After breaking up with my boyfriend, I made a fortune and rose rapidly in my career.

It was late at night, and only the director's office was still lit up in the entire building.

Chen Ping didn't turn on the lights; he simply stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the row of luxury cars parked below.

The 3 billion yuan special fund had just been approved when these people came knocking on our door. Their purpose was clear: to get a share of the money.

Half an hour later, the small conference room on the top floor of the management committee was brightly lit.

Zhang Chao led five men in suits and ties in. The one in the lead was a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with his hair neatly combed, and his Zegna handmade suit was quite expensive.

His name is Guo Rui. He is the deputy general manager of Jiangbei Construction Investment, the largest state-owned investment bank in the province, and also the leader of this provincial capital capital inspection team.

"Director Pingfang, you're young and promising!" Guo Rui greeted him with a warm smile as soon as he entered, but his eyes held a scrutinizing gaze and a sense of superiority. "I'm a few years older than you, so I'll take the liberty of calling you 'Brother Pingfang.' You don't mind, do you?"

Chen Ping reached out and shook hands with him lightly before letting go, a formulaic smile on his face. He gestured to the conference table: "President Guo, everyone, please have a seat."

His attitude was neither warm nor cold; he neither tried to get close to them nor seemed overly enthusiastic.

A flicker of displeasure crossed Guo Rui's eyes, but his smile remained unchanged. The people he brought included representatives from Jiangbei Trust and Hanjiang Capital, all of whom were heads of departments, each backed by a powerful figure in the province. This entourage would make even the mayor treat them with utmost respect.

After everyone sat down, Zhang Chao served tea and then left, closing the door behind him.

"Director Pingfang, we've come here with the province's sincerity," Guo Ruixian said, stating his purpose directly, but his tone carried an air of superiority. "We've all heard about the Chipfire project; it's a good thing, a great undertaking that will bring glory to the country. However, such a large project can't go far on enthusiasm alone, relying solely on government funding."

He paused, leaned forward slightly, interlaced his fingers on the table, and struck a pose as if he were surveying the world.

"The future path should be market-oriented. Several of us are preparing to jointly establish a special fund, with an initial investment of 2 billion yuan, to help Chipfire complete its restructuring, optimize its equity structure, and introduce a more flexible management mechanism."

They make it sound nice, but what they really want is to invest money, dilute state-owned shares, and eventually take control of the operation.

Chen Ping listened quietly, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the table.

Seeing Chen Pingfang remain silent, another representative from Hanjiang Capital smiled and added, "Director Chen, we're doing this for your own good. Thirty billion yuan sounds like a lot, but if you really invest it in the bottomless pit of semiconductors, you won't even see a ripple. With us joining, we can solve your subsequent funding problems and help share the risks. If the project succeeds, we'll all share the profits; and if... I mean, if the project fails, with us market players supporting you, your personal pressure will be much less, right?"

There was already a hint of threat in those words.

Chen Ping stopped tapping his fingers on the table.

He raised his eyes, his gaze calmly sweeping over everyone present, and slowly spoke. His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"Thank you all for your interest in the Chipfire project."

"However, you may have misunderstood something."

He leaned back in his chair, his hands resting naturally on the armrests, and his entire aura instantly changed.

"From its inception, the Chipfire project has been a national strategic mission. Its primary goal is to achieve technological breakthroughs, not to make a profit."

Guo Rui frowned: "Director Pingfang, that's not right. Any company that doesn't aim to make a profit is just playing dirty."

"Therefore, in order to ensure that every penny is spent wisely, the first thing I did after taking office was to work with technical experts from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Provincial Audit Office to design a system."

As Chen Ping spoke, he called out to the door, "Zhang Chao."

Zhang Chao pushed open the door and handed out a newly printed document to everyone.

The document has a long title: "Explanation on the Closed-Loop Supervision System for the Strategic Scientific Research Special Funds of the Nanzhou Chip Spark Demonstration Zone".

Guo Rui and the others looked down, and after only two glances, their expressions changed.

This system divides the 3 billion yuan into hundreds of independent funding pools, each corresponding to a specific technical node. Every disbursement of funds requires the dual signatures of the scientific team led by Jiang Fan and the management committee. Furthermore, disbursement records, usage details, and final outcome reports are all uploaded to the provincial monitoring platform in real time.

Simply put, these 3 billion yuan are locked up. Every penny's whereabouts are crystal clear, and no one can tamper with them.

"How...how can this be considered a market-oriented operation?" an investment bank representative couldn't help but exclaim. "With such rigid fund allocation, companies have absolutely no autonomy; it completely violates market principles!"

"You're right," Chen Ping readily admitted. "During the core technology development phase, I was determined to defy market rules. Capital only seeks profit and avoids risk, but what we need to do now is to succeed regardless of cost or success!"

Guo Rui's face darkened completely. He threw the documents on the table, his voice turning cold: "Director Chen, this shows you don't trust us, and you don't trust the market. You're turning the Corefire project into a monstrous, isolated planned economy!"

"Mr. Guo is joking." Chen Ping smiled, but there was a hint of coldness in his smile. "It's not that I don't believe in the market, it's that I don't believe in you."

"you!"

"Before you all came here, you should have all studied the Corefire project. As you know, I signed something to secure support from the province." Chen Pingfang's gaze sharpened. "A performance-based agreement. If the No. 1 experimental line cannot produce qualified samples within three years, I, Chen Pingfang, will take off this uniform and bear full responsibility."

The meeting room fell silent.

Chen Ping stood up, walked up to them, and looked down at them.

"Now, Chipfire welcomes all capital that genuinely wants to contribute to the nation's semiconductor industry. But there is one condition."

He held up one finger.

"All funds entering Chipfire must be incorporated into this regulatory system. At the same time, investor representatives must sign their names on this performance-based agreement, just like I have."

"Are you willing?"

Guo Rui and the others were completely stunned. They opened their mouths, unable to utter a single word.

Are you suggesting that these people who play with capital should gamble their entire fortunes and futures on a technology project? Are you kidding me?! They're here to share the profits, not to gamble!

As Chen Ping watched their changing expressions, the corners of his mouth curved into a wider smile.

"It seems that your sincerity hasn't reached that level yet."

He turned and walked back to his seat, picked up his teacup, blew on it gently, and dismissed him.

"Zhang Chao, see Mr. Guo and the others off for me."

……

Several luxury cars slunk away from the management committee building.

In his office, Chen Ping stood by the window, watching them disappear into the night, his eyes calm.

He turned away the first wave of people who wanted a share of the money. But he knew this was just the beginning.

Just then, there was a knock on the office door.

Zhang Chao walked in, his face showing a strange and troubled expression.

"Director, there's an elderly gentleman downstairs who specifically wants to see you."

"If you don't want to see me, just say I'm resting." Chen Ping said without turning his head.

"But..." Zhang Chao hesitated for a moment, but still forced himself to say, "He said that he was your teacher when you were studying at Peking University, and his name is... Professor Sun Zhixue."

Chen Ping's hand, which was holding the teacup, stopped in mid-air.

In an instant, an image flashed into his mind of an old scholar with gray hair, passionately lecturing on the podium, vehemently denouncing the hollowing out of domestic technology.

Sun Zhixue, a leading figure in China's semiconductor materials field, was also the mentor who had the highest hopes for him and Lu Yuan.

Why is he here? And at this time?