182: Chapter 182: 635 patents in just over a year!

In the technical department office of Jinjiang Bookstore, Wu Chen moved his laptop next to the router and plugged the network cable directly into the optical modem.

Qiu Zhengyang squatted behind him, also holding a laptop, his eyes fixed on the Fanmi official website on the screen.

"Three minutes left!" Yu Zhengqing also held up his phone; the screen showed the pre-order page for the fanmi 2.

"When I tried to grab the first batch last time, I clicked my mouse until it was practically broken before I finally got one." Qiu Zhengyang took a deep breath. "If I don't get one this time, my girlfriend will definitely break up with me."

Wu Chen licked his lips, his finger hovering over the mouse, his eyes glued to the countdown.

"Don't worry, it'll definitely work this time!!"

"It's starting!" Yu Zhengqing suddenly shouted.

Wu Chen slammed the buy button. The moment the page redirected, he felt like his heart was about to jump out of his chest.

He clicked again rapidly.

To snag the phone, he had enabled the automatic payment option.

The next second, four large green characters, "Order Successful," popped up on the screen.

Instantly, he felt completely deflated and slumped to the floor.

"Fuck, I finally got it!"

He slapped the table, making the keyboard bounce.

"Two! I got two!"

Qiu Zhengyang's wail followed immediately: "Gone again! What happened? Did the server crash again?"

"It's fine, I grabbed an extra one. Consider it an employee benefit for you!" Wu Chen chuckled, a satisfied look on his face.

"Boss is mighty! When I marry my girlfriend, I'll definitely give you the seat of honor!!"

"You said it, hahaha!"

"Absolutely guaranteed!"

"I didn't get one either..." Yu Zhengqing's slightly resentful voice came over.

"Didn't you say your Fanmi 1 is still usable? Keep using it then!" Wu Chen teased.

"This is unfair, ahhh!!!"

Frustrated wails immediately echoed through the office...

"Alright, there are two million units in this fanmi 2 batch. Our bookstore's new users will increase a lot. We should also be able to secure the second round of investment from Fanmi. When that happens, everyone in the company gets one as a reward!!!" Wu Chen laughed heroically.

"Speaking of which, after the second round of investment, Fanmi will be the largest shareholder of our app, right?" Qiu Yang suddenly asked.

"That's right, we've definitely latched onto a big winner!" Wu Chen chuckled.

"Aren't you afraid the company will belong to someone else?" Qiu Yang's tone was a bit strange.

"What's there to fear? Mr. Lei has already promised us he won't interfere in management!" Wu Chen said confidently. "Besides, how would they have time to manage a small company like ours? There's a whole heap of things to deal with regarding new energy vehicles!"

"By the way, did you get in touch with that Great Wushuang who became a hit writing those young CEO novels recently?"

"I did. It seems they are right here in Hangzhou City!"

"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry up and make an appointment to poach them for our bookstore!!"

"Okay, I'll have the editorial department reach out..."

"Forget it, I'll go personally. Give me Great Wushuang's contact information!"

"..."

...

In Washington, the air conditioning in the Department of Commerce conference room was set extremely low, yet Carlos Reis felt a dry heat all over his body.

He slammed Fanmi Technology's latest investigation report onto the table, his expression grim.

"Full-chain localization? How did they do it?" An advisor pointed at a photo of a chip in the report, his voice filled with disbelief. "Besides the 45nm process lithography machine, there should be many other pieces of equipment they need to import from us!"

"Did our ban have no effect at all?"

The conference room fell into a dead silence, with only the sound of people flipping through the report.

Someone browsing the specs page on the Fanmi official website suddenly sneered: "They must have cut corners. These specs are definitely fake. Once their domestic phones come out and people test them, everyone will know. Their so-called 'localization' is just making up the numbers with inferior parts!"

"Regardless of whether their so-called localization is real or not, the situation is right in front of us. They didn't beg for mercy because of our ban!" Carlos looked up, his voice carrying suppressed rage.

"It seems they are determined to fight us for the right to speak in the high-end technology sector!"

"Three months ago, they even had to import special alloy bearings, and now they can build their own chips and high-end equipment?" Another official shook his head, clearly unable to accept this fact. "There must be a problem here. Perhaps they just repackaged our technology?"

"The Patent Office checked." Carlos's secretary spoke in a low voice. "From chip architecture to battery materials, Fanmi has applied for a total of 635 patents in just over a year. Not a single one overlaps with the core patents of Western companies. Their lithography machine manufacturing technology also bypassed ASML's barriers..."

"Enough!" Carlos stood up abruptly, the legs of his chair screeching against the floor.

He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the distant spires of the white buildings, suddenly feeling a sense of powerlessness.

A few months ago, he thought a single ban could strangle this Huaxia company, but the current situation far exceeded his expectations.

He knew it couldn't go on like this.

Fanmi Technology had grown enough to threaten their hegemony in the technology sector.

It had reached a point where it could no longer be ignored!!!

Even if unconventional means had to be used, no price was too high.

"Call Mr. President!" He spoke with his back to the crowd, his voice hoarse. "Even if we have to deploy the FBI, we must find out who exactly is supporting Fanmi's supply chain, where their materials come from, and who made their equipment..."

"I don't believe a bunch of yellow-skinned people can close a technology gap of at least thirty years in such a short time!"

An advisor spoke up hesitantly: "Mr. Secretary, perhaps things aren't as serious as we imagine..."

"Not serious?" Carlos turned around sharply, his eyes bloodshot.

"Do you really think they would use inferior parts to ruin the reputation they worked so hard to build? Even if the specs are actually a bit worse, so what?"

"Full-chain independence and control... As long as they master the technology, refinement is only a matter of time! If we don't respond in advance, Huaxia will give birth to a technology company that will give us a massive headache!"

"Once Huaxia reaches an equal footing with us in the field of cutting-edge technology, what we'll face next... is a real war! At this time, we must abandon all illusions and use tough measures!"

"Mr. Secretary, you are being too aggressive..." Everyone in the conference room looked at each other, their brows furrowing.

If the President's Office were really alerted, it would be hard to wrap things up.

By then, the development of the situation would no longer be something the Department of Commerce could decide.

Was it really necessary for a company that had only been established for two years?

Perhaps after the President's Office got the news, the first ones they would deal with would be the Department of Commerce...

But looking at Carlos's ugly expression, they knew that this matter was no longer up to them.