120: Chapter 121 Tearing Apart the Semiconductor Wall: Unlicensed Outbound Shipment! Physical-Level Destruction Log

Secretary Shen Hai's back was pressed stiffly against the leather chair back.

Holding his breath for so long had caused a distinct feeling of tightness in his chest.

He picked up the cup of green tea on the table, which had already gone cold, and took a gulp.

He tried to suppress the logical paradox that was violently colliding in his mind.

If this batch of cores were semi-finished products that Shen Du had smuggled in from overseas through special channels,

and they were just being sent domestically to go through the motions of packaging, that would be completely within the realm of Secretary Shen Hai's understanding.

It would be nothing more than taking a sea route to bypass the international technical embargo list.

However, he had personally reviewed every single logistics ledger for the Sheshan base.

Over these past few months, what had been transported into that underground laboratory...

...besides eight hundred million yuan worth of various cutting-edge general-purpose instruments, there were only batches of blank wafers.

Even the most basic mask templates used for etching circuits had never appeared on any single inbound inventory sheet.

Secretary Shen Hai placed the teacup back on the coaster; the bottom of the cup collided with the wooden tabletop, emitting a dull "thud" sound.

In the global technology landscape of 2012, the semiconductor industry was a fortress with strict hierarchies.

Top-tier Lithography Machines, wafer purification technology, underlying instruction set architectures...

These patents were tightly gripped in the hands of a few major Western oligarchs, forming a physical wall built with countless funds and time.

Without the masks from major manufacturers, without the underlying architectural authorization...

Secretary Shen Hai's finger joints tightened unconsciously.

This meant that those six foreign madmen under Shen Du's command...

...under the desperate circumstances of being completely cut off from the existing global semiconductor industrial system...

...inside that enclosed basement in Sheshan...

...had forcibly bypassed global patent barriers and reconstructed a set of chip cores capable of rivaling mainstream commercial-grade ones.

Secretary Shen Hai's gaze was locked tightly onto that classified briefing, and the bloodshot veins in his eyes gradually spread with his rapid heartbeat.

The rain outside the window suddenly intensified.

Dense raindrops pelted against the bulletproof glass, producing a sound like popping beans.

After a long while, the suffocating silence in the office was finally broken.

Secretary Shen Hai's dry Adam's apple bobbed up and down.

He pressed that classified briefing tightly into his palm, the veins on the back of his hand not yet having fully subsided.

"This matter..."

Secretary Shen Hai's voice was terribly hoarse, carrying an unquestionable sense of command:

"Keep it covered up for now.

Raise the security level at Sheshan by another notch; don't let even a single fly get in.

As for all shipping and packaging records regarding this batch of chips, go to the source and physically destroy them."

He looked up, his bloodshot eyes staring fixedly at the person in charge before him:

"Everyone present who knows about this must sign the highest-level non-disclosure agreement.

Just act as if this shipment never happened."

"Understood!"

The person in charge shuddered and nodded immediately.

Secretary Shen Hai did not look at him again.

He reached out directly and pushed the pile of documents on the desk, which were originally meant to be reviewed today, to the corner of the table.

He grabbed the dark jacket draped over the back of his chair and simultaneously picked up the receiver of the red encrypted desk phone at the edge of the desk.

"Prepare the car."

Secretary Shen Hai only said two words into the receiver, then slammed it back into the cradle with a "clack."

Ten minutes later.

A black Audi A6L official car drove out through the gate of the Municipal Committee compound, braving the torrential rain.

The car cabin was unlit, dim and cramped.

Secretary Shen Hai sat alone in the back row, the classified briefing in his hand already crumpled into deep, permanent creases.

Military industry, encrypted communications, high-precision CNC machine tools...

These terms, which usually only appeared in confidential internal reports, now flashed alternately across his bloodshot eyes.

If it weren't for the old man in the family personally delegating the authority...

...given his current administrative rank alone, he would have been completely unable to cover up what this underground laboratory was about to unleash.

"Drive faster."

Secretary Shen Hai stared at the rearview mirror of the front driver's seat, his voice low.

"Secretary, the rain is too heavy, and there is standing water on the road ahead leading back to the old residence..." The driver's voice was filled with nervousness.

"I said, drive faster."

The Audi A6L's engine emitted a low roar.

The tires rolled through the intersection, splashing up half-a-meter-high murky water.

The windshield wipers, set to high frequency, emitted a rapid rubber-rubbing sound.

The black car body plunged headlong into the depths of Shanghai's gloomy curtain of rain.

After lunch, the quiet courtyard of the Shen Family exuded a lazy tranquility.

The old man was reclining in the main hall, dozing off on that well-worn, glossy grandmaster's chair.

In the small stove nearby...

...a few pieces of high-quality silver frost charcoal were burning quietly, flickering with a faint, orange-red glow.

The entire room was warm and cozy.

It thoroughly isolated the biting chill of early spring outside, truly a comfortable refuge from the cold.

Suddenly, with a muffled "creak,"...

...the heavy solid wood door of the main hall was pushed open somewhat impatiently from the outside.

A gust of cold wind, carrying a bone-chilling cold, instantly surged in through the door.

It blew the fire in the stove into a violent flicker and also instantly woke the old man who had been sleeping soundly on the grandmaster's chair.

The old man frowned slightly, subconsciously pulling the coat draped over his shoulders closer, and looked up with a hint of displeasure.

He saw that the usually unflappable, dignified top leader of Shanghai...

...Secretary Shen Hai, was stepping across the threshold in a hurry.

He didn't even have time to brush the frost off his coat, his expression carrying a rare sense of urgency and agitation.

Watching his second son's hair-on-fire appearance...

...the old man's heart couldn't help but sink slightly, his first reaction being deep confusion and vigilance.

"What's the matter?

Why are you so flustered, have you forgotten how to knock on the door?"

The old man slowly sat up straight, his eyes, still sharp despite his old age, staring fixedly at Secretary Shen Hai as he demanded in a deep voice:

"Which short-sighted junior in the family has stirred up some massive trouble in the business world again?"

Clearly, ever since the Shen Family broke its rules and allowed some clan members to enter the business world...

...this old man, who had been in charge of the family for most of his life, had always had this worry hanging over his heart.

He was afraid that those arrogant and ignorant descendants would be blinded by the prosperity of the outside world...

...and would poke a hole in the capital market so big that the family wouldn't be able to cover it.

Facing the old man's stern questioning, Secretary Shen Hai did not answer immediately.

He strode to the Eight Immortals table in the center of the room.

He grabbed the purple clay teapot on the table, which had long since gone cold, and poured a full cup of cold tea.

He tilted his head back and downed it in one gulp with a "glug."

Using this bone-chilling coldness, he forcibly suppressed the violent agitation in his heart.

Putting down the teacup, Secretary Shen Hai pulled out a chair and sat down.

Looking solemnly at the old man, he spoke in a deep, measured voice: "Old man, this time, I'm afraid I have to ask you to make another exception!"

"I came here today to ask for your instruction.

Please allow me to come forward personally and have a direct contact with that kid, Shen Du!"

Upon hearing the words "Shen Du" and "contact," the old man's expression changed instantly.

Back then, in order to protect this lone sprout drifting outside, and also to avoid suspicion...

...he had personally set the ironclad rule of "the two parties shall not interfere with each other, and shall never acknowledge each other."

Secretary Shen Hai was, after all, the dignified top leader of Shanghai.

He was usually the most particular about rules and decorum, so why would he suddenly make such a taboo request for an exception today?