A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

It turned out that while Professor Guo was on the phone, Professor Chengzong happened to walk in and discuss the use of the centrifuge with him. They were discussing whether to complete the initial extraction first and then process it all at once, or to directly perform stratified extraction according to Jiangxia's arrangement.

Listening to Professor Guo talking to the person who suggested the "gas centrifugation method," I immediately became interested. After Jiang Xia raised a series of questions and answered them to the best of his ability, Professor Chengzong was very pleased.

"No problem! As long as the number of centrifuges can be guaranteed, you don't need to worry about the preparation of the key elements!"

Wow, no wonder they're experts. The solution for the subsequent processing of concentrated key element solutions was revealed in this short exchange.

After finishing their business, Jiang Xia naturally wanted to have more time to talk with this meritorious official who had kept his identity hidden.

Jiang Xia was completely engrossed in listening to it.

What's going on?

Let's turn back the clock to 54.

A group of people wearing small round hats swaggered into the flower hall, shouting to the guards that they wanted to see our venerable old man.

The old man, filled with doubt, took time out of his busy schedule to meet with them. As soon as they met, the group bluntly said that they had the concentrated key elements we needed.

"Hey, our stuff is absolutely reliable. You're not planning on building some kind of big bomb, this will do!"

"If it weren't for the fact that your people helped us during S2, we wouldn't have taken the risk of creating this thing."

"Isn't that fair? You guys have to be fair too, the price can't be low!"

!

How do these squid know we need concentrated key elements?!

Has the news leaked?

To build an atomic bomb, enriched uranium is key! With domestic manufacturing capabilities limited and foreign procurement hopeless, a group of "squid" suddenly appearing to offer timely assistance—is this divine intervention for China?

Wow, what a coincidence!

What a joke! The atomic bomb and such are strictly confidential matters and have never been made public. Even among the top leaders, only a handful of people knew about them, and even the researchers involved did not know the details of their own research projects.

At this critical juncture, how did they know we needed to concentrate the key elements?

The respectable old man sought out Old Li, who was at his "old lair," to discuss the matter. Old Li waved his hand dismissively: "Who cares where it came from? That's not important! What's important is whether this thing is real and whether we can use it!"

So the respectable old man took a two-pronged approach: on the one hand, he sent people to investigate the background of this group of "squids," and on the other hand, he verified whether the goods were genuine!

The investigation is relatively straightforward; IDCPC is not to be underestimated. Although progress is slow, there are still clues to be found.

Verifying the authenticity of goods has proven incredibly difficult, even after exhausting all available resources.

Why?

There's a lack of talent.

Currently, 90% of the population in China is illiterate, let alone experts in the field of radiology, especially those specializing in key elements.

The research institute, a group of people with patriotic hearts, have no idea what the properties of concentrated key elements are, so how can they verify the authenticity of this stuff?

However, although there was a shortage of people, a few outstanding individuals could still be selected from among them, but these few dared not easily take on important responsibilities. They used every trick in the book of ancient shirking of duty, including passing the buck, hiding in the corner, feigning illness and refusing visitors.

The venerable old man sighed deeply, "In such a vast country as China, is there truly no one capable of shouldering such a heavy responsibility?"

Haha, is that even possible?

Teacher Chengzong appeared before the old man, holding the barium carbonate radium standard source that he had obtained by spending all his favors and savings.

"Let me do it, I can do it!"

After some investigation, Professor Cheng Zong discovered that the samples brought by the group of "squid" did indeed contain key elements, but in essence they were inferior synthetic products. Moreover, such synthetic products could only be produced under certain specific conditions.

The age is too obvious! It's no wonder this is a defective product from bald eagle-related experiments!

Case solved!

Just when everyone was thinking of turning those "squids" into dried squid, the respectable old man once again demonstrated his wisdom.

After the banquet, the old man said gently, "This stuff is indeed a concentrated form of key elements, but we don't need it yet. China's current technological level is insufficient to support the development of a 'big bomb.' Besides, it's too expensive. Our people are still starving; we can't afford to waste money."

If I need anything in the future, I'll contact you again. Could you leave me your home address or something?

Ha, leave a ghost behind.

That night, the squid disappeared. However, we at IDCPC managed to trace some clues about the operation at The Farm.

The truth has come out: this ridiculously clumsy trick was nothing more than a test by the bald eagle.

Their advisors predicted that China would definitely follow suit and develop a "big bomb," but some argued that this impoverished country couldn't possibly develop such advanced technology. "They'll be lucky if they can keep their people from starving!"

Amidst the ongoing debate, the bald eagle simply delivered the "goods" directly to their doorstep. It was a calculated move.

If you accept it, it means you really care about researching the "big bomb," but your people are too incompetent to even notice that there's a problem with the key element.

But if you refuse, it means there are still capable people in your country, and "we should be more vigilant!"

To their surprise, the behavior of our respectable old man was completely unexpected.

"Based on the actual situation, it seems they don't have that intention. However, we should still be vigilant!" A man surnamed Jin confidently concluded the operation.

And so, once again, our nation of China concealed itself in the deep sea.

Uncle Kim, YYDS!

Moreover, although the things brought by these squids were flawed, Professor Chengzong still managed to glean some methods for preparing key elements by analyzing their specialization characteristics.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have immediately completed the subsequent refining scheme for concentrating key element solutions using the "gas centrifugation method".

Wow, this is a different kind of "eat the sugar coating and fire the cannonball back" scenario.

……

After listening to Teacher Chengzong recount his past, Jiang Xia felt relieved and wanted to say something more to Teacher Chengzong.

Unexpectedly, the phone line emitted another long ringing tone.

"Damn it! What the hell is the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications doing?! They dare to pull the plug at this critical moment! Do they even want me to guide their switchboard anymore?!"

This was the first time the usually good-tempered Jiang Xia had ever been so angry.

He pressed the telephone reed repeatedly, as if that would reconnect the line.

Jiang Xia hadn't finished speaking yet; he hadn't mentioned that he wanted Teacher Chengzong to have a medical check-up after returning to Beijing!

After a creaking sound, the call was reconnected.

The operator's aggrieved voice came through the receiver: "Waaah~~ Mr. Jiang, we didn't unplug the line."

"Do you think I believe it or not?"

"It's true! The telephone line burned out after a long call... Our comrades are working on repairs!"

"You're kidding me! I've never heard of a telephone line burning! A few tens of milliamps of current, do you think I don't know how to connect wires?"

"Your call has been connected for 5 hours. The line on that end is made of copper-clad steel, and there's been thunderstorm weather in the West Sea recently..."

……

"Sorry……"

Jiang Xia's ahoge (cowlick) fell down. "Miss, to express my apology, I'll give you some fish to eat!"

Peeking out from downstairs, I watched the Super Yellow River truck slowly enter the factory.

Inside the carriage, a large tail was sticking up towards the sky.

Tsk, isn't the train's refrigeration system a bit too effective? If it were used directly on a "palace," wouldn't it make camels soft and fluffy when they get on, but hard and stiff when they get off?