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

The day after the celebration banquet, before dawn, He Yuzhu returned to the research institute.

The corridor was empty except for the office at the end, where the light was on. He pushed the door open and saw Lin Jianguo slumped over the table, surrounded by piles of documents, some open, some rolled up, and some crumpled up and thrown on the floor.

Lin Jianguo looked up. His eyes were bloodshot, his cheekbones were prominent, and he looked even thinner than before the satellite launch.

"Dean."

He Yuzhu sat down opposite him.

"Didn't sleep all night?"

Lin Jianguo didn't answer, but pushed the stack of documents in front of him forward.

"I thought about manned spaceflight all night."

He Yuzhu looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

Lin Jianguo opened his mouth, then closed it again. He took the stack of documents back, flipped to a certain page, and closed it again. After fiddling around for a while, he finally spoke.

"It's too difficult."

Just those three words.

He Yuzhu didn't say anything.

Lin Jianguo pointed at the documents, his fingers trembling slightly.

"The satellite can go up, it doesn't need to come down. But people have to come down. How? Parachutes? Deceleration rockets? We've never done any of that before." He paused. "And how do people survive up there? Breathing, drinking water, eating, keeping warm. We haven't even thought about these things."

He finished speaking, looked at He Yuzhu, and waited for him to speak.

He Yuzhu stood up and walked to the window. Outside, the sky was overcast, looking like it was about to snow.

"Are you done talking?"

Lin Jianguo was stunned for a moment.

"That's all."

He Yuzhu turned around.

"So what do you want to do?"

Lin Jianguo lowered his head and looked at his hands.

After a long time, he raised his head.

"I don't know where to start."

He Yuzhu walked back to the table and sat down.

"I know you don't know."

He took out a pack of cigarettes from the drawer, pulled one out, and handed it to Lin Jianguo. Lin Jianguo took it, but didn't light it; he just held it there.

He Yuzhu lit one for himself too. He didn't smoke often, and after taking a puff, he coughed twice, choking on the smoke.

"Back when we had satellites, did you know where to start?"

Lin Jianguo shook his head.

"So how did you do it?"

Lin Jianguo thought for a moment.

"Take it by force."

He Yuzhu nodded.

"Then let's just tough it out one more time."

That night, He Yuzhu sat alone in his office until late.

He brought up the system interface and flipped to the aerospace section.

[Preliminary Design of Spaceplane (1962 Edition)]

[Includes: aerodynamic layout, thermal protection system, propulsion scheme, and reentry trajectory calculation]

[Redeemable Points: 1,000,000]

[Fundamentals of Life Support Systems (1962 Edition)]

[Includes: Oxygen regeneration principles, carbon dioxide absorption, temperature and humidity control, water circulation schemes, and emergency oxygen supply]

[Redeemable Points: 1,000,000]

He stared at the two lines of text, his finger hovering over the confirmation button.

The wind outside the window picked up, making something rattle and clang.

He recalled Lin Jianguo's gaunt face and his words, "I don't know where to start."

The finger fell down.

[Redeem successful. Points consumed: 1,000,000]

He retrieved the two stacks of documents from his system space. The thicker one was for a spaceplane, with complex structural diagrams printed on the cover. The thinner one was for a life support system, with only one line of text on the cover.

He opened the book on life support systems.

Chapter 1: The Principle of Oxygen Regeneration. Humans need oxygen to breathe and exhale carbon dioxide. In space, windows cannot be opened. A chemical substance is used to absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen. That substance is called "sodium peroxide," and the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed and oxygen released per kilogram is clearly stated.

Chapter Two, Carbon Dioxide Absorption. Not all carbon dioxide can be absorbed. A special absorption tank filled with granular absorbent is needed. Air flows through the tank, the carbon dioxide is trapped, and the remaining oxygen and nitrogen are recycled back in.

Chapter Three: Temperature and Humidity Control. Space experiences extreme temperature fluctuations. Areas exposed to sunlight reach over 100 degrees Celsius, while areas untouched by sunlight drop to minus 100 degrees Celsius. Circulating water is used to regulate temperature, and condensers are used for dehumidification. The book includes piping diagrams, with each pipe's location clearly marked.

He turned the pages one by one, reading very slowly.

The wind outside the window has stopped.

The next morning, he summoned Ma Yuejin and Lin Jianguo to his office.

The two stacks of documents were piled on the table, like two small mountains.

When Ma Yue entered, he was still holding a steamed bun in his hand, half-eaten. He glanced at the documents, didn't pay them any mind, and sat down to continue eating.

He Yuzhu pushed the book on spaceplanes in front of him.

"your."

Ma Yuejin put down the steamed bun and turned to the first page. He looked at it for a few seconds, then turned a few more pages. When he reached the tenth page, he stopped moving.

He looked up at He Yuzhu.

"Dean."

He Yuzhu waited for him to continue.

Ma Yuejin closed the document, then opened it again, then closed it again.

"This thing... is it an airplane?"

"Yes."

Ma Yuejin pointed to the picture on the cover. "What about this one?"

"Thermal protection".

Ma Yuejin remained silent for a while.

"Dean, I've never even been on an airplane."

He Yuzhu looked at him.

"I've never ridden it before either."

The two stared at each other for a few seconds.

Ma Yuejin picked up the document.

"Okay. I'll take my time looking at it."

He stood up, walked to the door, and then turned back.

"What if I don't understand?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment.

"If you don't understand, just ask. Ask anyone."

Ma Yuejin nodded and went out the door.

Lin Jianguo sat there, looking at the book on life support systems. He turned the pages very slowly, taking a long time to read each one.

He looked up after turning the last page.

"Dean, I can understand this."

He Yuzhu nodded.

"That's good."

Lin Jianguo hugged the document to his chest and stood up as well.

He paused at the doorway.

"Dean, is five years enough?"

He Yuzhu did not answer.

Lin Jianguo waited a few seconds, then pushed the door open and went out.

In the evening, He Yuzhu returned home.

Qin Huairu was sewing a small garment under the lamp when He Nianhua, lying beside her, fell asleep, clutching the tank made from a bullet casing. The little thing slept soundly, its mouth slightly open, its chest rising and falling.

He Yuzhu walked over and sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

Qin Huairu raised her head and glanced at him.

"Have you got a meal yet?"

"have eaten."

Qin Huairu didn't ask any more questions and continued sewing.

He Yuzhu looked at her profile. The lamp cast her shadow on the wall, stitch by stitch, very slowly.

She suddenly stopped.

He Yuzhu followed her gaze and saw his own hand.

I don't know when, but I got some engine oil on my hand; it's all black.

Qin Huairu put down her needlework, stood up, and walked over to him. She reached out and touched his temple.

He Yuzhu was stunned for a moment.

"What's wrong?"

Qin Huairu didn't speak, she just looked at his hair.

After a long time, she said softly.

"Zhu Zi, your hair has turned white."

He Yuzhu did not respond.

Qin Huairu's hand slid down from his temple and placed on his shoulder.

"You're too tired."

He Yuzhu shook his head.

"Not tired."

Qin Huairu leaned on his shoulder and didn't say anything more.

The wind picked up again outside the window.

He Yuzhu had just lain down when the phone rang.

He answered the phone; it was Old Sun on the other end.

silence.

He Yuzhu waited a few seconds.

"Old Sun?"

A sigh came from the other end.

"Old He, the north is experiencing drought again."

He Yuzhu held the microphone but didn't speak.

Old Sun continued.

"It's started in Henan. And in Hebei too."

Another silence followed.

"Food is scarce." Old Sun said these four words very slowly at the end.

He Yuzhu looked out the window at the pitch-black night.

"I see."

The phone hangs up.

He stood there, listening to the busy tone on the microphone.

Qin Huairu woke up at some point, leaning against the headboard, looking at him.

"Has something happened again?"

He Yuzhu did not answer.

Outside the window, the wind was blowing even harder.