The feud between Lu Zhou and ExxonMobil was an old story.
Actually, if it wasn't for that thesis being dug up again, this matter would have been over.
However, the problem was that not only was the paper dug out, but it was also turned from worthless to a trillion-dollar market …
The other side of the Pacific.
Somewhere in the White House.
Woods pushed away the assistant who was trying to stop him and quickly walked into the office. He slammed his hand on the table and stared at Kevin, the White House Chief of Staff, who was sitting across from him. He said word by word.
"I want to see the president!"
Kevin looked at Woods, who was standing in front of his desk. He put down the pen in his hand and sighed.
"The President is not in the White House now. I'm afraid he doesn't have time to see you. I will pass on your request to His Excellency the President, if your request is within the scope of reason. "
ExxonMobil was one of the financiers of their party. Although they didn't necessarily have to listen to their financier, if it wasn't necessary, no one wanted to offend Franklin …
Seeing that the chief of staff didn't pay attention to his speech, Woods took a deep breath, stared at him, and continued speaking quickly.
"Listen, the lithium-air battery patent originally belonged to us, but they used underhanded means to steal it from us! This is blatant commercial fraud! "
Even though he had been in politics for so many years and had developed a thick skin that was as thick as a city wall, but listening to Wu Ci's words, Kevin still could not help but feel speechless.
They even resorted to commercial fraud …
The patent transfer contract was clearly written in black and white. How could anyone force you to sign this contract?
"So what do you want me to do? Convince the president and Congress to change the law? "
Woods opened his mouth and was speechless for a moment.
In fact, he couldn't think of any good ideas.
Prior to coming here, ExxonMobil's salesmen had been to Shanghai several times. They even offered ten times the price that Star Sky Technology paid for the patent, but they still failed to buy back the caged carbon molecule patent …
Looking at Woods who did not speak, Kevin sighed and said, "Maybe you should seriously think about it before coming to me."
Seeing that Mr. President's chief of staff didn't seem to want to help him, Woods took a deep breath, stared into his eyes, and continued to speak.
"Listen, lithium-air battery technology is very important. I'm sure I don't need to tell you, right? Because of lithium-sulfur batteries, our energy industry is already lagging behind China. If we let them master lithium-air battery technology, we will fall into the abyss. Do you understand what I'm saying?
"The patent might only last for twenty years or so, but as long as they continue to suck our blood and use the nutrients they suck from us to nurture their own R&D capabilities, we will forever lose the chance to surpass them. We will always be twenty years behind them! They could only continue to pay for their backwardness! Just like the predicament the Chinese are facing in the semiconductor industry! "
"In order to avoid falling into this abyss of eternal damnation, no matter what method we use, we must do something!"
Kevin frowned slightly.
Even though in his opinion, the ExxonMobil CEO was just venting his anger at China, one sentence caught his attention.
If China continued to lead the new energy industry, it would not be a good thing for the US.
Especially when China had the trump card of controllable nuclear fusion …
Just as Kevin was thinking about how he should report this matter to the President, the office door suddenly opened.
The rude sound of the door opening interrupted Woods's chatter. A man in a checkered shirt walked in quickly and spoke in the same tone as Woods.
"I want to see the president!"
Kevin's expression was a little strange. He glanced at Musk, who was standing at the door, and said after composing himself.
"About half an hour ago, someone said the same thing, how about … you guys discuss it in private?"
Musk looked at Woods and thought for a while. He couldn't remember who this person was, so he took a deep breath and looked at Kevin.
"Listen, no matter what this gentleman said, I'm going to say something very important, important enough for you to stop what you're doing and wait for me to finish —"
Kevin: "Let me guess, is it related to the new energy industry?"
Musk paused for a second and snapped his fingers.
"That's right! Or more accurately, lithium-air batteries! If you've been paying attention to the news, you should know what those damn China people did! They bundled lithium-air batteries and wireless charging, two unrelated technologies, and forced us to accept their standards … This is just like … "
Musk opened and closed his mouth. He struggled for a long time before he found the right words to say. He then spat out the emotions that were stuck in his throat.
"… It's like forcing us to eat sh * t!"
"Pu!"
Woods, who was standing next to him, almost couldn't help but laugh at this analogy. This funny expression really looked like he had eaten something he shouldn't have.
It wasn't until the other two people in the office looked at him that Woods realized his gaffe. He quickly coughed and put on a serious expression.
"I'm sorry … I sympathize with what you've been through."
Musk opened his mouth and was about to say something.
But at this moment, Kevin, who was sitting behind the desk, pushed his chair away and stood up.
"Alright, gentlemen, today's meeting will end here. I still have a very important meeting to attend in a while, so I can't discuss endlessly with you all."
He glanced at Woods and then at Musk. He held his breath and thought for a few seconds before he continued.
"I understand what you guys are trying to say. Star Sky Technology is a threat, am I right?"
Musk and Woods nodded their heads and gritted their teeth.
"That's right, they're not just a threat, they're a cancer!"
"Yes, if I have to add another sentence, it's a shameful thief! Thieves! "
"Okay, gentlemen, the White House will take this matter seriously!" Kevin nodded with a serious expression. "We will ask the Ministry of Commerce to seriously investigate the patent acquisition case six years ago, as well as the suspected illegal use of patents and unfair competition provisions in the SH standard. If the situation is true, we will give you a satisfactory answer!"
When Musk heard this, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
Even though this wasn't 100% satisfactory, it was at least 80% satisfactory.
As long as the Ministry of Commerce could label Star Sky Technology as a monopoly company, most of the problems could be solved.
After all, an antitrust investigation by the US Department of Commerce was no joke.
If Star Sky Technology was targeted by those antitrust companies, they would have to pay a price …
Musk had no doubt about that.
…
The meeting was over.
Woods reluctantly got a satisfactory answer. He walked out of the White House with a tired face and got into the black limousine at the gate.
A man in a black suit sitting opposite him asked in a calm voice.
"What's the situation?"
Woods seemed to be a little scared of this man. He wasn't as aggressive as he was in the chief of staff's office. Instead, he spoke in a cautious tone.
"The White House seems to recognize the importance of the problem. They plan on launching an antitrust investigation against Star Sky Technology. I just saw the CEO of Tesla … Did you ask him to come? "
"No." Lawrence casually turned around and nodded to the driver. He then looked at the CEO sitting across from him and said, "I didn't instruct him to do anything, but they obviously made the right choice."
Woods frowned and said, "Are you that optimistic about Tesla's charging station business in China? With all due respect, the Chinese market may be huge, but this is a public utility that's related to national security … Even if they're willing to make some changes and open up to private enterprises, they may not necessarily allow a foreign company to control Shanghai's power output port. "
"Mr. Woods, I want to ask you to think about a question." Lawrence smiled carelessly and said in a relaxed tone, "If the White House changes owners every four years, how can we ensure that each president is a good person who can take care of us?"
Woods furrowed his brows.
"This is a technical problem. First, we have to conduct a survey of voter support in each state, and then —"
"It's not as complicated as you think."
Lawrence shook his head and raised two fingers. It was like he was making a victory sign. He gently waved his fingers in front of the CEO.
"In conclusion, just bet on both sides."
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