Chapter 137: Ningguang's Preparations
Yusaku Kudo offered Ganyu a nod, his expression one of polite acknowledgment. "Miss Ganyu, a pleasure. I must admit, I didn't expect the capable assistant Miss Ningguang mentioned to be such a young lady. To have earned her appreciation, you must be exceptionally talented."
Hearing the praise, Ganyu waved her hands in a flustered, dismissive gesture. "Ah? No, no, you give me too much credit, Mr. Kudo. I am merely completing the tasks Lady Ningguang entrusts to me. The truly impressive ones are Lady Ningguang and the others. Without them, there would be no Jade Chamber today."
Nor the Liyue of today, she added silently, a thought she kept from the man before her, though it was the truest sentiment in her heart.
"Haha, it seems you hold Miss Ningguang in very high regard," Yusaku remarked, his gaze shifting back to Ningguang. "In fact, based on what just transpired, even I can't help but admire her decisive actions. To strike at the Schindler Group so swiftly after the incident… If I'm not mistaken, all of the Schindler Company's research results now belong to you, Miss Ningguang. However, if I may be frank, I believe their most valuable asset was the artificial intelligence, 'Noah's Ark.' After it went out of control, why did you not halt its self-destruction?"
Ningguang's lips curved into a faint, knowing smile. "That is because I believe there are other things far more valuable."
"Oh? Is that so?" Yusaku's curiosity was piqued. He couldn't imagine what the Schindler Group could possess that was more valuable than a true artificial intelligence, but he didn't press the matter. That would be crossing the line into a competitor's business secrets. "In that case, I wish you success in your plans, Miss Ningguang."
"Thank you." Ningguang gracefully accepted his well wishes.
Just then, she noticed several of her staff members trying to get her attention from a distance. She turned back to Yusaku. "Mr. Kudo, I have other matters to attend to. If you'll excuse me."
"Of course, Miss Ningguang. Please, don't let me keep you."
With a final nod, Ningguang departed, Ganyu following a step behind her as they moved toward the waiting staff.
Yusaku Kudo watched their retreating figures for a long moment before speaking to the empty air. "You've heard enough, haven't you? Aren't you going to come out?"
He directed his gaze toward a nearby table, its long tablecloth creating a perfect hiding spot. After a few seconds of silence, he sighed, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Shinichi, I know it's you."
At that, any hope of remaining hidden vanished. Conan Edogawa sheepishly emerged from behind the table.
He looked up at his father, his expression a mixture of awkwardness and guilt. "Dad… when did you know I was here?"
Yusaku reached down and ruffled Conan's hair. "Just now, when Miss Ganyu came over. The tablecloth moved, and I knew someone was hiding there. An adult would have been noticed immediately, so it had to be a child. And among all the children present, who else would be interested enough in this sort of conversation to eavesdrop? I could only guess it was you."
Conan quickly ducked away from his father's hand. Honestly, he was a grown man. Why was his dad suddenly picking up his mom's habit of ruffling his hair? He never used to do that.
Smoothing his now-messy hair, Conan offered a weak excuse. "Hehe, I was just curious what you two would talk about at a time like this."
Yusaku watched his son's flustered retreat with a raised eyebrow. 'Just as Yukiko said,'he thought,'Shinichi really has gotten cuter since he shrank.'
"So, tell me, Shinichi," he said, his tone turning serious again. "After hearing all that, what are your thoughts?"
The question immediately snapped Conan out of his concern for his hair. He frowned, his brow furrowed in concentration. "Something feels off, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Miss Ningguang's actions were incredibly fast, but given her capabilities, shouldn't that be considered normal?" After all, based on the information his dad had already uncovered, even he had to admit that her business acumen was nothing short of brilliant.
Yusaku's gaze remained fixed on his son's earnest, thinking face. "The problem lies precisely there," he hinted. "No matter how capable Miss Ningguang is, without advance preparation, there is no way she could have dealt with the Schindler Group's board of directors in the few short hours since the incident began., those people are in the United States, while she is here in Japan. Even with Miss Keqing's outstanding abilities leading the charge overseas, it would be impossible to achieve this without prior arrangements."
"You mean…" Conan's eyes widened in dawning horror. "Miss Ningguang and the others knew something was going to happen to the Schindler Group all along?"
The logic was sound. Given the connection between Kenmura and Nahida, Ningguang had likely guessed long ago that Hiroki's death was tied to Schindler. From there, it wouldn't be a great leap to deduce that Schindler intended to silence Kenmura as well.
But Conan couldn't understand. If Ningguang knew Schindler was going to make a move on Kenmura, why didn't she prevent it? Could she really sit by and watch an incident like that unfold, all for the sake of acquiring the Schindler Group?
That was a human life! Kenmura had been lucky. If Schindler's knife had struck a vital organ, he could have died on the spot.
'So that's why Miss Ningguang was able to arrive at the scene so quickly,'Conan realized with a jolt.'Then… did Nahida, who appeared with her, also know about this plan?'
"I'm afraid that's the case," Yusaku said, sighing softly as he watched the incredulous look on his son's face. It seemed that even knowing her identity was unusual, Shinichi still hadn't built up a proper guard against her. At the very least, he held some goodwill toward her, which was why this revelation was so shocking.
But it was understandable. Ningguang possessed a powerful personal charisma. She understood human nature, was a master of rhetoric, and it was difficult not to be won over by her after spending any amount of time in her presence. Even now, knowing she had disregarded the danger to Kenmura, Yusaku found it difficult to harbor any real ill will toward her after their brief chat.
"But there is one thing I'm not sure about," Yusaku continued, his voice low and contemplative. "Whether Noah's Ark losing control was within her expectations. If it was, she should have taken measures to prevent its self-destruction." After all, a true artificial intelligence was an epoch-making invention, immensely valuable to any businessperson. The police had already inspected the mainframe computer after the press conference and confirmed that Noah's Ark had indeed been completely wiped.
Of course, that was thanks to Nahida. The God of Wisdom had, with none the wiser, used her Gnosis to covertly transfer the core code of Noah's Ark into a void terminal, smuggling it out of the venue and leaving everyone to believe the AI was gone for good.
Yusaku's voice drew Conan from his thoughts. "If it wasn't within her expectations, then why wasn't Miss Ningguang the least bit anxious when she saw Noah's Ark go out of control? Could it be, just as she said, that the Schindler Group possesses something even more valuable than a revolutionary AI?"
Hearing his father's question, Conan fell silent, his own mind beginning to churn.
Just as his dad said, Ningguang's behavior was a complete contradiction. And for the life of him, Conan couldn't figure out why.
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