Chen Jin fled.
After the polished photograph of him was exposed online, Chen Jin decisively took a flight to the United States. Since there were no formal detention procedures yet, Chen Jin left very cleanly, and it was impossible to stop him. In the blink of an eye, he was in America, just as he had done in the past.
Chen Jin never dreamed that the renovation company that was decorating his office would so silently betray him.
This renovation company was introduced by a friend of Chen Jin's. While his office was being renovated, he obtained ten chips that were painstakingly brought from the United States. Chen Jin was eager to have the inscriptions on them polished off.
Under normal circumstances, it would have been better for him to polish them himself; the difficulty wasn't high. All he needed was some 200-grit sandpaper and to rub vigorously at the relevant spots.
In his previous life, Huang He, as a model builder, had excellent polishing skills. He could make sprue gates as smooth as a mirror.
However, Chen Jin was completely incapable of this. It wasn't that he couldn't polish, but rather that he refused to accept doing such menial work. Thus, he casually handed the task over to the renovation workers who were currently decorating his office.
Chen Jin's idea was simple. What would renovation workers know about chips? If he gave them the chips, they would probably think they were just ordinary pieces of iron. If they polished them, so be it. They would forget about it in a few days. This renovation worker would never imagine that he would personally polish China's first world-class chip.
But Chen Jin never dreamed that the renovation company's executives would happen to come for an inspection that day.
During the renovation, Chen Jin's reputation was already quite well-known, and he had even become the department head at Jiaotong University. Thus, this renovation company wanted to leverage this name to create some news, letting everyone know that they were renovating a laboratory for the university.
So, that day, the executive, along with an assistant and a camera, came to inspect and supervise the work. They took a few photos, planning to put some news on the company's official website.
The fact that this renovation company could have its own official website in 2002 indicated that it was a company that kept up with the times, with leaders who understood the internet.
Therefore, this executive immediately recognized that the renovation worker was polishing a chip. This made the executive very curious, as he didn't know why a chip would need to be polished.
So, he asked his polishing master. The polishing master replied that this was a task personally assigned by Professor Chen, who was dissatisfied with the previously etched inscriptions and wanted them polished off to etch new ones.
The executive didn't suspect anything. After all, he also couldn't imagine that this was a Motorola chip being polished.
The executive took his photos and left. However, upon returning, he began to ponder, and felt something was amiss.
It wasn't that he discovered any problem with the chip itself, but rather he felt that his renovation master polishing a chip was no ordinary matter. This was entering a completely new field, and the company had gained a new capability!
Thus, after much deliberation, the executive made a grand decision and wrote out a brilliant idea such as "Product Definition and Industrial Design" in the chip field. He instantly felt that his company's prestige had been elevated by a notch. They could now be involved in chip product design and renovation. Perfect!
Unfortunately, although this article was posted for some time, no one discovered the company's prowess. It wasn't until the news broke out that someone followed the trail online, found this report, and the truth was instantly revealed to the public.
However, this article alone was not enough to scare Chen Jin away. The most crucial factor was that Chen Jin received word that this matter could no longer be suppressed. The authorities were fully aware of the situation and were determined to investigate thoroughly. This was the true reason for Chen Jin's escape.
Considering both reasons, Chen Jin understood that he could no longer offer any excuses. He fled directly before his exit was restricted.
With Chen Jin's escape, there was no longer any need for caution in the investigation. Chen Jin and his actions were turned upside down. The scale of the matter was truly unsightly. It was rumored that a certain leader in the ministry at the time was so angry that they almost overturned the table, cursing Chen Jin for three hours straight, almost to the point of losing their voice.
None of this had any effect; Chen Jin had still fled.
However, although Chen Jin escaped, others suffered greatly. A massive investigation into academic fraud swept across the nation. Numerous experts and professors who had engaged in academic fraud, as well as individuals who had embezzled domestic research funds and caused the backwardness of domestic research, were apprehended.
After the statistics were compiled, although one Chen Jin escaped, over 300 Chen Jins were caught. To some extent, this could be considered a worthwhile transaction.
It took over a year for this storm to subside.
A week after Chen Jin's escape, the delegation from Jiangnan Optoelectronics departed for the United States to actively participate in Yahoo's bidding process.
Before both parties departed, Ni Guangnan and Huang He had a conversation.
...
"You directed Dai Jiang to approach Motorola, didn't you!" Ni Guangnan asked indignantly.
"I did," Huang He nodded.
"Why did you tell these outsiders from Motorola? Aren't you letting outsiders mock our domestic affairs?" Ni Guangnan said with displeasure.
"Because only if Motorola came forward would this matter be handled immediately without various delays!" Huang He said calmly. "Although China has already joined the WTO, there are still final rounds of related negotiations, specifically on intellectual property clauses. Therefore, this matter must be handled quickly, to prevent Motorola from using it as an excuse to cause trouble during our negotiations."
"This is also why Chen Jin fled on the third day. The action was so swift that he didn't even have a chance to beg for mercy before his arrest warrant was approved."
"Are you satisfied now? The entire world treats China's scientific research as a joke. Do you know how many researchers have been humiliated by Chen Jin's actions!" Ni Guangnan said with blame.
The impact of this incident on domestic scientific research was indeed significant, but the impact was not from within China, but from abroad.
Within China, there was a hand guiding the scale of reporting, so the incident was not widely publicized, and the national media was quite restrained, thus the domestic impact was not great.
However, the impact abroad was immense. For foreign media, they would never miss such an opportunity to mock China.
Various foreign media outlets began to report extensively on this matter, offering unceremonious mockery. In their accounts, Chinese researchers were almost all portrayed as swindlers, as people who stole foreign advanced technology and then passed it off as their own. Subsequently, they were widely ridiculed, and the outside world was in a state of joyous celebration.
And Chinese researchers were precisely the group most exposed to various overseas information and news reports. Therefore, when they saw these foreign media outlets going wild with mockery and jumping for joy, their inner feelings could be imagined, and many of them were greatly affected mentally.
This was also the reason for Ni Guangnan's dissatisfaction with Huang He. At the time, Ni Guangnan had suggested that Huang He report it discreetly, conduct an investigation quietly, and conclude the matter without making a fuss, thus avoiding such a massive uproar.
However, Huang He refused. Not only did he disregard the impact, but he also guided Dai Jiang to approach Motorola. He even proactively provided Motorola with a piece of source code, which gave Motorola direct evidence to sue Chen Jin, thereby leading to the entire world's media knowing about the incident.
This made Ni Guangnan very angry, because he understood that the current situation was entirely orchestrated by Huang He!
"Teacher, according to the information I've received, an operation specifically targeting academic fraud is about to commence. It will be able to apprehend hundreds of malicious individuals like Chen Jin and recover billions of yuan in research funds for the country. Don't you count these benefits?" Huang He said with a smile.
"What benefit is that? You could have apprehended them with a quiet operation!" Ni Guangnan said.
"No, if I had acted discreetly, even if a group of people were apprehended, they would only be a very small number related to this particular case. It would not trigger a truly large-scale crackdown!"
"Because, as you said, everyone wants to complete matters discreetly, which inevitably means that large-scale operations cannot be launched. Thus, those parasites will continue to hide and gnaw at the foundations of our country."
"Moreover, more importantly, this is not just a single crackdown; relevant systems for preventing academic corruption will be established in the future. This way, if there are people like Chen Jin in the future, they will not be able to act so wantonly. These are results that cannot be achieved through discreet actions!"
"Okay, even if what you said is true, our China's international image and influence have indeed been affected. You have to admit that, don't you!" Ni Guangnan said irritably. What he disliked the most was that China, a great nation, was being treated as swindlers and thieves by foreigners. This was truly infuriating and disheartening.
"Yes, you are right about that as well. However, I believe the outcome of doing so is more beneficial than detrimental!" Huang He said.
"What? You actually think doing this is a good thing!" Ni Guangnan was shocked. "I ask you, in what way is it good?"
"It's good that foreigners will think we are not good at scientific research, and that foreigners will think Chinese people cannot develop. They will all think we are weak and thus lower their guard against us. This will give us more time to develop peacefully!" Huang He said calmly.
"Nonsense!" Ni Guangnan snorted coldly. Ni Guangnan did not agree with Huang He's statement, but this was understandable, as Ni Guangnan had not experienced the period that followed.
The competition between the two major powers in the later period began precisely when Huawei achieved leadership in 5G technology. At that time, the world suddenly realized that China's technology had reached the top tier worldwide. They were no longer the ignorant and backward country in their impression; they might even snatch the rice bowls of the Westerners.
The era of competition began.
Netizens lamented that the "Strategic Humor Bureau" was no longer functioning, leading others to comprehend their true strength.
Huang He was very aware of this, so his actions could be considered a contribution to the Strategic Humor Bureau. Let these foreigners be arrogant and believe that China could not develop science and technology. Let them continue to believe that Chinese people were ignorant.
This way, even if it gave China one more day of quiet development, it would be extremely good.
Until one day, China suddenly stood up and said, "We originally planned to interact with you as a third-world country, but unexpectedly, this led to estrangement. I'm no longer pretending. I am a technological superpower. I'm coming clean!"
That would be truly exhilarating.
In short, it's the "Hiding and Accumulating" strategy that is very popular on Qidian these days. Hiding is earning.