Chapter 5 Waltz on the Knife's Edge

Li Jianguo stood in the corner.

Rubbing his calloused hands, he glanced at Lin Xi, who stood beside him with his head bowed in silence.

He swallowed hard and straightened his back:

"Reporting, that probe... this kid installed it."

"He said he learned some... Bypass Monitoring Method at school."

Everyone turned their gaze toward Lin Xi.

It was a look of scrutiny, of surprise, and even more so, the relief of having survived a disaster.

Lin Xi looked up, that harmless, silly grin still plastered on his face.

But the hand hidden in his sleeve was clenched tightly into a fist.

It worked.

However, he saw no joy on Deputy Chief Designer Zhang's face; instead, his brow furrowed even deeper.

"It's a good thing we found the cause," Elder Zhang said.

"But... in the current spare parts warehouse, are there any backup sealing rings?"

The head of the Logistics Department flipped through the ledger, his expression grim:

"Reporting to Chief Zhang, there are currently none in the warehouse..."

"The manufacturer is in Shenyang. To reproduce and transport them here would take at least seven days."

Seven days.

The air in the room froze once again.

The absolute order from above was to launch on January 23rd, and the window was only two days long.

If they missed this window, they would have to wait until spring.

"In other words," Elder Zhang's voice sounded desolate and dry,

"we've diagnosed the illness, but we have no medicine in hand."

Just then, Li Jianguo suddenly spoke up.

"Who says it has to be an original factory part?"

The old man pulled a pair of vernier calipers from his pocket and gestured over the discarded sealing ring.

Updates aren't easy, remember to share 101 Reading Website.

A frantic light belonging to an Eighth-Grade Worker flickered in his eyes.

"As long as the material is right, this thing... I can hand-craft it myself!"

The whole room was stunned.

Hand-crafting an aerospace-grade sealing ring?

Rubber is elastic; as soon as the lathe tool touches it, it deforms. How could precision be guaranteed?

Even an Eighth-Grade Worker, who represents the ceiling of technical skill, wouldn't be able to handle this, right?!

"But Old Li," the Logistics Director said with a bitter smile,

"even if you could craft it, there's no material."

"That kind of imported Fluororubber was used up back during the red star one mission."

The light in Li Jianguo's eyes dimmed.

Without rice, even the cleverest housewife cannot cook.

At that moment, Lin Xi stepped forward and said:

"Master," Lin Xi looked at Li Jianguo, his eyes clear,

"do you remember cleaning the warehouse six months ago?"

"At the time, you pointed at a piece of scrap left over from red star one and said, 'This is good stuff, it'd be a pity to throw it away,' and told me to register it."

"I put it away separately in the warehouse back then."

This was the emergency plan Lin Xi and the netizens had thought of last night, specifically for this kind of situation.

The netizens had scoured the data, and Lin Xi had dug through the base's scrap warehouse for two hours before finding it.

But at this moment, he had to attribute this credit to Li Jianguo's foresight, or perhaps a certain "master-disciple" understanding.

The old man's eyes lit up terrifyingly bright, and he slammed a palm onto Lin Xi's shoulder, nearly knocking him apart.

"Good lad! Your memory is just like mine!"

Li Jianguo let out a loud laugh, stripped off his military overcoat, and slammed it onto the ground.

"The group from the workshop, follow me!"

"No one's sleeping tonight! We're going to snatch these twenty-four hours from the heavens!"

Watching Li Jianguo's valiant and spirited back, Lin Xi exhaled a puff of white mist.

He knew that the real battle was only just beginning at the lathe.

...

Evening, the Mechanical Repair Workshop.

Several high-power iodine-tungsten lamps illuminated the workbench as bright as day.

The air was thick with the slightly sweet scent of coolant and the burnt smell of metal friction.

All the lathes had stopped, and dozens of eyes were fixed on the lathe in the very center of the workshop.

That was the "precious darling" with the highest precision in the entire base, and it was currently being operated by Li Jianguo himself.

Li Jianguo stood before the lathe, his face composed.

"Runout 0.02 mm, calibration complete."

The old man's voice didn't waver in the slightest as he reported the data.

With a gentle twist of the chuck wrench in his hand, the rubber block was locked tight.

Lin Xi stood nearby, holding a coolant jug, his palms drenched in sweat.

If it were steel or iron, any way of turning would work.

But this is damn rubber!

It's soft! It's elastic!

As soon as the lathe tool goes in, it shrinks; as soon as the tool retreats, it bounces back.

In 1980, without CNC machine tools, trying to turn a micron-level sealing groove on this thing was no less difficult than carving a dragon on tofu with an axe.

"Hum—"

The motor roared, and the spindle began to rotate.

The black rubber block turned into a blurred shadow.

Li Jianguo shook the carriage with his right hand and finely adjusted the cross-slide with his left, his gaze focused on the point where the tool tip met the rubber.

Feeding the tool.

"Zzt—"

A very thin strand of black rubber silk splashed out.

Lin Xi's heart leaped into his throat.

He turned on the close-up mode in the livestream room, and tens of thousands of netizens held their breath, watching this cross-temporal "hand-crafting" livestream.

[This old man's hand is too steady, isn't it? This feed rate feels like only 0.1 mm!]

[Is this the true value of an Eighth-Grade Fitter? A human CNC machine tool!]

[Machining Fanatic: Oh no! Look at the tool tip! The rubber is heating up and expanding!]

[Long Five Screw - Retired Version: Rubber has poor thermal conductivity; the cutting heat can't dissipate, and the dimensions are changing! It must be cooled down immediately!]

Lin Xi's pupils constricted.

Rubber conducts heat extremely poorly, and the heat generated by the friction of the lathe tool was all accumulating on the cutting surface.

Thermal expansion and contraction—if it's turned just right now, it will shrink when it cools!

This piece of material is only enough for two attempts.

If it's ruined, it's a dead end.

"Master! It's hot!" Lin Xi shouted.

The veins on Li Jianguo's temples throbbed, and beads of sweat rolled down his wrinkles.

He of course knew it was hot, but he didn't dare stop!

This cut was a rough turn; if he stopped, it would leave a tool mark, and all his previous efforts would be wasted!

"Pour water!" the old man roared, his voice hoarse.

Lin Xi raised the coolant jug, but his movement froze mid-air.

This is damn oil-based coolant!

Fluororubber swells when it meets oil!

If he poured this jug on, they wouldn't even have to wait for the launch; it would blow up right now.

What should he do?

The comments in the livestream room refreshed frantically.

[Chemical Engineering Fanatic: Use alcohol! Alcohol evaporates and absorbs heat quickly, and it won't corrode Fluororubber!]

[Handy Geng's Cousin: Where are we going to find that much industrial alcohol right now?]

[Old TCM Doctor: Baijiu! High-proof Baijiu! There's bound to be some at the base!]

Baijiu!

A flash of inspiration struck Lin Xi's mind, and he turned to rush toward the corner.

He remembered that in his master's worn-out military overcoat, he always hid that life-sustaining "Shaodaozi."

Sure enough, a flat glass bottle was pulled out.

"Master, I'm borrowing your liquor!"

Lin Xi unscrewed the cap and stepped back to the lathe in one stride.

The strong aroma of liquor instantly overpowered the smell of machine oil.

"Sizzle—"

The clear liquor was poured onto the scalding tool tip.

White mist rose, and that heart-stopping high temperature was instantly carried away.

Li Jianguo was stunned for half a second, and a hint of a smile actually appeared on his tight lips.

"Good lad! You know your stuff!"

With the protection of the Baijiu, the old man's technique became even wilder.

His hands danced over the handwheels—feeding, retracting, grooving—his movements as smooth as flowing water, carrying a wild aesthetic unique to the industrial age.

This wasn't just turning; it was practically dancing on the tip of a blade!

Half an hour later, the rough turning was finished.

The rubber block had become a ring.

But the real trial was only beginning—finish turning.

A tolerance of plus or minus 0.02 mm was equivalent to one-third of a human hair.

Even a slight tremor of the hand or a heavy breath would ruin everything.

Li Jianguo stopped the machine tool and measured it with the vernier calipers.

"There's still a 0.5 mm margin."

He put down the calipers and picked up the razor-sharp finishing tool, but his hand trembled slightly.

It was a muscle spasm from prolonged, intense tension.

He rubbed the sweat from his palms vigorously on his trouser legs, picked up the remaining bottle of Baijiu, and tilted his head back to take a large gulp.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

As the spice hit his throat, the old man's gaze became sharp as a blade once more.

Just as he was about to start the machine, Lin Xi stepped in front of him.

"Master, change the tool! This one is dull!"