Love in the Courtyard: Starting with Engineers

The mass-produced base stations were being pulled out of the workshop by trucks.

With the expansion of production capacity, nearly a thousand new base stations have been installed and commissioned in North America in just half a month.

The Western Telecommunications Alliance's official website updates the "3G coverage progress bar" daily, and the media is overwhelmingly promoting the idea that "the US version of 3G is about to change the world."

Alexander's ambitions swelled even more amidst the chorus of praise.

Meanwhile, at the Longteng branch in Hong Kong, a special meeting is underway.

Lou Zhenhua sat in the reception room, and on the sofa opposite him sat Li Ka-shing, a legendary figure in Hong Kong's business world.

"Mr. Lou, let's not beat around the bush. I'm here today to invest in Longteng."

Lou Zhenhua shook his head and said, "Mr. Li, Longteng currently has sufficient funds and does not need external investment."

Li Ka-shing put down his teacup and said sincerely, "I know that Dragonair is not short of money, but I am not interested in short-term gains."

"Dragon's 3G technology and satellite networking are the hottest trends of the next decade."

"I am willing to put up HK$5 billion for just 50% of DragonPlus's shares. I don't ask to participate in management, I just want to share in the profits with DragonPlus."

HK$5 billion for just 50% of the shares – this is undoubtedly a very tempting investment.

Lou Zhenhua knew Li Yu's temperament well and immediately declined: "Mr. Li, thank you for your kindness, but you know Longteng's rules. We never accept speculative investments."

Li Ka-shing smiled and said, "Speculation?"

"Doing business is all about going with the flow. Longteng is currently riding high, and I just want to hitch a ride on its coattails."

"Furthermore, my resources can help Longteng open up the Southeast Asian market more quickly, which is a win-win situation."

Lou Zhenhua shook his head: "I'm sorry, Mr. Li, I can't make this decision myself. I need to consult Chief Engineer Li."

When Li Yu received Lou Zhenhua's call, he was at the command center of Longxing Factory checking the operational data of the North American base station.

After listening to the report, Li Yu said bluntly, "Li Ka-shing? Tell him that Longteng doesn't lack his money, nor does it lack opportunistic partners."

"Chief Engineer Li, HK$50 billion is no small sum, and the Li family's influence in Southeast Asia can indeed be helpful," Lou Zhenhua tried to persuade him.

"help me?"

Li Yu interrupted him, saying, "He wants to take advantage of Longteng's rise to power, make a quick buck, and leave."

"These speculators who only care about short-term gains will only disrupt my plans."

"Dragon Tech wants allies who can stand with us through thick and thin, not just passersby who want a piece of the pie."

After a pause, Li Yu added, "Tell him that if he wants to cooperate, he can, but he has to exchange real resources."

"For example, communication base station networks and core operator channels in Southeast Asia, rather than vague funds and so-called 'influence.' Otherwise, forget about it."

Upon hearing this, Lou Zhenhua immediately understood Li Yu's meaning and, after hanging up the phone, truthfully relayed it to Li Ka-shing.

After Li Ka-shing finished speaking, the smile on his face faded, and after a moment of silence, he got up to take his leave.

No sooner had the storm of refusing investment subsided than news came from North America.

"Mr. Alexander! Something terrible has happened!" The technical director of the R&D center rushed into the office, his face pale, holding a fault report in his hand.

"Seventeen core base stations in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago experienced simultaneous signal outages, leading to a surge in user complaints. The carrier has issued an ultimatum, demanding repairs within 24 hours!"

Alexander jumped up from his seat, snatched the report, which stated that the signal had weakened by 90% and the core module was overheating.

"How could this happen? Production and installation were done according to Zhou Qiming's requirements!"

He immediately drove to the R&D center, where Zhou Qiming was leading his team in an emergency investigation in the laboratory.

On the screen, the operational data of the faulty base station fluctuated erratically, and Western technicians paced around the equipment, their foreheads covered in sweat.

As soon as Alexander arrived at the lab, he asked anxiously, "Mr. Zhou, what exactly is the problem?"

Zhou Qiming frowned, pointing at the screen with feigned seriousness: "The initial assessment is that it's a compatibility issue with the signal processing module."

"The algorithm we provided is too advanced, and the core components you produce cannot keep up, resulting in overload during operation."

He paused, then deliberately sighed, "I suggested doing stability testing before, but you were in a hurry to push things forward, and now we're in trouble."

Alexander's face turned pale and then red, but he dared not refute.

After all, it was I who insisted on skipping the testing phase.

Seeing this, the Chinese technicians who had been turned quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Mr. Alexander, Engineer Zhou's skills are definitely not the problem; it's just that the production process hasn't kept up!"

"If we optimize the algorithm a bit more, we should be able to solve it!"

"How long will it take to optimize the algorithm?" Alexander pressed.

Zhou Qiming pondered for a moment and said, "It will take at least a week, and it will require additional research and development funding."

"The chip bonding process needs to be readjusted, some core components need to be replaced, and the encryption system needs to be upgraded. All of these require money and time."

Alexander gritted his teeth; the arrow was already on the bowstring, and he had no way out.

That afternoon, he convened a board meeting and announced additional funding for the project for "technology optimization and component replacement".

When Rockefeller heard the news, he tried to stop him, but Alexander was blinded by his obsession with "going public as soon as possible".

He insisted, "Grandfather, it's just a minor issue. Once we solve it, we can seize the global market. This investment is worthwhile!"

Seeing his stubbornness, old Rockefeller decided to give him another lesson.

He secretly instructed his subordinates to closely monitor every detail of the flow of funds and technical adjustments.

After receiving the additional funding, Zhou Qiming ostensibly busied himself with "optimizing the algorithm," but in reality, he secretly sent encrypted messages to Li Yu:

"The fish have taken the bait, the funds have been received, the malfunction is under control as planned, should we proceed with the 'second trap'?"

At the Longxing factory in Beijing, Li Yu said into the phone: "Start it. Make sure their 'optimization' only addresses the surface problems, leaving the core hidden dangers unresolved. Also, sow discord among those technicians who have been turned against us."

Upon receiving the order, Zhou Qiming began to take action.

He deliberately broke down the "optimization plan" into several parts, assigning each part to one of the recruited technicians, while privately telling each of them:

"Mr. Alexander values ​​you highly. If this optimization is successful, I will recommend you for the position of Technical Director, with your salary doubled."

Human greed is laid bare in the face of self-interest.

In a competition for credit, the technicians began to be wary of each other and sabotage one another.

"Mr. Alexander, the encryption module that Xiao Zhang is in charge of has a problem. I've tested it, and it doesn't meet security standards at all!"

A technician wearing glasses, holding a data report, spoke in an unfriendly tone.

Xiao Zhang immediately retorted, "You're talking nonsense! It's the signal enhancement module you're in charge of that's causing the problems! I think you're just trying to steal the credit!"

The two argued heatedly in the research and development center, leaving the Western technicians dumbfounded.

The already tight research and development schedule became even slower.

Alexander was overwhelmed by this internal strife and had to personally intervene to mediate, but with little effect.

Unbeknownst to him, this was exactly what Zhou Qiming wanted: to buy time, deplete funds, and expose more weaknesses in their internal strife.

Meanwhile, those "optimized" base stations were put back into use, and on the surface, the signal returned to normal.

Zhou Qiming had already planted deeper hidden dangers inside through backdoor programs.

The operational data of these base stations is synchronized to Longteng's control center in real time.

Looking at the clear signal flow on the screen, Li Huaide reported to his supervisor, "Chief Engineer Li, we can now accurately control 80% of the 3G signals in North America. We can obtain their user data and communication content in real time!"

Li Yu nodded, then turned his gaze to another screen, which displayed the stock price fluctuations of Rockefeller family energy companies:

"Let the agents on Wall Street take action and start shorting Rockefeller's stock while the Western Communications Union is short of funds."