Chapter 192 Polymer Lithium Batteries
In the eyes of others, Su Yuanshan was a genius. But in Li Xiao's eyes, he was still that little snot-nosed kid who used to follow behind her when they were children. They had grown up together, inseparable until she entered high school and adolescence created a natural distance between them. As someone who had known him since childhood, Li Xiao knew all his secrets better than anyone else.
Still, after joining Yuanxin, she had to admit that Su Yuanshan had "awakened" in a way she hadn't expected—at least when it came to integrated circuits, he had not only inherited his father Professor Su Xinghe's brilliance but had somehow mutated it into something even greater. He truly was a genius. She also knew firsthand that Su Yuanshan was exceptionally hardworking and gifted in physics. Otherwise, during his exchange semester at Peking University, they wouldn't have only met five times.
But now, this brat had the audacity to reach into her sacred domain: chemistry.
"Are you serious?" Li Xiao stared at him, as if daring him to spout more nonsense.
"I'm serious, Sister Xiao," Su Yuanshan said, trying to look as convincing as possible. "You know, the field of lithium-ion batteries touches both physics and chemistry. And coincidentally, I studied applied physics."
Li Xiao didn't even bother to respond.
"I've been following developments in lithium-ion technology," he continued. "Apparently, Bell Labs just developed a lithium battery using an organic solvent electrolyte."
Li Xiao's expression changed slightly, a hint of surprise flashing across her face. "That's..."
Su Yuanshan smiled faintly. "Polymer lithium batteries."
Li Xiao frowned. "We haven't heard anything about this..."
Su Yuanshan nodded. "Domestically, information is still quite restricted. Everyone is still fixated on liquid-electrolyte lithium-ion batteries. After all, Sony's commercial success with lithium cobalt oxide batteries made such a huge impact—it's hard for people to notice alternative directions."
"And you think this is the future?" Li Xiao carefully jotted down the word "polymer."
"I trust my scientific intuition," Su Yuanshan said earnestly.
Li Xiao let out a long sigh. Now she understood why he was dumping this "task" onto her—because it was based entirely on a gut feeling. Whether it would succeed or how long it would take was still up in the air.
"And you seriously have the nerve to hand me this kind of open-ended project?" she scowled at him.
Su Yuanshan grinned sheepishly. "You know I've always seen you as a sister..."
"I don't need a brother like you!"
"Then I'll just call you Li Xiao?"
"Call me Sister!"
"Come on, even if you don't succeed, Yuanxin will still pay your salary," Su Yuanshan said helplessly.
"And if I never succeed?"
"Then it's just bad luck," he said quickly, instinctively swallowing the far more dangerous "then you're just dumb" retort. "But if you do succeed, you could end up becoming a pioneer in a brand-new field!"
Li Xiao glared at him for a good five seconds before finally sighing. "Fine. But I can't lead a team yet. And I need to work with Senior Brother Cheng and the others to fully digest the current lithium battery tech first."
"Of course," Su Yuanshan nodded. "That's a prerequisite. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gone through the trouble of trading for it."
After returning to his dormitory, Su Yuanshan took a hot shower and collapsed onto his bed. He closed his eyes and began mentally ticking through everything that had happened this year. The graphics card project was complete. In the communications sector, Yuanxin had secured its foothold domestically. The YX architecture was gaining traction, though it still needed endorsement from a big company like Sony.
The wafer fab project had been successfully negotiated, and equipment purchases were going smoothly. Partly thanks to TI's connections and partly because their competitors had lost clear targets after the previous year's political shakeups, making it harder for them to block Chinese companies without drawing attention. VCDs and pagers were booming, and the VCD division had even managed to enter discussions on setting the next MPEG standard. MPEG2 would soon be released.
Lithium batteries had officially been added to the portfolio. Polymer lithium batteries were unquestionably the future. That much was certain. Choosing Li Xiao to lead this wasn't random—he knew her well enough to trust her completely. He didn't know battery tech, but just knowing a few critical materials was enough to help their team avoid countless wrong turns.
Once liquid-electrolyte lithium-ion batteries entered mass production, he would have Cheng Peng's group pivot toward polymers, and later, toward ternary lithium batteries. With lithium iron phosphate in one hand and ternary lithium in the other, Yuanxin could easily crush their Japanese and Korean competitors.
Of course, not everything was going so smoothly. Li Mingliu's group was still struggling with cache memory—China simply had too little technical reserve in that area. Projects like the lithography machine were crawling along, with half a year already wasted on design arguments. Soon they would need to start traveling the world to find equipment suppliers. Progress on light sources and work platforms? That would take years. Process engineering under Chen Jianguo? Measured in five-year increments.
The only real bright spot was in servo motors, where major breakthroughs in Hall sensors and control systems had sharply boosted precision. But they still depended on imported materials for core components.
"Looks like that's it for this year," Su Yuanshan muttered to himself. Then suddenly, his eyes shot open and he sat up straight in bed.
"Shit! I still have final exams!"
The next day, he visited Department Head Zhao to find out which subjects he needed to take. He then spent three days cramming diligently through all the textbooks. This time, he wasn't even aiming for top five—he hadn't touched most of the material all semester.
The day before the exams, he asked Fu Zhenhua to drive him back home. His father was there. Seeing Su Yuanshan carrying textbooks, Su Xinghe needed a moment to adjust to the reality that his son was still a second-year physics major.
"Dad, when is our university switching to a credit system?" Su Yuanshan asked, tossing his books onto the couch.
"Supposedly next year," Su Xinghe said with a chuckle. "But even if it does, it'll only apply to new students—not you."
Su Yuanshan sighed dramatically. "Man, two and a half more years until I can graduate..."
"You still care about a diploma?" Su Xinghe teased, adjusting the air conditioning temperature.
"Of course! Everyone calls me Boss Su or President Su now—but they call you Professor Su. I'm an intellectual too, you know."
Su Xinghe laughed so hard he nearly fell over, causing Zhang Xiuyun to poke her head out of the kitchen, wondering what was so funny.
After dinner, Su Yuanshan sat on the sofa, hesitating about whether to visit Ye Rudai.
"What's wrong?" Su Xinghe asked, sitting beside him.
"Nothing... just thinking about going out. But it's rainy and cold tonight."
Su Xinghe grinned knowingly. Fathers know their sons best.
"If you're planning to see her," he said, "you might be disappointed."
"Why?"
"She's away at ACM training," Su Xinghe said proudly.
"Ah?" Su Yuanshan blinked in surprise.
"Yep," his father said smugly. "I recommended her."
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