Just as the struggling Dongfang Group received a special order from Aerospace Institute No. 248. The project required the group's First Factory to manufacture five alloy cylinders within ten months. The cylinder material was cutting-edge and beyond the factory's previous experience, while the welding requirements were exceptionally demanding, posing a huge challenge. To fulfill the order, the group formed a task force led by Yu Dayou, director of the First Factory, and began the difficult development process. Along the way, the team faced a host of technical problems. From cutting, shaping, weld seams, welding rods, and welding machines to flaw detection and pressure and water-pressure tests, every critical step demanded blood, sweat, and even lives. They also faced the challenges of corporate restructuring, unsettled employees, and fierce competition to poach talent. The blueprints and deadlines were revised several times, and senior executives opposed to the project undermined and marginalized them. These struggles became intertwined with conflicts in their family lives. Yet no matter how great the obstacles, the skilled workers overcame them one by one. They delivered the order on schedule and sent it to Beijing for the next, more specialized and rigorous round of testing, quietly devoting themselves to defending national sovereignty. The group's corrupt faction also received its due punishment.
