And during that rare stretch of calm, the past nine years had played in my mind like an old film—faded, but vivid in memory.
I remembered the hardest days when the company was still in its infancy.
To break through a client's technical barrier, I led a handful of engineers—our entire tech team at the time—and lived in the office for three straight months.
We'd nap under our desks on flattened cardboard when sleep finally overpowered us.
But in the end, we did it.
We not only solved the problem, but also designed an optimized system that far exceeded the client's expectations.
That victory earned the company its first real profit—and its first taste of reputation.
I also remembered when a rival company launched a malicious cyberattack that nearly paralyzed our servers and infuriated our clients.
For forty-eight sleepless hours, I led the team in tracing the breach. We not only defended against the attack, but also located the source, exploited their vulnerabilities, and turned the tide—saving the company millions and hitting back hard.
That battle made the company's name resound throughout the entire industry.
But what I remember most vividly was the drone project that later won an international award.
The original concept came from my graduate research—the core flight control algorithm and the dynamic path-planning model.
Those weren't born overnight. They were the product of countless nights I spent staring at endless lines of code and data, running simulations over and over, tweaking, refining, and polishing every variable.
The first crude demo was built and tested right in my living room.
You could say the soul and framework of that project were engraved with my name from the very beginning.
Through these battles, our company grew from a cramped office of barely a dozen people into a strong and respected force in the industry. Our technical capabilities soared.
And with that drone project, we not only won international recognition but also secured major contracts, pushing the company's valuation to new heights—right to the edge of going public.
The founder, Mr. Arnold Schmidt—Darlene's father—was a sharp and visionary man. He had always trusted and valued me deeply.