Chapter 361: Such a Person Is Not Worth Plotting With
Ken Kutaragi smiled and shook his head.
"Su, twenty to thirty thousand US dollars per title… according to your plan, there are at least over four thousand film and television works worldwide that have value right now, and that doesn't even include TV series. Most importantly, these wouldn't be exclusive licenses. And copyright fees will definitely become more and more expensive in the future… You can't possibly offer only twenty thousand dollars for a film that has just been released and already grossed hundreds of millions at the box office, can you?"
"For newly released films, we can naturally adopt a model of a signing fee plus profit sharing," Su Yuanshan said with a smile. "And as the first company to do online copyright management, it is only natural that we can demand channel exclusivity."
"Kutaragi-kun, haven't you understood my point yet? Our main purpose is to prepare for the Internet era…"
"But that's pure loss." William Smith looked at Su Yuanshan and said very seriously, "I don't think that, under the current financial situation, spending hundreds of millions of dollars on something that will only be realized ten years later is something our industry should be doing."
"So that means you don't agree?" Su Yuanshan looked at him.
"Yes, I don't agree." William Smith nodded. "I admire your vision, but I can't gamble Sony Pictures' future on you."
Su Yuanshan let out a soft sigh and said in Chinese, "Such a person is not worth plotting with."
"What does that mean?"
"It doesn't mean anything—just praising your business acumen." Su Yuanshan switched back to English and chuckled. "Let me put it this way: when it comes to doing big things, money has never been the problem… the problem is direction. Mr. Smith, there are actually many ways to save money."
"Whether it's bringing in the eight major film studios as shareholders through online copyright contributions, or adopting a pure profit-sharing model, there are countless ways to both open new revenue sources and cut costs. And besides… the Internet era is not just about watching through PCs." As he spoke, Su Yuanshan looked at Ken Kutaragi. "One of my classmates has already successfully developed a product that can stream specific media files online through network protocols and push the image to any display device. And we also have a team developing a system for real-time conversion of television broadcast signals into streaming media."
"At that time, you'll be able to watch any high-definition channel on a television without paying channel usage fees."
"You people who make films have shot so many science fiction movies. But when the day depicted in those sci-fi films is truly about to arrive… why do you then think it's out of reach?"
Su Yuanshan turned to look at Smith, his face full of emotion.
…
That night, Ken Kutaragi knocked on Su Yuanshan's door.
"Su-san."
After sitting down, Ken Kutaragi looked at Su Yuanshan very seriously and said, "To be honest, from a profitability standpoint, what Smith said makes sense. Perhaps we should reconsider our demand for copyrights."
"Yes, but laying out for the future has never been about profitability." After a few seconds of silence, Su Yuanshan said, "Copyrights can be put on hold, but the online rental system is a must. Even if it loses money—no matter how much—we have to keep doing it, because it's a platform for providing services to users, and even more so a platform for cultivating user habits."
"Mm, I completely agree with that." Seeing Su Yuanshan relent, Ken Kutaragi couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief and smiled. "Now I'm relieved."
Su Yuanshan sighed inwardly—he just didn't know how much wasted money this would cost in the future.
Ken Kutaragi paused for a moment and then said, "By the way, how have you been thinking about the gaming platform?"
At the mention of this, Ken Kutaragi became energized. After all, he was currently the head of the gaming division, and riding on the glory of the PS's massive success, he held unquestioned authority in the gaming field.
"In North America, we've already established a game publishing company together with Davidson—Custom. It's currently being run by Davidson."
Ken Kutaragi nodded, indicating that he knew. Although he worked in console gaming, he was naturally familiar with a company like Custom, which claimed to publish all kinds of games.
"In a few days, Davidson will be returning together with Shi Dazhu. At that time, we can discuss bringing Sony and Giant Group into it as well. Then we'll be able to form a three-party gaming force composed of China, Japan, and the United States, spanning both the console and PC industries. Sony's games will not only gain access to better developer resources, but also achieve greater influence."
"Just imagine—whether you're a PC player or a PS player, you'll be able to play the same games… and in the end, you won't even need discs. You can simply connect to the network, enter the game library, and download directly…"
Ken Kutaragi listened, lost in thought and anticipation. "What an advanced model!"
"Yes… Kutaragi-kun, the Internet, at its core, is a service industry—whether serving enterprises or individuals. And in a service industry, platforms are the most fundamental and the most important. All we need to do is take a cut. When the time comes, you could even pull off tricks like giving away a PS when someone buys a certain number of games."
Ken Kutaragi froze, astonished. "You can even play it like that?"
"Of course! Tell me, would you rather sell one million consoles and make one hundred dollars on each? Or sell ten million consoles, even if you make no profit on each one?"
"Uh…"
"Or put it this way—would you rather there be only one game console on the market, the PS, or would you prefer multiple consoles?"
"Of course I'd prefer the former."
"Then there you have it." Su Yuanshan spread his hands.
…
When people don't see eye to eye, a few words are already too many. The next day, the head of Sony Pictures left. Instead, the head of Sony Music stayed behind—since he had come anyway, he naturally wanted to take a trip to Hong Kong, so Zhang Jianjun and others accompanied him there.
News from Sony headquarters also came back quickly. Judging by Ken Kutaragi's tone, it seemed that Mr. Smith would be leaving his post ahead of schedule.
Ken Kutaragi also asked Su Yuanshan again whether the now much-discussed Titanic was worth getting involved in.
Su Yuanshan's response was: as long as Sony Pictures could provide the opportunity, Yuanxin could help put up the money—if it lost money, Sony Pictures would not be held responsible; if it made money, Sony and Yuanxin would split the profits eighty–twenty.
Since Su Yuanshan had even used a "bet" to assert how bullish he was on Titanic, Ken Kutaragi steeled himself and told Su Yuanshan that they could try it and see if they could invest tens of millions of US dollars.
Two days later, Davidson and Shi Dazhu arrived as scheduled.
Compared with the discussions with the film and media division, the exchanges with the gaming division were much smoother.
Although Davidson was also somewhat surprised that Shi Dazhu was getting involved, compared with the two from Sony Pictures, he understood Su Yuanshan's vision better and trusted him more.
After all, the Custom they were running had already started making money.
(End of Chapter)
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Chapter 362 The True Online Game
On the rooftop garden, Su Yuanshan met privately with Davidson in his capacity as the founder of Xinghai High-Tech and Xinghai Ventures. On the one hand, it was a matter of status; on the other, the actual work still needed to be carried out by Davidson and Giant.
In simple terms, he needed to "sell" Shi Dazhu and the domestic game developers to Davidson.
Otherwise, Davidson might think Su Yuanshan had brought him over for charity work...
"...Right now, on both PS and PC platforms, Giant's games have each sold hundreds of thousands of copies. For a brand-new game company, that's already a very proud achievement," Su Yuanshan said.
Davidson nodded, not hiding his approval of Giant. "Yes, I admit they are quite talented in making games. However, that doesn't prove they have the vision and capability to lead the entire market."
Davidson's original idea in working with Xinghai was straightforward: to lead the entire game market—not just to publish and distribute games, but also to invest in and acquire existing game studios, ultimately achieving a unified gaming world.
Since its founding, Custom had been developing in that direction. In addition to distributing games, they had invested in several game studios. And all of that required sharp vision and real capability.
"You're wrong, Mr. Davidson," Su Yuanshan shook his head. "Old Shi's strength isn't in creating entirely new fields or products out of thin air. His strength lies in his ability to go all-in and push to the extreme once he identifies a domain."
"For example, when it comes to games, he was the one who first accurately distinguished between single-player games and online games in our country."
When Davidson heard the term "online game," he thought seriously for a few seconds before asking, "Do you mean online distribution? Or local area network multiplayer? Or something like the ImagiNation Network or QuantumLink platforms?"
ImagiNation Network, originally called The Sierra Network, was built by Sierra in 1991—it was one of the earliest "online game" platforms, and was one of Custom's future goals.
"Similar to the games on the QuantumLink platform—games that exchange data over the network and offer multiplayer interaction. But there's a key difference: true online games are not operated by typing commands, but through character actions on the game screen, with all data processing and storage handled on the server side. Thus, the demand for server computing power is very high."
"Currently, they are already attempting development—frankly, considering that even the little gimmicks on ImagiNation Network could charge several dollars per hour, a fully mature graphical online game would obviously have much greater market competitiveness."
Since this involved business secrets, Su Yuanshan didn't reveal too much. In fact, the world's first truly graphical online game was being jointly developed by Giant and Jinshan.
When the two had last visited Yuanxin, it was to seek Su Yuanshan's final evaluation.
Shi Dazhu, by intuition, believed that fully connected online games were the future, though he had hesitated slightly because such games lacked platform advantages and depended heavily on internet infrastructure.
Su Yuanshan's advice had been: for this kind of disruptive product, as long as you build it, you succeed—it would go down in the history of gaming.
Those words had given the two developers complete confidence.
Davidson slowly nodded, thinking for a few seconds before saying, "So can I understand it like this: you believe the online gaming era is coming ahead of schedule?"
"It's not arriving ahead of schedule," Su Yuanshan smiled, "but rather, the real online gaming market is waiting for us to pioneer it."
"Thus, we must have such an ally."
"Besides, from my personal perspective, having Giant on board would be beneficial for Chinese-speaking players worldwide. Although the mainland is still relatively poor and lacks market capacity, Taiwan and other areas have decent purchasing power."
"And once we successfully operate the first true online game, the channels and experience we gain will become invaluable assets for our future."
After a long silence, Davidson finally nodded heavily.
Compared to Giant, integrating Sony into the plan would be even easier. Sony already had its own distribution channels, and their resources complemented Custom's perfectly.
Thus, the entire cooperation process went very smoothly. The parties immediately decided on the collaboration content, including Giant and Sony investing, Sony and Custom merging their distribution channels, and the integration of disc production facilities.
It's worth noting that Giant, considering their long-term development, chose not to invest with cash but instead used an equity swap to join Custom.
...
Three days later, with the arrival of Sony's lithium battery team leader in the provincial capital, Su Yuanshan and Kutaragi Ken also returned from the Special Economic Zone.
Wang Chuanfu didn't travel with Su Yuanshan and the others; instead, he had arrived a day earlier to meet Yuanxin's lithium battery team and start preliminary discussions.
When Su Yuanshan arrived at the tech park, Wang Chuanfu immediately requested a meeting.
"Is he really that eager?"
Su Yuanshan had just settled Kutaragi Ken into the reception center at Yuanxin and was about to return to his office to greet Chen Jing when he got a call from Li Xiao.
"He's sitting in the lab office now. Aren't you worried he'll steal our data?" Li Xiao joked over the phone, laughing gleefully.
Su Yuanshan understood her teasing—after all, Wang Chuanfu had been a graduate student at the Capital Nonferrous Metals Research Institute and had worked in battery research for years; he was a respected senior among their peers.
Having toured Yuanxin's labs, he must have been shocked by their achievements—giving Li Xiao a great sense of pride.
"Fine, I'll wait for him in my office. Why don't you bring him over?"
"Okay, I'll bring him."
...
After hanging up, Su Yuanshan entered the elevator and went upstairs. First, he dropped by Chen Jing's office.
Chen Jing had also just returned from a meeting with government officials.
"You're back?" Chen Jing removed her glasses, rubbed her eyes, and smiled warmly at him.
"Yeah. Are you getting nearsighted or presbyopic?" Su Yuanshan teased, staring at her eyes suspiciously.
"You're the one going presbyopic!" Chen Jing glared at him, then handed him her glasses. "They're anti-glare and anti-radiation. Supposedly very good for protecting your eyes if you look at screens for a long time."
Su Yuanshan took the glasses and inspected them—it was just an ordinary pair of tinted glasses...
"Uh... With my limited scientific literacy, I can say these might help a little with strong light. But for radiation protection? How much did these cost?"
"1800 yuan."
Su Yuanshan laughed and tossed the glasses back to her, turning to leave.
"Jing-jie, as long as you're happy."
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Chapter 363 Associate Professor Wang
This kind of pure IQ-tax product... that could actually fool Chen Jing, even Su Yuanshan was a little speechless.
He could only say that Chen Jing had money and didn't care.
Besides, she looked quite good wearing glasses—it was a different kind of beauty.
Back in his own office and just sitting down, Li Xiao arrived with Wang Chuanfu, barging right in. Zhou Xiaohui, seeing this, started preparing tea for the two guests.
"Hey, Sister Xiaohui, I'll do it, you go ahead with your work," Li Xiao said, quickly stepping over to the bookshelf and randomly picking out a box of tea.
"Alright, call me if you need anything."
Meanwhile, Su Yuanshan had already left his desk and sat down on the sofa in the reception area. Wang Chuanfu clasped his hands together and offered a polite smile to Li Xiao.
However, the corner of his eye remained fixed on Su Yuanshan.
Ever since he had run into Su Yuanshan at the Yuanxin Industrial Park and was invited to this meeting, he had been feeling uneasy.
He had classmates who had already joined the Yuanxin team. So he knew that, currently at Yuanxin, the entire lithium battery project was managed by two young people fresh out of school.
In a country like China, where seniority ruled everything, he had found it difficult to understand why his classmates, having graduated several years earlier, were willing to work under juniors who had just earned their master's degrees—and one of them was even just an undergraduate doing part-time postgraduate studies—a young woman, no less.
But after visiting Yuanxin and seeing its achievements, he understood.
At Yuanxin, power was based on capability, not age or seniority.
—And Su Yuanshan was the best example of that.
"Professor Wang, Director Shan, here's your tea," Li Xiao said deliberately as she brewed a strong floral tea for Su Yuanshan, giving him a playful wink that made him chuckle helplessly.
She called Wang Chuanfu "Professor" because he had already been promoted to associate professor at the Capital Nonferrous Metals Research Institute—a promotion well ahead of the normal schedule, considering his age.
"Thank you," Wang Chuanfu said, taking the teacup and sipping it lightly before smiling at Su Yuanshan. "I must thank you, Director Shan. Visiting Yuanxin has truly been eye-opening."
"Professor Wang, you're too kind. The main reason we invited you over is because we're about to integrate with Sony's lithium battery team. Both sides will share technology, push forward jointly, and promote the commercialization of lithium batteries."
Su Yuanshan always liked getting straight to the point, skipping unnecessary small talk.
Wang Chuanfu's eyes flickered. He raised the teacup again and took a sip under the pretext of blowing away the tea foam.
He wasn't directly involved in lithium batteries, but that didn't mean he didn't know about them. He was well aware that Sony was the first company to produce commercial lithium batteries and had set the standard for 18650 lithium cells—truly a pioneer in lithium battery commercialization.
And yet, Yuanxin—a relative newcomer—had the qualifications to "merge" with Sony.
Not just collaborate—merge.
This meant that Yuanxin's lithium technology went far beyond what they had shown him.
It was astonishing!
After giving Wang Chuanfu a moment to process the information, Su Yuanshan continued, "To achieve commercialization, we must move into mass production and market deployment. Sony already has mature production technology and lines, but as a researcher yourself, Professor Wang, you surely understand: technology cannot advance solely in the laboratory—it must be put into production."
Wang Chuanfu nodded. "Yes, laboratory technology and production technology are two different things. If you don't produce, you'll never develop the technical know-how that comes from manufacturing experience."
Su Yuanshan's eyes lit up, praising, "Exactly! Without production, you can never master the true know-how—and that's why we must build a lithium battery manufacturing plant domestically!"
Seeing the burning intensity in Su Yuanshan's eyes, Wang Chuanfu's breathing quickened slightly.
He had been wondering why Su Yuanshan had invited him over—he wasn't naive—but now he could guess:
Maybe Su Yuanshan wanted him to manage the factory.
"Director Shan, you mean..."
"I'll be direct," Su Yuanshan said. "Although we're collaborating with Sony on the lithium battery project, due to the special nature of our research teams, both sides will remain based in their own countries for a long time, maintaining open technical communication but operating separately."
"Therefore, Yuanxin must independently establish its own factory here. And realistically... building a brand-new plant from scratch isn't very practical. The best solution is to acquire an existing battery manufacturer that already has some technical capability and growth potential."
"And looking across the country, the only company that could carry Yuanxin's lithium battery ambitions is Bigge Battery."
Hearing the word "acquisition," Wang Chuanfu's eyes widened slightly. "But Bigge Battery is a subsidiary of the Capital Nonferrous Metals Research Institute... The institute probably won't sell."
"If they don't sell, that's fine. I'll just poach their people," Su Yuanshan said with a laugh. "I'll bring all of you over. What do you think, Professor Wang?"
"..."
Wang Chuanfu was momentarily speechless. This guy... was truly rich and bold!
Moreover, a new thought crossed Wang Chuanfu's mind.
—He worked in rechargeable batteries and knew very well that, purely in terms of data and performance, lithium batteries were far superior to the current nickel-metal hydride batteries. Although lithium batteries still faced many issues, technological progress was all about identifying problems and solving them.
However, for now, nickel-metal hydride batteries were still mainstream.
In fact, before Su Yuanshan had even approached him, Wang Chuanfu had been planning to leave Bigge Battery and start his own company—he had even begun looking for funding.
Now, Su Yuanshan's offer placed him at a crossroads:
Either stick to his original plan, leave Bigge Battery, and establish a completely independent battery company under his full control,
Or accept Su Yuanshan's invitation and join Yuanxin, contributing to a company that was almost guaranteed to dominate China's future lithium battery sector.
And based on everything he had heard about Yuanxin—especially the company's reputation for generously rewarding its employees and department heads—he knew Yuanxin treated its people extremely well.
After a long silence, Wang Chuanfu still hesitated a little—the words of his classmate echoed in his mind: "At Yuanxin, it's all about strength."
He had no issue with that.
But his expertise wasn't in lithium batteries.
Was he really going to join and work under a young woman who had just graduated?
"Director Shan... may I ask, should I understand this as an invitation to join Yuanxin?"
"Yes, to join Yuanxin," Su Yuanshan confirmed, noticing Wang Chuanfu's hesitation and feeling somewhat surprised.
Could it be that this guy truly had the attitude of "better to be a rooster's head than a phoenix's tail"?
How could even the future title of "Energy Group President" at Yuanxin not tempt him?
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Chapter 364 Joining Yuanxin
Wang Chuanfu pursed his lips again and instinctively picked up his teacup, but the freshly brewed tea was scalding hot. As soon as it touched his lips, he shuddered.
Almost instantly, Wang Chuanfu made up his mind—he needed to ask clearly.
"Then what will the battery company's structure be like? Will there be Japanese teams stationed in the workshops?" He looked seriously at Su Yuanshan. "A battery company is an enterprise where production and technology are tightly bound. Production and R&D cannot be separated for too long—I assume that's why Director Shan wants to set up a battery factory here?"
"Exactly," Su Yuanshan nodded first in agreement, then glanced sideways at Li Xiao, who was pretending to be doing nothing nearby, and smiled faintly. "Therefore, based on this, our upcoming laboratory will move to the factory site. Also, the lithium battery production equipment will mainly be provided and imported by Sony, so naturally, there will be Japanese engineers stationed at the factory."
Li Xiao immediately widened her eyes, giving Su Yuanshan a hard glare and even secretly clenched her fists.
Su Yuanshan pretended not to see it and continued, "However, Yuanxin uses a structure where R&D and business are separated, so the laboratory will be jointly managed by the factory and Yuanxin Science Park. Also, personally, I hope Professor Wang will not only guide production but also deeply participate in lithium battery research. After all... this is a sunrise industry, and our team is also a rising sun team."
Su Yuanshan laughed and added, "The advantage of youth is that we can dabble in anything. If I asked my dad to switch fields, he would say he couldn't keep up anymore."
After listening, Wang Chuanfu picked up his teacup again and exhaled deeply.
Having served as a deputy director and worked in institutions before, if he couldn't understand Su Yuanshan's meaning by now, he might as well quit.
Su Yuanshan's intentions were clear enough.
He was inviting him and his team to join Yuanxin's new factory while giving him a leadership role over the laboratory, and he hoped Wang Chuanfu would dive into lithium battery development.
At twenty-nine years old and with a background in battery research, Wang Chuanfu knew that batteries weren't like theoretical physics. In the current era, the most critical technology for batteries was materials science.
And material science, frankly, was mostly about formulas—you could often grasp everything just by looking.
Yuanxin's rise in lithium batteries within just over a year must mean they had incredibly good luck and picked the right direction. Otherwise, how could they be qualified to stand alongside pioneers like Sony?
"Alright!"
...
After seeing Wang Chuanfu out, Li Xiao didn't follow him out but instead slammed the door shut and growled at Su Yuanshan, "You bastard, are you kicking us out next year?"
"Sister Xiao, don't be so dramatic," Su Yuanshan said quickly. Since they were standing so close and she looked ready to peck like a small angry hen, he hurriedly took a few steps back, laughing nervously. "You know the difference between a lab designed for research and one designed for commercialization. Otherwise, why would the concept of lithium batteries have existed for decades before Sony finally launched them?"
"..." Li Xiao was momentarily speechless and plopped down angrily on the sofa. "I don't care. I chose Yuanxin because the environment was great and it's close to home. Now you want me to move to the Special Economic Zone? My dad will never agree."
"Uh..." Su Yuanshan started getting a headache.
Old Li, her father, had always been a bit upset about her majoring in chemistry, but he had been relieved when she got a stable job at Yuanxin's Science Park.
He had always hoped his daughter would stay at Yuanxin doing research and perhaps even find a good husband there—even if not someone like Su Yuanshan, any manager at Yuanxin would have a bright future.
Now moving Li Xiao to the Special Economic Zone might genuinely upset Professor Li Gaoliang.
"What can I do? Right now, in the lithium battery sector, you and Gao Peng are the pillars—Sister Xiao, you're only twenty-three, and you're already a leader in a major field..."
"Leader my foot. Save the flattery," Li Xiao glared at him. "I've been busier in one year here than in all four years of college combined. You're just squeezing the surplus value out of us workers, you capitalist!"
"..." Su Yuanshan could only laugh bitterly.
But having grown up with Li Xiao, he knew her well enough.
She wasn't throwing a tantrum because she didn't care; she simply had grown too comfortable with the Science Park environment and didn't want to leave.
"How about going to Japan instead? The work there is easy, and the salary is high."
"Spit!"
"Then what do you want me to do, princess? I can't build a factory right here in the Science Park!"
"Can't you just send one team over instead of two?"
"Nope. Both teams have to go," Su Yuanshan said seriously. "When you arrive, you'll occupy a plot in the industrial park first, build up your team, and slowly expand. My senior brother runs that place—you'll have full protection. No one will dare bully you, you can still walk around like a boss."
Li Xiao: "..."
"Besides, the Special Economic Zone is our focus for future development. In two years or less, I'll establish a permanent office there myself."
Hearing this, Li Xiao immediately grew suspicious. "Seriously? Are you planning to move headquarters too?"
"No, not moving the headquarters. I'll just be going there myself."
"Tch... If you go, isn't that the same as moving headquarters?"
Su Yuanshan chuckled. "The real boss of Yuanxin is President Chen. Wherever she is, that's where headquarters is."
"You think I'm a three-year-old?" Li Xiao gave him a scornful look. "President Chen is always running around. Is headquarters supposed to follow her waistline or what?"
While she was speaking, there was a knock at the door. Two seconds later, Zhou Xiaohui poked her head in. "Director Shan, President Chen is here."
"Alright." Su Yuanshan shrugged at Li Xiao and stood up. "Sister Xiao, we'll talk about this later, okay?"
...
When Chen Jing walked in, she immediately noticed Li Xiao's half-hearted greeting and guessed most of what was going on.
After sitting down, she smiled at Su Yuanshan. "What's wrong? The young lady doesn't want to leave?"
"Yeah. She's close with Sister Qu Hui, probably influenced by her into thinking this place is paradise," Su Yuanshan said, pouring Chen Jing a cup of tea. "Thank you for all your hard work."
He and Chen Jing kept in close contact, usually calling every other day to update each other on progress and discuss plans.
Chen Jing had been busy in the capital securing agreements for the LCD panel project and had just returned a few days ago.
Judging by the pace of cooperation Su Yuanshan was pushing, she would be busy again soon.
"It's just small stuff," Chen Jing said with a smile, cradling her cup. Then her expression grew serious. "We need to control our investment pace. Our spending this year has already far exceeded the original plan—several major projects were decisions you basically made on the spot."
"If we don't control it now, it'll affect next year's R&D budget."
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Chapter 365
"It's fine," Su Yuanshan said, unusually relaxed, smiling at Chen Jing. "Next year, we'll have money."
"...You mean because Xinghai will go public next year, right?" Chen Jing, who regularly reviewed the financial reports of Yuanxin and its sister companies each quarter, knew Xinghai's situation well.
"Yes, I'm holding at least forty percent of Xinghai's shares," Su Yuanshan said proudly. "Once Xinghai goes public, you might just be looking at the next richest person in the world sitting right in front of you."
Chen Jing couldn't help but laugh. Compared to the serious way Su Yuanshan usually discussed the company, she rather liked seeing this relaxed, somewhat boyish side of him. She smiled and teased, "So, will you make it onto Fortune magazine next year?"
"Over my dead body! I've already arranged for Qin Si to bribe them," he said with a chuckle.
"..."
"We're not in it for fame, right?" Su Yuanshan grinned. "If I care about fame, it's only in scientific research. Money? It's just floating clouds."
"So you're planning to use next year's windfall to funnel money back here?" Chen Jing asked seriously, staring at him.
"Mm, but since we're a legitimate company, we can't just wire the money directly. Next year, I'll probably inject capital using offshore Xinghai or Xinghai Ventures."
"Xiaoshan, that way of thinking isn't sustainable," Chen Jing sighed lightly. "Xinghai was founded a year later than Yuanxin, yet it's already about to go public. Based on our development and financials, we are falling behind Xinghai."
"If we rely on Xinghai for funding, it won't just put us in a weaker position... It will also hurt your future control over Xinghai," Chen Jing continued, looking at Su Yuanshan's young face. After holding back for a few seconds, she added softly, "Personally, I don't want Yuanxin to become a company that needs Xinghai's lifeblood."
Su Yuanshan was stunned and his expression slowly turned serious.
He stared into Chen Jing's calm eyes and saw the pride hidden within them.
Only then did Su Yuanshan truly realize that he had long neglected Chen Jing's feelings—or rather, her ambitions.
When he first brought Chen Jing over, he had intended for her to helm Yuanxin. But because he remained involved, even though he had always respected her, in truth, there hadn't been much room for her to shine.
No one knew better than him which directions emerging technologies would take.
Thus, Chen Jing's light had been overshadowed by him.
If not for Chen Jing managing the entire enterprise behind the scenes, with Su Yuanshan's chaotic way of doing things, Yuanxin might have already needed constant cash injections just to survive.
At the very least, Su Yuanshan wouldn't be living as comfortably as he was now.
Yet even in the shadows, Chen Jing still had her pride and ambition.
—Steering the massive ship that was Yuanxin was itself a testament to her abilities. Her pride would not easily allow her to accept practices that went against proper business principles.
At the very least, she wasn't willing to be overtaken by someone like Carly.
Realizing this, Su Yuanshan remained silent for a few seconds before saying quietly, "It's my fault. I was looking at it from the wrong perspective."
Chen Jing's eyes flickered slightly, her lips twitching subtly before regaining composure. "What perspective?"
"I was only considering my own perspective, not yours," Su Yuanshan said solemnly. "I'm sorry. If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't be happy either. These years... you've tolerated a lot of my reckless behavior. I owe you."
"..." Chen Jing blinked. After hearing Su Yuanshan's sincere apology, she didn't know what to say—she couldn't exactly admit, "I just thought you were too brilliant to oppose."
"But, Sister Jing, here's the thing..." Su Yuanshan sighed again and said earnestly, "In many fields, especially emerging ones, if you enter too late, there's no second chance."
He looked at Chen Jing and continued slowly, "Frankly speaking, Yuanxin now is not just a private enterprise. It's also carrying responsibilities and obligations that it shouldn't normally have. And Sister Jing, you actually know this even better than I do."
Upon hearing this, Chen Jing fell silent and sighed softly.
In many ways, she had better access to the higher levels of government—especially to special departments like the United Front Work Department.
Thus, she understood very well the expectations placed upon Yuanxin by the state—even though she believed such expectations were abnormal.
There was no helping it. Yuanxin had grown too big. In just a few years, its reach had extended into dozens of sectors, and in fields like lithography machines, chip design, system development, communication technology, and lithium batteries, Yuanxin had pushed the national industry up to an internationally advanced level.
Carrying such a heavy burden, Yuanxin was not allowed to fail.
And precisely because of this responsibility, at a time when international cooperation needed strengthening, Yuanxin had to maintain single-source capital and distance itself politically.
After a long silence, Chen Jing slowly nodded. "In about a week, the president of Texas Instruments will be coming over. We'll try to secure the 0.5-micron process technology. If we succeed... based on your forecast for the flash memory market, we should see significant revenue growth."
"Mm, that's what I'm hoping too."
"But once the lithography machines start running, the research investment into process technology will become a bottomless pit..." Chen Jing pressed her lips together and said softly, "If it becomes absolutely necessary, we could let Xinghai Holdings invest in Yuanxin."
...
After sending off Chen Jing, Su Yuanshan sat there holding a coffee cup, slightly dazed as Zhou Xiaohui walked in carrying a stack of documents.
Zhou Xiaohui glanced at him and asked tentatively, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Let me look at the financial report," Su Yuanshan said, reaching for the documents but then immediately changed his mind. "Forget it. Just tell me about the forecasted expenditures and financial status."
Zhou Xiaohui set down the documents, thought for a moment, and began to report:
"Starting from this year, we've had significant R&D expenses, including lithography machines, stage equipment, light sources, and other purchases. This accounts for a major portion of the expenditures."
"In addition, pending major expenses include the LCD panel project and further investments into the industrial zones."
"Besides that, basic construction of industrial parks across various regions is accounted separately, consuming about thirty percent of the total annual spending."
"Adding it all up, this year's expenditures have already exceeded eight billion yuan."
Zhou Xiaohui reported from memory, her voice steady.
Hearing the numbers, Su Yuanshan was dumbfounded.
He hadn't realized Yuanxin had already spent so much this year!
No wonder—no wonder Chen Jing was so worried.
It seemed he really needed to curb his reckless spending habits.
Taking a deep breath, Su Yuanshan sighed heavily.
"Sister Xiaohui, why didn't you remind me earlier?"
Zhou Xiaohui: "..."
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