Chapter 1

In the dimly lit room, only the desk lamp emitted a soft yellow glow. Three small insects circled the light bulb, making a buzzing sound. It was the hottest season in Jianghai, early August, with the highest temperature exceeding 40 degrees.

The young man, bare-chested, with slightly messy hair and a stubbly beard, was hunched over under the lamp's light. His thick eyebrows and large eyes were intensely focused on the 108-pin chip in his hand, with the pins densely packed and almost overlapping.

"Liu Meng, you can do it!" the young man whispered to himself.

Holding a soldering iron, he touched it to the rosin, which puffed up with a burst of white smoke. Sweat gathered on his forehead, forming large droplets that he occasionally wiped away with his arm, while his back was already drenched in sweat.

Ding... The mobile phone nearby made a soft sound, but the young man remained motionless, carefully applying solder to the fine pins.

Ding... The mobile phone continued to make soft sounds one after another.

The young man remained fully focused on his work, completing the soldering of the entire circuit board. He then began testing it on the small experimental platform he had set up. The function was good, and the loaded program ran smoothly. His furrowed brows finally relaxed, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips as he said softly, "Finally, I've completed this crucial step."

Picking up his phone, he saw five messages, the earliest of which had been received over three hours ago, all from his girlfriend, Zhao Linlin.

He hadn't realized that this debugging session had taken another four hours.

He picked up his phone, opened the messages, and began reading them one by one.

"Brother, are you still debugging the circuit? Don't overwork yourself, take care to rest."

"During the weekend, I can only stay at home waiting for you. A new movie just came out, and I really want to watch it with you."

"I just called home, and I feel so sad. Brother, is everything okay on your end? Let's have dinner together."

"Lying in bed alone, I thought a lot. I'm trying hard not to worry too much. Brother, keep it up!"

"Brother, I really can't take it anymore. I've been looking forward to the beautiful future you've been talking about, but those imagined scenes seem so distant and blurry, out of reach. It's really hard to endure this."

As he read the last message, the young man's brows tightened again. He sighed, knowing that this scene had repeated many times over the six years they had been together. This time, he didn't take it to heart, thinking it was just Zhao Linlin's way of expressing her frustration after waiting for so long.

"It won't be long, Linlin. As soon as this product is successfully developed, I'll earn my first pot of gold and give you the home you've always wanted," the young man whispered to himself, his tone unusually firm.

He quickly dialed a number.

"Linlin, I just finished debugging. I didn't realize it was so late. This debugging was very successful, and we're not far from completing the product. Happiness is just around the corner. Let's go out for a late-night snack," Liu Meng said in a relaxed tone.

There was no response from the other end, only the sound of sobbing. Liu Meng felt a growing unease, knowing this was different from previous times.

After a moment of silence,

"My parents have always been against us being together. Now that we've graduated, our classmates are buying houses and getting married. I'm not young anymore. Being with you, I can only wait for your so-called beautiful future, always waiting, always waiting. I'm really tired. Let's break up."

With that, Zhao Linlin hung up the phone.

When Liu Meng tried to call again, he only heard the automated message, "The number you dialed is powered off. Sorry..."

"Sorry, my ass," Liu Meng muttered, feeling bitter as he threw his old HTC G4 phone onto the bed. The phone rolled off the edge and fell to the floor, but he didn't care, just staring blankly at the circuit boards and experimental equipment on the table.

A wave of dizziness and fatigue suddenly hit him. He had been intensely focused for four hours, and the initial excitement of success had masked the sudden impact of the blow.

He moved to the bed with some difficulty and lay down, feeling a bit more comfortable.

Looking at the ceiling, his nose felt a bit sore as he tried to steady his breathing.

Since they had been together, their relationship had been filled with the tension between reality and dreams.

Liu Meng, from an ordinary family in Sishui, a less developed area in central China, had a strong determination that had led him through many challenges to complete his doctoral studies and stay in the international metropolis of Jianghai.

His father, with his weathered, dark face, was proud of him, boasting to everyone about his son who had made it in the big city.

After starting a relationship with Zhao Linlin, Liu Meng knew they would face the pressure of reality. In addition to his studies, he worked even harder, reading extensively from Chinese and foreign literature, and pondering ways to start a business and make money.

During his six years of combined master's and doctoral studies, he published 18 papers, 10 of which were indexed by SCI and 8 by EI, achieving significant results. His doctoral thesis was even rated as one of the top 100 excellent theses in China.

Not only that, but he also researched new energy bidirectional conversion technology and wind and solar energy storage technology, applying for 20 national invention patents. Using the small stipend he earned, he purchased instruments and equipment, setting up a small personal laboratory to develop an electric vehicle energy recovery and utilization system.

He believed that if this product, with its 99.7% efficiency, was successfully developed, he could earn his first pot of gold, solve the housing problem, and then propose to Zhao Linlin. He had already thought through every detail of the proposal during his long hours of research.

Unfortunately, the time invested and the results obtained are always proportional. As Edison said, success is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.

Zhao Linlin often found herself, like today, waiting for Liu Meng, enduring the pressure from her parents and the neglect from her overly busy boyfriend in this unfamiliar big city.

Liu Meng understood Zhao Linlin's feelings and didn't blame her at all.

He wanted to give Zhao Linlin a home, to prove that she hadn't chosen the wrong person and that her parents' judgment was wrong. To achieve this, he had to work even harder on the product, day and night, often staying up all night. However, developing a high-tech product alone required a long process, and time was precisely what Liu Meng lacked the most.

He had to use these few years to catch up with the decades of accumulation of others. How easy was that?

Buying a house and getting married, he would do it on his own, without relying on his family. This was Liu Meng's resolve, and he had emphasized this to Zhao Linlin more than once.

Zhao Linlin was a sensible girl, though she could be a bit spoiled at times.

They met in the university library and had a good relationship. After Zhao Linlin graduated with a bachelor's degree and secured a civil service job, she had paid for their meals, movies, and shopping over the past two years. She had also supported Liu Meng's development and research efforts.

She had beautiful aspirations, valuing this man with potential and quietly looking forward to being the woman behind a successful man, sharing a life together.

As an only child, she was very pampered by her parents and had always wanted a small home of her own. However, this simple wish was something Liu Meng could not fulfill at the moment.

Thinking back to their past, he remembered how Zhao Linlin had carefully prepared for his birthday, giving him a cute water cup as his first gift, which he still kept on his bedside table. He had been using this cup to drink water ever since, even though it was a bit old.

A wave of sadness washed over him. He had always been strong, even when he had lost a few teeth in a fall without making a sound. Now, tears welled up in his eyes, and for the first time, he realized what it felt like to cry.

He was a typical Capricorn, not a man prone to sentimentality.

But soon, Liu Meng calmed down, feeling a surge of courage throughout his body. "I can't give up like this! I've never been one to give up easily."

He took a shower, changed into a somewhat old but neatly pressed outfit, and carefully put on his shoes, trying to be in the best state possible. The more urgent the situation, the more important it was to remain calm. After so many years of exams, his mental state was already mature.

He was going to find Zhao Linlin. He couldn't let it end like this. He wouldn't allow himself to regret it due to a momentary emotional outburst.