Chapter 34: Why Are You Getting So Worked Up?!

Opening the door, Su Dingping emerged with a look of astonishment.

“Director Sun, it’s finished so quickly?”

“With everyone working together, naturally it went fast.”

Stepping out into the dockyard, Su Dingping gazed at the hollowed-out 956E before him, deeply moved.

He had expected the task to take two days, but to his surprise, the entire massive operation was completed in just one.

If this had been done at a shipyard, dismantling would have taken at least five or six days.

He knew the People's Liberation Army soldiers had strong execution capabilities, but this still exceeded his expectations.

Zhou Qinglei hurried over.

“Comrade Su Dingping, please inspect!”

Behind him lay a large pile of core components removed from the 956E. Next to these parts stood the professors responsible for the disassembly alongside naval officers.

Everyone looked toward Su Dingping with a trace of nervousness.

At a moment like this, if any part turned out faulty, those responsible would lose face badly.

From their positions, Su Dingping could discern some subtle clues.

These people would be working alongside him in future research; it wouldn’t do to let them lose face now.

After all, with his experience in life, Su Dingping understood the nuances of human relations.

Seemingly reading his thoughts, Sun Yongguo said, “Dingping, take a look. If there are any discrepancies, we’ll adjust in time.”

Zhou Qinglei added again, “Comrade Su Dingping, please inspect.”

“All right.”

With that, Su Dingping began the inspection starting from the nearest components handled by Lv Guangjun and others.

Half an hour later, Su Dingping returned to his place.

Everyone’s hearts leapt into their throats.

Finally, Su Dingping spoke.

“You all did an excellent job. Your efficiency and results have truly impressed me!”

“Thank you for your hard work; you’ve earned it.”

Upon hearing this, the professors breathed a sigh of relief, while the naval officers burst into collective cheers.

This was their affirmation and recognition.

Even the usually stern Zhou Qinglei broke into a smile.

Being entrusted with such a secret project was a mark of trust, and they had not let Su Dingping down.

With the task complete, Zhou Qinglei instructed the naval officers to move all the equipment aside, clearing the area, and brought forward all the devices and materials Su Dingping required.

Su Dingping addressed the twenty-one professors before him.

“Gentlemen, the naval officers’ part of the mission is complete. Now it’s our turn.”

“Time is tight, and the task is arduous. Enough talk—let’s begin the lessons!”

...

Meanwhile, at the Northern Sea Military Base Command.

After a day of contemplation, Xu Dongguo had formed a clear idea on how to confer Su Dingping’s rank.

At that moment, news arrived from Zhou Qinglei’s side.

Upon hearing it, a smile spread across Xu Dongguo’s face.

He had indeed worried that dismantling the 956E might trigger some chain reactions—reverse engineering by the Bear Nation was no joke.

But fortunately, the 956E was successfully dismantled without any unexpected consequences. This was good news.

It indicated they had found solutions to the Bear Nation’s reverse engineering within the 956E’s internal structure.

Once their breakthroughs here succeeded, all the countermeasures for the other 956Es would be resolved.

In the future, the Bear Nation would no longer be able to leverage the 956E’s backdoors against them.

This held immense significance for the navy.

Recalling Su Dingping’s words, Xu Dongguo felt a deep sense of relief.

“Su Dingping truly is a treasure of our navy.”

“He has fired the first shot in the counterattack against Western technology blockades—and it was a brilliant shot!”

Suddenly, his thoughts drifted to the matter involving Lv Guangjun the previous night.

If Su Dingping could indeed solve the series of problems with shipborne missiles, the navy could breathe a great sigh of relief.

Transitioning missiles from land-based to sea-based was extremely difficult—not only due to the change in missile size, but also the compatibility with the ship’s internal systems, among many other challenges.

Over these years, thanks to the efforts of many military experts, the YJ anti-ship missiles and the Hai Hongqi air defense missiles had been updated to their eighth generation.

Yet despite efforts, in terms of reaction time, striking distance, and accuracy, they still lagged considerably behind the anti-ship and air defense missiles deployed on modern warships.

If Su Dingping could spearhead the second revolution in shipborne missiles, it would be like adding wings to a tiger for the navy.

Thinking this, Xu Dongguo let out a wry smile.

He realized he was being a bit greedy—he was already thinking ahead before the 956E breakthroughs had even begun.

Just then, the secure phone on his desk rang.

“This is Xu Dongguo.”

Before he finished speaking, a displeased voice came through.

“Old Xu, what’s going on? It’s been days. What about the 956E you promised?”

Upon hearing Commander Qian’s voice, Xu Dongguo knew trouble was brewing.

Sure enough, the other side was demanding the warship.

Right now, the ship was dismantled into pieces and obviously couldn’t be handed over.

After a moment’s thought, he said,

“Old Qian, rest assured—I said no 956E, so there won’t be one.”

“Then why haven’t I seen any trace of the 956E after all these days? From your Northern Sea to my Southern Sea, even if you pushed it, it should have gotten here by now.”

Xu Dongguo cleared his throat to ease the awkwardness.

“It’s like this—you know, Zhou Qinglei and the others have grown attached to the 956E and wanted to practice a bit longer.”

“Well then, why don’t you just send me the 956E and the naval officers on the ship?”

“Old Qian, don’t be so demanding! Don’t worry, I’ll definitely give it to you—it’s just a matter of a few more days!”

After speaking, he hung up.

After a while, the phone didn’t ring again, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

“That old Qian—he wants the warship, fair enough, but the crew as well!”

Training a batch of competent naval officers was no easy task; naturally, he couldn’t bear to part with them.

Time flew by, and three days passed in a flash.

That day, Commander Qian called again to demand the warship.

“What did you say? The 956E?”

“Oh, oh, oh, the 956E developed some faults. I’ve already sent people to repair it.”

“Rest assured, it’s just a matter of a few days.”

Another three days passed.

Xu Dongguo leaned back in his chair, holding the handset of the fixed-line phone.

“Old Qian, the 956E’s repairs are quite difficult. You might have to wait a few more days.”

“What? You say I’m reluctant to give up the 956E? Impossible! I wouldn’t even want it if it were sent to the Northern Navy!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely get it to you by the end of the year!”

Several times in a row, Xu Dongguo had fended off Commander Qian’s requests.

After all, he had decided not to give up the 956E. Once the core technology breakthroughs were achieved, they could build the 956E themselves. Then there would be no need to scramble over one.

In recent days, good news from Su Dingping’s team kept coming. The 956E project was progressing exceptionally smoothly.

His anticipation for the results grew stronger.

Approaching the year’s end, Commander Qian’s call came again.

“Three more days, then three more days—how many threes is that now? Xu Dongguo, if you don’t want to give me the 956E, just say so; I don’t care!”

“Old Qian, please don’t.”

“At the high-level meeting next month, just wait and see!”

Listening to the busy signal on the line, Xu Dongguo sighed helplessly.

Why was he so impatient?