Blissful!

It was 1:30 AM. Zhao Wanyu's mouth was parched. She woke up groggily and saw Chen Mengchuan asleep by her bedside. She stared for a moment, a surge of emotion welling up inside her. Her eyes couldn't help but redden, and tears began to fall.

After a while, Zhao Wanyu wiped her tears and weakly reached out, nudging him. "Brother Chuan, could you pour me a glass of water?"

Chen Mengchuan was a light sleeper. He woke up with the gentle push. Opening his eyes, he heard Zhao Wanyu's request. He got up, poured a glass of water, and helped her drink it. He then felt her forehead; it seemed the fever had finally broken.

He let out a sigh of relief and stood up, shaking his sore arms.

"Brother Chuan, you should come up and sleep..." Zhao Wanyu said, blushing.

Chen Mengchuan was taken aback, feeling quite awkward. He knew Zhao Wanyu was worried about him.

"It's okay..." Zhao Wanyu said, her face flushed as she looked at him.

Looking at her face, Chen Mengchuan's heart softened a bit. Still worried she might develop a fever again during the night, he nodded and lay down in the bed with his clothes on.

Morning came. Chen Mengchuan woke up and felt Zhao Wanyu's forehead. Her fever was gone, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

He got up, put on his clothes, poured a glass of water, and sat by the bed. Looking at the sleeping Zhao Wanyu, he remembered they had slept in the same bed again last night. His old face flushed. He had only known Zhao Wanyu for three days, and yet they had slept together for three days...

He got up and went outside. The early morning sun shone on his face, filling him with warmth. In his dream memory, after going to the Island Nation, he and Ayase Sonoko had never been truly happy. Arguments, pressure, and work had always taken precedence over their marital life. It was only after two years of marriage that they finally had Zhihui, but during her pregnancy, they argued even more frequently over trivial matters.

Things only started to improve after their divorce. The fault wasn't with individuals, but with their union.

He shook his head, pushing these thoughts away, and sighed.

After stretching a few times, Chen Mengchuan walked out into the courtyard. He saw Ayase Sonoko approaching the Xu family's house, carrying a fish in her left hand and a basket in her right, filled with fresh vegetables and fruits.

"Good morning, Mengchuan-kun. Has Miss Wanyu's fever subsided?" Ayase Sonoko asked, her smile as bright as the sun.

Chen Mengchuan nodded.

"I brought some fresh fruit, vegetables, and fish. Miss Wanyu needs to replenish her protein and nutrients," Ayase Sonoko said with a smile, handing the fish and basket to Chen Mengchuan.

Chen Mengchuan quickly took them.

"Also, if her fever is gone, have her wear more clothes and get some sun. She needs it. But not too much, or she'll get as dark as me. Take good care of Miss Wanyu. Mō ichido atte kudasai. [See you later.]" Ayase Sonoko waved with a smile and turned to walk towards the school.

Chen Mengchuan stood there, watching Ayase Sonoko leave. Many memories flooded back. In his dream, after they were married, Ayase Sonoko had cried and knelt on the ground when she learned she was going to be replaced by a new teacher, reluctant to leave the children. He also remembered her desperate, broken expression when she was finally notified that she would be sent back to her country.

She had tearfully roared at an official in charge of education, saying that education knows no borders, that the future of the Island Nation and Huaxia lay in these children, and that only children were the hope for the future. But in the end, she was still deported back to the Island Nation. Later, when he went to the Island Nation, she had been constantly dispirited...

Suddenly, Chen Mengchuan felt a dull ache in his heart. Many times, she had discussed returning to Huaxia with him, only to be refused. Her breakdowns and crying after arguments... perhaps it was because she wanted to return here and see the children she had taught for three years.

Thinking of this, he looked at Ayase Sonoko's retreating figure, and his heart felt suddenly heavy.

After handing the items to Sister-in-law Xu, Chen Mengchuan's phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, he knew it was his father.

He sighed but still answered the call.

"Dad."

"Hmph, do you still have me as your father? You think you can extort Huaxia's project? You're being foolish!" Father Chen started scolding him immediately.

Chen Mengchuan's brow furrowed slightly. He knew his father's stubborn loyalty. He could only say slowly, "Dad, don't try to persuade me on this matter. I originally only intended to ask Guo Siming for two million as compensation for kicking me out of the AI group. But then I remembered Guo Zhidong not only opposed you before but also got you kicked out of Xia Science Academy. You can tolerate it, but I can't. A gentleman never forgets a grudge, so please don't try to stop me."

Father Chen was stunned. A wave of warmth washed over him. He hadn't expected his son to stand up for him. However, under the banner of Huaxia's greater good, the old Huaxia spirit, forged through hardship, quickly took precedence. He said, "I'm very comforted that you think this way. But this is a major project for Huaxia, and Guo Zhidong will definitely not let it go. Dad has been at Xia Science Academy for 35 years and knows his character very well. You need to handle this wisely. When we're chased by a mad dog, throwing it a bone is a good way to divert its attention."

"The Guo family has influence not only in Xiajing. You need to consider your personal safety, understand?"

After a long silence, Chen Mengchuan slowly said, "I understand, Dad. I'll handle this matter."

"Take care of yourself when you're away. That's all." Father Chen hung up.

Holding his phone, Chen Mengchuan fell into thought. He truly didn't want to get involved with Xia Science Academy anymore.

But as his father said, the Guo family clearly wouldn't back down on this matter. The best course of action now was to give them a tough bone to chew on, which was indeed a good idea.

Once he figured it out, Chen Mengchuan extracted a very low-spec version from the neural network algorithm, left a few minor issues, packaged it, and with a sly grin, found Guo Zhidong's number and dialed it.

"Chen Mengchuan?" Guo Zhidong's deep voice came from the other end of the line.

"I won't waste words with Director Guo. Every cent of the 6.1 million must be paid. If Director Guo agrees, our grievances will be settled. I also have an artificial intelligence neural network algorithm that I wrote myself that I can sell you. It's 10 million, no discount. Have Guo Siming take a look at this algorithm, and he'll understand its value. Consider it, and call me back." Chen Mengchuan was direct.

"I'll have Guo Siming contact you," Guo Zhidong said in a deep voice.

"Alright, that's all then." Chen Mengchuan said finally and hung up.

He walked into Zhao Wanyu's room and extracted a section of the low-spec neural network algorithm, which had many flaws, and sent it to Guo Siming's email. Even though it was the worst stuff, it was still more than ten years ahead of current technology.

He grinned. If Guo Siming was truly capable of fixing these flaws, Xia Science Academy would be able to dominate other neighbors on Earth in the field of artificial intelligence for several years.

This wasn't him scamming money. It was a case of "the willing being led." He was just earning a little money to supplement Tianzhi Technology's cash flow.

After sending the email, Chen Mengchuan stretched. Looking at Zhao Wanyu, who was sleeping and drooling, his mood inexplicably brightened. It seemed she was truly his lucky charm.

Not long after, his phone rang. Chen Mengchuan picked up the call and walked out of the room.

"Chen Mengchuan, what trick are you playing now?" Guo Siming asked coldly on the phone.

"Didn't Guo Zhidong make it clear to you? Idiot, go look at the email yourself, you moron." Chen Mengchuan hung up before he could reply.

"You motherf..." Guo Siming hadn't finished cursing before Chen Mengchuan had already hung up!

"Chen Mengchuan, you're going too far!" Guo Siming, in his rage, slammed his Nokia phone to the ground again, shattering it into pieces.

"Chen Mengchuan, if you ever fall into my hands, I swear I'll kill you! If I don't, I'll take your surname!" Guo Siming roared.

"Brother Guo, he asked you to check your email..." the assistant whispered cautiously.

Suppressing his temper, Guo Siming walked to the table, opened the computer, and checked his email. The top message was from Chen Mengchuan.

The email had no subject. Guo Siming frowned and clicked it open. It was a pile of complex code and descriptions of data structures.

As he read further down, Guo Siming's frown quickly eased, his pupils dilated, and his heart began to race. After reading the entire email, his breathing became heavy, and his heart pounded violently.

He loudly urged his assistant, "Xiao Wang, quickly, put my phone back together."

"Brother Guo, here's your phone." The assistant handed Guo Siming the Nokia, which he had already picked up and reassembled.

"I'm very sorry, Xiao Wang, Xiao Li, please step out for a moment. This call is very important, and it's not convenient for you to hear it. I'll call you back in after I'm done," Guo Siming said in a deep voice.

The two assistants nodded quickly and left the room.

After they left, Guo Siming quickly dialed his uncle, Guo Zhidong.

"Siming, how is it?" Guo Zhidong asked once the call connected.

"Worth it, worth it, absolutely worth it! Uncle, forget 10 million, this technology is priceless, even for 100 billion!" Guo Siming nodded repeatedly, exaggerating wildly.

"Are you sure?" Guo Zhidong asked sternly.

"Absolutely sure. Although I've only seen the tip of the iceberg with this algorithm, it already far surpasses Xuanyuan's current neural network algorithms." Guo Siming was so excited he felt like he could fly. He could already envision the Xuanyuan project, under his leadership, defeating the artificial intelligence of one major country after another, winning award after award internationally, and thus reaching the pinnacle of his career!

There was silence on the other end of the line.

"Uncle, I am very confident. The value of just this part of the neural network algorithm he sent is immeasurable..."

"Alright, you don't need to say any more. I understand. Call Chen Mengchuan and agree to his terms. If what you're saying is true, then we'll owe him a favor."

"Okay, Uncle, I'll do it right away."

"This 10 million will come from Xia Science Academy," Guo Zhidong said before hanging up. He then opened his contacts and stared at the name of Chen Mengchuan's father for a long time without taking action...

After hanging up, Guo Siming excitedly called Chen Mengchuan. The call was answered quickly. "Brother Chuan, Brother Chuan, it's my Little Guo. About this, do I still need to find Brother Sun to sign the contract?... Ah, okay, got it, alright, Brother Chuan, okay, okay, Brother Chuan, you're busy, goodbye Brother Chuan..."

After hanging up, Guo Siming gave the Nokia in his hand a fervent kiss!

He was delighted!