Siheyuan (traditional courtyard house): Starting with the Korean War, returning home to take charge

The train pulled into the station just as dawn was breaking.

He Yuzhu sat by the window all night, unable to sleep soundly. His legs were a little numb, so he stood up, stomped his feet a couple of times, and picked up his old canvas bag to go outside. There weren't many people on the platform; a few migrant workers carrying luggage squatted under a pillar smoking, white smoke rising from their mouths and dissipating in the cold wind.

He touched his left breast pocket. The gloves were still there, the edges worn and frayed; he had worn them for three years.

The old locust tree at the alley entrance had almost lost all its leaves, with only a few yellow ones hanging on the branches, rustling in the wind. He pushed open the door; the hinges creaked open, but no one was in the yard.

The door to the west wing was open, and He Yushui's voice could be heard from inside.

"Sister-in-law, Nianhua peed again."

He Yuzhu stood in the courtyard, motionless.

He Yushui came out carrying a basin, and when she saw him, she almost dropped the basin.

"elder brother!"

She ran over, and the water in the basin splashed out, soaking her trouser leg.

"You're back!"

He Yuzhu nodded and walked towards the west wing.

Qin Huairu stood at the door, holding He Nianhua in her arms. The little one was wearing a red cotton-padded jacket, had a round face and bright eyes, and was grabbing Qin Huairu's hair and stuffing it into her mouth.

"dad……"

He Yuzhu walked over and extended his hand.

He Nianhua stared at him for three seconds, then opened her arms and lunged at him.

He took her, and the little one squirmed in his arms, her tiny hands scratching his face, her soft nails tickling him. She babbled incoherently, but her bright eyes remained fixed on him.

He Yuzhu held her tightly, afraid to move.

Too light. Too soft. He was afraid that if he moved, he would hurt her.

Qin Huairu stood beside him, watching him.

"You've lost weight."

He Yuzhu shook his head.

"good."

He Nianhua fussed in his arms for a while, then yawned, snuggled closer to him, and fell asleep.

Qin Huairu reached out and took her, placed her on the kang (a heated brick bed), and covered her with a quilt.

"How long will you be staying this time?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment.

"I don't know yet."

Qin Huairu nodded and sat down next to him.

"I'll stay as long as I can."

The next morning, He Yuzhu went to the research institute.

Old Zhou, the gatekeeper, was dozing off when he heard footsteps. He looked up, paused for a moment, then quickly stood up and saluted. He Yuzhu waved and walked inside.

The workshop reeked of machine oil, mixed with the acrid smell of metal cutting. Fluorescent light tubes hummed from the ceiling, some of them broken and flickering. The machines whirred, and the workers, engrossed in their work, didn't notice him enter.

Lin Jianguo leaned over the control panel, staring at the data. His hair had turned even whiter, and the dark circles under his eyes were deeper. The ashtray beside him was overflowing with cigarette butts, and the corners of his notebook were curled up, worn and frayed from being flipped through so many times.

He Yuzhu stood at the door but didn't go in.

Lin Jianguo's back, which was flipping through documents, froze for a moment, then he slowly turned around.

"Dean," he stubbed out his cigarette, the ashtray overflowing, "I've heard about the satellite."

He Yuzhu walked over and sat down opposite him.

"Can you handle it on your end?"

Lin Jianguo didn't answer immediately. He lowered his head and looked at his hand. There was a scar on that hand, a burn from when the chip burned last time.

"Yes," he said, his voice low, "but it will take time."

He Yuzhu looked at him.

Lin Jianguo raised his head.

"Dean, I know this is something we absolutely have to do. But I have to ask, do we have enough information right now?"

That evening, He Yuzhu sat alone in his office.

He brought up the system interface and looked at the string of numbers.

134, 591, 000.

More than 130 million.

He scrolled down and found the aerospace section.

[Near Earth Orbit Satellite Design] - 30 million.

[Launch Vehicle Improvement Plan] - 40 million.

The total is 70 million.

His finger hovered over the redemption button for three seconds.

Seventy million. How much can that buy? How many people can it save?

He recalled the two dark circles under Lin Jianguo's eyes, and the way his throat tightened when he said "yes".

He pressed it down.

The screen flickered, and the numbers jumped.

64, 591, 000.

He took out the two thick stacks of documents from the system space and piled them on the table. The cover had those words printed on it, and below it was a line of smaller print: "Top Secret".

He turned to the first page.

Satellite structure. Attitude control system. Power supply scheme. Thermal control design.

Turn the pages one by one.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Lin Jianguo pushed open the door and came in, carrying two enamel mugs. He placed one in front of He Yuzhu, and then sat down opposite him with the other mug in his hand.

He Yuzhu pushed the two stacks of documents over.

Lin Jianguo paused for a moment, then didn't take it. He stared at the words on the cover for several seconds.

"Dean, this thing..."

"have a look."

Lin Jianguo turned to the first page. His hand hovered in mid-air, only falling after a few seconds. After turning two pages, he closed the document and looked up.

"Dean, something's not right with this."

He Yuzhu looked at him.

Lin Jianguo pointed to a piece of data on the drawing.

"These orbital parameters are far beyond what we currently understand in theory. Based on this, the rocket would need three stages, with each stage separation time accurate to the millisecond. We haven't even gotten the second stage working properly yet."

He paused.

"Isn't this thing a bit too advanced for its time?"

He Yuzhu didn't say anything.

Lin Jianguo put down the stack of documents.

"Dean, it's not that I don't trust you. But you need to put my mind at ease. If we follow your instructions and fail to replicate this, it won't just be a waste of money, it'll be a waste of time. Three years."

The room was quiet for a few seconds.

He Yuzhu stood up and walked to the window.

It was pitch black outside the window, but there were lights in the distance. That was the workshop; the lights were still on. The workers were still working overtime, and the machines were still running.

"Nation-building".

Lin Jianguo stood up and walked to his side.

He Yuzhu did not turn around.

Do you believe me or not?

Lin Jianguo was stunned for a moment.

"letter."

He Yuzhu turned around.

"Then let's do it."

Lin Jianguo stared at him for a long time.

Then he went back and picked up the stack of documents again.

"OK."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was steady.

"If you say so, then so be it."

He walked to the door, then turned back.

"Dean, if this thing really works, my life will have been worth it."

The door closed.

He Yuzhu stood by the window, looking into the darkness. One by one, the lights in the distant workshop went out; the workers were leaving. Lin Jianguo also left, carrying a stack of documents, walking quickly.

He turned around and walked back to the table.

The gloves were still there. He picked them up, ran his fingers over the rough edges, and slowly put them on.

The voice in my head rang.

[Main Mission 1: Launch the first satellite within three years; reward: 100 million points.]

His hand froze in mid-air.

Three years.

One hundred million points.

He stood up and walked to the window.

In the distance, the last light went out.