Pregnant and Pampered: The Heiress in a Military Compound

All the teams knew that once China made it to the semi-finals, they would face countless difficulties.

But they hadn’t expected Xie Changning to be so confrontational.

That she would be so bold as to rip the fig leaf right off.

To this, Xie Changning’s only response was that the United States wasn’t scared, so why should she be?

It wasn’t China that would be embarrassed, after all.

The teams from the various countries entered the laboratory, each with their own ulterior motives.

Thanks to Xie Changning sowing discord earlier, the first thing everyone did upon entering the lab was inspect their own equipment, lest a real problem arise and they end up doing all the work for another team to benefit.

This included the United States’ own team.

When Cheng Jinghao and the others heard about this, they almost died laughing. "Wait, they don’t even trust their own country?"

"Perhaps they’re just too brilliant..." Xie Changning remarked.

After she said that, the others stopped laughing, not understanding why Xie Changning would say such a thing.

In their eyes, the word "brilliant" was a compliment. How could it be used to praise the people from the United States?

Seeing their confusion, Xie Changning explained, "It depends on the context. For instance, when I say they’re ’brilliant’ right now, I mean they’re the opposite of brilliant."

"It’s meant to be sarcastic."

Hearing this, everyone finally understood.

They all gave Xie Changning a thumbs-up in unison. ’As expected of Mr. Xie/the Director, she has a way with words unlike anyone else.’

Xie Changning: "..."

With the idle chatter over, everyone began their preparations.

With Xie Changning watching them like a hawk, the Americans didn’t dare pull any more tricks. Afraid she would go and complain to the other teams about the United States again, they obediently handed over the items, all in perfect condition.

Once all the equipment was ready, Xie Changning began to rearrange the lab’s layout.

Then she started placing items with a strong Chinese feel around the room.

She even plastered the door with New Year’s prints.

The door was completely covered in them.

The United States: "?" ’What is she trying to do?’

’Who is she trying to ward off?!’

A U.S. official, who had come looking to make trouble for Xie Changning, felt his vision go dark with rage when he saw the door plastered with New Year’s prints. "Who told you to do this!?"

When questioned, Xie Changning replied.

"I did."

"Every other team is keeping their lab clean and tidy. What is the meaning of this!?"

"Is our lab not clean? I just decorated the door to let people know this is China’s laboratory. What, is there a rule against putting New Year’s prints on the door?"

Xie Changning rattled off one reason after another.

The official was so angry he was about to blow a gasket, but there was nothing he could do about Xie Changning.

The lab’s layout was different than before, but it was undeniably clean and tidy—spotless, even.

"Tear them down immediately!"

"On what grounds are you telling me to take them down?"

Xie Changning resolutely refused. The official looked like he was about to do it himself.

Then, he felt Xie Changning’s menacing glare on him. "Are you sure about that? If you lay a hand on them, I won’t be so polite... You’re offending our culture! If the competition hosts are going to be this uncivilized, then I can be uncivilized too."

As she spoke, Xie Changning cracked her neck.

Then she struck a Snake Fist pose.

Chinese Kung Fu still commanded a certain amount of respect internationally.

The moment the U.S. official saw that Xie Changning might actually know Chinese Kung Fu, he instantly backed down. He shot a venomous glare at her. "You’re completely unreasonable!"

Xie Changning scoffed and wiggled her raised hand—formed like a snake’s head—at him.

Startled by her movement, he scrambled away.

Once he was gone, Xie Changning snorted coldly. "What a clown."

"Mr. Xie, you know Snake Fist?"

The moment the official left, the other lab members poked their heads out and asked Xie Changning curiously.

’The way Mr. Xie looked just now, she seemed like a real martial artist.’

Xie Changning rubbed her nose. "I only know how to strike a pose, but I do know some simple combat techniques." ’Beating that guy wouldn’t have been a problem.’

She had just been bluffing with the Snake Fist pose to scare him.

Hearing this, everyone let out a muffled laugh, mocking the official’s cowardice while also chuckling at Xie Changning’s unique solution.

They never would have thought a problem could be solved like that.

The entire competition committee knew that Xie Changning, the leader of Team China, was not to be trifled with.

If anyone dared to disrespect China, she’d slap them across the face with her shoe insole and make them suffer the dire consequences.

And so, in the lead-up to the competition, the entire host committee quieted down.

As for the other national teams—

They naturally kept a respectful distance from Xie Changning and the Chinese team.

During this period, the members of the Chinese team focused on familiarizing themselves with the equipment and running some simple data tests.

They made no move to complete their semi-finished product.

The judges, who had been observing Team China’s activities, were anxiously waiting for them to finish their prototype. But against all expectations, they just wouldn’t do it!

It wasn’t until the week before the competition that the members of the Chinese team finally started bringing things from their hotel to the lab.

These were, of course, the semi-finished products they had submitted for the preliminaries. The most the organizers could do when they brought them in was inspect them for any prohibited items.

After living abroad for a while, everyone on the Chinese team had lost some weight.

But their eyes were brighter than ever.

They were filled with anticipation.

They looked forward to the semi-finals, when China would make its appearance with dominant technology and dazzle their ignorant eyes!

"None of this equipment was prepared by us. We need to inspect it carefully, and that will take time..."

"That’s fine. I’ll stay with you."

Xie Changning cut in before the official could finish.

The official’s expression stiffened. Their plan had been that some "accidental" damage during the inspection would be perfectly normal, and the Chinese team would surely understand.

But, as usual, Xie Changning didn’t play by the book.

She gave them no opportunity to inspect the items alone!

"I don’t have much, but I have plenty of time. So, when’s the inspection? Shall I join you?"

Xie Changning’s tone was perfectly pleasant, showing no signs of resistance whatsoever.

She gave off an air of ’I will strictly adhere to your rules and regulations, but I’m going to be there every step of the way.’

The officials were helpless against her. They had no choice but to conduct the inspection by the book, right in front of her.

Any time one of them was about to have an "accident," Xie Changning would quickly intervene. "That’s not how you inspect this part..." She corrected them at every turn, giving them no opportunity to damage a single thing.

In the end, they had no choice but to give up.

’These people from China are impossible!’

’So polite, yet so shameless!’

’Even more shameless than we are!’

With that crisis averted, Xie Changning and her team began the assembly phase.

Their true "weapon" would only be revealed in the finals. The current prototype was a relatively simple version 1.0 that they had also developed.

On the day of the semi-finals, the venue was packed.

The teams took the stage one by one, in the order determined by a draw.

But when it was China’s turn to take the stage, many in the audience were audibly pessimistic about their chances.