The Top-Tier Alpha Refuses to Be Pretty Cannon Fodder - Chapter 24

The moment Lu Yunli appeared in everyone’s sight, the backs of the FLP staff straightened with pride. Conversely, Colonel Morpheus of Country Y looked as if he had swallowed a fly.

He, a dignified Colonel of Country Y, had just been mocked by Lu Yunli in front of a massive crowd.

For years, Country Y had prided itself on its technological and military prowess, maintaining its position as the world’s leading superpower. However, in recent years, Country M’s economic strength had surged rapidly—especially with a multinational giant like FLP in the picture and its overall national power was showing signs of eclipsing Country Y.

This collaboration between the FLP Group and Country Y’s Military Department had been brokered by both governments. The transaction was under the global spotlight. If word got back home that Lu Yunli had insulted him publicly, it would be a catastrophic loss of face for Country Y.

Morpheus narrowed his eyes and barked, “Lu Yunli, shut your mouth—”

“And here I was wondering who it was; turns out it’s just the dog by Duke Alberd’s side.” Lu Yunli walked forward from the back of the crowd, one hand in his pocket. Instead of shutting up, he cut the man off mid-sentence. “What? Now that your master isn’t around, you’ve started biting people at random?”

Morpheus felt a heavy, cold gaze land on him—a single look that commanded instinctive fear. It was a feeling he had only ever experienced around Duke Alberd; the aura and majesty habitual to those who have long held supreme power.

Morpheus intended to retort, but he found himself silenced by the sheer pressure of a top-tier Alpha’s pheromonal suppression.

In his memory, Lu Yunli was a man who, despite his powerful bloodline, was effectively a “beautiful waste.” The FLP Group’s current scale was widely attributed to the loyal subordinates who followed him; in terms of charisma and guts, he wasn’t even considered equal to his secretary, Les.

Yet, seeing him again after all these years, the “beautiful waste” had changed. Everything about Lu Yunli, from his temperament to his tone, now aligned perfectly with his elite bloodline. It was as if he were born for this—to act with reckless abandon.

Morpheus stared at him for a moment. Once the Alpha pressure dissipated slightly, he reached out and took a chip box from his subordinate, opening it. “President Lu just arrived, so he may not be clear on the details of our dispute.”

“This is the chip sent by your FLP Group. However, after on-site testing by our scientific team, this chip has been proven to be fake.” He finished his sentence and dropped the box at Lu Yunli’s feet. “Words are wind; see for yourself.”

Les leaned down to pick up the chip and handed it to Lu Yunli. “President Lu.”

Lu Yunli pulled the chip from the box and weighed it in his hand. When Huo Yan had handed the chips over, Lu Yunli, fearing a mishap, had personally verified the authenticity of the entire batch. Today’s delivery had been overseen by Les himself, with every step of the logistics controlled. It should have been impossible for anyone to tamper with them in transit.

Yet, the moment Lu Yunli felt the chip in his palm, he knew. This thing was indeed a fake.

Les: “President Lu?”

Lu Yunli arched an eyebrow. “It’s a fake.”

Les’s eyes widened. “How can this be?!”

“What did we tell you? Fake is fake.” “Country M is disgusting. They can’t develop the chips themselves, so they buy from us. We gave them the technology, and they give us this trash as the finished product? This is an insult to Country Y!” “Does Country M owe us an explanation?!”

Hearing the rising clamor, Les stepped forward, unable to take the insults, but Lu Yunli held out a hand to stop him. “Be still.”

“President Lu has seen it; the chip is undeniably fake. Therefore, FLP Group is the party in breach of contract,” Morpheus noted with a smirk. “As such, according to the contract, in addition to replacing the batch, your company must pay a massive penalty for breach of contract. However, considering our long-standing partnership, we are willing to be flexible.”

Morpheus smiled again. “In the future, for every chip Country M purchases from Country Y, we will take a 40% profit margin.”

“40%?! That’s a full 30% higher than before!” “This is highway robbery!” “Country Y is bullying us because we lack independent chip manufacturing. Chips are a necessity; they are forcing us to agree even if we don’t want to.”

Country Y’s little calculation was incredibly shrewd. They wanted to use this incident to turn Country M into a mere processing plant for their chip industry. This was likely a “performance achievement” being prepared for Duke Alberd’s coronation.

Lu Yunli toyed with the chip and whispered to Les, “Where is the rest of the cargo?”

Les pointed to the crates behind the Country Y officials, covered in black cloth. Lu Yunli stepped forward but was blocked by a Country Y guard. He narrowed his eyes, about to speak to Les, when the man blocking him was suddenly sent flying by a kick from behind.

Lu Yunli glanced sideways to see his “cheap husband” appear before him. He checked his watch. Despite leaving the villa at the same time, Qi Xi had arrived exactly fifteen minutes later than him.

Slow.

Luckily, Lu Yunli had the foresight to come early; otherwise, if things had gone south today, the system would have electrocuted him to death on the spot due to the protagonist’s proximity.

The Country Y guard scrambled up. Qi Xi strode forward, shielding Lu Yunli. “I’d like to see who dares to stop him.”

Morpheus raised a hand, signaling his men to stand down. Qi Xi was someone not to be provoked.

FLP had deep roots and strict protocols, and Lu Yunli was famously conservative and law-abiding. Qi Xi was different. His Lan Hai Group was a nimble “young tree,” and Qi Xi himself never played by the rules—he had hands in both the light and the dark. Lu Yunli despised Qi Xi’s “bandit” style, but that was exactly why others feared him.

It was said that anyone who crossed Qi Xi over the years met a miserable end. If they had to choose between offending Lu Yunli or Qi Xi, they would choose Lu Yunli any day to avoid the “stench” that came with tangling with Qi Xi.

Morpheus had not received any intel that Qi Xi and FLP were on good terms. Qi Xi’s presence here suggested he had received a tip. They needed to wait and see.

Morpheus shifted his gaze from Qi Xi to Lu Yunli. “Make way for President Lu.”

Mind your own business, Lu Yunli thought. He gave Qi Xi a brief look, said nothing, and walked toward the crates.

Qi Xi wanted to follow, but Morpheus stepped in, extending a hand. “President Qi, I’ve heard much about you.”

Qi Xi frowned and gave the man a once-over. “You are who, exactly?”

Morpheus: “…”

After Morpheus introduced himself, Qi Xi finally caught on. “So, you’re the one saying the chips are fake?”

Morpheus: “That is correct.”

Qi Xi’s face instantly darkened as he looked at the man. This was the person who had ruined his date today.

Morpheus, still oblivious, glanced toward Lu Yunli in the distance and continued to drone on. “Ai, I never expected a major manufacturer like the FLP Group to have such quality control issues. Fortunately, Country M still has President Qi’s Lan Hai Group…”

Qi Xi looked at him coldly. “This batch of chips came directly from our Lan Hai warehouse.”

Morpheus: “…”

Lu Yunli stopped in front of the crates. He reached out and yanked the black cloth off a box, his fingers tracing the sealing tape.

On the way here, Lu Yunli had already had 520 brief him on the details of the original host’s cooperation with Country Y and the protocols of the FLP Group’s factories.

To his knowledge, FLP Group regulations dictated that for any goods leaving the Handing Cloud Warehouse, they must use the company’s specific packing crates, reinforced with security seals and an authorized stamp before departure. Similarly, when this batch entered the Lan Hai Group’s warehouse and left again, there should have been a secondary verification stamp on the crates.

The crates before him were indeed FLP crates, and the tape and seals appeared genuine. However…

Lu Yunli’s fingers slid inch by inch across the box. As expected, he failed to find that secondary red stamp. The goods had been swapped.

Since the issue didn’t originate from their side, things became much simpler. Lu Yunli turned around and stopped directly in front of Morpheus.

“Did the Colonel just say that our Country M should yield a 40% profit margin to your country?”

Morpheus: “Exactly.”

Lu Yunli clapped his hands. “I think the Colonel’s idea is magnificent.”

The applause was crisp. The moment it echoed through the warehouse, everyone present turned their gaze toward Lu Yunli.

Qi Xi’s eyes snapped to Lu Yunli. Is he insane? A 40% margin was no different from robbery.

Qi Xi had seen Lu Yunli once, many years ago. Back then, Qi Xi had nothing, and he watched the man walk by, surrounded by a crowd. At that time, he felt Lu Yunli was a “flower on a high peak”—an existence beyond the reach of someone at the bottom like him, a goal he would need to spend a lifetime chasing.

Now, he finally stood before him, yet he realized he couldn’t fathom what the man was thinking at all.

At this moment, the officials from Country Y showed looks of joy, while the people from Country M frowned deeply.

“What does President Lu mean?” “Exactly, that’s 40%!?”

Les’s expression turned somber. “Everyone shut up. I trust President Lu.”

Standing before Lu Yunli, Morpheus felt the smile on his face grow even wider. It seemed Lu Yunli was every bit the “waste” he remembered. But this suited his purposes perfectly.

Morpheus raised a hand. “Since that’s the case, President Lu, why don’t we—”

“It’s just a pity,” Lu Yunli suddenly interrupted.

Morpheus’s smile vanished. “A pity for what?”

Lu Yunli: “A pity that your Country Y will likely never have this opportunity again. However, you can take this scheme and try to trick other nations; perhaps you’ll find another fool who falls for it.”

“Lu Yunli, do you think I am negotiating with you?” Morpheus’s face fell. “Your FLP Group used fake chips to play us for fools. On a small scale, it’s incompetence. On a large scale, it shows that your Country M has no respect for us!”

“Play you for fools?” Lu Yunli approached step by step, staring directly into Morpheus’s eyes. “Do you even have the right to use those words?”

A mocking laugh escaped Lu Yunli’s lips. He leaned into the man’s space, speaking each word with biting clarity. “Who exactly is playing whom, and who is self-directing this little play? I believe Colonel Morpheus knows the truth far better than I do.”

“Do I need to explain it to the Colonel, point by point?”

The relentless pressure and questioning caused Morpheus to buckle, instinctively taking a half-step back. The aura of a top-tier Alpha caused cold sweat to break out on his forehead instantly.

Lu Yunli: “From this day forward, our Country M will independently develop its own chips.”

“Morpheus, go back and tell your Duke.”

Lu Yunli didn’t give the man a chance to speak, raising his voice again. “I, Lu Yunli, am not someone to be trifled with, and Country M is certainly not a place you can bully!”

“Take your chips and your technology, and get the hell out of Country M.”

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