Steal the enemy's base at the start and build a technological empire.

Chapter 273 Making the Worst Plan

The sunlight outside the window moved from the east to the center, and the conference room was a bit stuffy because there were too many people, but no one minded.

At 12:30 pm, the administration came to remind us of lunch time.

"Let's go to the cafeteria," Lingyun said, "and chat while we eat."

The cafeteria at Xinghuo Technology is on the first floor and can accommodate two hundred people at the same time. Today, it's a buffet: rice, steamed buns, two meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, and a soup. Wang Jianguo's team, carrying their trays, followed Ling Yun somewhat awkwardly.

"Please sit wherever you like," Ling Yun said.

They chose a long table to sit down. The team members were a little reserved at first, but they gradually became more comfortable when they saw that Ling Yun and Ni Guangnan were eating the same food.

"Mr. Ling, who are the main users of the Star System in the United States?" a young engineer asked.

"Initially, it was used by tech enthusiasts and developers," Lingyun said, picking up a piece of braised pork. "Later, because of our browser's good performance, it attracted many ordinary users, and now it's used by the government, schools, and internet cafes."

"cybercafe?"

"That's right," Ling Yun said. "Xinghuo Internet Cafe uses the Xingchen system exclusively. It's low-cost, stable, and allows for customized interfaces."

"So... can it be promoted domestically?"

"This is what you need to do," Ling Yun said. "Continue to optimize the Chinese version, especially to do a good job of localization and adaptation, and then we will roll it out and promote it to the market on a large scale."

"Microsoft..."

"There will definitely be competition," Ling Yun said, "but competition isn't a bad thing. With competition, users have choices. Competition drives progress!"

Halfway through lunch, Zhao Hu came over and whispered a few words in Ling Yun's ear. Ling Yun nodded.

"Please enjoy your meal." He stood up. "I have something to take care of, we'll continue this afternoon."

As they walked out of the cafeteria, Zhao Hu said, "Miss An called to ask if you have time to have lunch together."

Ling Yun glanced at his watch. "Where is she?"

"At the library, I told them it was fine if they were busy."

"I called her back."

He walked to the open space outside the office building, took out his phone, and dialed. It was answered after three rings.

"Feed?" came An Shiyu's voice.

"It's me," Ling Yun said. "I just finished a meeting."

"Oh." She paused. "Did it go smoothly?"

"Successfully. We've recruited an operations system team."

"That's good." Another silence followed. "Have you eaten?"

"I'm eating. What about you?"

"Not yet," she said. "I'm not hungry."

"Are you busy this afternoon?"

"There's a meeting at 3 PM about the digitization project for ancient books," An Shiyu said. "What about you?"

"We'll continue the discussion with the technical team this afternoon," Lingyun said. "Are you free tonight?"

"have."

"Let's have dinner together. I'll make the reservation."

"it is good."

"I'll pick you up from the library at six o'clock."

"Um."

After hanging up the phone, Ling Yun stood there, looking at his reflection on the glass curtain wall of the office building. The reflection was blurry, as if seen through a layer of fog.

The meeting resumed at 1:30 p.m.

This discussion focused on the specific work plan. Lingyun had the administration prepare a whiteboard and projector. Wang Jianguo's team members spoke one by one, raising their ideas and questions.

"Chinese input methods are a big problem," Lao Li said. "Current Pinyin input methods have very simple algorithms and small dictionaries. We need an intelligent input method that can learn user habits and synchronize with a cloud dictionary."

"Then let's develop one." Ling Yun wrote "Input Method Project" on the whiteboard. "Set up a dedicated team, and develop the algorithm and interface separately."

"Font rendering also needs optimization," said a female engineer wearing glasses, "especially the clarity at small font sizes. Current font engines don't support Chinese characters well enough."

"The font team can be placed under the graphics group," Ling Yun wrote another line. "They not only need to optimize rendering, but also design a Chinese font suitable for screen display. This can be done by collaborating with a professional design company."

"What about hardware?" Wang Jianguo asked. "We don't have enough testing equipment on hand."

"You guys draw up the equipment procurement list," Ling Yun said. "Motherboards, graphics cards, sound cards, network cards—buy five sets of each of the mainstream models. Allocate a separate room for the testing lab."

"Cooperation with hardware manufacturers..."

"I'll have the business team contact them," Ling Yun said. "Founder and Tsinghua Tongfang, let's start with these domestic brands. We'll sign a confidentiality agreement for technical cooperation, with us providing driver development support and them providing the hardware and technical documentation."

The discussion continued until 4 p.m. The whiteboard was filled with project names, timelines, and responsible parties. Team members went from being reserved at first to actively participating, and the atmosphere gradually became lively.

At 4:30, Lingyun announced the end of the meeting.

"That's all for today," he said. "Tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, in the same conference room. I want to see everyone's detailed roles and monthly plans."

Everyone packed up and left. Wang Jianguo was the last to leave. He returned to his seat, picked up the three technical documents with kraft paper covers, and stroked the covers.

"You can't bear to part with it?" Ling Yun asked.

"After all, I've worked here for three years," Wang Jianguo said with a wry smile. "It's like my own child."

"The children have grown up and are going to see a bigger world," Ling Yun said. "The Huaxia System has not disappeared; it will continue to exist in another form."

Wang Jianguo nodded. He put the documents back into the canvas bag, his movements slow, as if performing some kind of ritual.

"Mr. Ling," he looked up, "thank you."

"What are you thanking me for?"

"Give us a chance to keep going," Wang Jianguo said. "Many people think that we old guys who work on basic software are outdated and should retire. But... we still want to do something."

"You will do a lot," Lingyun said. "And this is just the beginning. Even when you retire, you must carry on our spirit."

After Wang Jianguo left, only Ling Yun and Ni Guangnan remained in the conference room. The setting sun slanted in through the west window, turning the table golden.

"How's the chip project going?" Lingyun asked.

"The design of the lithography machine is 60% complete, but the required processing precision is too high for domestic factories to handle," said Ni Guangnan. "I contacted several companies in Germany and Japan, but their quotes were very high, and they also required export licenses."

"Then we'll take a two-step approach," Ling Yun said. "We'll buy core components from abroad, and find factories in China to process non-core components. At the same time, we need to cultivate our own processing capabilities—by investing in or supporting several precision machining companies."

"This will cost a lot of money."

"Money is not a problem right now," Ling Yun said. "I will allocate some funds to the chip project, and I currently have plenty of funds on hand."

Ni Guangnan looked at him, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

"Say whatever you want to say," Ling Yun said.

"You've expanded too far," Ni Guangnan said. "Operating systems, chips, internet cafes, investing in games... the battle lines are too long, your energy is scattered, and the risks are huge."

"I know." Ling Yun walked to the window. "But time waits for no one. We don't know how long the internet bubble will last, high-end semiconductor equipment has already been blocked, and a blockade of high-end chips is expected to come soon. The window of opportunity for operating systems is even shorter. We must make preparations simultaneously, even if it means taking risks."

"You seem to...know what's going to happen."

"I'm not a charlatan, I'm just used to preparing for the worst," Ling Yun said, "and then striving for the best."