Chapter 559: Lin Shengli: The children can now stand on their own!

When daylight broke, the first ray of morning sun streamed through the workshop's glass window, falling on the unfinished airframe prototype and gilding it with a warm golden edge.

Lin Zhengcheng, Chen Mo, and Lin Qinhua woke first, washed up quickly, ate the hot breakfast Zheng Juan had sent, and immediately threw themselves into the tense final‑assembly work.

Xiao Zhang and several young technicians also arrived one after another; each face bore lingering fatigue, yet their eyes were firm, their steps hurried, with no slack.

In the final‑assembly workshop, the crane moved slowly and carefully, lifting the engine to its reserved position on the airframe.

Lin Zhengcheng stood on the operating platform, eyes fixed on the engine‑airframe mating point, holding a walkie‑talkie and giving steady commands:

"Slowly, even slower, shift left by three millimeters; watch the mating gap—it must not exceed 0.01 millimeter."

His voice was not loud, but it carried unquestionable rigor; his fingertips clenched, sweat beading on his palms—for the engine is the bomber's "heart," and the mating precision directly decides later flight safety, allowing no margin for error.

Chen Mo crouched beneath the airframe, head raised, closely watching the mating, his wrench ready at any moment to adjust the fastening bolts:

"Received, already shifted three millimeters; the interface gap is now 0.008 millimeter, within spec."

While reporting, he reached out to touch the interface, confirming no deviation, then signaled the crane to lower the engine steadily; he then led the technicians in quickly installing the fastening bolts, each tightened evenly and firmly, repeatedly checking for fear of looseness.

Lin Qinhua stood by the tester, monitoring in real time all data from the engine mating; the screen's curves jumped continuously, her eyes locked, not daring to lose focus for a moment.

"Zhengcheng, Chen Mo, engine mating is complete; all data are normal, with no abnormal fluctuations."

She picked up the walkie‑talkie to report, her voice tinged with a barely perceptible joy—the days of debugging and optimization had finally yielded a stage‑wise result at this moment.

Lin Shengli also arrived early at the workshop, saying little, merely standing silently to the side, watching the children's busy figures, his eyes full of relief.

Zheng Juan, with the logistics staff, kept bringing hot water and snacks, occasionally reminding everyone to stay safe and balance work with rest; in the workshop, busy figures and gentle reminders intertwined, warmth spreading to dispel all fatigue.

Just as the engine installation was nearing completion, Lin Qinhua suddenly noticed a slight anomaly on the tester:

"Uh‑oh, the pressure reading of the engine's cooling system is a bit high, exceeding the standard by 0.02 MPa."

Her voice instantly turned grave, her pen clenched tight, her face paling slightly—for the cooling system affects the engine's normal operation; any problem would not only delay final assembly but could also leave a safety hazard.

Lin Zhengcheng immediately halted his work, hurried to the tester, stared at the screen's numbers, and furrowed his brow:

"What's going on? Yesterday when we checked the data, the cooling‑system pressure was normal—could the mating process have knocked the cooling pipes?"

He spoke while bending to inspect the engine's cooling pipes, and Chen Mo at once stopped his task to join the check.

Xiao Zhang and the young technicians also gathered round, faces full of anxiety but not panic, each volunteering to help troubleshoot.

"I'll check the cooling‑pipe interface to see if it was overtightened during mating, causing deformation."

Xiao Zhang picked up a tool, crouched, and carefully examined each interface, his movements meticulous and earnest.

Chen Mo quickly took out scratch paper, calculating the cooling‑system pressure parameters, murmuring softly:

"The cooling‑pipe diameter is fixed; high pressure means either a blockage, a loose seal at the interface, or a misaligned heat‑sink installation." He calculated while comparing with earlier test data, seeking the root cause.

Lin Zhengcheng pondered a moment, then told everyone:

"Let's divide the work: Qinhua continues monitoring data and giving real‑time feedback; Chen Mo checks the parameter calculations for any deviation; Xiao Zhang and the technicians inspect the cooling pipes and interfaces, focusing on blockages, deformation, or poor seals; I'll pull yesterday's test footage to see if any abnormal operation occurred during mating."

After the orders were given, everyone sprang into action; the workshop resumed its tense, orderly atmosphere, though each face now bore an added gravity.

The morning sun rose higher, light pouring through the window and casting each silhouette in sharp relief; no one complained, no one retreated, and even faced with a sudden problem they remained of one mind and one effort, meeting every challenge with perseverance and professionalism.

Lin Zhengcheng pulled up yesterday's test footage, playing it over and over, scrutinizing each step of the engine mating, and finally found the culprit: while the crane was lifting the engine, a thin wire had accidentally become tangled in the cooling‑pipe interface, causing a poor seal and thus raising the cooling‑system pressure.

"Found it!" he shouted excitedly, immediately gathering everyone and pointing to the detail in the video: "A wire is tangled at the interface, causing a loose seal; remove the wire, reseal the interface, and the pressure will return to normal."

Everyone's tension eased; Xiao Zhang promptly and carefully extracted the wire tangled at the interface, Chen Mo produced sealant and meticulously sealed the joint, while Lin Qinhua kept her eyes on the tester, monitoring the pressure change in real time.

"The pressure is dropping—0.015 MPa, 0.01 MPa, 0.008 MPa… back to normal!" Lin Qinhua's voice brimmed with joy, and a long‑absent smile spread across her face.

Lin Zhengcheng exhaled in relief, patted Xiao Zhang's shoulder, and said with a smile:

"Well done—thanks to everyone's care; otherwise, if this hazard had lingered until the test flight, the consequences would be unthinkable."

Chen Mo also nodded, his voice full of feeling:

"The more critical the moment, the more careful we must be; the extra diligence we put in gives the project extra security."

With the cooling‑system issue resolved, everyone dove back into final‑assembly work; this time they were even more meticulous, repeatedly checking and confirming each step, daring not to be the slightest bit careless.

At noon, Zheng Juan brought steaming hot meals; people took turns eating and resting, nobody willing to waste much time—even a brief ten‑minute break was used to cross‑check relevant data, ensuring the final‑assembly work would be flawless.