Love in the Courtyard: Starting with Engineers

If anyone attempts to disassemble the machine tool's core components, the device will automatically burn out critical data.

As the resealed machine tools were hoisted onto the ship, Li Yu's eyes grew even sharper.

He knew this was just the beginning.

Foreigners wanting to steal technology from him and hinder the development of China's military industry is simply delusional.

While Li Yu was dealing with the port incident, far away in the embassy of the United States, Anderson was looking at a telegram and angrily smashed his coffee cup to pieces.

The telegram contained only one line: Mission failed. The enemy was prepared and the core circuit board could not be taken out.

The CIA agent beside him remained calm, saying slowly, "It's alright, Anderson. Our key player hasn't been moved yet."

Anderson looked up, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.

The detective's lips curled into a sinister smile: "Have you forgotten? Lu Qing is currently in the civilian technology department, responsible for liaising with foreign clients on technical training. He has a copy of some of the operating manuals for four-axis machine tools in his hands..."

Far away in the civilian technology department office building of Longxing Factory, Lu Qing was sitting at his desk, looking at the operation manual in his hand, his eyes dark and unfathomable.

According to the contract, all customers who purchase four-axis machine tools are required to send three technicians to the factory for a month of operation training.

The first group of students arrived from Southeast Asia and the Middle East. They were all dressed in work clothes, holding notebooks, and their eyes were full of thirst for knowledge.

Li Yu personally drafted the training outline, breaking down the civilian operation skills of four-axis machine tools in detail. However, he kept a secret on the core CNC programming module, encrypting and deleting all the algorithms related to the processing of military parts.

Lu Qing, as the liaison for the civilian technology department, is responsible for daily training and instruction.

He lectured in a clear and logical manner, and was fluent in foreign languages. He got along quite well with the foreign students, so Li Yu didn't pay much attention to him at first.

That afternoon, when Li Yu went to the training building to check on the teaching situation, he heard Lu Qing saying something on the podium as soon as he reached the classroom door, his tone carrying a hint of deliberate guidance.

"...This little trick for adjusting parameters is something I figured out on my own; it's not in the official manual. Write it down, and it can increase efficiency by 30% when machining precision gears."

Li Yu stopped in his tracks.

That so-called "trick" is not something that is used in the civilian field at all. The adjusted data just happens to touch the threshold of military parts processing.

He pushed open the door and entered, the noise in the classroom abruptly ceasing. Lu Qing's expression changed slightly upon seeing him, but she quickly regained her composure and greeted him with a smile: "Engineer Li, what brings you here?"

Li Yu ignored him and walked straight to the podium, picking up the lesson plan from Lu Qing's hand and flipping through it. Sure enough, the last few pages of the lesson plan were filled with several advanced operating techniques, all of which were key steps for adapting four-axis machine tools to military applications.

"Who told you to add this content?" Li Yu's voice was deep, his gaze sweeping across Lu Qing's face like a knife.

Lu Qing's eyes flickered, and she lowered her head: "It's just a summary of my own experience, hoping to help the students learn more..."

"Really?" Li Yu sneered, throwing the lesson plan on the table. "Then tell me, what parts can this gear be machined after its parameters are adjusted?"

Lu Qing opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything for a long time.

The foreign trainees looked at each other blankly, while the technician from the Middle East still raised his hand stupidly: "Mr. Li, the techniques that Teacher Lu mentioned are very useful, we would like to learn more..."

"You can learn if you want." Li Yu glanced at the entire room, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable authority.

"We'll share all our skills in the civilian field. But if you're thinking of using it for military purposes, sorry, Longxing Factory won't teach you that."

He turned to look at Lu Qing and said, word by word, "From today onwards, all training course lesson plans must be reviewed by both me and the technical department. You are not required to teach for the time being."

Lu Qing's face turned pale instantly, her lips trembled, but she dared not refute.

Li Yu didn't look at him again, but instead addressed the students filling the classroom:

"Gentlemen, four-axis machine tools are meant to benefit people's livelihoods, not tools for your military expansion. The contract clearly states the consequences of misuse, and you should be aware of them."

The trainees nodded in agreement, and the previously lively atmosphere instantly became serious.

After finishing up the training building matters, Li Yu immediately went to the archives.

He always felt that there was something fishy going on behind Lu Qing's unusual behavior.

Sure enough, while reviewing the distribution records of the training manual, he discovered a suspicious detail—a few days ago, Lu Qing borrowed an unedited version of the four-axis machine tool operation manual under the pretext of "improving the teaching plan," and has not returned it since.

Although the manual did not contain the core technology of five-axis machine tools, it contained the complete programming logic of four-axis machine tools. If it fell into the hands of foreigners, they could completely reverse engineer it and even modify it into a low-end version of military processing equipment.

Li Yu's heart sank.

He immediately summoned the head of the security department and gave him a stern order:

"Immediately send someone to keep an eye on Lu Qing, and don't allow him to leave the factory area even a step. Also, conduct a thorough search of his dormitory and office; make sure to find that unedited manual!"

The guards acted swiftly, and the news arrived in less than two hours.

The manual was not found, but a letter that had not yet been mailed was found under Lu Qing's bed in the dormitory. The recipient's address was the Consulate General of the United States in Hong Kong.

The letter contained no words, only a densely packed sheet of numbers.

Li Yu stared at the string of codes, his eyes as cold as ice.

Meanwhile, back in the embassy in the United States, Anderson was grinning from ear to ear, holding a telegram.

The telegram was sent by Lu Qing and contained only one short sentence: The manual has been obtained and will be sent out as soon as the time is right.

Anderson patted the CIA agent next to him on the shoulder and said smugly, "Look, we're about to succeed."

The detective, however, was not as optimistic as him, frowning as he said, "Anderson, don't be too happy yet. Li Yu is a very meticulous person; Lu Qing may not succeed."

"Hmph, so what?" Anderson sneered. "Even if he fails, we still have a backup plan. Quite a few of our people are among those foreign trainees..."

As night deepened, the lights at Longxing Factory remained on.

Li Yu stood by the window, clutching the encrypted letter in his hand. He knew that Lu Qing was just a stepping stone; Anderson, the real venomous snake, was behind it all.

This battle over machine tool technology is far from over.

What he wants to do is to lay a trap so that everyone who covets Chinese technology will pay the price.