Chapter 25: Wait, are you actually serious?

After finalizing the follow-up communication strategy, Lin Xu and Jiang Xingye walked out of the CEO's office together. A few minutes later, Liu Tong also left.

Only Ren Jian and Chu Xu remained in the office.

"Have some tea." Ren Jian pushed a teacup toward Chu Xu.

Chu Xu picked up the cup, took a sip, and savored it. "Not bad. This year's new harvest?"

"Pre-Qingming Longjing. I bought it specifically for you." Ren Jian stood up, walked behind his desk, retrieved two tins of tea, and handed them to Chu Xu. He then asked, "What do you think of this man, Lin Xu?"

"He's not that simple." Chu Xu took the tea and replied, "He’s always shrouded in mystery—the previous master design proposal, and now these materials. If I recall correctly, we only asked him to go back and refine the proposal and provide more concrete details, right? And yet, he turns around and drops two sets of new material data right on our desks."

"You don't actually believe what he said, do you? That some genius with Asperger’s helped him come up with these?"

"...Can I not believe it?" Ren Jian was stunned. "I actually thought it sounded quite reasonable..."

"Reasonable? What is reasonable about that!" Chu Xu leaned back into the sofa cushions. "My dear boss, those are industrial manufacturing processes, not some laboratory recipes. Without complete equipment and instrumentation, who could possibly produce such things? Didn't you look at the equipment list he provided? They are all large-scale machines, highly specialized and diverse in category. While these machines aren't impossible to acquire, they certainly aren't easy to assemble for experimentation."

"Besides, that document is very strange. It’s... fragmented. The first part is quite complete, even the data is precise. But the latter half? It's just an empty frame, lacking any substance."

"With something like this placed in front of you, what comes to mind?"

"...Plagiarism?" Ren Jian frowned.

"I wouldn't call it plagiarism... I should say it was obtained through some special channel. But we don't know what that channel is."

"...That’s very dangerous then." Ren Jian exhaled a long breath. "Maybe we should just terminate this project, or at least..."

"Why terminate it?" Chu Xu looked at Ren Jian, a subtle, imperceptible smile on his face. "It doesn't matter. As far as I know, there are no research groups in the country working on the industrial manufacturing methods for these two materials. If it really was stolen, it was stolen from abroad. Given the current climate, are we still afraid of that?"

"Use it." Chu Xu sat up slightly. "Don't worry, it's fine. These two materials are crucial. If we can master the industrial production method, the benefits we stand to gain... far outweigh the risks."

"I'm worried about an official investigation," Ren Jian said, lowering his voice. "We aren't afraid of competitors, and it's easy enough to explain to investors. But if the authorities get involved..."

"We have the results. Who cares where they came from?" Chu Xu gestured with his hands, looking entirely unbothered. "If you stole 3nm lithography machine technology from ASML, how do you think the authorities would treat you? Even if they had to make a show of it, you'd go to prison today and be flying to a seaside villa in Hainan by tomorrow."

"The industrial manufacturing methods for these two materials aren't quite as extreme, but the logic is the same. So, my advice is to go ahead and be bold. Since he won't say, we'll pretend we don't know. Tacit understanding is best for everyone, isn't it?"

"...That is true." Ren Jian finally relaxed. After a few seconds of silence, he suddenly asked, "Do you think... this Lin Xu... could be some kind of... secret agent?"

Chu Xu shook his head. "Who knows?"

...

On the other side, after leaving the chairman's office, Lin Xu simply greeted Jiang Xingye and headed straight for the finance office. He was there to collect the funds.

Just as Ren Jian had said, to handle a mysterious person like "Xu Jin," money was truly essential. Although collecting petty cash from finance required listing it as entertainment expenses and the reimbursement would definitely require going through the proper channels and providing invoices, at least he didn't have to spend his own money.

Moreover, while two hundred thousand might not sound like much, it was enough for initial seed money. However, how to spend this money was a problem. After collecting the funds and seeing the "200,000.00" balance in his account, Lin Xu fell into deep thought.

Should he just slap a big red envelope in his face and ask him to cooperate in a charade? No, that might make him suspicious and invite unnecessary trouble.

How about finding a way to set up a fund to sponsor his research and gradually lure the technology out? That wouldn't be a problem, but the cycle might be very long and the capital investment quite high. It was all very troublesome.

Damn it. If he had known, he should have just insisted that he developed the stuff himself—take it or leave it. If they pushed him too far, he would just start his own company, get rich off the technology, and then find another way to reconnect with Jiang Xingye. Perhaps he could find clues about the apocalypse from a different angle...

As he walked, Lin Xu pondered in his head. Ultimately, he decided that the best plan was still to continue working at Tianqiong Technology. Because, at the start of the "wristband world," he had been right at the doorstep of Tianqiong Technology. This company must have a strong connection to the apocalypse and that mysterious "Planetary Reincarnation" organization. Striking out on his own would be abandoning the closest lead.

So, let's proceed with the second plan. Regardless, he had to find Xu Jin first.

No more nonsense. To Jinling University!

Lin Xu stepped out of the company, hailed a taxi, and headed straight for Jinling University. With cash in hand, he felt bold enough to skip the standard ride and go for the premium option.

Speeding all the way to the gates of Jinling University, Lin Xu tried to slip in behind some students, but the sharp-eyed security guard caught him and dragged him into the small guardhouse. In the wristband world, he wouldn't have cared about armed security guards led by elite mercenaries. But in the real world, a single old security guard was enough to handle him.

Since things had come to this, Lin Xu had to soften his tone and reveal his identity. "Sir, I'm the Technical Department Manager at Tianqiong Technology. I'm here on legitimate business."

"If it's official business, register! Why are you trying to sneak in?" The old man glared at him.

Lin Xu apologized with a smile. "I didn't know..."

"Don't give me that cheeky grin, register! Name, phone number, ID card. What's the business, and is anyone meeting you?"

Lin Xu took the pen, obediently filled in his basic information, and then replied, "We learned through other channels that there is a talent in the School of Materials. We came specifically to talk to him..."

"Then why didn't you go to the employment office?" the guard asked suspiciously.

"Uh... the person we are looking for is a bit special. He has actually already been recruited by another unit, and we want to try to win him over..."

"Poaching, eh?" The guard clicked his tongue and shook his head. "You don't need to go in to talk about this; just chat over the phone."

"But we don't have his contact information... Sir, please let me in. I promise not to cause any trouble—if that doesn't work, just treat me like a tourist. Look at all these tourists going in."

"They have appointments. Do you?"

"I'll make one right now!" Lin Xu took out his phone. "Where do I scan the code?"

"Scan it at the gate. The visitor quota for today is full. If you've made an appointment, come back tomorrow."

"...Please, make an exception." Lin Xu pulled a pack of "95 Supreme" cigarettes from his pocket—which he had specifically prepared in case Xu Jin smoked—and used it on the guard instead.

The security guard accepted the cigarettes without a word and nodded slightly. "Fine, go ahead and make your appointment, I'll clear a spot for you. By the way, who are you looking for? You at least know the name, right?"

"I know the name!" Lin Xu quickly scanned the code and replied, "Xu Jin, Xu Jin from the School of Materials."

"Xu Jin??" The security guard froze. "You're looking for him??"

Damn it. Lin Xu's heart skipped a beat. He’s a local celebrity! This was going to be difficult.

Just as he was about to say something, the guard waved his hand and said, "Go on in. I'll point the way. He shouldn't be in the academic building or the dorms; he's probably sitting by Lizhao Lake."

"Lizhao Lake? That sounds pretty leisurely."

"Leisurely, my foot," the guard said with a chuckle. "This is his time for doing radio gymnastics. He does it every single day, rain or shine. You wouldn't believe it—never mind whether he has classes or not, even if it's thundering, lightning, or pouring rain, he does his radio gymnastics at this time every day. He's famous for it around here."

"...That's a bit ridiculous, isn't it?" Lin Xu asked in disbelief. "Doesn't the school do anything?"

"Eh, I heard he has some mental issues—I assume you lot won't want him anyway. Just go see him once and give up."

The guard's offhand remark made Lin Xu's heart jump. "What kind of mental issues?"

"Obsessive-compulsive disorder."

As the guard's words faded, Lin Xu breathed a sigh of relief. But the next second:

"I heard he also has some kind of autism, called As... As something..."

"Asperger’s," Lin Xu said in a low voice.

The guard nodded immediately. "Right, Asperger's!"