Can't afford to pay for the takeout? Stunning CEO: Then pay with your body!

Inside the training room, the air was so quiet that only the whirring of the central air conditioning vents could be heard.

Lin Wei stared at the blueprint that had been crumpled into a ball and precisely thrown into the trash can, feeling her heart skip a beat.

That was the design that had just amazed her!

Just throw it away like that?

"Are you crazy?"

Lin Wei jumped up, the chair scraping loudly on the floor. "That's the most perfect ground rescue plan right now!"

"Even if... even if they've applied for a patent, we can still modify it!"

"By changing the gear ratio or adjusting the connecting rod length, we can always find a way around it!"

There's no way around it.

Zhang Yan pulled out another sheet of clean white drawing paper, laid it flat on the table, and spoke in a calm tone as if he were discussing what to have for dinner.

"The core barrier of that patent lies in the word 'adaptive'."

"As long as it runs on the ground, and if you want to achieve stable passage through complex terrain, you can't avoid this logic."

He picked up a new pencil and twirled it between his fingers.

"Since they've blocked the road on the ground, then we won't use the ground."

Lin Wei was stunned, her brows furrowing into a knot: "Not on the ground? Flying? Rescue drones? Those are already commonplace!"

"Furthermore, the payload and battery life of drones are simply insufficient to meet the requirements of this competition for 'supply transport' and 'ruin demolition'!"

"Who said I was going to make ordinary drones?"

A slight smile curved Zhang Yan's lips as he dropped the pencil in his hand.

This time, he didn't draw a car, nor a traditional quadcopter.

It is a ball.

A hollow spherical structure woven from high-strength carbon fiber.

Inside the sphere, suspended, is an extremely sophisticated dual-rotor ducted fan system.

"This is..." Lin Wei, who knew her stuff, widened her eyes instantly.

"Spherical ducted aircraft".

As Zhang Yan drew, he casually explained, "The outer cage-like structure is both a protective shield and wheels."

"On flat ground, it rolls forward using the thrust generated by the fan, which saves electricity and is fast."

"When encountering ruins or obstacles, simply increase thrust, take off from the spot, and get over them."

"As for your concerns about load capacity and range..."

Zhang Yan paused, then drew a key mark on the location of the core motor.

"Do you remember the leftover polymer composite material we used to solve Academician Li's heat dissipation problem last time?"

"Using it as an insulation layer for motor coils allows the motor to run for extended periods under overclocking conditions without burning out."

"Thrust increased by 40%, and range increased by 30%."

"This thing can fly, roll, and crash."

Zhang Yan put down his pen, blew away the graphite powder on the paper, and looked at Lin Wei, who had completely turned to stone.

"So? Will those guys from Jinghua University be able to use their patents to block me this time?"

Lin Wei's mouth remained open for a long time.

She stared at the spherical machine on the blueprint, which looked like something out of a science fiction movie, and only one thought remained in her mind:

This is hardly a competition entry.

This is clearly a cheat!

……

Two days later.

Yan Zhenghua, sporting huge dark circles under his eyes and with his hair a mess, rushed into the training room in a great hurry.

He's been so worried these past two days that he can't sleep.

The patent statement from Jinghua University was like a mountain, making it hard for him to breathe.

That was a game-winning shot!

If the questions weren't changed, they wouldn't even make it past the preliminary round this time.

"Zhang Yan! Lin Wei! I've thought it over!"

Yan Zhenghua burst through the door, his voice hoarse as if he'd swallowed a handful of sand, "Let's change the topic! No more rescue vehicles! Let's switch to intelligent sorting robotic arms! It's a bit old-fashioned, we might not win the championship, but at least we can secure a third prize, so we won't be in dire straits..."

His voice abruptly stopped.

Because he saw that thing "running wild" in the open space in the center of the training room.

A basketball-sized, silver-gray hollow sphere is rolling at high speed on the ground, nimbly navigating around obstacle piles.

Suddenly, a jumble of bricks appeared in front of us, simulating ruins.

Yan Zhenghua's heart tightened: "We've run into each other!"

However, the anticipated collision did not occur.

Just as the sphere was about to hit the bricks, a deep hum suddenly came from inside.

"call--"

A powerful gust of air gushed out.

The sphere suddenly rose from the ground without any warning!

Like a nimble, plump bird, it drew an elegant arc in the air, steadily flew over the obstacle course, landed lightly, and continued rolling forward.

The entire process was smooth and seamless, without the slightest pause.

The thermos in Yan Zhenghua's hand fell to the ground with a "clatter" and shattered into pieces.

He rubbed his eyes and pinched his thigh.

pain.

It's not a dream.

"What...what is this thing?!"

Yan Zhenghua pointed at the ball with a trembling finger, his voice barely audible.

Zhang Yan was sitting at the control panel next to him, holding a remote control in his hand, with half a lollipop still dangling from his mouth.

"Professor Yan, you've arrived."

Zhang Yan handed the controller to Lin Wei, who was looking excited, stood up, patted his pants, and said, "This is our entry, codenamed 'Wind and Fire Wheel'."

"Wind... Wind Fire Wheels?"

Ignoring the water stains on the ground, Yan Zhenghua rushed over and circled the stopped sphere several times, his eyes looking at an alien creature that had just arrived.

"This structure...this design concept..."

As a senior professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, he immediately saw the key to it.

This completely breaks away from the conventional thinking of rescue robots!

Tracked robots and legged robots are simply products of primitive society compared to this ball that can fly and roll!

"Zhang Yan... did you come up with this again?" Yan Zhenghua turned his head sharply and stared intently at Zhang Yan.

I guess so.

Zhang Yan shrugged. "It's mainly because Senior Lin Wei is very capable; she wove the carbon fiber cage overnight."

Lin Wei blushed and muttered softly, "I'm just a laborer; he did all the core motors and flight control programs..."

Yan Zhenghua took a deep breath, suddenly grabbed Zhang Yan's hand, and his eyes turned red.

"Good lad...good lad indeed!"

The old man's voice choked with emotion, "These past two days I've been thinking about how to explain this to the hospital, how to beg them for leniency... Your actions have completely blown things up!"

"This isn't a competition; this is clearly a disaster!"

"With this, not only will Peking University have to step aside, but even MIT will have to take a backseat!"

Seeing the old professor so excited he was incoherent, Zhang Yan smiled and handed him a tissue.

"Professor Yan, don't rush to cry."

"This is nothing."

"Once it gets to the competition, this thing has a 'surprise mode,' so you can get excited then."

……

In the evening, Zhang Yan left the school, preparing to pick up Nie Qingcheng from get off work at Qingcheng Group.

Just as he reached the tree-lined path at the school gate, a black Audi A6 silently slid over and blocked his way.

The car window rolled down, revealing the face of a middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses who looked refined and cultured.

"Zhang Yan?" the man greeted him with a smile, a standard smile that revealed a businessman's shrewdness.

"Who are you?" Zhang Yan stopped in his tracks, his expression calm.

"My surname is Zhao. I am the sponsor representative of the Jinghua University team and also the vice president of Tianqi Technology."

Mr. Zhao got out of the car, took out a business card from his pocket and handed it over. "Interested in chatting for a bit? About your 'Wind and Fire Wheel' design."

Zhang Yan didn't take the business card; he just glanced at it.

Tianqi Technology?

If I remember correctly, this company is a giant in the domestic special robot manufacturing industry and one of the biggest sponsors of this competition.

"Let's talk here, I'm in a hurry."

Zhang Yan glanced at his watch.

Nie Qingcheng said she booked a private restaurant for tonight, and if she arrived late, that woman would get angry again.

Mr. Zhao wasn't embarrassed. He took back his business card, adjusted his glasses, and got straight to the point.

"Zhang is a straightforward person. So I'll just get straight to the point."

"We have some connections in the training lab, and we saw your test this afternoon."

"Absolutely stunning."

General Manager Zhao gave a thumbs up, his tone somewhat persuasive, "However, while this design is ingenious, it's too risky in a college student competition like this."

"Most of the judges are quite conservative and may not be able to accept such 'unorthodox' ideas."

"So?" Zhang Yan looked at him with a half-smile.

"Therefore, Tianqi Technology wants to acquire this plan."

Mr. Zhao stretched out one hand, spread his five fingers, and waved it in front of Zhang Yan.

Five million.

"As long as you transfer the complete set of blueprints and source code to us and withdraw from this competition, the five million will be transferred to your account immediately."

"For a freshman, this amount of money is enough to save you twenty years of hard work."

Mr. Zhao's smile grew increasingly confident.

He had investigated Zhang Yan. Although there were rumors that the guy had some kind of relationship with Nie Qingcheng, in his opinion, it was just a rich woman keeping a gigolo.

What man doesn't want to have some savings of his own?

He didn't believe a student who lived off a woman could refuse five million in cash.

Zhang Yan looked at the hand and suddenly smiled.

His smile was tinged with helplessness and sarcasm.

"Five million?"

Zhang Yan shook his head and sighed. "President Zhao, do you have some misunderstanding about me?"

"Not enough?"

Mr. Zhao frowned. "Young man, don't be too greedy. Five million is already..."

"It's not that I think it's too little."

Zhang Yan interrupted him, took out his phone from his pocket, opened WeChat, and showed the screen to President Zhao.

Those were his chat logs with Nie Qingcheng.

Just ten minutes ago, Nie Qingcheng sent a message:

Honey, the place we're having dinner at tonight is a bit far, so I transferred some pocket money to you for gas. Don't worry about the gas money.

Below is a transfer red envelope.

Amount: 5200000.

Five million two hundred thousand.

Note: I love you.

Mr. Zhao stared at the number, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. The smile on his face instantly froze, as if he had been slapped hard.

Gas money?

More than five million?!

Is this some kind of aerospace fuel?!

"Mr. Zhao, look."

Zhang Yan put away his phone, his tone so sincere it made you want to punch him, "My wife can easily get me more gas than your quote."

"If I take your five million, I'll have to explain to her where the money came from. What if she thinks I'm hiding money from her? That would be such a hassle."

"So, let's just forget about it."

Zhang Yan walked past the completely petrified President Zhao, waved his hand, and left him with a dashing back view.

"Also, go back and tell those people at Jinghua University."

"If you want to win, prove your skills on the field."

"Playing these kinds of off-court tricks is really beneath you."

Mr. Zhao stood there, watching the departing figure, his face turning pale and then red.

He took out his phone, dialed a number, and his voice was terrifyingly gloomy.

"We can't buy the proposal."

"This kid... he's a bit strange."

"Since the soft approach isn't working, then don't blame us for following the rules."

"Check out that Lin Wei. I remember her family... seems to have a lot of debt, right?"