Chapter 524 It's all business (bug fix): What can't be discussed?

Even after hanging up the phone, Wang Xiao was still furious.

No, she's too angry; she's definitely going to yell at someone.

So she didn't hesitate to call Ivan.

At the crucial moment, Ivan demonstrated his prowess as a verbal sparring partner, not only firmly standing by her side but also joining in the insults: "That's complete nonsense. Land shortage? Hong Kong is 50% larger than Singapore. No fresh water? Singapore has to import fresh water from Malaysia."

Then he encouraged her, "We don't need them, we'll build it ourselves, so they won't hold us back! Now's the perfect time to get rid of them."

But Wang Xiao felt that doing so was too easy on them.

"No, I need to have a serious talk with TSMC. This isn't over yet!"

After making those harsh remarks, Boss Wang finally felt refreshed and began to notice subtle clues.

"Wait, what's that sound? You're not eating now? What time is it? Where's Nikolai? Tell Nikolai to come and answer the phone."

Ivanov hurriedly explained, "I ate, I really did eat during mealtimes, but I'm just having a couple of bites now because I'm hungry from working overtime."

Mr. Wang's voice had already started to cool, taking on a winter chill: "What did you eat at mealtimes?"

Nemtsov craned his neck, eavesdropping nearby. When he heard this, he couldn't help but burst out laughing: "We ate, we ate, Miss Wang. I can vouch for Ivan. We all ate potato chips, the non-fried kind."

These are products from a farm business.

Due to limitations, most companies are engaged in the reprocessing of agricultural products.

However, this is also progress. At least in Russian shopping malls and supermarkets, there are more and more domestically produced snacks available, and not everything needs to be imported.

Today is the day to showcase our results, so we specially brought this food to the conference room to share with everyone.

But Mr. Wang was not satisfied: "How can we just eat potato chips? That's not a proper meal at all."

Ivanov quickly added, "I drank milk, I ate potato chips while drinking milk."

That was so-so, but Boss Wang still had a requirement: "You should eat properly during mealtimes. You can't always just eat like this, or your stomach will be ruined."

Ivanov immediately promised not to repeat the offense.

Nemtsov's ears were practically perked up like a rabbit's. Seeing Ivan hang up the phone, he finally couldn't help but shake his head: "My God, Miss Wang is so meticulous and strict!"

Ivanov rolled his eyes at him, his posture arrogant: "What do you know?"

He wouldn't tell him that Wang wouldn't care about anyone else but him.

Wang's personality is such that when she's mentoring someone, she'll teach them step by step at first, but once she feels she can let go, she immediately hands them over. Aside from checking on them occasionally when she has free time, she will never interfere.

She would only show her face when Tang Yicheng and his group couldn't handle it.

Normally, she wouldn't care.

He alone is unique.

Nemtsov wasn't interested in hearing that; he was more curious: "So, what about the factory in Hong Kong? Good heavens! I heard that building a chip factory costs billions of dollars. If TSMC doesn't cooperate, who are you planning to turn to?"

Ivanov mumbled, "We'll see."

In fact, he estimated that Wang would not continue to run the chip factory in Hong Kong. The reason was very simple: according to Wang's personality, if she wanted to continue, she would never waste time calling him to complain, but would go directly to Taiwan to find TSMC.

As for the waiting time for her flight to Taiwan, she didn't have time either; she needed to collect and analyze data and prepare negotiation strategies. She certainly didn't have time to make phone calls.

But he didn't need to tell Nemtsov about this either; he would just tell him to leave: "Alright! You've already stolen half of the braised beef. Are you planning to just take my lunchbox?"

Nemtsov immediately raised his hands, making an innocent gesture: "God, my friend, I've come to tell you good news."

He pulled out a document and placed it on the table. "This year's data is almost complete. 61%, our garment and textile exports reached 61% of the quota, and toys reached 55%..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ivanov grabbed the document and frantically searched for the numbers.

Nemtsov said enthusiastically, "This year is because we've just started, so coordination is needed on all sides. But next year, God, I guarantee we won't waste any export quotas!"

When he accompanied Miss Wang to Warsaw to investigate township enterprises in the Yangtze River Delta, what frustrated him most was that Russia's objective conditions dictated that it could not engage in processing imported materials, and therefore could not rely on foreign investment to rapidly develop its light industry.

However, now, relying on export quotas, they have effectively achieved processing with supplied materials, and the technology and experience accumulated in this process will promote the continuous development of Russia's light industry.

This is just the beginning.

The successful investment of Chinese enterprises in Russia's light industry will serve as a benchmark, attracting more foreign investment to Russia.

Their success proves that Russian workers are not as inefficient and undisciplined as rumored.

In fact, their efficiency can be improved by incentivizing them with piece-rate wages.

Russia's manufacturing industry will definitely get better and better.

The Minister of Industry went on and on: "Do you know how popular our toys are? My God, I thought only soldier toys would sell well, but I didn't expect plush toys to sell so well too."

Ivanov read through the document line by line and casually replied, "Wang said it before: we are first-rate designers, it's just that our skills are not up to par."

He read it from beginning to end, then let out a deep breath, almost wanting to roar to the sky.

But before he could even utter a sound, he suddenly realized what was happening and complained to Nemtsov, "Why didn't you say so sooner? If you had told me earlier, I could have told the Queen, and at least made her happy!"

My God, they succeeded.

They revitalized Russia's light industry, and incidentally saved many factories in China from shutdowns.

Wang will be very happy.

Nemtsov felt extremely wronged: "You didn't give me a chance to speak at all. Besides, you could have called her right now."

“The king is busy right now,” Ivanov said irritably. “Send me an electronic copy, and I’ll email it to the king.”

Nemtsov was astonished: "How did you know she was busy?"

Ivanov had no time to waste: "I just know, hurry up, send it to me now."

Unfortunately, he suspected that Wang would have difficulty seeing it immediately.

Because when a king is fully focused on something, he doesn't like to be disturbed by other things.

Wang Xiao indeed didn't notice the email; she was on her way to the airport.

Instead of flying to KU Leuven in Belgium to visit the engineers, he was going to Hong Kong to have a showdown with someone—or rather, to negotiate with someone.

Boss Wang was quite considerate; although she stood the engineers up, she didn't completely abandon them. She generously instructed her assistant to give each engineer an extra 10,000 Belgian francs as a living allowance.

The reason for not issuing euros directly is that although the euro was created on January 1st of this year, it is currently only a tool for accounting and transferring funds, and does not yet have an official currency.

Belgium still uses the Belgian franc.

Mr. Wang was self-aware: "I estimate that everyone will be happier to see the King and Queen than to see me."

The 10,000 Belgian franc note features the portraits of the King and Queen of Belgium.

The assistant immediately flattered the boss: "Boss, you're underestimating yourself. Actually, everyone really wants to see you and hear you talk to them."

In 1999, before inspirational stories became widespread, the popularity of celebrity biographies and self-help books in bookstores showed just how thick the filter was for successful people.

The engineers, especially the recent graduates, greatly admired their boss, Ms. Wang, a young and promising leader.

Wang Xiao also felt regretful.

She even wrote her own speech for this meeting, aiming to get everyone really excited.

In the end, she wasn't given a chance to shine. She's usually such a low-key person; such an opportunity is incredibly rare for her.

So, it's all TSMC's fault! She has to get an explanation.

Mr. Wang boarded the plane with a proud and confident air, then buried his head in his books and started flipping through magazines with Lyuba.

Because the magazine featured an advertisement featuring Polaris Boys, who are signed by their company.

To be fair, this masked, cool style really suits them.

Due to cultural influence and the reach of language, Polaris' albums initially couldn't outsell the Irish boy band Boyzone, and now they're no match for the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC. With Westlife also emerging this year, the competition is fierce.

So Mr. Wang, this heartless capitalist, simply let them sell their looks and bodies, letting them attract fans online with their good looks and figures.

Did it work? It really did. Although their new album sales didn't increase significantly, their photobooks sold very well.

That's fine.

After all, when it comes to singing skills, idol groups can never beat professional singers.

Celebrities are assets from head to toe; selling a photobook is also a skill.

The assistant had been secretly observing the boss's expression. Seeing him and Lyuba smiling as they flipped through the magazine and occasionally whispering to each other, the assistant finally breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, the boss doesn't usually get angry, but when he does, it's quite frightening.

He breathed a sigh of relief too soon.

Because the plane had just landed at Hong Kong Airport and he hadn't even disembarked yet, Mr. Wang put on a poker face again.

Tang Yicheng, who came to pick him up, was so terrified that he didn't dare to joke around with his boss at all.

He understood his boss's displeasure all too well.

He invited his boss to personally inspect the Hong Kong chip factory project. He also established a connection with Dr. Zhang Rujing.

Now, after more than half a year of construction on the factory and more than half of the staff apartment building, the project has suddenly been cancelled.

Who can he turn to for justice?

He spends his days staring at the construction site, covered in dust and grime. It's not easy for him!

But Tang Yicheng's mouth was as tight as a clam shell, and he resolutely refused to utter a word of complaint.

Because the boss's face was even more gloomy than the weather, he really didn't have the courage to go and crash into the crater.

To make matters worse, as soon as we left the airport, the already gloomy sky started to rain.

Although Hong Kong is a city where it doesn't even snow, winters are still cold and damp. When it rains, it feels like the whole world is going to end.

When Chiang Shang-yi got off the plane with his suitcase, he couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the drizzling rain outside.

Oh no, it's raining at dusk. Today is definitely not a good day for negotiations.

But he couldn't afford to waste time, because Mr. Wang had already directly threatened to sue TSMC.

TSMC should send someone to talk to the other party as soon as possible, and try to avoid going to court if possible.

It's not that they're afraid, but rather that harmony brings wealth. Besides, they'd be in the wrong if they went to court, and making a big scene wouldn't look good.

With such terrible weather, Mr. Wang, who flew back from Europe, will probably feel even worse when he sees it raining.

But what can we do? Since we're already here, we can only hurry to the hotel to drop off our luggage and then sit down to talk.

Jiang Shangyi turned to look at Zhang Rujing and gave a wry smile: "Richard, you must put in a good word for us with Boss Wang. The company really can't continue building factories in Hong Kong."

Zhang Rujing's smile was even more bitter than his: "Boss Jiang, now Boss Wang probably dislikes me even more. She probably sees me as a traitor now."

Jiang Shangyi sighed deeply, looked up at the gloomy sky and the continuous rain, and finally could only exhale, his smile as if he had swallowed bitter herbs: "Then let's go first, and talk to them when we see them."

However, Ms. Wang did not meet with them immediately. She did not even go to the hotel to drop off her luggage first, but went directly to Cyberport by car.

The December rain in the port city is fine and cold, leaving countless long, slanted streaks on the glass. The reflections of neon lights break and recombine on the wet streets, like a fleeting dream.

The Cyberport construction site revealed its massive outline in the twilight and rain.

This land, reclaimed from the sea ten years ago, is now muddy and treacherous, washed by the rain. The giant tower crane's iron arm stands still under the leaden clouds, whether due to the rain stopping work or the workers finishing their shift, it's unclear; only the continuous rain pours down the steel cables.

The car had slowed down to the point where it seemed like someone was pushing it, but the driver didn't dare ask the boss if he wanted to speed up.

Because the boss was staring blankly out the window at the chip factory under construction.

Cyberport is backed by Baguio Bay, and its height cannot exceed 61 meters above the main horizontal reference. Therefore, the buildings here are unlike those in other parts of Hong Kong, which seem to be soaring into the clouds.

Even so, the chip factory, which is almost finished, is still much shorter than the surrounding buildings.

Although it is divided into functional levels such as the fan layer and the cleanroom layer, which respectively undertake key tasks such as air purification, core manufacturing, and equipment support, it is only eight stories high.

No chip manufacturer in the world, including giants like Intel, builds skyscrapers.

Because chip manufacturing requires large lithography machines and other equipment, they are difficult to move and install, and are easily damaged.

Moreover, tall buildings are always susceptible to shocks and airflow, which can compromise the precision of nanoscale manufacturing.

Even the supporting pipelines such as power supply and ventilation are more suitable for centralized layout in the lower floors.

Looking at the eight-story building, Wang Xiao cursed inwardly once more.

If it weren't for building a chip factory, how could such a piece of land only have an eight-story building? It could easily have been built as a 15-story building.

At current land prices in Hong Kong, this is a complete waste of resources.

Wang Xiao gritted his teeth and finally managed to ask, "How's the construction of the talent apartments going?"

Tang Yicheng was terrified and quickly replied, "It's almost at the top."

He hired a construction company from mainland China to do the work, which was much more efficient and faster.

The Hong Kong government originally disagreed with this, because it was against regulations and would affect the rights of local construction workers.

However, Tang Yicheng cited Moore's Law as a reason, emphasizing that the chip industry updates and iterates at an extremely fast pace, and construction must be accelerated, otherwise it will become outdated once it is built.

The Hong Kong government then turned a blind eye and proactively found them a roundabout solution.

Now, even Brother Tang doesn't know how to face the Hong Kong government; the chip factory, which was doing well, has just been shut down.

Wang Xiao hummed in agreement and said casually, "Keep it as a talent apartment."

Tang Yicheng quickly emphasized: "These houses were registered as employee dormitories and cannot be sold."

This is also what makes him most want to vomit blood right now.

If they were just ordinary residential properties, once built and sold, given Hong Kong's booming property prices, the project would still be profitable even if the chip factory failed.

But talent apartments can't be sold; they can only be rented out. How long would it take to collect rent from them?

Wang Xiao's eyes remained fixed on the chip factory, and he simply replied with two words: "Not for sale."

Tang Yicheng really wanted to ask the boss: if they weren't going to sell, who would they partner with next? Or would they simply not look for partners and continue operating on their own?

That's not impossible. Wuzhou has its own chip factories. Even if they produce them themselves, without additional orders, given the current booming chip market, their Hong Kong factories might not necessarily go out of business.

But the boss's expression didn't improve at all, so Tang Yicheng didn't dare to ask any questions and simply silently accompanied the boss as he walked around the chip factory.

The boss didn't speak, and everyone was silent. The world was as quiet as a vacuum chamber, except for the rain pattering incessantly outside the window.

Suddenly, another car appeared in the rain. The car on the opposite side honked at them, and then Dr. Zhang leaned half his head out of the window and waved at them.

Zhang Rujing and Jiang Shangyi arrived at the hotel and waited for a long time, but they still didn't see Boss Wang and President Tang.

Both men sensed something was wrong and, after much deliberation, decided they should visit the construction site. Chiang Shang-yi, in particular, felt that they should at least properly express TSMC's apologies.

So they called a car and went to Cyberport. Sure enough, as soon as they arrived at the chip factory construction site, they saw cars constantly going in circles.

Zhang Rujing shouted at the car, "Boss Wang!"

Nobody paid him any attention.

He had no choice but to turn back, and with a wry smile, he took out his phone to make a call.

However, the call was cut off as soon as it rang.

Outside the car, the wind and rain were cold, but inside, Chiang Shang-yi felt himself breaking out in a sweat.

His intuition told him that this was a tough opponent, and he would probably be quite difficult to deal with once they sat down at the negotiating table.

Alas! The economic reforms in mainland China and the development of science and technology worldwide have given rise to a new generation of young millionaires. But these millionaires have become wealthy too quickly and too easily, making them particularly stubborn and extremely concerned with saving face.

Anyone who goes against their wishes is disrespected, and this is something they absolutely cannot tolerate.

Mr. Wang's current stance is an expression of his dissatisfaction and a way of saving face for TSMC.

But Chiang Shang-yi had no choice but to endure it.

TSMC is known for its integrity in business, and its principle has always been to rather be let down by customers than to betray them first.

If it weren't for this kind of corporate style, how could it have gone from being an unknown company to becoming a leading chip foundry in just 12 years?

Unfortunately, their decision to abandon the Hong Kong plant completely violates TSMC's consistent principles.

As the company representative, Chiang Shang-yi, knowing he was in the wrong, could only silently continue following the car.

In the distance, the giant signboard of "Cyberport" glowed with a faint blue light in the rain. Next to it, a huge billboard displayed the slogan "Building an Asian Innovation Hub" in both Chinese and English. Despite being washed by the rain, the colors remained vibrant and eye-catching.

The more vibrant it was over there, the colder and darker it became on this side, as if there was no hope in sight.

Just when Chiang Shang-yi felt like he was about to suffocate and was feeling incredibly stifled, Boss Wang finally had enough of driving around and was finally willing to drive onto the main road.

The driver didn't even need to be told; he quickly continued to follow.

This time, Mr. Wang didn't continue shopping; instead, he drove all the way back to the hotel.

She walked ahead with her head held high, surrounded by a group of people as they entered the hotel lobby.

Chiang Shang-yi followed closely behind, inwardly sighing, "He's so young indeed."

This was the first time he had met the legendary Boss Wang.

TSMC has no plans to build factories in mainland China in recent years, so its attention to the semiconductor industry in mainland China is naturally limited.

He knew about Boss Wang because the other party had snatched Lin Benjian away—Good heavens! A few months ago, he never imagined that Zhang Rujing, who went to Lin's house that day, was not the employer, but actually a middleman.

The one who really wanted to recruit Dr. Lin was this Mr. Wang.

At that time, he didn't even know what Mr. Wang looked like. The latter was extremely low-key and rarely gave media interviews.

Moreover, since they've already missed their chance, TSMC is unlikely to snatch Lin Benjian back in the short term. He's a devout Christian with his own principles, and he's not some object that can be easily taken away.

So it wasn't until this time, when Mr. Wang threatened to sue TSMC, that Chiang Shang-yi, who had been entrusted with the important task of negotiating by Chairman Chang, hurriedly watched a videotape.

Of course, the main subject of the videotape was not Mr. Wang, but the Spring Festival Gala of mainland China.

The Russian Deputy Prime Minister was present at the Spring Festival Gala, so the camera panned to him several times.

As the fiancée of Deputy Prime Minister Ivanov, Ms. Wang was also caught on camera, eating peeled pine nuts from her fiancé's hand.

It was this short video clip that gave Chiang Shang-yi an even bigger headache.

Without a doubt, Mr. Wang is not only wealthy, but also has a complex and profound background.

If you don't handle her well and anger her, who knows how many resources she will use to go against TSMC?

Putting aside all political implications, her business dealings alone could very well cause TSMC considerable trouble.

Although TSMC has shown no interest in building factories in mainland China or expanding into Russia in recent years, it does not want to give up its related businesses.

Russia may not be well-suited for chip manufacturing, but its large pool of science and engineering talent and its legacy from the Soviet Union make it a country with great potential for outsourced chip design.

If you want to manufacture a designed chip, don't you need to find a foundry? Isn't TSMC a good option?

Now that we've offended someone, we might lose this potential customer.

Not to mention the mainland market, which is so large that no company would be willing to give it up completely.

So even though he was being rude to the other party, Mr. Jiang, who was over fifty years old, still maintained his composure and patiently waited for Mr. Wang to complete the check-in procedures and return to his room to tidy up before politely extending an invitation: "I wonder if I have the honor of having dinner with you, Mr. Wang."

Wang Xiao glanced at him, but didn't say anything, and kept walking ahead with her head down.

Zhang Rujing quickly gave Jiang Shangyi a wink and immediately followed.

The group of people went to the hotel restaurant in a grand procession. Wang Xiao only served himself a bowl of seafood porridge and sat there without saying a word.

Chiang Shang-yi had no choice but to break the silence and try to express his apology on behalf of TSMC: "Mr. Wang, we are really sorry about what happened at the Hong Kong plant."

With a soft "snap," Wang Xiao dropped the spoon in her hand, causing the seafood porridge in the bowl to shake violently, making one worry that the porridge would spill out at any moment.

Mr. Wang said expressionlessly, "Mr. Jiang, you have broken your promise and made us lose the trust of the Hong Kong government. In all my years of doing business, I have always valued integrity and trustworthiness."

Chiang Shang-yi felt another chill run down his spine. Oh, right, there was another problem: the Hong Kong government.

The Hong Kong government has been enthusiastically developing Cyberport, making a big fuss about it, with all sorts of plans and proposals.

However, industry insiders who take a closer look will find that the chip factories are the ones that have invested the most and have the strongest resources. This is because other projects, whether commercial office buildings or high-end residences, can be easily turned into real estate projects.

Given the parallel development of finance and real estate in Hong Kong, this trend is simply a matter of course.

The only exception is a chip manufacturer, whose unique characteristics dictate that it can never follow the real estate route.

Therefore, its existence precisely proves the Hong Kong government's determination to develop Cyberport.

Now, even this only pillar of stability is about to be removed; no wonder the Hong Kong government is unhappy.

The new Hong Kong government was only formed in July 1997, and Cyberport is a key project during the Chief Executive's term.

Now that it's going to fail, it's like a slap in the face to the Chief Executive, and it's also showing the world that Hong Kong's Cyberport is nothing but a joke, just a facade for real estate development.

What else does Hong Kong have besides real estate and finance? Nothing.

Having suffered such a huge loss, what will the Hong Kong government's attitude be? Chiang Shang-yi doesn't even want to think about it now.

He had no choice but to pull himself together and apologize first: "We did have some shortcomings in this matter, but Mr. Wang, you are also in the semiconductor industry, so you must know that the cost of building a factory is really too high. Therefore, every time we add a factory, we have to think carefully and compress the cost to the minimum. We just suffered an earthquake and are still restoring production capacity. We have to consider the opinions of our shareholders and customers. The conditions in Hong Kong do not meet our standards for building a factory."

TSMC isn't hers, so why should Mr. Wang consider other people's interests?

She doesn't care how difficult things are for you. All she asks is: "So what do you mean by 'what are we going to do with the factory now'? I have no face to tell the Hong Kong government that we want to withdraw. You go talk to the Hong Kong government, I'm not talking to them."

Chiang Shang-yi quickly offered his opinion: "Boss Wang, what do you suggest we do? Let's all share our proposed solutions, shall we?"

Wang Xiao bluntly replied, "Then tell us about your company's proposal first."

Jiang Shangyi smiled wryly and spread his hands: "Mr. Wang, your business is too successful. Your industries are spread all over the place, and you do everything very well. So we really don't know what we should do to help someone as successful as you."

"If we were to offer compensation according to the contract, we fear it would be presumptuous and offend you instead."

"So the only thing we can do is hope that you can tell us your thoughts, and we will try to find a way to accomplish it."

Although they are now negotiating opponents, Tang Yicheng had to admit to himself that he admired this Vice President Jiang Shangyi quite a bit. He kept showering him with compliments, mainly trying to flatter their boss.

Fortunately, Mr. Wang has been living in a world of flattery for years, so his threshold for such praise is extremely high, and he remains completely unmoved.

Her gaze swept over Zhang Rujing, she pointed, and then looked at Jiang Shangyi: "First, Zhang Bo is mine now. The factory in Hong Kong was the one he wanted to build the first time, but now that things are messed up, he has to take responsibility."

Chiang Shang-yi's heart skipped a beat. TSMC was willing to spend a huge sum of US$5 billion to acquire Worldwide, partly because it valued the other party's production lines and capacity, and partly because it was interested in Worldwide's team.

Richard Chang joined Worldwide Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (WMS) just two years ago, and in just a few years he has made WMS the third largest in Taiwan and achieved profitability. He is a rare talent, and TSMC certainly does not want to lose him.

But Mr. Wang's attitude was so aggressive that Chiang Shang-yi couldn't refuse outright, so he could only laugh it off: "Dr. Zhang is free, and all TSMC employees are free. Everyone has the right to choose their own job."

Wang Xiao showed no intention of backing down: "He can't be free anymore. He belongs to me now. He still owes me a chip factory."

Zhang Rujing quickly chimed in, "Alright, alright, Mr. Wang, calm down. I'll definitely build you a chip factory."

He was afraid that if he hesitated even a second longer, Boss Wang would shout "12 inches" again.

Good heavens, where is he going to find a 12-inch production line?

Chiang Shang-yi didn't want to dwell on the issue, so he simply skipped it: "And what's the second one?"

Anyway, he didn't promise to agree to the first point, so we can talk about the rest later.

Whether Boss Wang realized the trap or not, she went straight to the second point.

She first let out a heavy sigh before speaking: "After thinking it over, things have already developed to this point. If we don't continue to operate the chip factory, the only way we can explain it to the Hong Kong government is to transform it into the IMEC of the East."

"Hong Kong is a free port, and the principle of scientific development is freedom and openness, and the same applies to semiconductors. It requires open cooperation and win-win outcomes. Hong Kong should have a microelectronics R&D center, like IMEC, which can play an irreplaceable role in the development of semiconductors in the East."

"Only by doing this can we prevent Cyberport's value from being greatly diminished and prevent the Hong Kong government's investment in Cyberport and support for our chip factories from becoming a joke."

Chiang Shang-yi was silent for a moment.

From his personal perspective, he hopes there will be an organization similar to IMEC.

As the semiconductor industry develops, it places increasing emphasis on collaboration among all parties.

As is well known, TSMC's lithography machines mainly come from ASML, which is actually unreasonable from a geographical point of view.

It's obvious that Japan is closer to Taiwan, and Japan also has Nikon and Canon.

However, Nikon and Canon were mainly busy supplying the lithography machine needs of local companies at the time, and TSMC's orders had to be put on the back burner.

So, with no other options, TSMC had to find another way to collaborate with the fledgling ASML.

The role played by IMEC in Europe's ability to establish itself in the global semiconductor industry cannot be underestimated.

For example, ASML has a lot of collaborations with IMEC.

If Hong Kong also had a microelectronics center like this, it would make things much easier for everyone.

Jiang Shangyi's tense back relaxed slightly. "Boss Wang, the fact that she made this request means she doesn't really intend to overturn the table."

As long as everyone still wants to eat at the same table, then we can talk.

He smiled and nodded: "Mr. Wang is indeed farsighted. This idea is brilliant, and I'm sure the Hong Kong government will welcome it."

To put it bluntly, which country around Hong Kong, whether it's mainland China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, or Singapore, doesn't have a chip factory?

However, since there is only one IMEC in Europe, there should also be only one influential microelectronics center in East Asia.

This demonstrates Hong Kong's prominent position in the Asian semiconductor industry.

Wang Xiao smiled slightly: "But to achieve this goal, we need your company's strong support! You are the world's number one chip foundry."

That's really nice to hear.

However, Vice President Jiang couldn't help but feel wary: "So what do you need us to do?"

Wang Xiao shook his head: "No, Mr. Jiang, you are wrong. It's not about what I need you to do, but what TSMC can do for this Asian microelectronics center."

She smiled slightly, "After all, the world's semiconductor center has actually shifted to the East. We can't just follow behind others and keep waiting for their handouts. Mr. Chiang, as the world's number one wafer foundry, TSMC has an inescapable duty to do so."

She finally caught a sheep; she'd definitely fleece them bald!

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Ahhh! I was planning to finish this part before posting, but I didn't finish it. It's getting late, so I'd better post it quickly. Sorry I'm late again.