Chapter 461: What? Say That Again!

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Chao looked at Lin Wu beside him and said, “Give Ling Chen a call and ask if our group has any business dealings with Hua Hong.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Wu knew that his boss intended to help Zhang Ruoyun resolve the matter.

“I’ll make the call right away!” Lin Wu said, taking out his phone and walking to the side to make the call.

Soon, Lin Wu finished the call and walked back to Zhou Chao, shaking his head gently.

“I see.”

He tapped his knee lightly with his fingers, contemplating how to handle this matter.

The entertainment industry was different from other circles. Some things could be blown out of proportion unintentionally. If he directly intervened to resolve the matter, it would undoubtedly be the quickest and easiest way. However, he didn’t know if it would lead to any chain reactions, making people think he was using his influence. If it ended up on the internet and was fueled by some malicious intent, although it wouldn’t cause significant waves, it could still have some impact on future charity plans, especially considering that the other party had connections with the Zhejiang Business Association.

“Alright, let’s give a call to Jack Ma and have him step in to avoid any unnecessary disputes.”

Zhou Chao also knew that the owner of Huaxia was no ordinary person. He had previously worked in a related unit and held a high position. Although he had ventured into business, his connections were still intact. There was no need to escalate the situation.

Having Jack Ma step in was just a matter of making a phone call. At most, they could invite him to dinner when he visited Hangzhou.

!!..

The call was quickly answered.

“Zhou, my young friend, what made you call me?”

“Well, there’s no need to beat around the bush. I’ll get straight to the point,” Zhou Chao said, and then he explained the situation regarding Zhang Ruoyun. “You’re quite clever these days. Are you worried about causing animosity from our Zhejiang Business Association? Are we that petty?” Jack Ma, a seasoned businessman, immediately understood Zhou Chao’s concerns.

“After all, it’s just a minor matter. If 1 intervene hastily, it might complicate things. I’m afraid it could lead to unnecessary disputes.”

“Alright, 1 understand. I’ll inform the Hua Hong side. You just arrange for someone to handle it when the time comes. When you have the chance, come to Hangzhou to play. I heard from Xiao Ma that you’re an excellent chess player. We should have a good match sometime!”

“Don’t worry, there won’t be a problem.”

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Chao turned to Lin Wu and said, “Give Ling Chen a call and have him arrange for someone to resolve the matter in Zhejiang Province this afternoon. Also, remind him to pay attention to Zhang Ruoyun’s addition to our group’s film and television company.”

“Boss, are you saying that Zhang Ruoyun is joining our group’s film and television company?”

“Yes, you might get to see it when you return to Modu next time.”

Lin Wu nodded. Recently, he had been following “The Long Night,” and being able to see the original actor “Fan Xian” in person was certainly exciting.

Seeing Lin Wu still standing there in excitement, Zhou Chao smiled and said, “Stop daydreaming, let’s go have lunch. It’s already noon, and we have to go to the company in the afternoon.”

“Yes, Boss, I’ll go right away!”

At noon, Zhou Chao and Lin Wu had a simple meal at the hotel and took a half-hour nap. Then, they boarded the car that had been waiting for them for some time to head to the company.

“Boss, why hasn’t he arrived yet? I’m getting anxious!” In front of the Canghai Office Building, Zhou Jilong checked his watch and paced back and forth.

Xu Yu couldn’t help but say, “Lao Zhou, can you please calm down a bit? Your constant pacing is making me dizzy.”

“I can’t help it! I’m anxious!”

“Why are you in such a hurry? Even if you want to impress the boss, you still have to wait for him.”

“Humph… You don’t do scientific research, and you don’t understand. Lanling, tell them, am I right?” Zhou Jilong looked at Lanling, who remained silent beside him.

Lanling kept her eyes straight ahead, pretending not to have heard, and sipped her red date tea from a thermos.

Seeing that Lanling ignored him, Zhou Jilong didn’t push the matter further. He looked up at the direction of the company’s entrance.

Before long, a white Alphard appeared in their field of vision. Zhou Jilong, who was already excited, shouted loudly, “He’s here, he’s here! The boss is approaching with vigorous steps!”

Xu Yu and Lanling exchanged knowing glances and took a couple of steps to the side.

Zhou Jilong also noticed their actions. His excited waving hand froze, and after an awkward wave or two, he lowered his hand.

“Are you two making fun of me?”

“No, not at all,” both of them said in unison.

Xu Yu and Lanling shared a smile, while Zhou Jilong’s face turned three shades darker.

“What are you two so happy about? Why is Zhou Jilong looking so gloomy? Don’t tell me you’re not welcoming me!” Zhou Chao had already arrived by their side without anyone noticing.

“Boss, no, it’s just that these two were making fun of me. You have to say something, they’re being too much!” Zhou Jilong now looked like a schoolboy who had been bullied and was reporting it to his teacher.

Zhou Chao could tell from the situation that they were fooling around. He smiled and shook his head, then walked towards the office building.

“Hey, boss, can you give them a little lesson, especially Xu Yu, he’s the most outrageous. Boss, wait for me…”

Observing the mischievous Zhou Jilong, Xu Yu, Lin Wu, and Lan Ling who were trailing behind him wore expressions of utter helplessness.

“He’s almost sixty years old, yet he’s behaving like a child. Come on, let’s move along swiftly, so Lao Zhao doesn’t steal all the attention. He’s clearly fooling around, and now he’s the center of attention. I never thought Lao Zhou had such a crafty side!” Lan Ling remarked and hastened toward Zhou Chao and the rest.

“Wait for me!” Xu Yu ran up directly.

Leaving Lin Wu alone in the wind.

“Oh, that’s so scheming,” Lin Wu muttered to himself, then hurriedly followed.

When Lan Ling and the others arrived at the office, Zhou Chao was already chatting with Zhou Jilong. When they saw the three of them, Zhou Jilong looked triumphant.

“Indeed, wisdom comes with age!” Zhou Jilong looked at Xu Yu and the others and said.

“Alright, everyone is here, let’s talk about business.”

Hearing Zhou Chao speak, Zhou Jilong’s originally playful face suddenly became serious. Xu Yu and the others quickly found their seats, and Lin Wu, on the other hand, went to make tea for everyone.

Zhou Chao looked at the three of them sitting straight and finally fixed his gaze on Xu Yu.

“Xu Yu, you go first. What’s the current situation of Canghai’s development?”

“Boss, currently, Phase Two of Canghai has been completed. Professor Lan Ling and his team have moved all the labs to Phase Two. Phase One now only has the wafer fab and Xiong Lao’s research team left. The company currently has 468 employees, with 325 technical workers and 143 research personnel, including 122 researchers, 18 professors, and 3 academicians. The wafer fab production line has now expanded to five, with a monthly production capacity of over a million wafers. We have also established cooperation with several large domestic technology companies, such as Jufei and SMIC, and the orders are booked until the end of the year.”

“Wait a minute, did you just say there are five wafer production lines? Has Chai Lao already successfully developed the production line?” Zhou Chao’s tone became excited.

Zhou Jilong looked smug and said, “Hehe, Boss, it’s already been developed. Currently, we can start small-scale production. The three additional production lines were also quickly produced with the full effort of the entire company!”

“Well done!” Zhou Chao couldn’t help but applaud.

“Lao Zhou, how many production lines can Chai Lao’s team produce in a month now?”

Zhou Chao’s question stunned the previously cheerful group. Xu Yu and Zhou Jilong exchanged glances, and then Zhou Jilong looked at Zhou Chao and said, “Boss, currently our technology is not fully mature yet, so the production speed is relatively slow. We can produce a maximum of two production lines per month.”

“No problem! After all, it has just been developed. It will take some time for the initial operation. I understand that. Now, who is in charge of the wafer fab?” Xu Yu raised his hand and said, “Boss, I am still in charge of the wafer fab.” “I’ll give you three months. I want you to capture half of the domestic wafer market. I don’t care how you do it, I only care about the results. By the way, are the funds transferred earlier still in the company’s account?”

“It’s still there. Currently, there’s nearly 10 billion US dollars in the company’s account.”

“Alright, 1 won’t provide additional funds. Is there anything else you want to report?” Zhou Chao looked at Xu Yu and asked.

Xu Yu pondered for a moment, but couldn’t think of anything important to report.

“Boss, nothing else!”

Zhou Chao nodded and then turned his gaze to Zhou Jilong and Lan Ling. “Well, who’s next? Zhou Jilong, you can go next!”

“Boss, currently the progress of the research institute is very fast. There are currently four major projects underway, including lithography machines, machine tools, wafers, and chips. There have been significant breakthroughs in the first few, so I won’t go into detail. We’ll have the blue-collar workers report later. Currently, I’ve formed a team of 30 people for the chip project. I’ve recruited some key personnel from several large domestic technology companies, and we’ve already started preliminary research. In addition, the research institute has added 869 new patents, most of which are related to machine tools and wafers. There are less than 10 patents related to lithography machines!” Zhou Jilong finished speaking, looking a bit embarrassed as he glanced at Zhou Chao.

Since the last lesson, whenever new research was developed, Zhou Jilong would apply for global patents at the first opportunity, resulting in over 800 patents in just a few months.

When Zhou Chao heard that there were fewer than ten patents related to lithography machines, his brows furrowed.

“What’s going on with the lithography machines? Our technology should have bypassed ASML’s patents, so why are there less than ten patents?”

Zhou Jilong licked his slightly dry lips and looked at Lan Ling before saying, “Boss, the patents for the lithography machines have all been registered by someone else!”

“What? Say that again!” Zhou Chao stood up from the sofa, his face full of shock..