Reborn in 2012, building a new energy empire

As I left Professor Wu Weizhen's office, the streetlights were already on.

The streetlights on campus cast dim yellow light in the winter night, and the last withered leaves of the plane trees swirled in the cold wind, landing on the shoulders of students hurrying by.

The young figures holding books exhaled white breath that quickly dissipated into the night, their faces still bearing the purest thirst for knowledge and the most innocent imagination of the world.

A biting north wind swept by, swirling up the scattered fallen leaves on the ground. Jiang Haoran subconsciously tightened the collar of his coat, but a surge of hot heat was rushing and pounding in his chest.

The favorable winds of national-level industrial policies are already visible on the horizon and are about to arrive in force.

Self-reliance and control over key photovoltaic materials and equipment is no longer just an industry consensus, but a national will that is about to be implemented. This force came earlier, more clearly, and more undeniably than he remembered.

At the same time, the entire photovoltaic industry is experiencing an unprecedented winter. The heavy blows of anti-dumping and countervailing duties imposed by Europe and the United States have cast a shadow of overcapacity in China, and the price war is so fierce that every penny of profit has been squeezed out.

All the survivors are shouting the same word: cost reduction.

Diamond wire cutting, a process long monopolized by foreign giants and accounting for a significant proportion of silicon wafer costs, will be like a crack bursting open beneath a thick layer of ice once high-performance domestic alternatives are achieved. Light will surge in through that crack.

Technology, market, policy, team... all the elements are converging in the same direction.

Gu Qiushi's forward-thinking technological acumen and strong execution, Wang Qiming's meticulous craftsmanship in turning blueprints into tangible objects in the workshop, Professor Sun's team's profound accumulation in materials science, the young engineers in the laboratory who work through the night to debug a single parameter, and the silent but reliable technical workers in Zhenjiang and Suzhou and Hangzhou...

A team, perhaps still young, but with pure goals, unwavering will, and the ability to fight tough battles, is quietly taking shape on the eve of an impending storm.

Jiang Haoran walked to the parking lot, opened the car door, and sat in the driver's seat. The coldness inside the car brought him to his senses slightly, but the fire in his eyes remained unextinguished.

He took out his phone, and the light from the screen illuminated his angular profile and calm, serene eyes in the darkness.

Find Gu Qiushi's number and dial it.

The phone was answered after only one ring, and Gu Qiushi's calm voice came from the other end: "President Jiang."

"Qiushi, two things." Jiang Haoran's tone was calm, but it conveyed an undeniable sense of urgency. "First, the process verification of the 'G-9' batch must be accelerated. The original deadline is two weeks ahead of schedule. Before the Spring Festival, I want to see the first engineering prototype roll off the production line, and the performance indicators must meet our internally set 'Grade A' standard."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, followed by an immediate and decisive reply: "Understood. I will reschedule the R&D and engineering departments, and if necessary, implement three shifts."

"Second," Jiang Haoran gazed out the window at the deep night, "begin preparing the complete test data package for the 'G-9' batch of products, as well as preliminary technical promotion materials for leading downstream silicon wafer manufacturers. The materials must be solid, and the data must withstand the most stringent scrutiny."

This time, Gu Qiushi paused a little longer, his voice tinged with inquiry: "President Jiang, is this... a clear signal from the policy level?"

Jiang Haoran's lips curved upwards very slightly in the darkness.

"Yes," he replied, his voice not loud, yet seemingly carrying immense weight, "Preparing to welcome spring."

Some strengths must be silently accumulated in the depths unseen by anyone; some promises need to be fulfilled through silent journeys and final results.

When the east wind ripples the ice and the spring tide begins to surge, he must ensure that the ship in his hands is the most sturdy flagship, the one most capable of braving the wind and waves.

After ending the call with Gu Qiushi, he did not start the car immediately.

His finger slid across the screen, and in his contacts, the name he had pinned to the top—"Miaomiao"—lay quietly in the dim light.

A strong impulse welled up inside me. I wanted to hear her voice, to tell her about the confirmation I received from Professor Wu today that could almost change the course of the battle, to share with her the thrill of seeing the dawn in the dead of winter, and even... to draw a little warmth and strength from her.

The phone call was made.

The voice that came through the receiver, however, was a mechanical female voice: "The user you dialed is currently on another call. Please try again later."

Jiang Haoran held his phone, waited quietly for a few seconds, and didn't dial again. The streetlights outside the car window cast dappled light and shadow on his face, creating an interplay of light and shadow.

In the end, he simply opened WeChat, typed, and sent. An ordinary message, quietly blending into the torrent of countless everyday concerns:

"Are you busy? It's getting colder today, remember to wear more clothes."

Then, he placed his phone on the passenger seat, fastened his seatbelt, and started the car.

The engine roared, headlights pierced the darkness, and the car headed towards the highway. There were still some important matters awaiting his signature in Suzhou and Hangzhou.

At almost the same time, in a small, private conference room in the headquarters building of Wanhe Solar, Lin Miaomiao had just finished a summary meeting with the technical department.

In front of her were three thick industry monographs, a laptop displaying complex process flow diagrams, and a notebook filled with dense writing.

On the phone screen, Jiang Haoran's missed call notifications and the WeChat messages that followed were like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples.

Her fingertips hovered above the redial button, trembling slightly.

The fierce conflict with my father during the day, the words that were like knives, are still etched in my mind.

Her father's statement, "He wasn't being cunning," and the more pointed questions that followed, not only negated Jiang Haoran, but also seemed to negate all her judgments and choices.

Feeling wronged, angry, resentful... all sorts of emotions clashed in my chest.

She almost immediately dialed the number and told him everything, hoping to get comfort, support, or just a simple "I understand."

But at the very last moment before pressing the button, she stopped.

What's the point of telling him? To pour out your grievances and denounce your father's injustice?

Besides adding to his troubles and pressure, what else can he bring? What the father is questioning is Jiang Haoran's ability and prospects, but even more so, Lin Miaomiao's vision and decisiveness as the future heir.

Words are no proof.

What she needs is not complaints or support. What she needs are weapons, ammunition, concrete and irrefutable proof.

What Jiang Haoran needs to do is prove that the path he has chosen is correct, prove that his team is capable of overcoming those "bottleneck" difficulties, and prove that the products they have developed are the "antidote" that Wanhe Solar and even the entire industry urgently need to get through the winter.

All of this can't be proven by his efforts alone.

She, Lin Miaomiao, must become an indispensable part of this battlefront.