Reborn in 1977, I will no longer be my brother's blood bag.

The next day, when they went to the North China Institute of Automation, Zhao Guodong kept talking the whole way.

Halfway up the stairs, he recited again:

"Lin Xiuhe, the person in charge of the final presentation of the Qiming Project."

Li Mingyuan, holding his notebook, stopped behind him.

That's enough for you.

Zhao Guodong turned around.

"What's wrong with me reciting a couple of lines?"

"If you read it again, Director Qin will make you go to the gate and read it to the security guard."

Zhao Guodong grinned.

"That's not necessarily a bad thing."

Lin Xiuhe tucked the certification form into her textbook.

[Final Presentation Manager for the Qiming Project: Lin Xiuhe]

Zhao Guodong was happy for her.

Li Mingyuan clipped the paper together for her.

She herself didn't dare to touch it much.

The paper was too thin; I was always afraid that if I used too much force, I would scratch the stamp.

The conference room door opened.

Director Qin came out, holding a mimeograph form in his hand. He put the form on the table.

"Don't be happy yet."

Zhao Guodong's smile hadn't quite faded yet.

"Director Qin, we didn't laugh."

Director Qin looked at him.

"Your teeth are practically stretched to your ears."

Li Mingyuan opened the notebook, and Zhao Guodong coughed and took half a step back.

Director Qin tapped the mimeograph table on the table with the cap of his pen.

"It was delivered by Beicheng Factory yesterday."

Lin Xiuhe lowered her head.

The header reads:

[Morning Star Phase 2 - On-site Task Sheet]

[Rework Record of the Pilot Production Line at Beicheng Light Industry Refrigeration Plant]

The following columns contain very little text.

[Trial production yesterday: 26 units]

[Repaired: 12 units]

[Leakage points not identified: Seven units]

[Responsible Process: Empty]

Zhao Guodong reached out to take it, but Director Qin pressed the pen cap against the corner of the paper.

"Don't flip through it."

Zhao Guodong pulled his hand back.

"I'll just take a look."

"Look at the last column first."

Zhao Guodong leaned closer.

"Empty?"

"Um."

Director Qin put the pen cap back on.

"This thing is uglier than what you put on stage, isn't it?"

Zhao Guodong is quick to speak.

"Working in this factory is just too—"

Director Qin looked up. Zhao Guodong swallowed the rest of his sentence.

Director Qin said, "Don't let this slip out once you're at the factory."

Zhao Guodong scratched his neck.

"I haven't finished speaking yet."

"Your face says it all."

Director Qin pulled out the certification form from yesterday and placed it next to the mimeographed form.

Secretary Luo stood by the window, a list rolled up in his hand.

"Director Qin, she still has to teach a class."

"Isn't it a bit too hasty to let her lead a team into the factory?"

Director Qin pushed two pieces of paper in front of Lin Xiuhe.

"Classes will continue as usual, and factory work will continue as usual."

Luo frowned.

"But she's still just a student."

Director Qin tapped the certification form with the cap of his pen.

"She was a student when she got the stamp yesterday."

The festive atmosphere that had been floating in the room was immediately suppressed back onto the table.

Director Qin turned to Lin Xiuhe.

"Go to the North City factory tomorrow. Don't start talking about changes as soon as you walk in; take a look first."

He tapped the last column of the mimeograph form again.

Why is this column empty?

Lin Xiuhe picked up the two pieces of paper.

Zhao Guodong picked up his toolbox.

"I'll bring pliers, screwdrivers, and a multimeter tomorrow."

Director Qin said, "Wear glasses."

Zhao Guodong's shoulder twitched.

Director Qin added, "And the ears."

Zhao Guodong muttered to himself, "Then what's the point of me carrying this toolbox for nothing?"

Director Qin pushed the mimeograph sheet into Lin Xiuhe's textbook again.

"That's just how it is on site."

"If you're afraid of trouble, don't go into the factory."

Zhao Guodong failed to make a run for it this time.

Li Mingyuan wrote the three characters "Beicheng Factory" at the top of the notebook.

After finishing writing, he put the pen cap back on.

"Director Qin, shall we go directly to the factory tomorrow?"

"Classes will start in the morning."

Zhao Guodong looked up abruptly.

"Still having classes?"

Director Qin looked at him.

"You skip classes, so you expect to get a job in the factory by yelling?"

Zhao Guodong put the toolbox down beside his legs.

"Go, go, okay?"

As I left the research institute, the wind rushed in from the building entrance.

Zhao Guodong walked ahead, his toolbox bumping against his leg. After a few steps, he turned back.

"Lin Xiuhe".

"Um."

"Are those twelve machines really all faulty?"

Lin Xiuhe adjusted her backpack straps to her shoulder.

"I don't know."

Zhao Guodong became anxious.

"I didn't know you would agree to go?"

She pulled the repair form out and stuffed it back into her textbook.

"If you know that, why bother going?"

Zhao Guodong opened his mouth, then closed it again. Li Mingyuan followed, carrying his notebook.

"At the school gate at 6:30?"

"Um."

"I brought a stopwatch."

Zhao Guodong said, "Why do you carry a stopwatch with everything?"

Li Mingyuan replied, "I was afraid you'd get impatient and say three minutes instead of thirty seconds."

Zhao Guodong raised his foot to kick him, but Li Mingyuan dodged it while holding his notebook. Lin Xiuhe's shoulders relaxed a little from their commotion.

Upon arriving at the institute's entrance, Zhou Zhiyuan stood under a locust tree, carrying an aluminum lunchbox wrapped in an old blue cloth.

Zhao Guodong shouted first.

"Officer Zhou, you've arrived right at mealtime again?"

Zhou Zhiyuan handed the lunchbox to Lin Xiuhe.

"The cafeteria is about to close down."

Zhao Guodong reached out his hand.

I'm hungry too.

Zhou Zhiyuan glanced at the toolbox in his hand.

"You have a toolbox."

Zhao Guodong almost laughed in anger.

"You can eat a toolbox?"

"It will save you from saying too much."

Li Mingyuan covered his mouth with the notebook and coughed.

Lin Xiuhe opened the lunchbox.

Braised pork with potatoes.

There wasn't much meat, but the potatoes were cut into large pieces.

The heat hit her, and she realized that she had only eaten half a steamed bun for lunch.

Zhou Zhiyuan handed her the lid of the lunchbox.

"Eat first."

Lin Xiuhe picked up a piece of potato, ate half of it, and then said:

"I just signed my name yesterday."

She paused, then swallowed her food.

"I only saw an empty form today."

Zhou Zhiyuan was still holding the blue cloth in his hand.

He folded the blue cloth halfway and then stopped it.

"That……"

He unfolded the blue cloth again and folded it once more.

"Food doesn't taste good when it's cold."

Zhao Guodong, munching on a steamed bun, interjected.

"Officer Zhou, your way of comforting people is too honest."

Zhou Zhiyuan handed the enamel mug to Lin Xiuhe.

"You should drink some water too."

Zhao Guodong reached out his hand.

Zhou Zhiyuan placed the cup towards Lin Xiuhe.

"Her".

Zhao Guodong pointed to himself.

"And me?"

Li Mingyuan handed over the kettle.

"Drink mine."

Zhao Guodong took it and drank two mouthfuls.

"You're all bullying me."

She finished her meal and handed the aluminum lunchbox back.

"I'm going to the factory tomorrow."

"Um."

"I have classes this morning."

Zhou Zhiyuan picked up the lunchbox.

"Then go back early."

Halfway there, he remembered something and stuffed the enamel mug into the side pocket of her schoolbag.

"Take this."

Lin Xiuhe said, "There is water in the factory."

"The factory's water belongs to the factory."

After he finished speaking, he realized his words were awkward and his brow twitched.

"I'll bring it with me anyway."

Lin Xiuhe pressed the cup further in.

"OK."

As darkness fell, they returned to school.

The lights in the laboratory building were still on.

The classroom door was ajar, and the sound of reciting could be heard coming from inside.

Zhao Guodong carried the toolbox into the laboratory, and the metal buckles snapped open.

"I'll bring pliers, screwdrivers, and a multimeter tomorrow. If things get really chaotic at the factory, I'll find the leaks first."

Lin Xiuhe reached out and closed the toolbox.

Zhao Guodong stared at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Don't open the box tomorrow."

"What's the point of going if I'm not going to open the box?"

"look."

Zhao Guodong's eyebrows furrowed.

"Can you spot the leaks?"

Lin Xiuhe pushed the repair form in front of him.

"Seven leaks were not detected."

"If you go there and start dismantling things, the factory will only think you're causing trouble."

Zhao Guodong's hand was still resting on the toolbox buckle. After a moment, he pressed the buckle down firmly.

"Then I'll wait."

At night, the lights in the laboratory building gradually dimmed.

-

The next morning was for automatic control class.

The teacher wrote two words on the blackboard: 【Feedback】

"The system has deviated from the target and needs to be corrected promptly."

The classroom was filled with the sound of pages turning.

Zhao Guodong sat in the back row, his toolbox placed beside his feet, hooked on with his toes, afraid of bumping into the classmate next to him.

Li Mingyuan sat up straight and copied the diagram on the blackboard into his notebook.

Beneath Lin Xiuhe's textbook was the repair form from the Beicheng Factory.

When the teacher mentioned the word "deviation," she pushed the table further in.

The bell rang, signaling the end of get out of class.

Zhao Guodong picked up his toolbox, rushed to the door, and then abruptly stopped.

He turned around and asked, "Can we walk now?"

Lin Xiuhe packed her textbooks, repair forms, and certification forms into her schoolbag.

"Walk."

An old factory vehicle was parked at the school gate. Several patches of white paint had peeled off the car door.

The driver had a cigarette in his mouth and was checking his watch.

"From a research institute?"

Lin Xiuhe replied, "It's from the school, and related to research institute projects."

The driver looked behind her.

"Just the three of you?"

Zhao Guodong lifted the toolbox up.

"What's wrong?"

The driver took the cigarette out and stubbed it out on the sole of his shoe.

"Nothing much."

He opened the car door.

Zhao Guodong's shoulder twitched.

Li Mingyuan nudged his arm with his notebook.

Zhao Guodong suppressed his anger, picked up his toolbox, and got into the car.

The car drove out of the school gate.

Ahead is the Beicheng Light Industry Refrigeration Plant.

When the car entered the factory area, Lin Xiuhe first smelled a rusty smell, as well as the smell of engine oil.

Next to the guardhouse, a line of white text reads: "Less repairs, more shipments."

A piece of white paint has chipped off.

The driver parked the car outside the back workshop.

"arrive."

Lin Xiuhe got off the bus carrying her schoolbag. Zhao Guodong carried his toolbox. Li Mingyuan held his notebook.

At the entrance to the back workshop, an old worker in worn-out overalls was waiting.

His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and his hands were covered in black grease.

"From a research institute?"

Lin Xiuhe said, "Yes."

The experienced craftsman glanced at her schoolbag, then at the toolbox in Zhao Guodong's hand.

"student?"

Lin Xiuhe tightened the backpack straps on her shoulder.

"student."

The old master turned and walked inside.

"bring it on."

"Let's familiarize ourselves with the objects first."

They followed them inside.

In the back workshop, welding tables, leak detection tanks, and testing tables were crammed together.

At the very back, a row of semi-finished products were placed against the wall.

Several units had their outer shells removed.

Several machines with exposed copper pipes.

There were also two machines with crumpled paper stickers on them.

The experienced craftsman walked to the very edge and kicked a disassembled, semi-finished machine with his toe.

"Yesterday's twelfth station."

He turned around, and Chong Linxiuhe raised her chin.

"Come."

"You guys take a look first."