A live stream of someone hand-making a giant white robot attracted the attention of the government,

Bai Che's carefree manner as he ate the braised pork trotters was like a red-hot iron, burning Su Wanqing's anxious heart.

She felt like this man was driving her crazy.

Her chest heaved violently as she looked at the overwhelming praise on the domestic internet and the deluge of condemnation from foreign media. The two completely different opinions almost tore her mind apart.

She couldn't figure it out.

And at the heart of this global storm, the sound of satisfied chewing is emanating.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Earth.

Cupertino, England, Apple's headquarters.

The A4 sheet of paper with only "Get lost" written on it still lay quietly in the center of the conference table, like a small, ironic tombstone.

The angry roars in the conference room had subsided, leaving only a deathly silence.

Tim Cook's well-maintained face showed no emotion. He simply gazed calmly at the California sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows, as if nothing had just happened.

the next day.

Apple held an emergency press conference.

Under the spotlight, Tim Cook, dressed in a dark suit, stood at the podium with a perfectly measured hint of regret on his face, looking just like an innocent old white lotus.

"Regarding the recent acquisition offer from Apple for ZeroBoundary Technology, which has garnered much attention, I would like to issue my formal response."

His voice was steady and resonant, reaching the world through countless cameras.

"We hold Mr. Bai Che in the highest esteem for his talent and firmly believe that the future of technology lies in collaboration and openness. Therefore, with the utmost sincerity, we have put forward a solution that we believe is worthy of his talent."

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the countless reporters below the stage.

"But unfortunately, we received a... very impulsive reply."

"We understand the personalities of young geniuses and respect their choices. But we feel even more regret that a great collaboration that could have changed the world may have been stifled by youthful impulsiveness."

This statement was impeccable, instantly portraying Apple as a tolerant and generous "victim" who was ruthlessly rejected.

Zero Boundary Technology, on the other hand, has been firmly nailed to the pillar of shame for being "arrogant," "impulsive," and "unappreciative."

The balance of international public opinion has been completely tipped in favor of the United States.

As the press conference ended and Cook stepped off the stage, the regret on his face vanished instantly, leaving only a cold expression.

He got into the car that took him back to headquarters, picked up the internally encrypted satellite phone, and dialed a number hidden deep within his contacts.

"it's me."

A deep, hoarse voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Mr. Cook, it seems your business tactics have run into a little trouble."

"It's not trouble," Cook's voice was utterly cold. "It's an alarm. I'm formally submitting a notification to raise the technological threat level of the Dragon Kingdom's 'Zero Boundary Technology' from 'Observation' to the highest level—'Crimson'!"

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

"Crimson!" This codename signifies that the technology has the potential to disrupt the existing global order and cannot be controlled through conventional commercial means!

The last time this code name was used was when the Dragon Kingdom announced that it had mastered quantum communication technology.

"reason?"

"The reason? They rejected a hundred billion dollars." Cook's voice was eerily calm, "and in a very humiliating way. This proves two things: first, they have absolute confidence in their technology; second, the forces behind them will not allow this technology to leak out in any way."

"I understand." The voice on the other end of the phone became serious. "Send the report immediately. Commercial matters are commercial matters, and national matters are national matters. Since we can't buy it, let's try a different approach."

The phone hangs up.

In less than ten minutes, an encrypted report traveled from Apple headquarters directly to the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

An hour later, a secret meeting was held in the deepest underground conference room. There were very few attendees, but each one was a true giant in the intelligence community of the United States.

On the main screen, there was only Bai Che's somewhat lazy face from the press conference.

A technical analysis manager slammed the document on the table.

"Gentlemen, the situation is worse than we thought! According to simulations, once 'Qiming-1' is used for military purposes, our drones' endurance will increase tenfold! The energy bottleneck of individual soldier exoskeletons will be completely broken! The miniaturization of electromagnetic guns and laser weapons will become a reality!"

Another official, his face ashen, chimed in: "The problem is, it's now in the hands of the Chinese. Cook and his gang of businessmen failed; now it's our turn."

A suppressed silence.

Send someone to steal it directly? The security level of Qiming-1 Laboratory has been raised to the highest level, making it extremely difficult.

Turning key personnel against him? That kid Bai Che treats even a hundred billion US dollars like worthless paper, what makes him think he can turn people against him?

"Since it can't be stolen or bought..."

Sitting in the main seat, a middle-aged man with no military rank on his shoulders, yet everyone treated him with utmost respect, finally spoke.

His fingers tapped lightly on the table.

"Then...destroy it."

All eyes turned to that direction instantly!

"I have a preliminary plan," the man said, pulling up another document that only had a code name on it.

"Project Hummingbird"

He explained, "Hummingbirds are tiny and adept at infiltration, able to precisely pierce the most vulnerable parts of a flower with minimal cost."

"Our goal is no longer the technology itself. It's to use every means possible to delay, interfere with, and disrupt Zero Boundary Technology's development, buying time for our own laboratory!"

His gaze was like a knife, sweeping over everyone present.

"Smear their products, create safety incidents! Poach their talent with exorbitant contracts, create panic about talent loss! Incite conflict between them and their supply chain, cut off their production links!"

"We can lose a press conference, but we can't lose the entire energy era!"

He paused, then turned to the next page of the plan.

"The first step of the plan, codenamed 'Nectar'."

"I will send our top business spies, disguised as representatives of European third-party investment institutions, to infiltrate their core teams under the guise of seeking cooperation on 'non-core technologies'."

"I need to know everything about them! Their next steps, technical bottlenecks, internal team conflicts... I need to plant a bug in their heart!"

The air in the conference room seemed to freeze.

This plan was insidious and vicious, but ironically, it was extremely effective.

It abandoned the illusion of achieving everything in one fell swoop, and instead used countless invisible poison needles to stab the newly born technological star from all directions.

Finally, the man who was chairing the meeting stood up, walked to the screen, and looked at Bai Che's young face on the screen.

He reached out as if to touch the photograph, but his eyes held a chilling murderous intent.

"Remember, gentlemen."

"Since he's so ungrateful..."

"Then let him, and his technology, die in their cradle!"

……

A massive, global black net is silently creeping in.

Meanwhile, at the heart of the network, inside the Qiming No. 1 Laboratory, Bai Che and Su Wanqing, who were thrust into the eye of the storm by global public opinion, were completely unaware of this.

They were frowning over something else that was even more troubling them.

Su Wanqing's desk was piled high with letters of intent for cooperation.

Looking at the gold-plated logos from Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Toyota, and Volkswagen, she felt for the first time what it meant to have "happy troubles, but also real troubles."

She rubbed her aching temples, tossed a document in front of Bai Che, and spoke with exhaustion in her voice.

"The whole world is waiting for us to deliver an electric vehicle with a range of 2,000 kilometers."

"But we don't even have a decent production line."