also wore expressions of awe and admiration; they finally understood why the New Era had achieved so many miracles in such a short time—not merely due to Qin Feng's extraordinary abilities, but because he commanded a core group of unwavering believers, immune to any bribe!

Zhao Yuan's face flushed crimson then pale; his generous offer, his self-assured persuasion, crumbled into utter absurdity before her absolute loyalty and contempt.

"Fine… very fine!" Zhao Yuan gritted his teeth, glaring venomously at Su Wenqian, "Assistant Su, I hope you don't regret today's decision!"

Without another word, he turned and hurried away with his entourage, fleeing the Rest Area in disgrace.

The disturbance settled.

Su Wenqian acted as if nothing had happened, turning to Chen Academician with a slight nod: "Chen Lao, apologies for the disturbance. Shall we continue?"

Chen Academician looked at this young woman, so composed it was terrifying, and sincerely remarked: "Assistant Su, Mr. Qin is truly fortunate to have you by his side."

Su Wenqian offered only a faint smile, saying nothing more.

But all knew that Pandora's first attempt to undermine the New Era from within had ended in total failure—and Su Wenqian's resounding words would spread by word of mouth among those present, further uniting the hearts of the New Era.

Loyalty is priceless. Those who try to pry it loose only bring shame upon themselves.