The plane had just landed at JFK International Airport when the Little fellow next to Mr. Zhou restlessly stood up.
She kept peeking out the window, her curious yet timid demeanor making her look like a little squirrel constantly poking its head out of a tree hole.
"Shirley, what are you looking at?" Ada Wong put down her fashion magazine and gave the restless Little fellow a somewhat chiding look.
"I want to see what the big sister Yi mentioned looks like? Ada, do you think she'll come?"
Shirley was a cheerful and precocious Child. Over the past two months, she had naturally integrated into Mr. Zhou's special family and got along quite well with him.
But there was one thing: she wasn't willing to call Mr. Zhou 'father'.
Unlike Airesha, Airesha had significant memory blanks. Her past was blurred due to Stryker's frozen imprisonment. This allowed her to readily accept Mr. Zhou as a father figure.
But Shirley couldn't do that. She clearly remembered her father and mother and found it hard to forget them. Mr. Zhou couldn't replace their existence, nor would he force Shirley to do so. So, he tacitly accepted Shirley's form of address.
"I wouldn't know. I've known the boss for as long as you have. How could I have met someone you haven't?" Ada shook her head and replied directly.
He didn't know what Shirley was worried about; a Child's strange thoughts were usually hard for ordinary people to fathom.
"Don't worry, Shirley. Airesha will come, and I promise you'll get along very well," Mr. Zhou said, putting down the ancient book in his hand.
He had noticed Shirley's inner uneasiness and gently comforted his new adopted daughter.
Upon hearing this, Shirley obediently sat down. However, her slender fingers were still tightly intertwined, showing that she was still a bit anxious.
This was something she had to resolve herself. Mr. Zhou shook his head and put on his coat. Behind him, Ada had already tidied everything up and stood up, holding Shirley's hand.
"There are many reporters here today. Be careful not to let them target Shirley and the others," Mr. Zhou instructed before stepping onto the gangway and walking out.
The moment he emerged, countless flashlights instantly flared, and the previously quiet environment immediately became noisy with human voices, with one or two particularly loud individuals shouting so much it made one's brain ache.
"Mr. Zhou, are you returning to New York this time to attend Director Stacy's press conference regarding Mutant employment?"
"Mr. Zhou, what is your stance? Do you really support Director Stacy's crazy actions?"
"Mr. Zhou, you fully funded the New York Police Department's bold initiative. Have you considered what the consequences might be?"
Almost all the questions coming his way were like this. Clearly, Stacy's actions had caused quite a stir in New York, and he, too, had become the focus of these omnipresent reporters.
Mr. Zhou had no intention of engaging with these reporters. He would speak, but only at Stacy's press conference. He saw no need to address reporters who blocked his path like this.
The airport security had firmly held back the reporters who seemed eager to shove microphones into Mr. Zhou's face. At this moment, Yuriko had driven up and stopped below the gangway, welcoming Mr. Zhou and his party into the car.
As soon as he sat in the car, Mr. Zhou heard a sweet call of "Daddy," and then a petite figure rushed into his arms.
Mr. Zhou knew it was Airesha calling from the sound of her voice. A smile immediately appeared on his face. He stroked the small black head in his arms and looked at Airesha's rosy little face, asking,
"Did you miss me, darling!"
"Mm!" Airesha's small head nodded vigorously, greatly comforting Mr. Zhou. He gently pinched Airesha's little face and smiled.
"You truly are my good Child. Come. Let me introduce you. This is Shirley. From now on, she will be your Young Miss."
"Young Miss?" Airesha's eyes widened as she looked at the blonde girl who had followed Mr. Zhou into the car.
Shirley was looking at her timidly, like a pitiful, trembling little rabbit. Clever children always know how to integrate into others' circles.
Seeing her like this, Airesha immediately felt sympathy. Mr. Zhou had already told her about her new Young Miss's background, and their somewhat similar past made her feel a sense of shared misfortune.
Coupled with a sense of mission as an older Young Miss, she immediately accepted the existence of this Young Miss.
Watching the two Little Girls quickly holding hands, chatting and playing, Mr. Zhou turned to Ada Wong, who had just sat down.
"Have both sides been notified?"
"Director Stacy's side is ready. The press conference will begin on time in two and a half hours. Also, that Young Miss is already waiting for you."
"Go, pick her up. I need her help at the press conference." Mr. Zhou waved his hand, and Ada immediately pointed Yuriko in the right direction, telling her to drive directly there.
"Boss, who are we picking up?" Yuriko, as the driver, couldn't help but ask curiously.
Mr. Zhou smiled and glanced at his watch.
"Someone you should know. She owes me a life, so I need her to do me a favor!"
"Alright, maybe once I see her, I'll know who she is!" Yuriko shrugged, losing interest in pressing for more details.
The car drove all the way to Queens and stopped by a small hotel. At this point, a lady quietly opened the car door and got in.
As soon as she got into the car, the short-haired woman with delicate features and fair skin smiled and said to Mr. Zhou,
"I never thought you'd ask me for help one day, honestly. When I heard you were looking for me, I thought someone was playing a joke on me."
"I'm not joking with you, Raven. I need your help, so I'm going to take up your afternoon."
"Is there pay?" The woman smiled, her eyes now brown-yellow.
At this moment, Yuriko recognized her identity: Magneto's Deputy, Mystique Raven.
"If I gave it to you, would you dare to take it?"
"Forget it, I still owe you a life, don't I?" Raven gave him a charming, sideways glance. "Tell me, how do you want me to help you!"
"It's simple. I need you to impersonate me. Then just say a few things to those reporters. As for anything else, you don't need to worry about it."
"Is that all?"
"Of course, that's all that's needed." As Mr. Zhou said this, he suddenly frowned.
Because the woman opposite him had completely changed her appearance, transforming into him.
"This look isn't bad, I like it very much. But your exposure rate has been a bit high lately, so much so that I can't walk around with this face anymore."
Mr. Zhou's mouth twitched as he looked at the regretful expression on the face identical to his own.
"I'll check the recent bills. Remember to leave me an address."
"Sorry, did I just say something?" Raven started to play dumb.
And Mr. Zhou could only watch her do it. After all, she was currently wearing his face. He couldn't very well let her go further and act like a woman, pouting and acting cute.
"This is the speech. Memorize it well. Also, communicate more with Ada beforehand. Don't cause any problems for me at the last minute."
Placing a speech in Raven's arms, Mr. Zhou patted the heads of the two stunned children and got out of the car.
Not long after he left, Yuriko started the car and drove towards the Police station. The stage was set, and the actors were in position. It remained to be seen if this performance could achieve their predetermined goals.
At the New York Police Department Headquarters, countless news media had gathered here. Because the Director of the New York Headquarters, George Stacy, had chosen to announce a monumental piece of news, one that could cause immense ripples across the World.
The moment they heard the news, almost all the reporters thought Director Stacy had gone mad.
In a time when Mutant relations were increasingly tense, Director George Stacy actually announced the establishment of a special unit under the New York Police Department, with all members of this unit consisting of dozens of Mutants with special abilities recruited by him.
These Mutants would join the Police and fire departments, becoming a crucial component in maintaining New York City's public order in the future.
Facing Stacy's declaration, not only did the media disagree, and the Government disagree, but even many citizens also disagreed.
They simply could not accept Mutants taking over New York City's public order, especially with the aftermath of the Paris incident still unsettled.
It could be said that if Stacy hadn't leaked any information beforehand, waiting until the very end to release this decision, the sheer number of protest marches alone would have blocked the entire Police Department.
Even so, inquiries from superiors and even complaints from citizens were already giving him a headache. This didn't even include the internal skepticism within the Police force.
He had forcibly suppressed internal dissent with his many years of good reputation, but if he couldn't quickly provide an explanation to the Police officers, his proud and fierce subordinates would likely start to cause trouble.
The reason Stacy could persevere, apart from his desire for future political achievements, was largely due to Mr. Zhou sharing a significant portion of the pressure for him.
With Mr. Zhou's current skyrocketing popularity, he not only diverted the reporters' attention but also made those damned Politicians wary, not daring to randomly attack him.
Although there were some bumps, the press conference was held as scheduled. And just before the press conference officially began, a Police officer responsible for preparing the venue ran up to Stacy, profusely sweating, and said to him,
"Chief, everything is ready. The reporters are getting a bit impatient!"
"Let them wait. Has Mr. Zhou of Corona Group arrived?" Stacy waved his hand impatiently. He truly couldn't muster any good temper for these reporters who constantly spoke ill of him.
"Haven't seen him yet, Chief. There are simply too many people, and the brothers are already struggling to cope."
The Police officer wiped his sweat and continued to pester Stacy. At this moment, he'd rather stay by the bad-tempered Director than be incessantly questioned by a group of mad reporters.
"Stall them. Not everyone has arrived yet. How can we start the press conference!" Stacy put on a stern face, and the Police officer, watching him display his official authority, showed a wry smile.
This was truly the rhythm of 'a word from above, and the foot soldiers run themselves ragged'.