Chapter 180 Want to steal my skills? Get past this broom first.

Director Li's face turned pale, cold sweat pouring down.

Although he was a bureaucrat and wanted political achievements, he was first and foremost a Chinese, a man from Shandong Province.

The events of the past few days replayed in his mind—Nakamura's greedy gaze, those so-called rigorous actions, and the way he himself had foolishly stood by, handing over cigarettes and pouring water...

Shame and lingering fear eventually transformed into overwhelming rage.

"I knew it! I knew it! Why else would these bastards keep staring at a mud pit!"

"Smack!"

A sharp sound rang out!

Director Li slapped his own face hard!

The blow was incredibly heavy, and half his face visibly swelled up instantly.

"I'm such a damn idiot!"

"I almost became a traitor to my country!"

Director Li's eyes were bloodshot.

"Factory Director Chen, Manager Lin, this whole thing was my mistake!"

"Manager Lin, please give me some advice, what should I do now?"

Lin Xi looked around. "This isn't the place to talk. Let's go to the entrance."

...

On the concrete steps at the entrance of the fishing gear factory workshop, two points of light flickered in the dark.

"Manager Lin, my heart... is still pounding."

Director Li took a hard drag of his cigarette.

"Can the craft our ancestors left behind really be snatched away by them just like that?"

"Director, you're overthinking it."

Lin Xi smiled and pointed towards the distant coastline.

"When Moutai liquor goes to France, what you brew is just vinegar."

"If rice paper leaves the water of Jing County, it's just scrap paper."

"The things our ancestors left behind—they can't master them once they leave this soil."

"However..." Lin Xi changed the subject. "In case they really do steal the process and register a patent, it would be a hassle."

Director Li was stunned for a moment, and the heavy stone in his heart loosened slightly for some reason.

"Director Li, here's what we'll do." Lin Xi changed his tone, a hint of playfulness creeping in. "For the rest of the tour, we'll align with international standards."

"Align with international standards?" Director Li didn't understand.

"What are foreigners most particular about?"

"Compliance and the protection of intellectual property rights."

Lin Xi patted Director Li on the shoulder. "Tomorrow, just throw these words right in his face."

"We aren't just going to prevent them from stealing."

"We have to do it with reason and evidence, so he can't find any fault with it."

Lin Xi leaned in closer and whispered a few things. "Red zones and green zones... sample transfer forms... toxic waste management..."

The stream chat was flying by: 【Hahahaha! Learned it! This is called using magic to defeat magic! Walk the foreigner's path so the foreigner has nowhere to walk!】

【Director Li is undergoing a system upgrade... Current version: Honest-and-Simple V1.0 → Updating to: Scheming Goalkeeper V2.0... Update progress 99%!】

【I read in books before that in the 80s we were too honest and always got scammed by foreigners using 'international conventions,' giving away core technology like trash. The Streamer's reverse output of commercial compliance is just incredibly satisfying!】

【I can't wait to see Nakamura's green face tomorrow. This isn't self-defense; it's clearly a 'Guide to Legally Pissing People Off'!】

【That reason about toxic waste management is absolutely brilliant! It's so mean, but I love it! Next time someone comes asking for our core data, I'm going to use that to shut them down!】

Director Li listened, dumbfounded. He repeated these new terms he had never heard before over and over in his mouth. His originally confused gaze slowly began to brighten.

...

The next morning. Sunlight pierced through the thin mist, spilling onto the mottled blue brick walls of the Haiwei City Tin Inlay Factory.

Two black Hongqi sedans slowly pulled up to the entrance.

Nakamura wore a crisp grey suit, his hair combed slick and shiny. On his face hung that standard professional fake smile, carrying three parts arrogance and seven parts hypocrisy.

Although he had been shut out at the fishing gear factory, he was certain that was just an accident. A place like the Tin Inlay Factory, still using dirt furnaces and too poor to even pay wages, faced with an investor holding US dollars—wouldn't they have to open their doors wide and hand over their ancestral secret recipes on a silver platter?

"Mr. Nakamura, this way please." Director Li was waiting at the entrance early, his smile still warm. The face he had slapped swollen yesterday still looked a bit uneven.

Nakamura nodded reservedly and raised his leg, intending to walk toward the melting workshop in the backyard. That was the core area, the place where the master craftsmen adjusted the tin alloy ratios.

"Hey, Mr. Nakamura, wait, wait." Director Li chuckled and stepped across, blocking Nakamura's path.

Nakamura was stunned and pointed inside. "I want to see the workers' environment. This is a necessary step in the investment evaluation process."

"Understood, completely understood." Director Li pointed to a brand-new wooden sign on the wall nearby. The paint on the sign hadn't even dried yet, with white characters on a red background reading: 【Production Area: No Entry Without Authorization】.

"What is this?" Nakamura frowned.

"This is the international management we've implemented at our factory." Director Li trotted out the script Lin Xi had taught him yesterday. "In order to protect undisclosed process technology."

"The core production area is designated as a red zone; unauthorized personnel are not permitted to enter."

"This is to protect your future investment interests, wouldn't you agree?"

Nakamura's mouth twitched. What the hell kind of red zone! When he came to scout the place yesterday, the door was wide open, and even stray dogs could wander in for a stroll!

"I'll just take two photos for promotional use." Nakamura gave a look to the photographer behind him. The photographer had just raised the camera, but hadn't even removed the lens cap yet. Director Li's face leaned in front of the lens again, blocking it completely.

"That won't do." Director Li looked serious. "The intense light from the flash will affect the alloy crystallization process inside the melting furnace, causing microscopic structural mutations."

"This is science, rigorous science!"

Science my foot! Since when is tin smelting afraid of camera flashes? Do you think you're developing film?!

Nakamura took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to hit someone. "Fine, then we'll just take a look at the perimeter, that's okay, right?"

The group went around to the rough processing workshop. At the workbench, an old worker was cutting tin blocks. Silvery-white metal shavings splashed down onto the floor.

Nakamura's eyes lit up. This was what he wanted! As long as he got some waste material back for spectral analysis to reverse-engineer the composition ratios, the secret of Haiwei Tin Inlay would crumble without a fight!

He feigned nonchalance as he walked over and picked up a scrap piece that had just been cut off. "Tsk tsk, this craftsmanship is truly exquisite. I'd like to take a piece of waste as a souv..."

"Clatter—" A crisp sound rang out.

A middle-aged worker wearing a tattered cotton jacket, who looked simple and honest, was standing nearby. He was wielding a large broom. With lightning speed, he swept the waste material next to Nakamura into a tin dustpan with one stroke.

"Click." The worker skillfully closed the lid. He even pulled out a large padlock and locked it on the spot.

Nakamura's hand froze in mid-air.

"What is this for!" The accompanying interpreter was furious.

Director Li hurried forward. With a look of panic, he pulled Nakamura's hand back and pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, preparing to wipe his hand.

"Oh, Mr. Nakamura, you mustn't do that!"

"This tin alloy waste contains heavy metal lead; it's highly toxic!"

"Direct skin contact will make your hands rot!"

"For the health of our esteemed guest, we strictly implement zero-contact management for toxic waste."

Nakamura looked at his clean palm. Then he looked at the locked dustpan. Believe you, my foot! If tin inlay contained highly toxic lead, were the tin pots you've been eating with for hundreds of years used for suicide?

But he couldn't refute it. They were using the excuse of "caring for your health" to shut him up. If he insisted on taking it, he would be the one acting ungratefully.

Three times he had hit a wall. Nakamura's patience finally ran out. Returning to the factory director's office, before he had even sat down, Nakamura spoke with a cold face.

"Director Li, is this the sincerity of Haiwei City?"