“As soon as the press conference ended, Ning Tao went to investigate the matter with Dice. It didn’t take much effort to find out.
Daiwei wanted the new generation of E-Phone to have 3D imaging capabilities, which is why he specifically sought out Gao Heng.
However… Daiwei helping Gao Heng so openly and blatantly was indeed somewhat puzzling.”
Ye Shaohua didn’t seem too concerned, simply waving her hand. “Don’t worry about it. Have the Qin Group representatives arrived?”
The Qin Group and the Ning Group were the two most powerful financial conglomerates in Asia. However, in recent years, to align with Ning Yunshu’s focus, the Ning Group had prioritized developing business within the country and across Asia.
The Qin Group, on the other hand, primarily expanded overseas.
For this new technology and phone launch by the Ning Group, domestic and overseas releases needed to be synchronized. Especially overseas, a reliable partner was essential. After careful consideration, Ning Tao had ultimately chosen the Qin Group.
After all, compared to the Ning Group, the Qin Group had involvement and a significant voice in various countries overseas.
There was a reason these two major enterprises were known as the top two powers in Asia.
The Qin Group representative was slightly surprised to see not only Ning Tao in the private room but also Ye Shaohua by his side. However, he recognized her.
The Qin Group had also been following the cooperation between the Ye and Ning families, and had naturally heard of Ye Shaohua, who made such bold statements at the press conference.
“Miss Ye, you are indeed remarkably capable for your age.” Although Manager Qin couldn’t quite gauge Ye Shaohua’s depth, anyone who could step up to control the situation at such a time undoubtedly possessed a courage rare among young people. As for the rumors circulating outside, for people like them, rumors were just that—to be taken with a grain of salt.
They couldn’t be taken seriously.
But getting down to business, Manager Qin broached the main subject. “I’ve seen the concept behind your E-brand phone. However, have you considered expanding into other areas? Now that Dice is also developing a new phone with 3D functionality, once that hits the market, the target audience for the phone market you’re trying to build together might be too narrow.”
In fact, the Qin Group was very interested in the few small software programs Ye Shaohua had previously provided. They had indeed brought significant benefits to the Qin Group.
They had also learned from Ning Tao that the software was solely developed by Ye Shaohua.
So before coming, the Qin Group executives had discussed that if the Ye and Ning families planned to develop in the area of network software, the Qin Group would definitely provide strong support. They would also promote it well overseas, as this new technology was truly rare, and it happened that the Ye and Ning families were also willing to cooperate.
Abandon phones and computers to focus mainly on software development?
Currently, besides nurturing Ye Chen, Ye Shaohua was occupied with creating new chips, imparting new decoding path concepts to the Ning Group’s engineers… and now probably the Ye Family’s engineers as well.
There were also school teachers to deal with, being forced to participate in various competitions, and finally, the E-brand phones and computers. After these were launched, the full holographic projection technology would be rolled out.
She understood clearly that if these foundational elements weren’t developed properly, the vast majority of computers in this world wouldn’t be able to support this technology.
“The most important things right now are the phones and computers,” Ye Shaohua thought for a moment before being frank. “As for other technologies, I’ll research them after the phones and computers are established.”
However, both the phones and computers would feature holographic projection. To maintain an element of surprise, she, Ning Tao, and others had decided to keep this secret for now. After all, mentioning it now would lead many to accuse them of boasting.
Manager Qin shook his head. “Let me be direct. The profit margin in the new phone market isn’t great now. You know that M Country’s technology is always at the forefront, and there’s also Daiwei’s partnership. Our Qin Group isn’t originally in this business. Overseas consumers are accustomed to M Country’s phones. If you truly intend to enter the electronics industry, I think focusing domestically would be better.”
Going international… the risk was simply too high. The phone industry was different from others, and there was already the very famous Orange Phone internationally.
Although he admired their software development skills, Manager Qin began trying to persuade them. But seeing that Ning Tao and Ye Shaohua showed no intention of giving up, he didn’t say more.
“Then I wish your branded phone great sales.” He raised his glass in a toast.
However, although he said this, he didn’t actually believe their phone would be a bestseller. If other countries wanted to contact him about overseas expansion, Manager Qin felt it might not even become popular domestically. Hiring a few celebrity endorsements might boost sales somewhat, but the cost would be enormous.
Manager Qin shook his head inwardly. He didn’t find Ye Shaohua’s plan very wise, feeling she was overconfident and impulsive due to youth. He thought she would likely become more steady after facing some setbacks and trials.
As soon as Manager Qin returned, the General Manager asked him, “What did Ning Tao say?”
“They want to launch a new phone first, a high-end one at that,” Manager Qin reported truthfully. “They want us to help them expand into the overseas market.”
“A phone?” The General Manager shook his head. “There are too many established phone brands now, not to mention the Orange Phone. It’s extremely difficult to stand out among these well-known phones.”
Manager Qin nodded. “That’s what I thought too, so I didn’t agree to the contract on the spot. I brought it back for your review.”
The General Manager pondered for a moment, then set the matter aside. First, the Qin Group was primarily involved in finance, not electronics. Second, breaking into the new phone market was currently too challenging.
“Let’s wait for the next cooperation opportunity,” he finally decided. “However, if the phones they develop include new types of software, we can consider it.” After all, the few software programs Ning Tao had provided were indeed very advanced.
**
The first batch of E-brand phones was already undergoing quality inspection. The initial release was only ten thousand units. The quality inspection report would be out that evening, and sales would start on the official platform the next day.
Ye Shaohua received the quality inspection report while still at school.
Ye Chen had the driver bring the car to pick her up from school.
“Sis, what are you planning to do next?” Ye Chen looked at Ye Shaohua, still feeling like he was in a fantasy. Wasn’t his sister supposed to be incapable? To understand his sister better, Ye Chen had specifically checked international websites. The evaluations of his sister there were very high, with many well-known figures wanting to follow in her footsteps.
It wasn’t just him; even the driver in the front seat kept glancing back at Ye Shaohua. Not to mention Analyst Li in the passenger seat.
Ye Shaohua placed her laptop on her knees, still working on data. “Computers. Computers under the same brand as the phone. They’re still missing the holographic projection function. I’m helping the technicians with the decoding. It should be finished by tomorrow.”
Ye Chen had initially just been making conversation, but upon hearing Ye Shaohua’s reply, he was at a loss for words.
“Sis, were you serious about predicting the stock market daily limit for two days?” Ye Chen swallowed hard and changed the subject.
Ye Shaohua nodded.
Before she could finish speaking, her homeroom teacher called.
“Shaohua, the H Country journal just called our school. Did you submit a paper?”
Ye Shaohua nodded, then realizing the teacher couldn’t see her, said, “Did the submission pass?”
“…It passed. I’ve sent the details to your email. The journal also wants to get in touch with you.” The homeroom teacher’s voice sounded somewhat numb.
Ye Shaohua hung up.
She noticed Analyst Li in the car looking at her.
“The H Country journal?” Analyst Li looked at Ye Shaohua in surprise. He had heard from Ye Chen and the lawyer that Ye Shaohua’s grades weren’t good, so hearing her say she was ‘Y’ yesterday had nearly made him fall off his chair. But now, hearing that she, a high school senior, had connections with that famous journal in H Country, he was even more astonished. This journal carried significant weight.
As far as he knew, the graduation requirement for PhDs at one of the top three globally ranked universities in M Country was to have a paper published in that very journal.
Ye Shaohua hadn’t done much; she had simply derived the formula for holographic projection. This derivation, if someone carefully worked through it, would prove its validity. It was also meant to pave the way for the Ye Family’s holographic projection technology. So she didn’t find it particularly surprising and just looked back at Analyst Li. “Is there a problem?”
“No,” Analyst Li withdrew his gaze. He decided to discard his previous prejudices against Ye Shaohua.
**
Just before Ye Shaohua’s college entrance exams, the E-brand phone officially launched on its official website.
In the days leading up to the launch, many people were watching the Ye and Ning families closely. As the two companies currently generating the most discussion domestically, everyone was waiting for their new phone release, especially after what Gao Heng had said on social media.
The E-Phone distributorship had been revoked, causing the stock to keep falling.
Now, with the E-Phone release, the first to pay attention were stockholders and netizens who enjoyed watching drama.
“A new phone? Priced at 4599? A mid-to-high-end domestic phone? And boasting the world’s most cutting-edge technology? That’s quite a bold claim.”
Many people added it to their cart and placed orders.
“Claiming to surpass the Orange Phone? Hah! I’m buying one just to report them to the Consumer Association for deceiving ordinary consumers!”
Among those placing orders were also Gao Heng, Ye Jia, and their circle.
“Even with our 3D imaging, we wouldn’t boast like they do,” Gao Heng shook his head disdainfully, telling his assistant to buy one. “Who knows what spell the Ning Group is under. When the phone arrives, go report it to the Consumer Association. This is a serious case of the product not matching the description. I really can’t believe Ning Tao dared to write such a description.”
