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

The Great Northwest, Base 001.

The gale was like a knife, whipping up the rough sand and gravel unique to the Gobi Desert, and lashing the red brick walls of the No. 1 machine repair workshop with a crisp "crackling" sound.

However, the raging sounds of nature could not drown out the surging heat inside the workshop.

This is the heart of Base 001, and also one of the highest-secret industrial restricted areas in all of China.

At this moment, under the illumination of high-wattage industrial lamps, the machine in the center of the workshop, half-covered by a canvas, resembled a steel behemoth about to awaken, radiating a chilling luster.

That was a machine tool.

However, if any Soviet expert or American engineer were to look at it at that time, they would absolutely not be able to identify which model it was.

Its base, though still resembling the Soviet-made "1K62" conventional lathe, has been completely modified. The bulky cast iron guideways have been flattened, replaced by a set of never-before-seen hydrostatic guideways with a bluish luster. The original complex mechanical gearbox is gone, replaced by a huge electrical control cabinet densely packed with transistors and relays.

At the very front of the main shaft, a knife holder that is not only uniquely shaped, but can even be described as "sci-fi", is quietly suspended there.

"Attention all units, this is the final system self-check."

Su Zheng's voice echoed in the empty workshop. He was wearing a blue overall that was covered in oil stains, and he held a well-worn notebook in his hand, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

These three months were three months of his life burning wildly.

It's not just about forging "Black Tortoise" armor steel.

After resolving the materials issue, he immediately threw himself into the modification of the "industrial mother machine." He knew that even with good steel, without high-precision processing equipment, top-notch weapons still couldn't be manufactured.

The gyroscope in a missile needs to have micrometer-level precision;

Centrifuge rotors require milligram-level dynamic balancing;

Even the core components of future atomic bombs will require processing capabilities that surpass the current era.

Therefore, he had to build this machine.

"Hydraulic system pressure, 12 MPa, stable." Ye Xinyi stood in front of the pressure gauge, her clear voice trembling slightly.

"Spindle thermal deformation compensation algorithm, loading complete." Beside him, an elderly professor wearing thick-rimmed glasses was sweating profusely as he stared intently at the oscilloscope. He was a leading figure in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Tsinghua University, yet at this moment he was reporting to Su Zheng with the nervousness of a primary school student.

"The tool coolant is circulating normally."

"Advisor Su, everything is ready!"

Base Director Lao Li stood to the side, his hands clenched into fists, his palms sweaty.

Su Zheng took a deep breath.

He walked up to the machine tool, reached out, and gently stroked its cold metal casing.

The Eye of Truth is opened.

In an instant, the world changed in his eyes.

The once static machine tool was instantly broken down into countless flowing data streams.

He saw the trajectory of the hydraulic oil surging through the pipeline, the transition of electrons inside the transistor, and the extremely small radial runout of the spindle bearing, which was only 0.1 micrometers.

This is a machine that he personally imbued with a soul.

He has complete control over the grinding of every part, the welding of every wire, and even the tightening torque of every screw.

What did he and his group do during those three months?

They worked day and night for seven days and seven nights in a constant temperature room using a manual scraping method, and managed to scrape the straightness of the guide rail down to 0.002 millimeters per meter—the limit of human craftsmanship.

Lacking high-precision ball screws, Su Zheng used the system's "hyperspace laboratory" to simulate them, and then guided the veteran fitters to "grind" them out little by little with polishing paste.

Lacking integrated circuits, Ye Xinyi led the girls in the mathematics group to build a primitive CNC brain on a circuit board using thousands of transistors, resistors, and capacitors, which still possessed the function of "interpolation calculation".

This is a true "hand-made" industrial miracle.

"Serve the ingredients."

Su Zheng gave the order in a low voice.

A fist-sized, dark, high-strength alloy steel blank was clamped onto the spindle.

This is a special steel used to make the prototype of the gyroscope rotor. Its hardness is as high as Rockwell 60. When ordinary knives cut into it, it's like cutting into a stone, and they will only chip.

But today, it is destined to be conquered.

"start up."

As Su Zheng pressed the red button.

"Buzz—"

A deep, resonant, and extremely steady humming sound rang out.

That's the spindle, after dynamic balancing, rotating at high speed. 3000 RPM, 4000 RPM, 5000 RPM...

The speed increased rapidly, but the machine tool itself remained completely still. Old Li even placed a coin upright on the machine bed, and the coin stood firm as if it were welded to it.

"Invite the knife."

Ye Xinyi inputs the command.

A series of rapid "clicking" sounds came from inside the electrical control cabinet; that was the relays engaging at high speed.

The servo motor drives the tool holder to approach the rotating workpiece at a tiny speed that is almost imperceptible to the naked eye.

0.1 mm.

0.05 mm.

0.01 mm.

We made contact.

"Sizzle—"

There was no piercing whistling, no bursting sparks.

There was only one cutting sound, extremely smooth and extremely pleasant, like silk being torn apart.

It was an industrial symphony with a certain rhythm.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, strands of blue, curled iron filings, like blooming metal flowers, flew continuously from the tip of the knife, landing in the collection tray with a crisp sound.

"Depth of cut 0.02 mm, feed rate 0.05 mm per revolution..." The old professor stared at the data, muttering to himself, "This is too stable... too stable..."

"It's not just about stability."

Su Zheng's gaze was fixed on the cutting point. "Look at that surface."

As the cutting tool slowly moves, a magical change is taking place on the originally dark surface of the blank.

A layer of black skin was peeled off, revealing the silvery-white metallic texture underneath.

But it wasn't an ordinary metal surface.

That was a kind of light.

A dazzling, pure, and flawless mirror-like shine.

The light shone on it, reflecting a clear image. Even the shocked expressions on the faces of the onlookers were faithfully reflected by the rotating metal surface.

"Mirror finish!!"

Someone couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "No grinding required, it's machined to a mirror finish?! This is special steel with a hardness of 60! Can our cutting tools withstand it?"

"I can handle it."

Su Zheng smiled slightly, "Because this knife was also specially made by me."

That was a "cubic boron nitride" knife that he sintered using the system's formula and the base's existing powder metallurgy technology. In this era, that was truly cutting-edge technology.

Time passed by, second by second.

Ten minutes later.

"Retract the blade, stop the machine."

At Su Zheng's command, the machines slowly stopped roaring.

The coin that was standing upright on the bed wobbled and finally fell over.

But at this moment, nobody cares about the coin.

Everyone swarmed around like madmen, staring intently at the newly finished part.

It was a perfect cylinder.

Smooth and mirror-like, perfectly formed by nature.

It lay quietly in the chuck, exuding a breathtaking industrial beauty. It was as if it were not an industrial part, but a meticulously crafted work of art.

The head of the testing team held the still-warm metal in trembling hands, as if he were holding a newborn baby.

He carefully placed the part on the coordinate measuring machine (albeit a simplified version), and the probe slowly made contact with the surface.

Everyone held their breath, not daring to utter a sound.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Every second of waiting was agonizing for everyone present. Old Li's shirt was soaked with sweat, clinging tightly to his back.

Finally, the head of the testing team looked up.

His face wore an expression that suggested he had seen a ghost or God. His lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.

"How...how much?" Old Li was so anxious he wanted to kick someone. "Say something!"

"Reporting... Reporting to the Director... Reporting to Advisor Su..."

The inspection team leader's voice suddenly rose an octave, and he roared out with a sob in his voice:

"Roundness error...0.6 micrometers!"

"Surface roughness... Ra 0.02!"

"Coaxiality...0.8 micrometers!"

"Dimensional tolerance... ±1 micrometer!"

Dead silence.

After a brief silence, there was a roar like a volcanic eruption.

"Micrometer level!! It really is micrometer level!!"

The old professor hugged the technician beside him tightly, tears streaming down his face. "We did it! We really did it! Chinese people can now build the most sophisticated machine tools in the world!"

"Long live!!"

"Long live Advisor Su! Long live 001!"

The workshop instantly transformed into a sea of ​​joy.

Some people threw their hats into the air, some knelt on the ground and kissed the cold machine base, and some pounded their chests to release the pent-up repression and humiliation that had been building up for too long.

There was a time when, in order to manufacture a high-precision part, we had to ask Soviet experts for help, have to be subservient to them, and even be called "idiots" by them.

There was a time when our missiles, due to insufficient gyroscope accuracy, missed their targets by tens of kilometers, becoming an international laughing stock.

But today, all of that is over.

With this machine, China's industrial machine tool industry has finally taken a crucial step from "imitation" to "surpassing".

Old Li pushed through the crowd and rushed to Su Zheng's front.

This usually dignified base director was now crying like a child. He gripped Su Zheng's hand tightly, with a force so great it seemed he wanted to crush Su Zheng's bones.

"Comrade Su Zheng! You are a hero! You are a great hero of the country!"

Old Li rambled on, "Do you know what this means? With it, our missiles will have eyes! Centrifuge rotors will spin more steadily! We'll stand tall!"

Looking at the excited crowd and feeling the warmth of Old Li's rough, large hand in his palm, Su Zheng felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

This is the meaning of his coming into this world.

It's not just about fighting those "beasts" in that courtyard, but also about helping this suffering nation stand tall as soon as possible.

"Old Li, don't get agitated."

Su Zheng withdrew his hand and patted Lao Li on the shoulder. "This is just the beginning. This machine is still a simplified version, and the control system is too outdated. After I return to Beijing and get the chip developed, we'll build a real 'CNC machining center'."

"Okay! Okay! I'll wait for you!" Old Li nodded vigorously.

Su Zheng turned his head and looked towards the outer edge of the crowd.

Ye Xinyi stood there quietly, leaning against the control cabinet.

She didn't celebrate wildly like the others, but her gaze remained fixed on Su Zheng. Her eyes, which were originally clear and calm, now seemed to reflect the entire galaxy.

That's worship of the strong.

It is also a deep affection for fellow travelers.

Their eyes met in mid-air, and they smiled at each other.

Needless to say.

Those three months of days and nights, those thousand drawings, those countless late-night discussions, those repeated attempts after failures... all the hardships and tacit understanding are contained in this smile.