890: After Chapter 885, we're all family.

And the starting point for all of this was on this tense, gunpowder-filled night.

The roar of engines came from a distance, not the sound of some dilapidated pickup truck, but a uniform convoy.

Several bulletproof SUVs bearing diplomatic plates tore through the night, speeding toward his location.

That splash of bright red on the lead vehicle was more dazzling than any jewel under the dim streetlights.

Shen Yan extinguished his cigarette butt, picked up the case, and walked toward the light.

The Q Country capital airport that night was destined to be recorded in certain top-secret files.

Without security checks or customs inspections, Shen Yan, carrying the silver briefcase, boarded a gulfstream g650 that was already waiting at the end of the runway.

The aircraft's vertical stabilizer bore no airline livery, only an inconspicuous red five-pointed star logo.

The moment the cabin door closed, the sense of crisis—that feeling of always having one's head targeted by a sniper scope—finally dissipated completely.

Ten hours later, the plane landed at a military airport on the outskirts of the capital.

He was greeted not by flowers and a red carpet, but by a Hongqi sedan with white license plates and several white-haired elders dressed in Zhongshan suits.

The handover process was so simple it was almost perfunctory. Shen Yan handed over the briefcase, the recipient took it, and rendered a salute that was not standard but extremely solemn.

There were no superfluous pleasantries. One of the elders patted Shen Yan's shoulder and said only one sentence.

"The country will not forget. From now on, Shenyan Group is family."

The weight of those words was heavier than the ten-digit deposit in the Switzerland Bank.

That evening, the seven o'clock broadcast of "Xinwen Lianbo" featured a brief news item as the fourth segment.

"Relevant departments in our country have successfully broken through the high-frequency deep-sea communication technology barrier. Relevant patriotic enterprises have made significant contributions and are hereby commended."

It didn't even mention Shen Yan's name, nor the full name of Shenlan Group.

But those who operated in this circle had a sixth sense more acute than sharks in the deep sea.

The next day when the A-share market opened, the stock code for Shenlan Group seemed to have been injected with adrenaline.

It hit the daily upper limit immediately upon opening.

It wasn't a normal limit-up; it was a 'one-word board' where buy orders piled up like mountains and sell orders were scarce.

For seven consecutive trading days, Shenlan Group's market value directly doubled, leaping from the 'tens of billions club' to become the leader in the technology sector.

Shen Yan, once viewed by the capital market as a 'nouveau riche' and a 'speculator,' instantly became the darling of every investor overnight.

It wasn't because he had money, but because he now possessed that invisible, intangible 'golden body' that could shelter him from wind and rain.

Returning to the Shenzhen headquarters, Shen Yan didn't even have time to adjust to the time difference.

The chairman's office on the top floor of the Shenyan Building was currently as bustling as a marketplace.

Chen Guangke had massive dark circles under his eyes, his tie askew down to the back of his neck, juggling three phones to answer calls.

"Mr. Wang, it's not that I'm being difficult, but Chairman Shen's schedule is already booked until next month."

"Dinner? What dinner! Our boss doesn't even have time to eat a boxed lunch!"

"What? You're willing to invest with a 3% premium? Old Zhang, this isn't about money. People lining up to give us money now could stretch from here to France."

Shen Yan sat behind the large rosewood desk, rubbing his throbbing temples.

Wu Ya, wearing her signature ten-centimeter heels, walked in carrying a thick stack of documents.

Her face bore exquisite makeup, concealing the fatigue from working three straight days, but her eyes held a hint of excitement.

"Boss, this is already the third batch of screened lists."

Wu Ya spread the documents out, dividing them into three piles according to priority.

"This pile on the left is unavoidable. This middle pile is negotiable. This pile on the right is purely for riding the hype."

Shen Yan glanced at the top few names in the pile on the left.

Huaxing Technology, a state-owned telecommunications giant.

Tianwang Heavy Industry, a hardware behemoth with military background.

There were even two established financial groups from Europe.

"See the people from Huaxing first."

Shen Yan picked up the black coffee that had long gone cold and downed a gulp.

"They want the algorithm authorization from Professor Mo to optimize the next generation of domestic baseband chips."

Half an hour later, Li Jianguo, vice president of Huaxing Technology, was seated opposite Shen Yan.

If this were half a month ago, someone of Li Jianguo's stature would have been impossible for Shen Yan to even secure a meeting with.

But now, this usually stern Mr. Li only had half his backside touching the sofa.

"Chairman Shen, let's not beat around the bush."

Li Jianguo rubbed his hands, his tone carrying a degree of urgency.

"The higher-ups gave me a hint, saying you obtained the source code for that 'Deep Sea Siren'?"

Shen Yan said nothing, merely taking a cigar from the drawer, snipping the cap, and slowly toasting it.

This silence caused sweat to break out on Li Jianguo's forehead.

"We don't need the entire source code; just the error correction algorithm module."

Li Jianguo gritted his teeth and laid out his bottom line.

"Huaxing is willing to offer shared rights to the next-generation 5G patent pool, plus a twenty billion RMB R&D investment, in exchange for one year of exclusive usage rights for this module."

Shen Yan lit the cigar, took a deep drag, and exhaled a plume of bluish-white smoke.

"Mr. Li, your vision is too narrow."

Shen Yan rested the cigar on the ashtray and tapped the table lightly with his fingers.

"I won't give exclusive usage rights, but I can give you permanent authorization."

Li Jianguo suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"The condition is only one."

Shen Yan leaned forward, instantly maximizing the sense of pressure.

"Shenyan Group wants one of Huaxing's semiconductor fabrication lines for 7-nanometer production, with full capacity dedicated to me."

Li Jianguo gasped audibly.

Chip capacity was more precious than gold right now; a mature 7-nanometer line was essentially a printing press.

"Chairman Shen, this... I can't make that decision."

"You can call your chairman right now."

Shen Yan pointed to the desk phone.

"Tell him Professor Mo Weiming's new architecture requires tape-out. If Huaxing won't take it, I'll go to TSMC."

"Don't! Absolutely don't!"

Li Jianguo panicked. If the higher-ups found out that such strategic-level technology fell into outsiders' hands, his position as vice president would be over.

Five minutes later, Li Jianguo hung up the phone, and his gaze toward Shen Yan held a trace of reverence.

"The chairman agreed. The contract will be sent over immediately."

After seeing Li Jianguo out, Shen Yan didn't even have time to drink water before Wu Ya led in two more people.

This time, they were two foreigners with blonde hair and blue eyes.

It was Smith, the Greater China President of "titan Data," Europe's largest server supplier.

Shen Yan had dealt with this guy before; he was so arrogant his nostrils pointed to the sky and he once declared that small companies like Shenlan Group didn't even qualify to be their agents.

"Mr. Shen, long time no see."