Future Pet Shop

"Come, let me make some introductions. This is Mr. Shen Yibin. Mr. Shen is a great supporter of our scientific research. He has already established a research institute here in Yunzhong City, and it's received strong support from the government... Moreover, Mr. Shen plans to invest an initial two hundred million yuan for the institute's startup costs and will continue to provide funding in the future." After a short wait for everyone to arrive, Professor Wu Gui began the introductions.

At first, the two academic heavyweights just responded casually, but they couldn't contain themselves when they heard about the two hundred million yuan in funding. Li Yan's eyes went wide. "Two hundred million, really?" he asked.

'Hey, could you be a little more tactful? Asking like that is basically calling me a liar, isn't it? Are all researchers this out of touch with the real world?' Shen Yibin was at a loss for words. It was Professor Wu Gui who stepped in to save him. "Don't be fooled by Mr. Shen's youth. He's a billionaire now. A mere two hundred million is nothing to him."

In a typical business deal, empty promises wouldn't fly. You'd at least need to show proof of assets from a bank. Yet, these two actually believed it just because Professor Wu Gui said so. They immediately asked, "Mr. Shen, how do you plan to allocate this two hundred million? How much can be used for procuring equipment and for research expenses?"

"Well, while the government has granted us a plot of land, building the institute will cost money too. So, a few tens of millions will have to go toward construction. The rest..." Shen Yibin started to outline the uses for the two-hundred-million-yuan fund.

"Do the construction costs really need to be that high? As long as the building is habitable and can house the equipment, that should be enough, right? The funding should be spent where it counts!" 'Heh, they haven't even agreed to the offer, and they're already worrying about the budget. Looks like they're genuinely interested.' Shen Yibin felt a wave of relief wash over him.

"That's not the right way to look at it. Equipment and research funds are crucial, but the institute itself should be well-built. It won't just be your workplace; it will also be your home. With a better work and living environment, people are naturally in a better mood, which improves research efficiency. So, this is for the institute's benefit too!" Shen Yibin explained with a smile. "I've already invited the renowned Chinese design master, Mr. Wen Yuan, to handle the institute's landscape architecture and to consult on the bidding process. We're going to build the most beautiful research institute in the entire country." Shen Yibin had complete confidence in Wen Yuan's skills.

"Ai, what a waste, what a waste!" Zhu Xiang kept shaking his head, clearly pained by the thought of so much money being spent on architecture. He wasn't a young man, and his clothes looked rather shabby. He must have had plenty of headaches over funding in the past, so his reaction was perfectly understandable.

"You have to build a fine nest to attract a fine bird," Shen Yibin said with a smile, deciding not to press the point. Instead, he dangled another piece of bait. "If you two gentlemen are willing to join, we will grant each of you a fifty-million-yuan budget for equipment procurement and research. Of course, that's just the initial funding. If your research progress demands it, I will continue to provide additional funds." 'Besides,' Shen Yibin thought, 'I don't know the first thing about what equipment to buy. It's better to delegate that authority to them. The institute will have a professional accounting team for oversight, so I'm not worried about them getting any funny ideas.'

"Fifty million?! Are you serious?" A fifty-million-yuan research fund might be nothing to top-tier scholars like Shi Yigong and Rao Yi, but for Li Yan and Zhu Xiang, it was a different story entirely. This was almost more than their combined funding for the last several years!

"Of course. We can write it into the contract. If I don't deliver on my promise, you can hold me liable for breach of contract," Shen Yibin said with gravity.

The two of them looked back and forth between Shen Yibin and Professor Wu Gui. In the end, their trust in the professor won out. "In that case, thank you for your support of scientific research, Mr. Shen. But we'd like to ask, what will be the primary research focus of the institute?"

"Oh, it's twofold. One area is the study of mutated animal genes. The other is the development of veterinary medicines. The former will have to be started from scratch. As for the latter, I've obtained samples of two drugs through... special channels. I'm hoping you can focus your initial efforts on reverse-engineering them." 'These were all things he had decided on beforehand. Shen Yibin was funding the institute for his own reasons, after all. He couldn't just throw money at them to play around with.'

"In that case, I'm in." Hearing that the research direction was a good fit for him, Li Yan agreed on the spot, without even asking about his own salary or benefits.

"I'm currently in the middle of a drug development project myself," Zhu Xiang said, still hesitant. "It's shown promising results, and I'm very hopeful it can succeed with just a little more funding. Could I finish that project before I start on the research you're proposing?" Li Yan got to pursue research that interested him, but he was being asked to work according to Shen Yibin's specific instructions, which didn't sit right with him.

"Could that project wait until after the research on these two new drugs is finished?" 'Professor Wu Gui had warned me about this,' Shen Yibin recalled. 'It's a common tactic for researchers to ask for funding, claiming they're on the verge of a breakthrough. It can be a bottomless pit. Better to invest in the drugs from the Future Pet Shop than to throw money at a vague promise.' And so, Shen Yibin had no hesitation in turning him down.

In the end, Zhu Xiang conceded. 'If I stay where I am, I won't get any funding anyway. I'll just be sitting around the lab doing nothing. At least if I go with Shen Yibin, even if I can't do the research I want to right away, it's better than wasting my time, isn't it? Besides, Boss Shen did say I could work on my own project after these two drugs are done.'

"We have one last question," they said, presenting their final condition. "As you know, we've both been conducting research at other institutions. If we leave suddenly, our teams will be left high and dry. So, we were wondering if we could bring a few of our students with us? Not too many, just three to five would be enough."

"No problem. You have full authority for up to five people. If you want to bring more, we can interview them. As long as they pass, they're in!" Shen Yibin agreed readily. And with that, the deal was struck.