Chapter 158 Think Tank
Among all the Internet tycoons from the previous timeline, Old Shi was probably the most misunderstood figure—without a doubt.
When he stormed into the online gaming market, pioneered the free-to-play model, created the phenomenon of heavy spenders in games, and reshaped the entire industry, most ordinary people only remembered his earlier involvement with "Brain Platinum"—the health supplement whose aggressive advertising had flooded the market.
Before that, most people's impressions of him were even worse: they associated him with the half-finished Giant Building and his dramatic fall from being a new tycoon on the wealth rankings to owing 250 million yuan in debt.
As a result, few people knew that he was a genuine top student from Zhejiang University's mathematics department and a graduate student in software science at Shenzhen University. After graduation, when assigned to a data processing job, he found the work too slow and cumbersome, so he developed his own report generation tool, drastically increasing efficiency.
Yet when his contribution went unrecognized, he resigned in frustration, pursued further studies, and eventually dived into entrepreneurship. His company created the Giant Chinese Character Card, beating out dozens of competitors within half a year and becoming the market leader.
Even fewer people knew that he was already researching notebook computers at that time.
Anyone who underestimated him as just a salesman running brainwashing ads seriously misunderstood his capabilities.
"Because of its different development trajectory, Yuanxin won't directly enter game production or standard software development," Su Yuanshan said, refilling tea for Shi Dazhu and Qiu Bojun. "Even the recently spun-off Zhiyuan division will stick mainly to strengthening its current dominance. If it expands, it will focus on enterprise-level and large-scale commercial software."
"Yuanxin's mission is to provide basic service platforms and distribution channels for domestic software companies. We've gone ahead and paved some paths, so we must share them..."
"In short, the future of China's software industry will still depend on all of you."
As Su Yuanshan spoke, he lifted his cup and toasted everyone with tea instead of wine.
After the toast, he looked at Shi Dazhu and said, "Old Shi, would you like to personally go and investigate the Japanese and Western gaming markets and see the reactions from real players? If you do, I can arrange through Xinghai so you won't be flying blind."
Shi Dazhu frowned slightly. He understood what Su Yuanshan was suggesting: urging him to shift Giant's focus toward gaming and test the overseas waters.
"If you're worried, you can first establish a small studio. Yuanxin's venture fund can invest," Su Yuanshan said, smiling.
Since Su Yuanshan had said it so plainly, Shi Dazhu understood. Unless Su Yuanshan had malicious intentions—which seemed impossible given everything Yuanxin had achieved—then Su Yuanshan must genuinely believe there was an opportunity here.
Shi Dazhu also believed it. After all, creating a game that monopolized the market was a fantasy, but monopolizing distribution channels and platforms was a very real strategy.
And right now, only Yuanxin had the strength and qualifications to dominate those channels.
Thus, after a moment of thought, Shi Dazhu finally nodded, laughing, "Alright, I'll do some research. I used to just play games, never thought about making one."
Qiu Bojun also laughed, "I trust President Su. I'll set up a small gaming studio when I get back too. Old Shi, let's wait for your good news."
After the Caotang Association's gathering ended, Su Yuanshan became even busier.
Because with the successful tape-out of the 100 MHz YX02 CPU, his father officially became the head of the university's supercomputing project team—a hotly contested position within the university. Many professors had vied for it fiercely.
But ultimately, President Zhou Zhanzhong had made the final decision, citing several crucial reasons: Su Xinghe's former students were key architects of the YX02 CPU; he had the best communication advantages; and he held strong ties to both Yuanxin and Meijie.
Besides, nobody else had a stronger practical edge when it came to starting from scratch to design a supercomputing motherboard.
Thus, Su Yuanshan's father had taken the lead.
And because of this, the responsibility of negotiating the land acquisition for Yuanxin's new factory in Shanghai now fell onto Su Yuanshan's shoulders—especially since rumors said the Shanghai leadership also very much wanted to meet this young "genius."
"Old Zhou really understands the situation," Su Yuanshan said, leaning back on the sofa at home, grinning at his father. He was scheduled to fly to Shanghai the next day, so he came home early for dinner. "He knows that no matter who completes the project, as long as the team was recruited through him and the result comes out of the university, he'll get credit."
"Haha! I really didn't want to take this project either," Su Xinghe shook his head, smiling. "Fortunately, the 16-bit microcontroller project is basically done. Otherwise, I'd have felt too reluctant."
Su Yuanshan understood exactly why his father said that.
At present, the UESTC91 MCU had captured the vast majority of the domestic market and had been adopted in university textbooks nationwide. His father had thus become one of the country's top microcontroller experts.
If the 16-bit MCU hadn't been completed yet, his father truly wouldn't have been willing to shift focus.
After all, in terms of supercomputing, even with the advantages Yuanxin and Meijie offered, they still lacked real high-end technical reserves. Everything would have to be figured out from scratch.
"It's worth it though. YX02 is powerful enough, and its power efficiency is pretty good. If you move fast, Dad, you might really make it onto the global supercomputer rankings," Su Yuanshan encouraged him. "Then you'll have all the qualifications needed to become a national academy member."
Su Xinghe patted his son's shoulder and laughed, "When did you get so obsessed with titles?"
Su Yuanshan only smiled.
He didn't bother explaining.
He simply knew that in the future, having an academician's title would be an incredibly valuable asset—it would mean vice-provincial rank, and even more resources and opportunities.
"By the way, Dad, there's something else I want to discuss."
"Go ahead."
"I want to establish a think tank," Su Yuanshan said, watching his father carefully.
Su Xinghe froze for a moment before smiling, "Then just build it. Why are you telling me? Are you talking about a font library? Like what Founder Group did?"
Su Yuanshan was momentarily stunned—his father, with his indistinct pronunciation, had misunderstood "think tank" as "font library."
He quickly explained, "No, Dad. It's a think tank—an organization for gathering intelligence and making strategic research."
Hearing the clarification, Su Xinghe's expression turned serious.
As a senior scholar, he understood very clearly what a true think tank meant.
In fact, the top policy research offices in the country were essentially the official think tanks.
Thus, the question naturally arose: if Su Yuanshan wanted to build a think tank, did he intend to get involved in politics?
That made Su Xinghe feel a bit worried.
After all, some things—even with reforms underway—were still highly sensitive.
"Why this sudden idea?" Su Xinghe asked seriously.
Su Yuanshan saw his father's worried look and immediately reassured him with a smile, "It's not as complicated as you think. The think tank I'm talking about would mainly serve companies."
"It wouldn't touch sensitive areas. It would focus on offering industry analysis, market forecasts, and strategic advice."
"In fact, I've had this idea for a long time. It's just that earlier, Yuanxin didn't have enough influence to justify it. Now... it seems the timing is right."
Hearing this, Su Xinghe fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded and smiled.
"I get it now. You want me to help you pull together some experts and scholars to lend credibility?"
Su Yuanshan chuckled.
His father still understood him best.
Indeed, Yuanxin's development had proven one thing: given the right opportunities, China could achieve much better and faster development.
If they could combine that with expert advice and systematic strategic planning, they could go even further.
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