"Long time no see, Mr. Coulson. Though I suspect you're not exactly thrilled to see me right now," Zhou Yi greeted Phil Coulson personally, who had come in a hurry. When he led Coulson to the study, Serana had thoughtfully prepared two cups of coffee.
"Thank you, Miss Serana," Coulson said, bowing slightly to Serana before turning to Zhou Yi. "Although my boss has been furious about this matter, and has been giving me the cold shoulder for over a week, I'm actually used to his expression by now. So, I'm very happy to see you. Thank you for what you did for the people of Paris."
"Wow! That's unexpected," Zhou Yi chuckled, pleased with Coulson's words. "Should I say you're a special agent, or that I have a unique charm? To have a high-ranking agent like you on my side?"
"Perhaps both," Coulson replied with a playful smile. "But I believe the former is more important. Not everyone can put themselves in others' shoes like I do, especially given the nature of my work."
"Alright, alright. Let's get down to business. I'm here to ask for your help. Or rather, to ask for the help of your, what is it, Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division? That's the name, right? Seriously, you guys should really change your name. No one can remember it."
"We already have, Mr. Zhou," Coulson replied with a smile. "We are now called S.H.I.E.L.D., S.H.I.E.L.D.. The suggestion to change the name came from your friend, Mr. Tony Stark. After an internal consensus, we changed to the current name."
"Alright, S.H.I.E.L.D.. Hmm, sounds much better. As I just said, I need S.H.I.E.L.D.'s help," Zhou Yi shrugged, repeating his previous topic to Coulson, who had become serious.
"That's absolutely no problem, Mr. Zhou. But as you know, everything comes at a price. We can provide help, but in return, you'll have to pay a certain price." Without much thought, Coulson agreed to Zhou Yi's request. For him, establishing a certain cooperative relationship with Dawn Knight at this time was very important, especially after Dawn Knight had demonstrated such terrifying power.
"A price? Do we really need a price? I thought, given our relationship, it wouldn't be a problem to ask about a small matter," Zhou Yi said with a rather helpless tone. He genuinely hoped to get some information from Phil Coulson for free.
"Gossip, no problem at all, given our relationship. But if it involves classified information or requires S.H.I.E.L.D.'s internal resources, I'm afraid I have to decline. After all, I'm just an employee," Coulson appeared even more innocent, responding to Zhou Yi's request in a very clear manner.
Zhou Yi had anticipated this answer. After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. was an intelligence organization, not a charity. It was impossible to get them to help without some cost.
"Alright, what do you need?" Zhou Yi asked.
Coulson shook his head slightly, smiling as he countered.
"No, no, no, it should be, what kind of help do you need us to provide? Only after knowing what you need can we determine what price you should pay. After all, we still want to establish a cooperative relationship with you. Making a foolish offer is not something a smart person should do."
Silently staring into Coulson's eyes, Zhou Yi carefully observed the man's gaze. From his eyes, Zhou Yi saw only sincerity. And this sincerity was enough to make him relax some of his wariness.
"Very well, Mr. Coulson. A man like you deserves my friendship."
"It would be my pleasure." Phil Coulson's face lit up with a look of surprise. "Being able to boast about having the Dawn Knight's friendship is enough to show off to my friends for a while. Should we take a picture to keep as proof? You know, there are a lot of people in my line of work who like to have evidence."
Coulson's words were tinged with a playful tone, which made the atmosphere a bit more lively. Of course, it also made the upcoming negotiations easier.
"As long as you don't show this to Miss Maria Hill, I think it should be fine. Of course, I need to put on my armor first."
The mention of armor made Coulson's face twitch slightly. He had suffered a huge loss in their last transaction. The few pieces of armor S.H.I.E.L.D. had traded with Zhou Yi, apart from the slightly rare materials and stronger impact resistance, had absolutely no other use. Moreover, the exorbitant cost made those who were thinking of popularizing Dawn Armor in the military immediately shut up. Spending millions of dollars to equip such things was a complete waste of taxpayers' money. Although this was something they had been doing, they didn't dare to be so blatant.
Of course, Coulson had also received a lot of reprimands because of this. Although the Director, Nick Fury, took the blame in terms of penalties, the verbal admonishment was equally unpleasant, especially when it came from Nick Fury, who always liked to ridicule people.
"Of course, but I think we should take care of business first, don't you think?" Coulson directly changed the subject. Mentioning the armor again would remind him of Nick Fury's incessant nagging, which was not something worth recalling.
"Alright, you're the boss." Although he didn't understand why Coulson had changed the direction of the conversation, Zhou Yi accepted his words and began to state his needs.
"My requests are simple. First, I need to know who attacked the headmaster of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, Professor Charles Xavier. The more detailed the information, the better. Ideally, tell me where Professor Charles is now! Second, I need S.H.I.E.L.D. to come forward and stop the unfavorable bill the President is proposing regarding Mutants. That's my request."
"The first request shouldn't be a problem; our information channels should be able to find the answer you need quickly," Phil Coulson thought for a moment before replying. "But the second one, I'm afraid I have to say no. We don't have the authority to interfere with the President's orders, even if his term is coming to an end."
"It's not necessary to stop him from establishing the bill. Just delaying it until I can rescue Professor Charles is acceptable."
"I need a little time to report this situation; this matter needs the Director's decision. Also, as a friend, I need to warn you. You're too close to the Mutants. That's not a good thing for your public identity," Phil Coulson stood up; he needed to find a place to report Zhou Yi's request. At the same time, he also advised Zhou Yi as a friend.
He knew Zhou Yi's family situation and how much he loved Xiarui Si. But to provide assistance to the huge Mutant group just because of these reasons was a bit too much. He knew that a considerable number of Mutants were extreme racial elements like Magneto, and they posed a significant threat to the public order of human society.
"I think I've chosen the right path, Phil. But thank you for your kindness."
Zhou Yi politely declined Phil Coulson's advice. He had been planning for so long, even risking his life. There was no way he would choose to give up at this moment. Of course, he wouldn't tell an outsider like Phil Coulson about such things.
Phil Coulson spread his hands; he had fulfilled his duty as a friend. Naturally, there was no need to continue dwelling on this matter. After all, their friendship was far from being that solid. So he directly opened the door and went outside to report their deal.
Not long after, he returned and gave Zhou Yi an answer.
"Director Fury has agreed to your request. We can delay for two weeks, after which you'll need to convince the President yourselves."
"Alright, what about the information I asked for?"
"We only know that a special department within the military was behind it. They seem to have unique abilities to resist Professor Charles's mental powers. They also have a highly elite special forces unit. According to our information, Professor Charles and his student, Mr. Scott Summers, were taken down in less than a minute. They were apparently planning to take a train directly to Washington, but were attacked en route."
"Do you know who launched the attack? And what did they do with Professor Charles? Is he alive, and if so, where is he being held?"
"Professor Charles is alive. Our video records show a group of people boarding a military helicopter with two unconscious individuals. One of the unconscious individuals was in a wheelchair. However, we don't know their location. The military has always been at odds with us, and it's difficult to get core information on such highly classified special forces. Currently, all we know is that the head of this unit is Rear Admiral William Stryker. He was involved in the military's early Mutant experiments and is a complete anti-Mutant!"
Zhou Yi fell silent after receiving this news. He needed some time to sort through the situation. Phil Coulson was also very perceptive; he remained quiet, simply enjoying Serana's coffee while waiting for Zhou Yi's reaction.
After a moment, Zhou Yi spoke.
"Thank you for the information, Phil. I think I know what to do next. Now, tell me your conditions. I assume, as intelligent people, you won't make any excessive demands."
"Of course, trust us. We're offering the most suitable and fair deal," Phil Coulson said with a wink. "Our request is simple; we want you to accompany one of our agents into Raccoon City after Christmas, using your public identity. You know, that message you sent me has attracted a lot of attention."
"But Umbrella's security in Raccoon City is extremely tight. It's difficult for our spies to infiltrate using ordinary identities, so we thought of you. Use your public identity to negotiate with Umbrella. We know Umbrella has some major financial issues lately, and they definitely won't reject an investor with a lot of capital. Our people will use your identity as a cover to collect enough evidence. Once we have enough evidence, Umbrella's days will be numbered."
"Just using my public identity?" Zhou Yi chuckled. This was a matter for discussion.
"Ideally, only your public identity. Of course, if an emergency arises, we'll need a hero to save the day, won't we?"
Phil Coulson countered. Zhou Yi thought for a moment and then extended his right hand.
"It's a deal!" The two hands clasped, signifying the involvement of a behemoth in the attack on Umbrella.
-----------------------
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