Just as everyone was talking, the door suddenly opened and an old lady walked in.
In an instant, everyone present stood up and respectfully shouted in unison: "Teacher."
The old lady is Xie Xiwang, the famous mother of China's semiconductor industry. She is 72 years old this year.
When the old lady was young, after obtaining her Ph.D. from MIT in the United States, she resolutely returned to China to devote herself to semiconductor research. It can be said that she single-handedly carried half of the semiconductor research.
At least before 1985, China was not too far behind the United States in terms of chips, and was at least much more advanced than South Korea. Unfortunately, in the end...
Nowadays, all the young and middle-aged semiconductor experts in China are her students, either students or apprentices.
So when the old lady appeared in the box, Zhang Lianchang and everyone present were respectful, like elementary school students.
Old Mrs. Xie has a somewhat impetuous temper and hates this kind of empty talk the most.
"Everyone, sit down. Why are you standing? I'm not BJ Roast Duck. Do you still want to come up and take a few bites?"
Haha, everyone laughed. After letting the old lady sit in the first seat, everyone else took their seats. Old-school intellectuals attached great importance to such rules.
Xie Xiwang looked at Zhang Lianchang and asked:
"Xiao Zhang, you said on the phone that your Four Seasons Group has acquired five 0.35mm wafer production lines. Is that true? Isn't your company based in Yuezhou? Now Batumi is willing to sell them to us?"
Zhang Lianchang quickly explained:
"Teacher, the Four Seasons Group is based in Hong Kong, and these five production lines are also located in Hong Kong. Our boss has repeatedly assured us that they will not be used in mainland China."
When the old lady heard this, the light in her eyes dimmed a little. She just nodded slightly without saying anything.
Zhang Lianchang knew the old lady very well and quickly explained:
"Teacher, there is a situation I want to report to you and all my fellow apprentices. Although this wafer production line is being put into operation in Hong Kong, our boss is from the mainland and was a top-ranking meritorious official of Laoshan back then. He is absolutely loyal to the motherland.
He told me that although the country has stopped paying attention to the semiconductor industry due to various difficulties, Four Seasons Group has decided to take on this responsibility and is willing to restart semiconductor research.
Mrs. Xie paused in her drinking motion, with a look of disbelief in her eyes:
"Is your boss Chen Xia? Isn't he in the pharmaceutical industry? Why did he think of entering the semiconductor industry? You didn't tell him that this industry requires a huge amount of capital, which most companies can't afford."
Tao Junlin from the Academy of Sciences nearby also sighed:
"Teacher, you're right. Semiconductor research costs tens of billions of RMB, and that's in my country. If it were in Europe or the United States, even tens of billions of dollars wouldn't be enough.
We, a country as big as us, can't even come up with a few billion. How can a company like Four Seasons Group, which runs a pharmaceutical factory, come up with billions or even tens of billions in one go, no matter how good its business is?"
"Yes, this is a capital-intensive industry. Every step of research is funded by money. It's not something that can be accomplished by just spending a few hundred million."
"Comrade Chen Xia is probably too optimistic..."
When Zhang Lianchang heard the discussions of his fellow apprentices, he sighed inwardly.
It seems that everyone's enthusiasm for learning and research has faded after several rounds of social beatings. Only Zhang Lianchang was unwilling to give up, so he resigned from his position as professor and went to work for the boss in a company.
He has been waiting for the day to restart semiconductor research.
"Teacher Xie, everyone, listen to me. Comrade Chen Xia anticipated the semiconductor industry's metal-consuming nature long ago. Do you know how much he spent to build five wafer production lines?"
"How many?"
Zhang Lianchang held up two fingers: "Two billion dollars, all in cash."
Wow~~~~~
Everyone was shocked. 2 billion US dollars is an astronomical figure that the Chinese people dare not even think about. You have to know that in 1993, the mainland's foreign exchange reserves did not exceed 20 billion US dollars.
This time, importing a few machines cost one-tenth of the country's foreign exchange. No wonder some people in power are reluctant to spend money and want to stop independent semiconductor research.
Only Mrs. Xie lamented:
"Oh, they got ripped off. Actually, many of the machines in the wafer production line can be made domestically. Not every machine needs to be imported. If I were in charge, I could save them at least $500 to $600 million."
Zhang Lianchang was delighted when he heard this:
"Teacher, our boss also suddenly thought of buying it and then headed straight to Europe. His impulsive temper is exactly the same as yours back then. And he also said..."
What did you say?
When the group of people heard that there was a secret, they all lowered their voices and asked.
"He said he'd invite everyone to work at the Xiangjiang wafer factory. He'd also find a way to get us a few of the most advanced lithography machines for us to research. We could even take them apart for study. The only requirement was that all future patents belong to the Four Seasons Group."
"Is there such a good thing?"
Even Xie Xiwang was a little surprised. A machine worth $100 million could be dismantled and studied at will?
This is an extraordinary spirit.
The reason why China's semiconductor research lags behind is not because people are not smart enough, but because the previous investment was too little, and they wish they could split every penny into two.
Now, not only is the funding guaranteed, but you can also take the actual objects apart for study. This is like copying homework from the shoulders of your predecessors, and you can get results just as quickly.
With the capabilities of the people sitting in the room today, I wouldn’t say we can produce a 0.35-micron chip, but at least 0.5 is definitely no problem. As I said, as long as the money is in place, there is no need to set artificial limits.
The conditions offered by Four Seasons Group were so good that every expert present couldn't believe it. Even Mrs. Xie wondered if Chen Xia's enthusiasm was just fleeting.
Zhang Lianchang saw this and thought that his words still didn't carry enough weight, so he contacted Chen Xia directly.
When Chen Xia heard this, he thought that this old guy had indeed gone to China to recruit people and had not even contacted the United States.
But when he heard that old lady Xie Xiwang was also a little tempted, he immediately decided to fly to the capital.
For any project, the leader is very important. If a large project involving billions or even tens of billions of dollars is handed over to a person with insufficient ability to lead, the success of the project may be in doubt.
Even if he succeeded, the many detours he took and the more money he spent could easily drag down the Four Seasons Group, so he had to be cautious.
But if the academician and former Fudan University president, Mrs. Xie Xiwang, can join the team, then Chen Xia can be 100% relieved.
Her ability and loyalty have been tested by time, and only time can reveal a person's true character.
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