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

Chief Designer Wang pushed up his glasses, turned to Commander Liu, and looked solemn.

"Commander, we absolutely cannot ignore Sweetie's words. We've all witnessed this child's abilities. The 'crack' sound she mentioned most likely corresponds to metal fatigue fracture. As for that 'whirring' sound..."

He thought for a moment, "Could it be cavitation in the engine's fuel lines, or surge in the turbocharger?"

Commander Liu paced back and forth in the command post with his hands behind his back.

Outside the window, the test stand stood silently in the darkness, like a lurking beast. Tomorrow, the ignition test that would determine the fate of the "Longsword" project would take place there. Countless eyes, from the leaders of Beijing, the entire country, and even the world, were fixed on this place.

If we call a halt now, it would mean admitting that there may have been major errors in the technical decision-making process, that the hard work of the past six months may have been in vain, and that we would lose face in front of our superiors and the world.

But if we force the test drive to proceed as planned, and Sweetie's warning turns out to be true...

He stopped and looked at Tian Tian, ​​who was being held in Liang Zhe's arms. The little girl nestled against her father's shoulder, her small hands tightly gripping his collar, her eyes clear yet filled with worry.

"Liang Zhe," Commander Liu suddenly asked, "what do you think?"

Liang Zhe straightened his back, his gaze resolute: "Commander, as a soldier, I will resolutely obey orders. As a father..." He paused, then hugged his daughter tightly, "I believe in my child. She risked her life to cross the desert to find me; it wasn't just a 'joke'."

"There are 14 hours until tomorrow's test drive."

Commander Liu's voice was soft, yet it weighed heavily on everyone's hearts like a thousand-pound boulder. "Now we have two choices: First, proceed with the test run as planned, betting that all our calculations are correct, betting that our six months of hard work won't be reduced to rubble. Second, suspend the test run and conduct a comprehensive review—this means admitting defeat in front of the whole world, and it means that the 'Longsword' project will be postponed indefinitely."

His gaze swept across every face in the room: "Let's vote by raising hands. Those who agree to suspend the test drive, raise your hands."

A long silence.

Liang Zhe was the first to raise his hand.

Li, the head of the fuel system and a chemical engineer, hesitated for a moment, gritted his teeth, and raised his hand.

Next came the guidance team, the testing team...

Finally, the chief designer slowly raised his right hand, his voice hoarse: "I am the chief designer... I cannot risk the lives of my comrades."

Five to five.

draw.

"Although Tian Tian has repeatedly achieved remarkable feats, this situation is different from the others. This involves highly sophisticated data analysis and precise calculations, which allow no room for carelessness. We have already made ample preparations, and we shouldn't completely dismiss everything because of one child's words." Director Huang Weizhi clenched his fist.

"Don't forget Wan Hongxin hasn't been caught yet!" someone retorted. "Who can guarantee he didn't leave a fatal backdoor in the engine?"

"Let's not even talk about the fact that Wan Hongxin hasn't been caught yet. Even if he were caught, he's in the water conservancy field. How could he understand all our core data?" another faction argued.

Others scoffed, "Don't underestimate the infiltration capabilities and sabotage methods of enemy agents!"

"Commander, it doesn't matter if the experiment fails; at least we can obtain some valuable data."

"Who will bear the resulting material losses and economic damage?"

Just as the two sides were arguing heatedly and at a standstill, a gruff voice suddenly came from outside the door:

"Report!"

Song Dazhuang's voice broke the silence, "Old Qian has returned from the hospital ahead of schedule."

"Old Qian? Didn't we agree that Liang Zhe would pick you up tomorrow?" Commander Liu was both surprised and delighted.

"I can't wait any longer, Commander." Old Qian's voice was weak, but it carried a hint of anxiety. "Comrades, what are you doing?"

Everyone immediately gathered around and gave Mr. Qian a detailed account of what had happened.

After hearing all this, Professor Qian didn't rush to express his opinion. Instead, he walked over to Tian Tian, ​​squatted down, and looked at the dirty little dumpling with kind eyes. He asked softly, "My dear, listen carefully again. Is there any other sound coming from that big tube?"

Under Mr. Qian's gentle gaze, Tian Tian's furrowed brows slowly relaxed. She stretched out her little hand, trying to think as she slowly gestured in the air: "Buzz buzz buzz, boom boom boom... It sounds like the bees are angry."

Professor Qian closed his eyes, his brows furrowed slightly, and his brain was working at a rapid pace.

The command center was so quiet you could hear a pin drop; everyone awaited the final verdict from this national treasure-level scientist.

Time passed by, second by second.

Everyone was holding their breath in tension.

The air seemed to freeze, and all that could be heard in everyone's ears was the sound of their own heartbeats vibrating and the faint hum of machinery outside the command post.

Perhaps a minute, perhaps longer, Professor Qian finally slowly opened his eyes.

"Commander," he took a deep breath, his voice not loud, but carrying undeniable weight, "I, in the name of the chief designer, request an immediate halt to the test drive program."

"Mr. Qian!" Director Huang exclaimed in shock, "Why?!"

"We can't afford to lose." Professor Qian sighed deeply, supporting himself on his knees as he stood up. His face, still pale from his recent illness, held an unusually firm gaze: "This test drive is a hope supported by the entire nation's resources. It's not just our hard work, but also the hard-earned wealth that the whole country has saved up from the bare minimum! It cannot afford to fail, and it cannot allow any resources to be wasted."

"We can disregard saving face, but we must be responsible to the people and cannot engage in such irresponsible experimentation. Science is rigorous and allows no room for wishful thinking; otherwise, it is a crime!"

"But Professor Qian, we've done modal analysis hundreds of times, and all frequencies are within the safe threshold!"

"That's just a theoretical model," Qian interrupted him, pointing to his ear, "but the child heard it. This shows that there's a 'coupling effect' that we've never factored into the model."

"It could be a tiny deformation in the fuel line, or an abnormal fluctuation in the combustion chamber... Any minor error can be magnified into a disaster at high speeds of tens of thousands of revolutions per minute."

He gazed out the window at the silvery-white steel behemoth, as if he could see right through its insides.

"The 'crack' that Sweetie mentioned might be a crisp sound from concentrated stress; 'too hot' is the direct feeling of localized overheating; and that 'buzzing' sound... that's a precursor to a specific frequency being excited and the amplitude accumulating!"

"If we win the bet, it'll just be a normal test drive; but if we lose, it will be a devastating explosion!" Qian Xuesen's voice was resolute. "Science cannot tolerate gambling, much less the lives of our comrades!"

The command post was completely silent.

Everyone knew Qian Xuesen's significance—the United States had once asserted that he alone was worth five divisions. Yet he willingly gave up the generous treatment and top-notch research conditions in the United States, resolutely embarking on the journey back to China, solely to build China's first nuclear missile on the impoverished land of Great Xia.

No one doubted his professional judgment, and no one questioned his pure heart.

If Qian's judgment is true, then tomorrow's test drive will not be "possible failure," but "inevitable explosion."

Huang Weizhi slumped back into his chair, his voice hoarse: "Mr. Qian, I have no objection."

"Where are the others?" Professor Qian looked around.

Everyone looked gloomy, but they all shook their heads firmly.

They all knew in their hearts that Qian was right; to knowingly push forward with hidden dangers was a dereliction of duty to the country and the people.

Professor Qian walked up to Commander Liu, looked him straight in the eyes, and said in a heavy but firm tone, "Commander, give the order."