413: Chapter 413 New Moves

After all, Transsion had a thug behind it too, and a veteran thug at least 5,000 years old.

If both sides adamantly refused to settle and instead spent their time and energy on "lawsuits," then the patent troll's "business model" would become unsustainable.

As for China, the most they would lose was a bit of the United States market, but the thugs would stand to lose much more.

Things like agricultural products—soybeans, fruit, and the like—would no longer be exportable.

Meanwhile, Shen Fei also posted on Weibo: "It's the middle of the night, can't a guy get a good night's sleep?"

"Mr. Shen, this isn't disturbing your sleep; this is clearly giving you free advertising."

"They spent so much money, can't you be a little understanding?"

"Exactly! Sales of the transsion s5 in the United States have already started to take off; just let them keep at it a little longer."

The next morning, Mr. Ren called.

"Mr. Shen, are you up yet?"

Facing the United States' chain of sanctions, Mr. Ren on the other end of the line showed no panic; on the contrary, one could hear a hint of joy in his voice.

This was the biggest award the United States had ever bestowed upon Huawei, and it was the highest honor a Chinese tech company could receive.

Previously, as a partner, Huawei could only watch Transsion win awards.

And they had won it three times in a row; this time, they had finally won it together.

That felt good!

"Mr. Ren, the situation is critical, and you're still..."

Before Shen Fei could finish, Mr. Ren on the other end burst into laughter.

"Mr. Shen, what kind of emergency is this? Originally, with just your company on the list, it was already a big deal. Now that both of our companies are on it, it's not us who should be worried, but those old thugs."

On the other end of the line, the corners of Shen Fei's mouth curled up slightly. This was true; after all, there was really no need to panic about this.

"I'm genuinely happy!" Mr. Ren's voice didn't sound like he was feigning open-mindedness; he was truly over-excited.

"This really is a badge of honor. It shows that our learning ability is quite good. With Mr. Shen's help, we've also earned Midea certification.

To be honest, before, they only targeted you, and we weren't involved, which left me feeling a bit disappointed. Now it's great; it's finally our turn.

Although there is still a certain gap between us and Transsion, in the eyes of the enemy, we are treated the same."

Shen Fei couldn't help but laugh out loud.

United States certification—he recalled some comments from netizens.

In the eyes of some, sanctions were because the other party had committed a mistake, but in the eyes of others, it was because they had gained recognition.

This was the same view held by Transsion.

Being targeted meant the other party recognized your strength, and it also meant you had grown to the point where they felt they had to use special measures to suppress you.

"Mr. Ren, this is your first time; how do you plan to resolve it?"

"The legal team is already preparing the acceptance materials. But to be honest, this investigation won't have much impact on us. At most, it will limit some mobile phone exports, but our agents have already had us urgently ship a batch."

"We agreed to let them cover all shipping costs. As for the rest, let them investigate however they want."

Shen Fei checked his phone. Just a moment ago, Head of Logistics Wang Hua had sent him a message: the other side was requesting to import 7 million units of the transsion s5 series and 6 million units of Xingyun, fulfilling three months' worth of export volume in one go.

This really wasn't a bad thing.

"By the way, Mr. Shen, if you have time, come to Shenzhen. I'll treat you to tea. The one I mentioned to you last time, this year's new Pu'er, just arrived from Yunnan."

"I definitely will."

After hanging up the phone, Shen Fei put it down. He was considering whether to bring out the final gas engine.

However, not long after, the Department of Commerce's press conference was officially held.

When spokesperson Shen Danyang walked onto the stage with a stern expression, all the reporters in the audience gulped.

This time, with the United States suddenly making a move, China would definitely launch a reciprocal counterattack. The only question was whether there was still room for negotiation. They were all a bit expectant, but regardless of the outcome, it was going to be major news.

After the cameras filmed for a while, Shen Danyang took out a speech draft from the side. It was called a speech draft, but it looked more like a notice.

"The United States International Trade Commission, disregarding warnings from the Chinese side, has initiated a 377 investigation into Chinese companies Transsion Technology and Huawei. This is yet another piece of evidence of the unilateral abuse of power by United States tech companies."

"We firmly oppose this. At the same time, in accordance with relevant Chinese laws, the Department of Commerce has decided to initiate an anti-monopoly investigation into Apple Inc. and other enterprises in China."

The sound of clattering keyboards suddenly stopped.

They looked at the big screen in disbelief.

Besides Apple and Qualcomm, there were also Google, Microsoft, and many other United States companies on it.

But the reporters in the audience were very clear that even though Apple and Qualcomm were listed at the start, these two should be fine.

Because they had detached themselves from the situation at the very first opportunity.

Therefore, the real target this time should be Google and Microsoft.

But considering that Transsion has Taishan System, the scope could be narrowed down to the Windows operating system.

Microsoft allowed pirated Windows systems to run rampant in China. While this seemed like a very foolish business move, it was actually a very clever strategy.

Because free Windows had forced all paid operating systems in China out of business.

This time, if...

"May I ask, spokesperson, is this targeting Google?"

"May I ask, spokesperson, is this targeting the monopoly status of the Windows operating system in China?"

"How large of a fine will China impose on Microsoft?"

Shen Danyang ignored them and slowly began reading the relevant content.

"This is a formal anti-monopoly investigation, including but not limited to whether the pricing strategies of the relevant companies in China constitute monopoly pricing."

"And whether the exclusive terms imposed on Chinese suppliers constitute an abuse of market dominance."

"Specific details are not convenient to disclose; the investigation will proceed in accordance with laws and regulations."

It was still a short statement, but full of details. The reporters in the audience were already pressing their keyboards so fast they were almost smoking.

Just when they thought it was still the same two-pronged approach of tech and agricultural products, Shen Danyang gently turned a page of the report and stated a result that frightened them even more.

"In accordance with relevant export control laws, the Department of Commerce has decided to implement further controls on system exports."

"Effective immediately, rare earth export quotas will be reduced by 40% from the current level. Specific implementation details will be announced separately by the relevant departments."

The sound below the stage was no longer that of keyboards, but the gasp of shocked reporters.

China is the world's largest producer of rare earths, accounting for over 90% of global production. This was the true monopoly!

Were they really going to play this card now?

Were they really about to hit the other side with something heavy?