Chapter Summaries

Zhao Chen rejected the idea of leaving the industrial investors behind, but decided Henglong Capital would not follow on in Green Energy Technology’s financing round. He planned for Era Vanguard to participate alongside Elon Musk and reprice the round at US$1.5 billion, leaving the industrial investors to accept the dollar valuation or risk being shut out.

• Chen Xi and Su Wantang argued that Elon Musk’s involvement offered greater global reach, while Zhao Chen maintained that Green Energy Technology still needed the industrial investors’ domestic supply-chain resources.
• Zhao Chen said Henglong Capital would not participate in the follow-on investment, surprising Chen Xi and Su Wantang.
• Zhao Chen announced that Era Vanguard would invest instead, with the financing round priced in US dollars at a US$1.5 billion valuation.
• Zhao Chen said Dening Times or Bidiya could lead, while Era Vanguard and Elon Musk followed, and that Era Vanguard and Elon Musk could take the entire round if the industrial investors refused the price.
• Chen Xi offered to draft a proposal for Era Vanguard’s allocation, but Zhao Chen told him to return to the meeting room with him.

Zhao Chen presented a Tesla Materials Laboratory report confirming Green Energy Technology’s performance data, transforming the investors’ view of the company. He declared Zhou Bingcheng’s proposed funding deal null and void, leaving the conference room to reconsider the investment terms.

• Zhao Chen returned to the conference room and asked Zhou Bingcheng to have Tesla’s English testing report translated and printed for everyone.
• Sister Liu distributed the translated report, and the attendees read Tesla’s findings, including over 10,000 cycles and a 4.1% degradation rate.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng and Director He recognized that Tesla’s independent verification gave Green Energy Technology’s data greater weight, while Zhou Bingcheng and Old Fang reacted emotionally.
• Zhao Chen explained that Tesla had cross-validated the figures and that three separate reports reached the same conclusions.
• Zhao Chen said the report had rendered Zhou Bingcheng’s proposal null and void: Henglong giving up five percentage points, industry investors holding seventeen percent, and a post-money valuation of seven billion RMB.

Zhao Chen announced that Elon Musk and Era Vanguard would invest in Green Energy Technology’s Series B round at a valuation of $1.5 billion, leaving the industrial investors to decide whether and how to participate. The meeting ended in stunned silence as the attendees absorbed the company’s new standing and the terms on offer.

• Zhao Chen said Green Energy Technology’s Series B financing would be priced in US dollars and named Elon Musk and Era Vanguard as participants.
• Zhao Chen detailed Era Vanguard’s stakes in Tesla, Apple, SpaceX, and Nvidia, startling the investors in the room.
• Zhao Chen announced a $1.5 billion post-money valuation and said Era Vanguard could lead the round with at least a five percent subscription if no industrial investor did.
• Zhao Chen said Henglong accepted the valuation and that Era Vanguard and Elon Musk would take the full allocation if the industrial investors declined.
• Zhao Chen invited Dening Times, Bidiya, and the two central state-owned enterprises to choose a lead investor and negotiate their allocation, while Zhou Bingcheng would discuss their terms separately.
• The meeting room fell silent as Deputy General Manager Zheng, Director He, Zhou Bingcheng, and the representatives reconsidered the financing proposal.

After learning that Elon Musk would personally invest in Green Energy Technology and that the company was set to enter Tesla’s supply chain, the investors paused negotiations to reassess its value. They planned to return with revised offers the day after tomorrow, while Zhao Chen recognized that the company’s valuation was no longer theirs alone to determine.

• Deputy General Manager Zheng and Director He realized Tesla’s report and Musk’s personal investment had changed Green Energy Technology’s strategic value and supply-chain prospects.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng and Director He said the industrial investors needed to pause negotiations and reassess the company’s valuation, equity stakes, and terms.
• A representative of the central state-owned enterprises said they also needed to submit Green Energy Technology’s changed fundamentals for another review.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng promised that Dening Times would return the day after tomorrow with a new valuation, and the investors took the Tesla test reports with them.
• After the investors left, Zhou Bingcheng asked what price they would offer, and Zhao Chen said Green Energy Technology’s valuation was no longer theirs to decide.

CATL, Bidiya, and two central state-owned enterprises reassessed Green Energy Technology after Tesla’s laboratory confirmed its test results and Elon Musk agreed to invest personally. The industrial investors accepted the $1.5 billion valuation, with Dening Times set to lead while the others pursued strategic cooperation and domestic market rights.

• Deputy General Manager Zheng told Dening Times’ investment team that Tesla’s independent tests confirmed Green Energy Technology’s performance and that Elon Musk would take a 1 to 2 percent stake.
• Dening Times decided to accept the $1.5 billion valuation and seek more than half of the industrial investors’ allocation as lead investor.
• Director He reported Tesla’s test results, Musk’s investment, and Era Vanguard’s participation to Bidiya’s Investment Committee, recommending that Bidiya co-invest without competing to lead.
• Bidiya’s Investment Committee agreed to accept the valuation and let Dening Times lead, prioritizing technological collaboration over a larger equity allocation.
• Two central state-owned enterprise representatives agreed to accept the valuation and co-invest, provided their shareholders’ agreement granted priority cooperation rights for domestic grid-connected projects and industrial waste heat recovery.

Green Energy Technology’s investors met to allocate its Series B round at a US$1.5 billion valuation. The group accepted Era Vanguard’s five-percent stake and Elon Musk’s two-percent stake, then began negotiating how to divide the remaining industrial-investor allocation.

• Deputy General Manager Zheng told Zhou Bingcheng that Dening Times had accepted the US$1.5 billion valuation and wanted to lead the round.
• Zhao Chen told Zhou Bingcheng that Dening Times could lead and Era Vanguard would not compete for the position.
• Zhou Bingcheng opened the allocation meeting, where the investors agreed the round would release twenty percent of Green Energy Technology’s shares.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng, Director He, and the central state-owned enterprise representatives supported giving Elon Musk a two-percent stake.
• Zhao Chen confirmed Era Vanguard would take five percent without a board seat and that Elon Musk would take two percent.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng proposed giving Dening Times at least 6.5 percent of the industrial investors’ remaining thirteen percent, leaving 6.5 percent to divide among Bidiya and the two central state-owned enterprises.

Bidiya and the two central state-owned enterprises agreed to the final allocation of Green Energy Technology’s funding round, bringing the full 20 percent stake on offer to its investors. After negotiations ended, Zhao Chen explained how Elon Musk had evaluated the company’s technology and declined to reveal more about Era Vanguard.

• A representative of the two central state-owned enterprises offered to reduce each enterprise’s allocation to 1 percent, leaving Bidiya 4.5 percent.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng confirmed Dening Times would take 6.5 percent, and Director He accepted Bidiya’s 4.5 percent allocation, completing the 20 percent round.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng and Director He asked Zhao Chen how Elon Musk had become interested in Green Energy Technology, and Zhao Chen said Musk had been convinced by its test data.
• A representative asked Zhao Chen about Era Vanguard’s background, and Zhao Chen said he could not discuss it and clarified that Era Vanguard invested independently of Henglong.

Zhao Chen explained Musk’s planned visit to Magic City and made clear that he would meet only Green Energy Technology’s technical leaders. After the investors reconciled and discussed future production, Dening Times, Bidiya, and central state-owned enterprises signaled potential orders, leaving Green Energy Technology with a path toward industrial partnerships.

• Zhao Chen told the meeting that Musk would visit Green Energy Technology’s pilot line and expected Engineer Fang to answer technical questions.
• Zhao Chen said Musk would not attend a meal with the financial and industrial representatives, though Engineer Fang and President Zhou Bingcheng could meet him.
• Deputy General Manager Zheng acknowledged his earlier hostility, and Zhao Chen accepted his apology after recognizing Zhou Bingcheng’s work building Green Energy Technology.
• Zhao Chen agreed to have Chen Xi inform Director He of Musk’s itinerary once it was confirmed.
• Zhou Bingcheng outlined the planned mass-production line and its capacity, prompting Deputy General Manager Zheng, Director He, and a central state-owned enterprise representative to offer future orders or coordination.

Elon Musk arrived in Magic City and bypassed Tesla’s waiting executives to visit Green Energy Technology’s pilot line with Zhao Chen. After learning about Engineer Fang’s four years of experiments, Musk stayed away from the delayed signing ceremony, and Green Energy Technology announced its Series B financing once the documents were signed.

• Musk landed at Pudong Airport and ignored Tesla Greater China head General Manager Zhu to ride with Zhao Chen to Zhangjiang.
• At Green Energy Technology, Musk greeted Engineer Fang and postponed the signing ceremony to inspect the pilot line.
• Engineer Fang explained the Third-Generation Formula’s staged temperature-control process and the thousands of samples the team had tested over four years.
• Musk recognized the effort behind Fang’s work and continued inspecting the reactor while the signing ceremony waited.
• The ceremony began nearly an hour late, and Tesla’s legal representative signed for Musk while Chen Xi signed Era Vanguard’s documents.
• Green Energy Technology announced its Series B financing after the ceremony concluded.

Green Energy Technology’s Series B financing and Elon Musk’s personal investment drew attention to Henglong Capital’s role, and Henglong Group’s share price rose above HK$40. After the signing ceremony, Elon Musk inspected Green Energy Technology’s pilot line and Tesla’s Magic City factory before leaving with Zhao Chen.

• Bloomberg and Reuters reported that Green Energy Technology had completed a Series B round at a US$1.5 billion valuation, with Dening Times leading and Elon Musk, Era Vanguard, Bidiya, and central state-owned enterprises participating.
• Investors connected Henglong Capital’s earlier investment in Green Energy Technology with Zhao Chen’s ties to Elon Musk, and Henglong Group’s share price climbed above HK$40 as its market value exceeded HK$22.4 billion.
• Zhao Chen told Deputy General Manager Zheng that Henglong’s gains depended on whether Green Energy Technology’s mass-production line succeeded.
• Elon Musk spent nearly two hours inside Green Energy Technology’s pilot line discussing processing issues with Engineer Fang, then told Zhou Bingcheng he would return when the mass-production line began operating.
• Elon Musk toured Tesla’s Magic City factory with General Manager Zhu, asking about production ramp-up and integrated die-casting yields before praising him.
• Elon Musk left the factory with Zhao Chen, exhausted after visiting the pilot line and touring the factory.

Zhao Chen explained to Elon Musk why humanoid robots struggle with ordinary movements, using Moravec's Paradox and the example of picking up a teacup. Musk left understanding that robots' everyday motor skills lag because they lack the evolutionary foundation humans developed over hundreds of millions of years.

• Zhao Chen took Musk to a Huaiyang restaurant in Magic City and ordered dinner.
• Musk asked when humanoid robots would enter people's homes, and Zhao Chen said that picking up a teacup was a greater challenge than their other technical bottlenecks.
• Zhao Chen described how human motor control evolved and explained Moravec's Paradox: tasks natural to people are often harder for AI than intellectual tasks.
• Zhao Chen contrasted the complex, variable act of lifting a teacup with Atlas's precisely modelable backflip, which robots could master through calculation and repeated trials.
• Musk connected Zhao Chen's explanation to Boston Dynamics' work on Atlas, and Zhao Chen elaborated on why everyday movements remain difficult for robots.

Zhao Chen explained why humanoid robots needed to evolve through repeated iterations, and Elon Musk revealed that Optimus was intended to build infrastructure on Mars alongside Starship. Musk invited Zhao Chen to Fremont to see the next-generation Optimus prototype the following year.

• Zhao Chen explained that robots could learn human tasks through repeated improvements rather than needing to perform them perfectly from the start.
• Elon Musk told Zhao Chen that Optimus would prepare Mars for human settlement, while Starship would transport robots and people there.
• Zhao Chen ranked the key challenges for humanoid robots as hands, dynamic balance, touch, and energy density, and Musk said his ranking matched his own.
• Musk invited Zhao Chen to Fremont the following year to see the next-generation Optimus prototype.
• Musk asked Zhao Chen the names of the dishes, then repeated their Chinese names with difficulty.

A leaked photograph of Zhao Chen dining with Elon Musk triggered intense media speculation, while Zhao and Musk discussed why their relationship went beyond business. As they flew to the United States, Musk asked how long Zhao planned to keep the Era Vanguard matter secret.

• A photograph of Zhao Chen and Elon Musk dining in Magic City spread online, prompting financial media to report on their private meeting.
• Liu Mingyu asked Zhao Chen how Henglong Capital should respond to media inquiries, and Zhao told him not to respond.
• Zhao Chen and his colleagues boarded Elon Musk's Gulfstream for the United States, changing their destination to Teterboro Airport.
• On the flight, Musk told Zhao that he had never dined privately with an investor before and explained that he regarded Zhao as more than one.
• Musk asked Zhao how long he intended to keep the Era Vanguard matter under wraps.

Zhao Chen and Lin Shicheng prepared Era Vanguard to cross the 10% threshold in Nvidia after building a 9.99% stake worth about $8.9 billion. Zhao ordered the final purchase and filings, then planned a meeting with Huang Renxun, leaving Era Vanguard poised for a new phase as a major Nvidia shareholder.

• Zhao Chen told Elon Musk he had prepared for the scrutiny that would follow Era Vanguard’s Nvidia investment crossing 10%.
• Lin Shicheng reported that Era Vanguard held 60.4 million Nvidia shares, or 9.99%, after buying shares during SoftBank’s liquidation.
• Lin Shicheng showed Zhao Chen the draft Schedule 13D, the Section 16 compliance plan, and the initial contact with Nvidia investor relations.
• Zhao Chen ordered Lin Shicheng to prepare the filings and letter, make a final purchase above 10%, submit the Schedule 13D, and arrange a meeting with Huang Renxun.
• Lin Shicheng recommended filing after Friday’s market close, and Zhao Chen approved the timing.

Zhao Chen reviewed Henglong's 2018 annual report, which showed that the group had cleared most of its debt and earned 2.55 billion yuan, largely through investment income. He considered whether Henglong should formally change its principal business from real estate to investment holding.

• Chen Xi gave Zhao Chen Chen Qiming's unaudited annual report, which showed Henglong's liabilities had fallen from 11.2 billion yuan to 3 billion yuan and its net profit had risen to 2.55 billion yuan.
• Zhao Chen saw that Henglong's real estate profit had fallen after Haoyu Construction stopped acquiring land and focused on selling inventory, while the group cleared 8.2 billion yuan in debt.
• Zhao Chen reviewed the 2.05 billion yuan in investment income, including gains from Shunxin Agriculture and unrealized gains on five listed stocks.
• Zhao Chen examined Henglong's unlisted stakes in Yunnan Agriculture Group, Bubble Mary, and Green Energy Technology.
• Chen Xi asked Zhao Chen how Henglong should describe its change in principal business in the official annual report, and he considered the implications of becoming an investment holding company.

Zhao Chen reflected on Henglong Group’s two-year transformation from a heavily indebted property developer into an investment holding company, while Su Wantang recognized the work he and his team had carried. After Henglong disclosed strong 2018 results, its shares surged, and a brokerage report highlighted hidden value in its unlisted investments.

• Zhao Chen told Chen Xi to describe Henglong Group’s strategic transformation from property development to investment holding in its reporting period.
• Zhao Chen recounted Henglong’s financial turnaround and credited his team, while Su Wantang praised the burdens he had borne for them.
• Liu Mingyu verified Henglong’s annual results forecast and submitted it to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, reporting 2.55 billion in net profit and three billion in liabilities.
• Investors drove Henglong Group’s share price from HK$40 to an intraday high of HK$49.8 after the announcement, bringing its market capitalization to about HK$27.4 billion.
• A domestic brokerage issued a report arguing that Henglong’s unlisted holdings in Green Energy Technology, Bubble Mary, and Yunnan Agriculture Group were worth far more than their book values.

Zhao Chen reflected on reclaiming Henglong as its share price climbed, while Era Vanguard completed its Nvidia purchases and filed a Schedule 13D after surpassing ten percent ownership. The filing disclosed Era Vanguard as Nvidia’s largest institutional shareholder and stated that it sought no control or role in the company’s daily operations.

• Su Wantang told Zhao Chen that Lawyer Lin had prepared the final Schedule 13D and that it was scheduled for submission after Friday’s market close.
• Zhao Chen reviewed Henglong’s rising share price and reflected on how he had taken back the company and settled the debts from his previous life.
• Era Vanguard completed its final Nvidia purchases, bringing its holdings to about 65 million shares, or 10.8 percent of the company.
• Lin Shicheng instructed Era Vanguard’s compliance officer to submit the Schedule 13D that night rather than wait until the filing deadline.
• Lin Shicheng filed the report through the SEC’s EDGAR system, identifying Times Pioneer Capital as the filer and stating that it sought constructive dialogue but not control of Nvidia.

After Era Vanguard’s 10.8 percent stake in Nvidia drew intense media attention and a routine SEC inquiry, Lin Shicheng briefed Zhao Chen on the response and the options for buying more shares. He explained that an HSR filing could keep further purchases out of public view, but would lock up the shares and tie up capital during the review period.

• Lin Shicheng filed a Schedule 13D reporting Era Vanguard’s 10.8 percent Nvidia stake, making it the company’s largest shareholder.
• Bloomberg and Reuters reported on Era Vanguard’s Nvidia position and its past investments in Tesla, SpaceX, and Bitcoin.
• The SEC sent Era Vanguard a routine inquiry asking about its investment purpose, shareholder arrangements, and leveraged financing.
• Lin Shicheng briefed Zhao Chen on the SEC’s questions and proposed replying that Era Vanguard was a long-term strategic investor seeking neither control nor a board seat.
• Lin Shicheng explained that further purchases could be disclosed through Schedule 13D amendments or kept private through an HSR filing, which would restrict trading and tie up capital during review.

Lin Shicheng explained the Schedule 13D and HSR requirements for Era Vanguard’s planned increase in its Nvidia stake. Zhao Chen considered the trade-off between buying quickly and waiting for regulatory clearance, but made no final decision.

• Lin Shicheng asked Zhao Chen how much Era Vanguard planned to increase its Nvidia position, and Zhao Chen said he wanted to reach between fifteen and twenty percent.
• Lin Shicheng explained that Schedule 13D amendments would let Era Vanguard buy without a waiting period, but would reveal each purchase to the market.
• Lin Shicheng recommended HSR review for an increase above fifteen percent and warned that a stake near or above twenty percent could prompt stricter scrutiny and a longer review.
• Lin Shicheng clarified that HSR required Era Vanguard to file first and wait at least thirty days before buying, while Schedule 13D amendments alone allowed purchases up to fifteen percent without delay.
• Zhao Chen considered the delay and disclosure trade-offs as he looked out at the snow over Manhattan.

Zhao Chen discussed the legal and strategic risks of Era Vanguard increasing its Nvidia stake beyond fifteen percent with Lin Shicheng. After hearing Lin’s assessment of Huang Renxun’s likely response, Zhao called Chen Xi and Zhang Qingxue into the meeting, leaving his next move unstated.

• Lin Shicheng explained that HSR review and federal filings were separate from Delaware’s restrictions on business combinations by shareholders holding more than fifteen percent.
• Lin Shicheng noted that SoftBank’s exit had cleared the way for Era Vanguard to become Nvidia’s largest institutional shareholder with a 10.8 percent stake.
• Lin Shicheng said Huang Renxun was unlikely to object to Era Vanguard’s stake so long as it did not interfere with operations, seek control, or demand a board seat.
• Lin Shicheng warned that Huang Renxun and the SEC could view further buying differently depending on Nvidia’s share-price trend and fundamentals.
• Zhao Chen stopped discussing HSR and asked Su Wantang to bring Chen Xi and Zhang Qingxue into the suite.