Chapter 286: Pressure
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
A severe information leak occurred at Zhong Xin International and a spy was captured. Chen Jin was shocked when he received the news. “Is the leak serious? Is the potential harm big?” he quickly asked.
“The spy is someone by the name of Lin Lichung from Treasure Island. He was not authorized to access the ‘virtual factory.’ It was another staff by the name of Yap Chilin from the mainland that revealed some technical features about the ‘virtual factory’ to him. The core database isn’t leaked, so the harm isn’t that severe. The reason Lin Lichung was discovered and arrested was because he was under pressure from foreign intelligence agencies and was panicking to steal the ‘virtual factory’ technology. Later on, he revealed his intentions and ident.i.ty when he was bribing Yap Chilin. He has since been behind bars after Yap refused his bribe and called the police. Even so, Yap Chilin can’t claim the 500-thousand-dollar prize money. The most his actions could be justified was that he turned himself in! We have decided to dismiss these two employees. Of course, Yap Chilin did earn himself some merits by reporting the incident. Therefore, his punishment will be slightly lighter,” Zhang Wei Jin said through the phone.
Only the technical features of the ‘virtual factory’ had been exposed. The core database wasn’t leaked. Chen Jin nodded. This was within his acceptance range, but equally infuriating. For a strategic R&D tool as the “Virtual Factory,” even leaking just its technical features would be enough to land someone in the death penalty.
Zhong Xin International’s security measures were not very on point. Compared to Xing Hai Technologies’ anti-leak measures, theirs could be described as containing countless loopholes. Chen Jin did not only attach some regular amounts of importance on confidentiality, but he also attached grave importance to it! Moreover, since Xing Hai Technologies’ establishment until now, they would encounter at least a hundred cases that might lead to leaks every single year!
There were spies from other companies, infiltrating agents from foreign intelligence agencies, and staff within Xing Hai Technologies’ technical department that could not stand the temptation of money, and intended to sell confidential information in exchange for money. On average, up to a hundred employees of this category were caught every year.
Chen Jin became used to the phenomenon because there were too many of them. He wasn’t particularly concerned in this either. After all, who within Xing Hai Technologies would be capable of pulling off such a feat under artificial intelligence Alice’s full-time surveillance? Besides, Xing Hai Technologies also had some special and seemingly weird policies. For instance, the company’s executive members were prohibited to go overseas, to prevent them from being kidnapped in foreign soil. For R&D personnel that partic.i.p.ated in core R&D projects and had mastery over core technology, if they so wished to go job-hopping, they could go to other local companies. However, going to foreign companies and leaving the country was strictly prohibited.
Besides, for employees that were unsatisfied with their current situation and desired to strike out on their own, Xing Hai Technologies would not suppress them like barbarians. On the contrary, they would support them creating their own business, providing them funds, technical support, fully supporting them to make their own name… if they failed, they could return to Xing Hai Technologies. Under Xing Hai Technologies’s support, almost a thousand of their ex-employees successfully created their own business and more than a hundred billionaires were born… they formed the so-called “Xing Hai Solar System.”
It could be said that under these various policies, employees that joined Xing Hai Technologies would all find the shortcut to maximize the value of their lives and attain their dreams. Those who would rather be a p.a.w.n for foreign intelligence agencies and shamelessly attempted to smuggle technical information abroad were all shortsighted imbeciles.
Although logically speaking, idiots as such were unlikely to pa.s.s Xing Hai Technologies’ written test and interview with that kind of IQ they possessed, but Xing Hai Technologies would still find a few of them every single year. Subsequently, those imbeciles would be facing litigation and would end up in jail for at least five years.
For this kind of phenomenon, Chen Jin did not have a particularly good way to put an end to it. He could only enhance prevention while sighing, “Just how many people have been charmed by the moon in foreign lands?” But no matter the case, he had two words for those who wished to acquire secrets and steal the core technology from Xing Hai Technologies: dream on!
But that wasn’t the case for companies that partnered with Xing Hai Technologies. For instance, the “Virtual Factory” and “supercomputer package.” Zhong Xin International was using two, Purple Ray Technologies bought 2, Shangfa Corporation bought one, and the military already wholesaled eight units successively.
Groups of users exceeded two digits and their ability to protect confidentiality was lopsided. There were even “shocking” articles introducing the ‘Virtual Factory’ appearing on the internet. Under these circ.u.mstances, it was very difficult to hide the “Virtual Factory” from the rest of the world. It wasn’t that Chen Jin wanted to hide the “Virtual Factory” forever, and he couldn’t possibly do it anyways. He just wanted to let the “Virtual Factory” technology work its magic at crucial times such as these. He would still unveil the tech’s existence in the future.
But following the “spy incident,” all his plans were disrupted. Consecutively, the M’s pressure arrived.
…
On the 20th of June, via new media channels, the M nation issued their severest protests and condemnations:
“Hand out the illegal tech immediately!”
“We strongly condemn and protest against this. Please put unfair compet.i.tion to halt!”
“We will take all necessary means to protect the M nation’s benefits and defend the fairness of the world!”
“The Virtual Factory was Google’s secret project. All their valuable data was lost in a downtime accident. It might be the doings of Chinese engineers. Now the tech has achieved great success in the Z nation…”
After the sky-breaking news was reported, it raised a furor among M netizens:
“Despicable thieves, why do they keep on stealing our tech again and again?”
“Please stop, we are already depleted!”
“We can’t tolerate this any longer!”
“Send our wars.h.i.+ps and missiles, take back everything that’s ours.”
And countless more extreme remarks.
…
After the news that the M’s collectively snapped reached the Z nation, Z netizens were all in shock. On one hand, they were excited and zipped up for the “Virtual Factory.” On the other hand, they were refuting and mocking the hysterical reactions of the M netizens:
“r.e.t.a.r.ds! We copied something you don’t even have?”
“Does all technology belong to you? Why are the others’ advancements called copying?”
“Can you come up with something new? You are hopelessly brainwashed by fake news!”
“We are all keyboard warriors, but how could you people leave your common sense and brain aside just for the sake of flaming?”
“They’re not keyboard warriors. They are an insult to keyboard warriors. They are just a bunch of morons that happened to scavenge a keyboard.”
“Their average IQ is not even 30. The more you refute them, the more you think you are insulting your own intelligence.”
“Let’s just do what we should do. No matter how pesky those flies are, they can still be dealt with a slap.”
“A Virtual Factory capable of imitating everything. I thought that it was some kind of business slogan previously, never thought that it was real. Haha, way to go Xing Hai Technologies!”
The Z netizens were joined in jubilation.