Chapter 511: Cooperation

"Representing Shima Heavy Industries to cooperate with us?" Lingyun looked at Shima Miori and raised an eyebrow slightly.

"That's right." Shima Miori nodded.

"This place doesn't seem suitable for our conversation; let's go somewhere else!" Lingyun looked around and said.

"I still have some business to attend to with Rentaro, so I'll be leaving first." Tendo Kisara said to Lingyun and the other person, then left the place.

Lingyun watched Tendo Kisara walk away, chuckled, shook his head, and then led Shima Miori toward the reception room.

"Sit." Lingyun said to Shima Miori.

Shima Miori nodded at Lingyun, then gracefully sat down opposite him.

Xiaona sat beside Lingyun and began to brew tea skillfully. In just a moment, two cups of steaming hot tea were placed in front of Lingyun and Shima Miori.

"Give it a try. This tea was brewed by Xiaona herself; not many people have tasted it." Lingyun picked up a cup of tea and said to Shima Miori with a smile.

"Hmm, this tea?" Just by smelling the tea's aroma, Shima Miori's eyes lit up involuntarily. Even as the young lady of the Shima family, she had never smelled such an alluring tea aroma.

"This kind of tea is only available in the town!" Lingyun said with a smile.

In reality, the tea leaves used for this brew were not produced in this world. The air in this world was filled with the Gastrea Virus, and the sky was gray all year round; there was no way to produce such good tea leaves. These tea leaves were redeemed by Kirito from the Traveler Alliance, and it was said to be a famous tea from a certain world.

"Good tea!" Draining the tea in the porcelain cup in one gulp, Shima Miori did not hold back her words of praise.

"Alright, now you can tell me the thoughts of your Shima Heavy Industries!" Lingyun shifted the tone and brought the topic back. "I remember that Shima Heavy Industries is already the world's largest weapons company. Under these circumstances, why do you still want to cooperate with me?"

"Oh, oh." Shima Miori put down the porcelain cup in her hand and gave Lingyun a proper smile. "There's no help for it. Although Shima Heavy Industries is currently the world's largest weapons company, that is only for now; we are not without competitors."

"What does this have to do with you wanting to cooperate with us?" Lingyun asked.

"How could this have nothing to do with it, Mr. Lingyun? Perhaps you don't yet know how many people are eyeing your town." Shima Miori said to Lingyun.

"There have never been few people eyeing this town, but whatever fate awaits those who do is their own doing." Lingyun said with a calm expression.

"The 'eyeing' I'm talking about doesn't just mean one thing. As far as I know, quite a few people from weapons companies have already wanted to get in touch with you." Shima Miori said.

"Get in touch with me?" Lingyun raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Hmm? It seems you still don't understand how much business potential is contained within this town right now." Shima Miori said.

"Business potential? Hmm, knowledge in this area seems to have been tossed into some forgotten corner of my mind long ago." Lingyun muttered to himself in his heart.

"Right now, your town has become a symbol in the eyes of others: an incomparably powerful Civil Security Officer team, good conduct, and a nearly one-hundred-percent mission completion rate. Such a thing is unique in the entire world. I don't know how many capable people are willing to submit their missions to your town's mission hall. And being unique represents huge business potential. For us weapons manufacturers, if some company suddenly announced that the weapons used by your Civil Security Officer team were all produced by them, what kind of thoughts do you think others would have?" Shima Miori asked.

Before Lingyun could say anything, Shima Miori continued: "If the weapons used by the Lingyun Town Civil Security Officer team are actually from one company's products, then it means the weapons produced by this company are absolutely top-tier. Under these circumstances, the vast majority of people would likely choose this company." Shima Miori said. "As long as we can hitch a ride on your coattails, the performance of any weapons company could skyrocket. To avoid being surpassed by others, we have no choice but to come and cooperate with you."

"There's such a thing?" There was a trace of faint astonishment in Lingyun's tone.

"That's right, there is such a thing!" Shima Miori nodded.

"Then, what kind of cooperation are we talking about? What do you want to gain, and what can I gain?" Lingyun raised an eyebrow slightly.

"My request is that the Civil Security Officers registered in Lingyun Town should try their best to choose weapons produced by Shima Heavy Industries when selecting their gear. In exchange, Shima Heavy Industries will use the best technology and materials to forge weapons for the Lingyun Town Civil Security Officer team, and at the same time, sell them at the lowest price in the industry, but this requires them to keep it confidential. At the same time, Shima Heavy Industries will secretly provide some of the supplies needed by Lingyun Town." Shima Miori looked at Lingyun and said slowly. "I wonder if you, Lingyun, can be satisfied with these conditions."

"This is indeed a win-win situation, but there are still many conditions that can be negotiated, aren't there?" Lingyun looked at Shima Miori, a trace of a smile appearing on his face.

"That is indeed the case..." Shima Miori looked at the smiling Lingyun, and a chill suddenly rose in her heart, as if she were being stared at by some terrifying beast.

"Fine, then let's negotiate the terms of this now!" A smile appeared on Lingyun's face, and certain things he had thrown into the depths of his mind began to awaken.

It wasn't until the sun dipped below the west that Lingyun and Shima Miori walked out of the reception room.

"Mr. Lingyun, you are truly too terrifying; you really are more than I can handle!" Shima Miori said to Lingyun with a bitter smile.

"Well, you gained huge benefits anyway, didn't you? If this cooperation goes smoothly, your Shima Heavy Industries might be able to leap into becoming an existence that all other weapons companies in the world look up to. You surely understand some of these things better than I do!" Lingyun shrugged and said.

"Tsk, what a truly terrifying opponent. I hope I never have to see you on the opposite side of my negotiating table in the future." Shima Miori hugged the file folder in her hands tightly and said to Lingyun.

"Hmm, it's getting late. Would Miss Shima Miori like to stay for dinner?" Lingyun asked, looking at the setting sun.

"That won't be necessary; there are still many people at Shima Heavy Industries waiting for a reply." Shima Miori pointed to the file bag in her hand.

"Then, walk slowly, I won't see you out." Lingyun waved at Shima Miori.

"Big brother, you're so amazing!" Xiaona grabbed Lingyun's hand, her eyes full of admiration.

"Well, no need to be so surprised; these are just basic operations." Lingyun smiled, crouched down, and rubbed Xiaona's head.