60: Chapter 60: The Shocking First-Generation Robot Makes its Official Appearance!

Beneath the post, replies appeared quickly.

"Is the OP blind? Look at the fine print, it says 'Project: Doraemon', and there's another line that says 'First-Generation Family Companion Robot'. It wouldn't actually be a real Robot, would it?"

In an instant, that comment was buried under tons of mockery.

"Hahahaha, what kind of dream is the guy above having? In 2017, and a family Robot? Do you think you're in a movie?"

"It's at most a Bluetooth speaker with voice control, just a gimmick."

"Wake up, the foreman is calling you to lay bricks!"

"Let's disperse, let's disperse. Guanghui Technology is just making a sentimental freebie; whoever takes it seriously is an idiot!"

The inertia of public perception successfully provided Lu Li with a perfect cover.

Who could have guessed that this inconspicuous "freebie" was actually a dimensionality-reduction strike?

...

Guanghui Technology President's office.

Su Qingxue stared at the screen.

Lei Jun sent a "concerned" WeChat message, Cook's assistant sent a probing email, and the internet was full of onlookers who loved drama.

This move was too risky.

So risky that the entire tech circle thought Guanghui Technology had gone crazy.

She couldn't help but look at Lu Li on the sofa; he was still calmly looking at his phone.

He seemed to be scrolling through videos right now, lazy and casual, occasionally letting out a soft chuckle.

Seeing her man looking so relaxed, Su Qingxue's originally tense nerves relaxed a bit.

Every time they encountered difficulties, this man could always pull out a trump card as if by magic.

Not long after, the new secretary rushed in, her face full of irrepressible excitement: "President Su! The sub-brand has established itself! As soon as the news about the pioneer s1 was released, the comment sections of those bloggers who were trashing our guanghui 7 ultra were completely overwhelmed!"

After all, at this price point, netizens' tolerance was infinite.

Even if the pioneer s1 didn't have a Full-screen display, as long as it had the Xingchen system and AI Xiao Dou, selling it for 1999 would be incredibly appealing.

Su Qingxue's face also showed joy; they had easily resolved the underhanded tactics of Tianqiong Technology.

...

Time flew by.

October was a busy month in the digital world. Xiaomi released the MIX2, and Apple brought out the notched-screen iPhone X.

But in this parallel world, because of Guanghui Technology's interference, these two products, which should have exploded globally, received a lukewarm response.

Lu Li also went to the scene to watch both launch events.

Lei Jun used his usual promotional methods.

However, the focus of the promotion this time had shifted to beauty algorithms.

"For this set of beauty algorithms, my engineering team and I held 60 meetings overnight, and only then did we finalize the final version of this portrait beauty algorithm!"

"With this comprehensive upgrade of MIUI, our smoothness is no less than Guanghui Technology's Xingchen OS. We see the progress of our competitors, and we, Xiaomi, will also continue to move forward!!"

When the second sentence was spoken, Lu Li even took the lead in applauding.

However, the initial sales of the MIX2 were not very high.

Even though the price was set at an extremely low 2999.

But compared to the guanghui 7 ultra, it was still much higher.

As for Apple's launch event, Lu Li and Su Qingxue did not attend.

After all, it was in the United States, and he couldn't be bothered to go.

This time, the iPhone X initiated a price cut at launch for the first time ever, but sales still failed to meet expectations.

Even though Cook held that iPhone X and spoke many soul-stirring words,

October 20th, late autumn, cold winds howled outside the window.

The office was warm. Lu Li wore noise-canceling headphones, holding a brand-new golf putter, practicing on the putting trainer on the floor.

"In." He muttered softly, and the ball dropped into the hole as expected.

Just then, the office door was pushed open.

It was the new secretary, Secretary Wang Qiuge. She was a college student who had just graduated from a 985 university and was more than qualified to be a secretary.

She was wearing high heels she had only recently learned to walk in, almost jogging in, holding a tablet, her face pale:

"President Su! Something big happened! Tianqiong Technology is attacking our home base!"

She was panting, speaking extremely fast:

"We just received emails from three core component suppliers! AAC Technologies for acoustics, O-film for camera modules, and Samsung for storage! They all claimed in unison that production capacity is insufficient and demanded a 10% price increase immediately!"

Secretary Wang Qiuge was so anxious she was about to cry, and she turned to look at Su Qingxue:

"Finance just calculated it. If we accept this price increase, we will have a net loss of nearly 100 yuan for every pioneer s1 sold! Those bastards at Tianqiong Technology want to use our own explosive sales to drain our cash flow to death!"

Two batches of the pioneer s1 had already been mass-produced in the factory; it was a critical moment.

This move of pulling the firewood from under the cauldron was too ruthless.

Su Qingxue frowned, her fingers gripping her fountain pen tightly.

"Snap."

A soft sound.

Lu Li leaned the golf club against the wall, took off his headphones, and asked nonchalantly: "Is that all?"

Is that all?

Secretary Wang Qiuge's eyes widened instantly. This was a matter of life and death for the company!

She was new and didn't know how capable Lu Li was; she only knew from colleagues about Lu Li's achievements at the Guanghui Technology flagship phone launch event.

Lu Li walked to the desk, picked up the soda on the table, took a sip, and said in a calm tone:

"For storage, contact a domestic manufacturer called 'Changxing Storage'. They aren't very famous, but their chip quality is no worse than Samsung's, and the price can be cut by another 20%."

"Changxing Storage?" Secretary Wang Qiuge was stunned. As a 985 graduate, she had never even heard of this name. "Mr. Lu, can the yield rate of such a small factory be reliable..."

"Do as I say." Lu Li didn't explain, instead turning to look at No. 18, who was standing in the corner in standby mode. "Send the camera algorithm optimization file to President Su."

No. 18 stepped forward and tapped lightly on the tablet with its fingertip.

Su Qingxue looked at the data on the screen, and her beautiful eyes lit up instantly.

"This file..."

"Send it to O-film's arch-rival." A smile played on the corner of Lu Li's mouth, but his eyes were cold. "Tell them that as long as they use this algorithm, their terminal CMOS imaging effects will be able to crush O-film. The condition is that they must keep the cost price as low as possible."

"As for AAC Technologies..."

Lu Li chuckled, tapped a few times on Su Qingxue's computer keyboard, and pulled up an encrypted folder.

"Qingxue, this contains the tax evasion records for several of AAC Technologies' overseas accounts, as well as some interesting financial transactions."

"Use a dummy account that can't be traced by IP address, and send a copy to their chairman in the name of a 'concerned citizen'. By the way, ask him if he wants to raise prices, or if he wants to go have tea?"

The office fell into dead silence.

Secretary Wang Qiuge's mouth was open in an 'O' shape, and her brain completely shut down.

This works too?

Is this a business negotiation? This is simply a dimensionality-reduction strike using leverage!

Su Qingxue looked at her husband, her eyes filled with stars of admiration.

In a few quick moves, the encirclement that had seemed like a dead end instantly collapsed.

You have to know, if those three suppliers had really succeeded, then every pioneer s1 sold would have resulted in a loss of 100 yuan.

Looking at the current online popularity, it's possible for the pioneer s1 to sell 8 million units, which would mean an instant loss of 800 million yuan. What kind of concept is that?

And that 100 yuan is just a cost estimate. Offline distribution, profit sharing with distributors, plus online shipping, and a bit of advertising—money is needed everywhere.

Each unit would lose more than 100 yuan.

Under the original budget, they could have steadily earned 100 to 200 yuan.

And Lu Li had resolved all the crises so nonchalantly.

He didn't just understand technology; this method, this intelligence capability... he was simply a top-tier strategist sitting by the chessboard, casually manipulating the common people!

"Oh, right." Lu Li seemed to have suddenly remembered something. "During this time, No. 18 has been keeping an eye on the R&D center. The silicon-carbon anode lithium-ion battery has already had a substantial breakthrough."

Actually, Lu Li himself was a bit puzzled.

Last time he worked on battery materials, it worked on the first try. This time, even with a top-tier AI like "Doubao" assisting, it took countless data runs to succeed. It seems that working with materials is indeed a bit metaphysical; it depends on luck.

He lay back on the sofa and adjusted to a comfortable position:

"That 799 yuan phone can also be put on the agenda. No need for a special launch event, and no need to talk about any black technology; just post a Weibo at the end of the month to promote it."

Su Qingxue, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, tensed up again: "Lu Li, the 1999 S1 is already walking a tightrope. If we do a 799 one... even if we use a low-end MediaTek chip, a 720P screen, and cut all configurations, it will be very hard to make a profit."

There was another sentence she didn't say: it might even lose money.

This is completely selling at a loss just to make noise.

Upon hearing this, Lu Li turned his head slightly, his gaze passing over the bustling city outside the window, as if looking towards a more distant place.

"Who told you this is for making money?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a power that struck straight at the soul.

"1999 yuan is to kick open the door to the market and tell our competitors we are here."

"And 799 yuan is meant to strike at the heart."

Lu Li sat up, his eyes becoming unusually serious:

"I want to make this country, whether it's the children deep in the mountains or the elderly in the city who are reluctant to spend money, be able to afford smartphones and be able to equally enjoy the convenience brought by technology."

"Technology shouldn't be high and mighty; it should be like Guanghui Technology, warming every person."

"This is also—technological equality!"

He rephrased what he said at the launch event and said it again.

Su Qingxue stared at him blankly, her heart beating violently. The scene from the last launch event flashed through her mind again: Lu Li standing under the spotlight, dazzling and charming.

Technological equality.

Wasn't establishing the accessibility laboratory for this original intention?

In this man's eyes, commercial interests seemed to always rank behind ideals.

"Okay." Su Qingxue took a deep breath, her eyes determined. "799, let's do it! Even if we don't make money, we'll do it!"

...

In the afternoon, the sky grew dark.

The door to the president's office was knocked on lightly.

Chen Shuyu pushed the door open, followed by two engineers wearing Su's Machinery Factory uniforms. The three of them worked together to push a cart covered with a huge red velvet cloth, moving cautiously as if escorting some treasure.

Everyone's gaze in the office was instantly drawn to it.

Chen Shuyu walked to the desk, her voice trembling slightly from extreme excitement:

"Qingxue, Lu Li..."

"It... it's here."

"'Doraemon', the first-generation family companion Robot, the prototype."

Swish!

Su Qingxue stood up abruptly, causing her chair to slide backward a distance.

It's here!

That future creation, which only existed on blueprints and in Lu Li's words, had finally broken through the dimensional wall and come before her.

Underneath the velvet cloth was a rounded and inexplicably familiar silhouette.

A round, big head, short and cute limbs, and a semi-circular pocket seemed to slightly bulge on its belly.

It stood there quietly; although it hadn't been activated yet, it seemed to already emit a kind of magic from the future.

Su Qingxue felt her breathing become rapid. She walked around the desk, approaching step by step, her fingertips trembling slightly from nervousness.

Slowly, she reached out and grabbed a corner of the velvet cloth.

Just at the moment she was about to reveal this secret—

The silhouette under the red cloth suddenly moved.