98: Chapter 98 The tech world is in an uproar!

There were no official documents, no red-headed approvals. There were only a series of calls made from encrypted dedicated lines, landing precisely on the desks of the helmsmen of every relevant organization and major core enterprise.

Yet, these very calls, in just half an hour, caused the nerves of the entire Xia technology industry to collectively stretch to their limit.

The first to receive the calls were the heads of several major telecommunications operators.

After hanging up the phone, the head of one operator sat dazed in his office for two whole minutes without moving.

"Fifth-Generation Communication Technology..."

He chewed over these words on the tip of his tongue several times, and the more he chewed, the more absurd it felt.

Currently, the third-generation communication base stations across the country had only just finished being laid out two years ago.

The pilot projects for Fourth-generation Communication were still small-scale, tucked away in the core areas of a few key cities, and they hadn't even gathered a complete set of commercial test data yet.

And now, the higher-ups were calling to notify him.

The state wanted to set up a high-specification special task force to skip the fourth generation entirely and go straight for the fifth?!

It was something for which the entire international academic community hadn't even formed a theoretical framework.

It was a blind spot that the communication giants The Other Side of the Ocean didn't even dare to touch.

And the state wanted to implement it now?!

After sitting dazed for a good while, he finally picked up the internal phone again and dialed the Technical Director.

"Old Ding, stop everything you're working on. Immediately compile a list of our group's most core backbone personnel for me. I need it before getting off work today."

Old Ding on the other end of the line was stunned: "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Don't ask so many questions, just screen the people for me first."

He paused for a beat, then added: "Oh, right, especially make sure to include the leaders of the Base Station Architecture Group and the Core Network Group. Not a single one can be left out."

Similar scenes occurred simultaneously in the management offices of over a dozen organizations within that single day.

After hanging up the phone, the head of an industrial equipment group's first reaction was to double-check the incoming number twice.

After confirming it was correct, he sat dazed in his leather chair, finally managing to choke out: "Brain-like Machine Intelligence? ...Isn't that something from science fiction novels?"

Meanwhile, the head of a domestic automotive industry group rubbed his face while facing his empty office, muttering in disbelief: "This intelligence thing was only mentioned at the Xia Academy of Sciences press conference a while ago. It's only been a few days, and they're already preparing to tackle and implement it?"

This was likely the most unified and genuine feeling in the hearts of all the bigwigs who received the notification—Fast! Ridiculously fast! Fast to the point where people didn't have time to process it, didn't have time to question it, and didn't even have time to be excited.

But no one dared to drop the ball at such a critical juncture.

Everyone immediately activated emergency contingency plans and began frantically vetting the top-tier technical personnel in their respective units.

A storm about to sweep across the country, and even overturn the global core technology field, was rapidly taking shape through these very phone calls with unstoppable momentum.

...Meanwhile. Xia Academy of Sciences, internal top-secret video conference room.

Having finished the remote guidance on the modification of the special material preparation production line, Lin Yuan calmly cut off the encrypted video communication screen.

He casually organized the several complex data reports on the table to one side, stood up, pushed open the door, and walked straight towards Research Building No. 7.

Inside Research Building No. 7, although the overall R&D of the Photolithography Machine had been declared a success, the subsequent fine-tuning for mass production, the solidification of process parameters, and the archiving of massive amounts of technical data were still being carried out intensively. Therefore, the establishment of the Photolithography Machine task force had not yet been declared dissolved.

The corridors were bustling with people walking in a hurry. Everyone held thick documents or test data in their hands, and the entire research building still maintained a high-intensity rhythm of operation.

Lin Yuan walked at a steady pace down the center of the corridor. The researchers passing by, no matter how busy they were, would stop the moment they saw him.

"Chief Engineer Lin." "Hello, Chief Engineer Lin." Greetings rose one after another; everyone lowered their voices, their words filled with awe and respect.

Lin Yuan smiled and nodded slightly in response.

Just as he turned a corner, the metal door of a core laboratory on the side was suddenly pushed open. Wei Jiancheng walked out in a rush with a stack of heavy blueprints tucked under his arm. The old man looked up and happened to bump into Lin Yuan coming from the opposite direction, his eyes brightening instantly.

"Yo, the busy man has arrived?"

Wei Jiancheng strode over, his face filled with a complex smile.

Lin Yuan stopped and a faint arc curved at the corner of his mouth: "Just finished with the material production line, came over to take a look."

Wei Jiancheng looked left and right, leaned in closer, and lowered his rough voice, his tone filled with unconcealable shock. "Don't pretend to be calm, kid. I've already received the internal briefing from the Academy." "That new special task force from the higher-ups has basically been finalized!"

Wei Jiancheng shook his head repeatedly as he spoke, the muscles on his face twitching slightly. "I originally thought that you pulling off the Fifth-generation Communication was already absurd enough." "But it turns out, now it's Communication and Brain-like Machine Intelligence, two major projects being pushed forward simultaneously?"

Wei Jiancheng held up two rough fingers and waved them in front of Lin Yuan. "Which one of these two, if taken out individually, isn't a massive project capable of piercing the sky?" "And you, kid, act as if you're buying cabbage at a street market? With a buy-one-get-one-free bundle deal?!"

Looking at the old director's expression, Lin Yuan shrugged his shoulders slightly and replied: "The underlying logic of these two projects is interconnected." "Splitting them up would just be a waste of time, so it's better to handle them all at once."

Upon hearing this, Wei Jiancheng smacked his lips, unable to speak for a long time. He could understand the strategic ambition in Lin Yuan's words. This wasn't just doing scientific research; this was clearly about completely overturning the table upon which the Western world relied for survival in the Information Age.

Thinking of this, he glanced toward the other end of the corridor, then withdrew his gaze and gestured toward Lin Yuan with his chin. "However, you throwing out these two trump cards has made that old guy Yang Lin extremely happy."

Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

Wei Jiancheng pursed his lips and explained. "That old guy is responsible for leading the team on the Photolithography Machine Workpiece Stage." "With the complete machine coming out these past few days, he thought the task force was about to disband and he wouldn't have a chance to work on such big projects in the future." "But then the news leaked from the top today, and as soon as he heard about things like Brain-like Machine Intelligence..."

Wei Jiancheng scoffed. "For this thing to be implemented and eventually form industrial applications, it absolutely cannot do without the cooperation of automated control and precision machinery." "Those people at the Institute of Automation will definitely be able to keep working on this, and they might even be the main force!"

As they were speaking, a burst of hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor. Yang Lin was clutching a blue folder in his hand; seeing Lin Yuan and Wei Jiancheng standing together from afar, he immediately quickened his pace and hurried over.

"Chief Engineer Lin!"

Before Yang Lin could even stand still, the words came tumbling out.

Lin Yuan watched Yang Lin's excited appearance and nodded with a light smile: "Director Yang."

Yang Lin tucked the folder under his arm and rubbed his hands vigorously. "Chief Engineer Lin, for the parameter solidification of the Photolithography Machine Workpiece Stage, I and my team can completely finish it in three days at most."

He leaned forward, his words filled with undisguised anticipation. "If we start working on Brain-like Intelligence next, our Institute of Automation will definitely be the main force for the breakthrough!" "Look, shouldn't you also come over to our Institute of Automation to oversee and provide guidance?"

As soon as these words were out, Wei Jiancheng on the side wouldn't have it. Wei Jiancheng widened his eyes and waved his fan-sized palm directly at Yang Lin. "Go away, go away." "Nothing is even set in stone yet, and you're already running over here to poach people? Do you still want your old face?" "Lin Yuan is still a person of our Third Institute; his establishment is at the Third Institute. How can I let you, an old man, poach talent here?"

Yang Lin got anxious as well, stiffening his neck and arguing with a flushed face. "Who's poaching? This is a work requirement!" "Besides, the Photolithography Machine has already been built; Chief Engineer Lin's next focus will definitely shift." "If he doesn't come to our Institute of Automation to really show his skills, is he supposed to stay at your Third Institute and smell photoresist?"

The two went back and forth, arguing right there in the corridor. Lin Yuan stood to the side, watching this scene, and couldn't help but chuckle.

Just then, the elevator door slid open to both sides with a "ding." Chen Jingshan was wearing a gray jacket, his hands behind his back, and strode out of the elevator.

He spotted the three core figures at the corner of the corridor at a glance. "All here?"

Chen Jingshan walked up to them, his gaze sweeping over the flushed and red-necked Wei Jiancheng and Yang Lin. Then, he accurately fixed his gaze on Lin Yuan.

He stopped, without any nonsense, and directly threw out a sentence that made everyone present excited. "Just in time, a notification. Tomorrow morning at nine, Elder Zhang will preside personally, and the first meeting of the new special task force will be held in the trapezoidal conference room of the Xia Academy of Sciences!"