94: From Technological Warfare to Space Empire

Lin Yu, who was about to continue exploring the European and American markets, suddenly had a flash of inspiration: it seemed that there really was a country in the ditch that produced this kind of smoky stuff.

So he continued:

"What I just told was just a simple joke, not something that's considered refined. In serious situations, we should talk about poetry and literature."

"It's a pity that Tang and Song poetry is too difficult; I'm not very good at it."

Do you know about Japanese haiku?

Upon hearing this, Yang Jia's interest was instantly piqued. She genuinely believed that Lin Yu was interested in Japanese culture and repeatedly asked him in a sweet voice if he could also compose haiku.

Lin Yu chuckled:

"Of course I will, listen carefully."

He cleared his throat again, stared intently at Yang Jia, and solemnly recited the haiku he had just composed, following the format of 575:

"The Kamikaze Corps back then..."

"If my teammate dies, I'll retreat."

"The widow's food is delicious!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than one of the men in black at the next table lost his grip on his wine glass and it shattered on the ground.

Yang Jia's smile froze instantly, pausing for two seconds before she forced a couple more laughs.

"Haha, Mr. Lin is truly talented."

"This haiku..."

Yang Jia gritted his teeth, gripped the miniature walkie-talkie hidden under his sleeve, and said with his eyes closed:

"This haiku is indeed well-crafted, hahaha."

Lin Yu put down his wine glass, picked up a piece of Dong'an chicken cavity and handed it to Yang Jia, saying meaningfully:

"Miss Lin seems to be a picky eater? Why isn't she eating this Dong'an chicken?"

"These chickens aren't caged; they're all free-range. Besides feed, they love to eat insects."

Whether it was Yang Jia's belated praise or his stiff smile, it all pointed to one thing—the spy was from the island nation of Japan.

That island nation is a tiny place, no bigger than four continents, and even the arrangement of its islands looks like a wriggling worm.

Seeing Lin Yu serve meat to Yang Jia, Xu Haoxiang somewhat bewilderedly slurped up a mouthful of the skinless eel meat, then snatched the chicken away as if grabbing it:

"Jiajia doesn't like chicken, why are you putting it on her plate, you stinky man?"

Lin Yu wasn't annoyed. Instead, he pretended to be a little annoyed and lightly slapped himself twice, saying:

"That's right, that's right. Look at my memory, the chicken should just stay in our own stomachs."

He picked up the glass and poured a drink for Yang Jia, then clinked glasses with him.

Perhaps due to the influence of alcohol, Yang Jia found it difficult to maintain the alluring yet innocent demeanor she had previously displayed.

Also because of Lin Yu's haiku, Yang Jia seemed to have thought of something, and his mood became somewhat low.

Lin Yu picked up a piece of spicy and sour pork belly with his chopsticks, chewed it slowly, and felt the fresh spiciness explode on his tongue:

"Miss Yang doesn't seem to have much interest in haiku? Well, it's a foreign folk song after all, how can it compare to our Tang and Song poetry?"

"Even if I tried to be clever and add a joke, it wouldn't pique Miss Yang's interest."

Yang Jia was filled with resentment, but dared not show it. He bit the tender flesh at the corner of his mouth, picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and used the spiciness of the liquor to rekindle his smile:

"Mr. Lin is joking. I just didn't grasp the meaning for a moment."

"I'm not good at history either, so I had to think about it carefully to understand what Mr. Lin was talking about."

Lin Yu chuckled softly, but it made the two men at the next table, who had been glancing at him frequently, tense up instantly.

"artistic conception?"

"This sentiment is something that only the Japanese can truly understand."

"After all, it's the 'wisdom' of deserting in the face of battle and the 'skill' of taking other men's wives and daughters."

Lin Yu's words were straightforward, and Xu Haoxiang seemed to suddenly understand, repeatedly saying "Yes, yes," and clinking his glass against Lin Yu's.

"Exactly, exactly. The Japanese are all they know how to do is this kind of infighting."

After savoring Lin Yu's haiku for a moment, Xu Haoxiang stood up, raised his glass, and invited him to join in.

"Haha, so this is what Japanese haiku is. It doesn't seem that difficult."

"Jiajia! I'll write one for you too!"

Yang Jia's eye twitched. He hadn't expected that Xu Haoxiang, that idiot, would stand up and annoy him like this. He glared at him, his eyebrows slightly furrowed in surprise.

"Haoxiang, you're drunk. Don't embarrass yourself in front of Mr. Lin! Sit down!"

But once Xu Haoxiang entered, he did nothing but eat and drink, without stopping at all. His face was flushed, and the corners of his eyes were upturned, clearly indicating that he was drunk.

Lin Yu chimed in, having realized that while Xu Haoxiang might seem simple-minded, he actually was, but occasionally he could utter some truly astonishing remarks at just the right moment.

"It's not shameful at all. Haoxiang spent an afternoon learning about artificial intelligence algorithms from me."

"We also discussed for a while the reasons for the failure of Japan's fifth-generation supercomputer."

"Haoxiang now knows Japan very well, who knows, he might actually be able to come up with some really insightful haiku."

Lin Yu squinted and threw out another bait, smiling like a fox, waiting for the fish to take the bait.

In this era of bursting bubble, the failure of the fifth-generation supercomputer is a painful defeat that Japan finds hard to accept.

If you use this to fish, you're guaranteed to catch something every time.

If Yang Jia were really Japanese, he would still want to vent his anger.

Hearing Lin Yu say this, Xu Haoxiang's eyes lit up, and he slapped his chest loudly, saying:

"No kidding! I spent the whole afternoon learning with Lin Yu! Now I'm a knowledgeable person too!"

"Jiajia, shall I read you a poem?"

Xu Haoxiang's cheeks flushed, and he exhaled the smell of alcohol onto Yang Jia's face as he smiled foolishly in front of her.

Although Yang Jia knew that Xu Haoxiang was unlikely to say anything of substance, she recalled that the manuscript she had stolen from Lin Yu had earned her a reward from her superiors. What if there was some important information this time?

What if Lin Yu really does know something about their fifth-generation supercomputer?

This was not without precedent. Lin Yu's manuscript had already caused a great stir in their scientific research community, with research institutions frequently applauding and issuing orders to obtain more manuscripts.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately classified the task of approaching Lin Yu as a Level 1 operation.

Besides her, several other teams are currently trying to obtain Lin Yu's first-hand manuscripts from the seemingly impenetrable research team.

Although she is currently making the fastest progress, she hasn't yet obtained more up-to-date information.

This was a rare opportunity, and Lin Yu's words today seemed somewhat sarcastic, as if he had seen through something.

If we don't give it our all now, other teams might overtake us in terms of progress later.

Yang Jia silently turned up the volume on the walkie-talkie hidden in her sleeve, and used her hand to block Xu Haoxiang's gaze from falling on her chest.

"Then I'm all ears, Haoxiang, please go ahead and speak."

Thinking of the anti-Japanese war stories his family had told him when he was a child, Xu Haoxiang stood up, raised his glass, and shouted loudly to the guests at the surrounding tables:

"Ladies and gentlemen! Please listen to my poem!"

This eccentric behavior drew frequent glances from those around him. Seeing that Xu Haoxiang looked quite young, some young people who appeared to be children of officials also raised their glasses in a toast.

Xu Haoxiang paused for two seconds, then read aloud:

"Tokyo Island back then"

"Aircraft-guided missiles and intense flames"

"The Emperor Turns into Yakitori"

"Falsifying medical records to return to Hiroshima"

"I didn't choose a good hometown."

As soon as he finished speaking, the bustling hall seemed to be emptied of air, becoming as silent as a vacuum for two seconds, before bursting into enthusiastic applause and laughter.

Quyuanlou has always been a popular dining spot for children of high-ranking officials and their families.

Most of them were well aware of that period of history, and when they saw Xu Haoxiang use haiku to depict the historical event of Li Mei burning Tokyo, they were all overjoyed and began to create their own haiku.

Xu Haoxiang was also raising his glass to drink, completely unaware of Yang Jia's ashen face.

Lin Yu did see it, and handed Yang Jia a slice of grilled beef:

"Miss Yang, why do you look a little pale? Have some grilled meat to nourish yourself."

Yang Jia gritted his teeth and spat out each word one by one:

"What does what he's saying have to do with artificial intelligence algorithms and fifth-generation computers?"

Lin Yu scratched his head, grinned, and said again:

"Who cares? Let's not talk about boring things while we eat. As long as it's fun."