Chapter 47 of 100

Chapter 47

19 min read4,668 words

The final outcome goes without saying; Leonard and Sandy still chose to trust Hu Wenhai's advice. The obvious difference between 300,000 and 1,000,000 was there, far exceeding their combined net worth.

If even Hu Wenhai, who was putting in the majority of the investment, was not afraid of losing everything, why should they be afraid?

The pitiful Leonard couple did not know that, for Hu Wenhai, whether Cisco lived or died was a good outcome.

If Cisco survived, then Intel would be the unlucky one. If Cisco died, Hu Wenhai would be the happiest. Either way, it was beneficial to him. Unless he was willing to give up his money, any choice would be wrong.

However, the Leonard couple did not know what was going through the mind of their largest investor at that moment and signed the contract without hesitation.

Speaking of the contract, Hu Wenhai added an extra layer of insurance. The contract clearly stipulated the company's technical direction, aiming to transform the television network into an internet direction.

The home information terminal that Hu Wenhai envisioned was still difficult to manufacture with current electronic technology and could not be immediately produced and marketed. For now, it could only serve as a research and development direction, preparing the market and developing technology in advance. Once the timing was right, they would consider truly entering the ordinary household market.

This technical investment and requirement were relatively high. Hu Wenhai and the Leonard couple agreed that he would invest in the technology development. If Hu Wenhai could not fulfill his technical commitment within five years, his 49% share in Cisco would be transferred to the Leonard couple free of charge.

However, as long as the other party did not deviate from the direction of transforming the television network into an information network, Hu Wenhai promised not to interfere with the company's operations. If Cisco deviated from this direction, Hu Wenhai had the right to demand that the Leonard couple buy his shares at ten times the market value. If they refused to pay the premium, he had the right to buy their shares at one-tenth of the market value.

In addition, for every round of financing, Hu Wenhai had the right of first refusal. Only after he refused to invest could Cisco seek other investors.

Through these measures, Hu Wenhai could say that he had firmly grasped Cisco in his hands.

However, he originally planned to stay at Stanford for at least a week but had to return to New York on the third day.

On the plane, Hu Wenhai could not help but lament that he was truly a busy person. Since coming to America, he had been doing things haphazardly, which was a big taboo in entrepreneurship—doing everything himself.

The decision to establish the company was made too late, and he had to handle everything alone. Once he left New York, no one could make decisions for him.

This time, he rushed back to New York because of a request from Batala, relayed by Iverson. When asked for the specific reason, Iverson claimed that Batala refused to tell him. As a half-client and half-board member of the publishing house, Hu Wenhai could not take the request lightly, so he hurried back as if his pants were on fire.

When he came out of JFK Airport, Hu Wenhai couldn't help but shield his eyes from the sun. The autumn sun was even stronger than in summer, and he was somewhat unaccustomed to the lifestyle of a frequent flyer that he had forgotten.

The days of flying half the year, which he had experienced before his rebirth, had not been experienced for eighteen years. Now, suddenly experiencing this feeling again, he was somewhat unaccustomed.

"Mr. Hu!" As soon as Hu Wenhai walked out of the airport, he heard Batala's greeting. Not far from the intersection, Batala, dressed in a trench coat, was leaning against a car, waving at him loudly.

"Mr. Batala, thank you for picking me up," Hu Wenhai said, somewhat surprised that it was him and not Iverson. Their relationship was not particularly close, and this friendly gesture seemed a bit too intimate.

"I thought we were already friends, so there's no need to thank me for such a small thing!" Batala seemed very enthusiastic, even helping Hu Wenhai with his luggage and placing it in the trunk. Then he pushed him into the back seat of the car.

As soon as Hu Wenhai sat in the car, the white Chevrolet sports car started, fishtailing onto the airport highway.

"Hello, Mr. Hu."

A greeting sounded from Hu Wenhai's side, and there was another person in the back seat of the car. He smiled kindly and extended his hand, sitting as steady as a mountain.

As Hu Wenhai extended his hand, he carefully observed this person. Who was he, and why was he in Batala's car? It was impossible that he was just a friend of Batala's who happened to be along, as the airport was a dead end, and no one would come this way unless they were flying.

But this person neither got out of the car at the airport to board a flight nor left with Batala's car, which clearly was not a coincidence but had a specific purpose.

It was clear that he was the one who truly wanted to meet Hu Wenhai.

This was a tall white man with a square face and blonde hair. Hu Wenhai estimated that he was over 1.9 meters tall, possibly even 2 meters. His hand had large knuckles, and when he opened his palm, it looked like a fan. His fingers were long and rough, clearly not those of a man who lived by writing.

Combining his posture, demeanor, and bearing, Hu Wenhai knew exactly who this person was—a soldier.

"Hello, I don't know how to address you?"

"My name is William Mitchell, you can call me William." William Mitchell got straight to the point: "I have a business proposition for Mr. Hu. Are you interested?"

"Oh, of course." Hu Wenhai replied straightforwardly: "I don't know what kind of business you want to do, remote-controlled models or book copyrights?"

"Nizhenji, I want this."

"Simulator?" Hu Wenhai repeated the Chinese pronunciation accurately, somewhat surprised.

"Yes, that's right, the simulator!" William nodded affirmatively and said: "I know that China and Pakistan had a transaction involving the simulator. It can simulate the flight performance of an aircraft at low speeds. I want to buy this kind of aircraft, not a toy like a remote-controlled model."

When he mentioned the remote-controlled model, William unconsciously curled his lip, clearly not impressed by such a "toy."

"Cough, cough, well, as long as it's business, the Chinese will not refuse." Hu Wenhai nodded without hesitation.

In this era, let alone a simulator, China had already sold two dozen J-7 fighters to the Americans, which were being used by the adversary squadrons. Why couldn't a simulator be sold?

As for how William knew about the transaction between China and Pakistan, that was no surprise. Pakistan's F-16s were still dependent on the Americans. Besides, Elkan Company and Major Latif had already made contact, so how could they not notice the background? Batala had even taken the F-14 simulator data to the Pentagon to apply for funding. Only a blind intelligence department would not notice Hu Wenhai's identity.

As for William's identity, that was not important. As Hu Wenhai said, as long as you paid, the Chinese would do any business.

"Mr. William, what kind of aircraft do you need to simulate? The Tomcat? The Falcon, the Eagle, or the Hornet?"

"We need this." William pulled out a photo from his pocket and handed it to Hu Wenhai.

As soon as he saw the content of the photo, Hu Wenhai was shocked! The aircraft in the photo was none other than the Su-27 fighter, which had not yet entered service!

Yes, the Su-27 fighter had not entered service in 1984, but it was definitely in the final production stage and would be supplied to the Soviet Air Force in 1985.

The Americans were truly resourceful, managing to get a photo of the Su-27 fighter so quickly. Although many key parts of the photo were obscured and altered, it could not escape Hu Wenhai's eyes.

Whether it was the F-14 or the Su-27, these two fighters that once dominated the skies, Hu Wenhai knew their specific shapes and data by heart.

However, was it really safe to show such important intelligence to him? Hu Wenhai couldn't help but worry that he might be banned from leaving the country.

But since he had seen it, pretending it didn't happen was not an option. From another perspective, the Americans didn't know that Hu Wenhai recognized the Su-27 fighter!

"Oh, what kind of aircraft is this? I've never seen such a beautiful aircraft!" Hu Wenhai praised insincerely: "Just from the photo, you can see that it's almost a perfect aircraft! Its aerodynamic shape is simply mesmerizing! It's no wonder that the world's most advanced country, America, can design such a beautiful aircraft!"

"Cough, cough—"

William's face turned pale and red from Hu Wenhai's words, neither able to refute nor agree. He could only cough awkwardly to change the subject.

"We need ten simulators of this aircraft. How long will it take to deliver?"

"Five thousand dollars per aircraft, Mr. William, about the price..." Hu Wenhai glanced at Batala in front, hoping he hadn't revealed the actual price to the TOPGUN production team.

"The price is not a problem, I care about the time!"

Alright, Hu Wenhai could now confirm that William was likely from the Pentagon. Who else would buy something without haggling?

"The time is not a problem!" Hu Wenhai guaranteed: "As long as there's money to be made, I can ensure delivery within the client's required time. But since it's a simulator, could you provide the specific flight parameters of this aircraft? We need to adjust various data based on the aircraft's parameters to make the simulator's performance as close to the real aircraft as possible."

"Flight parameters..." William hesitated for a moment and said, "You don't need to do this work. Just leave enough room for improvement in the finished product."

"Then there's no problem!" Hu Wenhai said cheerfully: "If Mr. William needs it, we can complete production within two weeks. It can be delivered to the United States within a month. How does that sound?"

"Good, a month is acceptable." William said satisfactorily: "If these aircraft meet my satisfaction, I will provide you with an order for one hundred drone trainers next!"

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