Chapter 338: Sci-tech Strong Army Initiative Officially Launched!
Li Zexiang felt puzzled and surprised, while his mind raced with thoughts like lightning.
Every new material and element discovered in the world would cause a huge commotion in academic circles, bringing astonishing honor and fame.
If it was truly a new two-dimensional material, and he, Li Zexiang, could really participate in the research and development.
Li Zexiang didn’t even dare to imagine.
His heartbeat began to accelerate uncontrollably.
“There are no conflicting interests between him and me, so there’s no reason for him to deceive me with something like this. If it’s fake, it couldn’t be hidden anyway. This means the mainland businessman in front of me really has connections.”
The more Li Zexiang thought, the more tempted he became, and he quickly made a decision to first clarify the matter.
With his profound knowledge as a professor at the University of Hong Kong, he would inquire about this so-called graphene. If Chen Zhenhua could answer fluently and delve deeper, revealing more information related to graphene.
That would mean this matter was probably real.
There would be a hefty salary to earn, and he could participate in researching and developing a new high technology material, without affecting his work at the university.
Li Zexiang felt this deal was a sure win with no loss, so agreeing to Chen Zhenhua’s invitation was fine.
If he asked some in-depth questions and Chen Zhenhua gave irrelevant answers or responses full of loopholes, then it would definitely be a fake guise.
At that point, Li Zexiang would just walk away and not waste even a second here.
Having made his decision in his heart, Li Zexiang then drew on his understanding of new material development to try to extract more information from Chen Zhenhua.
The result disappointed him greatly.
Because Chen Zhenhua didn’t answer at all.
Instead, he straightforwardly told Li Zexiang that the graphene matter wasn’t under his management, he didn’t know much about it, and the person responsible was his son.
If Li Zexiang was really interested, he could go with him to Shenzhen to meet Chen Jun.
Chen Zhenhua patted his chest and guaranteed that as long as Li Zexiang went to Shenzhen with him, his son would explain everything in person and wouldn’t let him make the trip in vain.
“He wants me to go there personally?”
His son’s tone was so high that he wouldn’t even come to Hong Kong to visit him in person, and instead expected him to go to the door himself—Li Zexiang’s face fell immediately.
With his usual temper, he would have already stood up and stormed off by now.
But just as he was about to stand up and leave, another surge of desire in his heart suddenly welled up, forcibly suppressing his anger.
This desire was extremely strong.
It was an innermost, extreme craving for honor and fame in academia, engaging in a fierce struggle with Li Zexiang’s vain sense of face and self-esteem.
Finally, thinking that he had a chance to become world-famous, and if he missed it, he would just remain a university professor for life, unable to leave a bold stroke in academia.
Li Zexiang quickly made his decision.
He would set aside face for now and bet on his future.
“Okay, I agree, but not today. I still need to go back to school to hand over work. Tomorrow morning, I’ll come over and go with you.”
Li Zexiang still couldn’t quite let go of his face at this moment, so after speaking, he stood up and walked toward the door.
“Professor Li, I dare guarantee that this decision you make today will be the most correct one of your life, and your future will be bright.”
Chen Zhenhua happily stood up to see him off, while also offering a blessing.
“I hope you’re right.”
Li Zexiang left a complex remark, opened the door, and strode out.
“Hey, I didn’t expect this kid’s method to actually work on this kind of person. Without his graphene thing, I probably would have made the trip in vain.”
Chen Zhenhua watched Li Zexiang disappear through the door, his mouth curving up in an exceptionally happy smile.
That was pride in his son!
After Li Zexiang returned to school by car, he eagerly began flipping through academic magazines and logging into websites on the computer, all to figure out what graphene was.
But after searching for a long time, he still found nothing.
No matter which channel he used to search, there was no name called graphene, though graphite was already widely used and developed comprehensively.
It was normal for Li Zexiang not to find it.
After all, in the normal timeline, it wouldn’t be formally named until
The more Li Zexiang couldn’t find graphene, the more curious he became about it. The intense craving brought by the unknown made him itch unbearably and unable to control himself.
He had even started to regret.
He shouldn’t have agreed to go to Shenzhen the next day; he should have set off for Shenzhen that afternoon to find Chen Zhenhua’s son and clarify the matter.
…
The night passed uneventfully.
It was just past 8 a.m. the next morning.
With his mind full of the three words graphene, having been tormented all night and unable to sleep at all, Li Zexiang rushed to the hotel with dark circles under his eyes.
Seeing how eager Li Zexiang was, Chen Zhenhua could no longer suppress the smile on his lips.
He made a telephone call to notify Chen Jun in advance, then had the assistant handle the checkout, and the three of them got in the car and hurried back to Shenzhen.
By the time Chen Zhenhua appeared in front of Chen Jun, Chen Jun had already made preparations here.
It was really just preparing “how to fool him.”
At first, when Li Zexiang saw how young Chen Jun was and that he completely lacked the temperament of a researcher, his brows furrowed, and he immediately felt like he’d been deceived.
But when Chen Jun opened his mouth and said the first sentence, with his majestic and heroic aura, it really made Li Zexiang’s eyes light up.
The feeling of being deceived faded by more than half.
And when Chen Jun sat down and got straight to the point, deeply introducing what graphene was and its potential value.
Li Zexiang was completely stunned and immersed in it, unable to extricate himself.
Chen Jun only mentioned a few points.
First, he introduced what graphene was and what kind of existence it was.
When Li Zexiang heard that graphene was obtained from graphite by separating it layer by layer until it became a single layer or multiple layers of special structure, and this structure was called graphene.
Li Zexiang’s mind buzzed, unable to imagine what kind of concept this was.
Although he wasn’t an expert in the professional field of materials science, Li Zexiang had some understanding of solid wood and knew how firm the layered structure of graphite, bonded by covalent chemical bonds, was.
Separating such a firm graphite structure seemed impossible to him.
But Chen Jun’s words all indicated to him that he had a method to separate the firm structure of graphite and then produce a brand-new two-dimensional material—graphene.
This point alone was enough to shock Li Zexiang; the way he looked at Chen Jun changed.
As if he had seen a ghost!
And when Chen Jun then described the properties of graphene and the value it could bring to the field of materials science, Li Zexiang was shocked to the point of being dumbfounded.
First, graphene’s ultra-high strength, which could reach more than a hundred times that of steel.
It could be used in high-end fields like aerospace to manufacture high-performance composite materials, reducing weight while significantly increasing structural strength.
Second, graphene’s extremely high thermal conductivity.
If this material could be developed, it could effectively solve heat dissipation problems for electronic equipment, improving the performance and stability of electronic components.
It could even be used to manufacture new heat dissipation materials, ushering in a new revolution in materials science.
Besides the field of materials science, graphene could provide unimaginable huge value, advancing many existing technology fields by a big step.
In the fields of electronic information and energy, it could provide extremely high value.
Graphene’s fast electron mobility could be used to manufacture high-speed transistors, integrated circuits, etc., promoting the semiconductor industry toward higher performance and lower power consumption.
Graphene’s unique two-dimensional structure could also make it excel in the sensor field.
Its high conductivity and specific surface area could serve as battery electrode material, improving battery charging and discharging efficiency and lifespan, and since batteries are destined to be one of the cores of future technology, this demonstrated the value of graphene.
In addition.
Graphene could also play huge value in fields like biomedicine, environmental protection, etc., thanks to its unique properties.
At the end, Chen Jun deliberately boasted a bit, using an artistic exaggeration to summarize graphene.
Once this special two-dimensional material was researched and developed, it would absolutely drive global technology development and generate market value exceeding trillions in the future.
With such a huge market value for graphene and such a great contribution to social development.
Chen Jun patted his chest and boldly claimed—
Whoever could research and develop it might even win the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Li Zexiang was already passionate about academic fame, and hearing there was a chance to win the Nobel Prize in Physics, the supreme honor that only top figures in academia could obtain.
His eyes nearly shot out green light!
This temptation was too great for him. If he could really win the Nobel Prize in Physics, he, Li Zexiang, would become the number one in Hong Kong’s academic circle.
He would thus step onto the shining peak of his life, becoming the focus of all eyes.
Chen Jun, proficient in psychology and micro-expressions, precisely captured Li Zexiang’s current psychological changes and gave him another super powerful dose.
Confidently stating: “After years of research, we already have leads on graphene.
If Professor Li is willing to join Da Jiang Company and assemble an research and development team for the company, to develop the first-generation small drone within three years.
Then I can give my research achievement as a company reward to you.
I guarantee that as long as you follow my approach, it won’t take more than a year to achieve successful research and development and create the brand-new two-dimensional material graphene.”
Boom!!!
Like a bolt of thunder from a clear sky.
“One year? Successful research and development in one year?”
Li Zexiang’s mind buzzed from the explosion, unable to believe such a huge pie would fall from the sky, with world-renowned honor within reach.
“Yes, just one year, I dare guarantee it,” Chen Jun said confidently.
What a joke.
Was there any Nobel Prize-level invention simpler than researching and developing graphene?
The answer was definitely no.
An invention that could be made by sticking with tape—even a fool could do it within a year.
As for how to mass-produce it with tape sticking, or what method could be used for mass production, that had nothing to do with discovering graphene.
As long as the existence of graphene could be proven, he would qualify for this top global honor.
“One year, Nobel Prize in one year?”
Li Zexiang was so excited at this moment that his fingers began to tremble uncontrollably, and his heartbeat had soared above
But in this exhilarated state, Li Zexiang suddenly thought of something.
His excited emotions suddenly began cooling down, and he frowned as he stared at Chen Jun and asked: “Since it only takes one year to succeed, why give it to me? Don’t you want the Nobel Prize that’s already in hand?”
This question was extremely tricky.
If what Chen Jun said about graphene was fake, there would be no way to resolve it.
However, everything Chen Jun said was true, so this fatal question became a free point for him, easily solvable.
“The Nobel Prize isn’t exclusive to one person. Since the first half is my merit, and you take over the second half, when the achievement is officially announced, I believe Professor Li will add my name, right?”
Chen Jun wore a confident smile on his face, gazing intently at Li Zexiang.
“…”
Li Zexiang didn’t answer, because the answer was obvious.
From Li Zexiang’s cognitive perspective…
Chen Jun had already researched more than half of it, and the development progress of graphene only needed one more year to succeed.
Now, it was purely to pull him in to join Da Jiang Company and assemble a research and development team, so he was sharing a piece of the duck already in mouth.
That meant Chen Jun had a lot of original information in hand, enough to prove his participation in the research work.
If Li Zexiang dared to claim it alone at that time, Chen Jun only needed to bring out all the original information, and Li Zexiang would end up notorious.
Conversely.
The Nobel Prize could originally be awarded to multiple people at the same time. The value Li Zexiang would get from claiming the honor alone was about the same as sharing it with Chen Jun.
So Li Zexiang didn’t speak, because he knew Chen Jun was certain he wouldn’t risk his future.
At the same time.
It was precisely this confidence emanating from Chen Jun’s bones that dispelled the last bit of doubt in Li Zexiang’s heart, making him choose to believe Chen Jun and take the gamble.
If he lost the bet, it would just be using three years to help Da Jiang Company develop a small drone, and he could still earn millions in salary.
If he won, his life would reach the peak!
Faced with such a huge temptation, Li Zexiang really couldn’t find a reason for refusal.
He proactively reached out to Chen Jun with a smile: “Young Master Chen, I will develop the first-generation drone as soon as possible. I hope you’re ready by then.”
“I’ve been ready for a long time, just waiting for your drone.”
Chen Jun grasped Li Zexiang’s outstretched hand, his face beaming with a particularly sunny and brilliant smile.
Having preemptively snatched the “godfather” of DJI drones, and with the Chen family’s abundant funds and resources, the first-generation small drone was just around the corner.
How could Chen Jun not be happy and delighted?
Li Zexiang also smiled at this moment; he too had gotten what he wanted, with dreams and anticipation for the future, making life wonderful.
Chen Zhenhua, who came over holding two wine cups, had a smile on his face like a blooming flower.
His son was so excellent.
This alone was enough to make Chen Zhenhua beam with joy.
He handed a cup of wine to Li Zexiang and Chen Jun each, then raised his own cup high and said: “Thank you, Professor Li, for joining my company. Here’s to our pleasant cooperation. Cheers.”
“Cheers!”
“Ding~”
The three wine cups clinked in the air.
With this crisp sound of the wine cups colliding, a brand-new era officially began.
That era belonged not only to Li Zexiang, giving him a chance to reach the peak of academia; it also belonged to Chen Zhenhua, who, in middle age, could usher in a second spring in life.
It belonged even more to Chen Jun.
Because his path of military strengthening through technology officially set sail from this moment.
