Chapter 86: Deliberate Sabotage?

Zhu Lan had no need to concern himself with Shan Ming Mountain. With Luo Wuyan there, Zhu Lan believed he would handle it well, and the source body was extremely complex; it might take quite some time to adapt to.

“Gentlemen, forgive me for keeping you waiting.”

“No, no, not at all. It is we who have troubled you, Mr. Zhu.”

Zhu Lan smiled and shook his head, then walked to his seat and sat down.

“Mr. Zhu, may I ask about my father’s condition?” Shan Yuchen asked cautiously.

“Yes.” Zhu Lan considered how to put it.

“You already know about your father’s condition. The fracture in the gene layer—the dean at Concord Hospital was not wrong. Gene optimization fluid alone cannot solve your father’s problem. What I suspect, however, is that your father’s condition may have been caused by someone.”

“Caused by someone?” Shan Yuchen frowned.

Zhu Lan nodded. “You should investigate this. With your father’s condition, it would be impossible for such a vast fracture in the gene layer to arise naturally. Even if it were only one percent as severe as it is now, your father would likely have become a vegetable forty or fifty years ago. And that would have been the best possible outcome.”

Zhu Lan’s words left Shan Yuchen with a heavy dilemma. He turned to look at Shan Yupeng, only to find that he was equally bewildered.

“When did your father’s condition first begin?”

Shan Yuchen thought for a moment. “About half a year ago. Back then, my father’s health was poor. I thought it was one of his old ailments acting up, so I asked my sister to take him for a checkup.”

“I see. There may have been some problem here. I work in the field of genetics, and if one wanted to cause a problem in the genes within the human body, it would be impossible to detect with today’s technology. Your father must have gone through a period of unconsciousness. A fracture in the gene layer like this is very painful and takes a long time to form.”

At Zhu Lan’s words, Shan Yuchen and Shan Yupeng exchanged a look.

Seeing this, Zhu Lan did not continue. This was no longer his concern.

“Mr. Zhu, then is there still hope for my father?”

Zhu Lan shook his head, then nodded.

“Your father’s condition is very troublesome. If you want to cure him completely, I’m afraid we’ll need to use rather drastic methods.”

“Drastic methods? What kind of methods?”

“When we were developing gene optimization fluid, we accidentally created a new elemental body. In terms of effect, it is a hundred times more powerful than gene optimization fluid. But this elemental body is extremely violent. Test subjects cannot withstand its reparative force, and their internal organs are damaged in the process...”

Shan Yuchen frowned. Zhu Lan’s explanation was vague, but the meaning was clear enough.

His father could no longer be treated by ordinary means, and Fantasy Technology possessed a violent elemental body equivalent to gene optimization fluid in effect, though such treatment carried enormous risk.

“What are the odds of success?”

“Only thirty-five percent,” Zhu Lan said calmly.

“What? Thirty percent? That’s not even a one-in-three chance!” Shan Yupeng blurted out. “That’s basically sending our father to his death!”

“Yupeng. Be quiet.” Shan Yuchen shot his brother a glare.

“Is there any way to increase that probability?” Shan Yuchen asked, though he knew how foolish it sounded.

Zhu Lan nodded. “Of course there is. The new elemental body is an unknown one. Although we are already studying it, we still cannot find a way to neutralize its violence. One of our experts proposed an idea: use neutralizing bifurcated cells to break down that fury, reducing the destructive force of the element to a minimum. But we have never conducted such an experiment. If we were to proceed, it would likely take four months, perhaps even eight. Unfortunately, your father cannot wait that long.”

Shan Ming Mountain’s condition was already dire. Fortunately, he had previously been injected with gene optimization fluid, which had slowed the collapse of his gene fractures. Even so, his body could hold out for no more than twenty days. If the gene fractures could not be resolved within twenty days, there would be only one outcome: complete rupture of the gene layer. Once the gene layer was entirely broken, it would be like every wire in a circuit being cut at once. Shan Ming Mountain would have no choice but to report to the underworld.

Hearing this, Shan Yuchen still let out a helpless sigh.

“Then let’s do it.”

“Brother?” Shan Yupeng stared in disbelief at how quickly his brother had made the decision, without even considering it.

“Yupeng, Father doesn’t have much time left. The longer we delay, the lower the chance of success. Isn’t that right, Mr. Zhu?”

Zhu Lan nodded approvingly. “Exactly. Your father’s physical condition worsens by the day, and with it his tolerance for treatment declines. If we wait a few more days, then even using the new elemental body, the chance of success may fall below ten percent.”

For some reason, Shan Yuchen felt a strange relief. Shan Yupeng also understood why his brother had made such a decision.

“Brother, shouldn’t we discuss this with Sister?”

Shan Yuchen glanced at his younger brother and sighed faintly. He was still too naive. Had he still not understood after what had just happened? The reason their father had fallen into such a state was, nine times out of ten, due to their own elder sister’s meddling—or more precisely, due to the meddling of that son-in-law favored by heaven.

Shan Yuchen did not point it out. Let his brother remain in that dreamlike world a little longer. He would shoulder everything himself.

“Mr. Zhu, then I’ll leave my father in your care. Money is no object. Even if it means bankrupting Brightlight Group, I will certainly bring my father back.”

“There’s no need for that. Sign this agreement, and I’ll begin treatment for your father at once.” Zhu Lan took the documents from Kong Yan and handed both copies to Shan Yuchen.

Shan Yuchen took one and looked it over. Shan Yupeng took the other and began reading as well.

The agreement concerned voluntary trial use of a new medicine. Its terms stated that Party B voluntarily allowed Party A, Fantasy Technology, to test the new medicine; if anything unexpected occurred as a result, Party A would bear no responsibility, and all possible consequences, including death, would be borne by Party B itself, or by its enterprise. Party A promised to make every effort to rescue any possible accident...

After reading the agreement, Shan Yuchen nodded, took out the pen he carried with him, and signed his name under Party B.

Zhu Lan glanced at it, nodded, and signed his own name. He handed one copy back to Shan Yuchen and instructed Kong Yan to put the other away.

“Since President Shan has agreed, I’ll have someone begin treatment for your father immediately.”

Shan Yuchen nodded. “Thank you. If my father truly cannot make it through, I won’t blame you.”

“Of course. I trust your character, President Shan. If credibility were in question, no amount of money would make me take this business.”

“Mr. Zhu, I remember the agreement doesn’t mention compensation. You see...”

Zhu Lan waved his hand. “That’s not necessary. Fantasy Technology will treat your father free of charge.”

Shan Yuchen frowned. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Moreover, Brightlight Group and Fantasy Technology had no real connection. Neither he nor his father had any relation to Zhu Lan, and yet Zhu Lan was offering to treat his father for free?

Shan Yuchen was not worried that Zhu Lan might harm his father in some way. Fantasy Technology was in the full blaze of its success now; even Brightlight Group could not compare.

Brightlight Group’s asset valuation: one hundred ninety-eight billion.
Fantasy Technology’s asset valuation: two hundred seventy billion.

Brightlight Group had needed forty years of effort to reach where it was today. Fantasy Technology had done it in less than a year.

Shan Yuchen understood the gulf between them all too well. And precisely because of that, he felt that Zhu Lan seemed to have some other intention toward him—or toward Brightlight Group.

“I’ll tell you, and there’s no harm in it.”

“Oh?” Shan Yuchen was surprised. What exactly had Zhu Lan taken a liking to in him?

“Actually, when you came to me, I could have refused completely.”

Shan Yuchen nodded. Indeed, before coming, he had already prepared himself to be turned away. In order to persuade Fantasy Technology to produce the possible second-generation gene optimization fluid, he had already had his company people reach out to the Saint Tang Group. Saint Tang and Brightlight had a great deal of business dealings; the two were good partners. Since Saint Tang had secured the sales agency rights for Fantasy Technology’s gene optimization fluid, its relationship with Fantasy Technology must surely have been excellent.

So Shan Yuchen had had his people prepare a major proposal, intending that if Fantasy Technology refused them, they would win over Saint Tang Group and ask Saint Tang to act as intermediary.

But before he even moved, Fantasy Technology had let him in directly.

“When your request was reported, I had people look into Brightlight Group’s background and found that you could help with something I’m about to do.”

“Help?”

“Yes. Fantasy Technology and the military are currently cooperating on the development of a new satellite, but we do not have the necessary technology in this area. So I was planning to seek out a solar manufacturing company to collaborate on development. I had intended to begin contact next month, but Brightlight has brought itself to my doorstep.”

Shan Yuchen understood completely. So what Zhu Lan had his eye on was Bright Sun. Indeed, in order to seize the domestic market, Bright Sun Manufacturing had invested hundreds of billions and worked with many universities across the country to develop high-efficiency solar applications. In this regard, many solar-energy companies simply could not compare to Brightlight. After all, a few hundred billion in investment was not something that could be recovered overnight.

As he understood this, Shan Yuchen was also shocked. Fantasy Technology was actually cooperating with the military to develop a new satellite? This was absolutely explosive news. If the outside world ever learned of it, nearly a tenth of all companies in the entire nation would be shaken.

One had to know that companies able to collaborate with the military on development were exceedingly rare—either they had earth-shaking backing, or else formidable technology.

Fantasy Technology had no notable backing. That much was known to everyone, because Zhu Lan’s background had been stripped bare after the press conference.

Since that was the case, Fantasy Technology had only one thing: formidable technology. It possessed technology that even the military coveted. Only then would the military cooperate with it on development. First, it could gain access to that technology; second, it would not need to invest too much itself and could directly enjoy the results. So long as certain bottom lines were not crossed, the military would be more than happy to see such cooperation.

“Since it’s a military project, it would be a good thing for us at Brightlight, and I naturally have no reason to refuse.”

Zhu Lan nodded. “But as you know, this is a military cooperation project, a state-secret research endeavor. Every partner is chosen only after repeated consideration.”

Shan Yuchen nodded, understanding what Zhu Lan meant. In other words, Brightlight Group still could not participate in this cooperation. But if his father Shan Ming Mountain could be cured, then the outcome would be entirely different. In every respect, the gap between Shan Yuchen and his father was enormous, and in a project of this level, Shan Yuchen indeed could not make the final judgment.

“I understand. Whether or not my father can be cured, if Fantasy Technology truly wishes to cooperate with Brightlight Group, I will come personally to receive you.”

Zhu Lan nodded. “I will consider it.”

Shan Yuchen nodded, then stood and pulled his brother up with him. “I have matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave first. I leave my father in your hands.”