30: Chapter 30: The Battle of Persuasive Communication – Securing the First Batch of Military Orders!

The next day, Chen Fan meticulously cleaned the new car inside and out until it was spotless, setting off early to pick up Old Master Qin. The black 'Bixi' sat imposingly at the entrance of the alley, attracting the curious gazes of a few early-rising neighbors.

Old Master Qin emerged leaning on his cane. Upon seeing the car, a flicker of appreciation crossed his eyes. 'Little Chen, this is a fine car,' he said, settling into the spacious, comfortable passenger seat. His gaze swept over the exquisite interior and dashboard. 'This couldn't have been cheap. For the same price, you could get quite a respectable imported car.'

The first half of his remark was genuine praise; the second half carried the subtle, habitual probing of an older generation regarding 'whether one worships foreign things.'

Chen Fan started the car smoothly and smiled. 'Grandpa Qin, domestic cars are genuinely well-made these days. After driving it for a few days, it feels no worse than those big foreign brands. The materials are solid, and it's reassuring to drive. We should support our own good products.'

His words were plain but struck a chord with Old Master Qin. A genuine smile appeared on the old man's face. He said no more, simply patting the high-quality door panel trim and gazing out the window at the streets flying by.

After roughly an hour's drive, they arrived slightly ahead of schedule at a seemingly ordinary industrial park on the city's outskirts. The drab, unremarkable building was belied by the simple yet clear signage at the entrance and the faintly visible internal security measures, hinting at the place's true significance.

'Let's go.' Old Master Qin, clearly not a first-time visitor, led Chen Fan with composure through registration and into the building.

The atmosphere in the conference room was solemn. Four technicians in matching dark work uniforms were already waiting. Upon seeing Old Master Qin enter, the bespectacled, scholarly-looking middle-aged man at the head of the group immediately stood up and greeted respectfully, 'Teacher Qin, you're here.' This was precisely Old Master Qin's student, Engineer Yang.

'Xiao Yang, this is Chen Fan, the person in charge of 'Panshi Foundation',' Old Master Qin introduced succinctly.

'Engineer Yang, hello, greetings to all the teachers.' Chen Fan took a step forward, offering a greeting that was neither subservient nor arrogant, and presented his business card with both hands.

Engineer Yang accepted it, glanced at it, nodded, and gestured for Chen Fan to sit. The meeting skipped any pleasantries and went straight to the point.

Engineer Yang spoke first, his tone even but his questions cutting straight to the core: 'Manager Chen, we've reviewed your report. The baseline data is very impressive, especially the fatigue performance. We want to know: how do you maintain excellent toughness under such high strength specifications? And how do you guarantee performance stability across different production batches?'

Chen Fan was well-prepared. 'Engineer Yang, our core philosophy can be summarized as 'extreme purity' and 'structural homogeneity.''

He pulled up a declassified process diagram on his tablet and explained clearly, 'Primarily through specialized vacuum melting and multiple refining techniques, we control the content of impurities and harmful phases in the raw materials down to the ppm (parts per million) level.'

'Building on that, through a set of precise thermomechanical processing techniques we've developed, we guide the formation of a fine, uniform, and stable internal microstructure. You can think of it this way: we make the individual 'bricks' themselves extremely pure and strong, while also ensuring every 'brick' is laid uniformly and densely. The resulting 'house' naturally has high strength, good toughness, and is difficult to damage.'

'As for batch stability, we rely on full-process digital control and strict online quality inspection at every stage, ensuring each melt and every treatment follows the exact same 'recipe' and parameters.'

The analogy was accessible, the principles clear, and the data solid. Engineer Yang listened with a slight nod. Another engineer beside him immediately followed up, 'Regarding lightweighting, how do you ensure mass and density while pursuing extreme weight reduction? In other words, what are the current boundaries of your precision machining capabilities?'

Chen Fan opened the confidential case he had brought, took out several of the fire-polished, intricately structured silver simulation parts, and placed them gently on the table. 'To achieve these complex designs, we primarily rely on our high-precision metal additive manufacturing—that is, industrial-grade 3D printing technology—combined with subsequent ultra-precision five-axis subtractive machining.

'The combination of the two allows us to achieve integrated forming of complex internal cavity structures, micron-level dimensional accuracy control, and sub-micron surface finish. This represents our current machining capability and ensures the design intent can be perfectly realized, avoiding latent defects caused by insufficient machining capacity.'

As he answered, his speech was steady, his gaze forthright. There was no bombast, only certainty about the technology and processes. The questions grew more specific and pointed as the Q&A deepened, covering everything from the phase transformation mechanisms during heat treatment and long-term environmental reliability simulation data, to emergency production capacity plans for sudden situations and supply chain security for key upstream raw materials—touching on nearly every aspect of R&D, production, and management.

Relying on the massive preparation of materials done earlier by Xiao Zhi, the knowledge he himself had crammed during this period, and his absolute confidence in the performance of 'Panshi Alloy,' Chen Fan responded to each point calmly and methodically.

Where data was clear, he presented the data directly. Where processes were defined, he explained them in detail. For aspects that couldn't be fully verified yet, he candidly stated the current situation and subsequent verification plans, leaving no room for ambiguity.

Old Master Qin remained quietly seated to the side for most of the time, simply listening. Only occasionally, when a particular answer from Chen Fan hit the mark perfectly, would a flicker of barely perceptible approval pass through his eyes.

This intense technical interrogation lasted nearly two hours. Finally, Engineer Yang closed his notebook. The look he gave Chen Fan held less of the initial scrutiny and more substantive consideration.

'Manager Chen,' Engineer Yang began slowly, 'the technological reserves and engineering implementation capabilities you've demonstrated have indeed exceeded our initial expectations and align closely with the practical needs of our current project.'

He paused, exchanging a glance with his colleague beside him, as if making a final confirmation. Then, he took out a small black encrypted USB drive and gently slid it across the table towards Chen Fan.

'Based on this comprehensive assessment, we currently have an urgent trial production requirement. This is the Core Load-Bearing Bushing for the 'Fuselage-Wing Quick-Release Locking Mechanism' on a certain model of Small Tactical UAV.

'The material must simultaneously meet: extreme lightweighting, ultra-high specific strength, ultra-high fatigue resistance, good environmental corrosion resistance, and the ability to withstand impact loads from frequent quick-release assembly.' Engineer Yang's tone became especially grave. 'The drawings, 3D models, all technical specifications, and inspection standards are all here.'

Engineer Yang paused. 'First trial batch quantity: 5 sets. Requirement: Delivery within 15 calendar days, for ground functional matching verification and ultimate load testing. Quality standard—' His gaze bore into Chen Fan, '—will be executed according to our highest grade. Full inspection, zero-defect acceptance.'

Chen Fan's heart raced. Suppressing the surge of excitement, he extended both hands and solemnly accepted the USB drive. The cool touch against his fingertips brought instant clarity.

'Engineer Yang, thank you for the recognition and trust from you and all the teachers.' Chen Fan's voice remained steady. 'Panshi Foundation guarantees we will concentrate all resources and go all out to ensure on-time, quality, and quantity delivery! We will not fail to live up to these expectations!'

'It's not trust; it's an assessment and choice based on technology and capability.' Engineer Yang corrected with precision, though his tone softened slightly. 'This trial production is both a verification and a test. If everything goes smoothly, there may be opportunities for deeper cooperation later. But if...' He didn't finish, but the unspoken implication was crystal clear.

'We understand.' Chen Fan nodded emphatically, his gaze unwavering. 'We'll let the results speak for themselves.'

Only after leaving the grey building and getting back into the car did Chen Fan finally let out a long, slow exhale, feeling a thin layer of sweat had soaked through the back of his shirt. Nervousness, excitement, pressure, ambition... a mix of emotions intertwined. Everything that had just happened felt like a dream. It was even more nerve-wracking than the college entrance exams.

Old Master Qin sat in the passenger seat, watching the streets recede rapidly outside the window. After a long while, he finally spoke leisurely, 'You performed well today. Kept your composure, answered substantively. Didn't embarrass yourself.' He turned to look at Chen Fan. 'But remember, getting this 'exam paper' only means you've obtained the admission ticket. Whether you can score high marks and truly push open that door depends on whether you can make those 5 parts even more beautiful, even more perfect, than their requirements.'

'I understand, Grandpa Qin.' Chen Fan tightened his grip on the steering wheel. 'We'll launch into it immediately upon returning. This isn't an ordinary order. This is the first tough battle that Panshi Foundation must win.'

Chen Fan knew that from the moment he activated the system in the scrapyard, the trajectory of his life had already changed. But what the system provided was merely the 'material,' the 'potential.' How to forge that 'potential' into 'capability' recognized by the nation's vital instruments, how to advance step by steady step on this challenging path—that depended on his own choices, sweat, and unwavering resolve.

The heavy, mysterious door to the military-industrial field had been pried open a crack by his solid preparation and formidable technological potential.