Chapter 1658 Commissioner Smith

Now that things have come to this, there is no way to hide.

Morris Chang took a deep breath, trying to calm his pounding heart, and pressed the door unlock button with his fingers somewhat stiffly.

The door was flung open, and four men in matching black suits, with muscular builds and stern expressions, filed in.

The leader was about fifty years old, with a hooked nose and eyes as sharp as knives, looking down from a superior position.

He completely ignored Liu Deyin who was standing next to the desk and walked straight forward. Another person behind him reached out and pushed Liu Deyin aside.

"Ugh!" The latter was caught off guard and staggered.

As a senior executive of TSMC, he had not been treated like this for decades, and his face was full of shock and humiliation.

The man in the lead didn't even look at Liu Deyin. He strode to the mahogany desk, pulled out a bound document from under his arm, and slapped it in front of Morris Chang.

"Mr. Morris Chang."

The other party's Chinese had a strong accent, but overall it was quite fluent:

"I am Lisa Shay Smith, Senior Commissioner of the Bureau of Industry and Security. Following joint directives from the White House, the Department of Commerce, and the National Security Agency, I am immediately stationed at TSMC to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth investigation into your company's suspected serious violations of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR)."

He raised his chin slightly, his eyes fixed sharply on Morris Chang: "This is the authorization document, please review it."

The eye-catching eagle emblem and the "TOP SECRET/NOFORN" classification mark on the document cover hurt Morris Chang's eyes.

He suppressed his surging anger and didn't touch the document. Instead, he pushed the TSMC internal investigation report on the table over to him, trying to keep his voice steady.

"Commissioner Smith, TSMC has completed the highest level of independent verification on this matter. This report," he pointed at the document, "clearly proves that since the ban took effect, all TSMC production lines have strictly complied with regulations and have never produced or delivered any chips that violate the ban to the Chrysanthemum Factory. The alleged violation is completely false."

The corner of Smith's mouth twitched, revealing a barely perceptible sarcasm.

He didn't even lower his head to look at the report. He just casually stretched out two fingers, picked up the report like a piece of waste paper, and handed it to a deputy behind him without looking back.

"TSMC's internal conclusion..." Smith's voice was cold, almost formulaic. "We will take it into consideration, but," he emphasized, glancing at Morris Chang and Liu, "it's not up to the subjects of the investigation to determine whether there have been any violations. That's the responsibility and authority of BIS."

He leaned slightly sideways, scanning the office that represented TSMC's highest authority, as if assessing the difficulty of the search.

"Any form of obstruction, delay, concealment of information, or non-cooperation with investigators," he paused deliberately, "will be considered a blatant defiance of the United States. Mr. Zhang, neither you nor TSMC can afford the consequences."

Morris Chang's breathing became heavy and his fingers clenched into fists under the table.

But as an old man, he still didn't dare to use violence against the four Americans opposite him.

He stared at Smith's expressionless face, his voice trembling with suppressed anger. "It's just a photo with incomplete information. Furthermore, the information code on the chip is simply printed and can be forged. How can you conclude that TSMC is violating the ban based on this?"

Smith seemed to have anticipated this questioning.

He sneered and didn't answer directly, but tilted his head slightly behind him. Another deputy immediately stepped forward and placed another bound document in front of Morris Chang.

"A blurry picture is certainly not enough to support a comprehensive investigation."

Smith slowly flipped through the documents, revealing clear disassembly photos and close-up images of the chip:

"So before we set off, we randomly and anonymously purchased 20 of the latest batches of Mate SX RS phones from the Chinese mainland market through specific commercial channels and sold through different channels."

He flipped to a page that showed a photo of 20 disassembled chips arranged on a testing table. Every chip was clearly visible. "It turns out that the core processor chips used in all 20 mobile phones all have TSMC's unique packaging logo, laser coding features, and physical markings that can be traced back to TSMC's production line!"

The photos are very professionally taken, and the TSMC logo and package code are clearly visible.

Morris Chang quickly scanned the image and pointed to the production date code on a close-up of one of the chips. "Commissioner Smith! Please look carefully at the production date! These are inventory chips produced before the ban took effect! This proves that the Chrysanthemum Factory is using up its previous inventory, and!"

He picked up the TSMC report that Smith had discarded, turned to the conclusion page, and pointed to the words on it:

"Based on detailed data analysis, our report clearly points out that there are strong signs that Sinochip International's semiconductor manufacturing capabilities have made breakthrough progress and are able to independently produce chips equivalent to a 7-nanometer process! This is the real risk, and this is what you should pay attention to!"

"Mr. Zhang!" Smith suddenly raised his voice and rudely interrupted Morris Chang. "First, the breakthrough you mentioned is not within the scope of this investigation. Second, ASML, the world's leading lithography machine manufacturer, and its core optical partner Zeiss have 100% confirmed that China will never be able to obtain EUV lithography technology for mass production in the foreseeable future. This is the reality of physics and engineering!"

"The third and most important point!"

He poked his finger heavily at the teardown reports of the 20 phones:

"If Huaxin International really possesses the ability to independently mass-produce 7nm chips, as you 'speculate,' why haven't we found a single so-called 'Huaxia chip' in the 20 latest flagship phones we randomly purchased? Huh?"

"This only proves one fact: the number of illegal chips obtained by the Ju Factory is extremely limited, and the source is extremely secretive! Precisely because of the small quantity, we failed to capture them in our random sampling! And currently, the only company in the world with a clear record, the ability, and experience in large-scale 7nm chip manufacturing for the Ju Factory is TSMC! This is a logical closed loop, Mr. Zhang!"

This specious and fact-ignoring "logic" made Morris Chang so angry that he felt dizzy.

In fact, there is nothing wrong with Smith's analysis process.

It's just that I chose the wrong starting point...

Morris Chang's temples were throbbing so hard that he could barely stand and had to hold onto the edge of the table.

"Okay... okay... if you want to investigate, go ahead..." He suddenly felt a deep sense of powerlessness, waved his hands tiredly, and said in a hoarse voice: "TSMC has nothing to fear from its own shadow..."

"Mr. Zhang," Smith continued, leaning forward slightly and placing his hands on the edge of Morris Chang's desk, creating an oppressive posture. "We need access to all TSMC production lines and have the highest authority to inspect any production records, process flow, and shipping lists at any time..."

"What?!" Morris Chang finally couldn't contain himself any longer and slammed the table, his fingers trembling with anger almost poking Smith's nose. "This is TSMC headquarters! Not America! You have no right..."

Liu Deyin also stepped forward, his face flushed, wanting to show his support.

"Mr. Zhang!" Instead of retreating, Smith straightened his back, with a strange expression mixed with pity and ridicule on his face.

He tilted his head slightly, his gaze fixed on the still silent TV on the office wall.

The interview program has entered its second loop, and the screen is frozen on a close-up of Morris Chang facing the camera and saying clearly and proudly, "I became an American citizen as early as 1962."

"You are right. This is indeed not the territory of the United States."

Smith pointed to the ground. His voice was not loud, but it was like a poisoned ice needle, clearly piercing the ears of Morris Chang and Liu Deyin.

He even paused deliberately, letting the image of "American citizen" silently emphasize it in the silence, and then continued:

"However, you, Mr. Morris Chang, are a genuine American citizen confirmed through legal procedures. The core lifeline of the company you founded and lead – its most advanced lithography equipment, design software, key materials, and even basic patents – is deeply dependent on and controlled by our legal system and technological ecosystem."

"Therefore, the laws of the United States have indisputable jurisdiction over you personally and the TSMC entity you manage." He deliberately emphasized the words "U.S. citizen" and "jurisdiction." "I reiterate, this is not a negotiation, but a mandatory directive based on national security considerations. Please be aware of your legal status and the seriousness of the current situation."

In an instant, the air seemed to be completely sucked out.

On the TV screen, Morris Chang, the "American citizen" who declared that "China is powerless", smiled confidently and firmly.

But in reality, Morris Chang was standing in his office, his face as pale as paper, his lips trembling, but he could no longer utter a syllable.

The immense humiliation and the cold despair of being completely abandoned by his "motherland" instantly consumed him.

However, this is not the end yet.

"The deployment and comprehensive review are just the first step," Smith said, pointing to the original authorization document bearing the eagle emblem. "To ensure the security of critical supply chains and enhance the efficiency and transparency of future compliance oversight, the White House and the Department of Commerce hope that TSMC will demonstrate its responsibility and willingness to cooperate as a global industry leader."

A sense of foreboding suddenly welled up in Morris Chang's heart: "Sincerity? What does that mean?"

Smith gave his first formulaic smile:

"All planned new advanced process production lines based on extreme ultraviolet lithography technology will be located in North America. Existing production lines that have been evaluated as technically feasible and suitable for relocation will also need to be relocated at an appropriate time in the future. I ask you and your core management team to immediately initiate feasibility studies and prepare relocation plans."