Old Guo

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Old Guo (老郭)
Alias(es)	Guo Youlai; Engineer Guo; Director Guo; Comrade Youlai 516 524 588
Gender	Male 800
Born	1909, Tengjia Town, Rongcheng City, Haidaizhou Province 800
Affiliation	Factory 221; Ninth Institute of the Second Ministry of Machine Building 516 800
Occupation/Role	Mechanicist, applied mathematician, aerodynamicist, and deputy director of the Ninth Institute 516 800
Status	Alive in the current instance; fated to die in a plane crash in the original timeline 618
First Appearance	Chapter 509 509

Background / History

Guo Youlai graduated from Yanjing University's Physics Department in 1935. He studied compressible fluid dynamics under von Kármán at Caltech from 1940, earned his doctorate in 1945, and developed a close friendship with his senior Qian Wushi. In 1946, he accepted an invitation to help establish Cornell University's aviation research institute as an associate professor. 557 800

He returned to China in 1956, bringing an axe gifted by von Kármán that was reputedly once used by Maxwell. Recommended by Qian Wushi and Qian Bingqiong, he joined Base 221's nuclear-weapons research program. He later served as deputy director of the Ninth Institute and became one of the founding figures of modern mechanics in China. 800

At Factory 221, Old Guo retrieves and distributes foreign research material obtained through immense sacrifice. He personally delivers a handwritten steady-state subcritical-state model manuscript to Lu Guangda, explaining that He Changyou and Ma Zuling gave their lives to secure and transport the documents. 515 516

Fate in the Original Timeline

In the original history, Old Guo dies at age 59 in a plane crash. His guard, Mou Fangdong, uses his own body to shield Old Guo and the research briefcase; the documents survive despite the wreckage burning both men beyond recognition. 618

Appearance

Old Guo is identified by his glasses and, in accounts of his future death, by the graying hair at the back of his head. 509 618

• Wears glasses. 509
• Has chronic lung problems and an increasingly frequent cough. 546 610
• Conceals episodes of coughing blood rather than burdening his comrades during missions. 510
• At age 59 in the original timeline, his hair is largely gray, with the back of his head described as white. 618

Personality

Old Guo is quiet, introverted, and strongly self-directed. He does not complain about difficult assignments or compete for attention; instead, he works steadily until he can deliver results. 729

He is stubbornly resilient. While traveling on an urgent supply mission, he dismisses concern over a 200-kilometer journey and insists that he would have gone home long ago if he were too fragile for the work. 510 His refusal to disclose his illness follows the same instinct to keep the mission moving. 510

Beneath his reserved manner, Old Guo is compassionate and protective of talent. He spends rare lifesaving medicine on the severely injured Xu Yun despite uncertainty over the man's identity, then argues repeatedly for Xu Yun to be given a chance to contribute at Factory 221. 513 548

Abilities & Skills

Mechanics, Applied Mathematics, and Aerodynamics

Old Guo is a trained mechanicist, applied mathematician, and aerodynamicist with doctoral training in compressible fluid dynamics. 800

• Studied under von Kármán at Caltech and later helped establish Cornell's aviation research institute. 557 800
• Keeps and distributes foreign-language aerodynamics and applied-mathematics material for research use. 516
• Assesses Xu Yun's claimed mathematical background with partial-differential-equation problems, recognizing the significance of his answers. 521

Technical Leadership

As a Ninth Institute deputy director, Old Guo manages research work beyond his own specialty and coordinates sensitive projects across Factory 221. 516 568

• Keeps custody of classified overseas research documents in a six-digit combination case. 515
• Follows Xu Yun's proposed modular weather-Doppler-radar signal-processing design and understands the need for specialized secure technology. 533
• Presents the phased achievements of the Zhu Xian Project to base leadership, including the Immortal Slaying Sword Array platform and related teams' results. 568
• Takes responsibility for ensuring Xu Yun's injuries do not relapse, recognizing that preserving a person is necessary before his knowledge can be used. 539

Talent Recognition

Old Guo actively seeks out and develops capable people for national projects. 548 699

• Identifies Xu Yun's unusual mathematical and technical breadth, then advocates for his admission to the project team despite doubts about his background. 521 548
• Acts on Xu Yun's recommendations of future specialists, intending to locate and cultivate them early for the country's development. 699
• Frequently praises Cai Shaohui's intelligence and potential. 540

Equipment / Items

• Classified document case — A locked case with a six-digit combination, used to transport foreign journals and the steady-state subcritical-state manuscript. 515
• Von Kármán's axe — An axe gifted to Old Guo by von Kármán, said to have once been used by Maxwell. 800
• Hidden white liquor — Keeps liquor stashed at the base, which Qian Wushi and Old Wang know how to find. 566

Relationships

• Xu Yun / “Han Li” — Old Guo orders Xu Yun's rescue, tests his identity and mathematical ability, oversees his recovery, and becomes his chief advocate within Factory 221. 513 521 539 548
• Cai Shaohui — His long-time younger partner on supply and research work; Old Guo repeatedly praises Cai's intelligence and potential. 513 540
• Lu Guangda — Trusted colleague and friend. Old Guo delivers the foreign nuclear-research documents to Lu Guangda and shares the burden of the sacrifices behind them. 515
• Li Jue — Factory 221's general manager and Old Guo's fellow leader. They cooperate on base affairs but clash over whether Xu Yun can be admitted to the core project. 521 548
• Qian Wushi — Old Guo's Caltech senior and close friend, who once cared for him during their studies under von Kármán. 557
• Mou Fangdong — His guard in the original timeline. Mou dies protecting Old Guo and the research data during the fatal plane crash. 618
• Huang Weiguo — Director of the Guide County Tile Kiln Factory and a trusted contact during Old Guo's supply mission; later transferred into Base 221's logistical-security system. 510 796

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Guide County supply mission — Leads a convoy to the Guide County Tile Kiln Factory to receive grain, construction supplies, and concealed foreign research materials, while hiding that he is coughing blood. 510
• Rescue of Xu Yun — Refuses to abandon the severely burned unidentified man found at the factory clinic, using valuable medicine and transporting him back to Jinyintan. 513
• Recovery of overseas research — Delivers the documents secured through He Changyou and Ma Zuling's deaths, including a vital handwritten nuclear-model manuscript. 515
• Xu Yun's evaluation and protection — Probes “Han Li” in English, tests him with advanced mathematics, secures his treatment, and presses Factory 221 leadership to make use of his abilities. 520 521 539 548
• Radar and Zhu Xian Project work — Helps advance the weather Doppler radar and later reports the Zhu Xian Project's results to Factory 221's leadership. 533 568
• Changing the future — Mou Fangdong's arrival makes Xu Yun aware of Old Guo's future plane-crash death and strengthens Xu Yun's resolve to alter that fate. 618
• National talent development — Supports Xu Yun's plan to identify and cultivate animal-breeding specialists, treating the recommendations as a chance to accelerate national progress. 699

Notable Quotes

“If I were that delicate, I would have packed my bags and gone home long ago.” 510

“With their lives.” 515

Trivia

• Old Guo enjoys fishing; Xu Yun considers it one of Old Guo's few distinctive personal hobbies. 607
• He has a germaphobic streak. When Xu Yun wants to write with a pen held in his mouth, Old Guo avoids offering his own ballpoint pens and asks Qiao Caihong to fetch new ones instead. 533
• Despite being given a day off after a nearly 400-kilometer supply trip, he plans to inspect the base and return directly to project research. 516