Chapter 225

Typically, only offices of deputy ministers and above, offices of heads of various business departments, duty rooms, and key departments are eligible to install it.

In the family quarters—

Only the families of leaders at the corresponding level, such as those at the deputy director level or above, who live in tenement buildings, are likely to be provided with telephones.

Therefore, telephones are always scarce in the residential areas for employees of ministry officials.

Many family members of cadres complain about the inconvenience of communication, saying that they can only make phone calls by queuing in designated call rooms.

But rules are rules, and no one can transgress them.

Ministry documents repeatedly emphasize thrift and frugality, requiring telephone use to be registered and strictly prohibiting private chatter.

Zhao Mengyun never imagined that such treatment would fall on her family.

……

On the other side, Liu Guangqi, who had been playing with Xiao Sinian and Xiao Qinian in the inner room, also walked to the door.

He looked at the two post office staff and smiled slightly: "I am Liu Guangqi. Thank you for making this trip."

In fact, telephone resources were extremely scarce in the 1960s.

In the military, only the offices of officers at the deputy corps level or above can be equipped with it; in local areas, it requires strict approval from the post and telecommunications bureau and is accepted in limited quantities.

Installing a dedicated telephone line is no easy task.

Ordinary people often rely on the local gatehouse or public telephones at the entrance of alleys or lanes, and they have to pay for each use.

In most townships and production brigades, the entire unit only had one telephone.

In some small county towns, the main switchboard capacity of the post office is only a few dozen lines, and the main customers are commune offices, brigade headquarters, public institutions, and major factories under the district commune.

This shows how precious every telephone is.

Moreover, what is being installed in Liu Guangqi's home at this moment is a dedicated red hotline that connects directly to government ministries, medical emergency services, and research institutes.

When the two staff members saw him, their attitude became even more respectful: "It's no trouble at all, Director Liu. We are just following instructions."

The title "Director Liu" gently touched Zhao Mengyun's heart once again.

She turned her head and looked at her husband's calm profile.

Liu Guangqi was swept over by his wife's inquiring gaze, and he felt that her eyes contained seven or eight parts doubt and two or three parts reproach, as if she was silently asking: How many things are you hiding that you haven't revealed yet?

"Director Liu!" The post office staff were already gesturing around the room with the power line in hand. "Where do you think this dedicated line would be best placed? We'll get started right away."

Liu Guangqi, holding the child in one arm, gestured with his chin towards the desk: "There it is, it's convenient."

"Alright!"

The toolbox jingled as it was opened, snapping Zhao Mengyun out of her daze. She rushed to her husband's side, her voice low but betraying a jumble of bewildered surprise: "What...what's going on? What director? And this phone call again..."

Liu Guangqi turned his head and saw the obvious astonishment on his wife's face. A gentle smile appeared in his eyes: "The research department has been upgraded. It's now called the Research Institute."

graduate School.

As the three words fell, Zhao Mengyun's breath hitched. Having spent so many years in the ministry, she knew all too well the weight of that one word—it wasn't an ordinary transfer, but a complete leap. Between place and location lay a hurdle that many people could never overcome in their entire lives. Suddenly, she understood everything—why she received such treatment, why this red telephone had been brought into this family.

Her husband, without a sound, had already pushed open the door.

Along the wall, post office workers were deftly drilling holes and stringing wires. The bright red rubber wire was so eye-catching that it drew the attention of neighbors who peeked out. When they saw it was Liu Guangqi's telephone being installed, their surprise quickly turned into understanding and envy.

"Comrade Zhao, you got a telephone at home? That's such a blessing!" A family member of a cadre who often visits the household approached, speaking with emotion, "This is a dedicated line only for deputy director-level officials and above. Comrade Guangqi, you must have been promoted again?"

Zhao Mengyun politely accepted the congratulations from others, but her gaze involuntarily drifted to her husband. He was leaning slightly forward, speaking to the wiring workers, his profile calm and steady. She recalled that not long ago, he was only a level four engineer, and she had secretly marveled at how quickly technical titles could be climbed. Who knew that in the blink of an eye, his administrative rank would also rise so high.

He always does this: just when she thinks things are good enough, he calmly offers up a little new light.

The days seem to be gradually brightening up.

The news spread like wildfire, quickly reaching all of Building 5. Behind doors and by windows, hushed conversations rippled through the building.

"Have you heard? Director Liu has installed a red telephone at home."

"Don't call me 'section chief,' you should call me 'Director Liu'!"

"Wow, the director of the research institute, a deputy director-general level official, and even has a dedicated phone line... He's probably the first of his kind in this building, right?"

"Who can disagree? I really envy Comrade Zhao."

The middle-aged cadre, who had just finished get off work, loosened his collar and shook his head at his wife: "Why are you just envying others? You should see how outstanding Comrade Zhao is. Besides, Director Liu, he earned his position step by step through his own hard work and real skills. I heard that his skills this time even caught the attention of the higher-ups, who came down to see for themselves. His achievements are genuine, without a trace of exaggeration."

As his wife listened, her initial grumbling and comparisons quietly faded away. Yes, at this point, it couldn't be smoothed over by mere envy or sour words. It was a solid, undeniable respect that compelled one to look up to them, leaving only admiration and a subtle sense of awe in their hearts.

The clanging inside the house stopped.

The red telephone rests quietly in the corner of the desk, its cable neatly running along the wall, like a silent annotation marking a new beginning for this home.

The bright red telephone sat neatly in the hall, carefully set up by the postman. The moment the line was connected, the whole room seemed to sink a little deeper.

"Ring ring—!"

The bell rang sharply and urgently, abruptly shattering the silence of the room.

Liu Guangqi and Zhao Mengyun's eyes met.

A hint of helpless smile flashed across the couple's eyes.

That call came just in time.

Liu Guangqi stepped forward and grasped the brand-new receiver. It felt warm and heavy in his hand.

"Hello."

"Guangqi, congratulations! I heard you've been promoted to director of the Industrial Research Institute!"

The person on the other end of the line was none other than Wu Shuang, the mother-in-law with immense influence.

Clearly, she had already heard the news and knew that a new dedicated line had been installed at home, so she dialed over immediately.

"mom!"

Liu Guangqi laughed, "Your information network is incredibly advanced."

His voice couldn't help but tinge with emotion.

This man, who would later be able to connect the phone directly to the front-line command post, truly lived up to his reputation.

"Not only do I know, your dad has heard about it too."

Wu Shuang's tone was full of relief, "We are all happy for you."

After exchanging a few more casual words, Liu Guangqi understood that while his mother-in-law's call was to congratulate him, she really wanted to hear the voices of her daughter and grandson.

He turned to the side and handed the receiver to Zhao Mengyun, who had been standing quietly to the side.

"Mom, it's me."

"Hey, Xiaoyun, how are you and the baby?"

---

Back at the Ministry of Machine Building, the aftershocks of Liu Guangqi's research department being upgraded to a directly affiliated industrial research institute were still spreading.

Its impact was profound, like throwing a stone into a pool.

In mid-December, the north wind in Beijing was biting and piercing.

Inside the compound of the Institute of Computing Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, however, the scene is quite different.

Several trucks covered with thick tarpaulins were parked quietly, with no markings on their bodies, except for a vermilion sealing strip behind the windshield, exuding a solemn aura that kept strangers away.

Soon, four tightly wrapped Type 109C computers were slowly transported out.

A glimpse of it during transport revealed the metal casing, which gleamed with a cold, austere luster in the pale winter sunlight.

Each machine was flanked by guards with eagle-like eyes, scanning the surroundings.

Under the guidance of researchers, the workers moved with such slow, almost breathless movements that they carefully lifted the machine onto the truck—their demeanor was even more cautious than when handling a newborn baby.

"Professor Lu! Director Liu!"

The receiving specialist sent by the Ministry of National Defense Industry strode forward. He was a wiry man in his early thirties who took off his military overcoat, grabbed the two men's hands tightly, and shook them vigorously.

His palms were rough, and his voice was filled with burning anticipation.

"On behalf of the defense industry and all the research colleagues who were waiting for the machines to start operating, thank you! These four precious machines will be taken away today!"

His gaze swept over the machines, his eyes filled with undisguised longing.

"We have several crucial projects on hand, all waiting for the second-generation computer to advance. With them, we can stand even taller!"

"good!"

Professor Lu Hai held his hand, his expression equally excited, "We are honored to be able to send him to the front line of national defense."

Liu Guangqi didn't say much; he just stared quietly at the computer on the truck.

After a long pause, he smiled slightly and said, "Don't worry, each machine has undergone seventy-two hours of continuous testing, and its computing power is stable at 300,000 operations per second."

The commissioner's eyes lit up, and he nodded emphatically: "Great! That's wonderful!"

The convoy slowly drove away from the Institute of Computing Technology, escorted by jeeps at the front and rear, heading towards different national defense research bases.

The news spread throughout the institute, and many faces peered out of the office building windows—young and old alike—watching the departing car, their faces beaming with the same pride.

Four platforms.

A total of four 109C machines.

This is the report card they have submitted these past few days.

Four brand-new second-generation computers stand silently in the computer room. These silent machines are about to shoulder the computational burden of the nation's most critical defense and nuclear energy projects. They will become the computing power foundation supporting the national defense system for some time to come.

After a brief period of relief, even heavier pressure followed. The demand for second-generation computers across all sectors of the country remains staggeringly high. This is not surprising—the entire nation is currently in the midst of a development wave involving the intensive launch of various major projects.

The foreign exchange reserves accumulated through the export of innovative electrical appliances and precision machine tools have already opened the door to the international market for the country. In this era, economic strength often determines the weight of one's voice. Even the once-tough northern neighbor has now had to adjust its stance and actively seek cooperation. After all, while ranking among the world's leaders in heavy industry and military equipment, the weakness of its light industry is a well-known fact.

The current international arms race has entered a tense phase. Due to historical trauma and economic realities, the northern neighbor is unable to comprehensively compete with its rival in overall strength and can only concentrate resources on breakthroughs in key areas. Against this backdrop, even though the two sides have had unpleasant past events, the geographical proximity and urgent economic needs have still drawn their attention to this region.

Thus, those technology cooperation projects that were unilaterally terminated, and those design blueprints that were once reduced to ashes, are returning in new forms of transactions. History has played a subtle joke—the more resolute the decision to break the agreement back then, the more hesitant the attempt to repurchase the technology now.

This is precisely why a large number of major projects that had previously stalled have now been restarted, springing up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain. And almost every stage of these projects, from theoretical design to simulation, relies on the support of second-generation computers. The nationwide thirst for computing equipment is thus evident.

Faced with such an urgent supply-demand imbalance, the highest decision-making body reacted swiftly. Following an emergency meeting, a formal resolution was reached: the Institute of Computing Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences would lead the organization of technology promotion, convening core researchers from computing institutions in major regions such as East China, North China, and Southwest China for intensive training in Beijing. Comrade Liu Guangqi was selected as the main speaker, and the task was to impart the core research and development technology of the second-generation transistor computer to technical personnel in various regions in the shortest possible time.

This document has stirred up waves within the national computer science research system.

Shanghai, East China Institute of Computing Technology.

The director held the newly delivered documents in his hands, remaining silent for a long time. Several senior researchers huddled around him, their eyes fixed intently on the contents of the documents.

"A study trip to Beijing? Led by Comrade Liu Guangqi?"

"Is he the young man who developed the second-generation transistor computer? How old is he?"

"Age is never a measure of knowledge. What matters is the skills he has mastered."

"But our institute has already developed a second-generation machine, isn't it? Is it really necessary to learn from them again?"