101 Chapter 100

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The next day.

The sun shone brightly in the sky.

Gloria rubbed her sleepy eyes and stretched her body, causing her pajamas to tighten instantly, revealing her mature curves. She then walked out of the bedroom in a daze.

She yawned and only then noticed that the TV in the living room had been playing all along, and David was curled up on the sofa, sleeping soundly.

Gloria felt a little surprised. David had come home quite late last night, but she didn't expect him to sleep on the sofa without even changing his shirt.

She walked up to David and gently called out, "David?"

David remained fast asleep, not responding at all.

Gloria felt heartbroken for her son, who was working so hard at his internship that he came home very late almost every day.

"He must be so busy working at the company!"

But she also felt it was worth it. At least David had the opportunity to enter a big company and didn't have to struggle at the bottom like she once did.

Fortunately, everything had changed.

Ever since Tang Yu invited her to become a middleman, everything had been developing in a positive direction.

David got the opportunity to intern at Arasaka, and she could also earn more money to support their small family without worrying about rent, utility bills, and other issues.

Gloria picked up the suit jacket that had fallen on the floor and carefully draped it over David.

"Mom?"

Unexpectedly, this small gesture woke David from his deep slumber.

Gloria apologized, "It's not time for work yet. Why don't you sleep a little longer?"

David sat up, fighting off his drowsiness, and patted his slightly swollen face to perk himself up.

"Mom, it's okay. I have to go early today. There are still a few documents I haven't finished sorting out, and I can't slow down the team's progress."

As David spoke, he put on his suit jacket and started getting ready to leave.

Seeing him in such a hurry, Gloria had no choice but to get some breakfast for David first.

"Today, according to the latest financial news, NCPD stocks experienced a large-scale selloff, with the holding index continuing to decline, possibly related to last night's broadcast of the 'Business Talk' program, which disclosed a Militech and NCPD combat implant procurement plan..."

The TV was broadcasting the WNS morning news, and David was immediately drawn in by the news content, stopping halfway through tying his tie.

Gloria walked over with breakfast and, seeing David engrossed in the TV, also turned her head curiously to watch.

"Currently, many protesters have gathered in front of the NCPD building to express their dissatisfaction with the procurement incident. The NCPD has not made any official response..."

"According to the Night City Government News Office, Mayor Lucius Ryan will convene a press conference with NCPD's main personnel this morning to explain and clarify the NCPD's large-scale procurement, and invite high-level executives from the Militech External Relations Department to attend..."

After watching the news report, Gloria quickly realized that this incident was related to her experience yesterday.

Marcello being used by Militech as a combat implant test subject had been completely exposed to everyone in Night City.

It seemed to have caused quite a stir, with people coming out to protest and march since last night, criticizing the Night City government for inaction.

They publicly condemned the NCPD's purchase of experimental combat implants from Militech, seriously threatening the safety of city residents.

With Arasaka's media outlets going all out, the fire was further fueled on Militech, NCPD, and the city government, suggesting they had more unknown secret dealings.

A single spark started a prairie fire.

The massive protest crowds even directly surrounded the NCPD building.

There were also scattered groups running to the City Center in the Glen District or the Militech building in the Corporate Plaza, holding banners and shouting slogans to protest the company's actions.

Although these dirty affairs were nothing new, they indeed aroused dissatisfaction among many veterans, homeless people on the streets, and many residents.

Everyone feared cyberpsychos, but they feared even more the possibility of anti-terror squads becoming cyberpsychos.

Soon, WNS News connected to the protest scene at the NCPD building, with an on-site reporter interviewing a protester.

"What's your take on the Marcello incident?"

"I think it's all bullshit. These companies are in cahoots with the high-level city officials. I've been saying, that Lucius Ryan has his head stuck up money's ass, including those NCPD people. Which one of them doesn't have ties to gangs? Fuck Night City, fuck the corporate assholes."

After saying that, he even flipped the bird at the camera, but the shot was immediately cut, returning to the studio.

"Currently, the NCPD has dispatched officers to forcibly disperse the protesters, trying to suppress the voices of the crowd..."

Gloria was shocked. She didn't expect this matter to blow up so much, far beyond her expectations.

At the time, she thought Tang Yu looking for Moira or Marcello was to investigate Militech's experimental implants, like the Militech Sandevistan. Once obtained, it could be secretly dealt with.

But from the current situation, it seemed Tang Yu had directly exposed everything.

As the matter escalated, when it came to accountability, Tang Yu would definitely not be able to escape.

She began to worry. Would Arasaka choose to deal with him to quell the situation?

Gloria tightly gripped the breakfast in her hands, somewhat lost in thought.

After watching the news, David realized that something big might happen at the company today. Just as he was about to take the breakfast, he noticed Gloria was in a daze.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

Hearing David's question, Gloria came back to her senses and hurriedly handed the breakfast to David, explaining.

"It's nothing. I'm just a bit tired these past few days."

David found it quite strange. Gloria didn't seem as busy as before these past two days, and he didn't know what she was running around outside for. But he didn't think too much about it, as he was in a rush to get to work.

"Okay, Mom. Take care of yourself. I'm off to work now."

David took the breakfast, quickly walked to the door, put on his shoes, and hurried out.

In the blink of an eye, Gloria was alone at home again.

Seeing that David had left, she quickly started re-watching the previous news, only now understanding what was exposed on last night's "Business Talk" program.

"I'm really slow on the uptake. How could I sleep through such a big event?"

Gloria rubbed her temples helplessly, recalling what happened yesterday.

She had followed Tang Yu around yesterday, first going to find Moira and confronting a woman who was about to turn into a cyberpsycho, sweating nervously all over.

Then she witnessed a life-and-death fight with her own eyes, with the bloody scene still making her shudder to think about it.

Finally, she was affected for no reason, enduring a wave of electromagnetic pulse damage.

Before she could catch her breath, she followed Tang Yu into a Delamain, speeding towards the overpass.

They blew up the 6th Street gang, rammed the Animals gang, snatched a person, and started another car chase.

If it weren't for Tang Yu's precise sniping skills, who knows if she would have lost her life there.

Gloria had seen her fair share of life and death in her many years of work, but compared to this kind of melee, it was indeed a first.

Dizziness from blood, electricity, motion sickness, etc., she went through the whole set of processes. How could she not be in a daze?

At the time, Tang Yu stayed behind to handle the follow-up, summoning his exclusive company car to send Gloria back to the apartment first.

As soon as Gloria got home, she threw up in the toilet. Enduring the dizziness, she washed up, changed into clean pajamas, and fell asleep, feeling too dizzy to stay awake.

She even had a nightmare.

She dreamed of falling into the deep sea, surrounded and attacked by a group of terrifying large sharks, fainting again in the dream.

She had no mindspace to think about other things all night. When she woke up, it was already bright outside.

Gloria was truly shocked after catching up on last night's news. So many major events had happened in the aftermath, and she was completely unaware.

Her optic implant spun as she hurriedly checked her call and message records. Fortunately, there were no missed calls from Tang Yu.

Gloria sighed softly, "Sigh, it's really hard to keep up with Mr. Tang's pace..."

She walked into the bathroom and vigorously scrubbed her face with cold water, trying to make herself more awake.

Looking at herself in the electronic mirror, her complexion was already much rosier, and she had unknowingly gained some weight.

She reached out and pinched her cheeks, and indeed there was a chunk.

It was thanks to her bone structure and figure that she didn't look fat, but rather added a few curves.

"Is it because I'm eating better?"

Gloria thought about it and realized it was still the same old things. She hadn't eaten anything particularly delicious.

"Maybe it's because I'm sleeping more..."

After thinking it over, this was the only answer she could come up with.

Thanks to Tang Yu, she hadn't slept in so naturally for a long time. In the past, it was always David who woke her up from the sofa. Now it was a complete reversal.

Suddenly, she realized that the money she had earned recently, as well as Maine and the others' remuneration, all came out of Tang Yu's pocket.

"Sigh, I feel like a leech. I don't even know if Arasaka reimburses these expenses."

"The salary of a double director must be very high. I really hope David can be like Mr. Tang someday..."

Gloria felt her thoughts were all over the place and involuntarily yawned again, as if she hadn't slept enough.

Arasaka Tower.

David hurried to the 33rd floor of the Counter-Intelligence Department. When he arrived at the office area, he found that everyone had already arrived today.

"Is something big happening?"

He felt a slight sense of abnormality, so he cautiously walked to his desk and sat down, opening his work computer and pretending to stare at the screen while actually eavesdropping on his colleagues.

Fortunately, his colleagues were all very familiar with each other and didn't avoid him, an outsider intern, and continued to gossip with their heads together.

"Another board meeting is being held today. Did you see the news yesterday? We've torn our faces with the building across!"

"How could I not see it? I don't know how it suddenly escalated. I remember the higher-ups used to let the other side have their way."

"They don't dare let them anymore. According to an insider at headquarters, that person might come here."

"Really? No wonder they suddenly tore their faces. That person is a hardliner."

That person?

David couldn't figure out who they were referring to, but he could sense that their status was extraordinary, and their name was probably taboo within the company.

As for the gossip earlier, it should be about the news he saw this morning.

The media matrix established by Arasaka, centered around WNS News, had fully launched a bombardment against Militech, completely hyping up the Marcello incident to its peak.Here is the English translation with some sentence structure corrections:

In an instant, Night City suddenly started showing concern for disabled veterans and expressing hatred for the cruel methods of Militechnology, strongly protesting their procurement deals with the NCPD. A multi-million dollar deal went down the drain just like that.

"But that's not the point. I heard there's a board meeting today related to our Deputy Director, Mr. Tang."

"I know, otherwise everyone wouldn't have come so early. Something must have happened. Maybe this news was orchestrated by Mr. Tang himself. If the higher-ups want to make him a scapegoat..."

"Shh... You can't just say that. Whether it's good or bad, it's up to the bosses to decide."

Mr. Tang? 

When David heard them discussing Tang Yu's name, he became alert, not quite understanding how this matter could be related to Tang Yu.

Unfortunately, his counterintelligence colleagues were more averse to gossiping about their direct superior. Having said that, they stopped talking.

David was really itching to know more. While others weren't discussing it, it wasn't appropriate for him to actively inquire. Helplessly, he could only shift his attention back to the computer and start preparing for the day's work.

Suddenly, he heard a commotion around him as his colleagues stood up one after another. 

"Good morning, Mr. Tang."

"Morning, Mr. Tang..."

"Mr. Tang, do you need breakfast and coffee prepared for you?"

David also hurriedly stood up and happened to see Tang Yu passing through the office area with colleagues around him warmly greeting him.

But Tang Yu looked exceptionally cold, only casually waving his hand, indicating for everyone to continue working without any additional remarks.

"So this is what Mr. Tang is usually like at the company..."

David looked around and no one seemed to have any opinion or comment on Tang Yu's indifference.

He was a bit puzzled. Mr. Tang was so indifferent to his subordinates, yet not only did they not speak ill of him, they even enthusiastically greeted him.

After Tang Yu left the office area, his counterintelligence colleagues finally sat down one by one. David hesitated for a moment before sitting down as well.

Finally, he made up his mind to ask the female colleague beside him. She looked relatively kind with a neat bun hairstyle exuding a capable aura. 

In the company, they didn't address each other as brothers or sisters. Regardless of age, they directly called each other by name. To show respect, they would add the suffix "Mr.", "Ms." or "Miss". When facing superiors, they could choose to address them by their position.

"Ms. Joanne, may I ask how long Mr. Tang has served as Deputy Director in the Counterintelligence Department?"

The bun-haired lady looked at David a bit strangely, as if she felt he shouldn't be asking this question, but she still patiently replied, "Over a year, but Mr. Tang often goes on field missions. He just returned to Night City from executing a mission at the border not long ago."

Instead, a colleague on the other side chimed in and took the initiative to interject, "David Martinez, you're here for an internship from Arasaka Academy, right? Which department do your parents work in? Being able to intern in the Counterintelligence Department means your connections are not simple..."

Faced with his colleague's curious question, David felt a bit embarrassed, not too comfortable mentioning his family situation. He could only force a smile and say, "No, no, I paid to enroll. I'm not a company-sponsored student."

Arasaka Academy's sponsored slots were limited to internal company personnel. Children of high-level employees enjoyed full tuition exemption, while middle and low-level employees could have reduced tuition but needed to pay related teaching fees.

Hearing that David was not an internal company employee's child, the two colleagues obviously lost interest, but still reminded, "No matter what, when interning in counterintelligence, the most important thing is to learn to keep your mouth shut. Information leaks are no joke."

The other colleague asked doubtfully, "I seem to remember the Deputy Director is this year's graduation internship evaluation committee mentor. David, do you know about this?"

David quickly nodded in affirmation, "Yes, Mr. Tang is the evaluation committee mentor for our graduating class."

The two female colleagues nodded, "Oh, then you better work hard. Mr. Tang is known for being strict."

David suddenly thought of the scene with Tang Yu at the tea restaurant that day. He didn't feel the strictness they mentioned, but rather a sense of gentleness.

Seeing David in a daze, seemingly unconvinced, the two colleagues added, "The day Mr. Tang just returned, he was attacked by the Animals gang on the overpass. Yesterday in the dead man's lottery, the Animals gang contributed a few carloads of people. The department's special forces went to the scene, but the specific details can't be disclosed."

"You haven't been in the department for long and don't understand many things. Anyway, just do your job honestly."

After hearing the introduction from the two colleagues, David suddenly realized that on the day of the car accident, Tang Yu had just returned to Night City from the border. 

"He was attacked as soon as he returned to Night City..."

David returned to his desk, unable to help carefully recalling the events that had occurred in recent days.

Tang Yu, the Animals gang, the car accident, the real death dream, the cyberpunk breaking into his home, Gloria's resignation, the Yujin restaurant, slapping Katsuo, starting the internship at the company, and seeing his mother getting out of an Arasaka company car in a long dress that day.

He felt some force was guiding him. All the recent happenings were too incredible. 

Each event was undergoing subtle changes, with turning points appearing at the right time. Why was this? Had his miserable life of seventeen years finally come to an end?

Obviously not, because Tang Yu's shadow was present in every single matter. Only then did David realize where the crux of the issue lay.

Why was Mr. Tang helping him like this?

David was truly perplexed.

This feeling was as if someone suddenly barged into your life, casually lending you a hand in passing, then leaving without a trace.

Like clouds, like rain, and like the wind.

He couldn't focus on work at all now. A sudden thought popped up - why not try inviting Tang Yu for a meal at noon today? 

He probably wouldn't refuse, right?

David fell into deep inner conflict, his gaze involuntarily turning towards the direction of Tang Yu's office, wondering what he was doing. Perhaps actively preparing for battle, after all, the board meeting about to convene had a major bearing on him and might concern his future and fate.

At this moment.

Tang Yu was sitting in his office, leisurely holding a cup of hot tea, waiting for the board meeting to begin in the morning.

In fact, from Arasaka's actions this morning, he could tell that little Michiko had chosen the latter option, wanting to win him over to join her faction.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have made such a big show of mobilizing the Arasaka media matrix to bombard Militech.

Arasaka's attitude seemed to indicate that they would not rest until Militech was severely dealt with.

Little Michiko's exaggerated response on this matter probably had her own agenda. Perhaps she was worried that Yorinobu would come to Night City, so she was temporarily burning incense to win favor with some of the hardliners in the company.

In the end, the only one who truly wanted to take on Militech, wishing for Arasaka's early demise, had always been Yorinobu alone, assuming Tang Yu and Johnny weren't counted.

Tang Yu sighed lightly, "If this fellow comes to Night City, that's when this grand play will truly become exciting. The touching scene of a loving father and filial son might be reenacted."

Tang Yu took a sip of hot tea, already mentally prepared. He didn't care at all about the outcome of today's board meeting.

Instead, he kept thinking about his old boss Arthur Jenkins. This guy had been away on a business trip for so long and still hadn't returned. A pile of trivial matters in the department needed him to handle, making Tang Yu quite annoyed.

Moreover, he hadn't properly reported to the Special Operations Department yet. When he had time, he would bring over the recent mission-related expenses to reimburse them all at once.

The cost of doing this favor for little Michiko was not small.

The commission alone cost over a hundred thousand, plus the Delamain car rental, damage compensation, and other miscellaneous items added up to as much as 200,000 eurodollars. 

Although he didn't have much credit, he had put in the hard work. It was only right to reimburse a bit more. He couldn't do black work for little Michiko for free after all.

Tang Yu calculated that reporting around 300,000 eurodollars would be about right.

This made him much wealthier than when he first returned to Night City. Otherwise, even when V gifted him the smart glasses, taking out 100,000 eurodollars seemed difficult.

"Money is really important..."

Just as Tang Yu was sighing, the office gate showed a visitor. Upon checking, it turned out to be an Arasaka personal bodyguard.

Little Michiko?

This time, the uniforms of the two bodyguards were similar to the previous two, but the people had changed.

Tang Yu opened the office door to let them in to talk.

As expected.

It was little Michiko inviting him to sit in the board members' exclusive office upstairs and participate in the board meeting there via remote connection.

Tang Yu did not refuse. He got up and followed the bodyguards to little Michiko's office floor again.

As soon as he exited the public elevator and passed two blue light scans confirming safety, a female guide stepped forward with a smile.

"Mr. Tang, hello. Please follow me this way."

Tang Yu followed the guide towards little Michiko's office.

Stepping on the soft carpet, his footsteps were silent. The guide continued to explain the relevant situation.

"Mr. Tang, Director Michiko has already gone to the jungle conference room on the 78th floor to prepare for the Arasaka senior board meeting. She specifically requested for you to remotely attend the meeting online from her office. A special assistant will be at your service later."

Tang Yu nodded slightly. In any case, remotely attending the meeting online was the same no matter where. Plus, the large screen in little Michiko's office would make viewing more comfortable.

The two arrived again at the familiar large steel gate.

The guide prompted, "Director Michiko has enabled identity verification permissions for you. Please wait here for a moment."

After speaking, the female guide took the initiative to step aside and stood respectfully to the side.

Tang Yu didn't expect little Michiko to be so generous, even granting him access permissions to her exclusive office and arranging a special assistant to serve him. It could be considered a sincere gesture.

He waited for two seconds and his identity was indeed confirmed successfully. The gate automatically opened, revealing the familiar water mist curtain obscuring the interior of the office.

Tang Yu walked straight in. As the mist gradually dissipated, the spacious office floor the size of half a football field came into view. However, the most eye-catching thing was a lone set of desk and chair.

As soon as he stepped into the office, he heard someone take the initiative to introduce themselves.

"Mr. Tang, hello."

"I am Special Assistant Sasha Yakovleva."

"It's a pleasure to serve you."