Chapter 149 Shock Among the Higher-Ups

The Chairman sat in his office, feeling puzzled. He looked at the Premier in confusion, wondering why the latter would suddenly mention Lin Feng.

Seeing that the Chairman was baffled by his words, the Premier explained with a chuckle, "Heh, virtually nothing from the Lin family ever gets brought up here in Zhongnanhai—except for that unreliable brat, Lin Feng. I'm guessing that kid must have stirred up another huge commotion this time, which explains why things are on such a grand scale. In fact, I caught wind of some rumors on my way here: Old Xie actually mobilized five Falcon Commando units just to provide escort duty!"

Upon hearing this, the Chairman immediately said in astonishment, "Is that so? I was just thinking of meeting Lin Feng sometime, but I didn't expect the chance to come so soon."

The Chairman's slightly bantering tone immediately amused the Premier, and the Chairman chuckled along with him.

After they shared a light laugh for a moment, the knock of the Chairman's secretary sounded from outside the door. Granted permission to enter, the secretary stepped in and reported to the Chairman and the Premier, "Chairman, Premier, Minister Xie is already waiting in the conference room with the guests."

"Alright, I understand!" Hearing this, the Chairman waved his hand to signal that the secretary could withdraw.

Once the secretary left the office, the Chairman smiled at the Premier and said, "Let's head over too. We shouldn't keep Old Xie and the others waiting. I want to see what kind of matter could make Old Xie take things this seriously."

The Premier smiled in agreement, stood up, and followed behind the Chairman as they left the office and walked toward the conference room where Minister Xie and the Lin family contingent were waiting.

"Heh, I guessed right, didn't I? It really is that kid Lin Feng!" Upon stepping into the conference room, the Premier said cheerfully to the Chairman, amidst the astonished gazes of the people inside.

Although the Chairman had never met Lin Feng in person, he had long since seen him in news reports and media outlets, and naturally recognized that the young man in the room was indeed Lin Feng.

"Haha! You're still the sharp one, Old Zhu. It seems you understand Lin Feng inside and out!" The Chairman replied to the Premier with a laugh before looking at the other people standing somewhat awkwardly in the room, saying, "Please, no need for formalities. Everyone, please sit down!"

Seeing the Chairman and the Premier take their seats first, Minister Xie and the rest of the Lin family finally sat down as well.

"Elder Lin, Minister Xie tells me your Lin family has something to discuss with us?" Once everyone was seated, the Chairman spoke first, addressing the old patriarch.

Before Elder Lin could speak, Lin Feng chimed in from the side, "Chairman, it's not that my grandfather has business; rather, I am the one who has something to discuss with you! I want to negotiate a deal with the military, and I need to purchase a batch of your weapons and equipment on a long-term basis."

"What? You brat, are you planning a rebellion?!" The Chairman remained silent upon hearing this, but the Premier, sitting right beside him, couldn't help shouting out.

"Uh, Grandpa Zhu, you're overthinking it. I guarantee this batch of weapons will never appear within the country's borders. You can rest assured!" Lin Feng clarified.

"That's still out of the question! Do you take the national military for a vegetable market? Military equipment is under strict control; private transactions are completely impossible. You can wipe that idea right out of your mind!" The Premier's reaction was identical to that of Elder Xie back at the Lin family study, and even the meaning of his words was nearly the same.

Lin Feng, however, was no longer in a rush. Having gone through the preliminary probing with Elder Xie earlier, he had already formed his own calculations.

"Chairman, Premier, please don't jump to conclusions. I'm not using money to trade with you this time, but rather an item that is immensely advantageous to the country!" Lin Feng looked at the agitated Premier and the calm Chairman and said.

"Fine then, let's see what kind of trouble you've managed to cook up this time!" Having witnessed the high-tech products produced by Lin Feng's company, the Premier became quite interested upon hearing that Lin Feng intended to present something beneficial to the nation.

With the Premier's tacit approval, the Chairman also nodded. Only then did Lin Feng spring into action, taking out his laptop and connecting it to the conference room's projector. Once everything was prepared, he paused for a moment, looked solemnly at Minister Xie, the Premier, and the Chairman, and said, "What I am about to show you is a weapon. After watching, I hope everyone can keep it strictly confidential. If this leaks out, I'm afraid Beijing will no longer know peace."

Hearing Lin Feng's solemn warning and recalling the remarks Lin Feng had muttered to himself back at the Lin family study, Minister Xie nodded at the Chairman and the Premier, conveying a subtle message through his gaze to urge the two top leaders to take Lin Feng's warning seriously.

"Rest assured! Everyone present here consists of the nation's most core members and your Lin family's immediate kin. I believe we all understand the importance of confidentiality." Catching the signal from Minister Xie's eyes, the Chairman nodded and gave Lin Feng a verbal confirmation.

A satisfied smile finally appeared on Lin Feng's face as he clicked to open the research data folder for the laser energy gun that Mo Tian had prepared for him.

Inside the folder was a 3D video presentation created by Mo Tian, while the rest of the files contained the detailed research data for the laser energy gun. Fearing that those present might not understand the raw data, Lin Feng directly played the 3D presentation video.

Before long, the projector displayed a soldier armed with a laser rifle straight out of a science fiction film, charging through enemy lines. Tanks, bunkers, aircraft, aircraft carriers, and various other equipment typical of the modern era were effortlessly obliterated one by one under the devastating firepower of the energy laser gun.

The video, paired with its cinematic background music, was deeply shocking. At the very least, the elderly men present were utterly captivated, their blood boiling as memories of their own wartime youth were briefly stirred.

Long after the video ended, they remained lost in the lingering shock of the spectacle. After a considerable while, as everyone regained their composure, the Premier looked at Lin Feng in bewilderment and asked, "Lin Feng, what is the meaning of this? Didn't you say you had something beneficial to the country? Why show us a special effects video?"

The Premier had not overheard Lin Feng's solitary murmurs in the Lin family study, which explained his confusion. Minister Xie, however, knew the truth. Having witnessed the sheer destructive power of the energy laser gun in the footage, he couldn't help standing up. His body trembled slightly from sheer excitement as he looked at Lin Feng with eager eyes and asked, "Lin Feng, is the laser weapon shown in that video what you were talking about?"

Lin Feng was thoroughly pleased with everyone's expressions in the room, especially that of Elder Xie, who was already in the know. With a smile, Lin Feng gave Elder Xie a definitive nod.

"What?!" This time, it was the Chairman and the Premier's turn to lose their composure. Moments ago, lacking context, they had remained unresponsive, but having now connected the dots from the exchange between Lin Feng and Elder Xie, they grasped the reality and cried out in simultaneous shock.

"Lin Feng, are you certain this is real? It's not just movie CGI?" The Premier's heart remained in turmoil, and he still found it hard to believe as he sought verification from Lin Feng.

"It's real. All the research data for this weapon is right here on my computer. Based on my assessment of China's scientific research capabilities, if you give this project your full support, you should be able to produce a finished product within three years!" Knowing the immense shockwave the laser energy gun had dealt them, Lin Feng patiently explained it to the Premier. After all, something that had previously existed only in movies was suddenly appearing in reality; anyone else would react the exact same way.

At that moment, the Chairman suddenly snapped into action and barked an order to Minister Xie: "Quick! Old Xie, immediately dispatch the guards and the Falcon Commando unit to secure all outer exits. Absolutely no one is to enter without explicit authorization from inside. Anyone attempting to force their way in may be subdued on the spot, and if they resist, you have the authority to execute them on the spot!"

As the Minister of National Defense, Elder Xie naturally understood the monumental importance of the weapon. Receiving the Chairman's command, he strode out of the conference room without a moment's hesitation to issue the orders outside.

Once Elder Xie departed, the Chairman turned back to Lin Feng, who was still sitting before the computer, and asked firmly, "How can you be certain of this weapon's authenticity, seeing as you haven't actually brought out a physical finished product?"

"If the Chairman has doubts, you can bring in a few authoritative scientific research experts to inspect the research data. I believe they will be able to give you a definitive answer. It's not that I didn't want to develop it myself; if circumstances allowed, perhaps this item wouldn't even be appearing here—I would have simply developed and sold it independently!" Lin Feng was well aware of the Chairman's concerns, but he harbored no worries, possessing absolute confidence in Mo Tian.

The Chairman agreed with Lin Feng's proposal. He stood up and left the conference room to instruct his secretary to immediately summon a few trustworthy scientific research experts for an inspection.

Before Minister Xie and the Chairman returned, only the Premier and the members of the Lin family remained in the conference room. Having interacted with Lin Feng on a few prior occasions, the Premier found the atmosphere instantly lightening up compared to before.

"Hmph, you brat probably had this weapon all along. If you hadn't been plotting to strike a deal with the state, you wouldn't have brought it out as a bargaining chip, would you?" The Premier shot a disgruntled look at Lin Feng and said.

"Come on! Did you think this kind of technology grows on trees and can just be picked up off the street? Like I said just now, if the circumstances weren't exceptional, I intended to keep it for my own research and commercial sales!" Lin Feng replied to the Premier with a helpless shrug. Who asked him to start late, lacking any deep foundations? He had no choice but to negotiate with the state in this manner.

Just as Lin Feng finished speaking, Minister Xie and the Chairman, who had just stepped out, re-entered the conference room together.

Ignoring the return of the Chairman and Minister Xie, the Premier continued to glare at Lin Feng with dissatisfaction, saying, "And to think you're a scion of a Beijing family—can't you think more of the country? Behavior like this makes me suspect you're hiding even more than just this energy laser gun! To think you were actually planning to research and sell it yourself—don't you know that trafficking firearms is illegal under Chinese law?"

"Hold on, Grandpa Zhu, you need to get this straight. This technology belongs to me, so I have the right to dispose of it! Besides, I'm a businessman, so naturally I have to figure out how to turn technology into commercial products and sell them. If China won't let me do it here, I can just take it abroad!" Lin Feng was left somewhat speechless by the Premier's unreasonable logic.

"I..." Lin Feng's remark left the Premier utterly speechless with anger.

Elder Xie and the Chairman, who had just walked in, happened to catch Lin Feng's words. Although they missed the preceding conversation, they could easily guess the gist of it. Elder Xie promptly threw his weight behind the Premier, chiming in, "Lin Feng, you're already wealthy enough. Stop letting every single piece of technology revolve around money—what a shallow pursuit! Your grandfather is right here; can't you think more about the country?" Pulling out all the stops, Elder Xie even dragged the elder patriarch into the conversation to lecture Lin Feng.