From Wage Slave to Tycoon

"Young Su, you’ve really kept this research base of yours under wraps!"

Elder Xiao said, looking at Su Chen with a knowing expression.

During his chat with Professor Wu, he had learned about the projects currently underway at the research base. There weren’t many, as it turned out—only three.

Aside from the controllable nuclear fusion lab he saw first, and the chip production workshop and lithography machine manufacturing center he had just toured, there was one more he had yet to see: the ultra-high-end CNC machines, hailed as the "heart of industry."

Any single one of these three projects was enough to cause a global earthquake in its respective industry.

Take chips, for instance. The world’s largest chip manufacturer at present was TSMC, yet even they had only just achieved mass production of 10nm chips.

Given a little more time, the title of "world’s largest chip manufacturer" would soon belong to this research base.

Upon hearing this, Su Chen put on a woeful expression. "Elder, let’s get this straight—looking is fine, but don’t you get any ideas. You’ve already taken the controllable nuclear fusion project. You can’t be eyeing my other projects now."

Elder Xiao’s expression stiffened at his words. He shot Su Chen an indignant glare. "Young Su, am I that shameless? Do you think this old man only knows how to take things that are already finished?"

"What’s yours is yours. It doesn’t matter who’s eyeing it. You can rest assured on that!"

The moment he finished speaking, Elder Xiao noticed that the woeful look on Su Chen’s face had vanished. He was grinning like a fox that had just raided the henhouse.

"Elder, you said it yourself," Su Chen said with the smug look of a successful schemer. "If anyone gets any funny ideas down the line, you have to be the one to swat their hands away!"

"You clever boy," Elder Xiao said, pointing at Su Chen with a laugh. "Not only do you put on a sob story for me, but you even scheme against this old man."

He didn’t take Su Chen’s little scheme to heart. The Xiao family had already benefited greatly from their association with Su Chen this time. If they couldn’t even shield him from the gazes of the greedy, then the Xiao family might as well give up on having any standing in the Imperial Capital.

"It’s as I just said: what’s yours, no one can ever take away!" Elder Xiao’s tone was exceptionally firm as he said this.

Su Chen was taken aback for a moment, then his expression immediately broke into a wide smile as he nodded firmly.

Having gotten the assurance he wanted, Su Chen was about to ask the Elder if he wanted to tour the experimental factory for the ultra-high-end CNC machines, when he saw Xiao Peng racing toward them in a tour cart.

"Sir! There are a lot of people outside! They say they’re here to take over security for the compound, but they’ve all been stopped outside." Xiao Peng’s voice rang out before the cart had even come to a full stop.

Su Chen nodded slightly. He knew that after the call Elder Xiao had made, more people were bound to show up. He wasn’t surprised.

He turned to Elder Xiao. "Elder, I’ll have to trouble Brother Cheen to handle this. You all are more familiar with these matters, after all."

Elder Xiao understood the protocol. He gave Xiao Chen, who was standing nearby, a meaningful look. "Ensure a smooth handover. Don’t cause any unnecessary trouble. Also, some research experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences will be arriving with them. Make sure you handle their reception properly."

Xiao Chen saluted, then hopped into Xiao Peng’s tour cart and headed toward the compound’s entrance.

As the tour cart receded into the distance, Su Chen looked at Elder Xiao in confusion. "Elder, you just mentioned experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences are coming. What’s that about? Does this mean you don’t plan on moving the reactor for the time being?"

"Mm, we don’t plan on moving it for now."

Elder Xiao paused for a moment before continuing, "It would take a great deal of time to build a new research base from scratch. Since you have a ready-made controllable nuclear fusion reactor right here, we figured we’d take this opportunity to let the experts get some hands-on study time."

"This will save a considerable amount of time and allow the experts to gain a comprehensive understanding of the technology."

Su Chen fell silent. He knew the Elder had a point.

’Moving a reactor isn’t a simple matter,’ he thought. ’Even though the radiation from controllable fusion is minimal, it’s not zero. If an accident were to happen during the relocation, the consequences would be catastrophic.’

’Besides, Professor Chen’s lab could serve as a teaching platform. It would allow the nation’s top nuclear engineering experts to grasp the technology quickly and lay the groundwork for future development.’

’But I have my reservations,’ Su Chen mused. ’If they stay here, a security cordon will be inevitable. That’s bound to affect the research base’s other operations to some degree.’

Seemingly sensing Su Chen’s hesitation, Elder Xiao patted him on the shoulder. "Don’t worry, no one will interfere with your compound’s operations. We’ll just be adding some personnel to the security detail."

"They will be integrated into the overall security of the compound. Furthermore, Professor Chen’s lab will be cordoned off from the main security system and placed under the protection of its own specialized guard unit."

Su Chen didn’t answer immediately. He mulled it over. ’Actually, these arrangements won’t affect me that much. The chip, lithography, and ultra-high-end CNC machine projects have all moved into the experimental production phase.’

’They’ve already been moved from the labs to the factory buildings in the back. Right now, Professor Chen’s team is the only one left in the main research area.’

After a moment of contemplation, Su Chen nodded in agreement. "Alright. We’ll do it your way, Elder. But how long will this take? They’re not planning on staying for half a year, are they?"