Chapter 15: Running into the Real Deal?
After bidding farewell to Jiang Xingye and returning home, Lin Xu immediately fell into a deep sleep.
He had expended too much energy within the bracelet world; the numbers on the bracelet had dropped to one, so he absolutely needed a good rest to recover.
After sleeping through the night, the bracelet's numbers had only risen to three. He didn’t rush to dive back in to look for clues. Instead, following Jiang Xingye’s advice, he carefully prepared the materials he would need for the Monday meeting with the boss.
Another world is another world, but life is life.
Right now, he was not the CEO of Skytech, nor even a flight control system designer. He was just a humble programmer.
If he didn’t seize this opportunity, how could he ever become CEO?
If not CEO, how would he secure enough resources?
Without enough resources, how could he investigate the truth behind the apocalypse?
Without uncovering the truth, how could he escape by rocket?
Ah, motivation just arrived.
Lin Xu spent a full ten hours preparing all the materials.
The centerpiece was a feasibility analysis report.
He researched while writing, and by the end, he realized the real designer of the Star Voyage One project was a first-rate genius.
Though the technology seemed complex, breaking it down revealed that none of the key technical challenges were insurmountable.
Some technologies were directly transferable from military to civilian use, some could be innovated within mature frameworks, and those that couldn’t be tackled yet could be postponed until the technology matured in a few years.
By the time he finished the report, Lin Xu realized the project was nearly flawless in its completeness.
So whose achievements had he stolen?
Shen Li? The chief engineer?
No, Skytech didn’t even have a person by that name.
It was baffling.
Could it be that someone would parachute in later?
Goodness.
One ex-wife in the company wasn’t enough; now there might be a big shot whose work he had freeloaded.
Just thinking about future life was exhausting...
Lin Xu collapsed onto his bed as the light from the computer screen slowly dimmed...
...
The next day.
Lin Xu arrived punctually at the reception room adjacent to the chairman’s office. Jiang Xingye was there before him, accompanied by Chen Yan, the new project leader and manager.
“Are all the materials ready?” Chen Yan eagerly asked as soon as he saw Lin Xu.
It was visibly clear that Chen Yan’s attitude had improved significantly since their last meeting.
“Yes, all prepared,” Lin Xu replied.
“Leader, do you want to take a look first?”
“Sure, hand it over.”
Chen Yan took the materials from Lin Xu without fussing over the minor issue that Lin Xu hadn’t consulted him beforehand.
As he flipped through the documents, Chen Yan clicked his tongue in admiration.
“A hero emerges young. I immediately sensed you have great talent.”
“If not, this important task wouldn’t have been assigned to you at the meeting.”
“Now I see my judgment was spot on.”
“Your plan is excellent. You don’t know how highly General Manager Ren and Engineer Chu regard you.”
“Hmm, this feasibility report is also very well written.”
“Are these technical materials all your own collection? That’s quite a substantial reserve…”
Listening to Chen Yan’s continuous praise, Lin Xu felt caught between responding and staying silent.
If he didn’t respond, it would seem rude, but responding made him wonder, What do you mean your judgment was right? When you dumped this task on me, what were you really thinking? Do you think we don’t know?
So Lin Xu just gave a few simple acknowledgments without engaging further.
Jiang Xingye, sitting nearby, seized the opportunity to tease.
“Mr. Chen, your words sound much warmer now.”
“I admit I misunderstood you before. At the meeting, I thought you were deliberately targeting Lin Xu.”
“No, no, not at all.” Chen Yan waved his hands with a slightly embarrassed expression.
Fortunately, his embarrassment didn’t last long. After just two pages flipped, the reception room door opened.
“Lin Xu, come with me.”
The chairman’s secretary called Lin Xu’s name. Jiang Xingye and Chen Yan tried to follow but were stopped.
“Lin Xu goes first. You two wait here a moment.”
All three in the room were stunned.
Just me?
That doesn’t seem appropriate.
Though in those popular novels there’s always the trope of the powerful favoring a lone individual, which sounds thrilling, reality was quite different.
Usually, when a superior several levels above meets with a subordinate, there’s an intermediate leader to facilitate the communication.
On one hand, it ensures smooth coordination from macro to micro levels; on the other, it prevents communication mishaps.
But now...
Ren Jian was breaking this norm.
What was he up to?
Lin Xu was full of question marks as he followed the secretary, knocked, and entered the chairman’s office.
The moment he stepped in, the atmosphere felt off.
Heavy.
Both Ren Jian and Chu Xu, sitting nearby, wore stiff expressions.
This was nothing like the meeting Lin Xu had imagined.
“Sit.”
Ren Jian said curtly. The secretary turned and closed the door behind her.
Lin Xu wasn’t intimidated; he sat by the sofa, quietly awaiting the boss’s next instructions.
“I’ll be straightforward.”
Ren Jian continued, “We’ve reviewed your materials. They’re very good.”
“How good?”
“Good to the point that it’s beyond what someone in your position and experience could produce.”
“At first glance, we thought your ideas were excellent, but after careful review, Chu and I unanimously agreed that many of the concepts and solutions in this proposal are highly rigorous.”
“We believe scientific research must follow objective laws.”
“It’s already 2025; sudden prodigies no longer have the soil to survive.”
“So, we began to doubt the origin of your report.”
“After consulting with industry peers and higher-level research partners, we found your proposal bears significant similarities to a competitor’s solution.”
“We don’t have access to the competitor’s full plan, so this is only a hypothesis.”
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“But the risk is obvious.”
“Now, I must ask you a question.”
“Did you write this proposal yourself, or did you obtain it through some illicit channel?”
“.......”
Lin Xu was speechless.
So it’s come to this?
Facing the original source?
Impossible.
If there really was such a high similarity, the people talking to him now probably wouldn’t be these two but the national security agency.
Lin Xu breathed a sigh of relief.
This proposal wasn’t written by himself.
But it had absolutely nothing to do with any so-called competitor.
With that in mind, Lin Xu said:
“First, the proposal was written by me. It has no connection to any competitor, and certainly no link to official research; I can guarantee that.”
“Second, even if there are similarities, that doesn’t prove I stole anyone’s trade secrets.”
“After all, manned spaceflight proposals have only a few major frameworks. Even if you randomly searched on the internet, you’d find some similarities. Such judgments are too hasty.”
“Finally... I understand the leadership’s concerns given we are a commercial company and must consider legal risks.”
“But what if we are moving faster than anyone else?”
“What if the technical details we present are more detailed and specific than anyone else’s?”
After Lin Xu’s words, Ren Jian and Chu Xu were momentarily stunned.
“You really have it?”
Lin Xu nodded firmly.
“Yes, I do!”
...
An hour later, Lin Xu left the chairman’s office.
Ren Jian and Chu Xu exchanged a glance before Ren Jian asked:
“Engineer Chu, how credible do you think this Lin Xu is?”
Chu Xu furrowed his brow, then shook his head.
“I can’t tell.”
“He does possess knowledge of many technical details we discussed.”
“But if you ask how professional he is, I wouldn’t say much.”
“On the other hand, does it really matter?”
“Many things can’t be settled so easily. Young people always have possibilities we can’t foresee.”
“In any case, let’s give him some time.”
“Whether he succeeds or not, we cannot abandon this proposal.”
“Lin Xu is right. As long as we move faster, no one can legally stop us.”
“The technical team should start planning immediately. As for the lead...”
“If Lin Xu can really deliver something useful, then let him take it.”
“I have a feeling that with him involved, this Star Voyage One project... might just succeed...”