The little star from the Gobi Desert, handed over to the state, is hailed as a national treasure.

Just as Liang Zhe finished packing his bags and was about to leave, Tian Tian suddenly ran out of the house, threw herself into his arms, hugged his neck tightly with her little arms, looked up at him with teary eyes, and choked out, "Daddy, Tian Tian wants to come too... Tian Tian wants to stay with Daddy."

A strong intuition arose in her small body—the place her father was going was very dangerous, and she was worried about letting him go alone.

Liang Zhe, who usually dotes on his daughter, was unusually firm this time: "Sweetie, you absolutely cannot go to the experimental field. That's where Grandpa and Uncle build 'big missiles.' The experiments are extremely dangerous; there's radiation, and they could explode."

Although Tian Tian might not fully understand, Liang Zhe couldn't think of a better explanation, so he patiently told her again and again: the experimental field and the base are different. The base is a safe area that is half work and half life, while the experimental field is a purely military industrial forbidden area.

Under the conditions at the time, the safety concepts, design standards, and material processes of engine test benches lagged far behind those of advanced Western countries. Many key theoretical data and limiting parameters could not be obtained through computer simulations and had to be obtained through repeated physical tests, even at the risk of explosions, to obtain the most realistic results. This meant that the risk factor at the test site had increased exponentially.

In the past, the test bench factory building suffered a violent explosion due to pipe blockage, causing the entire factory building to collapse; and due to the overly primitive safety isolation methods, there was also an accident where the shock wave shattered the observation window, and glass shards and blast waves injured the staff.

Even if these accidents could be avoided by chance, this test also took into account the engine test and the cold test of the nuclear warhead. There was an extremely strict radiation monitoring system, and non-operational personnel were absolutely not allowed to enter the test site.

Even though Liang Zhe had tried to simplify the description as much as possible and patiently explained it to Tian Tian again and again, Tian Tian still held his hand tightly and refused to let go, insisting again and again: "Tian Tian wants to go with Daddy... Daddy is in danger, Tian Tian wants to protect Daddy."

His youngest daughter had never been so stubborn before, and Liang Zhe felt both pain and helplessness. He assumed it was just his daughter's instinctive fear of the unknown environment, but he didn't think much of it—what his daughter sensed was far more terrifying than he had imagined.

As a soldier and a member of the base, Liang Zhe knew that experiments inherently involve risks, and these risks were a responsibility he had to bear. He could not be timid, much less back down.

But he must not implicate his daughter.

Seeing that persuasion wasn't working, Liang Zhe had no choice but to devise a plan. He hugged her and coaxed her gently, "Okay, okay, Daddy will take Tian Tian. But Tian Tian has to sleep well first, and when you wake up, Daddy will take you away, okay?"

Sweetie had unconditional trust in her father. Hearing his promise, she immediately stopped crying, nodded vigorously, and obediently let Liang Zhe carry her back to bed. Even in her sleep, she still tightly hugged her doll, one little hand gripping her father's big hand, as if afraid he would slip away while she slept.

"Sweetie wants to stay with Daddy, Sweetie wants to protect Daddy..." The sleeping little one was still muttering softly.

Liang Zhe sat on the edge of the bed, quietly looking at his daughter's rosy cheeks, all his iron will turning into tenderness.

He gently kissed his daughter's forehead, his heart filled with a tremendous warmth and a sense of responsibility.

Having such a considerate and caring daughter makes his life worthwhile, no matter how hard or tiring it is.

Once the child was completely asleep and her breathing became even and steady, Liang Zhe gently pried open his daughter's little hand that was gripping him, straightened his military uniform, resolutely turned around, and strode out of the barracks.

Outside the door, Li Guihua, an officer from the secretariat, was already waiting quietly. This woman in her thirties was meticulous and had a strong sense of Party spirit; she was the person carefully selected by Commander Bai to take care of Tian Tian.

"Liang Tuan, don't worry, I will take good care of Tian Tian."

"Comrade Li, thank you." Liang Zhe's voice was full of gratitude.

"Of course, don't be so polite with me. You're undertaking such an important task at the front, so leave the support work at the rear to us."

As Li Guihua spoke, she saluted Liang Zhe, her heart filled with respect and admiration for their dedication.

Liang Zhe returned the salute, said nothing more, and hurriedly walked towards the car outside the barracks. Throughout the entire process, he didn't dare to look back even once in the direction where his daughter was.

After some time, Tian Tian gradually woke up. She opened her sleepy eyes and the first thing she saw was Aunt Li Guihua sitting on the edge of the bed with a smile on her face, with warm milk and a box of cookies with animal patterns on them beside her.

"Sweetie, you're awake?" Li Guihua gently stroked her head. "How about Auntie braids your hair into a pretty little braid?"

Sweetie rubbed her eyes and looked around. The barracks were quiet; her father's familiar figure and scent were gone. She froze for a few seconds, then her little mouth twitched, and tears immediately rolled down her cheeks—Daddy lied!

Her father must have secretly gone to that "dangerous" place while she was asleep.

"Auntie, my dad... Waaah..." Sweetie was extremely aggrieved.

"Sweetie, don't cry, don't cry." Li Guihua hugged her tightly, gently wiping away her tears. "Daddy and many grandpas, uncles, and aunts are going to do something very, very important, very, very great. Once they've prepared the 'heart' of the 'big missile,' they can come back to be with you, Sweetie."

"Can't Sweetie go find Daddy?" Sweetie looked up at her tear-streaked face.

"No, that's too dangerous." Li Guihua shook her head and patiently explained, "Not only can Tiantian not go, even Auntie can't go. So, how about Auntie plays games and tells stories with Tiantian instead?"

Sweetie bit her lower lip, blinked her big eyes for a long time, and finally nodded, saying in her childish voice, "Okay."

But in her little heart, she had already made up her mind to find her father. Something terrible was going to happen where her father was. Not only her father, but also many grandfathers, uncles and aunts would face very, very terrible dangers. Sweetie must go and save them!

But while her idea was easy to come by, putting it into practice proved incredibly difficult. Aunt Li and several other aunties stayed by Tian Tian's side almost every step of the way, leaving her no chance to sneak out.

With only two days left until the fateful "ignition," Tian Tian was as anxious as a cat on a hot tin roof, and even her favorite sand-building game lost its appeal.

What method should she think of to find her father as soon as possible?