Power Department

The Power Department wasn't a place that needed to be kept secret, so Li Si made his way through without a hitch. After wandering around for quite a while, he finally found the person he was looking for at a desk in the corner.

Most of the employees were still eating, so the Power Department was quite empty. At a workstation in the corner, however, a Black man was holding a half-eaten sandwich in one hand while scribbling on a blueprint with the other.

"Hey, Max, you work here?"

Li Si walked up to the workstation, deliberately looking surprised.

Max paused and looked up in confusion, then his face lit up with delight.

"Mr. Lee Stein? You remember me?"

"Of course, Max. We introduced ourselves last week. We're already friends, aren't we?"

Li Si smiled.

"Yes, that's right!!"

"Oh, no—I mean, it's a great honor."

Max was so delighted that he didn't know what to do with himself. He put down the sandwich in his left hand, then pulled over a chair for Li Si.

Li Si waved him off and stood by the desk. After glancing at the blueprint, he exclaimed in surprise, "Is this... New York's power grid?"

"Yes, I designed the entire power grid for New York. I, Max, designed it. I..."

The moment the power grid came up, Max grew even more excited. His smile and pride were impossible to hide, given how poorly he controlled his expressions, and he kept talking without pause. If Li Si hadn't been standing at a distance, he would probably have been showered in spittle.

But Li Si was listening intently.

His surprise just now hadn't been an act.

He'd only meant to offer a few compliments and build their rapport, but after taking a closer look at the power grid blueprint, he couldn't find a single flaw, even with all his knowledge.

The entire blueprint was laid out with crystal-clear logic. The various lines even had a distinctive beauty, each arranged in perfect order. The vast, complex, three-dimensional grid had practically no looping circuits, and its estimates for each high-energy-consuming area were incredibly precise. It had brought power loss during transmission almost to a minimum.

It was no exaggeration to say that Max's knowledge of electricity was absolutely top-notch. Listening to him explain the circuit layout was also a great help to Li Si. At the very least, he could go back and arrange all the Transformer's jumbled wiring more sensibly.

"Oh, sorry. I tend to talk too much whenever I get started on circuits!"

Perhaps he hadn't chatted with anyone like this in a long time. Max had rambled on for quite a while before finally coming to his senses. He gave an embarrassed smile.

"By the way, Mr. Lee Stein, did you come to the Power Department because you need help with something?"

"Don't worry about it, Max. I've learned a lot from what you've said."

After glancing at the system notification that his Mechanical Knowledge had increased, Li Si smiled and explained why he'd come. "Actually, I want to make a few little gadgets. I need some metal and wires, and I'd also like to borrow some tools."

"No problem. Leave it to me. We've got all kinds of common parts here. If there's anything else you need, just tell me and I'll buy it for you."

Max smiled broadly and thumped his chest as he promised. Then he pulled a black toolbox from beneath the desk. It was packed with all sorts of metal parts, wires, pliers, and other tools.

He also opened several drawers on the left side of his desk, which were crammed with all kinds of parts. Since he often had to repair circuits and ordinary equipment, he kept a full stock of supplies.

"Thanks a lot, my friend. I don't need much, and you have everything I need."

Li Si thanked him politely, then picked out the parts he needed and got to work.

As they worked, the usually taciturn Max seemed to transform into a chatterbox, repeatedly exclaiming and offering suggestions. He was almost more excited than Li Si.

"Oh my God, what a genius design! Mr. Lee Stein, is this for self-defense?"

"That's not a good idea. Why would you shock yourself? Self-harm isn't a good idea. You should try to be more optimistic."

"All right, I get it. Actually, you can lower the voltage by two volts. That would be a safe enough voltage, and still effective."

"Success! This is a great idea. Maybe you can keep refining it. New York's young people would love a cool toy like this... Uh, I mean, a self-defense weapon."

Max was a bit of a chatterbox, but with his help, Li Si finished much faster than expected. Max could easily calculate all the parameters in his head, and it took less than half an hour to make what Li Si had designed.

"Thanks a lot, Max!"

Li Si was in a great mood now that he'd finished making it.

There was no denying that being friends with someone like Max was a pleasure. His attempts to fill the silence by talking could be a bit annoying, but at least Li Si didn't have to worry about Max scheming against him or betraying him.

Li Si picked up his homemade secret weapon and prepared to leave. Just as he reached the door, he had a thought, stopped, and turned around.

"Max!"

"Mr. Lee Stein, is there something else?"

Max was still standing where he was, watching Li Si leave. When he saw Li Si turn around and call out to him, his face brightened again.

"Just call me Li. We're friends, aren't we?"

Li Si smiled helplessly. "I wanted to ask if you'd like to come over to my place. I'm working on a project that might need your help."

"Come over?"

Max's mind filtered out everything Li Si said after those words. He replied, overjoyed, "Of course! I'd love to, Li!"

"Then I'll see you after work. Oh, no—I've still got a few things to do after work, so you might have to wait a little!"

"No problem, Li. I've got plenty of free time after work."

"Alright, then let's meet at the company entrance once I'm done."

Li Si smiled and waved as he stepped into the elevator.