126: Chapter 126 Eagle: Jiang Chen, you have no sportsmanship! Refund!

Chenxing Technology Headquarters, Conference Room 1.

The heavy solid wood conference table was slammed with a "thud-thud" sound, making the teacups on the table dance.

A group of blond, blue-eyed, suited-and-tied American lawyers were currently devoid of any gentlemanly demeanor; their faces were red, necks thick with rage, ties crooked, and they were spraying spittle more evenly than a garden sprinkler.

"Fraud! This is blatant commercial fraud!"

James, the lead attorney, waved the still-warm Photonic Chip transfer contract in his hand, his roar almost lifting the roof off:

"We want a refund! One hundred billion US dollars! Not a single cent less! And we want compensation for emotional distress and equipment damage!"

"What you gave us isn't a technical blueprint at all! That's a terrorist's bomb manual! Our supercomputer burned down! Our laboratory exploded! Even our Secretary of Commerce is currently in the ICU fighting for his life!"

Facing this group of man-eating elite lawyers, Supervisor Li Guoqiang, sitting opposite them, appeared incredibly calm.

This middle-aged man, who was once timid and subservient in university but is now the logistics manager of Chenxing Technology, unhurriedly picked up his thermos, blew on the goji berries floating on top, and took a sip of hot tea.

"Mr. James, please mind your manners."

Supervisor Li Guoqiang put down his cup, adopting the posture he used back when he was a counselor scolding students who failed their courses. He adjusted his glasses, his eyes filled with the disdain of someone disappointed by incompetence:

"Refund? Are you joking with me?"

"You signed the contract voluntarily, you affixed your own signatures, and you were the ones crying and clamoring to force the money onto us. Now that you've bought something you don't know how to use, you're trying to shift the blame to the seller?"

"This is only because we're in the Dragon Kingdom. If it were back where you're from, this would be called 'porcelain bumping' (scamming), and you'd have a passing police officer empty their magazine on you."

"You—!"

James was trembling with rage, "What do you mean 'don't know how to use'? The moment that chip is powered on, it turns into an electric heater. This is a quality issue!"

"Not so, not so."

Supervisor Li Guoqiang shook his head, pulled a copy from his briefcase, flipped to page 250, and pointed at the disclaimer in the last line, which was smaller than an ant:

"Look closely."

"This technology transfer agreement only includes theoretical blueprints and basic process flows. Party B (that is, you) must possess the corresponding technical assimilation capabilities and supporting facilities."

"To put it in layman's terms..."

Supervisor Li Guoqiang leaned forward, revealing an incredibly punchable professional fake smile:

"It's just like me selling you a textbook on 'Advanced Mathematics.' The book is real, the formulas are correct, and the printing is exquisite."

"But after you buy it, if you're too slow-witted to understand it, or you fail the exam,"

"Do you really think you can run back to the bookstore, point at the owner's nose, and say: 'This book is fake! Refund!'?"

"You Americans are supposed to be a developed nation, so how come you lack even this basic ability to self-study? Is it because you only have 'happy education' and your foundations are weak?"

This logic of a "teacher lecturing a failing student" completely stunned James.

He opened his mouth, but for a moment, he couldn't find any words to retort.

It seemed... there was actually nothing wrong with the logic?

No!

This is a hundred-billion-dollar deal! Not buying a textbook!

"That's sophistry! That's hair-splitting!"

James was furious from embarrassment and stood up abruptly, "What does that NMSL mean? That's malicious code you left behind on purpose! This is intentional sabotage!"

"That's a technical lock."

Supervisor Li Guoqiang didn't change his expression, lying without even drafting it first, "That's a security mechanism set up to protect intellectual property rights. Who told you not to buy the follow-up services? Want a free ride? No way."

"Fine! Very fine!"

James packed up his documents, his eyes venomous, "Since Chenxing Technology doesn't want to keep things decent, then we'll help you be decent!"

"Wait to receive a subpoena from the International Court! Also, get ready to face the wrath of the global media!"

"Let's go!"

The American legal team stormed out, slamming the door.

Supervisor Li Guoqiang watched their retreating figures and spat disdainfully: "Tsk, who are you trying to scare? Do you think I was scared growing up?"

Half an hour later.

Just as James had threatened, the American public opinion machine started running at full power.

CNN, BBC, Reuters... the mainstream Western media, as if they had agreed upon it, began to smear Chenxing Technology and Jiang Chen through various channels, covering everything.

[Shocking Scandal! Chenxing Technology Suspected of Creating "Electronic Bombs" to Scam Allies!]

[Jiang Chen: A Commercial Fraudster Without a Bottom Line!]

[One Hundred Billion US Dollars for a Pile of Scrap Metal, Is the Dragon Kingdom's Tech Myth Shattered?]

There were even so-called "insiders" claiming that Jiang Chen's technology was all stolen, that he had no mass production capabilities at all, and that the so-called "Photonic Chip" was just a front to raise money.

The internet abroad was filled with abuse.

"Fraud! Give us back our money!"

"I knew the Dragon Kingdom people couldn't possibly make that kind of chip, it turns out it was fake!"

"Boycott Chenxing! Boycott Made in the Dragon Kingdom!"

This evil wind even blew into the country, and some netizens unaware of the truth began to waver; after all, the amount of one hundred billion US dollars was simply too large, large enough to make people feel that it really did look like a "pig-butchering scam."

West Suburb Base, Core Control Room.

On the huge holographic screen, those unsightly news headlines were scrolling by.

Supervisor Li Guoqiang stood beside Jiang Chen, wiping sweat from his forehead. The toughness he had displayed in the conference room was gone, replaced by a look of anxiety:

"Boss, these foreign devils are playing dirty!"

"They're trying to ruin our reputation! Now many partners are calling to ask about the situation, and some even want to cancel their orders."

"Should we issue a statement? Or take out one of those chips that actually works and demonstrate it?"

Jiang Chen was sitting on an ergonomic chair, holding a strangely shaped controller that looked like a crystal skull, performing the final adjustments.

Hearing Supervisor Li Guoqiang's words, he didn't even lift his head, just smiled faintly.

"Statement? What statement should I issue?"

Jiang Chen's fingers tapped lightly on the controller, and outside the huge floor-to-ceiling windows in front of him, deep within the hollowed-out mountain, a dull mechanical roar could be vaguely heard.

"They say I'm a fraud, and I have to prove I'm not?"

"That would be beneath me."

"But..." Supervisor Li Guoqiang stomped his feet in anxiety, "The public opinion pressure is too great! This will affect the sales of our follow-up products!"

"Affect? I think it's more of an assist."

Jiang Chen finally turned around and tossed the controller in his hand onto the table.

In his eyes, there flickered a composure of someone planning a strategy, and a hint of excitement about the curtain being about to rise.

"Fatty, you have to remember."

"In this era where traffic is king, bad publicity is still publicity."

"The fiercer they curse now, and the bigger the scene they make, the more the world's attention will focus on us."

"This is simply free global advertising space!"

Jiang Chen stood up and walked to the window.

The afterglow of the sunset spilled onto that huge mountain entrance covered by camouflage netting. There, a giant ship named "luan bird" had completed its final charging and was ready to go.

"It just so happens that our new product... that is, the 'Nantianmen Project,' still needs a bit of heat to warm up."

"Since the US is being so cooperative and has set up the stage, if I don't go up and perform a play, wouldn't I be doing a disservice to their hundred-billion-dollar 'sponsorship fee'?"

He took out his phone and checked the time.

"Notify the PR department, don't control the comments, let them make a scene."

"And send a reply back to the US side."

Jiang Chen's lips curled into a cold arc:

"Just say... regarding their slander, I am personally very angry."

"To prove my innocence, and also to demonstrate the true strength of Chenxing Technology."

"Tonight at eight o'clock."

"I will, in a global live broadcast, personally face them—"

"In a showdown."