The Red Era, the Opening University Speech

Chapter 115 A pattern can also be a cultural output (500 monthly tickets plus more)

The news about the development of cypermethrin and Li Mu spread like wildfire in Beijing Institute of Technology.

Before long, almost everyone knew that their school had produced a great talent who studied mechanical engineering but went on to research agricultural technology.

Li Mu could hear people talking about this wherever he went in school:
"Look, that's Li Mu. I heard he was also involved in the research on cypermethrin."

"That's fake! What we studied in engineering and agriculture don't go together!"

"It's absolutely true. I heard that their classmates heard it with their own ears. Someone from the Agricultural Committee even came..."

……

The last time it received such attention was when the incandescent light bulb came out.

Li Mu walked quickly past the talking classmates and returned to the dormitory.

When I opened the door, Qian Shuyan and Professor Wang were chatting with General Zhao.

Seeing him come in, Qian Shuyan stood up and said with a smile: "You have been quite popular in school recently!"

"I heard that the Agriculture Committee has sent someone to invite you to be a special scholar."

"Why, are you really going to study agriculture?"

At the end, Qian Shuyan and Professor Wang couldn't help but look a little uneasy.

"Dean, you're joking. The success of pesticide technology is just a coincidence. I know my own strengths and weaknesses." Li Mu's words made the two nervous people feel a little relieved.

Li Mu added: "However, I do want to study agricultural technology in my free time."

"Food is the most important thing for the people. There are still many people in our country who don't have enough food. We need more food."

His words left Qian Shuyan and Professor Wang silent for a moment.

"It's a good idea for you." After a long while, Qian Shuyan said, "But human energy is limited. You have to study semiconductors and agriculture, and continue to study in depth. You have to arrange your time well."

……

Afterwards, Qian Shuyan and Wang Shoujue left quickly.

"Brother Zhao, I'm going home." After the two left, Li Mu also decided to go home and avoid the limelight for a while.

After asking for leave, he returned to the slum.

As soon as he reached the gate of the compound, he saw two little girls, Li Lan and Li Yu, playing with the Rubik's Cube at the gate with a group of friends.

To his surprise, Professor Wei was also there, holding a Rubik's Cube in his hand, smiling as he watched the children playing happily.

"Professor Wei, why are you here?" Li Mu parked his bicycle and asked in surprise.

Hearing the shout, Professor Wei turned around and said with a smile:

"Hey, I had a quarrel with Lao Mi today and I forgot about the important things."

"I wanted to find you before. Did you make this Rubik's Cube?"

He raised the Rubik's Cube in his hand, twisted it quickly, and restored its three sides.

Li Mu walked forward and saw his two sisters rushing up immediately, one on the left and one on the right, throwing themselves into his arms affectionately.

After rubbing the two little guys' heads, he said to Professor Wei:

"It's just a toy for children. I didn't expect you, Professor Wei, would be interested in it."

In addition to making the Rubik's Cube as a toy to entertain Li Lan and Li Yu, he did have the idea of ​​earning foreign exchange.

But although the Rubik's Cube is common, he is not sure whether there will be a market for it in this era.

It would be bad if we spent manpower and financial resources to produce the product but it couldn’t be sold.

"This is no small thing." Professor Wei's face turned serious and he said:
"This tiny Rubik's Cube contains not only the principles of spatial geometry, but also logic, mathematics and so on."

"Especially recently I've seen that every child, big or small, in Nanluoguxiang has one, and even some adults are playing with it, which shows that it's very popular."

"In the past, you could make a lot of money just with a little gadget like this."

After listening to Professor Wei's words, Li Mu's heart couldn't help but be moved.

Just as he was about to speak, Grandma Li suddenly came back from outside with a basket of vegetables. Upon hearing this, she said angrily:

"What are you talking about? My Xiao Mu wants to be a scientist, not a businessman!"

"Grandma Li, that's not what I meant. Please don't mind it." Professor Wei apologized quickly.

In this day and age, it is not a good thing to say that someone wants to do business. You might be accused of being a traitor.

Li Mu followed up:
"Grandma, this is Professor Wei from our college. He came to see me when I was sick last time. He also helped me when my uncle and aunt got into trouble."

"Oh, look at my eyes, it turns out you are Xiao Mu's teacher." After hearing this, Grandma Li immediately put on a smile, "Professor Wei, please come in and sit down."

"Have a meal at my house today and thank you very much!"

As she said that, she pulled Professor Wei inside.

"Grandma Li, you don't have to be so polite. Besides, I can't help you in any way..." Professor Wei kept declining.

Li Mu smiled and said, "Professor Wei, it's just a quick meal. It's a good opportunity for us to continue talking about the Rubik's Cube."

"Okay." Seeing that he couldn't persuade Granny Li, Professor Wei had to agree and followed her into the compound.

……

While Grandma Li was busy preparing the meal, Li Mu took Professor Wei to sit in the yard.

There were few strangers in the hospital, and Professor Wei's appearance quickly attracted everyone's attention, and they all came up to ask questions.

When they heard that he was a university professor, they all showed admiration.

Their idea was simple: if Li Mu, a college student, was so capable, then Professor Wei, as a university professor, must be even more amazing.

After sending away the curious neighbors, Professor Wei was about to talk to Li Mu about the Rubik's Cube again when he smelled a strong fragrance.

Looking back, I saw Grandma Li coming over with a plate of fried chicken nuggets and French fries. She said with a smile, "Professor Wei, please eat some French fries and chicken nuggets first. My meal will be ready soon."

Professor Wei looked at the fried chicken nuggets and French fries in front of him with surprise on his face.

He studied abroad when he was young, so he is certainly familiar with chicken nuggets and French fries.

These two things are very common abroad, but this is in China!

Coming back to his senses, he suddenly saw that the two little girls, Li Lan and Li Yu, were looking at him eagerly.

Professor Wei waved his hand and said, "Come here, I'll give you some food."

Nowadays, no one has much food at home, so he naturally cannot snatch the food from the children.

"Grandpa, you eat, we've already eaten." Although the two little girls also wanted to eat, they still said in unison.

Professor Wei looked at the two little girls and smiled, "You are so good. But Grandpa is not hungry, so you guys should eat first."

Seeing them pushing and shoving each other, Grandma Li smiled and said, "Professor Wei, you're welcome. If it's not enough, just make some more."

Now that the family has money, she is no longer so stingy.

Especially since the other party is Li Mu’s teacher, he cannot be neglected.

"No, no, I can't eat so much." Professor Wei said quickly.

That's meat, who can eat it like this?

Li Mu saw that Professor Wei was always polite and said with a smile: "Haha, Professor Wei, you don't have to be polite. I still have three pounds of meat at home, which is enough for you!"

……

After seeing Professor Wei off, Li Mu returned to his room.

He was playing with a Rubik's Cube in his hand, looking thoughtful.

The fact that this thing has been recognized by Professor Wei and has become popular in Nanluoguxiang is enough to prove that it still has good market value in this era.

"I have to find a way to hand this thing over voluntarily." He thought secretly in his heart.

……

The next morning.

After leaving the slum, Li Mu did not go directly to school, but took a detour to go to the Foreign Trade Committee.

As a result, just after he turned around and rode for a while, a man on a bicycle suddenly caught up with him from behind, which scared him.

Looking closely, it turned out to be General Zhao.

He quickly stopped the car and asked, "Brother Zhao, what are you doing?"

Usually, Army Officer Zhao would hide in the dark to protect him, but this was the first time he took the initiative to come out. Could it be an enemy spy?

"Don't worry, it's nothing. I just saw that you didn't go directly to school today, so I came to ask." General Zhao said with a smile.

Li Mu's route of action was quite fixed, so he still needed to understand clearly the sudden change of route this time.

"Oh, is that so?" Hearing this, Li Mu felt relieved, as long as he was not an enemy spy.

Afterwards, he briefly explained the reason to General Zhao.

After hearing this, Zhao Canjun said, "I was just being overly concerned, but I'm glad you're alright."

"Just keep going. I will continue to protect you in secret."

……

A quarter of an hour later.

Li Mu parked his bicycle in front of the gate of the Foreign Trade Commission, looked back, and vaguely saw someone who seemed to be looking at him.

I guess General Zhao did it on purpose, otherwise he would never have discovered it.

But it's actually quite nice to feel protected.

Mainly, the transport captain’s men are still there.

He told the uncle at the gate, who looked at his student ID card again and again before going in to report.

Not long after, Xu Mingxin came out in a hurry, his face full of joy: "I was wondering why there was a magpie calling outside the office window this morning, it turns out there is a distinguished guest coming to visit!"

"You're too polite. I'm not a distinguished guest at all." Li Mu smiled.

The gatekeeper nearby was surprised to see Xu Mingxin being so polite to a young man.

"Hahaha, if you are not considered a distinguished guest, then no one else will be." Xu Mingxin laughed twice, then called Li Mu in, "Come in and sit down, I just happened to have some new tea this year, come and try it."

Having said that, he enthusiastically took Li Mu to the office.

Make a pot of tea and the aroma will refresh your heart.

Take a sip, it’s fragrant, sweet and has a long aftertaste.

Li Mu praised: "Good tea."

"If you think it's good, take it and drink it." Xu Mingxin said generously.

Compared with Li Mu's help to the Foreign Trade Commission, a little tea is insignificant.

Li Mu smiled and said, "Director Xu, I'm not here to ask for tea, but I have something I want you to see."

As he said this, he took out a Rubik's Cube from his bag.

"What is this?" Xu Mingxin looked at the square Rubik's Cube curiously. It looked like a small piece of wood, nothing special.

Li Mu introduced:
"It's called the Rubik's Cube. It's something I came up with by chance. It can train children's spatial thinking ability, logical thinking ability, concentration, memory and hand-eye coordination."

"I originally just gave this little toy to my two younger sisters to entertain themselves, but I didn't expect it to be so popular in our area that even many adults like to play with it."

"I thought, maybe we can also export it abroad and generate foreign exchange income for our country."

After listening to Li Mu's story, Xu Mingxin's casual expression suddenly became serious: "Please sit down for a while. I'll call our leader."

As he said this, he walked to his desk and called Dong Huaxing who was out at a meeting.

……

Not long after, Dong Huaxing hurried back.

After listening to Li Mu’s introduction, I personally experienced how to play the Rubik’s Cube.

After thinking for a moment, he said: "It's an interesting thing, but it's hard to evaluate the overseas market!"

"And even if we sell it, I'm afraid the profit won't be high."

None of them know much about foreign markets.

Especially since the Rubik's Cube is not a toy like air fryers and mountain bikes, they have even less export experience in this area.

Li Mu smiled and said:

"Leader Dong, you can first register the patent in the major OM countries, and then give it to Mr. Lin, the patriotic businessman from last time, to try to sell it in the United States."

"The cost of making a Rubik's Cube is actually very low, and the materials used to make it are limited to wood, plastic, iron, etc. Even if it cannot be sold, the loss will not be much money."

“As for the benefits, I think that’s secondary.”

"Did you see the color pattern on the Rubik's Cube? In fact, we can change it to the traditional cultural symbols of our Xia country and promote our national culture. This is the most important thing."

Hearing this, Dong Huaxing asked curiously, "Can a pattern promote our Xia culture?"

"Of course you can. The main buyers of the Rubik's Cube are basically children. They have been playing with it since they were young, so it will definitely have a subtle influence." Li Mu said with a smile.

To put it bluntly, it is cultural output, which is similar to the later M emperor's love of making blockbusters and creating M-style superheroes.

Dong Huaxing nodded in agreement after hearing this and said, "This is a good idea. Although the profit may not be much, it can promote the culture of our country, which has a different meaning."

"Well, I will contact the First Machinery Department in Kyoto and ask them to send someone over to assess the cost and profit of the Rubik's Cube."

"As long as we can cover the cost, we can export the Rubik's Cube!"

After saying that, he asked Xu Mingxin to contact the First Ministry of Machine Building in Kyoto.

……

After a while, the Kyoto First Machinery Ministry sent two people over.

One was Comrade Xu whom Li Mu had met before, and the other was a gray-haired old master.

After a brief introduction, the old master took the Rubik's Cube, disassembled it, looked at it carefully, and then said: "The structure is very simple, it can be produced with scraps from the lumber mill, and the cost should be around 3 yuan."

"So low?" After hearing the price, everyone in the room was shocked.

3 cents each, even with the shipping cost, it’s not that much.

This investment is completely acceptable.

Dong Huaxing immediately made the decision: "Okay, in that case, let's produce it as soon as possible."

"As soon as the patent comes down, we'll send it to M Emperor for sale!"

……

After the plan was finalized, Comrade Xu hurried away with the Rubik's Cube drawings and samples.

Li Mu wanted to leave, but was stopped by Dong Huaxing:
"Come on, I have good news for you."

As he spoke, Dong Huaxing signaled to Xu Mingxin beside him and asked him to close the door.

His mysterious look made Li Mu curious: "Leader Dong, what makes you so cautious?"

"Haha, do you still remember the air fryer sold in State O?" Dong Huaxing asked.

After he said that, Li Mu vaguely remembered it.

It seems that Dong Huaxing told him last time that he would give him a reward of 1 cent for every air fryer sold.

"Is it about the air fryer?" Li Mu asked.

Dong Huaxing laughed and said, "Yes, the first batch of sales has arrived. A total of 93231 air fryers have been sold."

"I just went out to a meeting about this."

"Your special allowance has also been received. We have opened a passbook in your name and you can withdraw it at any time."

As he spoke, he took out a passbook from his briefcase and handed it to Li Mu.

9323.1! These numbers are a bit confusing.

This isn't even the time of reform and opening up, and he's already on the verge of becoming a millionaire?
Fortunately, Li Mu reacted quickly, pushed the passbook and said, "Leader Dong, as we agreed before, you should just give this money directly to our dean."

Hearing his answer, Dong Huaxing's eyes showed appreciation.

Naturally, he did not forget what happened before, and he took the money mainly to see whether Li Mu would regret it when faced with so much money.

Now it seems that he is indeed a good comrade.

He smiled and said, "Of course we have to give it, but it can't be given by us."

"You paid for it. If our Foreign Trade Committee were to do it, we would be taking advantage of you."

"If you want to give it, give it to your dean yourself!"

(End of this chapter)