Courtyard House: A Major Power's Heavy Industry, Hand-Crafted Nuclear Fusion

In the independent laboratory of the third workshop, the air was so quiet it seemed to have frozen.

To ensure constant temperature and humidity, all windows were sealed with thick blackout curtains, leaving only a high-powered shadowless lamp to illuminate the workbench in every detail.

The thermometer on the wall was stuck at 20 degrees Celsius, and the hygrometer was also stuck at a constant value of 45%.

This stringent environmental control is intended to eliminate any external factors that could cause even slight deformation of the metal.

On the table, there was the spindle core that had just undergone rough machining.

This metal rod, which is 1.2 meters long and weighs several tens of kilograms, has undergone preliminary processing on a grinding machine and looks as bright as a mirror. However, in Su Zheng's eyes, which have been systematically enhanced, it presents a completely different picture.

What he saw was not a smooth mirror, but a world full of microscopic flaws and pits.

Countless micrometer-sized protrusions stand like mountain peaks, and countless tiny scratches crisscross like ravines. These flaws, which are completely invisible to the average person, are fatal hidden dangers that can trigger an avalanche for the 0.1-micrometer-sized oil film required by the hydrostatic spindle.

"Ra0.8, roundness error 3 micrometers."

Su Zheng quietly recited the data.

Standing to the side, Zhao Ming didn't dare to breathe loudly, holding a box of imported polishing ointment in his hands, with fine beads of sweat already seeping from his forehead.

Although he didn't understand how his master could see through these data at a glance, he could sense that his master's state was very strange at the moment.

That focus, that almost devout sense of ritual, made him afraid to even breathe loudly, lest the airflow disturb his master's hands.

"Zhao Ming, what's the temperature of the constant temperature bath?"

"20.0 degrees Celsius, plus or minus 0.1 degrees." Zhao Ming quickly glanced at the high-precision thermometer next to him, his voice trembling slightly.

"it is good."

Su Zheng took a deep breath and put on specially made white cotton gloves.

These gloves are degreased to maximize the protection of the hands from sweat and body heat.

In micron-level machining, the thermal expansion and contraction of metal caused by body heat transferred to the workpiece can produce errors of several micrometers, ruining everything.

Su picked up a cast iron grinding rod and evenly applied a layer of red iron oxide grinding paste to it.

"Let's begin."

With a slight exertion of force from Su Zheng's wrist, the grinding rod adhered to the surface of the spindle.

"rustle--"

An extremely subtle, monotonous friction sound echoed in the laboratory.

Su Zheng's eyes were slightly closed, as if he were listening to some kind of music from the microscopic world.

To outsiders, he appeared to be simply resting with his eyes closed, or blindly grinding by feel. But in reality, in his mind, the "Eye of Truth" had infinitely magnified the metal lattice on the main axis surface, constructing a real-time three-dimensional holographic model.

Each red highlighted area represents a "peak" that needs to be cut; each blue shaded area represents a "valley" that needs to be avoided.

His hands are the most precise CNC machine tools.

Each push and pull is controlled at the millinewton level;

Each rotation is precise to an angle of 0.1 degrees.

The grinding rod, like an invisible plane, precisely shaved away the excess micron-sized protrusions under Su Zheng's command.

The abrasive grains in the polishing paste roll under pressure, making a series of cracking sounds, gradually flattening those microscopic peaks.

This is an extremely tedious yet thrilling process.

If you grind it too much, the shaft diameter will become smaller, and it will be unusable.

If you grind it even a little less, the roundness won't meet the standard, and it will be scrapped.

Uneven application of force will cause ripples on the surface, rendering the surface unusable.

Su Zheng was like dancing on the edge of a knife, walking a tightrope on the edge of a cliff.

Even the slightest mistake could turn this priceless main shaft into a scrap metal bar.

Time passed by, second by second.

One hour.

Two hours.

Five hours.

Zhao Ming's legs were numb from standing, but he remained motionless, still delivering the liniment.

He watched his master's back as his thin work clothes were soaked with sweat and clung tightly to his back.

But Su Zheng's hand remained as steady as a rock.

"rustle--"

The voice has changed.

The initial rough "rustling" sound transformed into a delicate "hissing" sound, and finally into an almost inaudible gliding sound.

This indicates that the surface roughness is decreasing geometrically, approaching the level of a mirror finish.

Su Zheng suddenly stopped.

He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze showing no weariness, only a sharper light.

"Change to W0.5 diamond polishing paste."

"Yes!" Zhao Ming quickly handed over another box of finer, almost transparent polishing paste.

This is the factory's most precious inventory; we only use a little bit when repairing gauge blocks.

The final touches have begun.

This time, Su Zheng didn't use the grinding rod, but instead picked up a finely crafted oilstone.

His movements became slower and lighter.

It was as if he were holding not an oilstone, but a feather, gently brushing away the dust from the surface of the spindle.

In his field of vision, most of the red highlight area on the main shaft surface had disappeared, leaving only a few scattered tiny points of light.

That was the final error.

Current roundness error: 0.8 micrometers.

[Target roundness error: 0.1 micrometers.]

Almost there.

But this last point is an insurmountable barrier to human manual processing. It is the sighing wall of the existing industrial system.

A vein bulged on Su Zheng's forehead. Activating the [Eye of Truth] for an extended period had severely depleted his mental energy, even causing his vision to begin to blur slightly. But he gritted his teeth, forcibly overdrawing his mental strength to lock onto those last few micrometer-level high points.

"Give me... peace!!!"

Su Zheng let out a silent roar in his heart, and with a sudden flick of his wrist, he unleashed the ultimate technique he had honed in a top-tier laboratory in his previous life—the "Spiral Pressure Grinding Method".

The oilstone traces a strange yet perfect curve on the shaft surface, using the difference in cutting force brought about by the voltage change to perform a final targeted removal of those tiny protrusions.

"Buzz—"

A very faint metallic resonance sound rang out.

That's the sound of a perfect cylinder vibrating in the air.

This sound is only produced by aerodynamic effects when the geometry of an object is close to a mathematically perfect circle.

Su Zheng's hand finally stopped.

He slowly put down the oilstone, exhaled a long breath, and felt completely exhausted, almost falling over.

"Master!" Zhao Ming reacted quickly, supporting him. "Are you alright?"

"fine."

Su Zheng waved his hand, pushed Zhao Ming aside, and stared intently at the main shaft. At this moment, the main shaft reflected a deep and captivating luster under the operating lights, like a piece of black crystal.

"Test." Su Zheng's voice was already somewhat hoarse.

Zhao Ming carefully moved the spindle onto the pneumatic measuring instrument.

This is the only high-precision measuring device in the factory, which was "borrowed" from Soviet experts. Its accuracy can reach 0.5 micrometers.

As the gas supply was connected, the buoy of the measuring instrument began to bounce.

Zhao Ming's heart was in his throat.

He turned the spindle, his eyes fixed on the dial.

a circle.

Two laps.

Three laps.

Several laps passed, but the buoy remained completely still.

It's like it's broken, stuck in the "0" position.

"This...this is bad, isn't it?"

Zhao Ming couldn't believe his eyes. He reached out and patted the watch face. "Why isn't it reacting at all?"

Even parts ground by the factory's best grinder will have a slight bouncing of the float when rotated.

But now, the main shaft seems to have solidified.

"It's not broken."

Su Zheng walked over, a tired yet arrogant smile curling at the corner of his mouth as he looked at the stationary buoy.

"It's because the error is too small, exceeding the sensitivity of this instrument."

"In other words..."

Zhao Ming's voice trembled as he stared wide-eyed at Su Zheng, as if looking at a monster. "Its roundness error... less than 0.5 micrometers? Maybe even less than 0.1 micrometers?"

0.1 micrometers.

What does this mean?

The diameter of a single human hair is 60 micrometers.

0.1 micrometers is one six-hundredth the thickness of a human hair.

This is a true "perfect circle".

It is an artwork that can only be "polished" in a top-notch laboratory, using the most sophisticated equipment, the most stable environment, and taking several months.

Now, the master craftsman only needed ten hours to rub it out with just his two hands.

"It's done."

Su Zheng took off his gloves and casually tossed them onto the table. "Seal it up. This is the 'Chinese heart' we need. With it, that German machine will not only come back to life, but it will be completely transformed."

……

Outside the workshop.

It was already broad daylight.

Although Su Zheng sealed the doors and windows tightly, there is no such thing as a completely airtight wall.

The news that Su was "hand-crafting the spindle" inside had already spread throughout the entire factory.

"Have you heard? That consultant Su has been locked up inside for a whole day and night, saying he's trying to grind it to a precision of 0.5 micrometers by hand!"

"0.5 micrometers? That's a lie! Our best grinding machine in the factory only reaches 3 micrometers. Can a human hand be more accurate than a machine?"

"Exactly! I think this is just stalling for time. Let's see how they handle it when they can't produce it!"

Yi Zhonghai stood in the crowd, hands behind his back, with his usual "calm" sneer on his face.

He didn't sleep well when he got home last night, but he was convinced that Su Zheng had completely messed up this time.

Human resources are sometimes limited.

Even if you are a level eight worker, even if you are a genius, you are still a human being, not a god.

Relying on feel to challenge the limits of industry?

That's as ridiculous as trying to mold a brick into gold with your bare hands.

"Old Yi, do you think this kid can make it?"

Liu Haizhong asked from the side, a hint of schadenfreude in his eyes, "If it doesn't work out, this is a serious crime of deceiving the organization."

"Nonsense! That kid's a complete joke!"

Yi Zhonghai spat, "I'll wait here. When the door opens, I'll see how he comes out crying! Then we can have a word with Director Yang about how this kind of exaggerated style can't continue!"

Just then, the workshop door opened slowly with a loud "bang".

All eyes turned to it instantly.

Su Zheng walked out looking exhausted. His work clothes were covered in oil and sweat stains, and his hair was a bit messy, but his eyes were so bright that people dared not look directly at him.

Behind him, Zhao Ming held a tray covered with red silk, on which was placed the newly completed main shaft.

The morning light shone on the surface of the main shaft, refracting a dazzling ray of light.

The light was pure and cold, without a trace of impurity.

Its surface is so smooth that the reflected light forms a straight beam that pierces the heart.

Upon seeing this, Yi Zhonghai's pupils suddenly contracted.

A true expert's skill is immediately apparent.

Just by looking at its luster, he knew that this thing... was not simple.

That mercury-like texture is something that ordinary polishing can't achieve.

"Make way, everyone."

Su Zheng's voice was hoarse, yet it carried an undeniable air of authority.

He didn't even glance at Yi Zhonghai, as if he were just a wisp of air.

He walked straight through the crowd and headed towards the workshop's break room.

Although the spindle has been rolled out, the subsequent assembly process cannot be neglected.

Even he had to be treated as perfect.

Working while tired is a big no-no!

"Oh, right..."

Su Zheng rubbed his temples, looked at the workshop foreman not far away, and spoke again in a calm voice:

"Director, could you please inform the factory manager?"

"Tell him the heart is ready."

"A few hours later, when I wake up... I can begin the heart transplant surgery."

......

Should the workshop foreman be sent to notify the factory manager? To act as a messenger?

At this moment, there was a deathly silence around everyone.

But no one raised any objections.

Even the workshop director himself felt it was perfectly reasonable.

Without saying a word, he started running off excitedly, looking just like an overly enthusiastic new factory worker.

Seeing this rare and outrageous scene, Liu Haizhong in the crowd stood there dumbfounded, his eyes filled with envy, but even more so with resentment and jealousy!

How did this kid climb to such a high position in such a short time?

On what grounds?

Looking at Yi Zhonghai, who had remained silent beside him, Liu Haizhong, increasingly unwilling to accept the situation, finally couldn't help but speak up:

"Hey Lao Yi, you're not really being subdued by this kid, are you?"

"You're just giving in like that?"

"Sigh, you don't understand..." Yi Zhonghai gave a wry smile, pointing to the main axis, which was surrounded by the crowd and resembled a sacred object:

"Although I haven't tested it, the moment I saw that thing, I knew that Su Zheng's skills were absolutely far superior to mine!"

"Let me put it this way, an eighth-grade worker is the limit in our factory, but it's not Su Zheng's limit!"

"Ha, that doesn't mean Su Zheng actually managed to rub 0.5 micrometers out by hand!"

Liu Haizhong chuckled softly:

"Until the spindle is successfully installed and running, I absolutely do not believe that anyone can rub 0.5 micrometers out by hand!"

"Is that even human?!"

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai's heart stirred.

Yes, before the spindle is successfully installed and running, who can guarantee that the spindle is qualified?

Perhaps, as I just said...

Su Zhengzhen might really become a joke... or maybe not?