Chapter 165: 162. Money Doesn't Matter (Bonus for 1200 Monthly Votes)

Although Professor Zheng and the others were surprised by the one hundred million mentioned just a moment ago, their expressions didn't change much; however, this ten million made them all pause.

While the figure of one hundred million is large, it was, after all, merely research funding; the personalities of these few were quite similar, in that they would never use research funds for personal gain, otherwise, given their level of expertise, they wouldn't be in a position where they claim to have spent all their money just by doing a project of a few million that they were interested in.

Furthermore, the total project funding they had handled over the years wasn't just one hundred million, but even a billion, it was just that those funds weren't theirs.

But the ten million Zhang Ran was offering now was truly and concretely for them personally, and it was entirely because of what they had researched.

Because of Qian Li, the group had some understanding of Zhang Ran's situation; in fact, Professor Wu had quite an impression of Siyan, after all, she often stayed with Qian Li and frequently went to the school together to visit Qian Zhengkun.

Therefore, judging by the fact that they were either close to or already retired, Zhang Ran wasn't after the little bit of power they held, but was purely interested in this technology.

In the past, they were single-mindedly focused on work, wanting to contribute more to the country, but now that they were older and about to step down, and their children had grown up and needed money, Professor Zheng and the others were all very happy to suddenly have such an unexpected income.

"Brother Zhang, are you serious? Isn't this money a bit too much?" Professor Zheng said, hesitating.

Zhang Ran said earnestly: "In my view, it's not much at all. Let's put it this way: the value of this technology to me personally far exceeds ten million. If you all think it's too little, I can add more!"

It wasn't that Zhang Ran had too much money to burn, but rather he wanted to see if he could use money to "smash" these professors into the research project; if that worked, things would be much simpler.

"Enough, it's completely enough," Professor Zheng said hurriedly, then looked at the others, his eyes carrying a hint of inquiry.

In truth, they had been somewhat suspicious that Zhang Ran was boasting earlier, simply because his expression was too calm when he mentioned one hundred million, but now that he brought out ten million just like that, and it was for them personally, it made them believe in Zhang Ran's financial strength.

"Ahem, Wu Jie, isn't your grandson wanting to study under that financial expert at London University? It just so happens that Zhang Ran knows Prince Haiman of the UK; if we let Zhang Ran help out when the time comes, it shouldn't be a problem," Qian Zhengkun spoke up at this moment.

As soon as Qian Zhengkun spoke, it immediately stunned the group again; Zhang Ran even knew Prince Haiman of the UK?

Zhang Ran immediately understood what Qian Zhengkun meant and said hurriedly: "Wu Jie, leave this to me to handle. I have some connections with Prince Haiman, and I guarantee I'll get it done for you properly, and it definitely won't be a marginal position either."

The guarantee Zhang Ran gave made Professor Wu feel moved; as people get older, they all want to consider their children more.

Her grandson was set on pursuing a doctorate under that financial master, but that master had long since stopped taking students, so it had been dragged out until now.

And if Zhang Ran could help make the introduction a success, it would definitely be a huge piece of good news for her grandson.

"Zhang Ran, how about this: regardless of whether you can make the introduction successful or not, I've agreed to this," Wu Jie said immediately after only a brief moment of thought.

"Thank you, Wu Jie. Don't worry, Wu Jie; even if Prince Haiman can't do it, I'll throw money at it to get your grandson in!" Zhang Ran said with absolute certainty!

This technology was simply too important to him!

"Brother Zhang, may I ask what exactly you need us to do? What will our main work be?" Seeing Professor Wu agree, Professor Zheng asked.

Zhang Ran thought for a moment and, without hiding anything, said directly: "Do you all know about Indian God Oil?"

"Ahem."

"Ahem."

The old men in the room all started coughing dryly, then pretended to look blank; even He Yong, who had been standing at the door the whole time, couldn't help but cough a few times.

This made Zhang Ran look at him involuntarily, his eyes filled with sympathy.

Being looked at like that by Zhang Ran, He Yong's face turned bright red, and he couldn't help but explain: "Brother Zhang, I'm not..."

"Oh, it's nothing, it's nothing. We're men, it's very normal. Once our new product hits the market, you can just try it out," Zhang Ran said with a smile.

"I..." He Yong felt like cursing.

"Alright, what are you old rascals pretending for?" Professor Wu, being a woman, was much more broad-minded. After retorting to the group, she asked Zhang Ran: "Is there a connection between the two?"

"Yes, I discovered a plant with an effect similar to Indian God Oil. The specific situation is similar to the Hybrid Qingxianglan, and the cultivation difficulty is extremely high, so I want to ask you all to help research it and see if it can be cultivated on a large scale. It doesn't need to be a perfect copy, just retaining a bit of the effect is enough, just like this time with the Hybrid Qingxianglan.

And once it succeeds, it will be a gospel for men!" Zhang Ran said with a smile.

Zhang Ran didn't mention the most important part, which was that the main profit point for Yaotian Pharmaceutical was a product called Dragon Tiger Ointment, which had the same effect as Indian God Oil.

Once the sales of Yaotian Pharmaceutical's Dragon Tiger Ointment slumped and there was a better new product on the market, then Yaotian Pharmaceutical would effectively be half-finished, and Zhang Ran's subsequent operations would be much simpler.

This was also the method with the least impact; even if Tian Yaohui played dirty behind the scenes and forced the local government to intervene, Zhang Ran would still have ways to deal with it.

"Ahem, money or not doesn't matter. We people just love doing research. Brother Zhang, don't you worry, we'll take this project," Professor Zheng said with a straight face.

"Old Zheng is right, doing research is what we love most."

"That's right, that's right."

Under Professor Wu's disdainful gaze, the group spoke up one after another, and the matter was settled just like that.

Hearing this, Zhang Ran was overjoyed and said: "Thank you, brothers. I'll treat everyone to a good meal at noon."

"Good, then we'll feast at your expense today."

The matter was settled, and everyone seemed very happy. At the lunch table, Zhang Ran also finalized the specific details.

The five professors and Qian Zhengkun all had their homes in Shanghai, and since they were the main leads, the laboratory would naturally need to be moved there.

Zhang Ran decided on this on the spot, which also made Professor Zheng and the others feel valued, and one by one they all expressed that they would do their best in their research.

At the same time, Zhang Ran also indicated that there would be a result regarding Wu Jie's matter by tomorrow at the latest.

This once again made everyone feel Zhang Ran's sincerity; after all, everyone had only agreed verbally, and no specific contracts had been signed.

But Zhang Ran was willing to do the work first and talk about the rest later; this point alone made everyone feel much more comfortable in their hearts, proving that Zhang Ran trusted them, and the feeling of being trusted was always good.