Seeing their crestfallen faces, as if they’d been utterly defeated, Ziye changed the subject. “Once you finish upgrading the energy boards, you’ll have money for meat. Put some effort into it. Xiao Hei, you three only have a month for auditing. If you can’t complete it by then and someone else has to take over, you won’t see a single speck of meat.”
Xiao Hei and the other two went pale instantly.
No meat was a serious matter!
Xie Er raised his hand. “What about me? Will I get meat?”
Ziye replied, “In a couple of days, I’ll apply to Tie Shou to transfer you to our department. If he agrees, you can stay here.”
Xie Er beamed. “That’s wonderful! I’ll have meat.” Seeing the funeral-like expressions on the other three, he generously put down his chopsticks. “You poor things, no more meat for you. I won’t eat this meal then; it’s all yours.”
Tang Wan, who had been trying to eat quickly while they talked, couldn't help but burst out laughing at Xie Er’s words. Food rushed straight into her windpipe, making her cough until tears streamed down her face.
Xie Er looked at Tang Wan with pity. “Eat slowly. A true gentleman doesn’t fight a lady for food. Besides, you’re not like them—you’re not going without meat, so why rush so much?”
Tang Wan coughed even harder.
Her entire reputation was being ruined by Xie Er.
The three of Xiao Hei grew even more anxious, staring pleadingly at Ziye.
Ziye said nothing, merely instructing the robot to bring another plate of meat. “Eat well, and then get back to work. When you have time, go practice hard at the Virtual Machine Master Training Base.”
When the meal concluded, the eight individuals harbored differing thoughts.
The three of Xiao Hei stood up without resting and prepared to dash to the lab. Ziye, while sipping her post-meal soup, added a training component to their daily study schedule and sent the revised versions to them.
The daily study schedule included the classes they needed to attend, the system completion percentage required each day, the goals to achieve at the Virtual Machine Master Training Base, plus morning and evening runs; even their leisure time was accounted for.
Ziye’s objective was to cultivate their ability to complete assigned tasks within their daily lives. She didn’t want them working eighteen hours a day for twenty-four, like she had done in the past; long-term development required a balance between work and rest.
“You can use this schedule as a reference, but I won’t force you to follow it strictly. You can choose the time and method for completion based on your own habits and strengths. Review it first before you go.”
The three opened their schedules simultaneously. It was less a schedule and more a system. Some parts were blank, allowing them to fill in their progress daily according to their own situations, summarizing their efforts and idle time at the end of the month.
As they were scoring their recent efforts according to the system’s requirements, a line of large, red scrolling text appeared in the center of the system: “Take an appropriate rest after meals before working!!!”
Xie Er hadn’t received a system. Seeing Xiao Hei beside him with a look of utter shock, he leaned over. Upon seeing the line of text, he couldn't help but laugh heartily. “This system is quite personable. Ziye, aren’t you giving me one?”
Ziye paused, then made a slight modification based on Xie Er’s habits before sending it to him.
Xie Er nodded. “Not bad, the Ziye-brand study sheet. A man’s choice.”
Tang Wan sputtered her soup.
With the learning schedule in place, daily work had clear objectives. After finishing their tasks each day, they compared notes to see who completed the most and who slacked off the most. The four were completely energized, spurred on daily, chasing each other in a fiery burst of activity.
Ling Yin watched, envious. “I want to join too.”
Ziye thought for a moment. “No problem. Just like the mech competition last time, you’ll handle our external affairs.”
Ling Yin accepted the task and cheerfully went off to work.
Ziye had a clear direction for the system, and it was a team effort, coupled with guidance from Instructor Bronan, making the progress smoother and smoother. Early on, to research the general parameters of energy boards, they had purchased quite a few. However, once they truly started their work, they realized much of that information was unnecessary; the data from the energy boards three centuries ago was far more useful.
The development of energy boards was similar to light computers. Early light computers, limited by hardware, had extremely streamlined systems and software. As hardware improved, systems and software grew more complex. To make money, developers made the systems ornate and flashy without significantly improving performance. The professional developers for energy boards also modeled mech energy boards after those used in warships—a fundamental inversion—leading the development into a dead loop.
To reduce workload, Ziye cut away all unnecessary complications, leaving only the most critical elements.
Including Ziye, the eight of them spent exactly twenty-six days to finally complete the upgrade and redevelopment of the energy board system, producing three finished units.
In the lab, they tested the three energy boards three times each. The conclusion was singular: their newly developed energy boards had 2.5 times the energy storage capacity of standard interstellar energy boards! Coupled with a 0.4% hourly regeneration rate, after five consecutive days of use, they retained 48% energy. A typical small mech required two boards, a large mech three to four, plus one or two spares. Through automatic energy board regeneration, long-term operation requirements could be met.
They succeeded!
After the cheers subsided, Ziye brought out her small personal transport mech, fitted it with two of the new energy boards, and had An Junlie test-fly it. The other board was kept as a production template.
An Junlie’s mech flew directly back to the Angel Domain. Ziye had considered hosting a celebration feast, but since he was absent, she abandoned the idea, instead asking the robots to prepare about twenty dishes for a small celebration among themselves.
Before eating, Xiao Hei looked at the colorful, fragrant dishes and swallowed hard. “Ziye, we finished the work within a month. Can we eat meat now?”
Tang Wan looked at him, bewildered. “Haven’t you been eating meat these past few days?”
Xiao Hei scratched his head awkwardly. “I ate.”
Tang Wan patted his shoulder. “Of course you did. When has Ziye ever denied you meat?”
Xiao Hei looked at Tang Wan’s fair, tender fingers, his face instantly flushing red up to his ears. He turned and ran off.
Tang Wan shrugged in confusion and walked back to Ziye’s side, chatting with Ling Yin. “Hey, now that this energy board is out, what’s the plan? Promote it throughout the galaxy?”
Ling Yin scoffed. “Absolutely not promoting it widely. First, file for patents, and second, sell the patents. This energy board is guaranteed to cause a revolution. If we don’t sell, the mechs will surely be ours later.”
Ziye pondered. “Even if we sell it, the mechs will still be ours in the future.”
Tang Wan looked from Ling Yin to Ziye. “Should we use them ourselves first, and then sell them to others? Will anyone still buy them?”
Ling Yin nodded emphatically. “They will. This is a golden opportunity to boost galactic competitiveness. As long as our product is sound, the major legions will definitely be willing to purchase it.”
Ziye clapped her hands together. “Excellent. Starting tomorrow, our Strategic Weapons Department’s Mech Research Institute will officially begin operations. We will produce the first batch of mechs and energy boards ourselves before selling.”
The flight testing would take at least six days. It was only Thursday, with one more day of classes.
Ziye handed the energy boards over to Little Sprout for testing and immediately placed an urgent order with the Tang Clan for a set of energy board production equipment. After school, they ordered thirty mechs from the Budding Group, all to be delivered to the Xilian Galaxy.
Upon returning to the Xilian Galaxy after Friday’s classes, the ordered energy production equipment had also arrived. In the Xilian Galaxy, the mech production equipment ordered from the Kun Peng Manufacturing Plant of the Huaxia Legion was already in use, and the test units had just rolled off the line—twenty mechs in total.
Ziye and the other six spent two busy days modifying the energy board production equipment to suit their needs, and then it was time to return to school for classes. They couldn’t remain in the Xilian Galaxy any longer. They left Hale in full charge, instructing him to fit all the produced energy boards into the fifty mechs and transport them to the undeveloped star zones behind the Wolf’s Den for pioneering work. Acceptance of results was scheduled one month later.
Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, Xiao Cheng, and Xie Er accompanied Hale to record the progress. Ziye took Xiao Chi, Xiao Hong, and Xiao Lü to Kaja to begin the next month’s efforts. Having gained experience with Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, and Xiao Cheng, she quickly integrated Xiao Lü, Xiao Hong, and Xiao Chi. This time, the project was mech development. With the new energy boards, the mechs needed to keep pace.
However, Ziye didn’t intend to be the primary driver of mech development. Her sights were still set on warships. Thus, Ziye began creating daily study schedules for the three new members, developing and dividing tasks based on the subtle talents they displayed.
One day, An Junlie returned after testing the mechs, his face serious. “Ziye, are you planning to sell these mech energy boards?”
Ziye blinked. “What are you getting at?”
An Junlie said, “It’s too much trouble selling to others. Sell them to the Angel Domain instead.”
Ziye smiled sweetly. “Of course, the Angel Domain has the first right of purchase. How much are you offering?”
An Junlie stated, “A buyout price: two hundred billion.”
Tang Wan, who had thought Ziye and An Junlie were flirting and was pretending to nap with her juice cup on the table while secretly eavesdropping, instantly sprang up upon hearing two hundred billion. “Two hundred billion?!”
Ziye countered, “Two hundred billion is slightly low. You know their true worth.”
An Junlie asked, “How much do you want?”
They spoke in completely businesslike tones, which startled Tang Wan repeatedly.
Ziye stated, “Three hundred billion.”
An Junlie refused to budge. “It’s just an energy board. That price is too high. Even if the Angel Domain doesn't buy, we won't be getting less than others in the mech field. We can offer a maximum of two hundred and twenty billion.”
Ziye insisted, “At least two hundred and eighty billion. I can ask the Tang Clan and the Huaxia Legion; they will certainly be willing to buy.”
An Junlie conceded, “Two hundred and fifty billion, no more.”
Ziye considered for a moment. “Fine, two hundred and fifty billion it is. But our mechs are still undergoing testing. If everything checks out, delivery will be in one month.”