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

The atmosphere in the small conference room of the First Ministry of Machine Building... how to put it?

"Getting along well" at the physical level.

The air was filled with the pungent smell of safflower oil.

The conference table was pushed half a foot to the side, an enamel mug rolled twice on the floor, and tea leaves were spilled all over the place.

Zhang Zhengguo was sitting on the left, with two buttons on his collar popped off, and the collar of his thermal undershirt was pulled crooked.

He was tilting his head, sucking in cold air and rubbing his wrist.

Vice Minister Liu of the First Ministry of Machine Building sat on the right, his hair a complete mess.

"Old Zhang, have you no shame?"

Vice Minister Liu hissed and cursed, "You said you came to discuss cooperation, but you're going to kill us?"

"Pooh!"

Zhang Zhengguo spat out a mouthful of tea leaves, his eyes wide.

"Who told you, you old codger, to try and steal my girlfriend?"

"Lin Xi is one of our Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry, don't even think about him!"

Lin Xi, like a docile little quail, shrank her neck and weaved between the two.

She deftly righted the overturned chair, brewed two more cups of hot tea, and respectfully handed them over, emphasizing her obedient and sensible nature.

"Please calm down, gentlemen," Lin Xi said with a smile.

He was internally ranting:

This isn't a meeting of ministerial-level officials; it's clearly two old men fighting over territory at the village entrance.

However, this combat power...

That is, a 50/50 split.

"snort!"

The two old men, whose combined age was over a hundred, snorted coldly at the same time, each grabbed a teacup, turned their heads to the side, and refused to look at each other.

Lin Xi cleared her throat, trying to steer the conversation back on track:

"Um... sir, let's talk about the results of the Canton Fair instead."

Mentioning this finally softened their expressions somewhat.

"This is a great start for razors."

Lin Xi pulled out the small notebook filled with notes.

"In addition to the 16,000 units signed on-site, we have received a number of telegrams of intent over the past two days."

"If production capacity can keep up, securing orders for over 100,000 razors a year shouldn't be a problem."

Lin Xi paused, then added:

"And this is different from a fan."

"Razors can be sold all year round, without seasonal order fluctuations, making the business more stable."

I thought that saying this would make the two leaders very happy.

Unexpectedly, after listening, Vice Minister Liu slammed his teacup on the table and let out a long sigh.

That sigh made him seem to age ten years in an instant.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Zhengguo glanced at his old comrade-in-arms.

Vice Minister Liu gave a wry smile: "Old Zhang, you're in the aerospace industry. Your system is a national one, where you use the best materials regardless of cost."

"But what did our First Ministry of Machine Building manage? It was the foundation of civilian industry."

Vice Minister Liu pulled a booklet from his pocket and slammed it on the table.

"You asked me to find razor manufacturers, and I went through almost every factory under the department's jurisdiction that had some precision machining capabilities."

"We need to build that... neodymium iron boron motor, and that nickel mesh that's as thin as paper."

Vice Minister Liu held up three fingers and waved them:

"In the entire country of China, I can't find more than ten factories that can meet this level of precision!"

"Moreover, most of these ten companies also have military production obligations."

"The remaining usable production capacity..."

"At most, we can scrape together 30,000 units for you in a year."

"Thirty thousand units?"

Lin Xi was taken aback. "This is the combined strength of our entire system! And we can't even handle 50,000 units?"

"And this is still a calculated estimate after gritting my teeth and looking for the highest possible price!"

Vice Minister Liu said helplessly,

"Our machine tools were built with Soviet aid in the 1950s, and they've been in use for almost thirty years!"

"Some high-precision parts can be hand-crafted by an eighth-grade technician!"

"But mass production simply can't keep up."

The conference room was deathly silent.

That sense of oppression made it hard to breathe.

Zhang Zhengguo stopped mocking him.

He silently took out his cigarette case, handed one to Vice Minister Liu, and lit one for himself.

Amidst the swirling smoke, the two elderly people's backs appeared particularly hunched.

Lin Xi stood aside, watching this scene, her heart feeling as if something had clenched it tightly.

This is the pain of 1980.

He had the will to kill the traitors, but lacked the power to reverse the situation.

In the live stream, the chat had shifted from playful banter to a somber tone.

[My family is moved to tears. This was the darkest hour of that era.]

Many people believe that traveling back in time would allow them to dominate the world, but the hurdle of basic industrial development can truly be a major obstacle. Without high-precision machine tools, blueprints are just worthless paper.

Seeing those two old men suffer makes me suffer too. Having money right in front of you but not being able to eat it—that's worse than losing money!

This is what it means to say: You can doubt their resolve, but you cannot ignore the gap in time. A salute to our predecessors!

Lin Xi took a deep breath, suppressing the feeling of frustration in her heart.

He knew that this couldn't be solved by the ideas of a few time travelers.

This is a long march.

......

In December, the northwestern Gobi Desert is bitterly cold.

On her way back from the capital, Lin Xi's mind was filled with the bitter faces of Zhang Zhengguo and Vice Minister Liu.

The foundation is too weak.

You want to build a space shuttle, but reality tells you that even a qualified high-speed bearing has to be hand-made.

But Lin Xi refused to believe this superstition.

Lin Xi arrived at the entrance of the fifth workshop.

Before even entering, Lin Xi heard a series of noisy shouts coming from inside, interspersed with heavy metallic clanging sounds.

"Hey Erga, that batch of goods exported to France is neatly stacked!"

"That's foreign exchange; even a small loss is like tearing the country dry!"

Liu Guihua's clear voice echoed in the courtyard.

"Sister Guihua, don't worry!" Sun Erga said, grinning from ear to ear as he held a stack of boxes.

The service center today is no longer the dilapidated, drafty building it once was.

The vacant lot that was originally filled with waste has been transformed into a neat assembly area.

Dozens of newly recruited young workers wore matching blue overalls; though they were young and inexperienced, their eyes shone with light.

Lin Xi didn't disturb the busy crowd, and crouched down to slip into the "research and development test bench" in the corner.

"Manager? You're back!"

Wang Dapao suddenly looked up; his hair was a mess, like a bird's nest, and his eyes were frighteningly red.

Wang Yu, who was standing next to him, quickly put down the branding iron in his hand and stood up somewhat awkwardly: "Manager Lin."

"How did it go?" Lin Xi took off her scarf and breathed on her palm.

"It's done! It's absolutely done!"

Wang Dapao, as if presenting a treasure, pulled something tightly wrapped in lacquer from under the worktable.

The outer shell still retains the classic design of "Red Star · Gentle Breeze", but a strange black square box has appeared in the center of the fan cover.

"This is what Wang Yu and I worked on for over a month, following the ideas you left behind before you left."

"It represents a significant improvement over the original!"

Wang Dapao patted his chest, his face beaming with pride:

"We call this 'Red Star Strong Wind Generation II'."

"Manager, watch closely!"

Lin Xi raised an eyebrow slightly and stood in front of the fan: "Try turning it on."

Wang Dapao confidently switched on the power.

"Buzz—"

The five-bladed fan spun rapidly, and a powerful gust of cold air instantly swept across half of the test bench.

Immediately afterwards, a strong, nauseating fishy smell, mixed with a faint burnt smell, filled the air.

"Shut it down now!" Lin Xi shouted sternly.