Lin Yao's anger flared up. Who did this guy think he was? How could he be so shameless? Didn't he know the basic principles of trade? He even sent it over? I'll roll my eyes at him.
Suppressing his anger, Lin Yao said calmly, "Who knows who you are? Would you believe me if I said I was just passing by? You've dialed the wrong number. Look through a book before you call. You're wasting my time!"
Xia Yuwen secretly glanced at Lin Yao. The change in his eyes just now fascinated her. She thought to herself that this man was actually quite handsome at times. For a moment, she suddenly felt like she was facing her father.
"Wow, Lin Yao, you're amazing! I didn't expect you to be so humorous." Lan Xiaoqing felt that the food in her stomach had digested a bit, and immediately became lively again. "Just passing by, haha, that's hilarious."
"I'm just passing by, I'm going to buy soy sauce with my dad." Little Guli digested his food quickly and was in good spirits, mainly because Lin Yao kept a close eye on his appetite to prevent him from overeating and becoming an idiot.
"I want to buy soy sauce too, and I'll buy it with Uncle Yao!" Nannan climbed onto Lin Yao and announced loudly. Xiao Guli also climbed up, not to be outdone, making Lin Yao feel his stomach start to bloat again.
The phone rang again, from the same number. Lin Yao answered without saying a word or even greeting him.
"Hello, can you hear me?" Lieutenant Colonel Liu's voice rang out. Hearing the background noise on the other end of the line, he knew the call had been connected. "Why did you hang up? Please straighten your attitude. You're dealing with the military."
"Oh dear, I'm so scared," Lin Yao replied jokingly, his tone relaxed and casual. "Is that how you talk? Has no one taught you manners? Do I owe you anything?"
Lieutenant Colonel Liu on the phone was clearly taken aback, and his tone became even sterner, "You must hand over all the data and the catalytic enzyme, or you will bear the consequences."
"You'll bear the consequences?" Lin Yao's voice became even more frivolous. "What can you do to me if I don't hand it over? What can you do to me? Come on then."
After saying that, Lin Yao hung up the phone, muttering to himself, "He's out of his mind."
"What's wrong?" Ge Yong wasn't stuffed with food; his strict self-discipline prevented him from making such a foolish mistake. Hearing Lin Yao's words, he immediately asked.
"It's nothing." Lin Yao couldn't help but laugh as he recalled the voice on the other end of the phone. "He's an idiot, and he's really arrogant. He's from the Beijing Military Region. We don't need to pay any attention to him."
"Do you have any connections with people from the Beijing Military Region?" Xia Yuwen was very sensitive to the words "military region" and, disregarding her shyness, immediately asked about it.
"No, I don't know them." Lin Yao smiled sheepishly. "They're the ones who tried to take my family's formula, and they wouldn't even pay me first. They were just trying to force me to hand over the formula information."
"The recipe?" Lan Xiaoqing leaned closer, very curious. "Is this the recipe for this drink?" She then held up the unlabeled white bottle of drink, which she had played with countless times along the way, even placing it next to her chair while eating.
"Yes, my family handed over this formula to the government, but we also had to charge a reasonable fee." Lin Yao answered honestly. He already knew Xia Yuwen's identity, and he figured she would find out about this in a few days, so there was no harm in revealing it now.
"Ah, you're handing it over?" Lan Xiaoqing clearly couldn't believe this shocking news. "It must be worth a lot of money, right? I saw on the internet that it should be at least 10 billion, but many people think 2 billion is more appropriate."
As soon as she finished speaking, she was shocked by her own words. Her eyes widened as she stared at Lin Yao, sparkling. "Ah! Two billion! Your family is now billionaires! I really can't believe it. Your outfit probably costs less than three hundred yuan, right? You could probably get it for a little over a hundred at HHC. Hey, now that you're rich, you should treat me and Xiaowen to outings more often. Let Lili, the handsome young man, pay for everything. You just need to pay the bill, haha."
Lin Yao smiled but didn't reply, thinking to himself that there was no such thing as a free lunch. It seemed that he was too soft-hearted and had offered too low a price.
The phone rang again. Lin Yao initially wanted to refuse, but seeing that the caller ID showed a different number, he answered it.
"Hello, is this Lin Yao? I'm Zuo Xiaoquan from the Shenyang Military Region, Lin Hongqi's comrade-in-arms. I'd like to talk to you about something." The middle-aged man's voice on the phone was very polite, and Lin Yao found it very pleasant.
"Hello Uncle Zuo, I'm Lin Yao. How can I help you?" Lin Yao's attitude was excellent. His uncle's comrade-in-arms was like family, so he couldn't be rude.
"Hehe, you call me Uncle Zuo, then I'll call you Xiao Lin." Zuo Xiaoquan's voice was very infectious, but the previous phone call made Lin Yao wary. This guy didn't seem to be someone to be trifled with. He was taking advantage of the situation and probably already knew that Lin Hongqi was his uncle.
"Xiao Lin, Colonel Lin brought strains of bacteria and catalytic enzymes, as well as cultivation techniques, all very detailed." Zuo Xiaoquan's voice remained gentle. "However, the things he brought aren't enough for us to mass-produce. The composition of the catalytic enzyme is too complex. Let alone synthesis, we can't even fully analyze all the components. According to our estimate, we would need a 1000-fold dose to analyze the main components of the catalytic enzyme. Do you think you could help us? Just tell us the components or the production method directly, so your Uncle Zuo doesn't have to go through all that trouble."
Lin Yao suppressed a laugh. Well, he had just hung up on one unreasonable person, and now he had been met with a conciliatory one. Considering that his uncle was a comrade-in-arms from the same military region, he had to be careful with his attitude. "Uncle Zuo, it's not that I don't want to help you, but you know the rules of technology transfer. Making such a request is a bit unreasonable, isn't it? Our family doesn't act until we see a clear benefit."
“Of course, of course,” Zuo Xiaoquan immediately agreed on the phone, probably nodding as he spoke. “Of course we have to pay, it’s the rule. I forgot to mention it earlier, don’t mind me.”
"Of course we don't mind. Uncle Zuo, when do you want to transfer the money? We can sign an agreement first if you want. We'll see what your schedule is like." Lin Yao said as he got up and went outside the restaurant to answer the phone.
"Oh, okay, I'll apply right away and transfer the 20 million to your account as soon as possible." Zuo Xiaoquan was very understanding and immediately agreed to Lin Yao's suggestion.
“Uncle Zuo, you’ve got it wrong. It’s not 20 million, it’s 60 million.” Lin Yao raised his voice, still very polite. “I think Colonel Lin Hongqi should have given a detailed report on the conditions here. The initial payment is 20 million, the initial delivery of the bacteria is 60 million, and now that the stuff is with you, it’s 60 million.”
After a slight pause on the other end of the phone, Zuo Xiaoquan continued, "But the things Colonel Lin brought back weren't complete, so we can't mass-produce them even if we take them."
“Uncle Zuo, that makes sense.” Lin Yao laughed. “You just said that you took it over for mass production. You haven’t even signed an agreement or paid us yet, and you already want to start production. If you had taken back the complete product, who would my family ask for money from? Now that we’ve given you a semi-finished product, at least you have a foundation for research and development, right? What if you develop a method for producing catalytic enzymes? Wouldn’t we not get a single penny?”
"The terms of the deal are clear. Since our family has taken such a big risk, of course we want 60 million." Lin Yao's tone immediately became very serious. "Even if we don't sell to a foreign company, it wouldn't be difficult for our family to sell to a domestic company for 1 billion or 2 billion, right? 20 million was offered because of my uncle. If you don't trust our family and are unwilling to choose this method, then of course we can only go with the second option. 60 million, not a penny less. I'm not afraid to tell you the truth, even this 60 million is a price quoted because my uncle personally intervened. If you are not willing, then there's no need to say more. Consider those strains, catalytic enzymes, and processes as a free gift to you. Don't be shy."
Zuo Xiaoquan on the other end of the phone went silent, his heavy breathing suggesting he was agitated. Lin Yao guessed he was cursing someone in secret, all because of that person's bad behavior, forcing him to pay an extra 40 million yuan for no reason.
"Xiao Lin, we're all family, can we discuss this again?" Zuo Xiaoquan's voice was gentler, and his tone softened. "We know that even a transfer price of 60 million would be unfair to your family, but the military's budget is indeed very tight, and it's difficult to come up with so much money all at once. How about we calculate it at 20 million?"
"Uncle Zuo," Lin Yao's tone softened, "I'm not trying to make things difficult for you. As I said, since we've donated the formula to the country, our family hasn't really cared about the money. Of course, a paid transfer is appropriate, after all, folk technology has its own value. Whether it's 20 million or 60 million, there are preconditions. We definitely want the money, but 20 million is definitely not acceptable, and 60 million is non-negotiable."
After a pause, Lin Yao bluntly stated, "Uncle Zuo, actually, when my uncle came to Chengdu before, we had already agreed on a 20 million yuan condition. It was you who insisted on creating this situation of distrust, and I understand the key points, but I won't go into them here. However, this extra 40 million yuan is just a response to those who deliberately made things difficult for us. 60 million yuan, not a penny less. I have other things to attend to, so I'll have to talk to you later. We'll contact each other again if needed."
Zuo Xiaoquan didn't press the matter further. After politely saying goodbye, he hung up the phone. Lin Yao rushed back to the hotel and suggested going to Wangfujing for a stroll, which was unanimously agreed upon by the two girls.
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Chapter 112 Eating Tofu
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Just as everyone was getting ready to leave, Lin Hongqi received a phone call. His tone wasn't stern, suggesting he had received orders from his superiors to make this call to complete the mission.
Lin Yao didn't mince words and told him the truth directly, "Uncle, stop talking, I'll tell you. Kang Dikai, the son of Major General Kang, the head of the logistics department of the 27th Army, got into a conflict with me in Chengdu. He almost crippled me, but I was rescued because I was with some veterans. Kang Dikai was hospitalized. Since the 27th Army forcibly dragged me into this and made such unreasonable demands, it's obviously targeting me personally. Do you think we still need to give you any face?"
Lin Hongqi remained silent on the phone for a long time before sighing, "Yao'er, your uncle just found out about this. Luckily you're alright, otherwise I would have given that kid a piece of my mind. If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have made this call. Let them do what they want, I don't care anymore." After saying that, he hung up the phone, which made Lin Yao feel even happier. His uncle still loved him as much as he did when he was a child.
Thinking about all this after hanging up the phone, Lin Yao suddenly heard Banan shout from behind, "Watch out!" Lin Yao hurriedly looked around and found that he had already walked to the side of Guanghua Avenue with Xiao Guli in his arms. Xia Yuwen and Lan Xiaoqing were a meter ahead of him. Everyone was preparing to cross the road and get into the van driven by Ge Yong. Nannan had already been carried into the van by Ge Yong.
The danger that Banan had warned them about was an electric scooter coming straight at them from the left. It looked like it was about to hit them, and the rider of the scooter was also full of panic, probably because the braking system had lost control.
With a cry of "Ah!", Lan Xiaoqing suddenly jumped towards the center of the street, leaving a distance of more than a meter from her original spot, and then continued to dodge towards the center of the road.