I started with a ship full of max-level veterans, and I'm just a complete noob.

Upon hearing Jiang Ming's words, Da Liu, still catching his breath, turned and ran towards the tin toolbox in the corner.

He pulled out a crumpled tube of high-vacuum silicone grease from the bottom layer, and then brought over several sheets of pure copper foil with dark edges.

Jiang Ming used his thumb to scoop out a lump of dark yellow silicone grease and applied it along the fine crack on the outside of the glass tube.

A thick layer of grease completely covered the surrounding metal seal.

Da Liu quickly handed over the copper foil.

The two worked together to wrap the foil layer by layer around the silicone grease, and finally grabbed the specially made spring clamp and fastened it tightly to the outer edge of the support ring.

Jiang Ming stepped back two paces and glanced at the cathode tube, which looked like it had been roughly patched.

Then, he reached out and pulled off the main switch to reconnect the power.

The harsh roar of the old rotary vane pump once again filled Workshop No. 1.

The black needle on the mercury counter wobbled a few times and stopped at the edge of 10 to the power of -4.8.

When the silicone grease on the outside of the tube is heated, it emits a burnt rubber smell.

But that defensive line, locked by the clamps, ultimately withstood the tearing force of the extreme negative pressure.

Xiao Zhao sat in front of the testing table, sweat rolling down his thick-rimmed glasses and soaking into his notebook.

The pointer representing the emission current started to climb.

150 microamps.

Two hundred and ten microamperes.

After the pointer crossed 200 microamps, it struggled to climb, and even trembled slightly on the dial.

It completely lacked the exhilarating feeling of directly hitting the top with just half a sample.

The only sound in the workshop was the whirring of the exhaust fans.

The pointer finally stopped at 260 microamps, and couldn't go any higher.

Xiao Zhao's hand holding the pen was also trembling.

He turned to look at the chief engineer behind him, his throat feeling like it was choked with a piece of ginger.

This data doesn't even reach the peak performance of the sample image; in fact, it shows a slightly alarming drop in performance.

Wu Hanzhang strode to the control panel and snatched the record board from Xiao Zhao's hand.

He took out half a red and blue pencil from his shirt pocket and drew a large circle around the string of numbers.

The pen tip even poked a hole in the rough back of the paper.

Wu Hanzhang's voice was hoarse from the strong tea, but he still spoke to his old colleagues in the workshop.

"You guys don't know anything."

"Although this is a patched-up, defective product, its 260 microamps rating already meets the minimum standard for the core components the Soviets took away back then!"

Old Sun, however, did not respond to this encouraging remark.

He squatted beside the piles of waste, his pipe rattling loudly on the cement floor.

Those bloodshot eyes were fixed on the ring of clamps on the platform.

Old Sun wiped his face with the rough back of his hand and immediately started swearing.

"How can this be considered a passing grade!"

"It's all my fault for having such useless hands; they've worn a hidden scratch on the support ring that seals the glass and metal."

"Otherwise, we could have produced a complete tube today!"

Jiang Ming grabbed an old cotton cloth from the table, wiped the grease off his hands, and walked over to Old Sun.

He knew that this seventh-level fitter was the most stubborn.

If this mental block isn't resolved, the subsequent processes simply can't proceed.

Jiang Ming threw the old cloth into the wastepaper basket and, in a low voice, explained the underlying logic he had gleaned from his spiritual communication the previous night.

"Master Sun, this crack has absolutely nothing to do with your craftsmanship."

"The sintering curve itself is flawed."

Old Sun looked up, his fingers still trembling slightly as he held the pipe.

Jiang Ming took Xiao Zhao's notebook and drew a diagonal line on the temperature curve of the uphill slope with a pen.

"Our pipes are large, with metal at both ends and glass in the middle."

"The difference in size due to thermal expansion is entirely compressed onto this outer support ring."

"The temperature dropped too quickly during annealing, and the sealing stress inside the glass was not completely released, which caused the outer skin to crack."

Only then did Old Sun pull one leg out of his self-reproach and ask in a gruff voice.

"So what do we do next?"

Jiang Ming turned to look at Wu Hanzhang and determined the direction for adjusting the second pipe.

"The glass-metal sealing buffer must be modified before installing the second tube tomorrow."

"The insulation band for the annealing process needs to be stretched for at least two hours."

The gloom in Workshop No. 1 was dispelled by the newly clarified technical route.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere inside the factory's administrative building was so oppressive it was almost frozen.

The door to Director Zhang's office was locked from the inside.

On the writing desk sat the black secure box with its double lead seals cut off.

Director Wang leaned back in his chair, the top two buttons of his shirt collar undone.

In front of him were three manila envelopes labeled "top secret".

He was holding a photocopy of a letter from Chen Zhiyuan sent from the Northwest base.

The frequency band of regular noise interference is circled in red above.

Next to the photocopy was an old, yellowed, and brittle telegram.

That was the last scrambled fragment of a scroll that Lao Lei sent out using the Lightning Seven call sign before his sacrifice.

The third document is the Anti-interference Military Electronic Tube Target Frequency Point Task Book issued by the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense to the Third Electronics Factory.

Director Wang arranged the three sheets of paper in a line on the glass tabletop.

His gaze darted back and forth between the three sets of dry physical data.

Factory Director Zhang walked over with a glass of freshly poured water. Seeing Director Wang's ashen face, he slammed the glass down on the corner of the table.

"Did you figure it out?"

"Is the chaos in the Northwest really that eerie?"

Director Wang did not touch the cup of hot water.

He picked up a pencil and drew intersecting lines on the three sets of data, speaking in a slow, almost oppressive manner.

"The regular noise emitted by enemy agents in Northwest China is not a test at all."

He pointed to the point where the data from the first and second sets overlapped.

"They're using the old frequency bands that Lao Lei used back in the day."

"This is an attempt to summon the spirit of that dead underground shortwave network, to rekindle the embers that were withdrawn back then."

Factory Director Zhang pulled out a wooden chair and sat down, his gaze following the pencil to the third sheet of paper.

The target parameters that Jiang Ming was working tirelessly on in the workshop were written on there.

Director Wang slammed his pencil down on the third sheet of paper, leaving a dark gray mark.

"Look here."

"The Northwest Clutter mentioned in Chen Zhiyuan's letter happens to be located in the anti-interference blind zone designated by the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense."

"These scum hiding in the shadows are targeting our Northwest military communications defense line that we are currently setting up."

A cold sweat broke out on Director Zhang's back.

He finally understood why Director Wang had brought the incomplete documents to Beijing overnight to assist in the investigation.

The legacy left by Lei Jun is not just about technology.

The domestically produced vacuum tube that Jiang Ming is holding in his hand is the key weapon for cracking the noise interference in Northwest China.

This kid not only had to fight the Soviets' endgame in the workshop, but also unknowingly stepped into the front line of dealing with the lurking enemy.

Factory Director Zhang tightened the collar of his military uniform jacket and squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth.

"This matter must not be leaked out by even a single word."

"Xiao Jiang just needs to keep an eye on the sintering furnace in the workshop; I'll shield him from the wind and rain outside."

Night completely engulfed the wilderness outside Beijing.

Jiang Ming plugged in the iron bolt of the single dormitory room, and without even washing his face, sat cross-legged on the hard bed.

Consciousness sinks.

The bronze-colored Book of Human Connections opened in the darkness, emitting a cool, metallic glow.

The first sacrificial ore, which resulted in a crack, taught us the lesson of insufficient annealing.

He must pave the way for the rest of the journey after tonight's three psychic sessions.

He skipped directly over the gold name card at the top and found the aloof female pioneer who was dedicated to the study of precision instruments and vacuum systems engineering.

"Senior, how should the sealing and buffering mechanism between the glass and metal sections be modified?"

How can I determine the safest percentage increase in annealing time?

The pride of female pioneers always carries a sharp edge that goes straight to the heart.

"Use Kovar alloy as a transitional step."

"The annealing cooling process cannot be carried out at a uniform rate; it must be forcibly stopped for one hour within the 400-degree range to release stress."

"If your furnace can't control the temperature, go borrow a voltage regulator."

Jiang Ming had the words "Kovar alloy" and "step cooling" etched into his mind.

He then turned his attention directly to his second classmate in materials interface physics.

"Senior, will prolonged annealing time for large-area cathode coatings trigger a second round of pulverization?"

His fellow student, who spoke very quickly, reassured him.

"As long as the preheating and impurity removal are thorough, slow annealing will only increase the lattice density and will not cause powder to escape."

During the third spiritual communication, Jiang Ming did not inquire about the craftsmanship.

He connected with the hot-tempered early pioneer of vacuum tubes and radar.

He reported the 260 microamp anti-interference transmission data measured today and inquired about stability compensation under high-power load.

The response from the pioneers of the Fiery Pioneers carried an unreasonable technological dominance.

"A layer of mica-ceramic composite sheet is placed under the cathode base to suppress inter-electrode capacitance interference."

"If the tubes can't even withstand a little bit of external noise, they're just a pile of scrap metal if used for radar communications!"

The psychic quota has been exhausted.

Jiang Ming opened his bloodshot eyes.

He grabbed his hard-cover notebook and sketched out all the alternatives to the mica-ceramic composite sheet and Kovar alloy.

At the same time, the smoke in the factory manager's office almost solidified.

Director Wang pushed the three frequency band comparison sheets covered with cross lines to Factory Director Zhang and said in a low voice.

"This is no coincidence."

"We need to get Jiang Ming's pipe to the Northwest as soon as possible."