Chapter 232 Technological Degradation
Peninsula Hotel, penthouse suite.
“Breaking through is too risky.” Lu Jingyan sat on the sofa, slowly and deliberately wiping the parts of a pistol with a piece of deerskin.
"The Sacred Heart Clinic's defenses are military-grade. Qin Zheng's intelligence only showed the outer perimeter; the interior is likely even more heavily fortified."
Bai Shu walked to the wine cabinet, poured himself half a glass of red wine, and gently swirled it. "So, let's try something different."
She turned around and looked at Lu Jingyan, her cold eyes flashing with calculation. "Don't they see us as outsiders, wanting to see how capable we really are? Then I'll show them my hand."
She wanted to force the Huo family to take the initiative and make them reveal their weaknesses.
"How do we do it?" Lu Jingyan stopped what he was doing and looked up at her.
"Strike the snake at its vital spot." Bai Shu took a sip of wine, a little wine stain on her red lips, making her even more beautiful.
“What is the foundation of the Huo family in Hong Kong? It’s money. We’ll start with money.”
She walked to the table, picked up the phone, and dialed Dong Cunshan directly.
“Uncle Dong, it’s me.” Her voice was devoid of any emotion. “I need you to do something for me. Within three days, I want to see a technology company called ‘New Wave’ officially launched in the heart of Hong Kong Island’s commercial district. I need to rent an entire floor of office space.”
Dong Cunshan on the other end of the phone was so taken aback by this decisive action that he was speechless for a long time. Finally, he managed to stammer out, "Grandniece, isn't this...aren't you being a bit too high-profile?"
“What I want is to be high-profile,” Bai Shu said firmly. “The higher the profile, the better.”
Three days later, in Central, Hong Kong Island.
The gilded characters of "New Wave Technology Co., Ltd." gleamed on the exterior of the most bustling office building. An entire floor of office space drew the attention of countless passersby. The Hong Kong business community was abuzz with speculation about what this suddenly appearing "Tung family heiress" was up to.
An even bigger commotion occurred at the docks of Victoria Harbour.
An ocean-going cargo ship slowly docked, the words "Wang Kun Ocean Shipping" on its hull inconspicuous. But when the dock's cranes began to operate, everyone was stunned.
Huge shipping containers were hoisted ashore. Unlike other cargo, these containers were tightly sealed, with four large characters—"Haitang Technology"—sprayed in striking red on the containers.
Bai Shu stood on the dock, wearing a simple white dress, her long hair blowing in the sea breeze. Behind her stood Qin Zheng, Yi Yue, and Er Yue, like four statues, blocking all prying eyes.
On the dock, informants from various companies hid in the corners, frantically taking notes.
"How many are there? Have you counted them correctly?"
"At least twenty! All of them are these big ones!"
"Haitang Technology? Never heard of it. Is it a mainland company?"
"Quick! Go back and report to the boss, this Atractylodes macrocephala is no joke, it's real!"
These mysterious shipping containers cast an unfathomable sense of oppression over the opening of "New Wave" company.
Two days later, New Wave held its first product launch conference in the banquet hall of the Peninsula Hotel.
Bai Shu did not appear; she and Lu Jingyan sat in a private box on the second floor, overlooking the entire venue through the glass. Dong Cunshan, as the nominal chairman, sat in the first row, keeping an eye on her.
The main speaker at the press conference was a man in his thirties who had been transferred from the mainland by Bai Zhu. He was eloquent and had a steady stage presence.
"Distinguished guests and friends from the media, welcome to the first product launch of Inspur Technology."
Without wasting any words, he directly had two display stands pushed up. On one stand was a thick and heavy calculator, one of the most popular Japanese-made calculators on the market. On the other stand was a row of beautifully designed card-style calculators.
"Our first product is the 'Pocket Treasure' multi-functional calculator."
The agent picked one up and showed it to the camera. It was only a few decks of cards thick, with a metal casing, crisp buttons, and a clear screen display. In addition to basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, it even had currency conversion and date functions.
"Its performance is three times that of the Japanese product, and its thickness is one-third of the Japanese one." The agent picked up the Japanese calculator, clasped his hands together, and snapped it in two with a "snap."
The audience erupted in uproar.
"This...this quality is just too good!"
"The design is so beautiful! It's much better than those brick-like Japanese products!"
The agent smiled slightly and gestured for the staff to distribute samples. He then introduced the second product.
"'Wenquxing' is a portable electronic dictionary."
This device caused a sensation upon its release. For Hong Kong businessmen who needed to deal with foreigners, a thick English-Chinese dictionary was standard equipment. But this "Electronic Dictionary," only the size of a palm, contained an entire Oxford dictionary. Even more impressively, it also supported Russian!
"It includes 20,000 English words and 10,000 Russian words, supports fuzzy search, and has a pronunciation function..."
The flashbulbs from the audience were going off everywhere.
When the third product was unveiled, the entire venue fell into a deathly silence.
It was a uniquely shaped handheld device, slightly larger than the "Wenquxing" (a type of electronic dictionary), with a small black-and-white screen and a few simple buttons.
"Finally, here's a small gift for Hong Kong Island." The agent pressed the power button, the screen lit up, and accompanied by simple electronic music, blocks began to fall from the top of the screen.
"We call it 'Tetris'."
The reporters and distributors in the audience were stunned. They had never seen anything like it before. A block fell, rotated, and joined to another block, then the entire row disappeared. Simple, yet with a magical allure.
One of the bolder distributors couldn't help but ask, "Sir, what... what is the use of this?"
The agent laughed and said, "It's completely useless. Its only use is to help you pass the time when you're bored."
This seemingly "useless" thing caught everyone's attention.
The highlight of the press conference was the announcement of the price.
"The 'Pocket Treasure' calculator is priced at HK$99."
"'Wenquxing' electronic dictionary is priced at HK$299."
"Tetris game console, priced at HK$199."
The price announcement caused an uproar!
The calculators from Japan that the Huo family distributes sell for over 300 yuan each! And they have less than half the functions of the "Pocket Treasure"!
"This is insane! Is this price some kind of charity?"
"Are you trying to kill anyone else?"
"Stop talking! I want to place an order! Give me a thousand Tetris machines! No! Five thousand!"
Before the press conference was even over, the dealers rushed to the signing table like madmen, waving checks, and the scene briefly spiraled out of control.
...
The top floor president's office of the Huo Group Building.
Huo Qishan listened to his subordinate's report with a livid expression.
"Boss, in just three days... just three days, our sales at our counters in major department stores have plummeted by 70%!"
"Yesterday, seventeen distributors terminated their agency contracts with us, and this morning, that number has increased to forty-two! They've all gone to Sina Weibo to queue up!"
"Our electronic watch factory has had 80% of its orders canceled... They say our technology is too outdated..."
"Bang!"
Huo Qishan smashed a valuable Qing Dynasty blue and white porcelain vase to the ground, shattering it into pieces.
His chest heaved violently, his handsome face contorted in a grimace. He simply couldn't understand how a woman from the mainland could produce so many unheard-of items in just a few days.
This isn't business competition, this is slaughter! This is a dimensional attack!
His painstakingly built electronics sales network was utterly vulnerable in the face of these few products.
“Bai Shu…” he squeezed out the two words through gritted teeth, his eyes filled with murderous intent.
...
At the same moment, in the office of New Wave Technology, Bai Zhu was slowly making tea for Qin Zheng.
Outside the window, there was a long line of dealership vehicles, but inside the office, all was quiet.
"Young Miss, that battle was fought beautifully." Qin Zheng's face rarely showed admiration.
“This is just an appetizer.” Bai Shu pushed a cup of tea in front of him. “The Huo family won’t sit idly by. If they suffer losses in business, they will find other ways to get their revenge.”
She looked up at Qin Zheng and said, "So, your task is even more important now."
"Please give your instructions, Sister."
“Huo Qishan is very shrewd. Sacred Heart Clinic is just a front used to attract our attention.” Bai Shu tapped her fingertips lightly on the table.
“A real, large-scale experimental base requires a huge space, an independent power system, and convenient disposal of various ‘waste’ materials. Such a place would never be in the city center.”
She handed Qin Zheng a map of Hong Kong Island. "Go and find out all the abandoned factories, warehouses, old mines, and even remote private islands on Hong Kong Island. I need to know where the real hideout of 'Eagle's Nest' is."
"Yes!" Qin Zheng accepted the order and turned to leave.
Just as the "New Wave" was turning the entire Hong Kong market upside down and the Huo family was in a state of chaos, a phone call came to Bai Shu's office.
It was Dong Cunshan calling; his voice sounded somewhat strange and troubled.
"My niece... um... Huo Jingran, the second young master of the Huo family, sent someone to tell you that he... wants to meet you privately."
Huo Jingran?
Bai Shu recalled this person's information. The most good-for-nothing second-generation scion of the Huo family, he spent his days indulging in pleasure and neglecting his duties, and was a notorious playboy in Hong Kong.
What does he want from me?
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