Inside Huawei's headquarters in Shenzhen, the mood was agitated.
At a high-level strategy meeting, about twenty senior executives—including Old Man Ren—sat around a long conference table.
Everyone was there to address one increasingly inescapable reality:
China Star wasn't just a disruptor.
It was an existential threat.
Xu Wenwei, one of Huawei's core executives, opened the meeting.
"Huaxing Technology—what most call China Star—was officially established in May 2012."
"Less than three years ago."
"Originally, it was just a mobile phone OEM."
He paused, glancing around the room.
"But now, I've done a full breakdown of the company's structure… and I have to say: it's not just unique—it's unprecedented."
China Star Tech Ownership Overview
7% held by Haifeng's family
21% by the management team
51% and 21% held by China Star Lab No. 1 and Lab No. 2, respectively
"Every core piece of technology comes out of these labs.
And the real power is in Lab No. 1—personally controlled by Lu Haifeng."
Then Xu dropped the real bomb:
"I checked patent registrations for the past three years.
The lab's team has filed over 21,000 patents."
Gasps filled the room.
"There's no way that's correct!"
"Twenty-one thousand?! That's impossible!"
Xu raised a stack of documents and continued:
"It's real. I verified it myself—multiple times."
"5,000+ patents related to semiconductor manufacturing and lithography."
"7,000+ for integrated circuits, including CPU architecture, server chips, and communication basebands."
"Another 5,000+ in cloud computing."
"The rest span across dozens of industries."
The room went silent.
They weren't just dealing with a startup anymore.
They were staring down an R&D black hole—quiet, efficient, and wildly ahead of its time.
Xu continued:
"The patents we see are just the surface."
"When technical gaps arise, Haifeng recalls overseas researchers. Many of them have thousands of core patents of their own."
"He built a team that nobody saw coming."
Another exec whispered:
"Could this be backed by foreign capital?"
Xu shook his head.
"Unlikely. Even if Lab No. 1 has the world's top tech, foreigners can't get in."
"This isn't about outside money.
This is about low-profile, high-impact R&D—and military-grade network security."
Someone else joked:
"There's a saying on the tech forums—' I'd instead hack the Pentagon than try to breach China Star's servers.'"
Everyone nodded in grim agreement.
Old Man Ren finally spoke, his tone oddly amused.
"I brought Haifeng up with Minister Ye recently.
Turns out the higher-ups are quite satisfied with him."
"They've already conducted a quiet background check.
Turns out the kid genuinely wants to strengthen the country through tech."
"And from what I've seen, he's got no hidden agenda.
All his core IP stays in Lab No. 1. No offshore games. No funny business."
Then came the kicker:
"He's acquired massive plots of land in Piaocheng—over 100 square kilometers.
Initial estimates say he'll need at least $100 billion to develop it fully."
"So far, only the OEM plant and Phase 1 of the data center are complete.
The semiconductor factory's built—but still not in production."
"He also filed for a ¥100 billion loan and the land support directly from MIIT."
Nobody laughed anymore.
They understood.
Haifeng wasn't just trying to build a company.
He was building a tech empire.
And it was real.