Chapter 476: Professor Xiao Su
As the saying goes, giving someone a rose leaves fragrance on your hands.
Su Yuanshan was never the rigid or dogmatic type. And the fact that Professor Lü Xuechao had chosen to stay at the University of Electronic Science and Technology (UST), despite its relatively weak foundations in physics, while still pursuing academic excellence—that earned Su Yuanshan's respect.
Most importantly, Old Lü was a good man.
"Ahem… Since Xiao Zhou is my student, it's only natural I support him…" Professor Lü said, sounding a bit embarrassed again. But moments later, he burst into laughter. "Oh, right, I have good news for you."
"Oh? What is it, Uncle Lü?"
"Your graduation thesis…"
"Huh?" Su Yuanshan blinked in surprise before slapping his forehead. "Crap! I forgot all about that thing—I seriously forgot I even had a thesis to do!"
"Hahaha!" Lü Xuechao laughed heartily.
Su Yuanshan was still technically a fourth-year undergraduate—something he himself had likely forgotten. Apart from showing up for final exams in his first two years, by his junior year, the university had switched to a credit-based system. After tallying his accumulated credits, the department quietly let him know he didn't need to take any more exams. And that was the last time Su Yuanshan stepped foot on campus.
Of course, by that time, he had already published a groundbreaking paper on graphene in Nature, triggering an international wave of academic interest.
That alone made him an "expert" in the field.
Not to mention all the other achievements he'd amassed since.
Making someone like that sit through final exams would've been absurd.
"Don't worry, we're not asking for a thesis. That Nature paper is already the most outstanding undergraduate thesis in the history of our department—honestly, if it were allowed to be reused, it would carry you straight through to a PhD," Lü said.
Su Yuanshan breathed a sigh of relief. "Don't scare me like that, Uncle Lü. If I really had to write a thesis, I'd probably have to cheat with help from my senior brothers."
"Come on now… academic work is no joking matter," Lü said with gentle admonishment.
Su Yuanshan paused, then smiled. "You're right. I accept the criticism."
"Just a reminder. After all… you're a very special figure in our physics department."
Su Yuanshan was slightly surprised. There was more to that comment than met the eye…
He had to admit that Lü was right. As a professor in the department, Lü was fully entitled to praise him. And Su Yuanshan, being an "insider" of the department, could accept it without guilt.
But still, such overt praise… was rare.
"Uncle Lü… since we're speaking so frankly, just say it outright."
"Alright. Here's the deal. You're definitely graduating. But where you go from here academically—that's up to you."
Lü paused, giving Su Yuanshan time to think.
"I spoke to your father," he continued. "He says it's your choice, but he thinks you're still interested in making academic progress, right?"
"Yes, that's true," Su Yuanshan replied without hesitation. "I do want to keep moving forward—get my master's, and maybe even a PhD."
"Then have you considered whose lab you want to join for your master's?" Lü asked, then added meaningfully, "And who's qualified to mentor you?"
"Uh…" Su Yuanshan was stumped.
With his accumulated knowledge from a past life, combined with years of relentless study in this one, Su Yuanshan's academic level had already far surpassed that of a typical graduate student. In terms of published results, he was well beyond many PhDs.
Take Zhou Xingbo for example—Su Yuanshan was now the one reviewing and advising his thesis.
If Su wanted to pursue further academic work, it would be in applied physics, condensed matter physics, or a specialized graphene track. But he was the discoverer of graphene, and a direct contributor and supervisor of its key experimental results.
So who could possibly guide him?
Besides, China's academic circles had already stopped seeing him as a student—they saw him as a peer. Otherwise, he wouldn't be getting so many invites to academic conferences.
"So… what's the school's opinion?" Su Yuanshan asked cautiously.
"The school's stance is this—if you want to stay on the academic path, we'll skip the formalities and directly grant you the title of Associate Professor."
Su Yuanshan nearly let out a "What the f—?"
Then it hit him.
That's why it was Lü making this call—not his father or Professor Li Gaoliang. Both of them were deans, and too close to him personally. They couldn't deliver this kind of news themselves—it would look bad.
Jumping straight from undergrad to associate professor… this kind of leap was unprecedented.
Well… not entirely. Su Yuanshan remembered that someone in history had proven the Seetapun conjecture as a junior and was granted a professorial research title.
So… from a purely academic standpoint, maybe it wasn't so outrageous after all?
He calmed himself. This wasn't Lü acting alone—his father, Li Gaoliang, and even President Zhou had probably discussed and agreed on this. These were elders who all took pride in him. This was their collective will.
With that thought, Su Yuanshan took a deep breath and said calmly, "Then yes—I do hope to continue growing academically."
"Haha! Just as your dad predicted. So now people can call you 'Professor Xiao Su,'" Lü said with a laugh.
"Heh… Uncle Lü, let's not get ahead of ourselves. I know there's no such thing as a free lunch. President Zhou's no saint. What does the school want in return? Just don't make me teach undergrads—I'm fine with mentoring grad students."
"Listen to you! Like we're striking a business deal," Lü teased. "We don't want much. Just keep publishing in top journals and help raise the status of our department in the national rankings—is that too much to ask?"
"…Uncle Lü, Nature and Science aren't exactly mine to publish in whenever I want."
"Don't care. You agreed. So now find time to come back and discuss the future direction of our department's physics program."
…
After hanging up, Su Yuanshan clenched his fists and exhaled deeply.
He had thought Lü was calling to ask for co-authorship—but that turned out to be just a footnote. The real purpose was this big surprise.
Settling back down, Su Yuanshan pulled up the latest experimental data on graphene vapor deposition, opened a fresh document, and thought for a moment.
Well, if he was going to be a professor…
It was time to start doing the work of one.
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Chapter 477: The Girlfriend Is Gone
"You left your grad students unsupervised for so long, why the sudden interest in checking their progress today?"
Chen Jianguo was driving Su Yuanshan back from the airport. Su was in the passenger seat, while Wen Xiaoqian sat in the back.
As Su Yuanshan's senior, Chen Jianguo had been helping oversee several teams at the Yuanshan Laboratory. At the moment, their focus was on the preparation of graphene—both physical and chemical vapor deposition methods, which happened to be areas Chen had spent years studying.
"I just wanted to help push things forward," Su Yuanshan replied, not wanting to admit that he'd been given a professorship and now had to back it up with a high-impact paper. "Foreign researchers are getting more interested in graphene. Even if our industrial base is weaker, our lab capabilities are solid—at least Yuanxin's labs aren't lacking. Since we're the discovering country, we'd look bad if someone else scooped us."
"Fair point. But do you have a plan?"
"Sort of. I've got some rough ideas. I'm here purely for scientific work this time, so no need to inform other departments. Can you help gather He Chunhua, Zhou Xingbo, and the others? Maybe we can meet first at your girlfriend's café?"
Chen Jianguo gave a short laugh. "We'll need a new place—it's over."
"Huh?" Su Yuanshan was stunned. "She seemed nice. Why'd it fall apart?"
"Eh, she's the one who lost interest," Chen Jianguo said with a self-deprecating smile.
Now it wasn't just Su who didn't believe it—even Wen Xiaoqian in the backseat looked doubtful.
Even setting aside his position as Su Yuanshan's senior, Chen Jianguo was a middle manager at Deyuan Semiconductor—a man with a degree, skills, a solid job, and decent looks. What woman, short of royalty, would "lose interest" in someone like that?
"Let's not dwell on it. Maybe she's seen too much of the world and doesn't think I'm ambitious enough," Chen Jianguo said lightly.
"Come on… she didn't know you were a founder and shareholder in Yuanxin?" Su Yuanshan gave him a look of disbelief.
"She knew. But let's not badmouth anyone. She just thought I should be aiming higher. I happen to think my current job is pretty good. After a few disagreements, we just ended it."
Su Yuanshan didn't know what to say. Despite having lived a combined fifty years between his two lives, he didn't have much experience in romantic relationships. All he could do now was sigh and smile.
Wen Xiaoqian, on the other hand, leaned forward and lightly tapped Su on the shoulder. When he turned around, she gave him a look and whispered in his ear.
"Director Chen's girlfriend probably had ambitions of her own. She wanted him to use his connection with you to climb higher. But he wasn't willing."
Su Yuanshan froze for a second—then it all made sense.
So she really was ambitious. Thankfully, Chen Jianguo stood his ground. If he had asked for promotions or perks because of her, Su Yuanshan wouldn't have known how to handle it.
After all, wafer fabs may represent the pinnacle of human tech, but at their core, they were still factories. And factories care deeply about seniority and competence.
On paper, Chen Jianguo was still a fresh graduate entering the fab. In terms of qualifications, he had none—his previous experience leading a team to UMC was just training.
His abilities, too, hadn't yet had a chance to shine. He had quietly focused on copper interconnects for years. The money had poured in endlessly, and they hadn't seen much return yet—just potential.
It was only because of Su Yuanshan's personal support that his project hadn't been cut. Anywhere else, it would've been canceled long ago.
Trying to force a promotion for him in that context would've been hard to justify, even for Su himself.
Moving him back to the tech park was possible. There, Su Yuanshan held absolute authority and could give him any position. But then what would happen to the copper interconnect project?
For that work, Chen Jianguo had been studying day and night, traveling constantly to absorb new techniques. He'd given his blood, sweat, and tears to that research. Recently, he had started making real progress in chemical vapor deposition—he was arguably the only person in Yuanxin with a deep grip on the field.
To ask him to abandon it for some woman's ambitions?
No way.
"Senior," Su Yuanshan said after a pause, patting Chen Jianguo on the shoulder.
"Hey, don't pat me while I'm driving," Chen said, eyes on the road.
Su grinned. "I'm just saying—there are plenty of great women out there. No need to get hung up on one."
"…I'm not heartbroken or anything. What's with the pep talk?"
"Uh… I mean, I'll help keep an eye out for someone better."
"Yeah, like you have the time?" Chen Jianguo shot him a glance at a red light. "Besides, what's your idea of 'better,' huh?"
"You're offending people now—what about Xiaoqian?" Su turned and looked pointedly at the girl in the back. She had been dressing up more lately—getting prettier too.
"Don't drag me into this," Wen Xiaoqian coughed. "Director Chen, green light."
Since the café was no longer an option, Su decided to host the research group meeting in the hotel café instead.
After that, he visited Chen Jianguo's lab at the wafer fab, joined the ongoing experiments, and reviewed the latest data and analysis reports.
He stayed in Shanghai for about three days before rushing back to the Special Economic Zone. Before leaving, he briefly met with Zhang Rujin and received the latest update from Texas Instruments.
...
As soon as Su Yuanshan returned to the Special Zone, he barely had time to settle in before receiving a message from Sun Xihui—she was coming to visit the next day and wanted to know if he'd be available.
Of course he would be. It was Big Sister Sun, after all.
Besides, Su Yuanshan had something to ask of her as well.
—Since their last encounter at the national stadium, Su had been mindful of her political goals. While the Min Delta region wasn't currently aligned with Yuanxin's development trajectory, that didn't mean he lacked useful resources.
Xinghai HK—also known as Huada International Ocean Trade—could handle this perfectly.
In fact, Su Yuanshan had always hoped that Sun Xihui would develop in this direction: taking domestic light industrial products and pushing them abroad.
To contribute, in her way, to the global recognition of "Made in China."
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Chapter 478: You Know Me
"The situation in the Min Delta region is a bit complicated," Sun Xihui said gently as she stirred her coffee in the café of the Century Hotel in the Special Economic Zone. "Due to local ties, the foreign capital flowing into that area mostly comes from the island. And island merchants usually have their own channels."
Though she was now well into her thirties, Sun Xihui showed hardly any signs of aging—thanks, in part, to the power of wealth. If anything, her presence had become even more poised and dignified with time.
"We have a branch office in Xiamen," she continued. "Right now, it mainly handles raw material logistics. As for the export direction you mentioned—we rarely touch it. Almost not at all."
Su Yuanshan listened quietly, and what he heard reaffirmed what he had already begun to suspect: theory was one thing, reality was another. Now he understood why, after he had proposed developing light industry as a strategic direction, the higher-ups hadn't given him any feedback.
They were probably as stumped by the current situation as he was.
But Su Yuanshan, being someone who had "lived through it" once already, knew for a fact that light industry exports would soon become a major trend. Especially after the looming Asian financial crisis, there would be a dramatic shift of foreign orders to mainland China. Whatever the motivations of foreign capital, the end result would be the same: Made in China would rise.
"Right now, our domestic light industry still can't meet demand. If you look at GDP, we're poor. But in terms of purchasing power parity, we're actually doing alright. Even with inflation and so much money being printed, people are still spending like crazy. That says a lot."
"On top of that," Su continued, "our exports are still mostly resource-based. We don't have the bandwidth or channels to push light industrial products abroad. The West may want us to stay that way, but we absolutely can't afford to continue down that road."
"Of course," he admitted, "the lack of brand recognition and international competitiveness in our light industrial goods is also a real issue."
Sun Xihui nodded. "Exactly. So even if we wanted to help, it might not work."
"Nothing is impossible if we're determined," Su replied. "Try talking to the provincial leaders in Min. See if they can help open some channels—whether for OEM products or small goods exports. As long as we establish a precedent, the rest becomes easier."
"Alright, I can try." Sun Xihui smiled faintly, taking a sip of her coffee before looking at Su Yuanshan with a meaningful gaze. "By the way… Christmas is coming. What are your plans?"
"You know me, sis," Su Yuanshan replied with a grin. "I'll be spending it in the office."
He checked the time. "I can still spare a couple hours to walk around with you—want to use the time? If not, I'll head back and catch up on papers."
"Go ahead, go ahead," Sun laughed, shaking her head. "You're busier than the Premier."
"Busy or not, at least the Premier doesn't have to write research papers himself."
...
Christmas arrived in the blink of an eye, and Su Yuanshan, true to his word, spent the increasingly popular Western holiday alone in his office.
But he didn't forget to call Ye Rudai in Silicon Valley. Her visa extension had gone through, and she'd be staying another year at UPenn.
Her search engine startup was entering a critical phase of scaling and tech development—she wouldn't even have time to return home for New Year's.
Su Yuanshan wanted to say, Then I'll come to Silicon Valley, but reason told him otherwise.
He just didn't have the time.
...
Right after Christmas, Texas Instruments sent Vice President Jiang Shangwen to Shanghai.
Jiang, originally from Taiwan, had been TI's lead for the Asia market and had recently been promoted to senior VP. According to rumors, he was a likely successor to Mr. Vincent.
He also had a good personal relationship with Zhang Rujin.
Sending Jiang—a fellow Taiwanese—to lead the delegation was clearly a move to play the "relationship card."
In Zhang Rujin's office at Deyuan Wafer Fab.
Compared to his simple lifestyle, Zhang's office was rather "lavish." But being the company president, the office also had to serve as a public-facing space—it was expected.
He took out a premium tea set Su Yuanshan had gifted him and began to prepare traditional kung fu tea, sitting across from Jiang as they sipped.
"Brother Jiang, it's not that I don't want to help," Zhang Rujin said with a big Buddha-like smile. "The MLC flash chip is currently the most advanced flash particle out there. Yuanxin hasn't even officially launched it yet, and the market is already trembling. That should tell you how much we're betting on this."
"I know. That's why I came to you first," Jiang replied calmly, accepting the tea with a smile. "Excellent tea."
"We all know Director Su respects you. If you put in a good word…" Jiang trailed off, staring at Zhang with a meaningful look. "After all, those fabs—they're your fabs, Zhang."
"I can try to help," Zhang said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "But Yuanxin's condition is clear. You need to bring a full proposal—market strategy, product planning, distribution channels, and revenue-sharing policies. You can't just expect us to hand over what Li Mingliu and his team of hundreds have worked on for years—collaborating with three top-tier companies—without any guarantees."
He paused, then added, "Once you take the process, you can go straight into production."
"Brother Jiang, you know how much I'd love to see Deyuan upgrade. But I'm stuck here."
Hearing this, Jiang realized that the private rumors were probably true.
—Zhang Rujin had essentially been "won over" by Yuanxin after joining.
Still, Jiang could understand it. Zhang had always wanted to build fabs on the mainland, and it was Yuanxin who helped him realize that dream.
But when Jiang recalled the conditions TI had set for Yuanxin to get access to the 0.5-micron process, and how they'd forced Su Yuanshan into multiple concessions…
He didn't quite have the nerve to go directly to Su Yuanshan.
Even with a thick face, he had to find a middleman.
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Chapter 479: TI's Long View
Special Economic Zone, Internet R&D Center.
Su Yuanshan was meeting in his office with Professor Lu Daogui from the University of Electronic Science and Technology. Professor Lu, in his early thirties, had graduated from the university's computer science department ten years ago and had stayed on as a lecturer. Known for his sense of humor and enthusiasm for new technology, he'd joined Chengdian Gaoke when it was first spun off as a school-run enterprise.
Recently, Chengdian Gaoke underwent a major structural reform, transitioning from a school-affiliated company to a fully commercial one. The faculty involved were given two options: either completely exit the company and return to full-time teaching, or take a leave of absence without pay—though that meant restarting from scratch in future title evaluations.
Due to the company's underwhelming performance, most faculty members chose to leave.
Lu Daogui was one of the few who stayed, and he now served as the restructured company's Chief Technology Officer.
This time, he'd come to the Special Zone alongside Qiu Aihua, one of the new company leaders recommended by Su Yuanshan himself to President Zhou, to discuss an OEM partnership with Yuanxin's manufacturing division.
Qiu Aihua had taken bold steps after receiving Su Yuanshan's endorsement. He invested his own assets into the company and set up dedicated retail operations. After evaluating Chengdian Gaoke's own assembly lines, he decisively recommended shutting them down and moving all production to Yuanxin's industrial park.
From then on, Chengdian Gaoke would focus solely on design, operations, marketing, and building its after-sales network.
This dramatic shift caused fierce internal debates—what kind of company doesn't have its own factory? Isn't that just a shell company?
Fortunately, President Zhou was highly supportive. Upon learning that Qiu had had a lengthy strategic discussion with Su Yuanshan, he threw his full backing behind the reform on behalf of the board.
...
Glancing at the time, Su Yuanshan realized Jiang Shangwen would be arriving soon and quickly wrapped up the meeting.
"With the current business model, Chengdian Gaoke will be just fine," he said with a smile. "Everyone needs to trust Director Qiu."
Qiu Aihua smiled humbly, though he exhaled quietly as well.
Even with Su's recommendation and Zhou's support, implementing these reforms had not been easy. That's why he'd brought Professor Lu—someone closely associated with the university—to see Su Yuanshan personally and help solidify his credibility.
Now that Su Yuanshan had publicly endorsed him, success or failure would rest entirely on Qiu's shoulders.
"But," Su added, "if Chengdian Gaoke is content just selling computers, that would be a bit disappointing. There are so many untapped opportunities—in hardware, software, even the internet. And who says you can't design chips? As long as you have the capacity, you should go for it."
Lu Daogui looked surprised. "But could we ever compete with Yuanxin?"
Su Yuanshan laughed. "If you're talking about CPU design, then no. Probably not. But other chips? Let's be real—no matter how big Yuanxin gets, it can't possibly cover every chip design market."
"This industry is massive. With every technological breakthrough, new chip demands emerge. Think about the early days of integrated circuits—how much demand was there then? And now? Just this year alone, Yuanxin has developed three chips, including the MP3 processor…"
He tapped his wrist. "If you can catch the wave of tech advancement, there will always be room in the chip market."
Just then, Wen Xiaoqian gently knocked on the office door. "Director Su, TI's Vice President Jiang has arrived downstairs."
"Have Xiaohui-jie welcome him. I'll be down in a minute," Su replied, standing up.
Qiu Aihua and Lu Daogui rose as well.
"You've got business to attend to—we'll be going," Lu said with a smile. "Oh, and Director Li asked me to pass on a message: try to stop by the university sometime. Don't be like Yu the Great—passing your doorstep three times without going in."
Back in the provincial capital's tech park, even though Su had been busy, he still managed to visit the university on weekends. Professors like Li Gaoliang and Lü Xuechao would often come by for tea, to talk shop or academics in a relaxed, familial setting.
But ever since relocating to the Special Zone, Su Yuanshan had become busier than ever. Even when he did return to the capital, he would only call his parents—he hadn't set foot on campus in ages.
So this wasn't just a message from Dean Li. It was likely a nudge from his parents, delivered through Lu.
Su Yuanshan felt a twinge of guilt. "Absolutely. I'll come back soon."
After seeing them off, he and Wen Xiaoqian waited by the elevator for Jiang Shangwen.
When the elevator doors opened, Jiang stepped out with a warm smile, accompanied by Zhou Xiaohui.
"Welcome, Mr. Jiang," Su Yuanshan said, extending his hand.
"Director Su, the honor is mine." Jiang grasped Su's hand with both of his.
"Please, come in."
...
Since this visit was clearly centered around negotiations, Su Yuanshan didn't waste time with pleasantries. After the basic courtesies, he asked Zhou Xiaohui to escort Jiang's team to the café while he and Jiang remained in the office.
One-on-one talks were always the most efficient.
"Mr. Jiang, I believe Dr. Zhang has already conveyed our terms," Su Yuanshan said bluntly. "I'm not sure where TI's confidence in flash memory is coming from, but I'll be honest with you—this is a long, uphill battle. If TI dives headfirst into this market, there's a real risk of a major misstep."
"So I'd like to know—what's TI's actual plan for the MLC flash chip market? Surely you don't expect Yuanxin to be your only customer?"
"Of course not." Even with Zhang Rujin's briefing, Jiang was still a bit caught off guard by Su's directness. Adjusting his glasses, he smiled. "Actually, we've been closely tracking MLC development since the end of last year and built our forecasts around it."
Su Yuanshan nodded. It wasn't surprising—after all, TI still had engineers at Deyuan Semiconductor, and their ties to the Shanghai tech park were tight. They would have known exactly what Li Mingliu's team was working on.
And since early this year, Li Mingliu's group had even begun discussing process implementation directly with Deyuan engineers.
"Right now, even with Intel being the only company mass-producing high-capacity flash memory devices—"
"We usually call them SSDs," Su interjected.
"Right. Solid-state drives. Good name." Jiang smiled. "Even with just that, the global flash market is already worth about $100 million."
"So?" Su Yuanshan asked.
"So, we want in," Jiang replied. "And I believe our commercial objectives don't conflict with Yuanxin's—do they?"
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Chapter 480: MP3
That Texas Instruments wanted to jump into the solid-state drive market—now that caught Su Yuanshan off guard. It was, without a doubt, a significant deviation from TI's original strategic roadmap.
But on second thought, maybe it wasn't so surprising after all. Ever since they began cooperating with Yuanxin, TI had already started drifting away from its original trajectory...
Su Yuanshan paused briefly in thought.
Classic TI—diving headfirst into the big leagues right out of the gate.
At present, even with MLC flash memory in use, without 3D stacking, building high-capacity solid-state drives still meant stuffing them with a large number of flash particles. From that perspective, TI's move would help absorb a lot of flash inventory. But the cost? It was still steep. And even if enterprise users were willing to pay, how many such users were out there?
"Fine. Sounds good," Su Yuanshan nodded. He wasn't trying to play the noble humanitarian here. In the electronics business, it's always defense and enterprise users who act as the first cushion. The real momentum comes from mass consumer adoption. If TI wanted to start with enterprise users… well, good luck to them.
Seeing Su nod, Jiang Shangwen subtly relaxed and smiled. "Then… what are the terms for the tech transfer?"
"That depends on your technical contributions to the flash particle architecture," Su replied with a playful glint. "If TI doesn't plan to contribute anything on the architecture side, then… well, our terms might be a little steeper."
...
When Su Yuanshan learned that TI's technical know-how in this area was still stuck in "the old days," he actually felt a bit sorry for them.
—Back then, after Toshiba's Fujio Masuoka invented flash memory, the West jumped on board. Toshiba, clueless about its future potential, let Intel "borrow" the tech… and then watched as Samsung poached half its talent. In the end, Toshiba got left with nothing.
Still, while Toshiba lacked foresight in flash memory, it had strong commercial instincts. In the early years, it aggressively filed lawsuits to keep the technology to itself—TI had been one of the casualties.
Now, in theory, Yuanxin's MLC flash particles also faced potential legal action—hence Su Yuanshan's upcoming visit to Japan. A stop at Toshiba was already planned to settle that issue.
In the end, Su agreed to TI's request and proposed a licensing plan that both sides could accept. After all, business had to go on. Best to leave the door open for future cooperation.
It was just a shame that Yuanxin wasn't yet in a position to absorb TI's remaining high-end tech. Otherwise…
...
January 17th. Su Yuanshan arrived at the fab.
"Senior, Old Wang."
He entered the meeting room with a brisk pace, greeting Chen Jianguo and Wang Chuanfu even as his eyes locked onto the table in front of Jiang Qingchuan.
There it sat—a tiny electronic device, barely larger than a disposable lighter. He and Wang Chuanfu were sitting side by side, each wearing one earbud, looking like students sharing music between classes.
"Two grown men… really?" Su said teasingly, though the smile in his eyes was unmistakable as he strode toward them.
"Heh, just testing the audio quality," Jiang Qingchuan chuckled, handing the MP3 player over. "Just installed the firmware, so we haven't even checked for defects yet."
"Let me have a listen." Su took the MP3 player, slid the earbuds in, and held the little gadget with fascination.
He had personally followed the design process of this first MP3 player. The exterior was flawless. Initially, the plan was to power it with a AA battery. But then they thought—if they were about to push lithium batteries anyway, why not go straight to polymer lithium cells?
And thus, this MP3 was born. It offered over eight hours of continuous playback, 64MB of storage, and could hold around 15 MP3 songs. Thanks to the use of Sony's audio chip, its sound quality was respectable.
If there was one shortcoming, it was that the player didn't support lyrics display. And to save on costs, there was no LCD screen.
But that didn't matter—Yuanxin was already pushing a standardized lyrics file format. The next version would fix that.
"Not bad!" Su Yuanshan said, pressing play and hearing the latest album from Yang Yingying. He smirked. "My sister-in-law's new album? Senior, this is piracy…"
"Heh, absolutely not. That's a fully licensed copy," Jiang grinned.
"How's it sound?"
"Pretty good. Battery temperature's… reasonable." Su felt the device's warmth and glanced at Wang Chuanfu. "No issues with the battery?"
"Director Su, come on…"
"No, no, just checking. This little thing—wait, is there no place to thread a lanyard?"
Su turned the device over several times. The first MP3 player in history—though still rough—was encased in sleek black piano-finish plastic. It looked elegant and timeless.
But it had no lanyard loop.
"Probably just forgot."
"Add it. Definitely don't forget." Su lifted it to his chest. "Look—so stylish."
Wang and Jiang both chuckled. Su might be a tech god, but he was clearly still a young man. And only the young truly understood the young.
"So, since this thing is probably going to be worn on people's chests, safety is very important. Even if they just keep it in their pockets," Su said, his tone turning serious as he looked at Wang Chuanfu. "As a new product, lithium batteries cannot have any safety issues."
"Understood. We've run countless tests, even some pretty aggressive puncture tests…"
Su instantly set the MP3 down and fixed Wang with a sharp look. "And?"
Puncture testing—stabbing the battery with a conductive needle—is one of the most extreme safety validations. Everyone knows lithium batteries don't tolerate short circuits. Internal shorts can lead to violent combustion.
That kind of test didn't become standard until well into the 21st century. Had Wang already cracked it?
"Well… puncture testing is for the most extreme scenarios," Wang said cautiously. "But we're targeting that as a goal. We've got a clear direction."
Su exhaled.
Good. If Wang had already passed the puncture test, Su might've suspected he was the true genius here.
"Xiaoshan, what about inspection?" Jiang Qingchuan asked, seeing how Su couldn't stop fiddling with the MP3. "I feel like… this thing's a bit too small to be taken seriously."
"Don't worry. As long as it's the first in the world, the first ever, even if it's just a little music player, the Ministry will be thrilled. And you don't need to worry about the PR side. Our journalists and editors? They know how to hype."
"What about the audio sources?" Jiang asked.
He knew that MP3 as a format existed mostly online at the moment, and wasn't yet widespread.
That… was going to be a problem.
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