Chapter 218

The father nodded, looked at Liu Guangqi, and said decisively:

"We'll do as you say."

After this little naming conversation, Liu Guangqi stood side by side with his father-in-law. The subtle distance between the two men, the distance between father-in-law and son-in-law, seemed to have quietly shortened a bit in the midst of that knowing laughter.

Outside the door, my father-in-law and mother-in-law's jeep were already waiting quietly.

As he was leaving, his father reached out and patted Liu Guangqi on the shoulder, his expression unusually solemn:

"Guangqi, your mother and I are well aware of the achievements you've made in the Northwest. You've handled this matter exceptionally well."

"We...are proud of you."

Liu Guangqi smiled slightly.

He knew his father-in-law's temperament well, and for him to say such a thing was already a rare form of recognition.

Zhao Mengsheng then leaned closer, grinning as he said:

"Brother-in-law, I've got it! When I have children in the future, you have to give them names even brighter than 'Sinian' or 'Qinian'!"

Liu Guangqi glanced at him, a smile playing on her lips:

"You should grow up a bit more before you think about this. You're still a kid, and all you do is dream about these kinds of wonderful things."

One sentence left Zhao Mengsheng speechless, which made Zhao Mengyun and Wu Shuang burst into laughter.

The mother-in-law held her daughter's hand one last time and whispered her words of advice:

"Take good care of yourself. Now that you're a cadre's family member, the childcare workers will help look after the children, so don't overwork yourself. Call home anytime if you need anything."

At this moment, regardless of their roles in the military, Zhao's father and Wu Shuang were just ordinary parents about to embark on a long journey, their words filled with deep affection.

After seeing off his parents-in-law, Liu Guangqi's life returned to the rhythm of work.

The next day, he walked into the ministry building as usual.

The CNC workshop still had a faint smell of machine oil and metal.

Soon, several technical researchers walked in quickly, carrying a thick stack of blueprints, their faces showing a mixture of excitement and unease.

The lead researcher began by saying:

"Director, the final design of the nine-axis machine tool has been finalized. Please review it."

"If there are no major problems... it can be submitted as our department's formal R&D plan by the middle of this year."

This plan is a nine-axis blueprint that they have been developing since the second half of last year, following the direction set by Liu Guangqi.

This group of people were originally technical backbones who followed Liu Guangqi all the way from three-axis, five-axis and seven-axis. Now, with his guidance on the nine-axis framework, after more than half a year of repeated deliberation and modification, the moment of finalization has finally arrived.

Liu Guangqi took the document, his gaze calmly sweeping over the pages. He lightly circled a few data points with the tip of his pen, then handed the proposal back, his voice steady: "These few places need adjustment."

He straightened his cuffs, stood up, and said, "I'm going to the Institute of Computing Technology this afternoon and won't be returning to the ministry today. Send the revised plan directly to Director Duan's office."

Several researchers looked up at the same time, their initial admiration turning into obvious confusion.

"Director," someone couldn't help but speak up, "is it really appropriate to show this to Director Duan? The new director doesn't have a technical background, he probably won't understand this plan."

Looking at his subordinates who were technically astute but endearingly naive in their human nature, Liu Guangqi couldn't help but shake his head.

Over the years, he has intentionally kept them focused on their research and away from external distractions. Now it seems that while they are indeed pure, they have also lacked the flexibility to deal with worldly affairs.

"Whether he understands it or not is not important," Liu Guangqi said calmly, leaning against the table. "What is important is that he is a leader officially appointed by the department and our direct superior in the research office. It's both a courtesy and an attitude for us to proactively report on our work when a new leader arrives."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd: "If you give him respect, he will naturally provide support when needed. Director Duan has accumulated many years of experience in the Industry Bureau; his network and resources are there. In the future, if we need special materials or need to coordinate with factories, won't the department step in?"

Seeing that the group seemed to understand, Liu Guangqi's lips curled into a faint smile: "Moreover, for leaders who don't have a technical background, the worst thing is for them to insist on listening even when they don't understand. When the time comes, just like when you discuss things with me, explain the details of the algorithm, tolerance standards, material stress changes... as thoroughly as possible."

Before he could finish speaking, the researchers' eyes lit up, and they exchanged knowing smiles.

"Understood, Section Chief!"

"We'll go prepare right away!"

Soon after, a carefully revised new plan was completed.

The technical team leader, Lao Zhou, took a deep breath and knocked on the director's office door with the documents in hand.

"Come in."

The room was bright and clean, with a faint aroma of tea in the air, a stark contrast to the smell of machine oil and metal in the laboratory.

Director Duan was holding a teacup when he saw several research staff members enter, and he seemed slightly surprised.

Old Zhou stood ramrod straight, trying his best to imitate Liu Guangqi's posture when he gave his presentation, and gently placed the proposal on the desk.

"Director, our section chief went to the Institute of Computing Technology today. Before he left, he instructed us to make sure to send over the revised nine-axis machine tool development plan for your review."

Old Zhou said solemnly, "You are a leader in the company, and we hope you can help us review the work and see if there is anything that needs improvement."

"...For me?" Director Duan paused slightly in his hand holding the teacup.

Since taking office, he has considered getting involved in the work of the research department—this department is too crucial.

But after careful consideration, he chose to keep his distance.

On the one hand, Liu Guangqi's abilities are undeniable: a Level 4 engineer and a member of the academic committee, his name had long been on the committee's watchlist. Such a leading technical figure is someone he can neither command nor need to command.

On the other hand, Director Duan knew in his heart that he was able to be transferred to the First Ministry of Machine Building to take up this position not only because of his background, but also because of his ability to recognize talent.

The former Director Lin rose through the ranks precisely because of his capable assistant, Liu Guangqi.

Sometimes, not interfering is a form of wisdom.

Moreover, Liu Guangqi's network of connections within the ministry is much stronger than that of the newly arrived director.

Forcibly intervening may not be a wise move.

That was no ordinary case of a new broom sweeping clean; it was practically an act of deliberately making enemies.

Leaving aside the distant future, the situation left behind by the former Director Lin—who should now be called Vice Minister Lin—is already troublesome enough.

Therefore, he had already made up his mind to follow the precedent set by his predecessor, Director Lin: to provide full support, nothing less. Whatever Liu Guangqi needed, he would grant it without any hindrance.

To everyone's surprise, Liu Guangqi took the initiative to present the plan.

This is no ordinary work report; it is clearly a silent declaration of trust.

Regardless of Liu Guangqi's true intentions, this gesture already flattered his superior to the skies. An indescribable sense of satisfaction welled up from the bottom of his heart—this young man was truly considerate in his dealings with people; no wonder so many leaders in the department held him in high regard.

"Okay, then tell me in detail."

Then, Lao Zhou began to explain the research department's mid-year plan: the design concept of the nine-axis machine tool, the technical difficulties, the expected progress, and so on.

As expected, Director Duan only vaguely understood most of the content.

However, in order to maintain his authority as a leader, he still pretended to be deep in thought, occasionally nodding and agreeing with a few words.

After Lao Zhou finished speaking, he slowly said, "The plan is solid, Team Leader Zhou, let's proceed with it this way."

"Yes," Old Zhou replied with a smile. "Director, then our research department will get to work right away."

"Director Liu is very kind, and the colleagues in the research department have also worked hard." Director Duan said the usual words of encouragement, but a smile had already spread through his heart.

He had to admit that Liu Guangqi's move was truly brilliant—it wasn't just a sign of respect for him, the director, but also a demonstration to the entire department that all work in the research division was carried out under his leadership. If the nine-axis machine tool truly achieved great success in the future, how could his name, as the director of the General Machinery Department, be absent from the list of achievements?

Clearly, Director Duan had long heard of Liu Guangqi's reputation within the ministry. It wasn't just good; his tact and ability to maintain appropriate boundaries were one thing, but more importantly, he consistently earned tangible results for his superiors. Even without direct involvement, his position as the supervising leader of the research department's upcoming nine-axis machine tool project was enough for him to claim credit. Who would be foolish enough to obstruct Liu Guangqi's work?

After the person left, the office returned to silence. Director Duan leaned back in his chair, and after a long while, chuckled softly.

The smile stood out clearly in the empty room, revealing a genuine sense of joy.

He then summoned his assistant: "Go and find out when the research department will officially launch the new project. Personally relay the message: if there is a lack of materials, or if coordination with any factory is needed, report to me immediately."

As a smart man, Liu Guangqi had given him so much face, so he naturally had to reciprocate in kind.

The assistant swiftly withdrew. Although he didn't understand why, Director Duan's current ease was clearly related to the visit of Research Section Chief Zhou earlier, and his movements were more agile than usual.

After that, the research department of the First Ministry of Machine Building quickly threw itself into a flurry of activity. They had been preparing for this nine-axis CNC machine tool for a long time, and now they could finally unleash their full potential.

Liu Guangqi did not stop there. With the nine-axis CNC machine tool project already approved, his sights turned to something further—fully automated production lines for CNC machine tools and medium-scale integrated circuit technology were his next battlegrounds.

The former enables mass production of high-end machine tools, completely transforming the industrial landscape; the latter is the soul of it all. Without powerful integrated circuits, even the most sophisticated machinery is nothing more than a mindless shell. This is precisely why he entrusted the nine-axis project entirely to Lao Zhou and his team: that group of technical researchers has always focused on CNC machine tools and has mastered five-axis and seven-axis technologies. With them focused on tackling the challenges, Liu Guangqi could free up his energy to venture into more core areas.

A few days have passed, and a new journey has quietly begun.

The commendation document, along with a detailed test report on the optimized 109C machine, was submitted to the relevant authorities. Soon after, the official commendation decision was issued.

The entire project team was enveloped in the joy of success. Despite the fatigue from long hours of work, their faces shone with the excitement of overcoming hardship. This deeply improved 109C machine had a somewhat delicate positioning. To simply categorize it as a second-generation computer would seem to underestimate it—in several key performance and technical parameters, it had already surpassed standard second-generation transistor models.

However, it is not yet ready to be called a third-generation computer. The core bottleneck lies in integrated circuit technology. The current level of technology is still limited to small-scale integration, which is insufficient to support the astonishing computing power of millions of operations per second required by third-generation computers. In addition, the physical size of the entire machine is still enormous, representing a fundamental generational gap compared to third-generation models that use medium- and small-scale integration technologies and can be implemented in a single rack.

Undoubtedly, this breakthrough is a milestone. It signifies that the path of independent research and development has allowed researchers to personally touch the once seemingly insurmountable technological threshold leading to the third generation of computers.

Looking back at the original trajectory of technological development, the realization of the first-generation vacuum tube computer and the second-generation transistor computer was not until the mid-1960s. The transition from the second generation to the third generation took as long as six years, and it was not completed until the 1970s. During this period, precious time was also delayed due to the turbulent external environment.

Now, Liu Guangqi's involvement and leadership act as a powerful catalyst, greatly accelerating this process, and its impact is particularly profound.

The successful production of the first optimized version of the 109C machine was not the end of the project. The project team was not disbanded; instead, they received new instructions: to continue production to meet the urgent needs of other key research institutions.

Meanwhile, a report submitted by Professor Lu Hai, which clearly reflected Liu Guangqi's thinking, also arrived on the leader's desk. The report was concise: the team needed to continue the preliminary research on next-generation computers and simultaneously tackle the challenges of photolithography technology.