One Yuan First Recharge: I'm Actually the Boss Behind a Fortune 500 Company

The visitor was Liu Zhiyuan, the deputy director of the Investment Promotion Bureau of the High-tech Zone in the provincial capital. He was in his early forties, had a kind face, and spoke in a style that was as smooth and tactful as that commonly found in the government system.

"Mr. Wang, it's been a long time." Liu Zhiyuan extended his hand as soon as he entered the door, beaming with smiles.

"I heard you've recently recruited quite a few more people, and your team is getting bigger and bigger. Congratulations!"

Wang Hao shook hands with him and politely invited him to sit down:

"Director Liu, is there anything I can do for you today?"

"Actually, it's nothing major. I just wanted to know how things are progressing."

Liu Zhiyuan sat down and took a document out of his briefcase:

"In addition, the city recently introduced a policy to support the development of high-tech manufacturing, which provides special funding for some eligible projects."

"I took a look at your project and it seems to meet the application requirements, so I thought I'd come and let you know."

He placed the documents on the table and pushed them in front of Wang Hao:

"If you're interested, you can take a look. There are still twenty days left in the application window, so you still have enough time."

Wang Hao picked up the document and flipped through it. It was a notice about applying for municipal-level science and technology special funds. The document format was very formal, and the application process and conditions were clearly stated.

"Thanks, Director Liu." Wang Hao put down the document.

"I'll have the finance department look into it, and if there's a suitable direction for the application, we'll actively pursue it."

"That's good." Liu Zhiyuan nodded with a smile, then added a seemingly casual remark:

"Mr. Wang, the city is actually paying close attention to your project."

"There haven't been any decent high-end manufacturing projects in the provincial capital for a long time. If this project can be completed, it will be a great example for the industrial upgrading of our high-tech zone."

Upon hearing this, Wang Hao's heart stirred slightly—he could discern the subtext in Liu Zhiyuan's words.

Attention also means pressure.

"We will do our best," Wang Hao said.

"I believe you." Liu Zhiyuan stood up, extended his hand, and said, "Then I won't disturb you any longer. If there's anything that needs to be coordinated, feel free to call me anytime."

After seeing Liu Zhiyuan off, Wang Hao returned to his office, put the policy document aside, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes to think for a while.

The application for special funds shows that the city has indeed taken notice of them—which is a positive sign for Xingyue Intelligent.

But he also knows very well that government attention can sometimes be a double-edged sword.

If you do well, you'll receive support; if you do poorly, the attention will turn into accountability and punishment.

He turned on his computer, scanned the document, and sent it to Sister Wang so she could take a look.

After doing all that, he glanced at his phone again—the clock on the screen showed 3:15 p.m.

Outside the window, the cold wind was still howling.

But the lights in the factory remained on as always.

After the news of the special fund application spread within the team, Sister Wang reacted the most.

This finance manager, who is usually gentle and soft-spoken, slammed her fist on the table for the first time during the morning meeting.

The official document left by Liu Zhiyuan lay open in front of her, a pen in her hand, the tip poking small dents into the paper. She spoke with agitation:

"Wang Hao, we must seize this opportunity, no matter what!"

She pointed to the terms on the document and explained them to everyone one by one—the municipal science and technology special fund can provide subsidies of up to 30% of the total investment in a project, with a maximum of eight million yuan;

Key areas of support include strategic emerging industries such as next-generation information technology, high-end equipment manufacturing, and new materials—with next-generation information technology being listed first.

"The mobile phones we make, from chips to systems to imaging algorithms, fully meet the definition of the next generation of information technology."

"As long as the materials are prepared adequately, the probability of a successful application is very high."

As Sister Wang finished speaking, she pushed up her glasses and said, "Eight million, Wang Hao, not eight hundred thousand."

Wang Hao leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the table a few times, without rushing to express his opinion.

His gaze shifted from the document and swept across the faces of the people sitting in the conference room—Song Kai looked calm, Zhao Mingyuan seemed thoughtful, and Zhou Haibo had a slight frown.

"Eight million is indeed no small sum," Wang Hao finally spoke, his voice neither hurried nor slow.

"But I'd like to ask a question first—if our application is successful, what conditions will come with receiving this money?"

There was a two-second silence in the conference room.

Sister Wang opened her mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

She knew, of course, that government special funds weren't given away for free—once you received the money, you had to accept supervision, report progress regularly, and be subject to audits and performance evaluations.

If the project is severely behind schedule or the funds are used improperly, not only will the disbursed funds be returned, but the project may also be blacklisted and unable to apply for any government-supported projects for the next few years.

"There will be oversight and auditing, as well as performance evaluations," Sister Wang answered truthfully.

"But as long as our project progresses normally and the funds are used in accordance with regulations, these problems are not significant."

"What are the chances of the project progressing normally?" Wang Hao asked, turning his gaze to Song Kai.

Song Kai was silent for a few seconds, then answered very frankly:

"Currently, the progress is within a controllable range, but it's not yet at a point where we can guarantee anything."

"We are still working on several key technical challenges in the image algorithm, and the system's stability test has only just begun its first round."

"If everything goes smoothly, we can enter the whole machine integration and testing phase after the Spring Festival. But to say that it's 'absolutely foolproof'—I can't do that."

"I can't do that either," Zhao Mingyuan replied. "The chip is still optimizing its power consumption curve, and the results of the second round of tape-out won't be available until next week."

"If the results are not ideal, a third round of tape-out may be necessary."

"Each tape-out takes at least two weeks, and there is a lot of uncertainty in the timeline."

"There aren't any major problems with the supply chain," Zhou Haibo said.

"Contracts with the main suppliers have been signed, and delivery dates have been locked in."

"But frankly speaking, when it comes to supply chains, no one can predict what unexpected things might happen—for example, a certain material might suddenly be out of stock, or there might be a delay at customs, all of which could affect the overall progress."

After listening to what the three people said, Wang Hao nodded slightly.

He turned to look at Sister Wang: "You heard it too."

Sister Wang bit her lip. Of course she heard it, but she was still unwilling to give up.

What does an eight million yuan subsidy mean for a startup? It means having enough cash flow to last for six months or even longer, it means being able to hire a few more people for key positions, and it means having some working capital in case of unforeseen circumstances.