Chapter 234 The Su Clan
Over the weekend, Su Yuanshan returned home.
"Finally, some good news," he said, lounging in a recliner, looking more like an old patriarch than his own father. Smiling at his dad, he joked, "Everything's been going wrong for the past six months. I was about to consult a fortune teller about my luck this year."
Had he pulled this kind of stunt a few years ago, his mother would've yanked him by the ear and told him to "change the channel." But now… seeing her son, only twenty years old, already looking so mentally and physically exhausted, even Zhang Xiuyun couldn't bring herself to scold him. Instead, she gently placed a plate of freshly cut fruit by his side.
"Should I go to Wenshu Temple and make a wish for you?" Zhang Xiuyun said, her heart aching as she looked at his tired, thin face. "You should eat more meat and keep regular meals. Maybe I should move into the tech park with you?"
"No way…" Su Yuanshan shot up, grabbing an apple slice and stuffing it in his mouth. "And forget all that temple stuff… I was just making a joke, to highlight how important my dad becoming an academician is. After all, he's the youngest one!"
Professor Su Xinghe chuckled on the side. Though he didn't directly manage Yuanxin, that didn't mean he wasn't paying attention. He knew full well how the mobile business had underperformed during the first half of the year and that research progress had been slower than expected.
"It's just an honorary title," Su Xinghe waved a hand dismissively. "If Yuanxin's facing difficulties, just slow down a bit. I don't know business… but I do know it's very different from doing research. If you grow too fast, the foundation won't be stable."
Su Yuanshan smiled and shook his head. "Dad, a business can slow down. But an industry can't afford to."
Su Xinghe looked at his son, smiled, and sighed softly. He understood Su Yuanshan's "ambition," and he had also seen how, under Yuanxin's leadership, many sectors in the country had made real progress.
Every major movement needs a pioneer. Once someone takes the first step, others will follow. That's how industries are born.
Take the software industry, for example — Su Yuanshan's casual quip, "It's just brain work, who's afraid?" had become a slogan that genuinely inspired a generation of aspiring programmers across the country.
In just two years, the domestic software industry still wasn't massive, but it was blossoming everywhere. The gaming sector, in particular, was even breaking into overseas markets.
Chip design was another example. Before FarVision EDA, how many chip design firms were there in China? Practically none. Only some large institutions did in-house designs, and those were mostly under universities or research institutes. Now, EDA was a required subject for undergrad IC majors. Microcontrollers, once considered postgraduate material, were now taught in undergrad.
As a newly appointed academician of the National Academy of Engineering, Su Xinghe deeply understood how crucial both the quality and quantity of engineers were to a nation's industrial and scientific development.
How had the Warsaw Pact held its ground against NATO despite lagging economically? Through industrial strength. And what fueled that? Engineers.
If China wanted industrialization, engineers would be the foundation.
Top-tier scientists explore and point to the future. Engineers carry humanity there.
But for now, Su Xinghe just wanted his son to relax. He smiled and said,
"It's your first weekend off in a while. Don't think about work for once — talk about something else."
Su Yuanshan laughed, "Besides work, what else do the two of us ever talk about?"
Su Xinghe picked up a pistachio and tossed it at his son's head. "Brat. What do you mean there's nothing to talk about? Did you know your Senior Brother Jiang is dating a pop singer?"
That got Su Yuanshan's attention. "Wait, which singer?"
"What? Jiang's dating a singer?" Zhang Xiuyun poked her head out from the kitchen. "Who is it?"
"The one who endorsed the VCD," Su Xinghe said, nodding toward the VCD player in the TV cabinet.
"I ran into him at a conference in the capital and asked casually — he looked a bit embarrassed."
"Wow! Senior Brother Jiang is killing it!" Su Yuanshan burst out laughing.
He hadn't paid much attention to the VCD endorsements, but he knew who it was — currently the most popular female singer in the country, beautiful and sweet-voiced, often seen with her male co-star. They were known as the golden couple of the entertainment world.
"But that guy lied to me," Su Yuanshan pouted. "Last year I asked him, and he said he was too busy to date… Now look at him, getting cozy with the brand ambassador!"
Realization hit Zhang Xiuyun. She leaned against the doorframe, chuckling, "She's a beauty, for sure. Jiang's punching above his weight."
Su Xinghe's expression turned serious at that. "Hey, what are you talking about? Jiang's the head of the VCD division! Last year alone he earned Yuanxin six hundred million in cash… how is that not enough to deserve a celebrity?"
"Fine, fine… You Su family folks are all overachievers," Zhang Xiuyun surrendered, laughing.
"Darn right!" Su Xinghe said proudly, stretching his neck with satisfaction.
His former graduate students — Jiang Qingchuan, Wang Rui, Qin Weimin, Chen Jianguo — were now the backbone of Yuanxin. Tang Wenjie had gone abroad for his PhD, focused entirely on semiconductor process research, and upon returning, would surely become another core pillar.
Even his current students were doing well, each finding their niche and making breakthroughs in integrated circuits.
As a teacher, what could be more fulfilling than seeing his students excel and his own work recognized?
Still, Su Xinghe quickly turned serious.
"But seriously, don't go around calling it 'the Su Clan' outside... A few years ago that would've been labeled academic elitism."
Zhang Xiuyun rolled her eyes. "You think I'm that stupid?"
Watching his parents bicker playfully, Su Yuanshan felt a warm surge in his heart.
If history hadn't changed, this would've been the period when his uncle had fallen from grace, his mother embezzled funds, and his father was turning gray from stress.
Now, history would never repeat itself. And that was a good thing.
...
Maybe there really was something lucky about Su Xinghe becoming an academician, because after June began, everything started going smoothly.
With Duan Yongping taking over the mobile division, Wang Rui was finally free to step into his new role as president of Yuanxin's future Global Division.
With a background in tech, experience in after-sales, and the right personality, his negotiations in Siam went exceptionally well.
By mid-June, Li Yinan's team had completed the first base station for TrueCorp.
Technical training for the Thai team also proceeded flawlessly.
At Yuanxin's pace, they would likely complete all contract base stations before year's end.
At the same time, the mobile division's great hope — the Vidoo phone — had produced its first engineering prototype.
It was personally delivered to Su Yuanshan by his uncle Zhang Ke… via "human express."
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