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

The pool of fuel gleamed dimly under the light.

He Yuzhu squatted there, his knees digging into the cement floor, not moving. The smell in the air was so strong it made their eyes sting, and several young technicians covered their noses and took a few steps back. Ma Yuejin stood to the side, clutching the notebook in his hand, his knuckles white.

He didn't look at He Yuzhu, but stared at the pool of fuel.

One drop. And another.

"Dean, this valve..." Ma Yuejin began, his voice low, "I checked it myself yesterday."

He didn't continue. He Yuzhu sensed the underlying meaning in his words—not an explanation, but unease. "I investigated, how did things still go wrong?"

He Yuzhu didn't turn around, but reached out and touched the valve. It was metal, cold, and the connection was wet.

"Let's take it apart and see."

Ma Yuejin paused for a moment. He squatted down and tightened the bolts, very slowly, as if he were challenging himself. Those around him tried to help, but he stopped them.

When the valve was removed, everyone saw the rubber ring.

It was hard. Yellowish. Several cracks ran along the edges, like the back of an old man's hand. Ma Yuejin picked it up, touched it gently, and a small piece of it fell to the ground.

He didn't say anything. He just held it there, completely still.

Lin Jianguo squeezed through the crowd, squatted down, and took the rubber band. He stared at it under the light for a long time, turning it over and over again. He didn't speak, but his silence was heavier than any words.

After a while, he put the sealing ring down.

"It's only been half a year."

His voice was a little hoarse.

There were spare sealing rings in the warehouse. Ma Yuejin took a box, opened it, and the new rubber ring felt soft and elastic to the touch.

Install it and test it.

The pressure was increased to 300, and it leaked.

I tried another one, but it still leaked.

Lin Jianguo poured out the entire box of sealing rings and felt them one by one. When he touched the fifth one, he looked up.

"This batch of goods is no good."

Ma Yuejin stood there without saying a word. He picked up the missing sealing ring, looked at the rubber ring, and at the manufacturing date printed on it.

Three months ago.

He looked up at He Yuzhu.

"Dean, this thing is made in China."

He Yuzhu didn't say anything. He took the sealing ring, looked at it under the light for a while, and then put it down.

"Does Curry have anything else?"

Ma Yuejin shook his head.

"That's all. This is the only batch."

That night, He Yuzhu sat alone in his office for a long time.

He brought up the system interface and flipped to the materials section. The text on the screen was lit up, gleaming with a faint blue light.

[New Sealing Material (Corrosion-Resistant and High-Temperature Resistant)]

[Includes: formulation, manufacturing process, performance testing standards]

[Redeemable Points: 800,000]

Five hundred thousand.

He recalled Ma Yuejin's expression just now—holding the cracked seal, motionless. He remembered Lin Jianguo's words, "It's only been six months." He remembered the manufacturing date: three months ago.

He clicked "redeem".

The screen flashed. The data was in hand.

The next morning, the materials team gathered in the workshop.

He Yuzhu placed the stack of documents on the table. The cover was printed with the words "New Sealing Material," and there was a line of smaller print at the bottom.

An older engineer picked it up and flipped through it. After a few pages, he paused. He flipped through a few more pages, then looked up at He Yuzhu.

"Dean, this thing..."

He Yuzhu looked at him.

"Never done it before?"

The old engineer nodded.

"I've never done it before."

He Yuzhu didn't say anything.

The old engineer lowered his head again and flipped through the stack of documents. When he turned to a certain page, he stopped and stared at that line of text for a long time.

Then he put the documents down.

"Okay. I'll give it a try."

The materials team's lights stayed on all night on the first night.

The next morning, the old engineer went out for a smoke; his hands were shaking, and he had to try three times to light it. When the second batch of samples came out and were loaded onto the testing machine, the pressure was increased to 500, and the sealing ring cracked.

The next night, Ma Yuejin fell asleep at his desk, still clutching the data in his hand. Lin Jianguo shook him awake, telling him to go back to sleep, but he shook his head and went back to watching the furnace.

In the early hours of the third day, the third batch of samples came out. They managed to reach 650, still a ways off from their target.

The old engineer took off his reading glasses and rubbed his eyes. He didn't say anything, but everyone knew what he wanted to say.

He Yuzhu stood to the side, without moving.

He opened the stack of documents again and turned to the first page.

"Again."

The fourth batch of samples came out on the evening of the third day.

The workshop lights made everyone's faces appear pale. Ma Yuejin installed it onto the testing machine, his hands trembling. The pressure gauge climbed up little by little, the pointer moving slowly.

five hundred.

Six hundred.

Seven hundred.

eight hundred.

The pointer stopped at 820, without moving an inch.

The workshop was quiet for a few seconds.

Then the old engineer plopped down on the ground. He didn't seem to mind the dirt; he just sat there, leaning against the wall.

Ma Yuejin stood there, staring at the pressure gauge, motionless.

He Yuzhu walked over, removed the sealing ring, and weighed it in his hand.

"Install it."

It took two hours to replace the seal.

He Yuzhu stood to the side, watching the workers reinstall the valve. As the last bolt was tightened, he glanced at the clock on the wall.

4:10 a.m.

Ma Yuejin walked over and stood next to him. He didn't say anything, he just stood there.

Another hour passed.

The pressure gauge remained normal. There was no leakage. There was no fluctuation. The pointer steadily pointed to zero.

As dawn broke, the sun rose from the east, shining through the small window of the workshop and landing on the pressure gauge.

Ma Yuejin glanced at He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu didn't say anything and walked out.

When I came out of the workshop, it was already broad daylight.

He Yuzhu stood at the doorway, squinting as he looked towards the launch pad. The sky was a cloudless, almost unrealistically blue. Dongfanghong-1 stood there, its white rocket body gleaming in the sunlight, motionless.

Ma Yuejin followed him out and stood beside him without saying a word.

In the distance, several workers were conducting final checks, their figures swaying on the arrow.

He Yuzhu stared at it for a long time.

Three more days.

That valve, those seals, that pool of fuel that seeped into the ground—it's all in the past.

The wind blew in from the Gobi Desert, carrying the smell of sand.

He stood there, motionless.