Genius of the Rules-Style System

Chapter 847: Chapter 446 Is This Really Happening?!_1

The inspection team has arrived.

Yanhua University had received prior notice, with school leaders and professors from various departments responsible for the reception. However, upon hearing about the lineup of the inspection team, they still felt somewhat overwhelmed.

The inspection team was not a small group of a few individuals, but a team composed of thirty or forty members, including personnel from the Aviation Group, the Kunlun Engine Development Team, the Capital Aviation Material Research Institute, the Science and Technology Department, as well as representatives from the military-industrial complex like Red Wind Industry, among others.

The key figures included Liu Jiankun, the general manager of the Aviation Group; Zhang Gangchuan, the person in charge of the Kunlun Engine Team; Liu Zecheng, the Deputy Minister of the Science and Technology Department; Gao Mingfu, the director of the Aviation Material Research Institute; and Xia Kaide, the representative from Red Wind Industry. Each of them brought several experts and support staff; added together, the scale was indeed quite large.

The ones leading the group were still Liu Zecheng and Liu Jiankun, who were absolute supporters of Zhao Yi. They also supported the establishment of the Kunlun Second Team for research and development. Their visit was primarily an inspection to assess the current research environment and the formation of the Kunlun Second Team, and to understand any urgent needs.

At the same time, they also wanted to have a face-to-face exchange with Zhao Yi to discuss his ideas on aircraft engine research and development, among other topics. freewebnoveℓ.com

The Kunlun Second Team was established rather hastily, merely on the basis of a report written by Zhao Yi as an application. Both the Aviation Group and the Science and Technology Department expressed support, and the team was then directly established.

This was also the source of Zhang Gangchuan’s discontent.

"Think about the original Kunlun Team. It applied back in the seventies, took almost a decade before it was actually approved, and then during the development process, it was halted twice. It only continued because of signatures from high-level leadership."

"Now this Kunlun Second Team, it’s like a joke. An application is made, and it’s approved just like that..."

Zhang Gangchuan said, constantly shaking his head, "There weren’t even detailed designs or plans, and no research personnel, but they were directly allocated funding. Times really have changed now."

His tone carried a strange inflection, unmistakably conveying his dissatisfaction. With his ability and status, he wasn’t afraid of other people hearing him; he was standing right next to Liu Jiankun as he spoke.

Liu Jiankun could only offer a wry smile, "Old Zhang, I know you feel unjust, but that’s Zhao Yi, isn’t it? Could it be possible with anyone else? Zhao Yi, he’s someone you can’t judge by ordinary standards. Just look at his previous research, K03B, performance surpassing international levels—wasn’t that something we didn’t even dare to think about before?"

"I know that!"

Zhang Gangchuan shook his head with a sigh.

The others standing around just snickered quietly. They understood Zhang Gangchuan’s frustration; he had brought Zhao Yi to the Kunlun Engine Team, which demonstrated extraordinary research and development capabilities and quickly achieved significant results. But almost immediately, Zhao Yi decided to establish the Kunlun Second Team, in effect starting from scratch with the engine design, all of which were turbofan engines. This would be frustrating for anyone.

However, everyone knew why Zhao Yi did this—essentially due to the limitations within the Kunlun Engine Team. To make designs one had to continuously submit them for review by the original Kunlun Team before they could be further developed in collaboration with the military-industrial factories. Both design and manufacturing were very troublesome.

In this regard, Zhang Gangchuan couldn’t solve the issue—it was just the way things were. Zhao Yi, as part of the Kunlun Engine Team, was like an ’external expert.’ Every aspect of research and design, or the use of funds, had to go through the evaluation of the Kunlun Engine Team and also receive his approval. He couldn’t give Zhao Yi special privileges. To have independent funding and truly free research and development, establishing a new engine research team was the only way.

Zhang Gangchuan knew this well and understood it, but when he visited the Power Engineering Laboratory and saw the disassembled prototypes, he became even more dejected. He couldn’t outright say that disassembling the prototypes was wrong. Instead, he pointed out an issue, "The facility is inadequate! If we leave components here for a long time, won’t there be problems?"

"Research and development especially require a good environment, and this is particularly true for the development of engine components. The Kunlun Second Team isn’t doing reverse engineering but aims to take the Kunlun engine technology to the next level!"

"I think the best solution would be to move the Second Team to the aviation base, so that the First and Second Teams are together, facilitating technical exchanges and communication..."

Zhang Gangchuan kept talking.

Liu Jiankun, Gao Mingfu, and Xia Kaide were standing next to him. They exchanged glances; Xia Kaide muttered under his breath, "Old Zhang is really trying to gild his own face. A higher pole? The Kunlun engine is a hundred feet high? It would be decent if it was 50 feet!"

"Pfft!"

Liu Jiankun and Gao Mingfu couldn’t help but laugh.

Liu Jiankun shook his head and said, "Old Zhang just doesn’t want the Second Team to separate from the First. Right now, what they’re doing is merely a repair process; there’s no possibility of any new technology emerging. The Second Team is like a newborn, with everything starting from scratch, and their capacity for innovation will be strong."

"I agree with Academician Liu," Gao Mingfu added, "Innovation will be strong from the outset. Turbofan engines are extremely complex; to expect the Second Team to complete all the designs..."

He trailed off, shaking his head silently, implying skepticism.

"But, if they can come up with a few innovations, not to mention something like K03B, even if it’s a notch below, it would be worth a few hundred million in funding."

"Right, exactly!"

Xia Kaide nodded in agreement, then added, disgruntled, "Speaking of K03B, Academician Zhao should not have handed it over to Factory 307. Each country’s factories and enterprises want to produce high-end materials."