Humans Have It, We Don't: The Tragedy of Kevlar!

Gao Yuan's words were more than a hint; they were practically spelling it out for Han Chang: Kunlun Company's X3 type fiber very likely possessed properties similar to Kevlar!

"Kevlar? How is that possible!?"

"Didn't you guys research elastic fibers? How did you pivot to bulletproof materials?"

Gao Yuan chuckled, "What's impossible about it?"

"X1 Fiber has one model, X2 Fiber has two. Why can't X3 Fiber have three, or even more models?"

"And do you know what the most interesting thing about fibers is?"

"Fibers with different properties can be combined."

"For example, when X1 type fiber and X3 type fiber are combined, you get a highly elastic, quick-drying fabric. With a slight adjustment, pushing the dehydration performance to the extreme, it becomes swimwear fabric that surpasses sharkskin."

"So you see, fibers aren't fixed. The more types of fibers we master, the more products with different performance characteristics we can produce according to demand."

"Recently, I've been thinking about injecting X3 type fiber into rubber to create a high-elasticity sole, improving ordinary people's jumping ability, or achieving extreme lightweighting to make marathon running shoes..."

Han Chang was stunned. Gao Yuan had shown him the incredible potential of X fibers. Jumping shoes? Would ordinary people be able to dunk with them?

They seemed so powerful. Once you have black technology, can you really do whatever you want?

"I wouldn't guarantee you can do whatever you want, but it's pretty close," Gao Yuan said after a moment's thought. "From a scientific perspective, love comes from a hormone called phenethylamine. Phenethylamine only has a shelf life of 18 to 36 months for the same stimulus, which is why people get bored and seek novelty."

"In ancient times, when our ancestors fancied a woman, they'd knock her out with a club and drag her back to a cave. That method was too barbaric. As civilized modern people, we could actually inject the woman we like with phenethylamine and then drag her back to the cave."

"Of course, if you find women too troublesome, that's not a problem either. Robotics can fulfill the need for companionship, and pleasure comes from a hormone called dopamine. As long as you regularly inject dopamine, I guarantee you'll feel amazing every day..."

Ugh...

Although Han Chang worked in logistics, he was still a soldier. Gao Yuan's nonsensical rambling made him feel dizzy and disoriented.

Han Chang mused that tech geeks were indeed the scariest creatures in the world. If Gao Yuan were to become the ruler of Earth one day, their world might truly become amazing...

"Let's get serious," Han Chang quickly told Gao Yuan to stop. He asked gravely, "When can the samples get to me?"

Gao Yuan replied, "Tomorrow noon."

"Excellent!" Han Chang said excitedly. "I'll arrange the testing team right away. As soon as the samples arrive tomorrow, they'll go straight to the testing line."

Suddenly~

Han Chang frowned and said to Gao Yuan, "However, once this product passes testing, you won't be able to sell it to the public. It will cause you economic losses. You should be aware of this, right?"

Gao Yuan was unconcerned, "I know, I know. Military supplies can't be sold freely to civilians. All countries attach great importance to protective materials. DuPont's Kevlar is banned from import to our country, and their technology is completely blocked.

"It's quite frustrating to think about it. Materials science is the foundation of all industry. If you can't do materials science well, you can't even make a simple bulletproof vest, let alone anything else."

"Honestly, since I'm sending this to you, I'm prepared to lose it. If you think it's good, keep it."

Gao Yuan's tone was relaxed, but Han Chang felt a stir in his heart.

Gao Yuan was young, cheerful, and dedicated to basic materials research – truly rare.

After a brief silence, Han Chang's tone became much warmer. "You know, for something this important, you didn't even tell me in advance. Why did you send it by courier? You should have notified me, and I would have sent someone to pick it up."

Gao Yuan frowned, "Is it that big of a deal? It's just over a dozen boxes of bulletproof fiber. I wanted to give you a surprise! Plus, I specifically used SF Express. The shipping cost is much higher than other companies."

Han Chang was speechless. It was normal for Gao Yuan, an ordinary citizen, not to understand the importance of bulletproof fiber. Sending it via SF Express showed he still had some sense of secrecy.

"Never mind. Give me the tracking number, and I'll handle the rest," Han Chang said sternly.

Gao Yuan didn't actually know the tracking number. He never handled these trivial matters; he always left them to his chief steward, Cao Feiyu.

So, Gao Yuan asked Han Chang to wait and hurried into Cao Feiyu's office. After finding the tracking number, he sent it to Han Chang. Han Chang then reminded Gao Yuan to protect the remaining materials in the lab and the chemical formulation plans, and to wait for the test results.

Gao Yuan readily agreed. As he hung up the phone, he saw Cao Feiyu squinting at him.

"You animal, what are you looking at me for?"

"You haven't shaved."

"Uh..." Gao Yuan blinked and reached to touch his chin, indeed feeling a short stubble.

"You seem to be in a good mood. What's up? Did you finish everything?" Cao Feiyu asked again.

Gao Yuan nodded, a look of relief on his face. "It's all done. From X1 to X3, the three major fiber series are our foundation. Combined, they can create hundreds of varieties, which is more than enough for the apparel fabric market."

"If we want to develop further, we'll need to expand into specialized fields like bulletproof vests."

"In short, our company's basic structure is in place. Things will be a bit easier from now on. I can take a vacation or something. I promised my parents I'd take them to Sanya once I made some money."

Cao Feiyu nodded slightly, then said casually, "Whatever. Six months ago, you also promised to treat Jiang Yuanyuan to hot pot."

Pfft~

Gao Yuan's face instantly turned red.

Cao Feiyu shrugged indifferently, "Don't look at me. I ran into Fan Xiaoyun at the mall a while ago when I was investigating the market share of X Fiber. Fan Xiaoyun and Jiang Yuanyuan are best friends."

Gao Yuan grumbled unhappily, "It's just one meal. Jiang Yuanyuan is really petty, talking about it to others."

Cao Feiyu shook his head gently. "Petty? She was clearly showing off. If you treat someone to hot pot, no one cares. But if the richest man in Shaoxing is treating, that's a different story. Jiang Yuanyuan telling her best friend would make her feel very proud."

"After all, you're a big shot now. During class reunions, the girls would talk about you. Reporters even went to find our classmates to investigate your gossip from school."

Gao Yuan was stunned, finding it hard to accept this change.

Suddenly, he snapped back to attention and asked quietly, "Right, you said earlier, who is Shaoxing's richest person?"

"You are," Cao Feiyu said, lifting his chin slightly.

Imperial Capital.

Han Chang stood outside the door, tidied his appearance, took a deep breath, and then knocked on Ding Songlin's office door.

"Come in!"

"Little Han," Ding Songlin looked up briefly before lowering his gaze back to the nautical chart on the coffee table. "Ah, if only we had reclaimed a few more islands in the South China Sea. Those things are like giant, unsinkable aircraft carriers."

"What is it you're here for?"

Han Chang was long accustomed to his superior's obsession with tactics. He said gravely, "Gao Yuan from Kunlun Company just called. He said they've sent us a batch of bulletproof fiber through SF Express and hope we'll test it."

"Bulletproof fiber?" Ding Songlin blinked slightly and immediately asked, "What percentage of Kevlar's performance can it reach?"

As soon as he spoke, Ding Songlin felt something was off. What did he mean by "what percentage of Kevlar's performance can it reach?" The phrasing was clearly awkward and sounded dismissive.

But there was no help for it. For so many years, Kevlar had been strictly technologically blockaded by Huaxia. They couldn't buy it, nor could they reverse-engineer it. This issue had become a major headache for the Equipment Department.

Except for a few military enthusiasts, most people didn't know this fact: although China exported 70% of the world's bulletproof vests, none of them were made of Kevlar.

Even the bulletproof vests currently used by the PLA were not made of Kevlar.

To put it simply, the entire Huaxia military did not have Kevlar bulletproof vests, yet Kevlar was the most powerful bulletproof material in the world.

The Equipment Department had once obtained a batch of Kevlar from the international market. They could analyze it as an aramid chemical fiber, and that was that.

They didn't know Kevlar's spinning speed during production, its cross-sectional structure, or its post-treatment methods. They also didn't know the fiber's chemical composition, or the fusing and neutralizing agents used.

On forums, people often bragged about Huaxia exporting 70% of the world's bulletproof vests and Huaxia being able to produce bulletproof vests at rock-bottom prices.

Honestly, if people from the Equipment Department saw such posts, they would feel terrible.

Exporting a large volume of low-priced bulletproof vests and dominating the global market was, of course, a good thing, indicating strong industrial capabilities.

But the crucial point was, they didn't want their own soldiers to wear the same cheap bulletproof vests. They also wanted something expensive but powerful, but unfortunately, they never had it.

Facing Ding Songlin's question, Han Chang thought for a moment and frowned. "From what I know of Gao Yuan, and his dedication to technology, if he dares to send it directly to us for testing, its performance is likely no lower than Kevlar's, and possibly even superior."

"What!? Superior to Kevlar!?"

With a whoosh, Ding Songlin slammed his hand on the table and stood up, his eyes turning red.

From today onwards, Huawei's supply was officially cut off. It seemed the story I wrote in my previous book was gradually becoming reality.

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