Industry Rivals

"Ah, shit!"

Inside the headquarters building of Tian Le Material Technology Co., Ltd. in the provincial capital of Su Province, Jin Mingcheng, head of the Research and Development Department, angrily slammed down the landline receiver in his hand.

Sitting across from his desk was Piao Enxi, head of the Strategic Investment Department.

"What did they say?"

Seeing Jin Mingcheng so furious, Piao Enxi raised her brows and asked solemnly. Although she had already guessed the answer, she still could not help asking in person, wanting to hear Jin Mingcheng's reply for herself.

Sure enough, after glancing at her, Jin Mingcheng said viciously, "That little bastard actually hung up on me without saying a word."

"What?"

Piao Enxi was stunned, then became deeply angered as well. She cursed, "Ah, shit! How dare he be so rude!"

Tian Le Material Technology Co., Ltd. was not a domestic company, but a branch established in the country by Stick Country. However, as the domestic market had gradually expanded over the years, this branch had become even more important than the headquarters, with its organization and scale accounting for more than 60% of the entire company.

Like many materials companies, Tian Le Material was a large publicly listed corporation that kept a low profile yet possessed enormous scale.

Outsiders might not know this, but professionals in the optical materials industry did: Tian Le Material was an extremely powerful multinational materials giant. Although it could not compare to King Material of Eagle Country, it was still ranked third and competed fiercely with the second-ranked giant everywhere.

The second-ranked materials giant was Tian Feng Chemical from Little Country, where life was going quite well.

In the domestic market, King Polymer Optical Film was first-tier high-end material, while Tian Le Material and Tian Feng Chemical were second-tier, with neither outperforming the other. For every recognizable brand of mobile phones, computers, and televisions, other than OLED screens, most mid-to-high-end models used materials from these three companies—either King, Tian Le Material, or Tian Feng Chemical.

Qian Jia and Di Guang had developed well in recent years and were faintly showing signs of catching up to Tian Le Material and Tian Feng Chemical, but that gap could not be closed overnight.

Sometimes, a material's surface performance could match that of Tian Le Material and Tian Feng Chemical, but once it was actually put to use, the differences showed up in the details.

Either all kinds of reliability issues arose—not major problems, but minor defects—or their problems were small while yours were severe, which was truly infuriating.

Or batch incidents could easily occur during mass production, leading to recalls of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of phones and massive losses.

The moment Fei Yang Optics made the news, Tian Le Material's department responsible for gathering information on competitors noticed it and reported the matter to the Research and Development Department and the Strategic Investment Department.

Jin Mingcheng and Piao Enxi, one the head of the Research and Development Department and the other the head of the Strategic Investment Department, immediately sat down together after receiving the news to discuss how to handle it.

The first thing they needed to do was get in touch with Fei Yang Optics, especially to obtain its materials.

They did not actually care much about Fei Yang Optics itself. What concerned them was the joint effort of Hua Long Technology, Zhongwei, Qian Jia, and Di Guang. The four companies had jointly established Fei Yang Optics, clearly not as a joke but in earnest. They were likely plotting something big, especially since the four were both customers and competitors of one another, with extremely complicated relationships.

For Fei Yang Optics to bring all four of them together, it clearly possessed extraordinary materials technology!

Qian Jia and Di Guang were nothing to worry about. Their technology would not catch up to Tian Le Material's anytime soon. But Hua Long and Zhongwei were currently two of Tian Le Material's most important customers, and nothing could go wrong with them.

Who would have thought that, after painstakingly contacting several people in private to obtain Zhou Feiyu's contact information, one phone call later, Zhou Feiyu would hang up without saying a word as soon as he heard it was Tian Le Material? Jin Mingcheng and Piao Enxi were both furious, and Stick Country's national curse immediately burst from their mouths.

After thinking for a moment, Piao Enxi asked, "Director Jin, do you have a way to obtain their materials?"

Since the other party also made optical materials, they would inevitably compete with them. Originally, they had planned to contact them normally and see whether they could invest a little. Competitors could also be invested in, as long as the price was right.

But now, that was clearly impossible. They were probably coming straight for Tian Le Material.

Assuming the worst of others was Piao Enxi's specialty.

Jin Mingcheng answered without hesitation, "It may take some time. The information I have now is that Fei Yang Optics has just launched a very impressive material, which is currently being used in one of Hua Long Technology's projects. But in my estimation, this material has not yet entered mass production."

Piao Enxi was somewhat skeptical. "How confident are you?"

Jin Mingcheng snorted, expressing his displeasure at not being trusted, and replied blandly, "They have not been around long enough."

"OK!"

Piao Enxi shrugged, realizing she had said the wrong thing, but offered no explanation. She merely said, "Director Jin, please speed things up," then rose, said goodbye, and left.

"Ah, shit!"

Jin Mingcheng opened his mouth and cursed again, but this time he made no sound. His lips merely moved silently.

At the same time, at Tian Feng Chemical's domestic headquarters in Magic City, an ordinary meeting of department heads suddenly went off topic because of this news report, turning instead to a discussion of how to deal with Fei Yang Optics.

One after another, the group spoke and gave their views.

But when it came time for Watanabe Jiro, the domestic head of the Research and Development Department, the situation immediately changed.

Watanabe Jiro clearly dismissed the information reported by the Sales Department. He mocked it loudly. "Can people here develop any good materials? They are indeed hardworking, capable, and diligent, but material research is not something that succeeds through those qualities alone. Do you gentlemen believe they can develop high-end optical materials superior to Tian Feng Chemical's? I do not believe it. I would rather believe that I have developed a material superior to King Polymer Optical Film."

As soon as he said that, the entire conference room fell silent for quite some time.

The Research and Development Department was the company's core department, responsible for technology. With its head stepping forward to say this, no one else found it easy to speak. Speaking up would mean questioning the Research and Development Department's capabilities.

To question it, one had to at least be a higher-ranking leader or possess greater technical ability than the head of the Research and Development Department. Otherwise, one should keep quiet.

"Watanabe Jiro, you are underestimating people too much."

The head of the Sales Department replied with some dissatisfaction. He had submitted this information for discussion, yet Watanabe Jiro had vetoed it outright before any discussion even began. It was hard for him to save face.

Watanabe Jiro sneered. "I know the culture here well. What they care about most is saving face. This time, I believe it is merely one of their bluffing tactics, intended to disrupt the optical materials market. There is no need for us to disrupt our own pace over such news. That would be the real loss outweighing the gain."

The Sales Department head argued reasonably, "This is an emerging competitor. Shouldn't we at least look into it?"

Watanabe Jiro smiled contemptuously and waved his hand. "There is absolutely no need! Just like luminescent materials, for decades, the luminescent materials here have still relied on purchasing our company's luminescent patents. Without patents, they cannot produce even a single sheet of luminescent material. Their optical materials are the same. Even the PI Film they use is purchased from us. If we refuse to sell them PI Film, they will never produce even one square meter of optical material."

As soon as he said that, the head of the Sales Department was rendered speechless.