Lu Ying stood in place, too scared to speak.

“Cisco isn’t stupid for being able to get this far!” Lin Yi said.

“Even though our operation is more refined, it won’t be long before they fix the bug in the program. Who will the market believe then?”

Both of them stood still, realizing the gravity of the situation at the same time.

“Director Sun, you’ve been here for so many years, how come you don’t even have the awareness to guard against this?! Don’t you know to apply for a patent first when we first came up with a new product? Don’t you know to guard against others when it comes to a confidential project like this? Do you know what any of this means?!” Lin Yi berated.

“Now that the technical data has been stolen, all our previous efforts have been in vain! I’m so disappointed in you!”

Sun Fuyu did not say a word. It was his fault, and it was only natural for him to be scolded.

It was just that over the years, there hadn’t been any substantial progress in the project, which caused Sun Fuyu’s awareness to drop. He had not thought about this at all.

It was already too late by the time he wanted to do it.

“This Liu Chu is too hateful. How could he do such a thing?!” Lu Ying said, her hatred for him growing deeper.

“You still have the nerve to say that?” Lin Yi said.

“It’s your fault for not being on guard. Why are you blaming others? Do you really think this is a harmonious society? You’re taking business competition too lightly.”

“Director, there’s still a chance for us to redeem ourselves,” Lu Ying said nervously.

“Although Cisco stole the results of our project, the industry hasn’t released the news yet. Their research must be in the final stage of testing. As long as we release the results now, we’ll still be considered the leader of the industry.”

“They didn’t announce it? What can you think of that they have not considered?” Lin Yi asked.

“I can tell you for sure that they’ve already registered a patent. The reason they didn’t announce it is because they’re waiting for you.”

Sun Fuyu and Lu Ying did not understand what he meant.

“You think that the initiative is still in your hands, but in reality, Cisco is the one taking the initiative. When you announce the program of the control unit, they’ll take out the patent and bite you back. By then, Longxin will become the laughingstock of the entire industry, and you’ll never be able to raise your heads again!” Lin Yi said.

Lin Yi’s words made Sun Fuyu and Lu Ying realize the seriousness of the problem.

No matter how they tried to explain it, it would be useless by then.

The patent was in Cisco’s hands, and there was nothing they could do to defend themselves.

Sun Fuyu, on the one hand, was fine. He’d been working for so many years, so he could still take the pressure.

It was just that Lu Ying was having a breakdown.

It was not because Lin Yi had scolded her, it was that she had poured her heart and soul into this project.

She had gotten the director’s help during the most difficult time and solved the final problem, but something like this had happened just as he was about to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

She could not accept it.

“Go cry outside if you want to. Don’t cry here, it’s annoying.” Lin Yi said.

“Director, I’m not crying, you’re seeing things,” Lu Ying said as she held back her tears.

Sun Fuyu felt bad, and he bowed to Lin Yi.

“Mr. Lin, this is my mistake. You can do whatever you want to me. I won’t complain at all.”

“What’s the use of firing you? Can we recover our losses that way?” Lin Yi asked

“That’ll make me feel better,” Sun Fuyu said as he blamed himself.

“Ever since the source code was written, Little Lu has basically been living in the office. She wanted to get this project done as soon as possible, so this has nothing to do with her. It was my mistake that caused this to happen. I’m willing to take full responsibility.”

“Alright, alright.”

Lin Yi waved his hand impatiently. “Everyone, stop crying. You’re making me look like a capitalist. I’m also responsible for this. I didn’t warn you beforehand.”

“Mr. Lin, please don’t say that. It’s because we were too careless that your efforts were wasted,” Sun Fuyu said.

Lin Yi stood up and patted Sun Fuyu and Lu Ying on the shoulder. “I trust your character and your skills. It’s not a problem, but you have to learn to be vigilant in times of danger. This is a lesson.”

“Got it!”

“Alright, stop standing here and work with me,” Lin Yi said.

“Work?”

Both of them did not understand what Lin Yi was referring to.

“Cisco stole our technology, but that was only the most basic 1.0 program. It’s only ahead of the domestic chip market, and it’s still far from reaching the global standard,” Lin Yi said slowly.

“My original idea was to first establish a foothold in the domestic chip field before joining the international market. But after something like this happened, we can only skip this step and go right to the international market. That’s what I really wanted Longxin to do.”

Lin Yi’s words made both of them excited. The feeling of going from Hell to Heaven made them feel illusory and unreal.

“Mr. Lin, we’ll do our best to help you!” The two said in unison.

Lin Yi took out a few hundred-dollar bills from his pocket and handed them to Lu Ying:

“We can’t sleep tonight. Go buy me a few boxes of cigarettes and coffee, or you’ll die of exhaustion.”

“No need, chief. I have them here,” Lu Ying said honestly.

“I’m still the boss here. What’s the point of spending your own money for these things?”

Seeing that she could not refuse, Lu Ying said, “But there’s too much money here. We won’t be able to spend it all.”

“The rest of the money is for you to buy some face masks. I’m about to turn into a foul-mouthed sailor.”

Lu Ying laughed out loud. Although she had been scolded, the chief was still very nice.

Soon, Lu Ying bought the cigarettes and coffee and used them to refresh herself.

In front of the computer, Lin Yi used all the knowledge he had on microchips and semiconductors.

Both of them were amazed by the code Lin Yi had written earlier.

They were amazed this time as well, but not for the same reason.

The main difference was that they could understand it for the first time, but they could not understand it this time.

They had reached a blind spot in their knowledge.

Sun Fuyu was not as useful as Lu Ying at the moment.

Lu Ying could not understand it either, but she could at least fan him.

“Mr. Lin, if you’re hot, take off your clothes,” Sun Fuyu said with a smile.

He was a little hot as well, but he was too embarrassed to say it.

“She’s still here, so I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Lin Yi said

“Little Lu isn’t such a pretentious person. We’re all like that sometimes when we work overtime,” Sun Fuyu said with a smile. “I happen to be a little hot as well.”

“Alright then.”

Lin Yi did not think too much about it. If it wasn’t for Lu Ying, he would not have even wanted to wear his shirt.

It was too stuffy in Zhong Hai at night.

He took off his shirt and threw it aside. He lit a cigarette and went back to work.

“Didn’t you want to take it off too? Why did you stop?” Lin Yi asked.

“I saw your eight-pack and stopped in that instant.”