I painted an aircraft carrier on the courtyard house for Dongda University.

Uncle Zhang stared intently at Zhou Weiguo for a long time, then suddenly reached out and grabbed his hand, pulling him away. He had no choice; Zhou Weiguo's words had him itching to try. What harm was there in giving it a shot? What if it worked?

"Hey, hey, what are you doing, Uncle Zhang! Don't hit me! We were talking so nicely, why are you pulling me?"

Uncle Zhang said anxiously, "Come on! Didn't you want to make your own gun? Come on, I'll take you back to Beijing University of Technology. They have all kinds of equipment there."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Weiguo thought it was a good idea and started walking out. But he suddenly stopped and asked curiously, "Uncle Zhang, does Beijing University of Technology have any goose experts?"

"Yes! Of course, didn't I just say? They're helping us finalize the design of the new gun."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Weiguo quickly shook his head, thinking, "No, no, I won't go! In the next two years, our relationship with Da'e will deteriorate." Although he was certain that Da'e would target 81Gang, he thought it was always better to be prepared.

Zhou Weiguo said, "That won't do, I'm not going to Beijing University of Technology! Where else can I get the equipment? Anywhere is fine!"

This infuriated Professor Zhang, who roared, "Are you asking for a beating? Are you deliberately messing with me? Tell me, why?!"

Zhou Weiguo dared not say anything, and could only stubbornly insist: "I don't care, I'm not going! Find me somewhere else, anywhere is fine, even here, as long as there are no goose experts!"

This stumped Professor Zhang. Even if Zhou Weiguo truly possessed the skill to design firearms, Professor Zhang was already prepared to persuade the young man to attend Beijing University of Technology.

What? Beijing University of Technology doesn't have associate doctoral programs? Just open a class, it's no big deal!

Suddenly, Professor Zhang slapped his forehead and, with Zhou Weiguo and Ying Xiangdong, rode their bicycles eastward toward the east of the city.

Zhou Weiguo had no choice but to follow. They rode for an hour, and when Zhou Weiguo finally saw the sign for the Red Star Steel Rolling Mill, he was completely dumbfounded: Is this never going to end? A must-have for time travelers?

Uncle Zhang was probably a regular customer, and the security guards all recognized him. They led Zhou Weiguo and the other man straight into an office with a sign that read "Technical Department" and called out, "Old Song! Old Song! Are you here?" Then they saw a man who looked to be about the same age as Uncle Zhang sitting behind the desk.

The man frowned upon seeing Professor Zhang, then stood up with a curious expression upon noticing Zhou Weiguo and the other man: "Old Zhang, what's going on?"

Uncle Zhang smiled and said, "Old Song, I need your help with something. Could you get this kid a general workstation? He has some things that need to be made."

Old Song looked incredulous and was just about to refuse.

Uncle Zhang smiled and held up one finger: "One bottle of special supply."

Old Song's eyes lit up, but he pretended to hesitate.

Uncle Zhang took one look and turned to leave.

"Alright, alright! Stop pretending, one bottle it is!"

Uncle Zhang turned around, his face shrewd: "Shall we drink together?"

Seeing that Old Song looked unwell, Uncle Zhang prepared to turn around again.

"Fine, fine! I'll take you with me, you son of a bitch, acting all high and mighty when you're asking for a favor!"

The two then stopped arguing. Uncle Zhang pointed at Zhou Weiguo and said, "This is Zhou Weiguo, the kid who saved Yuanyang's life. He's studying for a PhD in Automation at Tsinghua University."

Upon hearing this, Old Song's eyes lit up, and he looked at Zhou Weiguo with the same adoration one would give Diao Chan.

Zhou Weiguo felt goosebumps all over from being stared at and quickly hid behind Uncle Zhang.

Uncle Zhang laughed and said, "Kid, don't misunderstand. Your Uncle Song is the chief engineer of the steel rolling mill. This place hasn't been a public-private partnership for long, and we especially need skilled workers, so that's why. Get lost, Old Song, don't embarrass me! This kid is still in school; he'll graduate a long time from now."

Old Song chuckled awkwardly, "Sorry, it's for the country. The steel mill is having a tough time right now; the entire technical department has less than ten people. I can't help it. Haha, no problem, I'll take care of the machine tools you need! We just got a new batch of Goose machine tools, they've just been tested, and there aren't many people who can operate them properly, so there will definitely be equipment for you. But, can you operate these Goose machine tools?"

Zhou Weiguo thought to himself: "Are you kidding me? Let alone the machine tools of this time, even if I pulled out a piece of equipment from 2025, I could easily operate it."

The system rewarded him with more than just machine tool operation skills. It included not only top-level operation capabilities for a large number of machine tools, but also the ability to repair most machine tools. He could handle even industrial mother machines with ease, not to mention his nanometer-level eyesight and hands-on skills.

He patted his chest confidently, his tone certain: "Uncle Song, don't worry, there's absolutely no problem!"

Uncle Song glanced at the time, a smile on his face: "Judging from your appearance, you haven't eaten yet, have you?"

Upon hearing this, Uncle Zhang's eyes lit up instantly, and he smiled broadly: "Hurry up, that new private kitchen your factory has is really good, get it set up for us right away."

Uncle Song shook his head helplessly and said, "Wait." Then, he picked up the phone and dialed, "Hello, is this Director Li? This is Song Baoguo from the Technical Department. Could you please arrange a reception meal for me, just four or five people will do? I'll bring you the money and receipts later. No, that won't do. Okay, thank you."

After hanging up the phone, Uncle Song looked at Zhou Weiguo with curiosity: "Weiguo, you're so young and already have an associate doctorate? Where did you go to university?"

Zhou Weiguo replied with a smile, "Uncle Song, I studied Welding Technology and Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology."

Uncle Song smiled with satisfaction: "Great! Impressive! To have achieved so much at such a young age is wonderful."

Uncle Zhang looked disgusted: "Alright, Lao Song, you're drooling. Weiguo isn't some young lady, you're scaring her away."

A hint of embarrassment flashed across Uncle Song's face, then he asked, "For the country, what kind of parts are you planning to make? How long will it take?"

Just as Zhou Weiguo was about to speak, Uncle Zhang interrupted him: "Old Song, don't ask around. Knowing too much won't do you any good."

Uncle Song's face darkened, somewhat displeased: "Old Zhang, you've gone too far! My security clearance level is even higher than yours, okay? What can't I say? Once it's done, won't I still find out anyway?"

Zhou Weiguo chimed in, trying to smooth things over: "Yeah, Uncle Zhang, isn't that a bit of an exaggeration? Even if I were to make the whole thing together, let alone just the parts, I'm not sure if it would actually work."

Uncle Zhang quickly shook his head: "That won't do, each to their own. How about this, Xiang Dong, you just graduated anyway, and you're free anyway, so for now, just help your junior brother keep things in order and don't cause any trouble."

Ying Xiangdong nodded in agreement: "Don't worry, Master! Leave Junior Brother to me, I'll definitely keep a close eye on him for you."

Afterwards, the group chatted for a while until the phone rang.

Uncle Song answered the phone and said, "Okay, let's go. The cafeteria said the food is ready."

Zhou Weiguo followed Uncle Song into the small canteen, where a man with a leader-like demeanor walked towards them.