Ignoring Zhang Hong, whose eyes were already glazed over with thoughts of money, Xia Hu Nao and his companions simply had a meal and then found a place to rest, waiting for the afternoon meeting.
The five of them booked three rooms on the second floor of a hotel to rest. In the afternoon, they would have a meeting and then take Xia Hu Nao and the other two to the Alliance Headquarters.
...
At four in the afternoon, Xia Hu Nao, looking exhausted, approached Shen Yu. "Xiao Yu, let's go, let's go to the Pokémon Alliance."
Seeing Xia Hu Nao's condition, Shen Yu felt a pang of concern. "Linglong jie, wasn't there supposed to be a meeting? Why did it turn out like this? It feels like you've been fighting."
Yu Linglong gave Xia Hu Nao a thumbs-up. "Xia Hu Nao is truly something. I've never met anyone who can talk as much as him. This afternoon, Xia Hu Nao truly debated with the masses, arguing with the headquarters' cadres for an entire afternoon before finally settling on some new development plans."
Seeing him on the verge of spitting out his soul, Shen Yu asked Xia Hu Nao, "How about taking a leave and meeting the Chairman tomorrow? I feel heartbroken seeing you like this."
Xia Hu Nao slowly shook his head. "No, this afternoon's debate has really whetted my appetite for arguing. Now that we're here, we should go see the Chairman. Who knows, I might be able to get some benefits from the Alliance. Let's go quickly, and preferably before dinner. I want to invite the Chairman to dinner."
Although Xia Hu Nao was young, he deeply understood how to get things done.
There's nothing that can't be solved with a meal. If there is, then have another meal.
...
The RV rushed along and, despite the tight schedule, arrived at the Pokémon Alliance right around dinner time. Xia Hu Nao, as he had hoped, successfully invited the Pokémon Alliance Chairman to dinner.
There were eight people at the dinner table in total: five from Xia Hu Nao's side and three from the Pokémon Alliance side. They were Alliance Chairman Malan Qi, Vice Chairman Luda, and Zheng Hong De's subordinate, Mu Xue Ye, the Vice President of the Pokémon Research Society.
The atmosphere at the table was harmonious. The three big figures from the Pokémon Alliance were all around fifty years old, their attitudes friendly, and they didn't make Xia Hu Nao and his group feel undue pressure. By the middle of the meal, it was hard to tell who was the host and who was the guest.
After a few rounds of drinks and a good portion of the food, Xia Hu Nao formally began his exchange with Malan Qi.
Xia Hu Nao raised his juice cup and toasted Malan Qi. "Uncle Ma, your concern for us is truly overwhelming. What if I accidentally disappoint you, Uncle Ma?" His unspoken meaning was: don't put too much pressure on me, because if I mess up, you'll hold me accountable.
Malan Qi raised his wine glass. "I have always cared about the potential trainers in our Alliance, but young Xia, you are indeed too outstanding." His meaning was that if you weren't so exceptional, why would you seek out trouble?
Xia Hu Nao downed the juice in his cup. "Uncle Ma, you praise me so much, I'm a little embarrassed. I will definitely work hard to contribute to the Alliance."
He thought to himself: If I don't accept such a grand compliment from you, it would be disrespectful. However, we have an understanding: I will definitely try my best, and whether it succeeds or not, we'll leave it to fate.
Malan Qi put down his cup and pointed to Mu Xue Ye. "Young Xia, you've already done very well. The idea for the Pokédex is truly a significant invention. None of the people at Rainbow Star Group had such an idea. Furthermore, the research and development of Berry Pokémon have also made you famous."
Xia Hu Nao understood that his high profile placed him ahead of Rainbow Star Group and even all non-Minglong Country forces. He had realized this long ago, and he had already arranged with the Pokémon Alliance for his protection. But this time, he had come to get more benefits, and he wasn't going to retreat so easily.
"You say that, but I still don't understand. If you had this idea, why didn't you just have our Alliance's research and development personnel create it? Why did you need us to come here?"
"It's not that I don't want to. I want to see the young talents of our Alliance. These two must be the other members of your Awakener team, right?"
Xia Hu Nao introduced them. "That's right. This is Zhang Hong, our technical expert at Awakener. Beside him is my girlfriend. All of Awakener's works are illustrated and designed by her. I don't really do anything important; I just spend my days thinking up nonsense."
Xia Hu Nao intentionally exaggerated the status of Zhang Hong and Shen Yu a little, wanting to convey his intentions to Malan Qi and request some benefits and treatment for these two. As for himself, he didn't care and could give up anything.
Malan Qi looked at them for a moment. "Indeed, they are also young talents. Those who can be associated with talents like you are not ordinary people."
Malan Qi's praise in front of Xia Hu Nao meant that he had agreed to Xia Hu Nao's request and would try his best to provide these two with some benefits and treatment.
With Malan Qi's promise, Xia Hu Nao could begin to negotiate terms with him.
"Ah, it must be difficult to receive your praise, Chairman Ma."
Xia Hu Nao's change in address from "Uncle Ma" to "Chairman Ma" was his way of telling Malan Qi that they were now discussing business and he could no longer use such casual terms.
Malan Qi also sat up straighter. "It's not difficult to receive my praise. If you can quickly complete the Pokédex, I'll give you a medal."
Xia Hu Nao thought to himself, what good is a medal? It's not like the medals in our Grand Festivals that can be used as proof of trainer status. "A medal? That's nice. I'm this old and I've never received a medal."
His words were technically polite, but his tone was somewhat sarcastic. He was implicitly telling Malan Qi, what good is this medal? Can't you give me something more substantial?
Malan Qi understood that a medal alone wouldn't satisfy Xia Hu Nao's demands. However, in any negotiation, he believed in starting high and settling for less. Malan Qi wanted to see what price Xia Hu Nao was asking for.
"Yes, a medal personally awarded by the Alliance Chairman. Very few people in the entire Alliance have one."
After hearing this, Xia Hu Nao retorted, "So, is it as rare as a Master Trainer?"
Hearing Xia Hu Nao directly raise the stakes to the level of a Master Trainer, Malan Qi was taken aback. You really dare to ask for so much! You want Master Trainer treatment for this? I'd consider giving you Master Trainer treatment, but you want so much more?
"Young Xia, you can't compare them. Master Trainers are people with strength and merit. How can these two things be compared?"
Xia Hu Nao also understood that his exorbitant demand was too much. "That's true. But having this medal is also an honor. If we hang it in the main store of our Awakener flagship store, it will be our honor as well."
Xia Hu Nao pointed out to Malan Qi that their ideas alone were enough to establish a flagship store. Malan Qi should consider this more carefully. The weight and influence of an idea for a flagship store were entirely different. If Xia Hu Nao were to take his ideas to Rainbow Star Group, and they were to develop them quickly, the Pokémon Alliance would be even more at a disadvantage compared to Rainbow Star Group.
"Flagship store? Have you decided on a name yet? Would you like me to write you a plaque? Or if that's not possible, let Mu Xue Ye write it for you. Mu Xue Ye's calligraphy is much better than mine."
"No, thank you. I plan to wait until they both graduate from university. Then the three of us will travel around in our RVs, and our flagship store will be our two large RVs."
Xia Hu Nao hinted at his future plans, wanting to gauge the Pokémon Alliance's reaction to this idea and also to express his desire for some support.
Malan Qi glanced at Luda beside him. "You'll have to ask Vice Chairman Luda about this. He understands the trainers of Minglong Country much better than I do."
Seeing Malan Qi pass the buck to him, Luda quickly responded. "That's right, I do understand Minglong Country trainers quite well. Let me give you some advice. Before you set off after graduating from university, give the Alliance a call. I'll help you advertise."
Upon hearing this, Xia Hu Nao quickly nodded. "Really? Then thank you very much, Chairman Lu."
Addressing someone by their title and omitting the "Vice" is an important cultural nuance. However, omitting the "Vice" in front of the Chairman while addressing a Vice Chairman could easily be seen as trying to sow discord. Malan Qi didn't have that intention. He understood that Xia Hu Nao wanted more benefits, but without seeing Xia Hu Nao's specific plans, Malan Qi couldn't casually promise any benefits.
"It's good for young people to be ambitious. Tell us older folks what kind of things your flagship store will sell. We also want to understand the ideas of you young people."
Xia Hu Nao understood that simply painting a rosy picture wouldn't get him more benefits from Malan Qi. So far, they had only managed to secure an advertising slot that would be useful in a few years. It seemed he needed to present something more substantial.
Xia Hu Nao pointed at Zhang Hong. "Zhang Hong and I have previously envisioned what kind of equipment could enable Groudon to learn Fly. What do you think of this idea?"
Groudon, mentioned for the umpteenth time, thought: Why am I involved in this again?!
Xia Hu Nao's idea sounded impressive, but it lacked any logical basis. It wouldn't sell even if it were built; it was purely for show.
"It's impressive, but who in this world has ever captured a Groudon? Don't joke around with us old folks."
Malan Qi was determined to force Xia Hu Nao to present some concrete evidence. However, Xia Hu Nao was not one to reveal his hand without seeing any results. "I'm not joking with you. Aren't we developing the Pokédex right now? If I take on other tasks, I'm worried it will cause delays."
Malan Qi picked up his wine glass again. "Then you should focus on the Pokédex first. One must concentrate to do things well."
Xia Hu Nao also picked up his juice cup. "Yes, I've learned from your words. We will definitely develop the Pokédex as soon as possible. However, our knowledge is limited, so we hope to properly examine some of the Alliance's internal data, so as not to mislead ourselves."
Malan Qi nodded. "Alright. While you are developing the Pokédex, I will grant you access to some of the data."
Xia Hu Nao looked at everyone present. "Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to accompany us youngsters. We will definitely fulfill your expectations as soon as possible and develop the Pokédex. Shall we take our leave now?"
With Malan Qi's permission, Xia Hu Nao and his group left the restaurant.