Aliens Are Going to Invade? (2nd Update)

Early the next morning, Old Wang got busy.

Hammer Industries’ situation was complicated.

The establishment of any arms company was inseparable from the support of the government and military. Of course, in a capitalist society, it ultimately still depended on the support of capitalists.

If possible, Old Wang would have preferred to establish a new arms company. It would not have been too difficult, but it would have been too troublesome.

Arms dealing was a huge cake, and because it involved national security, it was almost impossible for outsiders to get involved.

Any rich person could start an internet company, but arms dealing?

Sorry, money alone was not enough. You needed power and connections.

With Egghead and Tony’s connections, it would not have been difficult for Old Wang to start an arms company.

But this was a real industry. It needed not only money, but also accumulated technology, patents, and even equipment. Every aspect had to be accounted for; none could be lacking.

With nothing at all, forget Fitz—even if Tony were brought in, he would not have been able to build a Mark 2 by hand.

So the only choice was to find an arms company that already had everything in place and figure out a way to take it over.

Hammer Industries, which was facing a crisis, was naturally the best choice.

Although Justin Hammer was the chairman and CEO, he owned less than twenty percent of the shares. Nearly half were in the hands of capitalists, while the rest circulated on the market.

Skye’s hacking attack had made those small shareholders lose confidence in Hammer Industries. Although some clung to the thought that maybe it’ll rise again and stubbornly refused to sell, most decisively fled.

As for the capitalists who controlled most of the stocks and even equity, they could not escape even if they wanted to. No one was willing to take over.

And at that moment, Old Wang appeared.

Though he usually kept a low profile, to well-informed big shots, the name Immortal Iron Fist was thunderous. He had relationships beyond friendship with Director Fury and Tony Stark, and his shadow lay behind the destruction of both The Hand and Hydra. He was someone not to be provoked.

Simply throwing money around was obviously unrealistic. It was not that the shareholders were unwilling to sell, but that Old Wang had no money.

Although Hammer Industries’ market value had plummeted, a starving camel was still bigger than a horse. Unless Old Wang sold off all his assets, he could not possibly swallow it whole.

He invited himself into their homes, breaking in at night again and again, carrying an iron rod in one hand and a low-end Arc Reactor made by Fitz in the other. He held heart-to-heart talks with the shareholders, and before long, amid a friendly atmosphere, they reached an unspoken agreement.

Three days later, under the strong demands of the major shareholders, the board meeting was held as scheduled.

The meeting heard Mr. Justin Hammer’s vision for the Hammer Steel Soldiers, as well as his outlook on Hammer Industries’ future prospects. The major shareholders then voiced their opinions one after another, believing that Mr. Hammer had worked tirelessly for the company’s performance, running about day and night without even having time to eat, until he had become so thin. It was truly heartbreaking.

Since that was the case, there was no need for him to continue serving as the company’s top leader. He might as well step down and make way for someone more worthy, then go home to tend flowers and walk birds.

Old Wang then made his grand entrance, introduced himself, expressed complete confidence in the company and the future prospects of the entire arms industry, and promised that he would certainly make the company bigger and stronger.

Amid Mr. Justin Hammer’s anger and unwillingness, Old Wang brought out the Arc Reactor and had former S.H.I.E.L.D. core agent Leo Fitz provide a detailed introduction.

Having officially become the top man, Old Wang proposed his first agenda item. He believed that Hammer Industries’ reputation was already rotten, so it would be better to change its name. Only then could everyone’s impression of Hammer Industries be changed and the company escape its predicament.

The shareholders all agreed, and "Hammer Industries" became "Azeroth Industries."

In a cheerful atmosphere, the shareholders, under Old Wang’s leadership, launched an intense discussion around "how to make Azeroth Industries bigger and stronger." During this time, Old Wang showed absolute trust in the shareholders, causing them to change their impression of the new chairman.

At the end of the meeting, they listened to a report from the new head of R&D, "Leo Fitz." Everyone, including Old Wang, was drowsy, while Justin seemed to understand but not really.

Amid enthusiastic applause, Azeroth Industries’ first board meeting ended in complete success.

Everyone was happy, except Justin Hammer.

He had thought someone could help him out of his predicament—someone who would descend from the sky carrying an Arc Reactor, let him climb back to the peak of his life, increase his influence at the Pentagon, and crush Tony Stark beneath his feet.

And what happened?

Someone really had brought an Arc Reactor, but he had been removed from power.

Although he was still a shareholder and retained a certain position in the company, but…

This is fucking nothing like what I imagined!

"Mr. Hammer, you must believe that all of the company’s arrangements for you are for your own good."

Old Wang patted Justin’s shoulder and said earnestly, "Work hard. I have faith in you. Oh, right, after you leave, please help me contact Colonel Rhodes. I think we should renegotiate the contract… the original price was too low."

What?

Even under these circumstances, he actually wanted to raise prices?

What the hell was Wang thinking?

Justin left in a daze, and Old Wang quickly convened the second meeting.

This time, he summoned all the key technical personnel.

After Stark Industries’ weapons division shut down, quite a few technicians who had previously made their living under Tony had been recruited over, directly raising Hammer Industries’ R&D capabilities by several levels. The foundation was no longer a problem.

Fitz had carefully studied the Azeroth Iron Soldier, which had already been renamed. Its technological level was inferior to the Mark 2, but it was certainly far above the Mark 1. Naturally, it still had all sorts of problems, which required the efforts of Fitz and the others.

A company had its own way of operating. Justin Hammer himself was quite capable, and Old Wang did not intend to change that. Everything would continue running as usual.

"The news should have reached Egghead and Shithead’s ears by now, right?" Old Wang stroked his chin.

S.H.I.E.L.D. Triskelion Headquarters, Director’s Office.

Hill stood before Egghead on her long legs and said, "Sir, that’s the situation. Master Wang is now the chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Hammer… Azeroth Industries, while Fitz is the head of R&D."

Egghead braced both hands on the desk and frowned slightly.

Arms dealing was indeed an industry with enormous profits, but sales were limited, so the total profits were not actually that high.

Stark Industries was incredibly powerful, yet its market value could not even rank in the top ten. Nearly half of that came from other businesses, not just arms dealing.

If Master Wang truly wanted to make money, there was no need for him to invest so much money in this industry—unless he was extremely optimistic about the industry’s financial prospects.

Then the question was.

To make money, one either had to fight for a larger market share, or…

Egghead narrowed his eyes slightly.

There was only one situation in which arms companies made the most money: war.

Could it be that Master Wang believed war was about to break out?

The global situation was currently excellent, while the arms industry was bleak across the board.

For profit, arms dealers even deliberately provoked local wars to benefit from them. But with compromises and deterrence from all sides, a global war could not possibly break out, because no one could bear the consequences.

Humanity only had one Earth, and there were so many Nuclear Bombs…

Even Hydra was finished. Terrorist organizations could not make much of a splash anymore.

Could it be…

Egghead’s heart skipped a beat as he recalled everything from over a decade ago.

"Are aliens going to invade?"

I pulled an ancient-looking pager from my chest pocket and gently rubbed it.