Courtyard House: I'm an engineer, and a fairy godmother transferred me to a different position.

The moment the main building doors opened, something invisible rushed out. It was a scent mingled with dust, engine oil, and tense thoughts. In the lobby, several dark green blackboards were covered with layers upon layers of formulas. Several researchers held chalk, symbols and numbers spreading rapidly amidst their intense whispers. The crisp sound of chalk rubbing against the board was like some kind of unique code.

The laboratory doors on both sides of the corridor were ajar. Through the cracks, one could glimpse silent, towering steel structures: towering racks entangled with intricate cables, their low-frequency hum resonating in the air; before long tables piled high with components, someone was using tweezers to examine a world smaller than a grain of rice through a magnifying glass. Figures in dark blue uniforms moved through the corridor, their blueprints rolled into tubes, the ink still wet on their notebooks. No one stopped, no one chatted, only the wind stirred up by their footsteps.

A light pat suddenly landed on my shoulder. The department head's voice was tinged with amusement:

"How is it? It's quite different from what you're seeing in your research department, isn't it?"

Liu Guangqi nodded, his gaze still lingering on the corridor.

"We only have a few plotters and testing stations there... The scale here is beyond my imagination. And—" He paused, "those who can work on this floor must at least be engineers, right?"

"Level 8 or higher." The department head gestured with his chin toward a spot not far away. "See that young man with glasses? He just returned from studying at ** last year. He's a Level 8 engineer, specializing in computer programming."

Liu Guangqi remained silent, his fingertips unconsciously tracing the edge of the metal plaque. Here, titles were not decorations, but a yardstick for measuring ability. Without genuine talent, even breathing felt abrupt. He suddenly recalled a widely circulated saying: Perhaps you were once a star admired by many in your small world, but when you truly join the ranks of the stars, you will see—Euler, Riemann, Newton under the apple tree, Gauss who opened the door to arithmetic at the age of seven—their figures have already stood atop the peak, waiting patiently.

Before entering the Academy of Sciences, one is like a frog in a well peering at the moon; once inside, one is like a buoy seeing the sky.

"Old Lu!"

The department head called out toward an open laboratory door.

Footsteps sounded immediately. An elderly man with silver hair and old-fashioned glasses strode out, his faded work clothes neat and crisp. This was Lu Hai—a former professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Tsinghua University, and now the head of a research group at the Institute of Computing Technology.

"Finally here!" Lu Hai grasped the department head's hand, but his gaze had already moved past the head's shoulder, locking firmly on Liu Guangqi. His eyes behind his glasses were sharp and slow, like the probe of a precision instrument, trying to analyze every detail of the young man before him.

"Come, let me introduce you." The department head stepped aside, his smile deepening. "Old Lu, this is Liu Guangqi, whom you've been mentioning repeatedly. The 3D transistor and the integrated circuit board that you admired so much were both his creations."

He paused briefly, then spoke clearly and distinctly:

"This kid is now the deputy director of the research department of the First Ministry of Machine Building."

The department head then turned to Liu Guangqi and continued the introduction:

"This is Professor Lu Hai, who is currently the head of the programming group at the Institute of Computing Technology and holds the title of Level 4 Engineer."

He paused, a relieved smile spreading across his face:

"Guangqi, Professor Lu is a 'living archive' of our Tsinghua University. He was one of the core members during the critical debugging phase of the coordinate measuring machine tool back then."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Hai strode forward and firmly grasped Liu Guangqi's hands. His hands were rough and hard, yet full of strength.

"Guangqi, I've heard so much about you!"

"I've carefully examined your integrated circuit board drawings—the logic architecture is exceptionally well done!"

He slightly composed himself, his tone revealing genuine concern:

"To be honest, given the technical skills you've demonstrated, it's really unfair to only rate you as a Level 7 engineer."

"Several of my colleagues at the same level in our institute came to ask me a few days ago when they were studying your transistor technology data, whether the layout idea was based on the latest achievements of our northern neighbor."

The department head listened from the side, his smile full of pride:

"Old Lu, you don't know this, Guangqi is completely self-taught, he never studied abroad, he learned everything by himself, bit by bit!"

The two teachers' straightforward praise made Liu Guangqi's ears burn slightly.

He maintained the humility expected of a student and did not mention that he was already in the process of being promoted to Level 6 engineer.

He knew in his heart that the Chinese Academy of Sciences was a place where hidden talents and experts gathered.

Putting everything else aside, the name of Professor Hua, who is so renowned on the institute's honor roll, is enough to command respect.

In front of such a large group of people, the title of "engineer" is really not something to be proud of, and there is no essential difference between them and ordinary students.

Even a genius might only be able to barely open that door.

What does my achievement even amount to?

At this moment, faced with Professor Lu Hai's lavish praise, Liu Guangqi's face showed the shyness typical of young people:

"Professor Lu, you flatter me too much. I was just lucky and happened to choose the right path."

"In terms of seniority, I am still very inexperienced."

"The fact that the ministry has granted me the certification of a Level 7 engineer is already an exceptional exception."

He spoke gently, maintained a polite smile, and smoothly steered the conversation towards the main topic:

"By the way, Professor Lu, Professor Li mentioned before that you have some transistor test results here..."

Unexpectedly, these words made Professor Lu, who was usually calm and composed, suddenly light up, his eyes almost sparkling.

"Come on, let's go inside and talk about it in detail!"

He grabbed Liu Guangqi and led him into the laboratory, his steps much faster than usual.

"All tested! We finished testing them a long time ago!"

"Guangqi, to be honest, I really have to thank you this time."

"Although foreign countries have published research on transistors, we have been debating internally which technical route to choose for advancement."

"You've essentially presented the answer directly to us this time—not only pointing out the direction, but also creating the actual product."

Lu Hai spoke with a touch of emotion.

The achievements of a student were more significant than the progress made by this group of senior professors over several years.

He couldn't explain it clearly at the moment—

Should we rejoice at the rise of the new generation, or should we secretly reflect on whether we have already fallen behind the times?

Liu Guangqi was slightly taken aback when he first heard this, but then he understood the old professor's implication.

Transistor.

Last year, the first large-scale general-purpose electronic computer, the "104 Machine," was successfully developed.

Seven units of this model were produced, and it played a key role in several major national projects.

The advent of the 104 machine was also a declaration to the world: we have our own independent computer.

In April of this year, the Institute of Computing Technology successfully developed its first small general-purpose electronic digital computer, the "107 Machine," achieving lightweight equipment.

At the same time, the development of the second-generation transistor computer was also put on the agenda.

After all, the 104 machine was a vacuum tube computer, which was bulky, had a high failure rate, and a processing speed of only 10,000 operations per second, making it difficult to meet the long-term needs of certain classified projects in Northwest China.

Transistor computers offer faster computation and greater stability, making them undoubtedly the mainstream direction for the future.

Therefore, while tackling the challenges of the first-generation vacuum tube computer, the Institute of Computing Technology had also quietly begun preparations for the second-generation transistor computer.

What Liu Guangqi didn't know was that at this time, the Institute of Computing Technology's computer research and development was standing at a crossroads that would determine its future.

The neighboring country to the north and the large country across the Pacific Ocean have chosen two completely different paths in computer technology.

The latter, with its strong industrial foundation, took the lead in breaking through transistor technology, making computer miniaturization possible, and therefore bet heavily on transistor computers.

As for the former...

Liu Guangqi's persistence led him to pursue the technological path of vacuum tubes, and he was determined to achieve the ultimate stability and high power output.

Therefore, they planned to develop a vacuum tube computer.

Two technological approaches, two completely different philosophies.

This plunged the fledgling computing institute into a deep predicament.

The engineers in the institute were clearly divided into two camps.

One side is the pro-Soviet faction—

Many of them had studied in ** in their early years and were very familiar with that vacuum tube technology system, believing that it was the solid and reliable foundation.

Even though relations with the Soviet Union have broken down, the foundation of domestic scientific research still bears the deep imprint of the Soviet system.

The existing technological foundation is there for all to see, which can significantly shorten the research and development cycle!

On the other hand,

These were the scholars who followed Hua Lao back to China. Through various channels, they glimpsed the enormous potential of transistor technology.

They believe this is the direction for the future!

Continuing to cling to vacuum tubes would undoubtedly be a waste of precious time.

The atmosphere in the institute became increasingly intense, with arguments frequently escalating and table-pounding and glaring becoming the norm.

The problem is that neither side can convince the other.

What's more troublesome is that the research institute already has limited manpower and funding. If the investment is spread across two lines, it is very likely that nothing will be gained in the end, and all will be for naught.

The entire Institute of Computing Technology was like a cow bound by two ropes, caught in a dilemma, only able to spin in circles.

At this almost hopeless stalemate,

But a turning point quietly appeared—

Previously, Liu Guangqi, with his forward-thinking technical vision, directly broke through the three-dimensional transistor process in order to develop CNC machine tools.

In this way, even the debate loses its meaning.

Transistors with such superior performance are already ready for actual manufacturing.

Not only that,

The integrated circuit board design proposed by Liu Guangqi also provided them with crucial inspiration.

turn out to be--

Transistors, capacitors, and resistors—tiny components—are integrated onto a small board using a precise etching process.

It can reduce power consumption to a fraction of its original level, while increasing signal transmission speed several times over!

The stalemate was broken instantly.

This presented the Institute of Computing with a ticket to the second generation of transistor computers.

With these breakthroughs,

Most of the technological barriers in the development of the second-generation transistor computer have already crumbled.

Therefore,

That's why Professor Lu was so eager to talk to Liu Guangqi in person.

Hearing these unexpected developments, Liu Guangqi felt both helpless and amused.

He initially developed 3D transistors,

The original intention was simply to solve the problem of miniaturizing the control module of CNC machine tools.

Unexpectedly, in the eyes of the professors at the Institute of Computing Technology,

This turned out to be the key ticket to the second generation of computers.

"Professor Lu,"

"Actually, I was just trying it out at the time, because miniaturized control modules are indispensable for achieving automation of CNC machine tools..."

"Taking the transistor route is an inevitable choice."

Professor Lu Hai slammed his hand on the table: "Well said! That's exactly the point!"

He stared intently at Liu Guangqi.

That tenacious spirit characteristic of researchers was fully revealed: "To do scientific research, you need this kind of pragmatic spirit of daring to think and take risks!"

As a senior scholar in academia,

Professor Lu Hai admires young people who possess genuine talent, insightful perspectives, and composure.

He looked at Liu Guangqi,

The more I look at it, the more I feel a connection to it; the more I look at it, the more I feel that it is a rough gem that has not yet been fully polished.

How wonderful it would be if they were my own students?

"Guangqi, I'll get straight to the point!"

Lu Hai led Liu Guangqi into the computing room, pointing to the transistor test report spread out on the table, his eyes full of eagerness.

"We submitted a report to the Chinese Academy of Sciences a few days ago!"

"We plan to leverage your 3D transistor technology to develop a second-generation transistor computer—a major project that could increase the computing power of our 107 machine by more than five times!"

He paused briefly.

The tone shifted abruptly, becoming more solicitous: