Chapter 526: Defensive Counterattack

In the third month after the release of the Fenghuang Fourth Generation, Shenzhen's summer arrived especially fierce.

Li Yaozong sits in the conference room, and in front of him the projection screen shows a complex chart.

Red arrows from all directions point to the tiny Fenghuang logo in the center—Samsung, Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO—each name followed by a string of numbers.

Fang Wenshan stands before the screen, the laser pointer in his hand points to the Samsung column.

"Samsung Note series, releasing next month, curved screen, 4000 mAh battery, targeting business users. Priced expected above 5000, directly competing with our high‑end version."

The laser pointer moves to Apple.

"iPhone 5S, releasing in September, rumored to have fingerprint recognition, upgraded processor, upgraded camera. Apple's development cycle is long, but each upgrade sets the industry benchmark."

Then moves to Huawei.

"Huawei P6, already released, emphasizing thinness, priced between 2500 and 3500, targeting our mid‑low market."

Xiaomi.

"Xiaomi 3, releasing next month, specs matching flagship, priced under 2000, courting cost‑performance users."

Li Yaozong listens, his face showing little expression.

Fang Wenshan finishes speaking and returns to his seat.

The conference room falls silent for a few seconds.

He Xiaoxian speaks first.

"On the automotive side there's also movement. Tesla is about to enter China, Mercedes and BMW are both pushing electric cars. How long our autonomous driving advantage can last is hard to say."

Chen Feng takes the floor.

"On the chip side, Samsung is poaching our people. The salary they offer is thirty percent higher than ours, and some are tempted."

Wang Bo adds.

"On Fenghuang Broadcast, someone started setting the narrative. Saying we monopolize, saying we bully customers. The water‑army traces are very obvious."

Li Yaozong, after listening, lifts the tea cup before him and takes a sip.

"Is everyone done speaking?"

No one speaks.

He puts down the tea cup.

"Then let's discuss what to do."

Zhao Ming is the first to raise his hand.

"On the phone side, we can't wait. Even the Fenghuang Fourth Generation is strong, but in half a year it'll be the previous generation. We must start developing the Fifth Generation ahead of time."

Li Yaozong looks at him.

"What will the Fifth Generation do?"

Zhao Ming stands up and walks to the whiteboard.

"First, facial recognition."

He writes a few characters on the whiteboard.

"Currently unlocking relies on fingerprints, but fingerprints have limitations. Wet hands don't work, wearing gloves doesn't work. Facial recognition doesn't have this problem."

He pauses.

"Moreover it's safer. Fingerprints can be replicated, faces cannot."

Zhou Ye interjects from the side.

"The algorithm is already in development. Current recognition speed is 0.8 seconds; the goal is under 0.3 seconds."

Li Yaozong nods.

Zhao Ming continues writing.

"Second, intelligent voice assistant."

He looks at the people seated.

"Apple has Siri, Google has GoogleNow. We also need our own."

He points to himself.

"This assistant must understand Chinese, grasp context, help users get things done. Set alarms, check weather, send messages, search maps—one‑sentence tasks."

Zhang Yuan raises his hand.

"The live‑stream side also needs it. When users speak, AI automatically generates subtitles."

Zhao Ming nods.

"Right. Speech recognition is a foundational technology; it can be used anywhere."

Li Yaozong looks at Chen Feng.

"Can the chip side support it?"

Chen Feng thinks for a moment.

"We need to add a dedicated NPU module. The Fenghuang Chip V can be designed in."

Zhao Ming writes the third term.

"Intelligent photography."

He turns around.

"Now photography relies on people finding angles and adjusting parameters. In the future, let the phone do it itself."

He draws a phone camera on the whiteboard.

"Auto‑focus, auto‑composition, auto‑exposure, auto‑beauty. Users just press the shutter; the phone handles the rest."

He points to the words "image stabilization."

"And also image stabilization. Hand shake, walking, running—all can be steadied. Video won't shake, night shots won't blur."

Liu Yang raised his hand.

"The camera hardware needs upgrading. Optical stabilization, large aperture, high resolution—all must keep up."

Zhao Ming nodded.

"Software and hardware should be done together."

Li Yaozong finished listening and looked at Wang Bo.

"What can we do to retain talent?"

Wang Bo opened his notebook.

"Our current core technical staff turnover rate is eight percent, while the industry average is fifteen percent. Not high, but not low either."

He paused.

"Relying solely on salary hikes won't work. Samsung can afford higher prices; we can't compete."

Li Yaozong stared at him.

"Then what solution do you have?"

Wang Bo closed his notebook.

"Housing."

The conference room fell silent for a second.

Wang Bo stood up, walked to the whiteboard, and wrote a line next to the one Zhao Ming had written:

"Wanshang Residential Complex"

"Wanshang has a real‑estate company, land, and a construction crew. Why not build houses for employees?"

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"Employees who work ten years can buy company houses at cost price. After twenty years, half price. After thirty years, they get them for free."

He Xiao was startled for a moment.

"Free?"

Wang Bo nodded.

"Free. The house belongs to the employee, but the employee must stay at Wanshang continuously. If they leave, the house is bought back at market price."

He paused.

"That gives employees a reason to stay. One house is more effective than a salary increase."

Lin Jiawen added from the side.

"It also solves the household registration issue. Shenzhen residency is valuable now; it's hard for out‑of‑town staff to stay. If the company helps with registration, we can retain people."

Fang Wenshan also spoke.

"We must fully pay the five insurances and one housing fund. Many people jump ship because small firms don't provide social security. If we pay fully, employees will feel secure."

Wang Bo continued.

"We also have equity incentives. For management positions and technical backbone, we grant stock options. Good performance earns profit sharing. Upon resignation, the company repurchases at market price and cannot sell to outsiders."

He paused.

"That way, core staff are tied down."

Li Yaozong listened and was silent for a few seconds.

Then he looked at He Xiao.

"What do you think?"

He Xiao thought for a moment.

"Housing costs aren't low. Building a batch of residential complexes costs tens of billions."

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"But in the long run it's worth it. Employees with houses don't think about leaving. If they stay, the technology stays too."

Li Yaozong nodded.

"Anything else?"

Liu Yang raised his hand.

"Technicians also need policies. Veteran workers on the production line who have served twenty years should also get houses."

He looked at Li Yaozong.

"Their education isn't high, but their skills are. If they leave, the production line collapses."

He Xiao nodded beside him.

"Right. The same applies to the automobile side. Senior technicians are harder to find than engineers."

Li Yaozong looked at Wang Bo.

"How do we count technicians?"

Wang Bo thought for a moment.

"By years of service. Twenty years, half price. Thirty years, fully free. Same as engineers."

Li Yaozong nodded.

"Fine."

Zhao Ming raised his hand again.

"President Li, there's another question."

"Go ahead."

"Our current benefits are only for active employees. What about after retirement?"

He looked at Li Yaozong.

I've worked my whole life, retired, have a house, but what about the rest? Healthcare? Pension?

Lin Jiawen responded from beside him.

On the healthcare side, we can arrange an internal supplemental medical insurance. In addition to the five insurances and one fund, the company will provide an extra one.

He paused.

Retirement is the same. A pension plan where employees contribute a bit and the company matches a bit. After retirement, they receive monthly payments.

Li Yaozong thought for a moment.

That works. Have Lin Jiawen take the lead and negotiate with the insurance company.

The meeting ran from 2 p. m. to 6 p. m.

In four hours, we went through both the mobile phone technology line and the employee benefits line.

Facial recognition, intelligent voice, smart photography, anti‑shake, Wanshang Community, equity incentives, five insurances and one fund, supplemental medical insurance, pension plan…

Each of them is a way to retain talent.

Each of them is a weapon against encirclement.

Li Yaozong stood up after hearing everyone's remarks.

On the mobile phone side, develop the Fenghuang Fifth Generation Device according to today's direction. Facial recognition, voice assistant, smart photography—none can be omitted.

He looked at Zhao Ming.

In March next year, I want to see a usable prototype.

Zhao Ming nodded.

He then looked at Wang Bo.

On the benefits side, start with housing. Choose a plot, build the first batch of Wanshang Community. Sell to employees who have served ten years.

Wang Bo nodded.

For the equity‑incentive plan, have Lin Jiawen take the lead and draft it together with legal. Present it next month.

Lin Jiawen nodded.

Li Yaozong looked around the room.

Any other questions?

No one spoke.

Meeting adjourned.

A month later, the first plot of the Wanshang Community was finalized.

In Longgang, not far from the industrial park, two subway stations away, it covers 300 mu, with plans for forty buildings and eight thousand apartments.

When the news broke, the inside of Wanshang erupted.

On the intranet, that announcement received over three thousand replies.

Work ten years and you can buy a house at cost? Is that real?

I've worked eight years; just endure two more.

Twenty years at half price, thirty years completely free. That's far better than a salary raise.

Quickly go to HR and ask how seniority is calculated.

Wang Bo stared at the backend data, scrolling through line by line.

The turnover rate fell by 0.5 % this month.

He sent Li Yaozong a message:

"It worked."

Three months later, the Fenghuang Fifth Generation Device project team was officially established.

Zhao Ming took the lead, pulling three hundred people from various departments—software, hardware, algorithms, testing—everything.

At the first project meeting, Zhao Ming stood on the stage facing those three hundred young faces.

"Everyone, the goal of the Fenghuang Fifth Generation Device is to be twice as strong as the fourth generation."

He pointed at the timeline on the projection screen.

"A prototype will be out in March next year, mass production in May, launch in June."

He paused.

"During this period, Samsung, Apple, and Huawei will release new devices. We must be stronger than them to survive."

The audience below fell silent for a second.

Then someone raised a hand.

"Chief Zhao, can facial recognition achieve 0.3 seconds?"

Zhao Ming nodded.

"Yes."

Another person raised a hand.

"Can the voice assistant understand dialects?"

Zhao Ming thought for a moment.

"First nail down Mandarin. Dialects can be dealt with later."

Someone else raised a hand.

"Can smart photography capture stars?"

The audience laughed.

Zhao Ming also laughed.

"Yes. As long as the sky is visible, the mobile phone can capture it."

At seven p. m., Li Yaozong stood at the window on the thirty‑eighth floor of Wanxiang Dasha.

In the distant direction of Longgang, the lights were blazing. There, the first plot of the Wanxiang residential complex was under construction. Bulldozers, excavators, tower cranes were busy in the night.

Further away, the lights of the Nanshan R&D Center resembled a field of stars.

Within those stars, three hundred people were working overtime, writing code, tweaking algorithms, testing prototypes.

Some of them, after ten years of work, could buy their own house.

Some of them would receive company equity.

Some of them would become the next generation's technical backbone.

He stood for a long time.

Then he turned around and walked back to his desk.

He opened his computer and began reading the progress report of the Fenghuang Fifth Generation Device.

Outside the window, Shenzhen's night was deepening.

But those lights shone as bright as dawn.