Knowledge Is Power!

Gao Yuan's family was in Shaoxing.

Back then, his father, Gao Xiangnan, had originally been from the north. He came to Shaoxing while serving in the military and, by a twist of fate, met Gao Yuan's mother.

After leaving the army, Gao Xiangnan traveled between north and south with his wife and son. It was only in the past decade or so, after opening a factory, that they officially settled down in Shaoxing.

People often joked about this, saying that since Gao Xiangnan had the words "heading south" in his name, he had indeed ended up leaving his hometown and moving to the south.

Because of this family background, Gao Yuan's tastes and habits were quite varied. He liked the light dishes of the south, but he also happily ate garlic and scallions dipped in soybean paste. He could drink yellow wine and baijiu, though beer was still Gao Yuan's favorite.

He unlocked the door, only to find that no one was home in broad daylight.

At first, Gao Yuan did not think much of it. His father had always been busy, and as for his mother, perhaps she had gone visiting.

But when Gao Yuan entered the kitchen, he immediately sensed that something was wrong. The family clearly had not cooked for two or three days. There were not even any leftovers in the refrigerator, and the vegetables left in the corner had gone moldy.

Gao Yuan hurriedly called his mother. When she heard that her son was already home and realized she could no longer hide it, she hesitantly told him about his father's hospitalization.

Gao Yuan was horrified, scared out of his wits. He tossed down his suitcase and rushed straight to the hospital.

"How could you not tell me about something this serious?" Gao Yuan complained when he saw his mother in the hospital corridor.

"I thought you were busy with work and didn't want to trouble you," his mother said softly.

"What exactly happened? Is Dad going to be okay?" Gao Yuan asked anxiously. He suddenly felt fortunate that he had quit his job on impulse.

"Your father never paid much attention to his health. He often stayed up late, and his food was always too oily and salty. The doctor said he had a Cerebral Infarction this time. It isn't life-threatening, but..."

His mother trailed off. Gao Yuan grew frantic and pressed her again.

"You'll understand when you see him yourself," his mother said helplessly.

He pushed open the ward door and saw that it was a room for three patients. Gao Xiangnan was by the window, reclining against the bed with a pillow stuffed behind his waist, staring outside.

When he saw Gao Yuan, a kindly expression appeared on his face. He spoke haltingly. It was not that he could not speak at all; his tongue was simply a little stiff, making his accent sound very strange.

After comforting his father for a few moments, Gao Yuan found the doctor and learned that his father had developed aftereffects from the Cerebral Infarction, affecting both his speech and movements.

From the looks of it, his father could still eat and use the bathroom by himself without any problem. But he could no longer handle complicated tasks like driving or typing properly.

It was a blessing amid misfortune. At least he could still play mahjong and enjoy his old age. Many Cerebral Infarction patients never got back on their feet, and quite a few ended up half-paralyzed.

Since Gao Yuan had returned, his mother asked him to stay in the ward while she went home to cook and take care of the housework.

If nothing unexpected happened, his father could be discharged in a few days. His mother was a diligent woman, always worrying about every little thing at home.

In the blink of an eye, it was the next day. After staying up all night to watch over his father, Gao Yuan bought soy milk, fried dough sticks, and zongzi from outside for breakfast.

At around eight o'clock, his mother came to the hospital as well. His father slowly opened the drawer and took out the car keys, handing them to Gao Yuan.

"I probably won't be able to drive anymore. Take them. While you're at it, go check on the factory."

The words were simple enough, yet his father spoke them with great difficulty. Only when Gao Yuan nodded in agreement did Gao Xiangnan finally relax. With his mother supporting him, he went to the garden to sit in the sun.

Gao Yuan suddenly felt a pang of sorrow. His father, a former soldier who had always been fiercely competitive, would probably have nothing to do from now on but fish and take walks. At most, he could grow some flowers and plants.

Life really was unpredictable.

His father's car was a Honda Accord that had been driven for more than ten years. It still performed well, but it looked antique inside and out. Both its interior and exterior had long fallen behind the trends of the day.

Gao Yuan was still quite satisfied. It might have been old, but at least it had four wheels. The wind could not blow on him, and the rain could not soak him. How was it not better than his Yadea electric scooter?

Gao Yuan drove all the way to Kunlun Textile Fabric Factory on the outskirts of town.

Though the name sounded imposing and the factory covered a considerable area, its outer walls looked somewhat weathered and mottled. The main gate was shut tight, and the factory was silent.

Gao Yuan knocked on the gate and learned from Uncle Liu, the gatekeeper, that the factory had been on holiday for over half a month because there was no business.

They had originally planned to resume work a few days ago, but Gao Xiangnan had suddenly suffered a Cerebral Infarction and been hospitalized, so the matter had been left unresolved.

Quite a few workers had asked Uncle Liu to pass along a message to Gao Yuan's father. They said they did not plan to keep working and would wait until Gao Xiangnan was discharged to settle their wages.

"The workers all have families to support. Keeping the factory shut down isn't a solution," Uncle Liu explained to Gao Yuan, then asked about Gao Xiangnan's condition.

"My dad is fine. He'll be discharged in a few days, but I'm afraid he won't be able to manage the factory anymore. The doctor said he needs to rest and recover," Gao Yuan said.

"Ah, who could have expected this? Your dad is still so young. Business must have been bad lately, and the stress got to him," Uncle Liu sighed. "But luckily, he still has you. You've graduated from college and grown up now."

Gao Yuan smiled. "By the way, Uncle Liu, you have the laboratory key, right?"

"I do, I do. I'll get it for you right away."

Before long, Gao Yuan took the key and entered the laboratory.

Grassroots businessmen like Gao Yuan's father often had no real plan when it came to running a business. They would dabble in this and that, and whenever they made some money, they would pour it right back into the factory.

This chemical fiber laboratory was something Gao Yuan's father had set up after being urged on by others. He had invested several hundred thousand yuan in it. They said a factory could not merely produce fabric—it also had to conduct research and development, because a company's R&D capability was the core of its competitiveness.

Thinking about it now, wasn't that nonsense? Rather than pouring money into research and development, small manufacturing companies were better off controlling their costs.

Even taking a step back, if his father had used the money he had invested in the factory over the years to buy property, the Gao family would have become rich long ago. Why the hell keep running a factory? It was thankless work, nothing like the easy profits from real estate speculation.

Arabian Nights?

Don't say that. If you truly understood this society, you would discover that reality was far more fantastical than Arabian Nights.

Single-fiber electronic tensile tester, fineness tester, dry-heat shrinkage tester, crimp elasticity tester, yarn filament tensile strength and elongation tester, XCP-1A, XGD-1 fineness analyzer, vibration fineness tester, linear density tester, electronic tensile machine, fabric drape tester...

Gao Yuan was stunned. He had never imagined that, as a computer science graduate, he would understand every single complicated and bizarre device in this chemical fiber laboratory inside and out.

"This is amazing! This is the power of knowledge!" Gao Yuan shouted excitedly.

If you thought the Future Technology System had simply crammed blueprints and formulas into Gao Yuan's brain, then you were wrong.

In truth, the Future Technology System had installed an entire body of related knowledge in Gao Yuan's mind for the development of High-Tech Quick-Dry Fabric.

In this day and age, what was knowledge?

Knowledge was wealth, the most important capital a person could rely on to survive and establish themselves!

Even if Gao Yuan failed in this venture, the remarkable knowledge in his mind would still be enough to help him find a well-paying job in the future.

"I hit the jackpot. I really hit the jackpot this time!"

Thinking of the limitless possibilities ahead, Gao Yuan was overjoyed.

But he quickly calmed down. Though he had made a good start, whether he succeeded or failed would still depend on hard work and perseverance.

"Enough talk. Roll up your sleeves and get to work!" Gao Yuan encouraged himself.

From that day on, aside from visiting his father at the hospital each day, Gao Yuan shut himself away in the laboratory, immersing himself in the world of chemical fibers.