The richest man started taking advantage of loopholes after joining Alibaba.

Palo Alto.

1600 Pagemill Road.

This building was once Facebook's early office building, boasting the best floor-to-ceiling windows and the most expensive security system in all of Silicon Valley.

Now, it is the North American R&D center for Microlight Technology.

It is also a prison without iron bars.

Four o'clock in the afternoon.

Sunlight streamed through the massive bulletproof glass, illuminating the brand-new, priceless server racks.

About twenty scientists from the Open-V Lab—now known as the North American branch of Ark Labs—are standing in the spacious office area.

No one is working.

Everyone stared at the large screen on the wall.

The video above is a replay of Lin Che's interview at the hotel entrance.

"I will build thousands upon thousands of Warwicks."

That "chop" aimed at the void was like a slap in the face of every American.

Of course, that includes them too.

"My God..."

A young engineer covered his mouth, his face turning pale.

"We...we've become traitors?"

"He's declaring war on the United States! And we're helping him build weapons!"

Someone angrily slammed their keyboard down.

"I want to resign! I can't stay here! The FBI will arrest us!"

The crowd stirred.

Someone rushed towards the door.

"Click".

A crisp click of the lock clicking shut.

The door didn't move at all.

Through the glass door, they saw four security personnel wearing tactical vests standing at the entrance.

Fully armed.

The bulge around his waist clearly indicated that it wasn't just a stun gun.

"What does this mean?!"

Jim Keller rushed to the front and angrily pounded on the glass door.

"Illegal detention? I want to see Lin Che! I want to see that bastard!"

"You want to see me?"

A cold voice came from the spiral staircase behind him.

Everyone turned around.

Lin Che was standing by the railing on the second floor.

He was wearing the black suit he was going to catch a plane with, and he was holding a glass of ice water.

Looking down from a high vantage point.

The passion he displayed in front of the media was gone, as was the pretense he put on in front of Thomas.

"Lin Che!"

Jim pointed at him, his fingers trembling.

"You're committing a crime! We are citizens protected by the U.S. Constitution! You can't lock us up here!"

"close?"

Lin Che smiled.

He slowly walked down the stairs.

The leather shoes clicked crisply on the expensive marble floor.

With each step forward, the crowd retreated a step backward.

"Jim, look around."

Lin Che spread his arms wide, showing off this office area that rivals a five-star hotel.

"This place has the world's top-of-the-line servers."

"Unlimited supply of Blue Mountain coffee."

"There are massage chairs, a game room, and even a Michelin three-star chef to cook for you."

"Is this what you call locking up?"

Lin Che walked up to Jim.

He took a black card out of his pocket and gently slipped it into the pocket of Jim's shirt.

"This is called offering."

"But we want freedom!"

The young engineer shouted.

"free?"

Lin Che turned his head.

Looking at that young man.

His eyes were sharp as knives.

"Your so-called freedom is simply walking out this door, being taken away by the FBI on charges of 'endangering national security,' imprisoned in Guantanamo, and subjected to endless interrogation?"

The young man was stunned.

Don't be naive.

Lin Che sneered.

"From the moment you signed the contract, from the moment ARM cut off the supply."

"In the eyes of those politicians outside, you are no longer scientists."

"You are 'traitors'."

"He is a 'traitor' who sold American nuclear weapons to the Chinese."

Lin Che pointed out the window.

The faint sound of sirens could be heard from there.

"Right now, only the area behind this door is safe."

"I am your only protector."

Dead silence.

The cruel truth, like a bucket of ice water, extinguished everyone's anger.

All that remained was fear.

They realized that Lin Che was right.

In this era of McCarthyism's resurgence, the people who came up with the RISC-V architecture have long been blacklisted.

"so……"

Jim took a deep breath.

Having weathered many storms, he quickly calmed down.

"How long are we going to stay here?"

"Until you build an architecture that's more powerful than ARM."

Lin Che walked up to a server.

He reached out and touched the cold metal casing.

"Or, until this war ends."

"This could take three, five, or even ten years."

"During this period."

Lin Che turned around.

With his back to the sun, he was bathed in shadow.

"You cannot leave this building."

"Cannot send emails."

"You can't make phone calls."

"I will make arrangements for your families. They can even come and live with us."

"I will give you everything except freedom."

"include……"

Lin Che snapped his fingers.

Xie Yu behind him opened a briefcase.

There's no money inside.

Instead, it was a freshly fabricated wafer, gleaming with a cold light.

That's TSMC's latest 7nm process prototype.

"Including this."

Lin Che picked up the wafer.

It's like displaying a gemstone.

"Unlimited opportunities for tape-out."

"No matter how many times we fail, no matter how much money we spend."

"If you dare to dream it, I dare to build it."

Jim's eyes widened.

For an architect, the allure of this "infinite stream" is more deadly than heroin.

At Intel, he would argue with the finance department for half a year over a change to an instruction set.

At Apple, he had to sacrifice performance for that damn power consumption control.

And here.

In this dictator's prison.

He possessed the authority of God.

"you……"

Jim swallowed hard.

His Adam's apple bobbed violently.

"Are you serious? Even if I burn through a billion dollars of your money, all I'll end up with is a pile of waste silicon?"

"Then I'll give you another billion."

Lin Che tossed the wafer to Jim.

Jim caught it in a flurry, as if holding the Holy Grail.

"In this world, only I know how much the things in your heads are worth."

Lin Che glanced at his watch.

Time is up.

Time to head to the airport.

"Alright, geniuses."

"The choice is yours."

"He'll be interrogated by the FBI and spend the rest of his life in prison."

"Stay here and be my prisoner."

"But I promise."

Lin Che walked to the door.

Stop walking.

There was no turning back.

"You can create miracles in this cage."

Done.

The door opened.

The wind blew in from outside, carrying a sense of freedom but also a hint of danger.

Nobody moved.

No one ran outside.

The young engineer silently returned to his workstation and turned on the monitor.

Jim looked at the wafer in his hand.

That was the prototype of the architecture he had been dreaming of.

He looked up and watched Lin Che's departing figure.

There was no hatred in his eyes.

There is only one kind of fanaticism that belongs to madmen.

"Close the door."

Jim shouted at the security personnel.

"Don't let the wind blow dust in. It will affect the server's heat dissipation."

"Click".

The gate was locked again.

This time.

They locked it themselves.

……

downstairs.

The black armored vehicle has started moving.

Lin Che got into the back seat.

He glanced at the huge floor-to-ceiling window on the second floor through the one-way glass.

The place was brightly lit.

Like a deserted island.

It's also like a lighthouse.

"Boss, are they really not going to run away?"

Xie Yu sat in the passenger seat, somewhat worried.

"Scientists are all crazy."

Lin Che closed his eyes and rubbed his throbbing temples.

"As long as they have enough toys, they don't care whether they're in heaven or hell."

"not to mention."

"The outside world is indeed hell right now."

My phone vibrated.

It's a flight reminder.

[CA986: San Francisco -> Beijing]

"Let's go."

Lin Che opened his eyes.

The fatigue in her eyes vanished instantly.

"The Silicon Valley issue is resolved."

"Next stop."

"Let's go see what a terrified Wall Street looks like."

The wheels are turning.

It crushed the fallen leaves on the ground.

The black sedan shot off like an arrow, hurtling towards the storm-stricken east.