Courtyard House: Initial Donation of 50 Million

Time flies, and it was already late autumn of 1955. The expansion project of the Red Star United Industrial Corporation was progressing rapidly. The main building of the automobile manufacturing plant had been completed, and the installation of internal equipment had begun. The three-axis CNC machine tool workshop was the first to be put into use, and the new production line was being successfully debugged, with monthly production capacity steadily increasing. However, the dark cloud of electron tubes hanging over the core of the factory grew increasingly heavy.

The precision electronic device pre-research laboratory established by Wang Huanbo, under conditions of extreme secrecy, has made some initial progress. Thanks to the efforts of two senior experts and several young technicians, and combined with key process hints (derived from system drawings) "inadvertently" revealed by Wang Huanbo, the laboratory successfully replicated the most basic type of vacuum tube used in CNC systems. Although the yield rate was pitifully low and the performance parameters barely met the standards, this was undoubtedly a breakthrough! News was strictly controlled within a very small circle, but it was enough to greatly excite the participants and those in the know, including Secretary Yao and General Manager Yang. This proved that a path was feasible! Wang Huanbo struck while the iron was hot, instructing the laboratory to shift its focus to improving the yield rate and exploring the stability of key processes, accumulating data for possible future production transfer.

Meanwhile, while the electron tubes Wang Huanbo obtained through family channels temporarily ensured existing production, the quantity was increasingly insufficient to meet the needs of expansion, and the risks were growing daily. Foreign intelligence agencies had clearly intensified their monitoring of the flow of related materials. On one occasion, a batch of urgently needed specialized electron tubes was nearly seized during transit; fortunately, the family's deep roots in Hong Kong allowed them to take timely emergency measures, averting the disaster. This incident served as a wake-up call for Wang Huanbo, reminding him that relying on smuggling was not a sustainable solution.

He reported the situation to the Central Committee again through confidential channels, emphasizing the seriousness and urgency of the bottleneck problem of electron tubes. This report, coupled with the small but valuable breakthrough achieved by the Red Star Factory laboratory, attracted the attention of higher levels. Finally, news came from above that a decision had been made to take extraordinary measures: on the one hand, diplomatic channels would be strengthened to negotiate with the Soviet side, urging them to fulfill the electron tube factory aid agreement as soon as possible; on the other hand, a secret emergency plan codenamed "Dawn" would be launched, concentrating existing domestic technical resources (including universities, research institutes, and the Red Star Factory laboratory) to jointly tackle the key electron tube models, striving to achieve small-batch self-sufficiency before Soviet aid arrived. Wang Huanbo was appointed as the deputy head of the "Dawn" project's technical coordination group (the head of which was a highly respected academician), which gave him a more legitimate platform to integrate resources and export technology.

While Wang Huanbo was busy with the "Dawn" project, subtle changes were taking place in the international landscape. The success of the Red Star brand car in the Southeast Asian market attracted the attention of some established European and American automakers. Initially, they dismissed this inexpensive car from "Red China," but as their market share was quietly eroded, they began to feel uneasy. Some technical intelligence personnel began to try to obtain Red Star cars for disassembly and analysis, and the results astonished them! The car's exterior design, engine technology (especially the EA111 engine improved by Wang Huanbo), and manufacturing process were completely unlike the backward Chinese products they had in mind; in fact, they were quite ingenious in some aspects! In particular, its relatively low price and good reliability posed a potential threat to the low-to-mid-range market.

Thus, a commercial siege against Red Star Motors quietly began. First, several influential Western automotive magazines published "technical analysis" articles "questioning" the safety and durability of Red Star Motors (in reality, a smear campaign); then, some local dealers in Southeast Asia, under unknown pressure, began to find excuses to delay payments and reduce orders; there were even several meticulously planned "traffic accidents" that were falsely attributed to quality problems of Red Star Motors.

These messages traveled back through the Wang family's business network and diplomatic channels. Deputy Factory Director Li Huaide panicked and immediately reported to Secretary Yao and General Manager Yang. General Manager Yang was extremely anxious, while Secretary Yao remained calm. On the one hand, he lodged a strong protest and issued clarifications through diplomatic and commercial channels; on the other hand, he ordered Li Huaide to strengthen after-sales service and address the issue head-on.

Upon learning of this, Wang Huanbo remained relatively calm. Commercial competition is inherently a matter of life and death. He instructed the technical department to implement stricter quality control on exported vehicles, and simultaneously began preparing the design plan for the second-generation Hongxing sedan. He wanted to use a superior product to refute all doubts and suppression! His envisioned new model would feature a more stylish design, more powerful performance (V6 engine technology was already mature), and a more comfortable driving experience, targeting the international mid-range market. This required more advanced stamping, welding, and painting processes, perfectly aligning with the planning of the new branch factory under construction.

Inside the courtyard, as Wang Huanbo's position became increasingly secure and his work busier, the atmosphere subtly shifted. Yi Zhonghai faded into obscurity, relegated to the margins. Liu Haizhong, his ambitions for officialdom thwarted, grew increasingly irritable. Xu Damao, though constantly striving, struggled to truly enter Wang Huanbo's inner circle, his anxiety growing. Jia Dongxu buried himself in his studies, almost completely isolated from the world. Yan Bugui continued his scheming, but now felt more envy. Sha Zhu focused on cooking, while He Yushui concentrated on her studies. The entire courtyard seemed to have achieved a delicate balance centered on Wang Huanbo, an atmosphere of "Wang Xiaoer celebrates the New Year—look at Wang Huanbo!"

That evening, Wang Huanbo returned exhausted from the "Dawn" Project coordination meeting and sat in his study. Assistant Zheng delivered a coded telegram from his family in Hong Kong. After translating it, Wang Huanbo's spirits lifted: after difficult negotiations, his family had secretly purchased a second-hand electron tube aging test screening device and some key material production process data from a small, nearly bankrupt precision instrument company in Switzerland, and was now trying to smuggle them back to China! This would be a lifesaver for the "Dawn" Project and the factory's laboratory research and development!

Meanwhile, another report was also on his desk: the construction of Factory 774, under the direct supervision of the central government, had increased its construction workforce, and the expected production start date could be brought forward by two months.

Wang Huanbo walked to the window, gazing at the somber rooftops of the courtyard house and the faint lights of the factory in the distance. There were signs of technological breakthroughs within, pressure from blockades and suppression from the outside, the unwavering support of the state above, and lurking risks below. This path of independent innovation was fraught with thorns, but the dawn was already faintly appearing ahead. He took a deep breath of the crisp air, his eyes resolute. The next step was to make the V6 engine and the second-generation Hongxing sedan a stunning debut!