The Rich Man's Life Begins with a Comeback

Chapter 305 Recovery and Birthday (4k)

The meal started at four o'clock in the afternoon. Considering that Gu Heng had just recovered from a serious illness and Tang Ziheng was still recovering from his injuries, the group did not prolong the meal and ended it around seven o'clock.

After discussing the Chinese herbal medicine planting base and medicinal cuisine brand, the conversation naturally drifted to the research direction that Qiu Yanfeng's family was currently working on.

The industrialization of semi-solid-state batteries, the dominance of oxide-based technologies, the long-term focus on sulfide-based all-solid-state batteries, interface engineering, high-stability electrolyte materials, dry process equipment, and so on...

When they were talking about history, Gu Heng was able to chime in a couple of times.

But when it comes to scientific research and academic matters, he can't get a word in edgewise.

Fortunately, he wasn't the only one who couldn't get a word in edgewise.

Qi Jiasheng, Tang Ziheng, and Yao Qinyu couldn't get a word in edgewise. Only Qi Guowei and Tang Jinghui could manage a few words, but if Qiu Yanfeng went into even a little more detail, both of them would be completely bewildered.

However, even though Gu Heng didn't understand, he still tried his best to remember the information that Qiu Yanfeng and the others had revealed.

Who is Qiu Yanfeng?

Academicians of both the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering!

A leading figure in China's new energy battery industry!

It can be said that Qiu Yanfeng deserves great credit for China's rapid development in the field of new energy vehicles, and for its technological strength and industrial scale enabling it to surpass those century-old foreign car brands.

Under these circumstances, his current research focus is not only at the forefront of the domestic new energy battery field, but also at the forefront of the world's new energy battery field.

What may seem like an ordinary conversation at the dinner table is actually full of business opportunities.

Although Gu Heng didn't quite understand many of the technical terms Qiu Yanfeng and the others used during their conversation, he still managed to understand two points after listening to the whole thing.

First, the short-term development goal of China's new energy battery industry is the industrialization of semi-solid-state batteries, and the time to achieve this goal is not far off.

Secondly, the breakthrough direction of all-solid-state batteries has been determined. As long as the key technological bottlenecks that have hindered the development of solid-state batteries in China are overcome, all-solid-state batteries will completely solve the range and safety anxieties of new energy vehicles and usher in a new era of power batteries. The expected time to achieve this goal is approximately five to seven years.

Currently, the landscape of China's new energy vehicle sector can be described as one of fierce competition.

With established players like Dream, NIO, and BYD continuing to exert their strength, and emerging electric vehicle companies like Xiaomi and Wenjie poised to launch, the intense competition is no less fierce than the "hundred-group war" in the food delivery sector and the "fierce battle" in the sharing economy a decade ago.

In general, the electric vehicle brands currently on the market are basically similar in terms of configuration. The main differences lie in which brand has better marketing, offers better value for money, and targets a more precise consumer group.

With no one able to gain a clear advantage in software, people naturally turned their attention to hardware, specifically the semi-solid-state and all-solid-state batteries that Qiu Yanfeng and others just mentioned.

Judging from the current situation, whoever can develop semi-solid-state batteries and all-solid-state batteries first, and whoever can mass-produce these two new types of batteries in vehicles first, will gain an absolute advantage in this fiercely competitive market.

Step by step, step by step.

Once solid-state batteries can be mass-produced and installed in vehicles on a large scale, it will be a devastating blow to electric vehicles that still use liquid batteries, leaving them with no chance to fight back.

After the dinner, Qi Guowei and the others took Gu Heng and his juniors back to the living room for some more tea. Finally, at 8:30 p.m., Gu Heng left the provincial family compound and took a car back to the Beichun Junlan Hotel to rest.

……

For the next two weeks, Gu Heng stayed at the Beichun Junlan Hotel.

Her daily life was very regular. In the morning, she would study history, in the afternoon, biology, and in the evening, she would hand over her studies to Bai Muqing, alternating between Chinese, mathematics, and English.

He abstains from women and alcohol.

Studying and maintaining health have been the main themes of Gu Heng's life for the past two weeks.

During this period, Gu Heng selected several medicinal diet recipes for replenishing qi and nourishing blood from the "Meng Shen Diet Manual" and had the medicinal diet chefs hired by the group come to his home every day to cook them for him.

With the continued power of the buff [Eternal Day Engine], Gu Heng has basically recovered to his original state in half a month.

The sky was clear and the air was crisp on this day.

As April arrives, temperatures in northern spring finally begin to rise.

Spring is blooming, and all things are revived.

Since being discharged from the hospital, Gu Heng, who had been staying at the Beichun Junlan Hotel and recuperating in seclusion, returned home near dusk.

In the courtyard of the hilltop villa, many trees and flowers have sprouted new buds.

Looking around, everything is lush and vibrant.

Sun Xiaolan, the housekeeper who was pruning trees in the courtyard, was overjoyed to see Gu Heng walking out of the Lawrence Bay Stream.

"Mr. Gu, you're back!"

Sun Xiaolan quickly put down the scissors in her hand and walked briskly towards Gu Heng.

"I am back."

Gu Heng looked at the courtyard, which remained as tidy as ever, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. He nodded slightly to Sun Xiaolan and then asked, "Is Jiang Ruan home?"

"Miss Jiang went out this afternoon."

Sun Xiaolan responded truthfully.

Did she tell you what day it is today?

Gu Heng asked again.

"What day?"

Sun Xiaolan looked somewhat bewildered.

"Today is Jiang Ruan's birthday."

Seeing Sun Xiaolan's expression, Gu Heng knew that Jiang Ruan probably hadn't mentioned this matter to Sun Xiaolan and the others.

"what?"

Sun Xiaolan said in surprise, "Miss Jiang didn't mention this to us."

"fine."

"If she didn't mention it, then she didn't mention it."

Gu Heng waved his hand and walked into the villa, instructing Sun Xiaolan, "Check if there's any walnut charcoal left at home. I plan to grill meat for her in the courtyard later. If we don't have enough, I'll have someone bring some more."

"Okay okay."

"I'll go check the storage room right now."

As Sun Xiaolan spoke, she was about to run towards the storage room.

"Sister Sun, please wait a moment."

Gu Heng called out to Sun Xiaolan and asked her, "While I've been recuperating in the hospital, what has Jiang Ruan been doing at home all this time?"

"Um……"

"Ms. Jiang usually stays at home and has a very regular daily routine."

"After getting up in the morning, I usually go to the gym on the third floor to work out."

"After lunch, I either read magazines in the living room or read books in my room."

"After dinner, I usually go back to my room and watch TV series on the projector."

“She rarely goes out, sometimes only once a week.”

Sun Xiaolan thought about it carefully and then reported it truthfully to Gu Heng.

At this point, she suddenly remembered something: "By the way, when you were seriously injured and ill some time ago, Miss Jiang invited two monks from the temple. During that time, she burned incense and prayed for you every day. She was extremely devout."

Through Sun Xiaolan's fragmented descriptions, Gu Heng gradually formed a complete picture of Jiang Ruan's life living alone at home during this period.

"Row."

"I see."

"Go and do your work."

Gu Heng gave Sun Xiaolan some instructions, then walked straight into the villa.

……

As evening approached, the sky was ablaze with the glow of sunset.

Jiang Ruan drove to the supermarket in the afternoon, her car fully loaded with bags and packages, and drove straight into the garage.

"Sister Sun, I bought a lot of things today."

"You can divide it up later, refrigerate what needs to be refrigerated, and freeze what needs to be frozen."

"Please organize those snacks and put them on the snack shelf in the master bedroom."

Jiang Ruan entered the house empty-handed from the garage, and then, as usual, loudly and habitually gave instructions to Sun Xiaolan. However, today was different from usual.

In the past, Jiang Ruan would receive a response immediately after giving her instructions, but today she received no response for a long time.

This situation is clearly abnormal.

Even if Sun Xiaolan didn't hear it, other housekeepers or cooks would have responded immediately, but no one responded today.

"Sister Sun?"

"Sister Li?"

Jiang Ruan called out twice more, but still no one responded.

"what's the situation?"

"Why isn't anyone here?"

Jiang Ruan frowned slightly and muttered something in puzzlement.

Just then, through the huge floor-to-ceiling window, she saw a figure she had been longing for all this time.

The other person was wearing a down jacket and sitting on an outdoor folding chair. The barbecue grill in front of him was emitting wisps of white smoke, and the sunlight fell on him, making his black hair look golden.

In an instant, Jiang Ruan felt an overwhelming joy.

Without any hesitation, she strode towards the figure.

Gu Heng, who was grilling steak, heard footsteps behind him and gently raised his head.

It had been half a month since we last met, and Jiang Ruan seemed to have lost a little weight.

She wore a white down jacket with a stand-up collar, paired with washed denim jeans and black ankle boots. Her jet-black hair was tied in a simple ponytail, and her beautiful face, which always carried an innate coolness, now clearly revealed a strong sense of joy.

"you come back……"

"Why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

"Knowing you're coming back today, I won't go out this afternoon."

Jiang Ruan looked at Gu Heng's handsome face and spoke softly to him.

"I was thinking of giving you a surprise."

Gu Heng smiled at Jiang Ruan: "How about we have steak tonight?"

"Your injury has just healed, let me grill it for you."

As Jiang Ruan spoke, she tried to take the clip from Gu Heng's hand.

"It'll be ready soon."

"Go upstairs and change your clothes, then we'll have dinner when you come back down."

Gu Heng waved his hand and said with a smile.

"Zizi-"

Oil drips down, and wisps of white smoke rise.

Jiang Ruan looked at the two large steaks on the grill, and since they seemed to be cooked enough, she didn't insist any further: "Okay then, I'll be down soon."

"Go."

Jiang Ruan responded and turned to walk into the villa. Compared to when she first came home, her steps were inexplicably lighter.

After returning to the master suite, she quickly took off her outer clothes and reached for her pajamas to change into.

But just as her right hand touched her pajamas, it suddenly paused, and then her face inexplicably flushed, and she subconsciously bit her lip.

Jiang Ruan gently squatted down and then opened the drawer below.

She flipped over the clothes on top and took out a brand new, unopened Victoria's Secret lingerie box from the bottom of the drawer.

Untie the bow on the box and gently open it.

Inside the box was a set of extremely thin lace lingerie.

It's described as lightweight, but it's really just a few pieces of cloth and a few ropes.

There is absolutely no comfort to speak of, but it is extremely sexy and alluring.

Jiang Ruan looked at the Victoria's Secret lingerie set lying in the box. Her face was fair with a rosy glow, and her beautiful eyes seemed to be glistening with tears.

With a gentle stroke of her fingertips, she finally lifted the two ropes.

……

When Jiang Ruan came down from the second floor after changing into her pajamas, Gu Heng had already returned indoors and was standing in front of the dining table setting out a cake.

That was the most popular Black Swan brand cake on the market right now. Gu Heng ordered the cake for Jiang Ruan. It was a white swan-shaped cake that looked extremely beautiful.

Jiang Ruan walked to the vicinity of the dining table and saw the cake placed in the center. Her pink lips couldn't help but part slightly, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.

"Happy birthday, Ruan Ruan."

Gu Heng raised his head and spoke softly to Jiang Ruan.

"You actually remember..."

Jiang Ruan was somewhat moved.

"How could I not remember?"

Gu Heng picked up the birthday hat that came with the birthday cake and gently placed it on Jiang Ruan's head, his eyes and voice filled with indescribable tenderness.

"So you came back today especially to celebrate my birthday?"

Jiang Ruan raised her arm and gently embraced Gu Heng, then looked up at him and asked.

"of course."

Gu Heng gently stroked Jiang Ruan's smooth, black hair with his right hand.

Are you leaving tonight?

Jiang Ruan continued to inquire.

"Don't go."

"I've gone home."

Gu Heng responded with a smile.

"Good~"

A hint of excitement flashed in Jiang Ruan's eyes.

After Gu Heng put the birthday hat on Jiang Ruan, he picked up the candles on the table and gently inserted them into the cake.

Jiang Ruan stood to the side watching the scene unfold before her, feeling a deep sense of warmth and happiness.

At that moment, she glanced at it out of the corner of her eye.

I saw the decanter on the table, filled with a deep red wine.

"Gu Heng, your injury has just healed, can you drink alcohol?"

Jiang Ruan asked hesitantly.

"It's fine."

Gu Heng replied with a smile, "You drink more, I'll drink less."

"Is it really okay?"

Jiang Ruan was still a little worried.

"It's okay."

As Gu Heng spoke, he picked up a lighter and lit the candles on the swan cake: "Ruan Ruan, make a wish."

Looking at the flickering candlelight and Gu Heng's gentle gaze, Jiang Ruan nodded softly, then crossed her fair hands in front of her, closed her eyes, and slowly lowered her head.

'A new year...'

'I want to stay with him, forever and ever…'

(End of this chapter)