Four million Hong Kong dollars in pocket money—Su Yehao had that much in his personal account.

Linda Yun ignored the shop assistant's affected voice, managing to push the price of the dragon head down to fifteen million New Taiwan dollars, saving more than three hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars. She also made the shop write "This product is one of the twelve zodiac sculptures (designed by Giuseppe Castiglione) from the Old Summer Palace of the Qing Dynasty; authenticity guaranteed" on the transaction contract.

After paying, Su Yehao personally carried the cardboard box containing the dragon head as he left.

Truth be told, the zodiac heads from the Old Summer Palace weren't famous yet. In his opinion, probably nobody was counterfeiting them. While they didn't seem too difficult to replicate, the material was actually quite special, mainly copper mixed with various other metals, which had kept it from rusting for over a hundred years.

To determine its authenticity, all it took was comparing it with other extant zodiac heads after testing the material.

According to the antique shop manager, the seller had bought it from a shop in England, spending more than a hundred thousand pounds a few years ago, so they weren't making much profit.

This item wasn't yet associated with other external factors; its value purely stemmed from its connection to Giuseppe Castiglione and the Old Summer Palace.

Yesterday, Su Yehao had just seen *One Hundred Horses* by this Western court painter in the National Palace Museum. It was no exaggeration to say he was the most successful artist in China.

Selling his works could easily fetch tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars. If *One Hundred Horses* were put up for auction, it could easily break a hundred million.

The sculptures he designed were more niche, and they also carried the "royal" title. In Su Yehao's opinion, the purchase price of over three million Hong Kong dollars was practically dirt cheap.

He wasn't thinking about repatriating national treasures or anything like that. He was buying it simply because he liked it, and he also wanted to see if he could find a bargain.

After putting the item in the car, Linda Yun asked, puzzled, "Men really are different from us women. You're so decisive when buying things. Don't you need to find some experts to help authenticate it?"

"Of course I need to authenticate it. Go to Four Nine City for me and find some experts, then invite them to Hong Kong to take a look. Three million Hong Kong dollars is nothing. I'd rather take a gamble than let this item slip through my fingers. What's a great find? This is a super great find."

Su Yehao got into the car, drenched in sweat, turned on the air conditioning, and said, "Also, call Dick Whittle, the art investigator, and tell him there's work for him. Have him help me find the other zodiac heads. Since they've been auctioned before, they shouldn't be too hard to find."

Linda Yun had worked with Dick Whittle in California before to understand the situation with Van Gogh's paintings, so she remembered the art investigator.

She just assumed Su Yehao was bored and starting to "collect stamps" like other people. Anyway, the items weren't expensive, so there was nothing to worry about.

Casually nodding, Linda Yun asked, "Should we continue shopping, or go back to the hotel first?"

"...Let's go find Jiang Yu and the others. After I find some experts to authenticate this dragon head, it would be best to bring them here and have them help me find other treasures. The European-style castle in the yard is being renovated with security equipment. We'll install some bulletproof display cases."

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Buying collectibles was just a hobby. Su Yehao hadn't forgotten the real purpose of his trip.

After contacting the inspection team in the morning, he left the little girl and Jiang Yu in the afternoon to go to Taoyuan for a meal.

After they met, he noticed that Academician Ni, whom he had met before the New Year, seemed to be in much better spirits. He was wearing slacks and a white short-sleeved shirt, and he shook hands with Su Yehao, the big spender, with a smile.

Besides Academician Ni and his student Zeng Guangpei, Su Yehao didn't recognize anyone else on the team. The meal was set at a five-star hotel.

After they were seated, Su Yehao asked, "Academician Ni, what do you think after seeing it?"

"What else can I say? They're already ahead of us. I just went to Hongji Computer's new factory this morning. Their lab is already researching LCDs. They bought some equipment from Japan, and the display effect is more than a grade better than Liangxiang's."

Academician Ni sighed and continued, "I've been here a few times before. The semiconductor industry here is developing very quickly. Every time I come, there are new changes. The Hsinchu Science Park is full of semiconductor companies, large and small. Most of the components for making computers can probably be found here. Now, self-production and self-sales aren't popular anymore. The contract manufacturing model is more beneficial for companies in Europe and the United States. They don't have to worry about it."

Su Yehao poured a cup of tea to moisten his throat and said with a smile, "It's not like the mainland here. There are no barriers to investing in high-tech industries. You can access the most advanced technology at any time. At worst, you can spend more money. It's different in the mainland. Even if you spend more money, some technologies are directly embargoed and not allowed to be transferred. If everything relies on independent research and development, of course it's very difficult. You can only buy some outdated technology."

"Yes, so it's very troublesome, like industrial machine tools, engine technology, and material technology. It's like being blocked by an iron curtain, forcing you to be self-sufficient."

Academician Ni sighed again and looked at Su Yehao, saying, "Actually, I feel it's good to develop chips and semiconductors outside. Setting up R&D centers in Europe, the United States, and other places, and putting the production factories back in the mainland, it's like using their methods against them."

Su Yehao smiled when he heard this, understanding Academician Ni's thoughts.

In terms of high-end semiconductors, the mainland is almost a blank slate. Even the household appliances produced are not good enough, and they are rushing to cooperate with foreign companies, let alone the semiconductor industry, which has extremely high requirements for the level of technological manufacturing, especially chips.

If the foundation isn't solid, how can you build a castle in the air?

Academician Ni's suggestion was to use foreign talent and technology to shorten the R&D cycle and catch up with international standards as soon as possible. Even if it lags behind a little, at least don't be left too far behind.

Su Yehao said, "Overseas R&D institutions are definitely necessary. We may also acquire some companies with existing talent and technology. As for the mainland, I plan to talk to Pengcheng about building a new semiconductor industrial park, preferably introducing some microchip production technology to produce some chips needed for household appliances, mobile phones, etc., and accumulate experience step by step to develop."

Involving himself in the chip industry was, for the moment, just an idea.

Su Yehao was more concerned about the project of assembling and producing personal computers. After he asked, he learned that the procurement of components was progressing smoothly.

As for the production line and process flow, Academician Ni was working with other teams, trying to solve it himself to avoid Su Yehao spending money unnecessarily.

If he used hundreds of millions of dollars to directly acquire a brand overseas, he could certainly avoid some detours, but Academician Ni didn't think it was worth it. He preferred to be busier, such was his frugal nature.

Working with someone like him always made people feel very reassured.

However, Su Yehao also knew that Academician Ni's ambitions weren't here. Helping build a personal computer production team was only to take the opportunity to support the development of the mainland's semiconductor industry. This was the cornerstone of their continued cooperation.

Fortunately, unlike Liangxiang, Su Yehao was indeed particularly interested in the prospects of some semiconductor industries. During the meal, he briefly mentioned the idea of a "City of a Thousand Cores."

It was called a "city," but it was essentially a relatively independent semiconductor and internet industrial park. After hearing this, Academician Ni immediately agreed to help Su Yehao build momentum and strive for more policy support.

For some industries, government intervention can indeed have miraculous effects.

However, in the field of high technology, failures have happened more than once or twice, and they simply cannot develop.

It was rare to encounter such a tacit potential investor, so Academician Ni certainly didn't want to let him go...