Chapter 1158
An Orphan Girl's Perilous Journey! Finding a Useless Lithography Machine
She walked up to Su Dingping, her bright eyes reflecting his exhaustion and shock.
"As for the compensation..."
She paused, looking at Su Dingping's instantly tense expression, then suddenly smiled, with a hint of playfulness and uncompromising willfulness.
"Once Dad and I bring this big gift back for you, you have to treat me to dinner! Just the two of us! I'll pick the most expensive place! No refusing!"
"That's it?"
Su Dingping almost thought he had misheard.
"That's it!"
Qin Mingzhu nodded firmly, a complex and elusive glint flashing in the depths of her eyes before returning to its bright and spirited state.
"Ok?"
"……OK!"
A single word is worth a thousand pieces of gold.
Su Dingping nodded emphatically, all his emotions condensed into those two words. The promise had been made; the weight of responsibility rested on this moment.
Qin Mingzhu's actions, like her name, possess a sharp, luminous quality.
She did not choose those Western tribes that were heavily blockaded and surrounded by thorny radar.
Instead, they moved around to small, less developed regions where, due to early political turmoil and slow technological updates, they still had some "antique" equipment and were relatively loosely managed.
This trip was anything but easy.
It's like navigating a dense forest strewn with quicksand and animal traps. Disguised identities, a vast network of informants, brokers operating in the gray areas, and deceptive negotiations with greedy local warlords and even tribal elders… every step is like walking a tightrope.
The message was relayed back to Longxia in fragmented and clandestine ways.
"Target locked... Heihe Tribe... possesses an old-fashioned DUV dry scanning lithography machine passed down through generations... model TRATLAS-2000..."
"Contact is difficult... The tribal elder holding the target is making exorbitant demands..."
"Being followed by unknown forces... it took some effort to shake them off..."
"The critical rotating workpiece stage bearing is severely damaged... The original manufacturer has long since ceased production... There is no local replacement..."
"Deal! We'll pay three times the repair and wear and tear premium... The equipment is in extremely poor condition, with no core blueprints, no spare parts, and no guarantee of after-sales service! We can only ship it back as a bare machine... That's the limit..."
When the cargo ship carrying the huge shockproof metal boxes finally docked at a military-controlled port in eastern Longxia after a long and arduous journey, the senior technical team from Loongson Labs had been waiting there for days.
The moment the massive dust cover was lifted, a heavy, greasy metal behemoth, covered in a mottled pattern, exuding an aura of "scrap metal," came into view. Thick cables were exposed like tangled old tree roots, and in many places, traces of welding repairs could be seen.
A pungent smell of stale engine oil and rusty metal hit me, a stark contrast to the clean, sophisticated atmosphere of the laboratory.
"Hiss..." Chief Engineer Zhao gasped, his expectant expression freezing instantly.
"This...this is truly an antique from decades ago!"
"TRATLAS-2000... I remember the technical manual says its maximum range is 250nm, right? And that's under perfect conditions?"
Old Li's eyes were incredibly complex, filled with disappointment, but even more so with a tremendous sense of urgency.
"It would be a miracle if it could even be lit up in its current state!"
"It's an antique, but it's better than going empty-handed!"
Su Dingping's voice rang out. He walked to the machine, reached out, and gently stroked the cold and rough metal shell, as if he were caressing the remains of a sleeping behemoth, while the light in his eyes gradually burned.
"As long as its basic framework remains, as long as the core optical path and control system can still function even a little bit... that's the first lever we can use to pry open this barrier! Dismantle it! Dismantle it completely! I need to know every bone and every tendon inside!"
The disassembly process was akin to archaeology. The internal structure was chaotic and complex, with many design concepts long since obsolete due to modern technology.
Countless aged and rusted screws, pipes, gears, and bearings jammed critical components. A repair manual? Absolutely none! Everything relied on the engineers' near-blind men's groping in the dark, their guesses and experience, and countless frustratingly failed attempts to find replacements.
Countless days and nights of painstaking effort, sweat soaking through work clothes, scratches and old wounds on hands.
This abandoned antique seems to be the most ferocious warning on Loongson's climbing path!
Finally, after paying a price almost equivalent to rebuilding a small prototype, the TRATLAS-2000 emitted a faint but heartwarming laser start-up hum on the specially made debugging platform in the Longxin Laboratory!
The core indicator light struggled to illuminate with a green glow, signifying the presence of basic functions! Like the morning star piercing through the clouds in a long, dark night!
On a rudimentary wafer stage, a piece of "Kunlun Jade" lay. A low-quality "etching" adhesive test kit was carefully applied. There was no complex immersion water film system, only a primitive dry scan. The laser lit up, and the mask began to move according to the simplest, most basic 250nm linewidth mask input by Su Dingping.
Under the intense, almost burning gaze of everyone, the wafer was sent into the etching tank.
A few hours later, a "chip" with rough edges and a circuit structure as rudimentary as a child's doodle was placed on the tray.
It cannot even be called a modern chip in the strict sense. The size and precision of its internal transistors are far from the international standard of 250nm, and it is more like a rough product of early micron-level technology.
but!
"It's done! It's done!"
A young technician shouted excitedly, pointing to the extremely faint but real electrical signal fluctuations on the chip tester screen.
"Signal! The transistor is working! Although its performance... can only be described as slightly better than the original vacuum tube..."
Simple? Rough? Performance comparable to garbage?
so what? !
This is the first working integrated chip created from the land of the Longxia tribe, using a cobbled-together skeleton, outdated equipment, and painstakingly reverse-engineered and optimized processes!
"Om-!"
The entire laboratory erupted not in cheers, but in a suppressed yet surging sound like the low roar of a volcano!
It was an outpouring of all the frustration, all the pressure, and all the indomitable will! It was the heart-pounding feeling of seeing a faint glimmer of dawn in the darkness!
Su Dingping gripped the hot, rudimentary yet incredibly heavy chip tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.
He suddenly looked up, his gaze sweeping like lightning across the lithography machine assembly frame that had just completed its basic function calibration not far away.
His voice was hoarse like never before, yet it contained unparalleled decisiveness and a wildly burning ambition.
"250nm? That's just a stepping stone! The target—7nm!!"
Guo Xueyun stood at the back of the crowd, watching his weary yet burning figure, her eyes filled with complex emotions. Joy and worry intertwined, like vines binding her together.
late at night.
As promised, Su Dingping and Qin Mingzhu sat in the most expensive 360-degree revolving restaurant in the entire Longxia tribe, located high in the clouds and overlooking the dazzling lights of thousands of homes.
The soft light from the crystal chandelier fell gently on the exquisite silver tableware.
Outside the window, the city's starry sky flows, while inside, the melodious sound of a violin flows gently.
"Congratulations, Chief Designer Su."
Qin Mingzhu picked up the crystal-clear wine glass, the red wine inside swirling like blood, reflecting on her exceptionally delicate face after she had shed her fierce demeanor.
"We have taken the most difficult first step from zero to one."
Her smile was sweet, but her eyes seemed to hold something deeper.
Su Dingping sincerely raised his glass.
"Thank you. Without your and your father's wholehearted help, we might still be groping in the dark right now, taking this first step."
This meal is far from enough to express my gratitude.
"One meal is enough, I've said that before."
Qin Mingzhu took a small sip of wine, turned her gaze to the magnificent sea of lights outside the window, and spoke in a light voice, yet with a hint of stubbornness.
"Su Dingping, do you know what? You're as stubborn as a rock, as inflexible as a drill bit. Even though you're carrying an entire mountain on your shoulders, and everyone else is about to collapse under the weight, you can still grit your teeth and stand tall, your eyes blazing with fire as you say you want to climb even higher..."
Her gaze suddenly shifted back, looking directly and undisguisedly into Su Dingping's eyes. Gone was the sharpness or playfulness of the past; only a clear, almost transparent light, tinged with a faint sorrow, remained.
"...So, I don't expect anything in return from you. I just want...I just want that no matter who you're with in the future, no matter how dazzling a person you become...in the deepest corner of your heart, you can give me a small place."
A place that belongs to Qin Mingzhu, just a little bit... that's enough.
She slightly raised her slender white fingers and gestured to the wine glass with an almost negligible size.
Su Dingping paused almost imperceptibly in the wine glass in his hand.
The brilliant lights outside the window reflected in his pupils, but seemed unable to penetrate the suddenly tense ripples.
He put down his wine glass, his movements not elegant, even somewhat stiff, his gaze fixed firmly on Qin Mingzhu's eyes, which held a stubbornness and expectation.
"Qin Mingzhu, I am extremely grateful for everything you and your father have done. You are one of the bravest and most outstanding women I have ever met."
but……"
His voice was steady and clear, carrying an undeniable frankness.
"Xueyun and I are already together."
There was no subtlety, no preamble; it was as direct as his approach to solving technical problems.
These words, falling on the table, seemed to instantly draw away some of the light and airy atmosphere.
"She is also an indispensable support on my climbing journey."
So… I'm sorry.
This position already belongs to her.
Only the haunting melody of the violin remained in the private room, slowly fading into the air.
Qin Mingzhu's smile seemed to freeze for a moment, like an extremely fine, imperceptible crack appearing on the surface of a perfect porcelain.
But she didn't lose her composure; the pride and fortitude inherent in the Qin family's daughter quickly sustained her.
She took a deep breath, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, concealing all the emotions that surged up in an instant.
After a moment of silence.
"...Pfft."
A slightly unnatural chuckle escaped from her lips.
She raised her glass again, downed the remaining half-glass of red wine, and the smile on her face returned, still bright, but seemingly veiled by a thin layer that shielded her from the light.
"Understood, Chief Engineer Su."
She put down her empty glass, picked up a napkin, and elegantly wiped the corner of her mouth.
"That was decisive! You're truly amazing!"
This meal was worth it!
His tone was relaxed, as if the conversation had never happened.
"Let's eat, I'm starving!"
She picked up her knife and fork first and casually cut into the steak in front of her, using a bit too much force, the knife making a slight scraping sound as it cut into the white porcelain plate.
The restaurant's atmosphere seemed to have regained its flow thanks to Qin Mingzhu's deliberate "restoration," but the invisible barrier had already been removed. The lights, music, and food all seemed to be separated by an invisible frosted glass.
Looking at her feigned ease, Su Dingping felt a complex mix of emotions, but more than anything, a sense of relief and open-mindedness.
He knew he had made a decision a man should make, even though that decisiveness might cause the other person pain.
After saying goodbye to Qin Mingzhu, Su Dingping returned to the still-lit laboratory, exhausted but with a heavy sense of calm.
In the core experimental zone, only Guo Xueyun remained.
She stood with her back to the entrance in front of the rudimentary homemade lithography machine that was barely functioning thanks to the antique TRATLAS-2000, seemingly adjusting some parameter.
Hearing footsteps, she turned around.
The soft light from the laboratory ceiling lamp bathed her, making her delicate profile appear somewhat hazy.
She didn't speak, only quietly watching Su Dingping approach. Her long eyelashes fluttered, and deep in her eyes was a hint of searching and... a hint of nervousness? Her slender fingers unconsciously gripped the hem of her work clothes.
Su Dingping walked up to her without explaining, just looking at her gently. Then he suddenly reached out and gently brushed a strand of hair that had slipped down her ear, perhaps from being engrossed in her work. The movement was as natural as if he had done it a thousand times before.
"I am back."
His voice was deep and gentle, with a magnetic quality reminiscent of the night.
Guo Xueyun's body stiffened slightly for a moment, then relaxed. A faint, almost imperceptible blush seemed to quickly spread across her fair cheeks, and even her ears turned slightly red.
She quickly avoided his gentle gaze and pursed her lips.
"...The restaurant must be very upscale, right? You were having a pleasant conversation with Miss Qin while dining alone?"
She tried her best to sound calm and natural, even with a hint of teasing, but her tone involuntarily carried a very subtle sourness at the end, and her eyes quickly glanced at the corner of his mouth to see if there were any traces of red wine left.
Looking at the little woman in front of him who clearly cared deeply but was pretending not to, Su Dingping couldn't help but smile warmly.
He reached out and gently pinched her small but slightly chubby cheeks, with a touch of doting and even more honesty.
"Yes, I ate it."
The most expensive set meal.
She has helped us immensely; we cannot break our promise.
He paused, his tone becoming even more resolute, his gaze fixed intently on Guo Xueyun's shimmering eyes.
"But I told her that Guo's assistant and I are locked up."
No one can get in.
Guo Xueyun suddenly looked up! She met his eyes, which clearly expressed frankness and seriousness. Her heart skipped a beat, then, like a mouse thrown into a honey pot, she felt dizzy and disoriented! (End of Chapter)