Chapter 26: Chief, the arrow is on the string and must be released!

"Bring us along so we can fix it together?"

Hearing these words, Sun Yongguo froze on the spot, his mind reeling.

One second, he was still lamenting and agonizing over a major blunder; the next, Su Dingping was saying the problem could be solved, and he even wanted to bring them along!

Happiness had come so suddenly that he could hardly believe it.

He asked cautiously, "Dingping, are you saying this 956E can be adjusted? Adjusted back to its original combat parameters?"

Upon hearing this, Engineer Zhang Gongnong and Captain Zhou both looked toward Su Dingping, holding their breath as they waited for the answer, terrified of missing a single word.

Su Dingping spoke with great solemnity.

"Dean Sun, fixing it isn't actually that difficult. Didn't I promise the leadership three months ago that I would teach you all the core knowledge? Once you reach that day, you will be able to do it yourselves."

"It just so happens that I've arrived at the right time. Explaining the disassembly and assembly on-site will be even more helpful for your understanding of the 956E's core technology!"

While shocked, Sun Yongguo felt a wave of emotion: *Dingping is saving my face.*

He could have discovered the problem himself, but he had been limited by the technological gap, preventing him from finding it immediately. Once the core technology was mastered, discovering and solving problems would come naturally.

However, after hearing the second half of the sentence, he fell silent.

The 956E had to be disassembled!

One must realize that when they had originally invested 1.5 billion yuan and involved nine top military industry experts to tackle it, they hadn't even been granted permission to disassemble it.

"The difficulty of disassembly might be a bit too high," Sun Yongguo added.

Engineer Zhang Gongnong, who had been immersed in joy, also snapped back to reality.

During the previous meeting, several leaders had emphasized that no matter what, the 956E must not be disassembled! After all, if a crisis erupted at sea, the 956E had to be ready to go into combat at any moment.

What if a confrontation broke out externally while the home front was busy assembling the 956E? How embarrassing would that be? And if the assembly failed, wouldn't a modern warship be completely wasted?

Who could guarantee that the Russians hadn't tampered with the internal equipment of the 956E? Once it was taken apart, one problem would lead to a whole chain of them.

The nine military experts also knew the gravity of the situation, which was why they had never entertained the idea of disassembly!

But now, faced with this sudden situation, disassembling the 956E had become an unavoidable issue.

"Is it difficult?" Su Dingping asked.

"It's quite difficult."

Zhang Gongnong gave a brief explanation of the situation.

"If we want to master those core technologies as quickly as possible and want the Navy to enter the modern era as soon as possible, we must make some sacrifices! Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth; I have great confidence in this!"

Seeing Su Dingping's determined tone, Sun Yongguo took a deep breath and said, "Fine, I will handle this matter!"

"Comrade Gongnong, stay here with Dingping for a while. I'm going to find the leadership to explain the situation immediately!"

With that, Sun Yongguo strode toward the gangway.

"I'll go too," Captain Zhou said, following quickly.

"Dingping, let's wait here for a bit! We aren't far from the command headquarters; if things go quickly, they'll be back in an hour and a half."

Zhang Gongnong pulled Su Dingping to the edge of the deck.

"I truly didn't expect such a huge harvest from this trip! I've had enough of these suffocating days. Sooner or later, we will catch up to them and surpass them!"

Su Dingping said solemnly, "It won't be long before we possess our very own modern warships!"

"I believe you!"

"It's not about believing in me; my individual strength is ultimately limited." Su Dingping shook his head. "It's about believing in us! Believing in all of us who are working hard for the rise of the Navy!"

Zhang Gongnong stared at Su Dingping in a daze.

He realized that Su Dingping was not like other geniuses who were arrogant about their talents.

Being young and successful while looking down on the world is a common ailment among many geniuses. The result is predictable: many geniuses eventually drown in the crowd.

But none of that was present in Su Dingping.

He was brilliantly talented yet humble, and he did not let his achievements go to his head.

How far would a genius like this go in the future?

Zhang Gongnong didn't dare to imagine it.

*Heaven truly favors our Navy; in our most dire situation, He has sent us a genius.*

As he was reflecting, his phone rang.

He picked it up and saw it was Li Mingrui.

"Old Li, what's wrong with you? We've only been out for a short while and you're already stumped by other professors' questions? You're calling for help?"

In a good mood, Zhang Gongnong joked.

"Old Zhang, let's talk business."

Hearing that tone, Zhang Gongnong immediately knew something was wrong. He said seriously, "What's the situation?"

"Dean Ly has arrived! He says he wants to settle scores with Dean Sun!"

"Settle scores? That old fellow actually dares to come? Last time I told the Dean, if I had been the one presiding over that meeting and he dared to say we couldn't build it, I would have dealt with him! Tell him to wait, once I get back..."

Halfway through, as if realizing something, Zhang Gongnong said, "Forget it, tell him to head back quickly. I don't have time to deal with him right now."

"He won't leave! He said if he doesn't see the Dean today, he's staying! He'll leave only when the Dean returns."

Li Mingrui explained the situation.

After hearing it, Zhang Gongnong laughed.

"Let him wait. It's possible we won't be coming back for a while."

On the other end of the phone, Li Mingrui was clearly stunned.

"Old Li, is there something going on on your end too?"

"It's not convenient to talk over the phone. Anyway, you'll know when the time comes."

"By the way, one more thing: the 051B improvement plan has failed!"

"Fine, I got it! We'll talk when we meet!"

After hanging up, Li Mingrui was left in a state of confusion.

*Talk when we meet? Didn't he say they wouldn't be back for a while?*

Before he could figure it out, he heard Ly Guangjun's voice coming from a distance.

"Professor Li Mingrui, how is it? When is your Dean coming back?"

"Dean Ly, I am truly sorry. Our Dean said he is tied up lately and won't be returning for a while."

"Preposterous! I'm not leaving!"

...

On the other side, at the Northern Sea Military Command, in Xu Dongguo's office.

"Chief, Dean Sun and Captain Zhou are here!"

"Let them in."

Soon, Sun Yongguo and Zhou Qinglei walked in.

Seeing only the two of them, Xu Dongguo looked outside and asked, "Comrade Sun Yongguo, where is Comrade Dingping? Why didn't he come with you?"

"Chief, some unexpected things happened. Comrade Dingping and Comrade Gongnong are still on the 956E waiting for our news."

Xu Dongguo instinctively sensed something was wrong.

"What's the situation? Tell me, let me see if I can help."

"Chief, this matter really can only be helped by you," Zhou Qinglei added.

Now, Xu Dongguo became interested.

"Chief..."

Sun Yongguo recounted the entire sequence of events.

It was evident that Xu Dongguo's expression changed significantly.

Although he quickly regained his composure, it was clear that his heart was not at peace.

"Must we disassemble it?"

"Chief, this is an unavoidable necessity. The arrow is already on the string; it must be released!"

Xu Dongguo's fingers tapped lightly on the desk, making a *tap-tap* sound.

Whether it could be reassembled after disassembly was one thing!

Besides that, he had only just promised Chief Qian last night that the Northern Navy would give up this 956E and let the Southern Navy have it.

Now, if they were going to disassemble the 956E, how could he explain it to Chief Qian when he came to collect the vessel?

(End of Chapter)