Chapter 321: Engineer Zhang, Welcome Home, Acting Director of the Crystal Element Factory

Night fell over the land, the whole capital blazing with lights. Occasionally the sound of firecrackers and fireworks rang out, spangling the city's night sky with colors.

Capital International Airport.

With a roar, a Boeing 707 lined up with the runway, descended slowly, came to a stop, then taxied into the parking area.

In the window seat, Zhang Rujin took a deep breath.

I'm back! I've finally come back!

Leaving home young and returning old, the accent unchanged though hair turns gray… but I left my hometown at one year old, I don't even remember what it looked like!

Now, a sudden timidity arose in his heart.

The nearer to home, the more fearful he grew, not daring to ask who had come.

"Fellow passengers, the plane has now landed at Capital International Airport. Please gather your carry‑on belongings and disembark in an orderly fashion, walk to the arrival hall, go through customs, then collect your checked luggage."

Hearing the bilingual announcement, Zhang Rujin took another deep breath and rose from his seat.

He hadn't brought much travel gear—just a backpack he could sling on and go.

Reaching the aircraft door, a cool evening breeze blew in—cold, really cold!

He pulled his windbreaker tighter and stepped off the plane.

The sky was clear, stars scattered, the northwest wind whooshing; the whole airport felt a little desolate.

But his heart burned hot—this was his motherland!

Abroad, who knows how many times he'd been called a "yellow‑skinned monkey" or felt discrimination against Asians; back then he thought, one day he would return to his motherland and repay it with all his learning.

Now, I have returned!

He strode toward the arrival hall, went through customs, watched the officer stamp his document in red, then broke into a smile.

"Mr. Zhang, welcome home."

For some reason, his nose felt a little sour.

Abroad, no matter how outstanding his achievements or how many honors he won, he never felt a sense of belonging.

Now, back in the East, that feeling has finally returned!

This is his motherland!

But… will Ha Gong Da accept me? After all, I'm a Chinese‑American, and I've heard Charles say foreigners aren't welcome here… maybe they'll think I'm here to steal trade secrets?

His heart grew heavy again.

One step, two steps, three steps…

"Mr. Zhang Rujin, welcome home!"

Just then, another voice sounded.

Zhang Rujin lifted his head and saw a young man standing there, holding a sign with his name, while beside him stood a pretty girl also giving him a sweet smile.

"Who are you?"

"We're from Ha Gong Da. I'm Qin Miao, and this is my wife, also from Ha Gong Da, Chu Miaomiao. Mr. Zhang, welcome home."

Zhang Rujin was stunned—Qin Miao!

That name had long been known throughout the tech world; Ha Gong Da's technological leap couldn't have happened without this legendary man—and now he'd come in person to meet me?

"I heard you're coming; everyone at Ha Gong Da's Microelectronics Center is excited. The person in charge there, Engineer Ni, is taking the train and should arrive tomorrow morning. We'll talk in detail then; for now, let me take you to a hotel."

Engineer Ni, the chief designer of Dragon Core No. 1, is coming too!

At this moment Zhang Rujin's heart overflowed with emotion. This is what coming home feels like—only family could treat him this way!

In the car, Zhang Rujin's heart still pounded wildly, while Qin Miao kept describing the scenery outside.

"After the founding, the capital's walls were torn down; now it has expanded to the Third Ring Area. After reform and opening‑up, the capital has seen great development, with construction everywhere. We must keep relying on our own hands to build the nation even better."

State Guesthouse.

"Mr. Qin, you don't need to put me up in such a fine guesthouse…"

He knew this place was specially for receiving foreign guests, once where an American president stayed—and now they were putting him up here?

"It's necessary, Mr. Zhang. Let's go eat first; after the meal you can rest well, and we'll talk more tomorrow."

Qin Miao enthusiastically took Zhang Rujin to the restaurant, where they first enjoyed a state‑banquet‑level feast, then were shown to their rooms—such warmth left Zhang Rujin feeling overwhelmed by the favor.

On the way home, Chu Miaomiao remained curious.

"Brother San Shui, just how capable is Zhang Rujin?"

"You know Qian Lao, right?"

Chu Miaomiao nodded: "After the founding, Qian Lao broke through all obstacles to return home, leading our nation in the Two Bombs, One Satellite project; Americans once said one Qian Lao was worth fifty divisions."

"Zhang Rujin's achievements in the Crystal Element field will match Qian Lao's."

Chu Miaomiao widened her eyes.

Actually, this is the later assessment of Zhang Rujin: in the Crystal Element field he is the Qian Lao, the godfather of Crystal Element in the East; without him, the East could never develop an advanced Crystal Element industry—relying on state‑owned‑enterprise‑led projects simply wouldn't work!

In the room, Zhang Rujin looked out at the blazing lights, his feelings mixed; that night he suffered insomnia for the first time.

The next day, around ten in the morning.

Knock knock knock!

As the knocking sounded, Zhang Rujin finally got up: "Who is it? Just a moment!"

"Mr. Zhang, have you… rested enough? If not…"

"Engineer Ni?"

Zhang Rujin looked at the people at the door—besides Qin Miao and Chu Miaomiao there were several others, and one of them was unmistakably Engineer Ni!

He had already seen the Dragon Core news release; plus Qin Miao had said last night he'd bring Engineer Ni, so today he recognized him at a glance.

"Well, this is Engineer Ni, this is Professor Xu, who builds lithography machines, and this is…" Qin Miao introduced everyone around him, then said, "Seeing you've just gotten up, you probably haven't eaten yet—let's go out for a meal and talk while we eat."

"Good!"

In the cafeteria.

「In other words, the lithography machine at our Huaxing University has already reached a minimum line width of 0.8 micrometers? 」

「That's right, we can achieve that level, but we tried a batch and the yield was still under twenty percent, so we gave it up. 」

「As the integration level of chips increases, the factory's cleanliness requirements become more stringent; when I was at Texas Instruments, I did research and analysis, and we need to improve cleanliness by an order of magnitude compared to what is urgently needed now. 」

「Really? So that's how it is; then let's try according to this new standard! 」

Professor Xu was very excited.

「In the ion implantation process, we also need to be careful; there are many problems here……」

In everyone's eyes, admiration shone through; indeed, expertise lies in specialization!

When it comes to chip fabrication, the outside world only knows about the lithography machine; in reality, chip fabrication involves dozens of processes, each comprising many steps, and no step can go wrong! If any step falters slightly, the entire chip will be scrapped.

「Everyone admires Engineer Zhang's skills, right? 」

「That's right! Admired! 」

「So, letting Engineer Zhang be the factory director of our chip plant shouldn't be a problem, right? 」