Break out of the courtyard

When Zhang Heping found Director Zhao and his group at the restaurant, they had almost finished lunch.

"I only remembered to invite Old Zhao to lunch when my lunch alarm went off. I didn't expect you to be so quick to act." Zhang Heping walked to the table with a smile and glanced at the home-style dishes on it.

"Eating is not as important as your research, don't worry about me!" Old Zhao waved his right hand holding the chopsticks casually.

If anyone else had said this, Zhang Heping might have thought they were being sarcastic, but he and Director Zhao were longtime friends despite their age difference, and they also had a collaborative project at the underground base in Shenzhen, so he didn't need to think too much about it.

Director Wang invited, "Heping, would you like to sit down and eat with us?"

"Xiao Qin, ask the waiter to add a few more dishes!" Old Hua chimed in from the side.

"No, I'm being waited for at home for dinner!" Zhang Heping smiled and declined the invitation, then said, "Wait for me this afternoon, and come to my house for dinner tonight."

Old Hua chuckled and agreed, "Alright, it just so happens that no one's drinking your wine, we'll go help you clear out your inventory!"

"If Mr. Hua wants to drink, then I'll have to find a few people to keep you company beforehand," Zhang Heping said with a smile. "You guys enjoy your meal, I'll head back now!"

After leaving the hotel and getting into the armored vehicle, Zhang Heping called his mother, Ma Xiuzhen, at the Shenzhen Peace College to ask when they would be coming to Hong Kong Island.

As a result, Ma Xiuzhen cited her brother's illness as the reason for not considering going to Hong Kong Island for the time being.

“My uncle is just having regular checkups now; he doesn’t need any medication or IV drips. What are you all doing staying there?” Zhang Heping said with some helplessness after hearing his mother’s explanation.
"Bring your uncle and the others along, and let them look around Hong Kong Island. Follow-up appointments and such can be done at the Hong Kong Island hospital; they'll just send the results to me anyway."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone before Ma Xiuzhen said, "San'er, your father and I have discussed it and decided that we won't go to Hong Kong this year to trouble you. It's just as good to spend the New Year here in Shenzhen!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Heping's brows furrowed immediately.

His mother, Ma Xiuzhen, did not let him go home for the New Year, only saying that she did not want to cause him trouble. She had obviously heard something and changed her stance, but she did not want to affect Zhang Heping.

“Didn’t you say before that you were going to bring Tan Ying and her parents to Hong Kong Island?” Zhang Heping frowned and said, “You should discuss this with your eldest and second eldest sisters again. If you decide to spend the New Year in Shenzhen, I will have Xiao Bei and the others go back to keep you company.”

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Heping closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, pondering trivial matters on the mainland.

His staying on Hong Kong Island was not to completely sever ties with the mainland, but simply to demonstrate an attitude and to assist the Zhang family in entering the ranks of the powerful.

What he wanted was never a spokesperson, and Elder Hua and Director Wang knew this, but they didn't offer much help.

Sometimes, Zhang Heping even wondered if the forces behind suppressing his eldest and second eldest sisters' promotions were instigated or condoned by Hua Lao, because he only wanted Zhang Heping to quietly do research and make contributions.

Therefore, Zhang Heping directly relinquished control over the approval of the Shouyuan 120 drug, and continued to supply the drug for free at a loss, only controlling the monthly production authorization.

This seemingly generous gesture is actually a calculated scheme!
As more and more people use the Lifespan 120 potion and its effects become widely known, as long as Zhang Heping does not hand over the technology related to the Lifespan 120 potion, others will be wary of Zhang Heping interrupting the production of the Lifespan 120 potion again.

The key point is that Zhang Heping did this because he acted impulsively!
In addition, Zhang Heping still has two trump cards in his hand: a Lifespan 160 potion and a Lifespan 200 potion that he hasn't played yet.

Once more and more people have benefited from the Lifespan 120 potion, what will they do?
They either force Zhang Heping to hand over the technology for a better medicine or a longevity medicine!
Either submit to Zhang Heping in exchange for free potions in the next phase!
Either wait to die!
If Zhang Heping had stayed in mainland China, he would likely have faced various forms of pressure, so he decided to stay in Hong Kong Island and project an image of being ready to immigrate at any time.

Therefore, the mainland's efforts to persuade his parents, elder sister, and second elder sister to convince Zhang Heping's family to return to the mainland were actually within Zhang Heping's expectations.

Since he couldn't invite his father, Zhang Bing, Zhang Heping could only ask his father-in-law and brother-in-law to come over and drink with Hua Lao that evening.

As for Director Zhao, like Zhang Heping, he rarely drinks alcohol in order to prevent his hands from shaking during brain surgery.

Putting aside those trivial matters, Zhang Heping went home, ate lunch, took a half-hour nap, and then went to the library.

After receiving a call from her mother, Ma Xiuzhen, at noon, Zhang Pandi was unsure about her third brother Zhang Heping's thoughts, so she took some time to go to the library.

Regarding virtual reality games, Zhang Pandi and her husband Zhang Yong have both gone to the mountains to play them, and they've also experienced the virtual reality tiered classroom. However, they haven't tried the learning pods at the library yet.

When she arrived, she didn't see Zhang Heping, but was spotted by Zhang Feng, who was out of the cabin drinking an energy drink.

At Zhang Feng's invitation, Zhang Pandi simply stepped into an unused learning pod to see what this dream was like, and also to see what her son Zhang Yi was doing.

The higher-ups asked her son to lead a team to conduct brain-computer interface research. Zhang Pandi actually understood the purpose behind this; the essence was to get Zhang Heping to hand over the relevant brain-computer interface technology.

Zhang Pandi had asked her third brother, Zhang Heping, about this before, and Zhang Heping did not object, which suggests that he had some concerns.

After entering the virtual dream, Zhang Pandi was greeted by a large circular hall, about seven or eight times larger than the hall of a real library.

Looking up, you can see layer upon layer of railings, but you can't see any bookshelves.

Just as Zhang Pandi was wondering why there was no one in the huge library, a scarecrow rode in on a bicycle.

"Second Aunt, Yi-ge and his wife are in the factory area on the right outside the gate, the warehouse area is on the left, and the laboratory is in the back. You can look around by yourself first, I have something to do!"

A scarecrow with a small red flag on its head bearing the name Zhang Feng rode a bicycle around the hall once before speeding out the door.

Although Zhang Pandi had heard some details about the dream from Zhang Yi and Luo Yi, she was still somewhat taken aback when she saw the scarecrow Zhang Feng talking to her.

However, when she found herself transformed into a scarecrow, she quickly accepted the situation.

Once outside the library, Zhang Pandi realized where everyone else had gone.

On the open space next to the factory building on the right, there were many scarecrows; some scarecrows were riding bicycles and tricycles, running to the left and right.

Based on what Zhang Feng just said, Zhang Pandi guessed that riding her bike to the scarecrow on the left was to get something from the warehouse.

Because everyone was dressed as a scarecrow, with men and women distinguished only by their underwear, Zhang Pandi couldn't find her eldest son, Zhang Yi, at first glance.

"Is something wrong?"

Zhang Heping suddenly appeared beside Zhang Pandi, startling her.

Seeing that Zhang Heping didn't use the scarecrow's body, Zhang Pandi quickly calmed down.

"Mom called me and said she's planning to spend the Spring Festival in Shenzhen, and that you didn't object." Zhang Pandi looked at the factory area on the right and asked, "What are your plans?"

“If Mom and Dad insist, I’ll let Xiao Bei and Xiao Nan go back for a visit,” Zhang Heping said casually, looking at the busy scarecrows.
"I still need to keep an eye on the regenerative brain servers in the library and the virtual dream tiered classroom, I don't have time to go back!"

“They only persuaded Mom and Dad to let you go back!” Zhang Pandi said with a frown, then changed the subject, “The Hong Kong government has convicted those Japanese island attackers. Sister Yin asked me to ask you if you have any objections to their sentences?”

"What can I say if those people are sentenced to life imprisonment?" Zhang Heping casually conjured a white electric scooter. "If there's nothing else, I'll go take care of my business!"

"You go about your business, I'll go see what they're doing!" Zhang Pandi got on the electric scooter and didn't bother her third brother, Zhang Heping, with anything else.

Because of their sibling relationship, Professor Hua, Director Wang, and others approached her, trying to persuade Zhang Heping to return to Shenzhen to conduct research.

However, these people didn't consider why his brother left Shenzhen. No! They had actually thought about it, but they simply didn't want to give in to the Zhang family's lust for power.

Zhang Pandi rode her electric bike over, causing a small commotion.

The main advantage is that electric vehicles are much more convenient than bicycles, and they can also slow down the scarecrow's durability loss.

By the way, once the scarecrow's durability is gone, the player can get a new scarecrow.

However, as the scarecrow's durability decreases, its movement becomes increasingly restricted, which is quite unsettling.

After Zhang Pandi revealed her identity, the onlookers dispersed somewhat on their own.

As her daughter-in-law, Luo Yi excitedly said she would take Zhang Pandi to see the surrounding area.

Then, the scarecrow with the word "Roy" on its head got on a white electric scooter, carrying the scarecrow without a small flag on its head behind it, and drove into the factory next door, where it began to act as a tour guide.

……

Shenzhen Peace College, Villa No. 1.

As soon as Zhang Zhaodi returned with her female bodyguard, Ma Xiuzhen approached her and talked about the New Year's arrangements.

"Mom!" Zhang Zhaodi frowned at her mother, Ma Xiuzhen, and said impatiently, "Pandi already told me that Heping won't be coming back for the New Year!"

"Tell those people about this and see if they'll still let you spend the New Year in Shenzhen!"

“If they hear that He Ping isn’t coming back for the Lunar New Year, they’ll immediately change their story and tell us to go to Hong Kong Island for the New Year. Do you believe me?”

Ma Xiuzhen was still pondering those words when Zhang Bing, who had walked over, frowned and asked, "Did your brother say why he's not coming home for the New Year?"

“He has a lot on his plate!” Zhang Zhaodi looked at her father, Zhang Bing, and said with a hint of helplessness, “The virtual dream game reported in the news is no simple game!”

"Peace is currently using that virtual dream device to treat vegetative patients, and he's also built a virtual dream learning system in the library to train those gifted teenagers. He doesn't have time to deal with anything else!"

"And the Nanjing Fall game in the Virtual Dream Lecture Hall, didn't Dad say he wanted to try it out?"

"Mom said she was going to take Tan Ying and her parents to Hong Kong Island. They had already told their neighbors and colleagues about it. Now you've changed your mind at the last minute. Won't that make them a laughingstock?"

"From now on, when you make decisions, consider our feelings first! You're all getting on in years, don't just believe everything you hear!"

After being scolded by their eldest daughter, Ma Xiuzhen and Zhang Bing were at a loss for words.

“I’ll say it again!” Zhang Zhaodi said as she walked toward the restaurant, “You spread the word that He Ping isn’t coming back for the New Year, and see if they let you stay in Shenzhen for the New Year or send you to Hong Kong!”

……

Those people wanted Zhang Heping to return to Shenzhen for the Chinese New Year on the condition that he suspend his experiences at the Genius Training Camp, the Virtual Dream Classroom, and the clinical experiments on vegetative patients at the hospital's neurology department around the New Year.

This is obviously unrealistic. Not to mention that the foreign kids in the genius training camp don't celebrate the Spring Festival, the Nanjing Fallen Virtual Dreamland, which was originally planned to be open for only 10 days, will continue to be open for full capacity in order to test whether the multi-species gene regeneration brain server can generate autonomous consciousness.

Only by exposing the regenerated brain to more external information can Zhang Heping determine the controllability of this regenerated brain carrier.

It would be dangerous if we waited until after a global online public test to discover that this regenerated brain could develop self-awareness.

Therefore, Zhang Heping's decision not to return to Shenzhen for the Lunar New Year means that more than a hundred gifted teenagers from the mainland cannot rest, and Director Wang and the teachers and assistants leading the teams will also be unable to go home for the Lunar New Year.

Then there's the neurology department at the hospital!

Don't assume they have no patients just because they only have three vegetative state patients who have signed clinical trial agreements!
The families of patients queuing up to apply for this clinical trial receive dozens or even hundreds of inquiries from all over the country every day, not even counting those leaving messages online!
The reason for this was that Zhang Heping had Director Xue of the neurology department simultaneously present this medical research project at the World Internet Forum. This served two purposes: first, to confirm that they were the first team to use brain-computer interface therapy to treat vegetative patients; and second, to expand the influence of the virtual dream game device.

game!

Learn!

Medical!

Virtual reality gaming devices have already demonstrated enormous application potential, and Zhang Heping doesn't believe that those wolves in O'Mei will sit still!
He previously proposed exchanging technology for technology. Those foreigners might think they could take advantage of him by using the Lifespan Potion advance card, or wait until the mainland's Lifespan 120 Potion production increases and then use diplomatic means to obtain the Potion.

Even if we take a step back and assume the worst, they can still spend money to buy the Lifespan 120 potion from the Peace Group; there's no need for them to trade their superior technology with the mainland.

Yes, they believe that Zhang Heping's technology exchange was for the benefit of the mainland, so they are not very enthusiastic.

In addition, the United States had previously sent people to Zhang Heping with technology several times, but failed to gain Zhang Heping's trust. Instead, they were exposed by the relevant research data that Zhang Heping casually threw out. This caused many foreigners to postpone their deception plans and begin to observe.

On the evening of the 3rd, with Zhang Long and Zhang Hu leading their team to assemble the first exoskeleton mecha, the mission that Zhang Heping had issued on the 2nd was finally completed by them, albeit with difficulty.

However, after Zhang Bei, Zhang Long, and Zhang Yi led their people out of the library, there were still 7 foreigners inside the virtual dream learning pod.

The five teenagers from Northern Sudan and the two teenagers from Ou Mei all shared the same thought: after the mainlanders left, they would go and experience the exoskeleton mechs they had created.

Of the seven people, only Pierre from France spoke a little Chinese, but he chose to work alone.

The other six students were cramming on Chinese after class, so even though Zhang Bei and Zhang Long didn't hide their discussions about the mecha's manufacturing details from the foreigners, these six foreigners still didn't understand the principles and functions of the exoskeleton mecha.

Thus, the current situation of secretly operating other people's mechs came about.

Because Zhang Heping had instructed that as long as there were people in the learning cabin, the medical staff and bodyguards could not be withdrawn.

As a result, the seven teenagers from Ou Meisu didn't spread the news that a powered support frame had been built by mainland Chinese until 11 p.m.

The following day, on the morning of the 4th, Zhang Heping announced the new mission:
Install flight devices on the mechs!
Just as Zhang Heping was about to go to the computer room and Zhang Yi was calling the group of teenagers into the learning pod, the American boy shouted loudly at Zhang Heping:

"Sir! Could you teach us how to make mechs and flight devices?"

These words drew everyone's attention to Zhang Heping.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Heping didn't stop walking, and without turning his head, he said, "Geniuses don't need to be taught!"

"If you need someone to teach you, it means you're not a genius!"

"There's a lot of information in the Dream Library. If you don't know something, learn it yourself. If you can't learn it, quit as soon as possible!"

...(End of chapter)