Good things come to those who wait. It's hard to say whether it was coincidence or simply fate delaying its arrival. They narrowly missed those crucial few dozen hours.

So all those ten-plus days were wasted! Wang Zhuo sighed, having spent the entire month realizing just how difficult it is to become a father—it turns out just trying to become one is hard work.

But regardless of the setback, that period significantly impacted his mindset. Unconsciously, he matured a little more and developed a stronger sense of responsibility. The journey from boy to man requires navigating many facets of life: career, love, family, achievement, trust, and responsibility. None of this is accomplished overnight or with a single stride. Perhaps this whole delay was simply a case of 'good things coming to those who wait'!

The vigorous academic debate continued. The problem of obesity had plagued humanity for centuries. When a medical research institute from an Eastern country suddenly claimed to have invented a drug that could safely inhibit obesity, it was like dropping a major bomb, stirring up a huge commotion. Since ancient times, China has been one of the most developed and powerful nations in the world. Although modern Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has seen some decline, this might well be a case of overcorrection due to excessive veneration of Western medicine.

One must remember that diseases like malaria, the Black Death, the plague, smallpox, and influenza have repeatedly decimated populations in Europe, yet they never caused such large-scale disasters in ancient China. This fact alone proves the sophistication of TCM. Even the most unenlightened ancient Chinese understood the need to 'treat the symptom with the appropriate remedy,' whereas in the Western nations where Western medicine arose and flourished, the 'bloodletting therapy' was still popular well into the eighteenth century. This therapy was based on the Western medical belief that draining blood could release toxins, and bleeding at the site corresponding to the ailment could cure it. This practice persisted for centuries. Even when yellow fever broke out in Philadelphia in 1794, doctors still employed bloodletting; the clinic’s backyard ran 'like a sea of blood.' In the last days of 1799, the first President of the United States, Washington, died from hemorrhagic shock induced by this very therapy.

Therefore, a truly rational medical researcher should draw upon the strengths of all schools of thought, discarding the dross and retaining the pure essence. Even African shamans might have something worth learning, and advanced Western medicine is not necessarily the panacea for all ills. However, when many developed nations had failed to make headway in treating obesity, the sudden claim by a Chinese institution to have conquered this problem irritated those established experts and predecessors. China was merely a laggard; how could they possibly invent such a thing? How dare they suggest it?

To put it plainly, it was because of their perceived backwardness that they were looked down upon. If this earth-shattering news had come from a developed nation like Britain, the US, Japan, or Germany, the response would likely have been congratulatory telegrams!

Wang Zhuo paid them no mind. He had no intention of accepting invitations for 'peer' academic exchanges—he knew they were setting up a trap at Hongmen Banquet. Sorry, no time! However, he utilized commercial channels to offer numerous opportunities for free trial treatments across various countries, carefully adhering to their respective laws. The trial subjects were labeled as volunteers or 'human rats,' and in countries with strict regulations, they even found unique avenues, recruiting individuals as lifetime employees.

The world never lacks brave individuals, nor does it lack brave fat people. And those who were truly desperate were simply grasping at straws, having lost all faith in dieting and hope in life, no longer caring about being lab subjects one more time.

In the US, which has the largest obese population, Wang Zhuo simultaneously released one thousand sets of trial medication—a truly massive undertaking. Despite numerous appeals from American experts and scholars urging the public not to take risks, the American spirit of openness and their inherent adventurous genes could not be restrained. The public recruitment websites crashed repeatedly, drawing tens of thousands of applicants, allowing them to be highly selective.

Then there were the meddlesome American lawyers, who immediately filed lawsuits against the institute, alleging severe legal violations or that the project was exploiting loopholes. Since laws vary across US states, many lawyers filed suits, and numerous state courts received the complaints. Upon hearing this, Wang Zhuo laughed until his stomach ached. Americans were perpetually amusing; this time, he didn't even need to generate publicity—they were creating a splendid mess all on their own.

In Japan, they recruited people from the poorer classes. Japan’s wealth disparity is quite stark; the truly destitute might not eat meat once a year. Just as China has its 'Beipiao' (drifters in Beijing), Japan has its 'Dongpiao' (drifters in Tokyo). Many in this group struggled to afford rent, forced to live in capsules or subway stations, alongside bankrupt individuals and gambling addicts—all features of that nation. Even Wang Zhuo knew through Fei Long that many beautiful women starring in Japanese adult films were driven to enter that industry out of necessity to repay high-interest loans or support their families.

This illustrates that while private lending can be beneficial, it absolutely requires strict regulation. If allowed to spiral out of control, the resulting negative consequences and the corrosion of social morals are irreparable.

Getting sidetracked—policy matters are for those in high positions to worry about. It’s not just Wang Zhuo now; even Qin Xue, at her level, feels powerless over such high-level affairs. Even the nation's second-in-command, the Prime Minister, couldn't control housing prices; after a decade of calls for cooling the market, prices instead rocketed up for ten years. This shows that power is sometimes not as effective as ordinary people imagine.

Consider the Kuomintang, which once held immense power; ultimately, weren't they chased all the way to Taiwan? Power has its limits. He who loses the people's hearts loses the world. When a regime rots to a certain degree, it will inevitably be overthrown by simple rifles and millet.

Early in the morning, Instructor Wang was pontificating on grand strategy while simultaneously checkmating an elderly man in a game of Chinese chess in the park when his phone suddenly rang.

“Those Americans sure know how to stir things up…” Fu Xinran sighed wryly on the other end of the line. “The moment I opened my phone this morning, I got a notification: a judge in Minnesota has issued an order stipulating that our weight-loss drug cannot be used within that state until it obtains formal marketing authorization…”

“The one from the Timberwolves, Minnesota?” Wang Zhuo scoffed. “Let them fuss. It’s just an inland state, only five million people, fewer than a county-level city in Henan province.”

Fu Xinran was momentarily speechless. Hold on, brother! That’s an entire US state! Combining all of Henan province and strapping Hebei onto it wouldn't match its economy!

“Eat dirt…” Wang Zhuo said, pressing his attack against his chess opponent, speaking into the phone. “Ignore them. The more regions that try to exclude us, the better. When it officially launches, we won't even sell it to them! Then let’s see which fat people who can’t get the product resort to protesting and rioting…”

After hanging up, he noticed the old man looking utterly bewildered. Wang Zhuo grinned sheepishly and explained, “I was talking about something in an online game, a foreign one…”

The old man immediately believed him. “No wonder I heard you mention protesting and rioting. They don't allow that kind of thing in our country. It’s only those foreigners, with full bellies, always looking for trouble.” After soundly defeating the old man, Wang Zhuo returned home. He ate breakfast while sneaking a look at the news by ‘climbing the wall.’

Climbing the wall was a necessary evil. These days, political firewalls are numerous; most foreign news websites are blocked, and the technology is becoming increasingly sophisticated. Now, only professionals who command higher-level technical skills can manage to hop the wall and view some foreign sites. If not for Siyuan’s help, Wang Zhuo truly wouldn't manage it.

Heaven knows, he only wanted to look at academic news or understand some financial trends. A man dealing with tens of thousands of dollars every minute has no leisure time to care about the mudslinging and backstabbing in international affairs.

In the blissful thirty-minute news broadcast, the people of the world were perpetually suffering in dire straits. And in the news reports from other countries, wasn't China portrayed the same way? The US releases an annual human rights report covering over 190 countries and regions—essentially throwing mud at others while claiming their own home is pristine.

It's not that all crows are black, but this is the reality. It might be as childish and ridiculous as children throwing water bombs, but the higher-ups understand the game, while the masses are naively fooled into genuinely believing that only they live in a heavenly paradise.

After hopping the wall, Wang Zhuo began browsing several major news sites. Some say English is hard to learn, but that’s because one lacks the proper environment. Imagine an intellect at one year old capable of learning fluent Mandarin from scratch; learning a foreign language is certainly easier.

Wang Zhuo used to learn for the sake of learning—rote memorization cramming—yet he still ranked among the top in his class. His foundation in English wasn't bad. Although he neglected it in high school and relied on cheating to get a high score on the college entrance exam, once he started medical research, he had to read English materials frequently, so he quickly relearned what he had forgotten. Moreover, humans learn and master a skill fastest when there is a need for it; learning English under these circumstances was naturally twice the result with half the effort. Although his spoken English was still poor, reading the news was completely problem-free now.

As expected, he found news related to the Minnesota ruling on both the technology and social sections. The technology section merely reported it as breaking news without any commentary. The social section, however, due to differences in the websites and the editors’ perspectives, offered varied opinions.

“This review is quite objective…”

“This editor must be fat, brother. You picked the right side this time…”

“Damn, this woman is vicious. Her husband must be one of my colleagues.”

“Long live great China! Let expensive Western medicine eat dirt! This guy is hilarious. But how do you know my product will be cheap? Not everything ‘Made in China’ is inexpensive.”

As he read the comments, Wang Zhuo pursed his lips or chuckled at the screen. Some remarks carried a thick layer of American humor, one of the hallmarks of US netizens. It was similar to the comment section of NetEase, China’s first large online community, where a standout comment occasionally drew thousands of viewers.

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