Chapter 332: Lan Ling Joins

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Lan Ling, we meet again!” As Lan Ling entered, Zhou Chao welcomed him.

“President Zhou, it’s been a while. These days, you’ve kept me up at night!” “Haha, Lan Lao, you shouldn’t say that. I’ve been thinking about you too!” Zhou Chao and Lan Ling exchanged smiles.

“Please come in and have a seat for a chat.” Zhou Chao led Lan Ling inside.

Everyone took their seats, and Lin Wu poured warm tea for all three of them, then sat down next to Zhou Jilong.

“Professor Lan, I’ve been thinking about you for a long time. Waiting for your call almost drove me crazy!”

“Mainly because my project at the school is nearing completion. I rarely have the opportunity to come out and visit, so I came to Peng City to have a chat with Lao Zhou.”

Everyone present understood what Lan Ling meant by “a chat.” In other words, I’m here to see if you have the capability. If you don’t have the capability to research cutting-edge technology, then goodbye, I won’t keep you company. But if you do have the capability, we’ll sit down for a real chat.

“Professor Lan, I heard that you visited my subsidiary, Canghai Technology, yesterday. I wonder if there were any issues in that regard. If there are, Professor Lan, please give me some guidance!”

“I wouldn’t dare to offer guidance, but I do have some minor suggestions. The issue is that your current facility is too small. Several projects are here, and it’s inevitable that there will be limitations.”

Zhou Chao laughed heartily at Lan Ling’s words.

“Professor Lan, rest assured, I’ve already acquired two adjacent plots of land in the Canghai Technology Park. It’s several times larger than the current facility, and construction has already begun. I believe that in less than two months, you’ll see a brand new technology park!”

“President Zhou, with the foundation and equipment you have now, there should be no problem with researching lithography machines. However, starting from scratch requires astronomical funding. I don’t know if you’re mentally prepared for that.”

“Professor Lan, rest assured, funding is not an issue. But…” Zhou Chao paused for a moment and glanced at Zhou Jilong, who was sitting beside the three of them.

Then he continued, “Who told Professor Lan that we need to start from scratch? Can’t we have mature lithography machine manufacturing technology of our own?”

Zhou Chao’s words shocked both Lan Ling and Zhou Jilong!

“Mature lithography machine manufacturing technology??” At this moment, the three words flashed in their minds: “Unbelievable.”

After a while, Lan Ling and Zhou Jilong finally regained their composure. Zhou Jilong looked at Zhou Chao nervously and asked, “Boss, everything you just said is true?”

“Hehe, do I look like someone who would lie?” Zhou Chao calmly picked up a teacup and took a sip, smiling at the two of them.

“No… no, it’s just that the news is so unbelievable. Mature lithography machine manufacturing technology, both domestically and internationally, is extremely rare!”

While Zhou Jilong was still in awe, Lan Ling fixed his gaze on Zhou Chao and said word by word, “Is the lithography machine technology you have in hand 5nm?”

Zhou Chao’s face showed a hint of surprise, but he quickly understood what was going on. Lan Ling, as one of the top semiconductor experts in the country, must have been involved in the previous lithography machine research. It was inevitable that he would have heard some rumors.

He didn’t say anything but raised the teacup in front of him, took a sip, and looked at Lan Ling meaningfully.

Lan Ling, who had just come back to his senses, realized he had said too much. However, his face soon broke into a delighted smile because he had participated in the research before. Although he hadn’t been exposed to all the details, he knew what was missing at the time, especially ultra-precision machine tools that could reach the nanometer level.

“President Zhou, I’ve thought of something. Can you build an underground research facility beneath the technology park that’s currently under construction? I want to join you and conduct research to develop a lithography machine that truly competes on the global stage!” Lan Ling stood up excitedly.

“Hahaha, Professor Lan, you’re welcome to join us. Any of your requirements, I will try my best to fulfill. As for converting the above-ground research facility into an underground one, I fully agree. I will have them produce the corresponding blueprints immediately!”

Zhou Chao said, extending his right hand. Lan Ling didn’t hesitate and firmly shook Zhou Chao’s hand.

Then, Zhou Chao took out a hard drive from his pocket, which contained the copied data on lithography machine manufacturing technology, albeit only a portion of it. It had taken several USB drives to copy all the data successfully.

“Professor Lan, you must keep this safe. Take your time to study it while the research facility is still under construction.” Zhou Chao’s actions left both Lan Ling and Zhou Jilong in shock.

Both of them knew what was inside the USB drive. Although they were aware that the data might not be complete, it was still invaluable to them.

Lan Ling swallowed hard and tremblingly accepted the USB drive from Zhou Chao. He carefully placed it inside his inner pocket, gently patting it as if afraid it would disappear.

“Please have a seat; don’t stand. Let’s enjoy some tea.” Compared to Zhou Chao’s calm demeanor, Lan Ling and Zhou Jilong had various levels of concern. After all, the items in their hands were of priceless value.

At this moment, Lan Ling was tormented by his inner desire for knowledge. He wanted to open the USB drive and start studying right away. However, upon hearing Zhou Chao’s words, he took several deep breaths and managed to calm down a little.

“Let’s have some tea,” Lan Ling raised the teacup on the table and took a sip.

“Professor Lan, now that you’ve joined us, what about your work at Northwestern Polytechnical University? Will it have any impact?”

“This might require some time to transition the projects, but it won’t have a significant impact. After all, I’m just an honorary guest professor with little influence. There might be some trouble with the projects, but it won’t take too long to resolve,” Lan Ling replied. He had made up his mind to follow Zhou Chao wholeheartedly.

“Mmm, is there anything you need help with? Professor Lan, you can call me or Zhou Jilong anytime.”

“Don’t worry, there’s nothing major!” Seeing Lan Ling looking quite confident, Zhou Chao nodded.

The evening quickly arrived, and the group had spent the whole afternoon discussing the future development of Canghai.

“Lin Wu, have you booked the private room for tonight?” Zhou Chao turned to Lin Wu, who seemed lost in thought.

“Boss, it’s all arranged and ready anytime!”

“Well, give Xu Yu a call and have him come over. Just make up something to tell him.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Wu nodded and retreated to his bedroom to make the call.

He returned shortly after.

“Boss, Xu Yu should be here in about 20 minutes.”

Zhou Chao nodded and turned his gaze to Lan Ling and Zhou Jilong.

“Let’s go, we should head to the private room. We’ve been chatting all afternoon, and I’m starting to get hungry!” He patted his stomach and got up from the sofa.

The four of them leisurely left the room and took the elevator to the private room on the third floor of the hotel.

Once they were all seated, Lin Wu instructed the kitchen to start preparing the dishes.

Coincidentally, just as all the dishes were brought to the table, Xu Yu pushed open the door and walked in.

“Wow, you came early, or should I say, you timed it perfectly, Xu Yu!” Zhou Chao was in a good mood and couldn’t resist teasing Xu Yu.

“Boss, how could I possibly time it? I rushed over here as fast as I could. My car almost flew!” Xu Yu’s humorous words, coupled with his exaggerated gestures, made everyone in the room burst into laughter.

“Alright, let’s eat first. We can talk business afterward.” With that, they all started to eat.

Zhou Chao remained silent, and none of the others dared to speak first. Besides the sounds of eating, only their breathing could be heard.

“Why so quiet? You guys can chat; I won’t say anything. Are you all just going to eat in silence?” Zhou Chao put down his chopsticks and looked at the others.

“Boss, if you don’t talk, we don’t dare to either!” Lin Wu, who had spent a long time with Zhou Chao, knew what kind of person he was. He wasn’t the type to be petty.

But everyone in the room understood that if the boss didn’t speak first, and someone else did, it would seem like they were trying to seize control, so they ate quietly.

“Xu Yu, have a chat with Professor Lan. Professor Lan has some ideas about the new park construction. Communicate with him, make improvements where needed, and strive for the best possible outcome,” Zhou Chao finally broke the silence and issued his instructions.

Upon hearing this, Xu Yu quickly moved to stand beside Lan Ling, and Zhou Jilong joined in, eager to participate. The three of them engaged in a lively discussion, and many ideas surfaced in no time.

Even Xu Yu took out his work notebook and diligently recorded the thoughts and suggestions from both of them.

The dinner lasted for about three hours. The first half was mainly focused on eating, while the second half was dedicated to the discussion between Xu, Lan, and Zhou. Zhou Chao and Lin Wu had turned into mere spectators, sitting nearby, observing their discussions.

“Boss, we’ll head back now!” Zhou Jilong and his companions stood at the hotel entrance and informed Zhou Chao.

“Alright, be careful on the road. Professor Lan, take care as well.” Lan Ling subtly touched the place where he had concealed a USB drive and nodded at Zhou Chao.

Then, Lan Ling followed Zhou Jilong into their car, and Xu Yu’s car followed closely behind.

“Let’s go back to the room.” Watching them leave, Zhou Chao turned and walked back into the hotel.

Back in his room, just as Zhou Chao was about to take a shower, his phone, which was placed on the table, started ringing.

He picked it up and saw that it was a video call from his wife, Jiang Li.

“Wifey, what’s up?” Zhou Chao looked at Jiang Li on the video call, who was wearing a black lace camisole, and unconsciously licked his lips.

“It’s nothing. I just came to check on you as part of my daily patrol, making sure you’re not out having too much fun!” Jiang Li turned over and lay down on the bed, and Zhou Chao’s gaze unintentionally followed the glimpse of her fair skin.

“Ahem, wifey, you’re showing too much!” Zhou Chao couldn’t help but remind her as he cleared his throat.

Jiang Li glanced at herself and then gave Zhou Chao a playful look. She adjusted her sleepwear to cover the tempting view.

The two of them chatted for half an hour, with Jiang Li playfully teasing Zhou Chao, which kindled his desire.

“Alright, time for a shower and sleep!”