Chapter 418: Breakthrough

The day for Huaqing University to start the semester had arrived; as soon as He Yuzhu walked into the classroom, he saw the whole room of students looking at him with burning gazes.

He distributed the tool bags to everyone one by one, unhurriedly; they were heavy and carried the scent of machine oil.

After finishing, he walked up to the podium and said with a smile, "Who wants to tell me why I am giving these things to you?"

"It's a New Year's gift for us!" a voice piped up crisply.

Squad Leader Wang Zhigang stood up and said, "I guess these are tools for the Laboratory. If I'm not mistaken, we should be entering the Laboratory now, right?"

"That's right! Starting this semester, most classes will be held in the Laboratory. We will enter the Laboratory every week starting from Thursday, for a total of one and a half days, and I will lead everyone in hands-on practice."

Before his voice had even faded, a low commotion suddenly erupted in the classroom.

The students exchanged glances, their lips unable to stop curling upward, and some were already quietly touching the tool bags they had just received.

"Teacher He," Wang Zhigang raised his hand again, "is the Laboratory on campus?"

"It's not on campus; it's set up inside the Northern Automobile Factory." He Yuzhu paused, saw the troubled looks on everyone's faces, and continued, "Considering the distance, I have allocated a truck for the class to use as a commuter vehicle. However, I don't have time to drive you back and forth—which of you knows how to drive?"

"I do!" Kajia practically sprang from her seat.

He Yuzhu nodded at her: "Good, then the task of picking up and dropping off classmates every week will be handed to student Kajia."

"Guarantee to complete the mission!" Kajia replied crisply and neatly, her eyes shining.

After class, Kajia trotted to catch up outside the classroom, pulled a Military Binoculars out of her bag, and handed them over with both hands: "Teacher He, this is my New Year's gift to you!"

He Yuzhu took them and weighed them; the lens barrels were heavy, and it was clear they were a pair of Military Binoculars. He fished a watch out of his pocket and handed it back: "A second-hand item I picked up at the Ghost Market, don't mind it."

Kajia took it and looked; it was actually an Omega Gold watch, its dial glowing with a warm luster under the sunlight.

She looked up in surprise, but He Yuzhu had already walked far ahead, so she hurried to follow.

"Teacher He, what exactly are we going to do in the Laboratory this year?"

"Assembling small-scale Transistor Computer units." He Yuzhu slowed his pace and said, "The United States' IBM company has already produced the 7000 series large-scale transistor machines. And our small-scale machines—must lead them by at least five to ten years..."

Kajia's breath hitched, her eyes wide: "Can we... really make small-scale computers?"

"Not only can we make them, but in terms of hardware, computer languages, and application layers, we are all walking in front."

"That's great!" Kajia's cheeks flushed with excitement, "Teacher He, I'll treat you to a meal!"

"Not today," He Yuzhu waved his hand, "I have an appointment."

He did indeed have an appointment—with Tian Dan and Lin Wanning.

The three had agreed to meet at Lin Wanning's small courtyard.

He Yuzhu pushed open the courtyard gate and saw Lin Wanning and Tian Dan chatting happily.

He Yuzhu walked over and teased, "I thought it would be awkward for two former rivals to meet, but I didn't expect you to get along so well."

Tian Dan turned her head at the sound, her eyes still carrying a smile: "We don't have any personal grudges. You're overthinking it."

"That's good then." He Yuzhu smiled and held up the oil-paper bag in his hand, "I don't know if you two have eaten, but I came here on an empty stomach. If you are also empty, keep me company and eat a little."

Tian Dan walked over and lifted a corner of the oil paper: "I only gnawed on a mixed-flour steamed bun at noon, paired with a plate of stir-fried shredded radish without any oil. It's just right to share some of your luck."

Lin Wanning also nodded with a smile: "I haven't eaten either, let's eat together."

The three of them set out the food on the stone table under the pomegranate tree.

The oil-paper bag was unfolded layer by layer, revealing the braised pork elbow from Tianfuhao, the spiced beef from Yueshengzhai, and the spicy diced chicken and Nine-Turn Intestines from He Ji Restaurant.

Tian Dan picked up a piece of Nine-Turn Intestines, tasted it carefully, and said, "It's strange to say, but before I came to Si Jiu Cheng, I wouldn't touch offal at all. After staying here for a long time and trying it a few times, I find that these Nine-Turn Intestines get more fragrant the more you chew them."

"Dan, this is called 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do'." He Yuzhu laughed.

Tian Dan didn't eat much; she set down her chopsticks and said, "I came today because of the case involving the I-Kuan Tao. The deeper we investigate, the deeper the water gets; there are indeed signs of it rising from the ashes. We've arrested quite a few people during this period, but not a single big boss has been caught, and now I have no leads."

He Yuzhu shook his head: "This case involves too much. As soon as we crack down here, the bosses run to other places; it's indeed hard to handle."

Lin Wanning, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke up: "I heard that the Secret Service Bureau regularly allocates funds over there. If we can find the accounts used for capital transfers, perhaps we could achieve twice the result with half the effort."

Tian Dan slapped the stone table: "That's exactly why I came! They are very cunning now, shifting their targets to remote areas. A bag of grain is enough to make a family believe in the cult, and once they believe, they use all sorts of pretexts to collect money, then take that money to develop new followers..."

"I need the details of the overseas remittances, as well as a list of companies with overseas operations and their business projects; maybe we can find clues." Lin Wanning pondered.

"I thought so too," Tian Dan took a thick stack of documents out of her bag and pulled out a booklet, "I brought all the materials."

Lin Wanning took them, her fingertips brushing over the cover: "I will finish reading them as soon as possible."

"Please." Tian Dan's smile was filled with exhaustion, but also carried hope.

Time flowed like water, and in the blink of an eye, it was the end of June.

The summer heat was rising, and the cicadas in the courtyard of the Northern Automobile Factory were chirping one after another, making people feel irritable. But the Laboratory was strangely quiet; the students stood in neat rows, no one speaking.

This day was the day He Yuzhu would accept the final exam projects.

Throughout the semester, he had divided the sixty-plus students into three groups, and after more than three months of hard work, they had finally produced three Transistor Computer units.

Since the morning, He Yuzhu had been conducting system tests one by one: logic, basic operations, stability, power consumption... the first three items had all passed.

Now, the final critical test was underway—running the ballistic calculation program.

In the Laboratory, there was only the low hum of the machines.

The students gathered behind He Yuzhu, watching his fingers tap rapidly on the keyboard as the data on the screen scrolled line by line.

The large ceiling fan overhead spun desperately, yet it could not blow away the stuffiness in the air; beads of sweat were on everyone's faces, whether from the heat or from nervousness, no one knew.

Ten minutes felt as long as an hour in this moment.

Finally, He Yuzhu stood up from his chair and turned to face everyone.

His gaze slowly swept over every tense face, and suddenly, the corners of his mouth lifted, and he announced loudly: "The three Transistor Computer units you produced—are all qualified!"

Silence.

Immediately after, applause erupted like a tidal wave, instantly dispersing all the stifling air in the Laboratory.

Wang Zhigang was so excited his face turned red, waving his fist and shouting: "Three months! It wasn't in vain! We succeeded! Our computers are done!"