A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

Chapter 817 The smaller the territory, the more conspiracies there are.

At this moment, a young retainer in charge of the Americas market cautiously spoke up: "Master, your market strategy is truly brilliant. However, since you aim to conquer the world, why not directly enter the American market? That's the world's largest consumer paradise!"

Upon hearing this, a senior retainer immediately shook his head and retorted, "What do you know! The patriarch has already planned ahead. We have received intelligence that most of the 'air fryers' currently circulating in the Bald Eagle market are originating from our port! The patriarch has clearly already begun secretly cultivating that largest market!"

"What?" Now it was Junichiro's turn to be stunned. His brows furrowed, and his genuine confusion seemed undisguised. "I didn't order the direct export of these kinds of goods to the Bald Eagle! Their entry barriers and profit-sharing requirements are too stringent. That's why I wanted to cultivate the Lobster Country market first, and then, when the time was right, use the Lobster Country as a transit point to import the products into the Bald Eagle. What exactly is going on?"

The veteran retainer who had spoken earlier was also stunned, and stammered, "But...but Master, this very morning, a cargo ship fully loaded with 'air fryers' did indeed depart from our No. 3 pier, and the customs declaration clearly stated the destination as the west coast of the Bald Eagle!"

And...and...accompanying that cargo ship out of port was...and a frigate from the Bald Eagle's Seventh Fleet! We were even privately marveling at how powerful you were, Master, to have managed to get 'Big Daddy's' warship to escort us!

"Nani!"

As Junichiro abruptly stood up, his wide sleeves flipped over the tea set on the coffee table, and the sound of shattering porcelain was particularly jarring in the quiet tea room.

The tea room fell into a deathly silence.

“A ship… escorted by Bald Eagle warships, departing from my port, carrying my cargo…” he repeated in a low voice, each word like an ice bead striking the heart of everyone present.

"But I knew nothing about it."

He abruptly raised his head, his sinister gaze sweeping across the astonished, uncertain, and even fearful faces of his subordinates.

"Investigate immediately! Use all resources to find out who's behind this ship and this cargo! I need to know who... is playing this game of 'resurrection' on my turf!"

"Hi!"

"However, patriarch, I secretly took a look, and the cargo on the ship doesn't seem to be what we produce. Instead, it looks like the rough stuff from the Alliance!"

"Hmm?" Junichiro raised his eyelids slightly. "An alliance?"

"Ha, those barbarians, besides building tanks, how could they possibly make something as sophisticated as an air fryer! Besides, would the Bald Eagle even use products manufactured by the Alliance?"

"I just don't know what to say!"

Just as the young retainer was being scolded so badly he couldn't straighten his back, Junichiro suddenly raised his eyelids: "Wait..."

He remembered a certain Chinese man he had completely forgotten about. Wasn't it him who had sold him his blueprints and jade? He'd even said he wanted to have a proper chat with him. What did he look like? Hmm, he couldn't remember. He just remembered he seemed to have a cowlick?

But how did China get involved with the United States? Aren't they sworn enemies?

Could it be... because of the "young lady"?

Just as Junichiro was trying to recall his rise to power, the door to the tea room was gently pulled open a crack, and a trusted retainer practically tumbled in, his face deathly pale. He disregarded etiquette, his voice trembling with tears:

"Master! Something terrible has happened! Something...something terribly has happened! News has come from Miss Michiko's side...something has gone wrong!"

"Hmm?" Junichiro's pupils suddenly contracted.

As the old saying goes, misfortunes never come singly.

Michiko was his most important move. Her marriage to "Ming Liao Ge Ren" was his most valued asset and a key step in his strategy for the imperial family. It was also crucial to whether his family could truly rise to the top, and he could not afford to make the slightest mistake.

But he was, after all, a shrewd and calculating man, and the more critical the moment, the less he could afford to lose his composure.

Junichiro's hands, hidden in his sleeves, tightened slightly, but he maintained the dignity of a family head.

He didn't need to ask for details himself; his trusted confidants, who were good at reading people, would speak on his behalf.

Sure enough, before he could speak, a trusted aide immediately rebuked him: "What's the panic! What kind of behavior is this! What exactly happened? Tell me in detail!"

The messenger, panting heavily, hurriedly said, "It's...it's news from the palace! His Excellency 'Desire Shrimp' has personally ordered that Prince Myojin and Princess Michiko, as 'goodwill ambassadors,' prepare to immediately visit that...that ancient Eastern country that just showcased the 'Young Lady'!"

The aim was to ease tensions and hopefully encourage the other party to exercise restraint... to prevent the 'young lady' from making a 'special sightseeing trip' during cherry blossom season...

Before he could finish speaking, Junichiro's brows were already furrowed in obvious disapproval.

This move again!

Whenever someone needs to step up, that so-called "supreme leader" always pushes others out. Two years ago, in order to repair relations with the United States, Mingli was forced to make a foreign trip.

Although the goal was indeed achieved, it also caused Ming to spend a full six months playing with goby fish after returning home before he could regain his composure.

Now they're going to push him in front of that giant who just bared his fangs?

However, what the messenger said next only fueled his anger: "But...but His Highness Prince Mingren is adamant that he refuses to travel at this time, citing Princess Michiko's recent diagnosis of pregnancy and her need for rest and recuperation! His Highness said...that he absolutely cannot allow the imperial heir to take any risks..."

"Baka!" Junichiro cursed inwardly, a surge of anger rising to his head. He felt intense dissatisfaction and contempt for "Desire Shrimp's" habitual practice of prioritizing mascots over long-term interests in every situation!

Has he forgotten that two years ago, in order to repair relations with the Bald Eagle "Big Daddy," he forcibly sent Ming Leren on a visit abroad, which almost ruined this important pawn?

The trip to the bald eagle had left Ming Le Ge Ren feeling extremely exhausted. He was listless after returning home and only recovered somewhat after spending half a year playing with gobies.

We finally managed to get Michiko pregnant with an heir and stabilize the situation, and now this happens again?

Michiko's pregnancy is of paramount importance to the continuation of that mascot family's bloodline! Doesn't "Desire Shrimp" understand this? To attempt to send a pregnant Michiko on such a long and uncertain journey under these circumstances is simply...

Junichiro felt a surge of anger, and a sense of irony arose within him, a feeling that "even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs." Of course, applying that phrase to the man who was recruiting nuclear weapons seemed like a joke in itself.

"Foolish! Short-sighted! Is he only concerned with his immediate plight?"

"and many more……"

Junichiro abruptly raised his head, his narrow eyes fixed on the face of the retainer who had come to deliver the news, like a predatory worm: "Who told you this news!"

The retainer was taken aback by his master's sudden imposing aura and stammered, "It was...it was an old acquaintance from the Imperial Household Agency who said that out of consideration for our past relationship, he specifically told me this..."

“Intentionally revealed…” Junichiro slowly repeated these four words, his fingertips gently stroking the rim of the teacup, and suddenly let out a low chuckle that was hard to decipher, “What a fine ‘intentionally revealed’.”

“Think about it again,” Junichiro leaned forward, his tone becoming more authoritative. “Did he say anything else? For example, what should I do after hearing the news? Should I go to the palace to plead for him, or should I go to Prince Akishino?”

The retainer racked his brains to recall, sweat streaming down his face: "It seems... it seems he mentioned something like, 'If you, Master, could go to the palace and plead with His Highness, perhaps Miss Michiko could be spared this mission,' and also said, 'Only with your influence, Master, would His Highness grant it'..."

Upon hearing these words, Junichiro's heart skipped a beat, and his previous anxiety was instantly replaced by a cold clarity. He slowly sat back down in his seat...

What a clever scheme to lure and entice! What a masterful feigned retreat!

How could he forget? The Shrimp of Desire never does anything without a purpose. He knew perfectly well what was going on with the couple; there were plenty of senior officials in the palace who could handle it. Why did he have to leak the news to a lowly gatekeeper, and then have it reach his ears?

He even deliberately implied that "only I can plead for him"—this is not pleading for him, it's clearly pushing him into a fire pit!

His family barely managed to squeeze into the upper echelons by finding the "treasure" and marrying his daughter to the crown prince. They looked glamorous, but their foundation was actually very shallow, far inferior to established families like Mitsubishi and Mitsui. Wasn't the reason Desire Shrimp chose him precisely because he was "easy to manipulate"?

"This was a scheme orchestrated by that 'Supreme One' himself. He deliberately leaked the news that Michiko was being asked to make a trip abroad, just so that I, a newly noble person who had just found the treasure and become a member of the royal family, would volunteer to go on this trip for him."

A trusted aide asked, puzzled, "Master, why is that? He could have simply relayed the message directly..."

"Directly conveyed? Ha, you've probably forgotten that we're now in a constitutional democracy, and that guy even issued a declaration of humanity. If he were to issue some kind of edict like before, the bald eagle would probably be the first to deal with him..."

"Now that great Eastern power holds the 'young lady' in its hands, it is at the height of its power. Sending an envoy at this time, regardless of the outcome, is destined to bring enormous pressure and risks. If the negotiations go smoothly, it is because his 'supreme' is strategizing; if the negotiations are humiliated, or the other party is angered... then it is because the envoy acted without authorization, tried to gain credit, and ruined the country's important affairs."

He slowly sat back in the main seat, his tone tinged with self-deprecation.

"This is not to be underestimated... They're trying to make me a scapegoat. Yes, we're already deeply bound to Mingle Ren; when the lord is in trouble, the vassal has no choice but to obey..."

Our newly established family... may seem glamorous, but ultimately it can't compare to the deeply rooted, long-established clans like Mitsubishi and Mitsui. He can easily manipulate me using his supposed 'righteous' reputation."

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath:

"I've been having too much success lately and almost forgot how deep this water is. I still can't underestimate the people of the world, especially that 'Supreme One' who lives deep in the palace... His move not only tested my loyalty, but also left a way out for the possible failure of the negotiations, and also took the opportunity to suppress my rising power. Killing three birds with one stone, truly brilliant."

Junichiro opened his eyes again, and his eyes were now clear:

"I accepted this offer. But not in the way he expected..."

"Get out of here. Before I leave, figure out the air fryer thing!"

"Hi!"