Chapter 351: 351 Change

The conference stretched into its third day, finally yielding substantial progress, which was to be expected given the industry’s magnitude and the many companies involved. Every clause could carry interests worth a hundred million or even a billion, so no one would cede ground lightly.

Chen Xu wasn’t particularly concerned about these details. After all, once he returned to the hotel, Secretary Wen would report to him, and he only needed a cursory understanding.

Using patents, he had reaped substantial profits, hardly different from robbery. The major battery enterprises surely had grievances. They would never allow him to meddle with the standards.

This was something Yang Jinxia had reminded him of during casual conversation.

This conference was merely a formality for him.

To truly dominate the industry, he would have to wait until he had developed the next generation of lithium-sulfur and lithium-air batteries.

For the past few days, he had simply been sightseeing in Beijing with the two girls.

They climbed the Great Wall first and then visited the Summer Palace, the Bird’s Nest, and other sites.

The conference lasted a total of five days and finally concluded with an agreement. Chen Xu had attended only the first day’s session, spending the next four days at various tourist spots.

Once the conference ended, he planned to return home. On the last day, he bade farewell to the two girls, making a vague promise to dine together after returning. In his view, however, it was just a polite gesture; he doubted they would meet again.

He flew back on a plane.

At the airport, only Secretary Jin was there to pick him up.

Luo Xiyun had gone abroad and Yang Jinxia was busy with something else; in any case, neither came to pick him up.

Chen Xu felt somewhat unhappy. Although he had met them in the Dream Gaming environment at night, the anti-addiction system blurred his memory upon waking, which wasn’t quite the same.

“Here are the documents you need to sign.”

After getting in the car, Secretary Jin presented a pile of documents for him to sign. His week-long absence had led to a backlog of work, particularly documents requiring his signature.

Chen Xu, looking at the documents in her hand, couldn’t help but comment, “I was gone for just a few days. Why are there so many?”

“These are all related to patents, including those from the data center and Huawei Electronics,” Secretary Jin explained softly.

Huawei Electronics, the flash memory chip manufacturer founded by Yang Jinxia, had a name she chose for its simplicity and clarity.

Naming was not one of Chen Xu’s strengths; he chose such styles for convenience. In this respect, Yang Jinxia was similar to him, as evidenced by the names she had picked in the past.

“I’ll look at them when I get back,” Chen Xu waved his hand dismissively and took out his phone to send a message to Yang Jinxia.

“If these matters aren’t addressed in a timely manner, the work will only pile up,” said Secretary Jin.

Chen Xu looked at her, saw the unwavering determination in her eyes, and took the documents to review.

Having spent a few days in Beijing without work, he felt somewhat lax. Reflecting on himself, he perked up and began attending to the documents.

By the time he arrived home, he had finished signing all the documents.

He returned to his own residence; with Luo Xiyun away, he had no desire to live with Zhang Yixuan. Although their relationship had thawed since the last incident, it was still awkward for two grown men to share a space.

The house had been cleaned, looking exactly the same as when he left a week ago.

Secretary Jin had a lot of work and left after dropping him off. As for Secretary Wen, he had given her the day off.

He sat alone in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, watching the bustling traffic below, and felt a sense of boredom.

Luo Xiyun was abroad, Yang Jinxia had gone out of town, and Bai Jinxuan was busy preparing for her first performance, completely swamped.

Chen Ziqi, now in high school, had a tight schedule, and he would have to wait for holidays to see her.

Old Tang, now the head of a noodle shop franchise, was working very hard, often doing overtime. When Chen Xu last visited him, his wife had complained about him being busier than before.

Chen Xu pondered and realized he didn’t know who to turn to.

For the first time, he questioned whether his social circle was too narrow. He had few friends he could truly converse with, and not even so-called fair-weather friends could be found.

Previously, he wouldn’t mind being alone and even enjoyed the solitude.

Now, however, after spending decades on an alien planet in that “Star Game,” often in solitude, he’d had enough.

He increasingly disliked being alone. Wandering about Beijing with two girls he had met by chance was a reflection of this sentiment.

Unable to sit still for long, he stood up, called his driver, and left the building to escape the empty space.

…

“Mr. Chen.”

Chen Xu entered a building and headed to one of the floors. After swiping his card to gain entry, he encountered staff in white lab coats who all greeted him politely.

He had purchased another laboratory here, which focused on pharmaceutical research. The equipment was relatively basic, insufficient for complex experiments.

He hadn’t visited in a while and, having nothing else to do, decided to drop by.

It didn’t take long for the head of the lab to approach–a woman in her twenties wearing glasses with a delicate appearance. Her name was Yang Qingqing. Like Cai Weiyi, she was a recent Ph.D. graduate with a background in biology.

She seemed prim and proper, more assertive than Cai Weiyi. She barely hesitated before agreeing to work for him upon hearing Chen Xu’s offer at her interview.

The drug research laboratory was much more expensive to operate than the battery lab, with costs nearly ten times higher.

To date, Chen Xu had invested a considerable sum without any return. Patiently, he instructed the lab to continue daily experiments according to his plan.

“Mr. Chen, please have a seat inside,” suggested Yang Qingqing, somewhat nervously. In his presence, she always behaved this way.

Yang Qingqing shared a similar disposition to Cai Weiyi: reserved, not given to boasting. When hiring personnel, Chen Xu had his preferences.

Yang Qingqing’s office wasn’t large. Once they entered, she took out a tea set and began to prepare tea for Chen Xu.

The tea set appeared rarely used; the lab wasn’t well-known, attracting few visitors.

“How’s your novel coming along?” Chen Xu inquired casually.

Upon hearing this, Yang Qingqing paused in her movements and said softly, “I’ve stopped writing it.”

Months earlier, during one of his visits, Chen Xu caught her writing and learned she was an author. He had looked up her work; although the content was rather hardcore, it received abysmal readership.