152: Chapter 152 Charity Gala (Part 2): The Victory of Strategic Vision

Chen Muyang's voice in the deathly silent banquet hall was like a pebble thrown into a deep pool; it didn't stir up any waves, creating only silent ripples that spread through everyone's hearts.

"Donate a technology?"

A scoff broke the frozen atmosphere.

Chen Zihao looked as if he had just heard the funniest joke of the century. He picked up the microphone on stage again, his face filled with contempt that was almost overflowing.

"An invisible, intangible technology?" He tapped the scroll of the "spring mountain with companion birds" in his hand with the base of the microphone, creating a dull thud. "What Beijing Chen Family is donating is a national treasure valued at thirty million—it's real money!"

He cast his gaze toward Chen Muyang and deliberately raised his voice: "How much is that USB drive of yours worth? Five hundred or eight hundred? Do you want me to round it up for you?"

"Hahaha..."

The crowd below the stage finally snapped out of their shock, erupting into a burst of suppressed laughter. Indeed, the scene just now was astonishing, but when it came down to it, it was just data. Charity donations are about tangible assets, about value that can be recorded in the books.

How do you value this USB drive? How do you account for it? This was more like a flashy, insubstantial performance.

Chen Muyang turned a deaf ear to those grating laughs. He walked off the stage without looking at anyone, went straight back to his father's side, and stood quietly, as if the person who had just overturned everyone's perception wasn't him.

From beginning to end, Chen Fan had been slowly and methodically wiping his fingers with a napkin, as if the showdown between the thirty-million-worth treasure and a USB drive was less important than the grease on his fingertips.

Only then did he slowly stand up.

Chen Tianyou seized this opportunity; he wanted to completely turn the situation around.

"Mr. Chen." He spoke in a deep voice, his tone carrying the dignity of an elder and an unassailable sense of propriety. "Charity is not a magic show. An unvaluable technology sounds more like a bounced check. Every donation tonight is documented and verified. Your playing of such tricks is, I fear, not in accordance with the rules."

His words were highly inflammatory and immediately received a response.

"The head of the Chen family is right! There must be an explanation!"

"Exactly, how is the value calculated? You can't just say you donated it and be done."

"Grandstanding!"

Questions arose from all sides, and the clamor that had just been suppressed by the technological marvel swung back toward Beijing Chen Family. The old order and rules seemed to have gained the upper hand once again.

Chen Fan ignored these discordant noises.

His gaze calmly swept over faces that were either questioning or mocking, finally landing on an inconspicuous table on one side of the banquet hall.

Sitting there was a middle-aged man with an elegant demeanor and gold-rimmed glasses. From the moment the holographic projection appeared, he had maintained a forward-leaning posture, his eyes filled with undisguisable fervor and contemplation.

"Minister Wang."

Chen Fan's voice was not loud, but it carried a peculiar penetrative power, clearly reaching everyone's ears.

"You are in charge of educational technology. In your professional opinion, if the technology just demonstrated were applied to the field of education, what would its value be?"

The middle-aged man who was named, Deputy Minister Wang of the Imperial Capital's Education and Technology Department, was stunned at first. Then, almost subconsciously, he stood up abruptly; because his movement was too fast, the chair behind him wobbled.

He adjusted his glasses, the expression on his face one of excitement and shock that even an ordinary person could understand.

"Mr. Chen!" Minister Wang's voice rose slightly due to excitement, even trembling a little. "If... if this technology is truly as you demonstrated, its value to education... is immeasurable by money!"

The entire room went quiet instantly.

Minister Wang didn't stop; he took two steps forward, looking at Chen Fan with burning eyes, as if declaring it to the whole room.

"It can turn boring, flat knowledge into 3D models that students can touch with their own hands and observe with their own eyes! In history class, students can place themselves on an ancient battlefield; in biology class, they can dissect a virtual human body! It is enough to completely change the learning methods of future generations in China!"

He took a deep breath and used all his strength to say the last few words.

"It is a true... treasure of the nation!"

These four words hit like four heavy hammers, striking hard at everyone's heart.

The mockery and suspicion on the guests' faces froze instantly. They weren't fools; they knew perfectly well how much weight Minister Wang's identity and his evaluation carried.

The complexions of Chen Tianyou and his son turned deathly pale at this moment.

They realized that things were spiraling wildly out of control in a direction they could neither understand nor influence.

Only then did Chen Fan formally speak.

His gaze swept across the room, finally landing on Chen Tianyou's stiff face, his voice steady and powerful.

"Therefore, Huihuang Group has decided to donate all application patents for this 'Glasses-free 3D Holographic Projection Technology' in the field of education to the nation, free of charge and permanently."

The room was dead silent.

Chen Fan paused, as if giving everyone time to digest, then added a sentence.

"As for the value, our Legal Department has made a preliminary assessment of its commercial value in the global education market."

He held up one finger.

"Roughly, about ten billion or so."

Ten billion.

This number, like a silent nuclear bomb, detonated in the center of the banquet hall.

Everyone was so shocked by this terrifying number that they lost the ability to think; their minds went blank.

The thirty-million-worth "spring mountain with companion birds", the national treasure that Chen Zihao held in the palm of his hand and that the beijing elite circle revered as "foundation", looked like a massive joke in front of "ten billion" and "treasure of the nation".

A childish, pathetic, and incredibly ironic joke.

"Mr. Chen!" Minister Wang could no longer maintain his composure. He walked quickly to Chen Fan, grasped his hands tightly, and was incoherent with excitement. "Your breadth of mind and vision... I... I represent the nation, representing millions of children, thank you!"

The nature of the banquet was completely overturned at this moment.

This was no longer a social gathering for the beijing elite circle, but a coronation ceremony for Chen Fan alone.

The powerful figures who had previously surrounded Chen Tianyou like stars around the moon were now holding their wine glasses, looking for any opportunity to step forward and chat with Chen Fan. Gold-stamped business cards were respectfully handed over, their faces filled with humble and eager smiles.

Beside the main table, Chen Tianyou and his son, Chen Zihao, were completely isolated.

They stood there like two clowns abandoned by the torrent of the times, and the crowd around them deliberately steered clear of them.

Eventually, amidst the complex gazes of the guests—some sympathetic, some disdainful, some indifferent—Chen Tianyou dragged his devastated son away, sneaking out early through the side door.

Chen Fan not only won face, but with his unrivaled vision, he also won the awe of the entire upper circle of the Imperial Capital.

From this night on, the sky of the Imperial Capital is going to change its color.