Boyfriend Always Thinks I’m a Little Pitiful Chapter 77

Among the many booths, students from different universities across the country were busy adjusting their entries, preparing for today's finals.

At the Blue University booth, a guy noticed some parts were missing and anxiously asked his companion, "Where are the legs?! Why are the legs missing?!"

The other students, both male and female, looked over and saw that the robot was missing two of its four legs. Forget about demonstrating its functions; it couldn't even stand properly.

"Damn! Who's the genius that took the legs off? Didn't we check everything before leaving the lab yesterday?"

"Could they have fallen off on the way?"

"It's not a toy; how could they just fall off?"

A short-haired girl suddenly remembered something, slapped her forehead, and said to them, "Yesterday, Xiao Qi said there was a problem with the leg joint wiring and took them off for adjustments! If they're not in the box, they must still be in the lab!"

The guy who first noticed the problem checked the time, "I'll go get them. If any staff come by, explain the situation to them."

"I'll go," the short-haired girl said as she was already walking out of the booth, "I know where Xiao Qi would have put them."

The girl ran quickly, the badge hanging around her neck swinging back and forth. Annoyed by it, she took it off and stuffed it into her jacket pocket.

When she reached the lab, she found the door unlocked and looked around in confusion.

Who else would be in the lab at this time? Wasn't Xiao Qi resting in the dorm with a fever?

A tall man stood at the workbench with his back to her. His suit fit perfectly, and his right hand, raised, had well-proportioned and long fingers, reminding her of the pianist's hands she had seen at a concert a few days ago. The slightly pulled-back sleeve revealed the upper half of a watch, and upon closer inspection, wow, it was a watch worth millions!

Perhaps hearing her footsteps, the man turned his head to look at her, and the girl's pupils shrank, instantly hit by a visual shock.

The man had a cold and stern appearance, exuding a deep and imposing aura. Just a casual glance from him made her both nervous and scared, even too timid to meet his gaze.

"Xie, Xie Shixiong?" The girl didn't even realize she was stuttering, "Why are you here?"

Xie Ci saw it was a student from the lab and put down the mechanical half-finished product in his hand, "Just came to see what interesting things you've made. The competition is about to start, why are you still here?"

Reminded by him, the girl snapped back to reality and quickly ran inside, "The parts for the entry were left here, I came to get them."

Grabbing the two legs of the robot, the girl quickly ran out. At the door, she turned and asked Xie Ci, "Will you come to watch our competition?"

"I'll be there," Xie Ci's gaze swept over the casually placed mechanical parts on the workbench, and he said casually, "I'll lock the door, you go ahead."

"Okay!"

The girl hurried back to the gymnasium, handed the two mechanical legs to her companions, and leaned against the nearby table, panting heavily. Excitedly, she told them, "I just saw Xie Shixiong! He said he'll come later!"

Another sophomore boy looked puzzled, "Who's Xie Shixiong?"

"Xie Ci! The big shot from our Blue University's Artificial Intelligence Research Institute!"

The girl spoke with a hint of pride, "He got dual degrees in Physics and Artificial Intelligence Engineering in Country M, and after returning to the country, he joined our Blue University Research Institute. But he often travels back and forth between countries, and we haven't seen him for two or three months."

The other students joined in the conversation.

"Although Shixiong never mentions it, I think he must have connections with some research labs in Country M."

"With his abilities, Country M wouldn't want him to come back and develop here."

"I once saw our principal, who always has a sour face, nodding and bowing in front of Shixiong like a little brother, probably trying to keep him here."

"Xie Shixiong is still so handsome."

The girl sighed, "If he had come back earlier to join us, we would definitely win this competition."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Not to mention, Xie Ci has quite a few technical patents in the field of artificial intelligence, and his level is more than enough to handle this kind of competition.

The guy who was adjusting the robot stood up and looked at them strangely, "Do you guys really not know or are you just being abstract?"

The group looked at him in confusion, waiting for him to continue.

The guy said, "Xie Shixiong is the investor! The sponsor of this Technology Innovation Competition! Our prize money is coming out of his pocket! How could he compete with us?"

The group of students widened their eyes in disbelief.

Sponsor?!

Sponsoring a national-level competition, how much money does that take?!

"He is indeed a rich second generation. The watch on his wrist is worth a house," the girl said in a daze.

"Being able to study abroad at a prestigious university, his family must be well-off."

"Honestly, Shixiong doesn't look like he comes from an ordinary family. Even the way he walks is different from us poor folks."

"He usually dresses casually and is very low-key. I didn't expect his family to own a mine!"

"What rich second generation? His dad is a painter, and last year one of his works was auctioned for over a hundred million in Country D, but—"

The guy pushed up his glasses on his nose, "Xie Shixiong's net worth is more than a hundred times his dad's. He was already an entrepreneur when he was in college."

The group of students: "What the hell?!"

The guy added, "By the way, the new teaching building under construction is also donated by Xie Shixiong."

The group of students: "What the hell?!!!"

At this point, the guy picked up the badge on his chest and pointed to the sponsor logo on it, "See this DR Group logo? Xie Shixiong is the president of the group, and Fenghui Technology is a tech company under DR, focusing on artificial intelligence product development. I'm working my ass off on this competition entry because if I get into the top three, I can get an offer from Fenghui."

The group of students was dumbfounded.

Fenghui Technology is their dream company, but the threshold is too high.

And now they're being told that the boss of that company is actually Xie Ci?!

"He's here!" A student pointed in a direction.

Everyone looked over, and Xie Ci was walking in, surrounded by school leaders and organizers, along with a few other sponsors.

Among a group of old men, he stood out as particularly handsome.

Xie Ci was used to listening to the old men ramble, whether it was flattery or self-praise, the purpose was always to get him to invest money.

He didn't need to be a judge, only stopping at booths that interested him, occasionally asking the participating students a question or two about their projects.

The students didn't know who he was, only feeling that his questions were very professional, afraid of answering poorly. Plus, he wasn't wearing a work badge, which made them even more hesitant.

Before Xie Ci could explain, a few staff members from the organizers quickly explained, afraid of offending the big sponsor.

One university's entry was in the field of autonomous driving for motor vehicles. The organizers noticed that Xie Ci lingered the longest there and made small talk, "President Xie, are you interested in autonomous driving?"

Xie Ci replied, "Intelligent driving for motor vehicles is a big trend, and I'm indeed quite interested."

Among the sponsors was a local tech company from Blue Sea City. The person in charge, hearing this, chimed in, "Then have you heard of the Dolphin System developed by Feihong Group?"

Five years ago, Feihong Group quietly acquired a struggling tech company. A year ago, they suddenly started promoting their developed in-car intelligent driving system, Dolphin. Recently, it was reported that they had reached an agreement with car manufacturers and were about to launch the first autonomous vehicle, Dolphin 1.0, with a new product launch and test results to be announced in half a month.

"I know about it."

Xie Ci nodded, his tone casual, "I've already received an invitation to the new product launch. The test performance of Dolphin 1.0 is worth looking forward to. If there's a chance, I'd love to collaborate with Feihong."

This statement made the smaller sponsors and organizers extremely envious.

DR is a powerful entity, a big capital player. If they could successfully collaborate, they'd never have to worry about money again.

"I remember the Rongyu Group in Country D is a pioneer in autonomous driving, right?"

Someone else continued the topic, "Their Shark System is said to be very impressive, and Rongyu even has its own car manufacturer, capable of independently developing autonomous vehicles."

As they walked, Xie Ci listened to their conversation and casually added, "Recently, the media in Country D exposed that the Shark System's obstacle avoidance algorithm has issues. It's not the best version yet. I have more faith in Dolphin."

When they reached the Blue University booth, the students demonstrated their project's functions to the judges, frequently glancing at Xie Ci, unable to contain their excitement.

Having Shixiong as the investor, who wouldn't understand this kind of thrill?

After the demonstration, a girl standing at the edge quietly asked Xie Ci, "President Xie, why is your company called DR? Is there a story behind it?"

She had just asked when she received a sharp look from the school leader.

Xie Ci didn't find it bothersome and casually explained, "When registering the company, my partner and I agreed that each of us would come up with a word for the company name. D stands for dream, and R stands for rebirth."

The girl, a bit embarrassed, asked, "Did you come up with 'dream'?"

"No," Xie Ci patiently replied, "That was my partner's idea. His dream was to earn enough money for his son's milk powder."

This made everyone laugh.

After laughing, they felt like crying.

Earning milk powder money and ending up with a big group, who else could do that? Why don't they have the skills and luck?

Xie Ci didn't plan to stay until the competition ended. After seeing what he wanted, he was ready to leave.

The group of old men noticed his intention and kept trying to engage him in conversation to keep him there.

"It's a rare opportunity, why don't we all have dinner together tonight?"

One sponsor suggested, "I'll have a private room reserved at Yunxi."

Yunxi is a high-end club with many entertainment options. As long as you can afford it, they offer exclusive services. It's expensive and unreasonable, a gathering place for rich second generations and bosses.

Everyone else agreed, secretly glancing at Xie Ci, waiting for him to nod.

"Sorry, President Xie has other plans," Wang Yu, the assistant beside Xie Ci, declined.

The faces of the sponsor bosses fell.

They had come personally after hearing that the president of DR would be here, hoping to build a good relationship with this big investor for future cooperation.

How can they discuss cooperation without sitting down for a few drinks?

Seeing no change in Xie Ci's expression, one old man, gathering his courage, smiled and said, "President Xie, managing such a large group must be busy, but proper relaxation can lead to better work."

Others, seeing this, also subtly encouraged Xie Ci to join in the fun.

No matter how difficult a person is, once you've had fun together, you're halfway there.

Despite being rejected, they still shamelessly tried to cozy up, making Wang Yu a bit displeased, "President Xie doesn't go to such places."

This blunt statement made the atmosphere tense.

The organizers, seeing the discord between the big and small sponsors, hurriedly tried to smooth things over with smiles.

"My partner doesn't allow me to go."

Xie Ci nodded to the old men and left with his assistant.

The group of old men: "...???"

They hadn't heard that President Xie was afraid of his partner.

The group of Blue University students: "...???!!!"

Does Xie Shixiong have a girlfriend?!

Sitting in the back seat of the car, Xie Ci checked the time. It should be around 8 a.m. in Country D, and that kid Gu Yufeng might not be up yet.