Chapter 66: Early Deployment

With Smart Cube Technology's current growth trajectory, its existing office space would soon become inadequate.

In just these past few days, as wave after wave of newcomers joined the company, Wan Xia also noticed that the surrounding space was gradually becoming cramped and constrained.

She felt a quiet sense of relief inwardly; fortunately, Smart Cube Technology had reserved an independent office area specifically for their team.

Otherwise, they would probably have to be like Smart Cube's regular employees right now, working in a restricted space with desks pressed against desks, rubbing shoulders with one another.

Since they were all designers, if the space were too small, their work efficiency would inevitably plummet.

After listening to Wan Xia describe the operational approach for the headquarters building's construction, Li Pingan could not help frowning slightly and asked in return:

"Will that actually work?"

"Uh... most engineering projects, especially buildings like office towers, basically operate this way."

"They construct and draw blueprints at the same time."

Li Pingan gazed earnestly at Wan Xia, whose expression remained unchanged. A moment later, he picked up his mobile phone and called Old Wu.

"Old Wu, come over here for a moment."

Not long after, Old Wu walked in with a look of puzzlement, gently knocking on the office door before entering upon receiving permission.

Seeing that Wan Xia was also in the boss's office, he greeted her politely.

"Old Wu, please arrange the construction bidding for the company headquarters building. We need to push forward with the groundbreaking as soon as possible."

"I don't have any other construction requirements; my sole demand is strict adherence to building standards, especially regarding construction materials, which must be guaranteed to meet quality standards."

"As long as the construction contractor follows my requirements, the company will never delay payments as construction progresses. We will pay in full and on time, without fail."

The construction industry was currently enduring a bitter winter, with exceptionally fierce market competition—truly a case of too many monks and too few bowls of porridge.

Li Pingan's promise that "construction payments will not be delayed and will be paid on time" was undoubtedly like dropping a massive boulder into a calm lake, which would soon stir up a thousand ripples.

Under the current difficult market conditions, these construction companies were fretting over cash flow. Upon hearing such a promise, they would inevitably swarm toward it like sharks catching the scent of blood, flocking to the opportunity in droves.

After all, for them in this day and age, taking on a project did not require chasing exorbitant profits; as long as they could receive their payments on time and successfully support the large contingent of employees within their company, that alone would be considered a tremendous stroke of fortune amidst adversity.

At the very least, it meant the company hadn't gone under yet.

One had to know that even state-owned enterprises with formidable strength would compete fiercely and scramble to participate in a project bidding under such conditions.

"Understood, I'll make the arrangements shortly," Old Wu replied without the slightest hesitation.

"Right, also, for the plots of land surrounding the headquarters building, buy up as many as we can."

"Understood."

Li Pingan's vision extended far beyond just the headquarters building; he had long since mapped out other architectural complexes in his mind.

To put it modestly, once the company developed and grew in the future, shouldn't they at least build an employee dormitory building?

After Wan Xia left the office first, Li Pingan called out to Old Wu, who was also preparing to leave.

"Old Wu, wait a moment. I just thought of something I'd like to discuss with you."

"Close the door first."

After Old Wu shut the office door, Li Pingan gently tapped his desk and asked in a low voice:

"Old Wu, are there any other entire floors available for rent above or below us? I'm planning to set up a laboratory."

Although Old Wu was endlessly curious about what kind of experiment his boss intended to conduct and why he needed an entire floor of such spacious proportions, he refrained from asking too many questions.

Instead, he answered directly: "The floor right above us is currently vacant."

"When we first came here, I checked out the upper floor as well. At the time, I didn't expect the company to develop so rapidly, otherwise I would have rented it then."

"Rent it down!" Li Pingan said decisively.

"Then renovate it slightly; use part of it as an employee office area, and reserve the rest for my temporary laboratory."

"Also, have HR recruit..."

At this point, Li Pingan paused slightly. After pondering for a moment, he realized that HR would probably find it extremely difficult to recruit senior research personnel for a laboratory through online postings.

So he changed his tune and said, "Never mind, I'll handle hiring the laboratory staff through headhunters. Old Wu, you just focus on renting the upper floor and having it renovated."

After Old Wu departed, Li Pingan sat alone in his office, fingers gently rubbing his chin, sinking into deep contemplation.

As the saying goes, if you're going to put on a show, you must do it thoroughly.

Under the current circumstances, laying the groundwork for the virtual reality sector in advance was the absolute best timing.

Otherwise, if he suddenly produced mature virtual reality technological achievements out of nowhere in the future, it would inevitably attract intense scrutiny and suspicion from all sides.

It might even expose him to the risk of various investigations and inquiries.

Laying the groundwork for a laboratory in advance would not only cultivate his own core team of professional researchers, but also make the entire technological development process appear more natural and reasonable, rather than abrupt.

Li Pingan had already thought it through.

As long as he kept the most core technologies firmly in his own hands, all other related technologies could be applied for patents normally, constructing a comprehensive intellectual property protection system.

After all, one could not expect every single scientific researcher to keep secrets strictly.

Patent protection would act like a sturdy legal defense line. With it, he could at least provide a powerful safeguard for his technological achievements out in the open.

He wouldn't need to worry excessively about a series of problems triggered by technology leaks.

In this way, through the dual safeguards of exclusive control over core technologies and patent protection, he could protect his interests to the maximum extent possible.

They say there are no impenetrable walls in this world.

Li Pingan had never believed that all research and development personnel could maintain confidentiality.

One had to realize that even national secret research units experienced leaks, let alone private enterprises.

One week later, on a Friday.

Smart Cube Technology released a video via Xiaofang's account.

"Due to uncontrollable factors, the smart guide dog had to be fitted with a brand-new internal chip. Following the company's fine-tuning and testing, the smart guide dog utilizing Huawei's Kirin chip exhibits even more sensitive responsiveness."

...

As soon as the video was released, it stirred up a thousand waves.

Not many people cared about the reason behind the smart guide dog's chip replacement; everyone's gaze was instead instantly drawn to the words "Huawei Kirin chip."

Netizens had long speculated that the Kirin chip might eventually be put on the market for external sales.

People had thought that the first to eat the crab might be Rongyao, which had spun off from Huawei, but they never imagined that the very first entity to use Huawei's Kirin chip would actually be Smart Cube Technology.

And what's more, it was applied to a smart guide dog.

From the time the smart guide dog hit the market until now, a simple online search would yield numerous test videos concerning it.

The performance—while not quite perfect—was absolute light for the visually impaired.

And now, the smart guide dog had become the first to eat the "crab."

In an instant, the comment section became lively.

"I'm somewhat curious as to which model of the Kirin chip is used in the smart guide dog; it probably isn't the latest one. Marking this post as proof."

"Kirin chip? Then I'm not buying it. Just looking at it makes it seem unreliable."

...

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