Chapter 598 - 613: Coming Out of the Mountain

With the victory of Luo’s Pharmaceutical, Huaxia’s transformation was gradually noticed and taken seriously by the international community.

Electricity, technology, medicine.

Just when had Huaxia caught up to and surpassed them?

For a time, many countries began sending delegations to Huaxia. Some were sincere in seeking cooperation, while others were there to probe for strengths and weaknesses.

None of this was An Ning’s forte.

After Luo’s Pharmaceutical won its case, An Ning once again vanished from the public eye.

She had said it before: if you’re going to make money, make it from abroad.

One week after Luo’s Pharmaceutical’s victory, An Ning published three international papers and filed for five international patents.

One month after Luo’s Pharmaceutical’s victory, An Ning published five international papers and filed for thirteen international patents.

Two months after Luo’s Pharmaceutical’s victory, An Ning published seven international papers and filed for twenty-eight international patents.

Three months after Luo’s Pharmaceutical’s victory, An Ning published twelve international papers and filed for thirty-seven international patents.

When An Ning finally emerged after being buried in research at the institute for over three months, it was already summer.

She had missed the entire spring.

Standing at the entrance of the research institute, An Ning basked in the warmth of the sun.

"Such a beautiful season, and I just let it pass by."

’I wonder if the prize in my own backyard has been snatched away yet.’

Before entering the research institute, An Ning had contacted Jiang Xia once. But after that, her mind was solely focused on making money from abroad, and the two of them only spoke three times in three months.

This time, however, An Ning had a plan. She was determined to win over the prize in her backyard.

Full of confidence, An Ning hopped on her sky-blue electric scooter, put on a matching helmet, and set off.

On a wide, winding mountain road with little traffic, several supercars whizzed past, chasing each other and trading taunts.

A race among rich second-generation kids was quietly underway.

At the finish line, a large screen broadcast the race in real-time. A crowd of men and women in hot pants, sipping champagne, screamed and toasted at every thrilling turn.

"What’s that?"

"Didn’t they close the road? Weren’t there supposed to be no other cars?"

Everyone stared at the small blue electric scooter on the screen. Its two wheels weren’t even as big as one of the supercars’ steering wheels, yet it was steadily making its way along the edge of the road.

Riding along the mountain road, An Ning was still thinking, ’How come there are no cars today?’

"VROOOM—"

A red supercar sped past An Ning, the roar of its engine deafening. It made An Ning frown.

She moved further to the side and kept going.

"VROOOM—"

Another one went by. An Ning sensed something was off and glanced behind her.

"VROOOM—ASSHOLE!"

A hand shot out of a window, giving An Ning the finger.

The moment An Ning saw the gesture, her finger pressed a button on the electric scooter. With a ROAR, a flicker of flame seemed to flash across the scooter’s body, and the entire vehicle instantly accelerated.

"Holy shit! That’s impossible! Isn’t that an electric scooter?!"

"It’s catching up! It’s catching up!"

The people watching the screen were stunned, watching as the most inconspicuous electric scooter caught up to the yellow supercar ahead.

Once she caught up to the yellow supercar, An Ning turned the handlebars slightly, her scooter practically glued to the car’s side. No matter how the supercar accelerated, it couldn’t shake her.

Then, An Ning on her scooter did something terrifying. She steered with one hand while using the other to knock on the car window.

The window slowly rolled down, and the person inside shouted, "Are you cra— MMF—"

An Ning had grabbed the man’s steering wheel.

The man found he couldn’t turn the wheel at all, and a sharp turn was looming just ahead.

"You lunatic! Let go! Let go!"

"AHHHHH—"

Just as everyone thought the man was about to crash through the guardrail and fall off the cliff, An Ning gave a powerful yank. The car scraped past the cliff’s edge, one wheel visibly hanging in the air.

The driver instinctively slammed the brakes. The screech of tires, the man’s screams, and the sound of the car’s forward momentum all came to a halt as An Ning stopped.

The man in the car was dumbfounded. His limbs useless, he crawled out of the vehicle and sat on the ground, staring at An Ning.

"You’re insane!"

"No, I just wanted to have a word with you. You should have some manners."

The man wanted to cry. ’You pulled a stunt like that just to tell me this?’

"Aren’t you going to apologize?"

An Ning’s question made the man burst into tears with a loud WAH.

"AHHH— You lunatic! It’s just an apology, right?! I apologize, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!"

Looking at the man wailing on the ground, An Ning said consolingly, "If your nerves are this bad, you shouldn’t play such thrilling games next time."

"Goodbye."

Hopping back on her beloved little scooter, An Ning left.

Her speed was still slow, but her departing silhouette looked exceptionally cheerful.

A bizarre scene had unfolded during the race.

The other racers who were catching up had also witnessed An Ning’s maneuver.

After seeing it, they all meekly fell in line behind the electric scooter, not a single one daring to speed past.

An Ning was the first to cross the finish line. The crowd stood obediently on either side, no one daring to cheer.

What should have been a wild scene was rendered silent and tense by An Ning’s presence, like a school dean making their rounds.

Riding her little electric scooter, An Ning waved and said in a friendly tone, "Study hard and make progress every day."

That old saying never gets old.

Someone in the crowd, feeling defiant, was about to speak up but was pulled back by a more perceptive friend.

"What are you pulling me for? She’s just one person, what’s there to be afraid of?"

"Have you ever seen a scooter like that? Have you ever seen skills like that?"

The other guy shook his head.

"Then do you know what that means? She has access to unpublished technology."

Seeing that the other guy still didn’t quite get it, the speaker didn’t bother explaining further. Some people were just destined never to fit into certain circles.

These rich kids had money and loved to have fun, but most of them had received an education and had a level of perception that ordinary people couldn’t match.

Of course, there would always be a few degenerates. You could only say their genes were too stubborn to be improved.

An Ning’s departing figure was mysterious and powerful.

Riding her electric scooter, An Ning went all the way to Beijing, heading straight for Jiang Xia’s company.

Outside Jiang Xia’s company building, An Ning took out her phone and gave him a call.

After a couple of rings, the call connected.

"Jiang Xia, guess where I am?"

On the other end of the line, Jiang Xia shot up from his chair, walked over to the window, and looked down.

"You’re out?"

"What a way to put it. It’s not like I was ever locked up."

Jiang Xia chuckled, but he still couldn’t spot An Ning.

"Are you downstairs at my company?"

"Smart. I came to treat you to a meal. You in?"

You in?

Jiang Xia was already heading for the door. He said to his assistant, "Cancel all my afternoon appointments."

"Yes, President Jiang."

Special Assistant Zhang watched Jiang Xia’s hurried departure and knew there was only one possibility: An Ning, the patent magnate, was back.

At that thought, Special Assistant Zhang wondered when the bet their department had going would finally be settled.