Chapter 298 Mining Turns You into an Isolated Island!

Faraway South America.

With her new identity and the memories of her "past life," Lin Wan'er, along with the $100,000 she obtained from Qin Zheng, successfully bought the "Hope Star" mine, which was considered a wasteland by everyone, from a local mining company at an outrageously low price.

The moment she signed the contract, she could almost hear her heart pounding.

She could almost see it: a year later, a huge gold mine would be discovered, and wealth from all over the world would pour into her.

She will build her own business empire and use countless riches to crush Su Yue and all those who look down on her under her feet!

She walked out of the mining company's gate, her face beaming with barely suppressed smugness.

Unbeknownst to her, hours later, a detailed report on all her actions, along with a copy of the newly signed mine purchase contract, had been placed on Su Yue's desk through the Huo family's secret channels.

The report is concluded with an attached document.

It was a land deed held by another company registered locally by the Huo family. The deed clearly stated that the company had bought out all the land within a ten-kilometer radius of the "Hope Star" mine, as well as the entire water source extraction rights of the only river leading to the mine.

Lin Wan'er's gold mine became a visible, yet forever unexploitable, isolated island.

Su Yue casually tossed the report aside without even glancing at it.

She's not worth wasting any more energy on a self-important ant.

A week later, the public debate was held as scheduled.

The largest auditorium at Qiongzhou University was packed to capacity.

Leaders from the Provincial Science and Technology Commission, experts and professors from major universities, and reporters from various media outlets who had come after hearing the news packed the entire venue to capacity.

Fang Jianxing was wearing a brand-new Zhongshan suit, and his hair was combed up and shiny.

On stage, he was full of vigor and spoke eloquently as he presented his PowerPoint presentation, which listed various seemingly detailed data and charts, recounting how he had "poured his heart and soul" into finally overcoming the global problem of "penicillin strain degeneration".

The audience frequently erupted in applause.

Finally, it was Su Yue's turn to speak.

She wore a simple white shirt and trousers and walked slowly onto the podium, forming a stark contrast with the spirited Fang Jianxing.

All eyes were on her, some with sympathy, some with curiosity, but most were waiting to see how she would refute them, how she would embarrass herself.

However, after Su Yue stood still, she did not immediately begin to argue.

She looked at the audience and at the media cameras, and a gentle smile appeared on her face.

"First of all, I would like to sincerely congratulate Professor Fang Jianxing."

When she opened her mouth, everyone in the room was stunned.

What kind of move is this? Surrendering without a fight?

Fang Jianxing was also taken aback for a moment, then a triumphant look appeared on his face.

Ignoring everyone's reactions, Su Yue continued in her unhurried tone, "Because you, single-handedly, successfully tackled a 'pseudo-project' that our laboratory had spent months and used a lot of manpower and resources to solve but still couldn't."

The words "pseudo-project" exploded like three heavy bombs in the silent auditorium.

Everyone in the audience was stunned by this incredible reversal.

A pseudo-project? What does that mean? Does it mean that Fang Jianxing's proud breakthrough, which was even touted by the media as a major breakthrough that "brings glory to the country," was a joke from the very beginning?

Fang Jianxing's smug smile froze instantly, and the color drained from his oily face inch by inch, turning him deathly pale.

"You...you're talking nonsense! You're slandering me!" He pointed at Su Yue, his fingers trembling slightly with agitation. "I think you're just jealous! Jealous that I solved the problem, so you fabricated evidence to frame me!"

Su Yue didn't make a single unnecessary movement; she simply watched him quietly, and that calmness itself was a silent form of crushing.

"Professor Fang, please don't get agitated." Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly throughout the entire venue. "Since I dare to say this, I naturally have evidence."

She turned to the podium and the experts below, and bowed slightly.

"Penicillin strain degeneration has indeed been a problem that has plagued our laboratory for a long time. We have tried a variety of technical approaches to address this, including the 'high-energy particle mutagenesis' approach mentioned by Professor Fang."

"However, three months ago, our team had already reached the final conclusion through thousands of controlled experiments."

Su Yue paused, then said clearly, word by word, "This path is a dead end. Although strains mutated in this way may show morphological optimization in the early stages, their antibiotic production capacity will plummet, or even be completely lost. We call this 'false prosperity.' The resulting strains, apart from looking good under a microscope, have no medicinal value whatsoever."

“Within our lab, this technical approach has long been defined as an ‘obsolete direction,’ which is what I just referred to as a ‘pseudo-project.’”

As soon as she finished speaking, her assistant, Xiao Chen, immediately distributed a thick stack of experimental records to the leaders and experts on the stage.

Every record was filled with densely packed details, including the experiment time, operator, experimental steps, control group data, observation results, conclusion analysis, and so on. Everything was extremely detailed and rigorous.

Several well-known microbiology experts in the province changed their expressions after only flipping through a few pages.

The level of detail and rigor in this experimental record far surpasses any report they have ever seen.

The human and material resources behind this, as well as the rigorous attitude towards scientific research, made them feel alarmed.

If this record is true, then Fang Jianxing's achievements...

As Fang Jianxing watched the experts' increasingly solemn expressions, panic gripped his heart.

He knew he was finished.

Much of his data was embellished for the sake of "looking good" and cannot withstand such rigorous comparison.

"It's fake! It's all fake!" he roared like a madman. "You fabricated this overnight to suppress me! You have military family backgrounds, you're capable of anything!"

He attempted to stir up public opinion again and muddy the waters.

However, this time, the audience's reaction was far less enthusiastic than before.

Su Yue watched his final struggle calmly.

“Professor Fang, the authenticity of scientific research is not determined by shouting or by making connections, but by facts.”

She smiled slightly and unleashed her final trump card.

"Since you accuse me of fabricating evidence, that's simple. Let's verify it on the spot, shall we?"

"We have staff from the provincial notary office, the province's top experts, and so many media friends here. In front of everyone, we will conduct an activity test on the 'new strain' you brought and the control group, the 'discarded strain' I brought from the laboratory."

"The activity of a bacterial strain is the most direct indicator of its ability to produce antibiotics. A simple test will tell you whether it's a mule or a horse. You can't exactly accuse us of falsifying this, can you?"

These words caused the entire audience to erupt in cheers once again!

On-site testing!

This is practically putting Fang Jianxing on the hot seat!

All eyes were on Fang Jianxing, watching to see how he would respond.

His lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Sweat had soaked the back of his brand-new Zhongshan suit.

The leaders of the Provincial Science and Technology Commission exchanged glances on the stage, and Director Li, who was in charge, immediately made a decision and said into the microphone: "I agree with Comrade Su Yue's proposal! Science cannot tolerate any falsehood! Arrange on-site testing immediately!"

Soon, the equipment from the Qiongzhou University laboratory was urgently moved to the backstage of the auditorium, where it was personally supervised by several highly respected experts and professors, and recorded by personnel from the Provincial Notary Office.