Chapter 522: 2.3 Main·Pinokangni (193)

Wei Bo was still trying to explain some modern business tactics, but he noticed Rider wasn't rushing to rebut; he just listened silently, those bell-like eyes quietly gazing at the elegant lady in the sky and the fleeting glint in her eyes.

Then, without any warning—

Rider moved, his thick forefinger suddenly rose, held straight, and then in the next instant—

"Pa!!"

A sharp crack of a finger flick struck Wei Bo's forehead; before he could react, he felt an incredibly sharp impact slam into his brow, as if a red-hot iron nail had been hammered in. His vision went black, stars burst, and he staggered backward, nearly falling flat on his back.

"Ugh—!!"

"Ow…… it hurts so much, ah it hurts hurts hurts—!!!"

Wei Bo rubbed his reddened forehead, tears welling from the pain, just about to get angry when a thunderous reprimand rang in his ears.

"Idiot!!"

Only saw the Conquest King arms crossed, looking down at him from above, his face devoid of any joking expression, only a near‑stern scrutiny.

"Do you think I'm denying that woman's 'strategy'? Wrong! My strategists also calculate provisions before battle, scout enemy intel, spread rumors to shake the enemy's morale! I naturally know the value of these!"

"But the ultimate purpose of all this is to make victory more certain, to make the steps of conquest smoother! It is to crush the enemy's will on the battlefield with absolute power and momentum!"

"And what is the ultimate purpose of their calculations, all their words? Is it to preserve the dignity of 【Preservation】? Does Kelipo's dignity even need humans to uphold? Or is it to uphold an empty 【Preservation】 in name? Is it to wrap one's ambition and desire beneath rules and words?"

The Conquest King slowly clenched his palm, tightened his fist: "A true ruler's ambition burns like blazing fire, his desire flows like an endless river, never deigning to hide! Want it? Take it! Obstacle! Destroy it! The world's rules? Written by the victors! As long as one commands the universe, how 【Preservation】 is handled is decided by the conqueror's company!"

He again looked at Wei Bo, grimacing in pain, his tone slightly softened but still unquestionable: "Kid, remember. Power and wisdom are merely tools; but the heart that wields them decides whether you are a hound crawling under rules or a lion that makes them!"

"And… remember this pain! Remember my words together with it!"

——

"If you just give up that foolish IPO plan, the company promises: no harm to the interests of the heads you lead. In Asdena we also need allies. The company can 【help】 Pinokangni with financing—starting by buying a 30% stake. With our capital inflow, Pinokangni's stability and reconstruction will be nothing more than an overnight project."

"Lao Aodi's attitude also softened a little: '30%, who can guarantee your appetite won't keep growing?'"

""Hehe, the subtlety of the whole matter isn't here? The answer is: no one. No one can guarantee it; everything relies on self‑discipline and respect, and at least the board will still give you heads some face."

"Lady Jadeite got straight to the point: 'Old Aodi, you're a smart person; going to all this trouble to play this game with me isn't just to show off your business acumen so your family can gain more benefits, is it?'"

""Just enough is fine for both sides; if you think this isn't enough—another purpose of taking Pinokangni public is simply to further expand the influence of the Gala Star, attract more guests to splurge. I've also prepared a corresponding solution for that."

"Lao Aodi closed his eyes: 'Hmm… okay. I understand the company's sincerity. As the head of the Alfalfa clan, Lao Aodi seems to have no reason to refuse—but as a follower of Him (Xipe), I still need one final answer.'"

""Go on, I'm listening."

""When I was a child, I heard elders recount the tale of the Ancient Amber Era: 【Harmony】 Xipe ascended, 【Order】 Taiyi fell. In those ancient ages, Order and Preservation were so close. As a follower of the Amber King, why doesn't the company side with Order, but instead seek cooperation with the family?"

——

Genshin.

"I know I know! I know this question!"

Inside the Hall of Ten Thousand People, Hu Tao, who had just been eating shrimp dumplings, instantly put down her chopsticks, eyes lighting up, and raised her hand high like a classroom answer‑rush.

"The answer is simple—of course Taiyi of Order was already swallowed by Harmony; the Order forces now don't even have a star god, so of course cooperating with the family is more reliable!"

Meanwhile, Xiangling was feeding the spicy rice crackers under the table to the leftover crumbs; hearing this, she also blinked in disbelief: 'Ah? That simple? I don't think the company would care whether there's a star god or not.' She said, looking at the most learned person at the table, 'Master Zhongli, what do you think?'

"Hehe, what the Hall Master said is indeed part of the reason. However, the deeper cause could be even simpler."

Zhongli slowly set down his tea cup, his gaze sweeping over the opposing parties in the sky, and said lightly: 'One might compare it to past events in Liyue. During the Archon War, the myriad demons and gods rose together, each upholding its own principle, seeking to establish its order. Yet strength inherently has strong and weak distinctions; the very 'order' they command also differs fundamentally, even to the point of mutual exclusion.'

"'Order' is not unique, yet on a given plot of land only one dominant 'order' can usually prevail. When Taiyi still existed, he was the universe's sole order. Now that he has fallen, the dominant order of the cosmos has become 【Preservation】; in the company's view, rather than cooperate with an old order whose ideology may not blend, it is better to work with the inclusive 【Harmony】, making the cosmos's 【Preservation】 more stable."

"'Makes sense…' Hu Tao nodded in agreement, 'If the Hall of the Departed had two heads, me a guest official and one a head, that would be like having two orders; the subordinates wouldn't know whose orders to follow, and everything would fall into chaos! Looking at the universe, this principle holds too, right? Guest official?'"

Zhongli gave a slight nod: 'By universal reason… the hall master understands correctly.'

——

Lady Jadeite said calmly: 'This answer might be even simpler than you think: credit points, people's favorite thing, the only universally recognized stable-value currency in interstellar space, which the company can guarantee will never depreciate.'

""For every world that joins the credit system's domain, the cause of universal peace gains another brick, until all foreign exchange, capital, and trade fall under the unified 【Currency System】."

""By then, every planet's development will be logged into accounts, items clear; every concept can be defined, valued, exchanged, circulated, and its center is Kelipo's 【Credit】."