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

On the third day after that ray of sunlight disappeared, the hashtag "Case of Arrest at the Chipfire Phase II Donation Ceremony" surged to the top of the trending searches across the entire internet.

Su Qingwan's feature article, "Within the National Border: A Chip War Without Gunfire," was published at 3 a.m. and garnered over 10 million views within four hours.

For three consecutive days, state media reprinted the article, and Xinhua News Agency published a short commentary with a title of only eight characters: "National Treasures Should Not Be Coveted."

Chen Ping didn't read those reports.

Seventy-two hours after the incident, Chen Ping locked himself in a conference room on the third floor of the Corefire Center, working with Lin Yuanzhou's team to keep an eye on the forty-two pieces of precision equipment that had been seized.

"Two units have been confirmed to have implanted disturbance devices. What about the remaining forty?"

Lin Yuanzhou took off his anti-static gloves and pushed the latest reverse analysis report onto the table.

"All have been checked. Out of 42 devices, seven had problems. Five of them used more subtle methods; they didn't use jumper wires for direct connections, but directly tampered with the firmware."

Chen Ping opened the report and scanned it page by page.

"Will it work?"

Lin Yuanzhou was taken aback.

"Remove the backdoor, but what about the devices themselves?"

"The equipment's precision is fine; only three companies worldwide can manufacture the core module of the optical alignment system." Lin Yuanzhou leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temples.

If we completely remove the implanted parts and rewrite the firmware, it will work. It will also save us at least two years of forward development time.

Chen Ping closed the report.

"Let's do it."

He stood up, walked to the whiteboard, picked up a marker and wrote a line: Seizure of Equipment ~ Reverse Engineering Research Project.

"You select the people to form a task force. The equipment will remain at the Chipfire Center, and all research results will be reported directly to the Provincial Semiconductor Industry Leading Group through a confidential channel."

Lin Yuanzhou sprang up from his chair, took two steps to the whiteboard, and stared at the line of text for five seconds.

"Director Chen, if the reverse engineering of this batch of equipment is successful..."

"The domestic alternative plan can be implemented at least three years ahead of schedule." Chen Ping put the pen cap back on and tossed it to Lin Yuanzhou. "Stop dawdling, submit the plan within forty-eight hours."

Lin Yuanzhou caught the pen cap and ran back to the laboratory.

The provincial party committee's standing committee convened on the fifth day after the incident.

Chen Pingfang was not present, but Ma Donglin brought the news over that evening.

"Governor Liu spoke at the meeting for twenty minutes and specifically called out your name."

Ma Donglin leaned against the door frame of Chen Pingfang's office, holding an unlit cigarette in his hand.

"What were the exact words?"

"Governor Liu spoke highly of you, saying that you were very clear-headed, decisive, and responsible in the Xinhuo project, setting an example for all cadres in the province to learn from."

Ma Donglin repeated the gist of the meaning, and then he laughed.

"Old Ma, when did your memory become so good?"

"These are Governor Liu's exact words, of course I wouldn't dare to remember them wrong."

As Ma Donglin spoke, he tucked the unlit cigarette behind his ear.

"Furthermore, Secretary Deshan also said that this case has a great impact and should be used as a typical case in counter-espionage work, and then reported to the Central Committee."

Chen Ping didn't respond to him; he turned around and looked out the window.

He noticed that the parking lot downstairs had new light bulbs, so it was brighter than before. There were also more cars on the road, just like before. It seemed like everything had returned to normal.

However, Chen Pingfang knew very well that this was just a facade of calm.

He thought of He Hongru's matter.

After He Hongru was arrested, it was said that the work of the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology was basically suspended and paralyzed.

Because the deputy director in charge is already very old and simply cannot handle such a big matter.

Funding for the second phase of the Chipfire project, supporting policies for the industrial chain, and negotiations with several projects in other provinces have all stalled; no one dares to sign off.

This hole will have to be filled sooner or later.

A week later.

Jiang Fan knocked on Chen Pingfang's office door, her expression a mix of joy and worry.

"Director Chen, Secretary Li of the Municipal Party Committee asked me to inform you to come to the Municipal Party Committee meeting room at 3 PM this afternoon."

"What is it?"

Jiang Fan swallowed hard.

"People from the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department have arrived."

At 2:55 p.m., Chen Pingfang walked into the small conference room on the third floor of the municipal party committee building.

There were already two people sitting inside.

The man on the left, Chen Pingfang recognized him. He was Li Jianguo, the Party Secretary of Nanzhou City. He was in his early fifties, with graying temples, wearing frameless glasses, and sitting upright.

Chen Pingfang had met the man on the right once. He was Sun Zhengze, the deputy director of the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department. He was short, had a round face, wore a dark blue jacket, and had a teacup beside him with the lid on.

Li Jianguo nodded to Chen Pingfang.

"Sit down, lie flat."

Chen Ping pulled out a chair and sat down.

Sun Zheng lifted the lid of the teacup, took a sip, put the cup back on the table, and got straight to the point.

"Comrade Chen Pingfang, I have been entrusted by the Provincial Party Committee to come here today specifically to talk to you about something."

Chen Ping sat up straight.

"The province attaches great importance to the Xinhuo Phase II case. Both Secretary Deshan and Governor Mingyuan have given instructions. The organization has taken note of your performance this time."

Sun Zhengze opened the folder in front of him and pulled out a document with a red seal.

"He Hongru from the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology has run into trouble, and the department's work cannot be left unattended. The Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee has made a decision and has also filed a report with the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China."

Sun Zhengze pushed the file to the center of the desktop.

"Chen Pingfang has been appointed as the Party Secretary and Director of the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology."

There was a three-second silence in the conference room.

Li Jianguo took off his glasses, wiped them with a lens cloth, and put them back on.

"Going from the municipal level to the head of a provincial department is a significant leap. But the organization believes you have the ability and the responsibility."

Chen Ping stared at the red stamp on the document, his mind racing.

From deputy director of the High-tech Zone Management Committee to director of the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, He Hongru held this position for six years, cultivating an entire network of relationships. The mess he left behind was far more than just an empty pen.

But this position also means the ability to mobilize industrial resources across the entire province. How resources are allocated in the semiconductor, new energy, and high-end equipment manufacturing industries all have to pass through this table.

Chen Ping stood up.

"Thank you for the organization's trust; I will obey the arrangements."

Sun Zhengze and Li Jianguo exchanged a glance and nodded to each other.

At six o'clock in the evening, Chen Ping walked out of the municipal party committee building carrying the appointment document.

The sky in the direction of the provincial capital was ablaze with orange-red sunset clouds, and the national flag in the municipal party committee compound fluttered in the wind.

Chen Ping stood on the steps, tucked the folder under his arm, and took out his phone.

Thirty-seven unread messages and twelve missed calls.

Chen Ping didn't reply to each message one by one. He swiped down on his phone screen and his finger stopped on a phone number.

It's Zhou Weiguo's number.

They had been in contact with Guangling, but in the past week, Zhou Weiguo called four times in a row, and Chen Pingfang was too busy to answer any of them.

He thought about it for a moment, then called back.

The phone rang twice and was quickly answered.

"Hello, is this...is this Director Chen?"

Zhou Weiguo even changed how he addressed him. It seems the news of his promotion has already reached Guangling.

"It's me, Weiguo. I saw you called me a lot, is there something you need?"

There was silence for several seconds on the other end of the phone.

Chen Pingfang sensed something was wrong, and he felt a little nervous.

"Director Chen, something has happened in Guangling." Zhou Weiguo's voice sounded very low, as if he was having a hard time speaking.

"Fang Zhiyuan committed suicide while he was in the detention center."

Chen Ping was shocked when he heard the news; he almost dropped his phone.

He stood on the steps, looking at the sky outside. There was still a hint of sunset on the horizon, and the iron gate of the municipal party committee compound was closing, making a loud, muffled sound.