The hospital, the ward
Three days later, Rong Jingyang slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was the white ceiling, and the smell of disinfectant filled his senses. He tried to sit up, but his body was weak.
"Master, don't move." Fan Yinghao quickly held Rong Jingyang's body down. "The doctor told you to rest more."
Thank heavens, the boss was finally awake!
Rong Jingyang: "..."
He let out a groan, feeling as if the world was spinning. Not only was his vision blurry and his head aching, but his body didn't even feel like his own.
The scene of his unconsciousness flooded his mind.
He had been beaten.
No, it was Du Ruoxin...
He hadn't even agreed to a divorce, and she was already eagerly lying beneath another man, offering herself.
"Pfft—"
Rong Jingyang couldn't suppress his violent coughing.
Fan Yinghao quickly soothed him, "Master, don't get agitated. I'll report everything to you slowly."
With every cough, Rong Jingyang felt as if a sharp knife was piercing his lungs, the pain making it impossible to breathe.
He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.
Seeing that his boss didn't seem as agitated as he expected, Fan Yinghao cautiously said, "The person who beat you was Cristiano."
"I've already shut down that farm and put the owner in prison, but Cristiano escaped."
That day, when he arrived at the farm with his men, Rong Jingyang, Mu Li, and Lin Xuanyao were all lying in pools of blood, their limbs crippled. Faced with such a tragic scene, Fan Yinghao had gone on a rampage.
An eye for an eye was the quickest way to settle a score.
However, China in the 21st century had long since transitioned from a dark society of fighting and killing to a civilized era.
Fan Yinghao did not cripple everyone at the farm. Instead, he acquired it with an iron fist and sent the farm owner to prison.
"Your injuries are quite serious. Your right hand and right leg are fractured, and you were shot in the left leg."
"The doctor said you might spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair."
"Master..."
Fan Yinghao's voice grew softer and softer, his eyes gradually turning red.
"Don't tell Mommy and Daddy," Rong Jingyang said, his voice trembling.
Fan Yinghao choked out, "No, I didn't say anything."
How could he dare to tell them that Master had been beaten so badly that he was almost paralyzed?
"Get out." Rong Jingyang rolled his Adam's apple, a surge of ferocity rising within him, only to dissipate instantly like a deflated balloon.
Fan Yinghao looked at his master's dejected state, his heart aching. He responded with a "Yes" and turned to leave.
But after only a few steps, he turned back. "Madam... is the adopted daughter of the Rothschild family, Cristiano's sister."
After Rong Jingyang's accident, he had immediately sent people to investigate the Rothschild family.
He learned that twelve years ago, Cristiano's mother had publicly announced the adoption of Du Ruoxin as her daughter.
Adopted daughter?!
Rong Jingyang's eyes snapped open, his bloodthirsty gaze filled with shock. "Cough, cough, cough—"
Du Ruoxin...
Du Ruoxin...
The scene of her and him in the recording studio flashed vividly in his mind. Rong Jingyang remembered how Du Ruoxin had trembled all over with fear when the actress, crying and begging, called out "Brother" and pleaded with him not to violate her.
Her fear, her terror, her loss of control – Rong Jingyang still remembered it all vividly.
Cristiano—
Du Ruoxin was afraid of him!
Therefore, she couldn't have slept with him.
Therefore, she must have been threatened by him!
Rong Jingyang's dark eyes were filled with rage. "Cristiano, for the insult of stealing my wife and the pain of my crippled legs, I, Rong Jingyang, will make you pay back a hundredfold, a thousandfold!"
—
One year later, the laboratory
When the first barrel of synthetic gasoline was successfully produced, Du Ruoxin excitedly hugged Grace, shouting and jumping, "We did it!"
"We did it!"
"We succeeded!"
After a full year of research, of constant trial and error day after day, she and her team had finally succeeded.
Carbon dioxide was abundant in the air, inexhaustible, and hydrogen was produced by electrolyzing water with direct current.
CO₂ + H₂, through repeated experiments, high-octane gasoline was finally produced.
"We did it," Grace said, her joy evident as she looked at the gasoline before her.
Beside them, a group of scientists were also weeping with joy.
Six years, over two thousand days and nights. They had gone from black hair to white, and finally succeeded in this groundbreaking technology.
From now on, there would be no need to worry about increased carbon dioxide causing the Earth's atmosphere to warm, leading to the melting of Antarctic glaciers, rising sea levels, and damage to the human environment and ecosystem.
Nor would there be any worry about what humans would use as fuel once non-renewable energy sources like petroleum were depleted.
The success of synthetic gasoline was undoubtedly of great historical significance.
...
Evening, the celebration banquet
As one of the core members and a key inventor of the team, Du Ruoxin received congratulations from government officials and investors of country M.
Some companies wanted to sign contracts with Du Ruoxin to monopolize the synthetic gasoline industry and thus gain enormous profits.
They offered her and her team generous compensation, a 10% profit share.
This meant that for every one hundred dollars of synthetic gasoline sold, Du Ruoxin and her team would receive ten dollars in patent royalties.
Considering the global daily oil consumption of 75 million barrels, she could become a world-class billionaire in minutes.
The conditions were tempting, very tempting, but Du Ruoxin smiled and refused.
She was not short of money.
As the daughter of the Rothschild family, albeit an illegitimate one, she had billions of dollars in her private account in the family bank, readily available for her to spend.
However, Du Ruoxin had never touched that card.
From the age of sixteen, she had worked her way through school, earning a substantial amount of wealth on her own. Four years ago, when she decided to escape Cristiano, she had entrusted everything to Nini to manage.
Now, it had multiplied countless times.
Therefore, whether it was US dollars, Euros, British Pounds, or Renminbi, they were just numbers to Du Ruoxin.
She had no interest in money.
After refusing several investors, Du Ruoxin was about to slip away when an official from country M approached her with a smile.
"Miss Du, I finally see you have some free time."
Du Ruoxin saw that it was the governor and politely bowed to him. "Sir, you flatter me."
The governor smiled, witty and humorous. "I never thought our scientist would be so young, beautiful, and charming. If I were twenty years younger, I would definitely pursue you."
Du Ruoxin just wanted to leave the banquet and had no intention of socializing or chatting with anyone.
However, she maintained a smile. "Sir, if your wife knew, she would surely have opinions about me."
The official was amused by Du Ruoxin's playful demeanor and threw his head back, laughing heartily.
After laughing for a while, he composed himself. "Miss Du, you are a rare talent. On behalf of country M, I sincerely invite you to join the National Academy of Sciences."
Du Ruoxin was not surprised by this invitation, as she had received repeated hints from this governor before the research was successful.
As usual, Du Ruoxin shook her head and refused. "Sir, we had an agreement, didn't we?"
One year ago, upon landing in country M.
Du Ruoxin had signed a contract with the entire research center. She wanted no compensation, no patents, only to bring this technology back to country A.
"Alas—"
The governor sighed deeply. "What a pity, I can't keep you."
Du Ruoxin extended her hand and smiled brightly. "Goodbye, I believe we will meet again in the future."
The governor said reluctantly, "Goodbye."
Watching Du Ruoxin walk away, her slender figure disappearing into the night, a hint of cunning flashed in his deep pupils.
[Du Ruoxin, do you really think you can return to country A alive?]
—
ps: Author's notes
Synthetic gasoline produced from carbon dioxide and hydrogen is a technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. I believe that one day in the future, we will definitely be able to use it.
This is for plot design purposes, please do not overthink it, dear readers.