Chapter 48

After coming out of the massage parlor, Huang Sheng had a rosy glow on his face. He patted Liu Meng's shoulder and laughed heartily, "How was it, little brother? Comfortable, right? As a man, one should live a carefree life. What’s the point of making money if not to enjoy it?"

Liu Meng nodded, not bothering to argue.

Back at Huang Sheng's small workshop, Liu Meng's slightly dizzy head had completely cleared up. He and Huang Sheng finalized the cooperation agreement: the first installment of 2000 yuan would be paid upfront, followed by 23,000 yuan upon completion of development, and the remaining 5,000 yuan after the product was assembled and officially sold.

After some thought, Liu Meng accepted the terms. Huang Sheng was surprisingly generous this time, immediately handing over the 2000 yuan. With this 2000 yuan in hand, Liu Meng felt relieved, as it would cover the class fund shortfall.

He started developing right there in the small workshop. Fortunately, the lab was well-equipped with tools, a decent desktop computer, and the Protel software for drawing circuit boards, as well as a circuit board manufacturing device. Having such a lab made development much easier.

Back when Liu Meng had set up his own small lab, he lacked a circuit board manufacturing device, which would have cost several ten thousand yuan—far beyond his means.

With such equipment, progress was swift. He continuously modified the circuit board, made it, and tested it. The remote control's transmission and reception devices were quickly upgraded, capable of operating over a distance of 200 meters.

Next was the optimization and upgrade of the electric motor. Fortunately, the small lab had various types of motors. He chose a high-performance permanent magnet synchronous DC motor. This motor had excellent performance, stable operation, and high torque, though it was slightly more expensive. However, the small aircraft itself had high profit margins, so the cost could be increased accordingly.

Working on familiar circuit boards, Liu Meng felt as if he were back in the sweltering summer of 2014, when he developed products in his dormitory. He immersed himself in the world of circuit boards, continuously improving and optimizing the functions. Nearly ten hours passed without him even noticing.

In the nearby office, Huang Sheng and Xiu Na were flirting. Xiu Na pouted and asked in a low voice, "Are you really going to give this young boy 30,000 yuan? Hehe, are you going to kick him out like you did with Old Wang last time?"

Huang Sheng chuckled, "This kid is indeed capable. We'll see how it goes after the development is complete. If he wants to get 30,000 yuan from me, he'll have to prove himself. Hehe."

...

Just as Liu Meng completed the entire circuit board design, he quickly soldered all the electronic components and tested the circuit. It worked normally, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at the time, it was already 4 a.m. on Sunday.

He had lost track of time while debugging the circuit board, completely engrossed in his work.

His head started to feel dizzy, and he fell asleep on the table. In his dream, he seemed to be in the world of circuit boards, with every wire clearly imprinted in his mind, like roads with overpasses or tunnels at intersections.

The dream was vivid.

He was sleeping soundly when a phone call woke him up. Liu Meng groggily got up and answered. It was the leader, who chuckled, "Damn, you've been out all night again. Take care of your health, don't always wander around. The class is going out to buy materials for the Mid-Autumn Festival party today. Don't forget, it's in half an hour."

Liu Meng then remembered that he needed to go out to buy materials for the Mid-Autumn Festival party.

When he came out, Huang Sheng was still there. Seeing Liu Meng, he walked over and said, "Little brother, you're amazing. You worked all night. I rarely admire anyone, but I really admire you this time."

Liu Meng didn't want to talk much and simply said he had something to do and would come back later to finish the job.

Huang Sheng insisted on driving Liu Meng back. Liu Meng couldn't refuse, so he let Huang Sheng drive him to the West Gate of Ice City University. Huang Sheng chuckled, "I didn't expect you to be a student. You're a genius. When you're done, give me a call, and I'll come pick you up."

Liu Meng got out of the car and quickly walked to the entrance of Dormitory 7, where he had agreed to meet.

Huang Sheng watched Liu Meng get out of the car and smiled, thinking to himself, "Hehe, with Liu Meng's skills, he's like a gold mine. I need to use him to make more money. Maybe next year I can get a 'Don't Touch Me' car. Hahaha..."

...

"Yelang, you're acting on impulse, showing off your youthful idealism," Xiao Xueqiang said angrily over the phone.

When Huandao Book Alliance was founded, it was by Li Yelang and Xiao Xueqiang. They were originally good friends and shared a love for web novels. In a moment of enthusiasm, they decided to start the alliance.

"Xueqiang, listen to me. 'Return to Ming' is definitely a masterpiece and has the potential to create a new genre. The updates are fast, the quality is high, and the author, San Pang, is very confident in his work. He's currently leaning towards us. With a bit more effort, we might be able to sign him," Li Yelang didn't expect Xiao Xueqiang to react so strongly to his idea.

"I've read the book you mentioned, and it's indeed good. However, he hasn't signed yet, and anything could happen. Ah Chao is already our Huandao Book Alliance's platinum author. If you suddenly replace him with a new, unsigned author, how will he feel? Authors have their own temperaments. I don't agree with what you're doing," Xiao Xueqiang insisted.

Since they founded the website, things were no longer as simple as drinking and talking about their ideals. They needed to support many authors, expand the website, attract more readers, and bring in more excellent authors. All of this required funding, and their savings were almost depleted. The website was still not profitable.

Li Yelang was deeply involved in the website, still oblivious to the outside world. He had to take on the business side, and some differences had already emerged.

This time, Li Yelang's idealism flared up, making Xiao Xueqiang very angry. He had been trying to find investors and had endured a lot of frustration.

"I believe in my judgment. I'll talk to Ah Chao. I'm determined to do this. I believe that if we show enough sincerity, San Pang will feel it. Kindness always brings good results," Li Yelang was stubborn and very determined this time.

Xiao Xueqiang knew his temperament. Once he made up his mind, nothing could change it. Moreover, they had agreed that Li Yelang would make the final decisions for the website. With no other choice, he sighed and said, "Do as you wish," before hanging up the phone.