183: Chapter 183 A Failed Attempt

"Oh my god, those old geezers are quite smart, knowing they need to confirm if the funds for their delivery have arrived."

Chen Guangke said while casually picking up the teacup on the table and taking two big gulps.

Seeing him look as parched as a dried persimmon, Shen Yan frowned and made a 'tsk' sound.

"If you need water, can't you go outside and get some bottled water? Why drink herbal tea? Aren't you afraid of getting a stomach ache!"

Chen Guangke waved his hand dismissively.

"A real man isn't afraid of a stomach ache."

As he spoke, he seemed to suddenly remember something and slapped his forehead hard.

"Right, I have something I need to discuss with you."

Shen Yan nodded and said, "Go ahead."

Chen Guangke took out his phone, opened a document, and then handed the phone to Shen Yan.

"Take a look at this Research Team."

Upon hearing this, Shen Yan immediately took the phone and carefully reviewed the document.

Since there wasn't much information, he finished reading it in just a few minutes.

After reading, he handed the phone back to Chen Guangke.

"They look pretty good. Their experience and resume are solid, and their technical skills are guaranteed. Where did you find them?"

Chen Guangke proudly raised his head and said, "A friend of a friend of a friend of a friend introduced them!"

A friend of a friend of a friend of a friend?

That connection was comparable to a distant relative of a distant relative!

While secretly admiring Chen Guangke's capability, Shen Yan opened his mouth and asked, "So, do they currently have an affiliated organization? Did you get their contact information? Have you contacted them yet?"

Too many questions.

Chen Guangke couldn't answer them all at once.

He raised his hand and made a pausing gesture, saying, "Stop, stop, stop. You're asking so many questions, I don't even know which one to answer first."

"Ask them one by one, and I'll answer them one by one."

Shen Yan blinked, nodded, and asked, "Actually, the other questions aren't important. The most crucial question is whether this Research Team currently has an affiliated organization."

"If they don't, then we need to strike first. Regardless of the price they demand, we must negotiate with them first."

Chen Guangke sighed and replied, "Alas, this is why I wanted to discuss it with you. Here's the situation: when I was contacting this Research Team, I discovered they are already in talks for cooperation with another company."

Shen Yan raised his eyebrows, somewhat surprised.

"Already talking cooperation with a company? Which one?"

Chen Guangke pursed his lips and replied, "Chen Ling's company."

At these words.

The atmosphere in the office instantly dropped several degrees.

Shen Yan hadn't expected Chen Ling to also be working on an artificial intelligence project.

This was far beyond his expectations.

After pondering for a few minutes, he asked Chen Guangke, "So, have they signed a contract yet?"

Chen Guangke shook his head.

"As far as I know, they haven't signed a contract yet, but judging by their progress, it's likely a done deal."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Yan slammed the table and declared, "As long as they haven't signed the contract, we still have a chance."

"Tomorrow... no, tonight you go contact that Research Team and have them schedule a time to meet and have dinner."

Chen Guangke frowned and asked, "What if, after meeting and having dinner, they still refuse to switch their cooperation to us?"

Shen Yan replied with a wry smile, "Then what else can we do? Of course, we keep looking!"

Hearing this, Chen Guangke relaxed his brow, feeling that what Shen Yan said made sense.

Roads are fixed, but people are flexible; people can't possibly be trapped to death by a road, right?

Thinking this, he got up and went to contact the Research Team.

...

Noon the next day, at the restaurant.

"Sorry to keep you gentlemen waiting for so long."

Just as Shen Yan and Chen Guangke finished ordering, they saw two people dressed in black walk in from outside the private room.

The two people who arrived were the leaders of the Research Team: one male and one female. The man was named Cheng He, and the woman was Yu Miaomiao.

Standing up, Shen Yan stepped forward and proactively extended his hand to the two.

"Not at all, we just arrived too. Come, please have a seat."

The two didn't stand on ceremony and immediately took their seats.

As soon as they sat down, they said to Shen Yan, "We are truly sorry, Mr. Shen. It wasn't intentional that we were late; we were delayed by an urgent matter we suddenly had on hand, which caused us to be late. We hope you won't take offense."

Oh! They are quite polite. It seems this half hour of waiting wasn't in vain.

Shen Yan thought to himself while smiling at them, "It's fine, don't worry about it."

Seeing that he was genuinely not angry, Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's great that you aren't angry. Boss Chen told us you had something you wanted to discuss with us?"

Shen Yan turned to glance at Chen Guangke and then replied, "That's right, I do have something to discuss with you. This matter concerns cooperation."

Cheng He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Cooperation?"

Shen Yan nodded.

"Exactly, cooperation. Here's the situation: our company is recently planning to develop a new project, which is an artificial intelligence project. Since we lack some experience on our side, we are hoping to have a professional Research Team to assist us."

As his words fell.

Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao exchanged glances.

Immediately after, they smiled and politely declined Shen Yan.

"We are truly sorry, Mr. Shen. We have already agreed with another company to go work with them, so..."

Shen Yan already knew about this matter, so he didn't show any surprise.

"From what you're saying, you haven't signed the contract with that company yet?"

Hearing Shen Yan's question, Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao paused for a moment.

Then, they replied, "We haven't signed yet, but this matter is practically settled. We are sorry, Mr. Shen, but we genuinely might not be able to reach a cooperation agreement with you."

Shen Yan nodded and then asked, "May I ask how long you have been talking with that company?"

Although Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao didn't know why Shen Yan was asking this, they still answered Shen Yan's question very honestly.

"Uh... let me think. It's been less than a month, roughly. What's wrong?"

Shen Yan smiled and didn't answer the question.

He passed them the menu and directly skipped the topic.

"We just ordered a few dishes, not many. They might not be enough. Please take a look and see if there is anything you'd like to eat, and we can order a bit more."

Seeing that he skipped the topic.

Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao also didn't press the issue further, instead taking the menu to order food.

The meal didn't last long, probably only about half an hour.

After eating, Cheng He and Yu Miaomiao said they had matters requiring them to leave.

Seeing this, Shen Yan didn't force them to stay and let them go immediately.