Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 424, nine remaining.
Inside the research institute.

The shock brought by the "textbook-level" visitors has gradually been overshadowed by the well-organized New Year's Eve activities.

The night is still long, enough for everyone to have a blast.

The HR department started organizing small games in stages. Each game awarded a small round badge with the name "Yu Xiaobai" based on the ranking. At the end of the year, the number of badges collected determined the winners of several prizes.

The first prize is a five-star trip to Hainan for the whole family plus seven days of paid leave.

The second prize is Samsung's latest Galaxy Saga phone, of which there are twenty units available, with a domestic retail price of nearly 5000 yuan.

The third prize is a red envelope of 888 yuan, 50 of them. Considering that not everyone will play the game, basically everyone who participates will receive one.

Since the daily compensation is already very high, the research institute does not need to show off its wealth in such routine activities.

On the contrary, those who receive shaky wages and bonuses on a regular basis, but display cars and money at the annual meeting, are likely only enriching a small group of people.

In a corner, a game of pushing coins is being played. The one that pushes the coin closest to the red line with one hand wins. Not far away, on an open ground, a one-legged rooster is fighting.

There were over a dozen simple and fun games prepared, and with the addition of many craft beers from Yue Da Catering, the atmosphere gradually became more lively.

It felt just like a bustling market at night.

Zhai Da finally pushed his teacher and slowly walked out of the cleanroom laboratory.

They brought this elderly man, born nearly a century ago, into the joyful atmosphere of the new generation of young people.

The notebook titled "On Systems Engineering" was carried by the teacher's grandson, Qian Lei, and has now been handed over to Zhai Da. Perhaps to the teacher it was just a small, meaningful gift to the student, but Zhai Da knew very well how precious it was.

【Equipment】is a special item that is entangled with the intense “thoughts” of human beings. Its rarity is not absolutely related to the original owner’s “status”, but the effect of its ability is closely related to the owner’s character and thoughts.

The special effect of "the crowd is the system" and the unique performance of sacrificing one's own bonus to cover the whole are not only the teacher's way of seeing the world, but also the philosophy that the teacher has adhered to throughout his life.

This reminded Zhai Da of the "three exciting moments" his teacher spoke decades ago.

The beliefs and faith of the older generation are difficult for the younger generation to understand. Only by observing what they did can we vaguely perceive the strong echoes of those beliefs.

Currently, my progress in "leading others to complete complex system work" is (1/10), which should refer to the silicon carbide project. I don't know if the system thinks that mass production or not no longer affects the importance of the result, or if R&D/mass production is divided into two parts.

His previous actions, such as those of "Hongtu OS," were largely due to his low level of involvement, where he only provided some guidance, while in "JF-12," he was merely a participant rather than a leader.

The others are probably not enough to be called "complex system work".

Is it a large-scale scientific research project or a large-scale engineering project? How exactly is it determined? It's not even certain that the "silicon carbide project" was completed just below the minimum requirement.

Are there nine left?
But he was confident!
As for whether he will choose to "weaken by 80%" but cover all allies, or to consolidate all power in one person, it will depend on his position at that time.

Whether he stands above the crowd or within it, and how many people he can unite to believe they are on the same side as Zhai Da, remains to be seen.
He had already made a decision quietly: in addition to incorporating many of his manuscripts into "On Systems Engineering," this book would also become a permanent fixture in his inventory, "strengthening his ability to analyze, understand, and coordinate complex problems"—its versatility was simply too great.

Let's just use it instead of the original [Retro Workbench]. We can replace it when we get more equipment slots later. There's no need to be prepared to modify equipment all the time.

It was already past nine o'clock, but there was still quite a bit of time before the New Year.

Zhai Da undoubtedly had to devote most of his energy to taking care of his teacher and colleagues' families, so he wouldn't be participating in any activities tonight. To prevent the crowd from colliding, his teacher was carried to an indoor terrace, where it was quieter and offered a panoramic view of the lively scene.

Looking at Lu Wei, who sat quietly and obediently the whole way without saying a word, Old Qian said kindly, "This must be Xiao Zhai's girlfriend, the young lady Lu who studies mathematics."

Zhai Da quickly said, "Lu! Lu is pronounced with the second tone, like Lu Junyi's Lu." "Oh, oh, oh, I might have remembered it wrong."

Professor Qian chatted with Lu Wei for a few minutes, but did not inquire about her studies or research, only asking about everyday topics.

Then I was drawn back to the lively atmosphere of the research institute.

Actually, I really like it. After being confined to the hospital bed for so long, I actually crave liveliness.

While the teacher was lost in thought, Zhai Da and Qian Lei moved closer and whispered, "Did the doctor give any instructions? Like, to get some rest early? We'll be staying up until midnight on New Year's Eve."

Qian Lei chuckled dryly: "Grandpa has to listen to the doctor's instructions. He has his own judgment. Unless he or Grandma is tired, he probably won't want to leave now. Actually, we came by car and slept for a long time on the way."

Where are you going next?

"Grandpa wants to see a dissertation defense here. Also, when Grandpa returned to China, he spent a long time investigating the three northeastern provinces. His peers are probably all gone, but many things from back then are still here. For example, he wants to go and see Harbin Engineering University."

Upon hearing that he would be watching his thesis defense, Zhai Da's expression stiffened.

Harbin Engineering University was formerly known as Harbin Military Engineering Institute, also called the Military Engineering Academy. It was established in the early days of the People's Republic of China and has since been split up.

Harbin Engineering University, National University of Defense Technology, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, and Army Engineering University are all its offshoots or fragments?

After returning to China, Qian Xuesen's first stop for inspection was there, on the campus of Harbin Military Engineering Institute, where he decided to prioritize the development of missiles.

Just as Qian Lei said, the people may all be gone, but the objects can probably still be found in some trace.

This is probably the most authoritative interpretation of "things have changed, people have changed".

"After I see your dissertation defense, I'll temporarily return to northern Beijing for the Spring Festival."

Zhai Da: "Wait, why do you keep emphasizing the defense? And the pronunciation is a bit strange."

Qian Lei asked doubtfully, "Really? I haven't finished yet. We'll be in Beijing for the Spring Festival, and after the holiday we plan to go to the Northwest. He left more footprints there, especially in the rocket launch bases. During the decades when the country was developing the fastest, Grandpa was basically bedridden. It's a good way to see more of the beautiful landscape and make up for his regrets."

“Actually, it’s not suitable to travel around in the dead of winter, but Grandpa probably doesn’t know how many years he’s managed to snatch back from God. If he’s delayed here for a few months and there for a few months, he probably won’t be able to get anything done in a year.”

Zhai Da smiled and said, "Doctors say that the teacher's health is a 'medical miracle'? I am still confident. He looks like he is at most 70 years old. On the contrary, the teacher's wife should be careful and not overwork herself."

Qian Lei nodded: "I will be careful. The car is fully equipped with all necessary measures. Sister Wang is also a doctor."

When asked about his dissertation defense, Zhai Da ultimately chose to "act cute" over "fighting back" to "lay down".

He shuffled over to Professor Qian's side and said, "Professor, regarding the dissertation defense, because many of my recent studies involve commercial and technological barriers, you know..."

Old Qian looked Zhai Da up and down, making him quite nervous. Finally, the old man smiled and said, "I understand. I'll just say you're hiding your talents."

He wouldn't doubt Zhai Da, who couldn't even finish an undergraduate thesis.

"But since I'm already here, can I just join in the fun?"

"Definitely. I'll talk to the school, and they'll be very surprised."

(End of this chapter)