When I am reborn, I just want to be a top student

"I don't know why, but I don't like Bai Song. I just inexplicably can't stand him!"

"What a coincidence, so am I!"

"It's obvious that everyone upstairs is illiterate. As for reporter Bai Song, a master has already given an accurate evaluation. You can search for the keywords 'meat trumpet' and 'Bai Song'."

"Just came back from the search. The master truly lives up to his name; his insights are sharp and to the point."

"Always playing the role of social conscience, often frowning as he expresses some amazing opinions, speaking from the perspective of a third-party outsider, isn't that too fitting?"

"I think the most ruthless thing is this sentence: With Bai Song's intelligence, he knows when to avoid sensitive topics and would never flatter in the wrong direction. Bai Song only contributes to some superficial phenomena, only focuses on the superficial glamour, and dares not delve into the essence of the problem."

"This self-righteous, arrogant, and inexplicably superior person is the reason I have to buy the book 'Pain and Pleasure' just for that one sentence."

"I knew that something was off when I watched the interview, and now I know why."

"Your focus is a bit strange. Don't you find Wang Donglai's statement, 'It's not about breaking through the limits, nor is it about breaking free from shackles, but about us surviving under the Western patent barriers,' quite compelling?"

"I think so too. As a long-time die-hard fan of Galaxy Technology, I really think Wang Dong was so cool when he said that."

"Some people may not understand what Wang Donglai gave up. I can tell you very clearly that the commercial value of the HarmonyOS system exceeds several hundred billion yuan, and its commercial value will increase dramatically as the number of users increases. You can refer to the specific data with Android and iOS. Even if it is not comparable, it is still a part of it. You can imagine how much Wang Donglai has sacrificed."

"I've made up my mind, I'll buy whichever company releases a phone with HarmonyOS first!"

"Don't just talk the talk, take concrete actions to support domestic products, whether it's domestic mobile phone brands or domestic operating systems!"

"It's ridiculous! A bunch of people with iPhones are here saying they support domestic products. It's a joke!"

"If Galaxy Technology made mobile phones, I would definitely buy one!"

"..."

The interview immediately sparked considerable discussion online.

Although many people are still paying attention to the development of the vaccine incident, the news about Wang Donglai's interview is still generating a lot of buzz.

In China, with the establishment of the domestic operating system alliance, various companies have invested a lot of human and material resources in compatibility development.

To express his support, Wang Donglai even promised to open up the production of Xuanwu batteries and give priority to brands participating in the alliance for use with Xuanwu batteries.

With this promise, everyone's enthusiasm soared even higher.

Switching systems and facing pressure from overseas, coupled with countermeasures from international giants, has indeed caused considerable losses for domestic brands.

However, with the bait provided by the Xuanwu battery as a precedent, domestic manufacturers are still willing to give it a shot.

Switching systems may only cause temporary discomfort for users and may lead to brief market fluctuations.

However, without the Xuanwu battery, the battery life would be drastically reduced, the phone's performance would be severely outdated, the design would be unfashionable and outdated, and it would ultimately be completely phased out.

Everyone can naturally figure out which is more important.

Bald Eagle Federation, Gania State, Kubi Dino City.

Apple Park, Apple's headquarters.

"Fake!"

After hanging up the phone, Cook cursed angrily.

As Apple's CEO, he has made significant contributions to the company's development since taking over in 2011.

The iPhone 4s was released by Tim Cook.

Apple's ability to maintain its high-end ecosystem position amidst the wave of intelligent technology, and to continue its development and achieve even greater success, is undoubtedly inseparable from Cook's decisions.

Before, when we were making money for the company, everyone was happy.

Now, as soon as a problem arises, the shareholders who were originally very reasonable have instantly changed their attitude.

Under pressure from them, Apple introduced a series of sanctions against Galaxy Technologies.

These measures are not entirely useless, but they are not very effective.

On the contrary, their actions made the Chinese brands, who were still hesitant, more determined to make up their minds.

Even when overseas products are sanctioned, on the one hand, they fight back with lawsuits, and on the other hand, they accelerate the development of the HarmonyOS system.

Stealing chickens will not lose rice.

Now, the choice facing Apple is quite simple.

They can either stick to their guns and gamble that China, under pressure, will abandon its support for Galaxy Technologies and the digital services tax.

Either admit defeat promptly and pay the digital services tax.

The former may have to prepare to lose hundreds of millions of customers in China and give up tens of billions of dollars in revenue every year.

The latter approach can retain users, but the revenue will not be as high as before.

If you choose the latter, aside from the unpleasant sounding to the outside world and having to bear some domestic pressure, there are only benefits.

For example, by making concessions, and leveraging Apple's size, they could negotiate cooperation with China and Galaxy Technology.

Apple phones can be equipped with Xuanwu batteries, and Apple's new energy vehicles can also be equipped with Xuanwu batteries, etc.

As for promoting the HarmonyOS operating system, as long as it's not mandatory and requires Apple to abandon iOS, Cook isn't worried.

He believes that with the superiority of the iOS system, it can gain a foothold in the operating system market.

However, if he actually does that, Cook will have to bear some responsibility and criticism.

This is also why Cook was angry.

After his outburst, Cook ordered his men to buy plane tickets to China.

Because of this incident, Apple's stock price has fallen significantly, and its market value has evaporated by hundreds of billions.

If the stock price doesn't recover soon, Cook's position as CEO might become unstable.

……

Cook is very fast.

They arrived in the capital the next day.

As the CEO of the international giant Apple, Tim Cook received considerable treatment upon arriving in Beijing.

Before meeting with the relevant leaders, Cook had made two preparations through his think tank.

It pledged to increase its investment in China by $100 billion and establish a new energy vehicle research and development center.

At the same time, we are willing to increase the contract manufacturing of smart products in China, relocate more industries, and promote more employment for workers.

Cook naturally had his own needs when he proposed such conditions, namely, the patent licensing of Xuanwu Battery.

Apple's think tank estimates the probability of success for this to be fifty percent.

The success rate is 50% due to Apple being an international giant with a considerable international reputation. China might choose to facilitate this deal in order to open up the international market, coupled with the favorable conditions offered by Apple.

The other half of the failure rate is due to the fact that the Xuanwu battery is simply too important.

Galaxy Technology is the lifeblood of Tangdu City, so it's naturally difficult for China to make such a decision. With this in mind, Cook tried to communicate with China.

The result was, of course, as expected.

However, having two options in mind, Cook decisively adopted the second plan.

We hope that the authorities in Beijing can act as a go-between to facilitate communication between him and Wang Donglai.

The authorities in Beijing readily agreed to this request.

Without much hesitation, he immediately agreed.

The news quickly reached Wang Donglai.

Wang Donglai did not object to the request from the capital.

Ever since.

The following day, Wang Donglai met Cook in Tangdu City.

Cook originally planned for the two to meet in Beijing and visit China's famous historical sites together, where they could also have a chat.

However, Wang Donglai rejected the suggestion outright.

Because he needed someone's help, Cook came to Tang City.

Upon meeting, Cook was about to exchange a few pleasantries with Wang Donglai.

Wang Donglai went straight to the point, saying, "Steve, I'm not just a businessman. I'm a mathematician and a researcher, so my time is precious."

"If you have any thoughts, it's better if we discuss them directly. That would be more efficient, since both of our time is precious."

Cook was clearly somewhat surprised, both by Wang Donglai's directness and by the simultaneous translation technology that Galaxy Technology was demonstrating at that moment.

Yes, Wang Donglai spoke in Chinese, but it was translated into English using AI simultaneous translation technology.

They express themselves accurately and react quickly.

"I never imagined that your company's AI simultaneous translation technology had reached such a level; it's truly unbelievable."

"I've heard about your reputation many times. Globally, at this age and in this era, you are undoubtedly the number one."

"And today, my purpose in coming here is very simple: I believe there is some misunderstanding between us."

"Although I don't understand why your company hasn't developed overseas business, we don't have any direct competition in terms of business areas."

"On the contrary, we can cooperate. I think that with our needs and financial resources, we can definitely bring great development to your company."

"I think you wouldn't deny that, would you?!"

Behind Cook's gold-rimmed glasses, a glint of calm wisdom flashed.

Upon hearing Cook's words, Wang Donglai chuckled softly and directly exposed Cook's thoughts, saying, "If the cooperation you're talking about is the patent licensing of Xuanwu Battery, then I don't think there's anything between us to discuss."

"Just like you won't give up the iOS system, we will never give up Xuanwu Battery."

Cook's eyes turned cold, surprised by Wang Donglai's decisive opposition.

"I can offer you $20 billion for the Xuanwu Battery license, and I can even promise to introduce you to some people who can help you go public in the Bald Eagle Federation and get a very high valuation for your company."

"Besides, there are many pleasures in this world that money alone cannot provide, but if you become our friend, I think that will be much easier for you."

Before Cook could finish speaking, Wang Donglai interrupted him.

No, I'm not interested in any of what you're saying.

"I hope communism can be realized, can you help me?"

Cook's eyes widened instantly, revealing a clear look of horror.

After taking two deep breaths to calm himself down, he said, "I didn't expect you to like joking so much. Since we can't reach an agreement on the Xuanwu Battery patent licensing, I was wondering if we could cooperate in other areas?"

"You must believe that I have come here with the utmost sincerity."

Wang Donglai nodded and said, "Of course, the Xuanwu Battery is a product, so naturally it needs to be sold."

"Due to production capacity issues, we will prioritize supplying large customers when selling, only those with orders exceeding one billion US dollars will be considered."

Cook was not surprised and immediately asked a key question: "How will the Xuanwu battery be priced? A billion-dollar order is not a problem."

A smile appeared on Wang Donglai's face as he said, "Each battery costs one hundred US dollars."

"Oh, this price is too expensive, we can't accept it."

"I don't think your country's brands can afford this price. I believe we need a fair trading environment. What do you think?"

The $100 Xuanwu battery was beyond Cook's expectations.

Although the Xuanwu Battery's performance is indeed excellent, even the top laboratories in the Bald Eagle Federation cannot achieve this.

After the performance data of the Xuanwu battery was released, many laboratories began to replicate it.

Either the material pile barely achieves this performance, but its physical state is extremely unstable, making it flammable and explosive.

Even the number of battery charge/discharge cycles is shockingly low, only a little over two hundred.

To be honest, Cook would never have done this if the Bald Eagle Federation hadn't been completely unable to replicate a battery with seven or eight tenths of the Xuanwu Battery's performance.

Before he came, he had set a bottom line in his mind: eighty dollars.

If the price exceeds this level, it means that if the configuration of subsequent products remains unchanged, in order to maintain profit margins, the price must be increased or the configuration must be reduced.

In an instant, Cook came up with an idea: to stop including a charger and earphones with the phone.

It's not only for environmental protection, but also to save costs and turn them into profits.

The best part is that by waving the banner of environmental protection, their actions don't seem so unseemly.

The idea only flashed through Cook's mind briefly, but he remembered it.

"The performance of the Xuanwu battery and the technology it contains determine that it cannot be applied to low- to mid-range products under the current circumstances."

"Therefore, its price is unlikely to come down."

"The reason for setting a price of one hundred dollars is very simple. When your company replaces a battery, consumers have to pay more than one hundred and forty dollars. So, we are leaving your company with a profit margin."

"Since we are going to cooperate, we should naturally show our sincerity."

"Supplying Xuanwu batteries is my way of showing sincerity, while the price of one hundred US dollars is the sincerity I need you to express."

"Of course, if you find this price unacceptable, I have no objection."

"You can also wait until the world's first high-end mobile phone equipped with the Xuanwu battery is released, and then make a decision based on the market response."

Wang Donglai acted very casually, as he now held the initiative and was naturally not flustered at all.

Cook's expression turned grim.

Cook quickly came up with an idea. (End of Chapter)