White armor

Chapter 720 Industrial Cthulhu is so powerful that even "maggots" have an industrial chain.
"Xiao Zhuang, what's wrong?" Chen Yong turned around and looked at Zhuang Yan with some curiosity.

"I'm not going, Yong-ge, ugh~~~" Zhuang Yan's face turned pale. "I think I smell a latrine. I can't take it right now, even the slightest smell makes me... ugh~~~"

"I'll tell you!"

Chen Yong was quick-witted and immediately understood what had happened.

He was wearing two masks, one surgical mask and one N95 mask, so his sense of smell wasn't as sensitive as Zhuang Yan's.

In addition, Zhuang Yan was disgusted on the helicopter last time and had psychological trauma, so she was 10 times more sensitive to the smell of dry toilets. Therefore, she could smell the smell from a long distance away from the door of the interventional catheterization room.

"You should go back first, don't force yourself." Chen Yong narrowed his eyes and adjusted his mask. "I'll go see what's going on."

"Brother Yong, why don't we go back together?" Zhuang Yan felt embarrassed to walk alone and wanted to pull Chen Yong along.

Chen Yong waved his hand and placed his finger on the fingerprint lock.

"Bang~"

The large iron door of the interventional catheterization lab slammed open.

Zhuang Yan ran faster than a rabbit, showing no interest in gossip or curiosity whatsoever.

Chen Yong walked into the interventional catheterization room, his eyes narrowed to slits. "Luo Hao, is the bathroom clogged?"

"more or less."

Luo Hao stood with his arms crossed at the door of the catheterization operating room, looking inside.

"How can this be so offensive?"

With tears in his eyes, Chen Yong walked over and saw two AI robots cleaning the house.

"Wow, look how badly this is blocked! It's even spraying onto the roof!" Chen Yong exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes, it is quite serious." Luo Hao said wearily and weakly.

"So tired?"

"It's more tiring than performing ten surgeries while wearing a lead apron," Luo Hao sighed. "The main problem is that I can't open my eyes; it's physically painful to the eyes. If I can't stand it, I'll prioritize AI robots developing surgeries for this kind of procedure!"

"You too, everyone else is avoiding it, but you insist on rushing in."

Seeing Luo Hao's disheveled state, Chen Yong immediately launched into a mockery. The mockery was there, but Chen Yong's eyes narrowed into a knowing arc, subtly gleaming.

Even Chen Yong couldn't stand the pungent smell.

His resistance to magic is relatively high, but his resistance to physical damage is somewhat low.

"There's no other way. If you don't do it and I don't do it, what will happen to other patients like us? This time it seems okay, at least Xiao Meng got sprayed all over," Luo Hao said.

"If the AI ​​were to revolt in the future, would you be the first one Xiao Meng hangs?" Chen Yong asked. "I suggest you treat the AI ​​better."

"No, I don't bully people. It's a silicon-based life form, and its senses are different from those of carbon-based life forms. I think AI can understand it."

Chen Yong suddenly turned his head and looked at Luo Hao seriously.

"Luo Hao, have people from Institute 209 already entered the AI ​​world?" He immediately realized the subtle clue in Luo Hao's words.

"Chen Yong, you're overthinking it. Don't ask about classified matters."

"!!!" Chen Yong knew Luo Hao too well. This answer had many meanings, but Chen Yong sensitively captured the message that Luo Hao wanted to convey.

"What are you waiting for? Xiao Meng did a good job." Chen Yong changed the subject.

“We have to keep an eye on it. How can you expect AI to work without supervision? Xiao Meng is indeed doing a good job, but this is just the beginning.” Luo Hao sighed, breathing cautiously, just enough to maintain the bare minimum of vital signs.

"This is too much to bear. How long are you going to watch it?" Chen Yong asked Luo Hao.

"After they've finished their bath and drying, you can start charging them."

"That will take a long time." Chen Yong subconsciously wanted to yawn, but suddenly realized his surroundings and held it in.

"Go outside and wait, this is an eyesore," Luo Hao said simply.

"Let's chat for a while, time will pass faster." Chen Yong didn't mind at all. He listened attentively and laughed, "With the exhaust fan on full blast, it should be done in no time."

"probably."

As the saying goes, a man is a boy until he dies.

"Brother Qiang, long time no see," Luo Hao said with a smile as he answered the phone.

"Oh, I just stepped off the stage. I have some trouble with something. Please wait a moment."

"Okay, let me take a shower first. I just had surgery and I still smell. Sorry, it'll take at least an hour."

When Geng Qiang's voice came from the other end of the phone, Luo Hao was somewhat surprised, but he didn't say anything and then hung up.

"Is Geng Qiang looking for you?"

"Perhaps it's because he's in a new environment, governing a region, and facing some minor challenges," Luo Hao said with a smile. "Boss Xia always seems to encounter similar invitations."

Mr. Xia, Chen Yong suddenly understood something.

The original intention was to make money, so they consulted livestock professionals to see if they had any new ideas.

To be honest, Geng Qiang had a special status and position when he was in the province, but sooner or later, he would be demoted to a lower level to govern a region.

Moreover, Geng Qiang is very meticulous, as can be seen from his work at the Ice and Snow World.

"Could it be that they're planning to turn the entire province into a production base for Heilongjiang Wagyu beef?" Chen Yong asked.

"Who knows? We'll find out when we meet. Are you coming with me?"

"Go, why wouldn't you go?"

Luo Hao nodded and quietly waited for the AI ​​robot to finish cleaning up the operating room and go to take a shower.

He really didn't want to talk. The smell in the interventional catheterization room was quite unpleasant, and Luo Hao felt like he was unclean and filthy.

After finishing cleaning, Luo Hao was relieved to see that the AI ​​robot had washed everything clean, had no smell at all, and then dried itself and went to charge.

After taking a shower in the operating room of the Department of External Medicine, Luo Hao felt a little better.

Luo Hao and Chen Yong went downstairs to visit a patient and change clothes, declining the invitations from the director and poverty alleviation cadres.

Geng Qiang seems to have lost some weight compared to before, probably due to overwork and poor diet and sleep.

"Other officials get fat, but look at your brother Qiang, how come you've lost so much weight? Are you sick?" Chen Yong joked.

"Sigh, he still wants to climb higher, so we have to keep an eye on him. It's not time for him to retire yet." Luo Hao said, stretching out his hand and taking a few quick steps.

"Brother Qiang, I'm so sorry, a patient was having surgery and it caused a delay."

"Don't be so polite. I'm here to seek advice from the great experts. It's summer now, but if it were winter, I would have to stand at the gate waiting for you to come out, which would be a version of the story of Cheng Men Li Xue (standing in the snow outside Cheng's door) to express my sincerity."

Seeing that Geng Qiang was joking, Luo Hao turned off the AI ​​diagnostic system. He wasn't sick, he was just tired.

It's not easy for someone in charge of a region to get anything substantial done.

"Brother Qiang, what are your thoughts on that?" Luo Hao asked bluntly.

"Xiao Luo, get in the car first. My home isn't around here anymore, it'll be the three of us..."

Luo Hao understood, and the three of them considered it a meal together. Geng Qiang clearly didn't want to touch anything illegal, lest someone find a pretext to use against him.

"Let's go to my place. Da Nizi cooked dinner, let's just grab a bite," Luo Hao said. "I'll drive, so you don't need to drive, Brother Qiang."

Once in the car, Geng Qiang seemed a little more relaxed, as if he had returned to the time when he was preparing for the Ice and Snow World.

"Xiao Luo, I don't know why, but seeing you makes me feel at ease," Geng Qiang said honestly.

"Brother Qiang, don't praise me like that. Tell me what happened."

"Do you know what a mealworm is?"

"Yes, mealworms are insects belonging to the genus *Tetranychus* of the family Tenebrionidae. They are also known as breadworms, noodle worms, golden worms, and yellow mealworms."

"I knew you knew!" Geng Qiang said excitedly. "I want to raise these kinds of insects."

"Huh? Why keep it?" Luo Hao asked as he drove out of the hospital's underground parking lot.

"Europe has just enacted new food regulations, which will legally allow the addition of 4% insect meal to European food!"

"What?!" Chen Yong exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh? Have they gone mad?" Luo Hao was also surprised. He had seen mealworms before; these insects originated in North America and are now widely distributed around the world. In the wild, they mostly inhabit hidden places under the leaf litter layer in forests, as well as under rocks and logs.

In the past, they were pests of grains, but now in artificial breeding, they feed on rice bran, leafy vegetables, wild plants, and animal protein.

Luo Hao was surprised that the EU would issue such food regulations. Does this mean eating insects directly? Or has the four major grain traders already driven the EU to its wits' end?

"Luo Hao, is this it?" Chen Yong asked, holding his phone with the screen next to Luo Hao.

Luo Hao glanced to the side, then immediately turned back to face forward.

"Yes."

"This thing looks like a maggot, can you eat it?" Chen Yong asked in astonishment.

"I don't know, I've never eaten it. But to put it bluntly, it's just biological protein, not much different from maggots."

"Xiao Luo, give me a definite answer, can you raise it?" Geng Qiang interrupted Luo Hao and Chen Yong's conversation and asked enthusiastically.

"I've never kept them before. They used to be considered pests. I'll ask about it later."

Geng Qiang was slightly disappointed, but he quickly laughed and said, "I was just asking casually. It seems that there aren't any training programs for this in China yet. I was just thinking about it, and after seeing the news, I wondered if I could make money from it. Let me tell you something, don't laugh at me, but right now all I can think about is making money and helping my fellow villagers get out of poverty and become rich."

“No, that’s not it. The lab has them,” Luo Hao said. “I saw someone cultivate mealworms when I was in the capital.”

"Holy shit!" Geng Qiang was stunned for a moment, and his skull almost felt like it was being blasted open by an electric current.

The business opportunities here are limitless. If you can seize this opportunity, it will take at least two years before others notice and start rolling it up without limit.

Two years is enough for the county to make a lot of money and increase its GDP by several percentage points.

"Brother Qiang, this stuff is rare, but not uncommon. It was introduced to China from the former Soviet Union in the 50s for breeding. Dried yellow mealworms contain 30% fat and more than 50% protein. In addition, they also contain macro-elements such as phosphorus, potassium, iron, sodium, and aluminum, as well as a variety of trace elements."

Because dried mealworm larvae contain about 40% protein, pupae about 57%, and adults about 60%, they are hailed as a treasure trove of protein feed.

"What treasure trove? Do you need to add MSG to your food when you're eating maggots? It sounds so nice," Chen Yong mocked.

"You're not even in England anymore, so why are you so averse to this? Chen Yong, please don't take it personally," Luo Hao asked with a smile.

“The food there was already bad, and now they’ve added maggots to it, it’s really disgusting,” Chen Yong said angrily. “That’s really harsh. Farmyard manure is still manure, it’s all about material things,” Luo Hao said. “Although it looks disgusting, it is indeed rich in protein. I’m sure Boss Xia hasn’t raised them, but I should be able to contact the agricultural research institute.”

"!!!" Countless exclamation marks of surprise appeared above Geng Qiang's head.

He originally asked Luo Hao on a whim, but he didn't expect Luo Hao to be so well-connected, even knowing when mealworms were introduced to China.

"Luo Hao, why did you introduce mealworms back then?" Geng Qiang asked.

He was very skeptical of the veracity of Luo Hao's story.

“Eat, you don’t know how poor we were right after liberation… You don’t know, we didn’t even have tree bark back then.” Luo Hao sighed. “Now it’s finally the old Europeans’ turn to eat mealworms?”

"It's true what they say, what goes around comes around."

Luo Hao concluded with a sigh.

"I don't think I've ever heard of anyone in China eating this stuff," Geng Qiang said, puzzled.

"That's because the submarine was launched less than two years after the introduction, and the special steel met the standards. At the same time as the submarine was launched, fertilizer could be produced. With the increase in fertilizer production, we were able to barely avoid going hungry. This is what I heard from the bosses. As for the later vegetable basket project and so on, that's another story."

"It's probably not an adult mealworm, but a larva. As for the ultraviolet disinfection and such, it's just a gimmick to make people more accepting."

Luo Hao explained as simply and thoroughly as possible.

"That's great! Is this stuff produced in large quantities?!" Geng Qiang asked.

"They're big and very easy to raise. Actually, Chen Yong wasn't wrong; they are maggots. You see, maggots can even survive in feces soup..."

As Luo Hao spoke, he recalled the Siberian tiger swimming in the dung heap.

"Especially easy to raise?" Geng Qiang didn't believe it.

He's feeling a bit anxious and uncertain right now.

"For example, mealworm larvae can degrade polystyrene and other difficult-to-degrade plastics."

"!!!"

"!!!"

"The larvae of the yellow mealworm can use polystyrene foam as their sole food source and survive for more than a month before developing into adults. At the same time, they completely degrade the polystyrene they eat into carbon dioxide or convert it into body fat."

"Besides mealworms, Indian meal borer larvae can also chew and ingest polyethylene (PE) films. Two strains isolated from the larval intestines, namely Enterobacter YT1 and Bacillus YP1, have the ability to degrade PE films."

"Is it really that amazing?!" Chen Yong exclaimed in surprise. "Could this be a conspiracy by some environmental organization?"

"Who cares? We're taking a different path here. Once we're covered with solar photovoltaic panels and the technology for producing starch with electricity is mature, we'll never have to worry about food or clothing again."

"Uh~~~"

Luo Hao's description was a bit frightening.

"I think I raised these things when I was a kid, but I don't remember them very well. I don't know if they are mealworms."

"You? Why would you keep it?" Chen Yong asked in surprise.

"My father kept a bird before he passed away. Back then, people called it a way to cultivate one's character."

Luo Hao spoke calmly about his father's death, without a trace of emotion.

"They reproduced extremely quickly. At first, it was alright; I fed the birds with chopsticks. But the birds couldn't keep up with their breeding rate when they ate the mealworms. Later, there were more and more of them, and sparrows from all around came to have a feast."

"So easy to raise?" Geng Qiang said, somewhat disappointed.

"Brother Qiang, don't worry. Now that the EU has issued this law, the amount of mealworms needed will be enormous. They can be bred freely, then disinfected, ground into powder, and sent to Europe."

"The difficulty with this route isn't raising mealworms, but selling them. You need a proper sales channel over there... By the way, do you have a sales channel where you are?"

Geng Qiang nodded, but didn't explain anything in detail.

"That's good." Luo Hao drove home, and Da Nizi had already prepared dinner. But when she saw Geng Qiang and Chen Yong coming back together, she immediately realized that there wasn't enough food.

"Da Nizi, just cook a bowl of noodles." Luo Hao smiled and hugged Da Nizi. "Let's chat. Brother Qiang needs to talk to me."

"Oh, it's not good to just cook noodles." Wang Jianni felt a little embarrassed.

"It's alright, you go ahead and do your work, we'll chat for a bit."

Luo Hao and the others sat down, and Luo Hao took out his phone and started sending out inquiries in several group chats.

Soon someone replied; it was an agricultural research institute in Beihu.

Luo Hao acted as the middleman, creating a small group chat and having Geng Qiang add him as a friend.

As for what happened next, Luo Hao didn't have much energy to care about it.

The agricultural research institute in Beihu Province was very enthusiastic; they hadn't expected that someone would need mealworm breeding techniques so quickly.

After making inquiries, Geng Qiang learned that the industry of raising mealworms has existed in China for a long time, and the specific breeding methods are quite mature, including the boxes for raising mealworms, heaters, vibrators, and so on.

More than a decade ago, mealworms were a scam, but now Langshi Group in Dongshan Province has turned them into protein feed, and they are buying up mealworms all over the country.

After understanding, Geng Qiang was completely speechless.

What he thought was far from the reality was. He originally thought he was a pioneer who had found an extremely rare direction and could help his fellow villagers make some money.

However, the indescribable nature of Industrial Cthulhu greatly shocked Geng Qiang.

Isn't this just re-exporting domestic feed to be used as food additives? Everyone talks about how great Europe is, and now they're going to start eating feed too?!

However, even so, an industrial chain has already been formed in China.

"It has to be Dongshan Province," Luo Hao praised after learning about it.

"why?"

"Hyaluronic acid production in Dongshan Province accounts for more than 90% of the global output. People are superstitious about European hyaluronic acid, but it is actually produced in Dongshan Province. It is sent to Europe for a treatment, a zero is added to the end, and then it is sold back."

“When you mention that it’s made in Dongshan Province, it doesn’t sound very high-end or classy,” Chen Yong said with a smile.

Luo Hao laughed too. That was indeed the case. Even a typical Han chauvinist like Chen Yong thought so, let alone others.

"Besides hyaluronic acid, there's something else. I just didn't expect that mealworms are also processed into feed in Dongshan Province. If that's the case, it'll be simple, Brother Qiang. Sometimes the EU will nitpick our products and find fault to impose taxes. If we encounter similar problems, we can turn the mealworms into feed, or sell them to the EU while raising pigs and cattle in our village."

Chen Yong's expression turned somewhat strange.

Luo Hao knew this guy was definitely projecting himself into the situation, just thinking about how the bread and pasta he ate in England contained 4% pig feed...

Hahahaha.

Luo Hao was secretly delighted. This was indeed interesting; finally, Young Master Ou was getting some feed.

Geng Qiang wasn't smug, nor did he think as much as Luo Hao did. He started calculating how many mealworms and the like he needed to produce.

He only ate a few bites of food haphazardly, and before leaving, Geng Qiang ordered 10 AI robots from Luo Hao.

During the day, manual labor can be used, but at night, AI robots are needed to protect the mealworm farm.

It would actually be better to use AI robots throughout the entire process, but since it involves the livelihood of the people in the county, it is necessary to provide jobs. Geng Qiang was not sure about the appropriate level of intervention, so he only ordered 10 AI robots.

After seeing Geng Qiang off, Chen Yong laughed and said, "Actually, a dark factory would be more suitable. In the future, the old Europeans can add 50% yellow mealworms to their food."

"People in the county still need to have jobs. We're not in the communist era anymore, where everyone can just lie down and relax. Just wait, it'll be over soon."

Chen Yong looked at Luo Hao with a strange expression.

"I'm telling the truth. In a few more years, with our current technology, we can achieve communism. The next stage of capitalism, Marx was right."

"Aren't you being too optimistic?"

"I've always been optimistic, so what's wrong with Lao Liu?"

"She's on duty today, so I came out to grab a bite to eat, but all I got was instant noodles." Chen Yong complained with some regret, "Old Liu is great in every way, except she's so hard on herself every day just to maintain her figure, and she's been hard on me too."

"It's much better than you having to eat mealworms in England right now."

Chen Yong thought about it and realized that it made sense. If you think about it that way, there's nothing you can't accept.

"I'm leaving."

"Aren't you going to sit for a while?"

"No, you two play, I'm going to find Lao Liu." Chen Yong waved his hand, showing no intention of driving. "I don't know what's wrong with Lao Liu lately, he's been incredibly busy."

"Go ahead, don't bother seeing me out."

After leaving Luo Hao's villa, Chen Yong didn't hail a car but instead walked slowly to the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University.

It's not far from the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, about half an hour away, so it's a good place for a stroll.

As Chen Yong walked, he texted Liu Yiyi. There weren't many surgeries tonight, and Liu Yiyi was grabbing a bite to eat between two surgeries.

We don't usually eat, but we have to eat when we're on duty. Nobody knows what kind of patients we'll encounter next, or how much energy and stamina we'll need to deal with them.

Chen Yong wasn't wearing a mask, and the corners of his lips were upturned. Old Liu probably just happened to be on duty. If she had a different job, maintaining her figure wouldn't be as difficult as it is now.

Upon arriving at the hospital entrance, Chen Yong spotted a familiar figure in the distance.

Ma Zhuang!

The guy was pacing back and forth in circles at the doorway, seemingly waiting for someone.

From a distance, Ma Zhuang looked much more mature than before, and Chen Yong could even sense a faint murderous aura emanating from him.

I wonder what this guy did abroad. Doing business here isn't as safe as it is in China.

Although deep-sea fishing in China is quite troublesome, it's just fishing, not to the extent of fishing abroad.

"Ma Zhuang!" Chen Yong waved and called out loudly.

Ma Zhuang looked around and saw Chen Yong. He grinned and ran over.

"Brother Yong!"

"Huh? Who taught you to call me that?" Chen Yong asked.

"Ah? Hahaha, I'm back. I came home to see my family. I was just wondering if Professor Luo had come home yet."

"Even the donkeys in the production team aren't used like this. Don't you see what time it is?" Chen Yong said. "Did you tell Luo Hao?"

A strange, conflicted expression suddenly flashed across Ma Zhuang's face.

(End of this chapter)