121: Chapter 121 Is the US backing down? Want to buy technology?

Chenxing Technology headquarters, top-floor office.

In front of the massive floor-to-ceiling window, Jiang Chen frowned deeply.

He wasn't holding a wine glass to look cool; instead, he was clutching the phone that had been frantically sounding alarms just a moment ago.

On the screen was a chilling thermal image of the Far Side of the Moon.

The once-dead black region now looked like a red-hot iron, glowing with an eerie, purplish-red light.

[System Warning: High-energy reaction continuing to escalate.]

[Estimated contact countdown: 48 hours.]

"Damn, it's coming this fast?"

Jiang Chen threw the phone back onto the desk and rubbed his throbbing temples.

Although he had put on a big show at the Nobel Prize ceremony and had indeed intimidated the bumpkins on Earth, he still had too few cards to play against the impending interstellar threat.

Although the luan niao starship had its main engine repaired, its weapon systems were still a pile of scrap metal.

Want to repair the main cannon? Need money.

Want to expand the defense network? Need money.

Want to upgrade the equipment for those alien laborers? It still f*cking needs money!

"Money..."

Jiang Chen sighed up at the ceiling, feeling like a beggar guarding a mountain of gold. "That money-grubbing system, it's asking for 100 billion energy points just to repair the main cannon this time! Even if I sold myself, it wouldn't be enough!"

Just as he was worrying about money.

"Bang!"

The office door was slammed open.

Supervisor Li Guoqiang's fat face was glistening with grease, and he was panting heavily, having even lost one of his shoes while running.

But he couldn't be bothered to pick up his shoe; instead, he rushed to the desk in a frenzy, bracing himself against it with both hands, too excited to speak clearly:

"Bo... Boss! It's here! It's here!"

Jiang Chen glanced at him and said irritably:

"What's here? The aliens have invaded? Then you should find a hole to bury yourself in first."

"Not aliens!"

Supervisor Li Guoqiang swallowed hard, his fat cheeks trembling:

"It's the God of Wealth! No, wait, it's a fat sheep! A super fat sheep!"

He took a deep breath, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously:

"People from the US are here!"

"This time it's not that Representative Smith who only knows how to flip tables. It's the second-in-command of their Department of Commerce, bringing an entire negotiation team!"

"They're waiting downstairs right now, acting so humble, just like grandsons!"

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow.

The US?

Weren't these guys clamoring at the United Nations just two days ago about sanctioning me? How are they here acting like grandsons today?

"Let them come up."

Jiang Chen sat up straight and adjusted his collar. "I want to see what kind of medicine they're selling in their gourd."

Five minutes later.

A group of foreigners in suits and leather shoes filed in, guided by Supervisor Li Guoqiang.

The white old man leading them had gray hair and shrewd eyes. As soon as he entered, he showed none of the arrogance of a great power representative; instead, he hurried forward and actively extended his hands.

"Oh! Respected Mr. Jiang!"

The old man's smile was as bright as a chrysanthemum, and his Chinese was even more fluent than Supervisor Li Guoqiang's:

"I am Mr. Anderson, representing the US Department of Commerce, and I extend my sincerest greetings to you! Please forgive the slight misunderstanding from before; it caused you some grievances!"

Jiang Chen didn't extend his hand.

He just leaned back in his chair, looking at this master of face-changing with a half-smile.

"Misunderstanding?"

Jiang Chen picked up the nail clippers on the desk and casually trimmed his nails. "I remember that your Representative Smith wanted to send my company back to the Stone Age."

The smile on Mr. Anderson's face stiffened for a moment but quickly returned to normal.

"Representative Smith? That idiot has already been removed from his post."

Mr. Anderson said righteously, "His remarks cannot represent our official stance. We have always believed that technology knows no borders and that cooperation is the only way to achieve win-win results!"

"Get straight to the point."

Jiang Chen blew off some nail clippings. "I'm very busy; I deal with hundreds of millions every minute."

Mr. Anderson stopped pretending.

He waved his hand, and the assistant behind him immediately handed over a thick document.

"Mr. Jiang, we have come with sincerity."

Mr. Anderson pushed the document in front of Jiang Chen, his eyes instantly becoming scorching hot:

"We wish to purchase the full production technology and patent authorization for the 'Photonic Chip'."

"To express our apologies, and to make up for the previous 'misunderstanding'..."

He held up one finger, his voice trembling slightly:

"We are willing to offer—100 billion US dollars!"

"And it's cash! A one-time payment! All sanctions will be lifted immediately!"

100 billion US dollars.

Hearing this number, Supervisor Li Guoqiang, standing nearby, almost lost his footing and had to grab the sofa to keep from collapsing.

How much money was that?

Converted to RMB, that was 700 billion!

Enough to buy half of Tianhai City!

Jiang Chen's hand also paused.

Looking at Mr. Anderson's eyes, filled with greed and desire, he understood everything instantly.

Buy technology?

That sounds nice.

These guys realized they couldn't take it by force, and sanctions didn't work, so they planned to throw money at it.

As long as they got the blueprints, with the US's industrial foundation, they were confident they could reverse-engineer it within half a year, kick Chenxing Technology out of the game, and regain hegemony.

Their plan was quite clever.

Unfortunately, they miscalculated one thing.

They thought the Photonic Chip was Jiang Chen's trump card.

But in Jiang Chen's eyes, it was nothing more than a... civilian-grade circuit board discarded from the luan niao starship's main control computer.

The real core technology had long since been iterated and updated.

"100 billion..."

Jiang Chen rubbed his chin, seemingly hesitating.

Seeing this, Mr. Anderson quickly upped the ante:

"If you feel it's not enough, we can negotiate further! All tariffs will be waived! We can even award you a medal of honor!"

Looking at his impatient appearance, an extremely devious idea suddenly popped into Jiang Chen's mind.

Since you want to buy...

Then I'll sell it to you.

However, which version I sell is up to me.

"Mr. Anderson."

Jiang Chen suddenly smiled, an incredibly radiant smile, and even personally poured the other party a cup of tea.

"Deal."

"But..."

He tapped on the table, a glint of craftiness flashing in his eyes:

"You know, this technology is too advanced."

"Some core processes involve deep applications of quantum mechanics, which are rather... metaphysical."

"I can sell you the blueprints, and I can even send people to provide guidance."

"But."

Jiang Chen leaned closer to Mr. Anderson, lowering his voice as if telling some unspeakable secret:

"There are some 'special processes' that you might not be able to learn."

"For example, when producing this chip, it requires a specific... ahem, Feng Shui layout."

Mr. Anderson was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed:

"No problem! Absolutely no problem!"

"We have the best scientists! Even if it's Feng Shui, we can calculate it using a supercomputer!"

As long as they could get the blueprints, everything else was a minor detail!

"Alright then."

Jiang Chen stood up, reached out, and shook hands firmly with Mr. Anderson.

"Happy to cooperate."

"Supervisor Li Guoqiang, see them out."

After seeing off that group of jubilant "suckers."

Supervisor Li Guoqiang ran back, looking at Jiang Chen with a pained expression:

"Boss! Are you really selling it?"

"That's our lifeline! If they learn it, won't we be finished?"

"Lifeline?"

Jiang Chen chuckled, walked to the window, and looked toward the direction of the West Suburb Base.

"Fatty."

"Remember one thing."

"In the face of a true technological generation gap, all imitation is just a shoddy buyer's review."

He took out his phone and dialed Academician Chen Shuyin's number, his tone carrying a wicked urge to swindle the US:

"Hello, Academician Chen Shuyin."

"Stop researching that crappy android; we've got work."

"Help me get a set of Photonic Chip blueprints."

"Yes, the one for the US."

"Remember, change the core logic inside for me."

"Make it... a castrated version."

"Preferably the kind that looks awesome but starts smoking the moment it runs—"

"An electronic scam version."