Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

After the political turmoil subsided, Lin Weidong immediately immersed himself in the sub-project of "Research and Development of New Precision Machine Tools".

This is a key task specifically supervised by the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. Its core objective is to overcome the pain points of "low processing efficiency and unstable precision" in military parts, paving the way for subsequent major military projects.

The core challenge of the project is "relay linkage control".

In the 1950s, there was a lack of electronic control components. To make the three core links of machine tool feeding, cutting and cooling work together automatically and precisely, even the slightest error could lead to the scrapping of parts or even damage to the machine tool. Even the senior engineers in the factory said it was "as difficult as climbing to heaven".

Relying on the "core technology for the automation transformation of machine tools in the 60s" awarded by the system, Lin Weidong drew up a complete plan overnight, and the next morning he took Zhang Qiang and Li Ming straight to the confidential workshop of the school-run factory for debugging.

Sure enough, something went wrong on the first startup.

The relay contact gap was too small, causing the signal to be triggered falsely. The cutting tool slammed into the workpiece, producing a harsh metallic friction sound and sparks flying everywhere.

"I knew freshmen couldn't handle these kinds of challenging projects!"

Zhou Tao, who had previously been punished for spreading rumors, somehow sneaked into the workshop, arms crossed and speaking in a sarcastic tone.

"This is a tough nut to crack even for top engineers; you, a mere kid, are just wasting resources and causing trouble!"

Several conservative researchers who were with Zhou Tao echoed his sentiments.

"Let's stick to the old method of manual operation. Automation is too impractical, and we don't want to delay military orders in the end."

Zhang Qiang was about to retort on the spot, but Lin Weidong raised his hand to stop him, his tone calm but firm: "It's just a false trigger caused by a 0.1 mm deviation in the contact gap, a minor problem."

He casually picked up a thin copper sheet from the table, precisely inserted it between the relay contacts with tweezers, and quickly modified the circuit, adding a simple time-delay switch.

"The feed device starts first, and the cutting device moves after a three-second delay, with the cooling system working in sync."

The entire operation was smooth and efficient, taking no more than five minutes.

When Lin Weidong pressed the start button again, the workshop fell silent instantly.

The machine tool feed device slowly advances, and three seconds later the cutting tool falls smoothly. The cooling system precisely sprays water mist, and the sound of metal cutting is crisp and stable. The entire machining process is as smooth as flowing water.

The first part was completed, and the inspector eagerly picked up a micrometer to measure it. His face flushed instantly, and he shouted excitedly, "99.5% pass rate! Far exceeding the project requirement of 95%! And the processing efficiency is 3.5 times that of manual operation!"

Thunderous applause erupted in the workshop, and everyone's eyes were filled with awe.

Master Wang exclaimed repeatedly, "Comrade Lin, your work is absolutely brilliant! Once this semi-automatic machine tool is released, all the military machinery factories in the country will be scrambling to buy it!"

Zhou Tao's face turned pale. He wanted to say something but was glared at by the people next to him and could only slink out of the workshop.

The news quickly reached the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, and Lao Chen led a team of experts to Harbin Institute of Technology that same day.

Seeing the machine tools automatically processing military parts, Old Chen immediately made the decision.

"Immediately begin small-batch production and prioritize allocating them to core machinery factories responsible for processing missile and tank parts! Comrade Lin Weidong, you have rendered a great service to the country!"

Time flies, and three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Lin Weidong's three years at Harbin Institute of Technology can be described as a "scientific research legend".

He completed all his undergraduate and master's degree courses at an astonishing speed, and his scientific research career has been on a meteoric rise—leading the development of the "Dongfeng series missile ultra-precision machining tool".

Breakthrough in nanometer-level machining precision has solved a core pain point for the national military industry.

The "Precision Improvement Project for Basic Mechanical Components" he spearheaded has increased the pass rate of basic components in China from 75% to 98%, directly driving the technological upgrading of machinery factories nationwide.

During graduation season, Lin Weidong became a highly sought-after talent by various military industrial units.

The competition among various organizations even reached the school, and the school leaders personally intervened to coordinate. However, Lin Weidong had already made up his mind to return to the steel rolling mill and develop basic industries on the front line. In recent years, he had been stuck at critical moments due to the lack of basic industrial materials.

Therefore, he plans to go back and solve the problems of insufficient steel production capacity and shortage of special materials in China.

In the late summer of 1958, the platform of Beijing Railway Station was crowded with people. Amid the roar of steam locomotives, Lin Weidong, carrying a worn canvas bag, slowly walked out among the crowd of people returning home.

Stepping out of the station, he walked briskly towards Nanluoguxiang Hutong, where he could see his father, Lin Jianjun, standing at the gate of the courtyard, looking around.

Upon seeing Lin Weidong enter from the alleyway, Lin Jianjun quickly said, "Dongzi! You're finally back!"

As soon as Lin Weidong entered the courtyard, someone greeted him.

Aunt Zhang exclaimed, "Oh, isn't this Dongzi? He's finally back! He's really made something of himself, a 16-year-old graduate student, even rarer than a top scholar!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the courtyard instantly became lively.

Sha Zhu, who was chopping wood in front of his house, dropped his axe and ran over: "Dongzi, you're amazing! A graduate student from Harbin Institute of Technology! Our courtyard has produced a big shot!"

Lin Weidong greeted the neighbors with a smile, but as soon as he entered the courtyard, he was surrounded by several villains, each with their own agenda.

Yan Bugui, clutching his abacus, was the fastest to contribute: "Dongzi, you're truly a young talent! A graduate student at 16, you'll definitely be a high-ranking official in the country someday. My Jiekuang also loves tinkering with machinery; you could give him some pointers sometime, it's a good way to help the neighborhood."

He was secretly plotting to get his son a job as a technician in the factory by associating with Lin Weidong.

Liu Haizhong followed closely behind, adopting the airs of an elder, and patted Lin Weidong on the shoulder:

"Dongzi, not bad, not bad, you've brought honor to our courtyard! Now that you're a graduate student, you know a lot of people. Could you help my son Guangfu inquire about factory job openings? We don't care about anything else, we just want our son to have a decent job."

Yi Zhonghai strolled over slowly: "Dongzi, studying away from home must have been tough. It's good to see you back. If you need any help in the future, just let me know."

"Now that you're an intellectual, don't forget your neighbors in the courtyard. If you become successful in the future, you'll have to help them out."

Jia Zhangshi leaned against the doorframe, muttering sarcastically, "Hmph, so what if he's a graduate student? What's so great about him? He's just spending his family's money to study. If my Dongxu had that kind of opportunity, he'd definitely be better than him!"

Sha Zhu then scoffed, "That sickly Jia Dongxu dares to compare himself to Wei Dong? Does he even deserve it?"

"You idiot Zhu, you son of a bitch! I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

"Come on!" Sha Zhu said, rolling up his sleeves and standing in front.

Seeing this, Jia Zhangshi muttered, "I won't argue with you," and went home, closing the door behind her.

"Hahahaha!" Everyone burst into laughter upon seeing this.

Then Lin Weidong said to the old men, "Uncle Yan, Uncle Liu, these days factories recruit workers based on their abilities and skills, and they earn their living through exams. I can't make exceptions for them. If Jie Kuang and Guang Fu really want to work in the factory, let them learn more so they'll be more confident in the exams later."

After saying that, he went home with his father.

Over the next few days, Lin Weidong spent time with his family while dealing with the trivial matters of returning home after graduation.

The employment process in the 1950s was rigorous. He first took his Harbin Institute of Technology graduation diploma, postgraduate degree certificate and organizational introduction letter to the street office to handle the transfer of his files and household registration.

The morning after the formalities were completed, I went to the steel rolling mill with my father.