After leaving Building No. 1, Xiao Yu accompanied Xiao Man on a tour of the Marching Ant headquarters. Meanwhile, Chen Mo and Zhao Min returned to the office.
"I must really have a strong survival instinct," Zhao Min said the moment they walked in.
"I basically dug my own grave," Chen Mo muttered, deflated.
"Serves you right for showing off your three-resistance stats every time," Zhao Min replied. "Anyway, you'd better not forget—you promised to design a wedding dress for me. You back out, and I won't bother digging another pit next time. I'll just bury you in it."
"But I thought you didn't want to get married?"
"Since when does a wedding dress require a wedding? I can wear it at home. I could even buy it for myself if I wanted. But if you're offering, hey—I'm happy to play the mistress. You game? If Xiao Yu weren't so sharp, I'd have snatched you away ages ago."
"Can we please talk about something serious?" Chen Mo sighed and rubbed his temples.
"Coward."
Zhao Min giggled and took a seat on the couch across from him, suddenly switching to a more serious tone.
"The internet's been a mess lately. Another wave of cybersecurity scares has sparked panic. Our Termite system and software tools are raking it in, though. Corporate market share has jumped again."
"I figured as much," Chen Mo said with a nod.
"Also, some members of the Clown Organization were arrested yesterday. But then their official account claimed their identity was spoofed. Now they're furious, saying it wasn't them. Everyone's speculating—was it really the Clowns or someone else?"
She didn't ask directly—but the implication was clear. Chen Mo gave her a glance.
"Nope," he said plainly.
Zhao Min arched a brow but didn't push it. She had known Chen Mo long enough to trust his judgment—and to know when not to ask too many questions.
"Alright. That's good, then."
She smoothly shifted topics.
"The AI conference is coming up next month. Are you going? The organizers extended a personal invite. You're basically a heavyweight in the AI world now. And after the whole 'Clown hacking the CIA' incident, they've added a cybersecurity session to the schedule."
"I'll go," Chen Mo said. "I've got business in the capital anyway. I plan to talk to the government about a collaboration. Figured I'd talk to you about it first."
"What kind of collaboration? Intelligent robots? Room-temperature superconductors?"
"Controlled nuclear fusion."
Cough—spit—splatter!
Zhao Min choked on her tea and sprayed it all over Chen Mo's face, coughing violently as she struggled to breathe.
Chen Mo calmly wiped his face and lips. "Can you not? How old are you?"
"I—I need a minute to recover… cough cough cough!" she wheezed, fanning her face.
After almost half a minute, she finally caught her breath and stared at him. "You're seriously planning to develop nuclear fusion?"
"Yep," Chen Mo said casually.
Zhao Min froze.
This wasn't just shocking. It was terrifying.
Controlled nuclear fusion was considered the holy grail of energy research—the crown jewel of industrial civilization. Anyone who cracked it would effectively end humanity's dependence on fossil fuels. No more energy crises. No more wars over oil. A full-on reset of the global balance of power.
But it wasn't something a private company could just casually do. Fusion R&D was a financial black hole. Not even Marching Ants could afford to play around with it… could they?
"You're not joking?" she asked again, voice still shaky.
"No joke," Chen Mo said. "Fusion is my next challenge. I'm headed to the capital to discuss joint development with the government. The goal is to fast-track a working prototype."
Zhao Min blinked. "You realize this project is a black hole, right? It could take 20, 30, even 50 years to see any results. And that's if it doesn't bankrupt us first. Fusion tech is the riskiest investment. Especially for a private company. If it tanks, we're finished."
"I'm aware."
"Then why go through with it?" she asked. "You know this could wreck the company."
"If it were up to Xiao Yu," Chen Mo said, "she'd tell me to go for it."
"That's because she's too trusting. She doesn't think in numbers. That's why you two work—one madman, one naïve saint. A bit of dumb optimism is fine, but I have to run this company," Zhao Min said, throwing up her hands. "Are you really confident in this?"
"I'm confident," Chen Mo said without hesitation. "Remember when I was building the seismograph? Everyone mocked me. Then the superconducting computer. Now it's fusion. They call me the 'Time Giant,' remember? That name comes with responsibilities."
"I thought you preferred 'Time Merchant'?"
"Sometimes I guest star as a Giant."
Zhao Min stared at him for a long moment. The office fell silent.
Then she sighed.
"Fine. Be crazy. It's your company, after all. If things go south, I'll just release the room-temperature superconductor tech and rake in enough cash to cover the losses."
"Now you're talking."
Chen Mo smiled. He had known Zhao Min wouldn't truly oppose him. She was pragmatic, but also loyal—and she had always believed in his genius, even if she wouldn't admit it.
"I must be crazy too," she muttered. "Do you know how hard it is to make money? You're out here lighting it on fire. What's your projected budget?"
"Hard to say exactly. At least 60 billion RMB. Less if the government helps. If things go smoothly, maybe two years. Worst case, five. But I'm confident."
"Five years? That fast? Are you seriously sure you can pull this off?"
"Why don't you believe me?" Chen Mo looked helpless. "Didn't I finish the superconducting computer under Building No. 1 in record time? How long did it take to develop the superconductor?"
"Because you're a freak of nature."
Zhao Min didn't argue—he was a freak. She had no idea how his R&D cycles were always so short.
"Do you even have the theory?" she asked.
"I do," Chen Mo nodded. "I had Mo Nu run a full simulation. The model checks out. The basic theory's solid. The design phase has already begun. Worst-case scenario, it fails—we cut our losses. But 60 billion for a shot at fusion? Worth it."
Of course, he didn't tell her the real reason: he had already unlocked the full blueprint from the Science and Technology Library. With that, failure wasn't even a possibility—only time and manpower.
"You're the only person who can call 60 billion 'worth it' with a straight face," Zhao Min muttered, still slightly shaken. Then she calmed. "We've got around $110 billion in cash reserves. Fine. You've got your sandbox. Go play."
Chen Mo grinned. "Appointing you president was the right move."
"I have Xiao Yu's sense of loyalty. Can I get Xiao Yu's privileges too?"
"Uh—right… speaking of which, I just remembered I need to go optimize the reactor design. Let's talk tomorrow!"
Chen Mo bolted toward the door.
Behind him, Zhao Min shouted, "And don't think I've forgotten about my wedding dress! No dress, no money! I'll freeze the accounts!"
Chen Mo's footsteps quickened.
Zhao Min burst into laughter and slumped onto the sofa, her mood surprisingly light.