Live Stream 1980: Netizens Teach Me How to Make a Rocket by Hand

Seven days later.

Conference Room No. 2, Department of Resources, Ministry of Foreign Trade.

The gate was tightly closed, and the atmosphere was heavy.

Zhang Zhengguo from the Seventh Ministry of Machine Building, Vice Minister Zhang from the First Ministry of Machine Building, Deputy Director Zhao from the Resources Department, and Xu Lao, a specially invited expert, sat in a circle.

Of course, there's also Lin Xi, sitting in the corner, looking completely harmless.

The ashtray in front of Deputy Director Zhao was piled high with cigarette butts.

"Tell me, how do we do it?"

Deputy Director Zhao, his voice hoarse, slammed a red-headed document onto the table with such force that the lid of a teacup rattled.

"A diplomatic note that just arrived this morning."

"The commercial attachés from the three countries of Lighthouse, Cherry Blossom, and Germania jointly launched an attack, using very strong language."

"They accused us of 'maliciously cutting off supplies' under the guise of maintenance, a serious violation of international trade rules. They gave us an ultimatum—three days."

Deputy Director Zhao held up three fingers and shook them helplessly: "If the goods are not shipped within three days, sanctions will be initiated, and compensation for breach of contract will be demanded."

After speaking, he turned to look at Lin Xi in the corner, his eyes filled with both pressure and helplessness:

"Comrade Xiaolin, you told me to hold the line, and I did."

"Now that they've got a knife to your throat, where exactly does your confidence in 'raising prices' come from?"

Swah——

All eyes immediately focused on Old Xu.

Old Xu didn't rush to speak. Instead, he slowly unscrewed the chipped thermos, took a sip of strong tea, and even smacked his lips.

This calm demeanor contrasted sharply with his previous anxiety.

He took a thin report out of his old briefcase and pushed it to the center of the table.

"Reporting to Deputy Director Zhao, with the algorithm support provided by Xiao Lin..."

Old Xu paused, a proud glow spreading across his face.

"In a laboratory setting, the entire 'fuzzy linkage extraction' process has been successfully tested."

"It's working?" Vice Minister Zhang of the First Ministry of Machine Building was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"It means..."

Old Xu took a deep breath and spoke in a loud voice.

"We have already acquired the capability to separate all elements and achieve high purity from mixed rare earth concentrates!"

"Purity: 99.999%!"

"Moreover, Kobayashi's plan is very mature."

"Give us six months, and I'm confident we can establish large-scale industrial production lines at the Bayan Obo mine in Baotou and the Southern Rare Earth mines in Ganzhou!"

"In other words, starting next year, we will no longer be selling soil, but high-purity single rare metals!"

boom!

These words were like a depth charge, exploding right there in the conference room.

Deputy Director Zhao suddenly stood up, and the chair behind him overturned with a "bang," but he didn't bother to help it up.

"Old Xu, there are no jokes in the military!"

"Industrialized mass production? Not just the small-scale laboratory work?"

"I'll stake my life on it!"

Old Xu patted his chest, his words resolute.

Deputy Director Zhao was so excited that his hands were trembling.

He works in resources, so he knows all too well what this means.

This is hardly a technological upgrade.

This is a story of a woodcutter who sold logs and transformed into a master craftsman who sells high-end furniture!

This is a qualitative leap!

The screen was also flooded with comments:

[My family is moved to tears! This day has finally arrived ahead of schedule!]

Back then, we suffered because we lacked technology and were treated like pigs to be slaughtered! Now, what do you call this? This is what you call the emancipated serfs singing songs of triumph!

[Xu Lao is awesome! Chinese scientists are the best!]

[With enough skill, no corner is too big to dig down! This time, we're digging up the pearl in the crown of industry!]

After calming down a bit, Deputy Director Zhao turned to look at Lin Xi, the blame in his eyes long gone, replaced by hope.

"Kobayashi, we've got the technology."

"But as you said before, how do we raise the price?"

Deputy Director Zhao frowned slightly, tapping his fingers on the table.

"Once it becomes a finished product, its price can indeed rise considerably according to international market rates."

"But what you said, a hundred times..."

Deputy Director Zhao gave a wry smile, "Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?"

Is that an exaggeration?

Lin Xi smiled.

He stood up, walked to the small blackboard at the front of the conference room, and picked up the chalk.

"Squeak—"

The chalk made a screeching sound as it scratched across the blackboard, writing a large chemical symbol: Nd (neodymium).

"Distinguished leaders, let's do some accounting."

Lin Xi's voice was calm and confident.

"Currently, one ton of mixed rare earth concentrate can yield approximately 18 to 20 kilograms of neodymium metal."

"At the current FOB price, we sell one ton of concentrate for $800."

Lin Xi bent her fingers and tapped them heavily on the blackboard twice.

"But my plan is that we will no longer export concentrates in the future."

"If you want to buy, you can only buy our finished neodymium products."

"And my pricing is..."

Lin Xi wrote down a number: 1000.

"$1000?"

Vice Minister Zhang frowned and pondered.

"One ton of concentrate turned into one ton of finished product?"

"That's because the price increase wasn't significant; considering refining costs, they might even lose money..."

"No."

Lin Xi wagged her finger, revealing a set of white teeth.

"The price of neodymium alone is $1000 per kilogram."

"Cough cough cough—!"

Deputy Director Zhao, who was drinking tea, choked and coughed violently.

Zhang Zhengguo, standing to the side, stared at Lin Xi with his eyes wide open, as if she were a madwoman.

"One...how much?"

"One thousand per kilogram of neodymium?"

"Each ton of concentrate can yield 20 kilograms, so one ton of concentrate is worth $20,000?!"

"If each of the 17 rare earth elements could sell for this price, then a ton of concentrated ore would really be more than 100 times more expensive than before!"

Deputy Director Zhao shouted while wiping his mouth.

"Xiaolin, are you obsessed with money?"

"The current international price of neodymium is at most a few tens of US dollars per kilogram!"

"At that price, nobody would buy it!"

Live stream chat:

Holy crap! This streamer is outrageous! It's more expensive than in 2025!

[In 2025, neodymium will only cost around $700 per kilogram. This streamer is defying the odds!]

But I like it! These foreign devils have been sucking our blood for so many years, it's time they spat it out!

Is this the legendary "pig butchering scam"? I'm in love!

Faced with the shock of the room, Lin Xi simply leaned calmly against the blackboard, arms crossed.

"They will buy it. Not only will they buy it, they'll beg and plead with us to sell it to them."

Lin Xi's eyes suddenly sharpened, and she exuded the calm and composed aura befitting a time traveler from the future.

"Because of demand."

"Gentlemen, the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry just developed the third-generation permanent magnet a few months ago—"

"The core raw material of neodymium iron boron is this 'neodymium'."

"You may not realize what this magnet means yet."

Lin Xi raised her finger and began calling out names.

"To put it simply, it is the heart of the Red Star razor."

"On a grander scale, this could mean future portable music players, hard drive drives for microcomputers, high-fidelity audio equipment, MRI machines..."

"And there are missile servos that fly in the sky, and torpedo propulsion systems that swim in the water."

"Wherever miniaturized, high-performance motors are needed, neodymium iron boron is the undisputed king!"

Lin Xi's voice echoed in the conference room, carrying a seductive power from the future.

"I have already set the standard for 'high-performance micro motors' with the Red Star razor."

"I also licensed the technology to Poram, Philips, and Gettel."

"They got the blueprints, built the production line, and were ready to go all out."

"At this point, they will be surprised to find..."

Lin Xi's lips curled into a devilish smile.

"We are the only ones in the world who can supply the materials for this motor on a large scale."

"When the global market explodes, the demand for neodymium will increase a thousandfold, even ten thousandfold!"

"At this point, who holds the pricing power?"

Lin Xi slammed her hand on the blackboard, chalk dust falling in a flurry.

"It's us!"

"If I say a thousand, then I mean a thousand."

"If I say ten thousand, they'll have to grit their teeth and buy it!"

"Not buying? Fine. Then their production lines will have to shut down, their huge investment will go down the drain, and they'll go bankrupt from the penalties for breach of contract!"

A deathly silence.

The only sound in the conference room was the hum of the exhaust fan.

Everyone was stunned by the massive business loop that Lin Xi described.

This is hardly a business transaction.

This is clearly a huge trap set for the global industrial sector!

First, lure the fish in with technology licensing, and once they're hooked, rip them off the bait (raw material)!

This is--

Close the door and beat the dog; catch the turtle in a jar!

The live stream chat was scrolling wildly:

[So dirty! The streamer's tactics are so dirty! But I love them!]

This is true industrial hegemony! The West used to do this to us, but now the tables have turned!

[Foreigner: I thought paying the licensing fee was the end of it, but I didn't expect there to be more traps inside!]

[Is this the legendary "I'm on the fifth floor"? How is Xiao Linzi's brain even structured? I suggest a dissection and analysis!]

This is what they call: You don't have to buy, but you can forget about living!