Chapter Summaries

Jiang Fan flew to Happiness Residential Complex with Zhou Huaide after Principal Ma revealed that Capital University had offered him recommendation-based admission. University representatives crowded into Jiang Fan’s home to recruit him, but Zhou Huaide prepared to take him to the Capital so experts could discuss and assess his fusion research.

• Principal Ma told Teacher Wang that Jiang Fan had been offered admission to Capital University and blamed Liu Zhi and the others for losing two recommendation slots; he expelled Liu Zhi from the school.
• Jiang Fan and Chu Ruoxi flew by helicopter to Happiness Residential Complex, enjoying the sunset on the way; Chu Ruoxi said goodbye at the entrance and planned to see him the next day.
• Elder Long and Elder Qiao introduced themselves to Jiang Fan at his home, while representatives from several universities pitched offers to his parents.
• Zhou Huaide told the university representatives that Jiang Fan had urgent business in the Capital and ordered him to get ready to leave in ten minutes.

Jiang Fan left for the Capital after receiving a one-million-yuan national reward for his solar photovoltaic material, while his parents saw him off with pride and sadness. Back at the residential complex, Principal Ma announced that Jiang Fan had been admitted to Capital University, but Jiang Jingguo rejected the news.

• Li Guiqin tearfully urged Jiang Fan to take care of himself, and Jiang Fan thanked his parents before kowtowing to them.
• Zhou Huaide gave Jiang Fan a one-million-yuan reward from the country, which Li Guiqin accepted with pride.
• Zhou Huaide took Jiang Fan away by helicopter, and the lockdown on Happiness Residential Complex ended.
• Residents praised other families' college-bound children until Jiang Jingguo boasted that Jiang Fan had developed a solar photovoltaic material and attracted top universities.
• Principal Ma told Jiang Jingguo that Jiang Fan had been admitted to Capital University, and Jiang Jingguo replied that he was not interested.

Dean Li summoned leading researchers to review documents revealing a major breakthrough in controlled nuclear fusion, and Jiang Fan arrived in the Capital to explain the work. Before taking Jiang Fan to the conference hall, Zhou Huaide ordered documents containing information about Chu Ruoxi destroyed.

• Researchers at the Capital First-Level Research Institute waited through a two-hour delay before Dean Li arrived and distributed confidentiality agreements and controlled nuclear fusion documents.
• The researchers studied the formulas, principles, and data, then Dean Li confirmed that Huaqing's supercomputer had verified the calculations.
• Jiang Fan arrived in the Capital with Zhou Huaide, who said Jiang Fan would explain the research and future implementation plan to the assembled experts.
• Zhou Huaide received investigative documents containing a photograph of Chu Ruoxi and ordered his assistant to destroy them.
• Jiang Fan told Zhou Huaide he was ready and followed him toward the conference hall.

Jiang Fan introduced himself as the author of the controlled nuclear fusion documents and explained their principles to the gathered experts. The meeting ended with an expert asking how long his plan would take to achieve controlled nuclear fusion.

• Elder Long and Elder Qiao joined Dean Li and the experts at the institute’s meeting, where attendees speculated that one of the elders had written the documents.
• Dean Li introduced Jiang Fan as the documents’ author, shocking the experts with his age.
• Jiang Fan spent nearly two hours explaining plasma equations and the future implementation plan, winning the experts’ confidence in his theory.
• After Jiang Fan finished and the audience applauded, an expert asked how long his plan would take to achieve controlled nuclear fusion.

After Jiang Fan said controlled nuclear fusion could be achieved in five years, he privately told Zhou Huaide he could do it in one year. Zhou Huaide chose to believe him and agreed to apply for ten billion in funding.

• Jiang Fan estimated that controlled nuclear fusion could be achieved in five years, prompting the experts and professors to laugh before questioning him late into the night.
• Elder Long and Elder Qiao argued over who would recruit Jiang Fan until Dean Li persuaded them to leave so everyone could rest.
• Zhou Huaide arranged food and a room for Jiang Fan, then asked whether he truly believed fusion could be developed within five years.
• Jiang Fan told Zhou Huaide he needed only one year, and Zhou Huaide decided to trust him despite his doubts.
• Jiang Fan requested ten billion in funding, and Zhou Huaide agreed to apply for it the next day.

Chu Ruoxi learned that Jiang Fan had gone to the Capital after developing a solar photovoltaic material and discovered that he had deliberately kept his exam scores at 300. Meanwhile, Zhou Huaide defended the controlled nuclear fusion project to his superior by presenting researchers’ signatures supporting Jiang Fan’s breakthrough.

• Chu Ruoxi visited Jiang Fan’s home and learned from Li Guiqin that he had gone to the Capital and been admitted to several universities, including Huaqing University.
• Chu Ruoxi went to No. 1 High School to collect her admission letter and overheard Principal Ma accuse Teacher Wang of failing to notice Jiang Fan’s extraordinary abilities.
• Chu Ruoxi realized Jiang Fan had controlled his scores at exactly 300 across nine exams and concluded that he was a formidable academic genius.
• At the National Science and Technology Administration, Zhou Huaide’s superior berated him for requesting ten billion in funding and threatened to shut down controlled nuclear fusion.
• Zhou Huaide presented signatures from top researchers who believed the controlled nuclear fusion Jiang Fan had developed could be achieved.

After agreeing to tour Huaqing University with Qiao Yifei, Jiang Fan began an eight-hour outing arranged by the system in exchange for a Stay-Up-Late Capsule. Qiao Shan hoped the campus belle could persuade Jiang Fan to attend Huaqing, and the chapter left Jiang Fan following her onto campus.

• Jiang Fan was woken by Qiao Shan, who invited him to tour Huaqing University with his niece, Qiao Yifei.
• The system offered Jiang Fan a Stay-Up-Late Capsule if he spent eight hours touring Huaqing with Qiao Yifei, and he accepted the invitation.
• Qiao Shan told Qiao Yifei to persuade Jiang Fan to attend Huaqing and promised to help her earn extra credits.
• Qiao Yifei met Jiang Fan at the university entrance, and Qiao Shan left them alone after introducing them.
• Qiao Yifei invited Jiang Fan to stroll through Huaqing's grove, and he followed her into campus.

Qiao Yifei tried to charm Jiang Fan into completing the task assigned by her uncle, while Jiang Fan tried to keep his distance and stay focused on his scientific ambitions. After Qiao Yifei staged a fall and later flirted with him on a bench, she caught him sneaking glances at her.

• Qiao Yifei asked Jiang Fan whether she or the lotuses looked prettier, and Jiang Fan said she did.
• Qiao Yifei received messages from Qiao Shan promising to seek a Special Contribution Award for her if she completed her task with Jiang Fan.
• Qiao Yifei pretended to fall, and Jiang Fan helped her up before she pulled away from his embrace.
• Jiang Fan rested on a bench and thought about studying at Huaqing University with Chu Ruoxi, but reaffirmed his ambition to become a scientific researcher.
• Qiao Yifei took off her gauzy top and bent down to tie Jiang Fan's shoelace, noticing him steal a glance at her.

After Jiang Fan’s nosebleed interrupted Qiao Yifei’s attempt to charm him, she took him to lunch and then to a campus book café. There, Jiang Fan criticized the nanometrology project she described and outlined more advanced optical interferometry methods, leaving Qiao Yifei stunned.

• Qiao Yifei took Jiang Fan to the university infirmary after his nosebleed would not stop, and the doctor treated him and advised him to drink water and stay somewhere cool.
• Qiao Yifei took Jiang Fan to lunch and then brought him to Huaqing’s book café to impress him with her academic knowledge.
• Jiang Fan chose History of Blue Star Technology and told Qiao Yifei he was interested in nanotechnology and space technology.
• Qiao Yifei described her nanometrology project using an atomic force microscope, but Jiang Fan said its technology was outdated.
• Jiang Fan explained optical interferometry methods for nanometrology, leaving Qiao Yifei astonished.

Jiang Fan learned that the controlled nuclear fusion project had been suspended after its funding application was rejected, but the chief offered a chance to reconsider if the team sustained fusion for 100 seconds within a month. Jiang Fan said they could meet the condition with existing equipment and materials, and Zhou Huaide decided to take him to the northern base.

• Jiang Fan used the Stay-Up-Late Capsule and left Qiao Yifei after explaining nanoscale optical interferometry to her.
• Qiao Yifei told Qiao Shan about the technique, and Qiao Shan called her to the nanotechnology laboratory to test whether it worked.
• Jiang Fan visited Zhou Huaide and learned that the chief had suspended the controlled nuclear fusion project after the funding request was rejected.
• Zhou Huaide told Jiang Fan that the chief might reconsider if the team kept nuclear fusion stable for 100 seconds within a month.
• Jiang Fan said they could achieve the goal with their existing equipment and materials, so Zhou Huaide planned to take him to the northern base the next day.

Qiao Shan and Qiao Yifei successfully developed Jiang Fan’s nanoscale optical interferometry technique, while Zhou Huaide returned to the northern controlled nuclear fusion base to find most of his researchers transferred away. The chapter ended with Zhou Huaide learning that only eighteen researchers remained as he faced the loss of his team.

• Qiao Shan and Qiao Yifei confirmed their successful development of Jiang Fan’s nanoscale optical interferometry technique, which outperformed the previous method.
• Qiao Yifei told Qiao Shan that Jiang Fan had given her the idea, and Qiao Shan resolved to recruit Jiang Fan as his student.
• Jiang Fan arrived at the northern controlled nuclear fusion base and vomited after the rough journey.
• Zhang Wenshan told Zhou Huaide that Chief Liu had transferred nearly all the base’s researchers to a fighter jet project.
• Zhou Huaide argued that Jiang Fan could achieve one hundred seconds of stable nuclear fusion, but Chief Liu refused to return the researchers, citing the upcoming World Military Competition.
• Zhou Huaide asked how many researchers remained, and Zhang Wenshan answered that there were eighteen.

Jiang Fan examined the northern base’s tokamak and concluded that its materials made the current design incapable of succeeding. He told Zhou Huaide he could likely modify it within a month, despite the base having only eighteen researchers left, and prepared to explain his plan.

• Zhou Huaide introduced Jiang Fan to the researchers, who doubted the young man’s expertise as he began inspecting the tokamak.
• Jiang Fan studied the tokamak’s documentation and data while Zhou Huaide asked Zhang Wenshan for a list of the researchers who remained.
• After more than three hours of analysis, Jiang Fan concluded that the tokamak’s materials could not withstand fusion’s heat and that the design would never work as it stood.
• Jiang Fan told Zhou Huaide that a successful modification within a month seemed possible, and Zhou Huaide revealed that only eighteen researchers remained at the base.
• Jiang Fan asked Zhou Huaide to gather the researchers so he could explain the tokamak’s problems and his modification plan.

Jiang Fan proved his expertise in controlled nuclear fusion to the researchers at the Northern Controlled Nuclear Fusion Base and was appointed chief engineer. After identifying major flaws in the tokamak and outlining improvements, he returned to his room and found missed calls and a friend request from Little Wildcat.

• Jiang Fan told the researchers they had one month to achieve stable nuclear fusion control for 100 seconds, and Zhou Huaide explained the challenge and its funding stakes.
• Jiang Fan answered the researchers’ questions about fusion products, materials, and ignition, winning their confidence.
• Zhou Huaide appointed Jiang Fan chief engineer, and Jiang Fan spent hours identifying problems with the tokamak and explaining improvements.
• Jiang Fan said he would prepare a detailed reconstruction plan so work could begin the next day.
• Jiang Fan found missed calls from Qiao Shan and an unfamiliar number, along with a WeChat request from Little Wildcat.

Jiang Fan mistook Chu Ruoxi's friend request for one from Qiao Yifei, while Chu Ruoxi decided to pretend to be Qiao Yifei to learn his feelings. At the Northern Controlled Nuclear Fusion Base, Jiang Fan arrived with a detailed plan to modify the facility and rally the remaining researchers.

• Jiang Fan accepted Little Wildcat's friend request, and Chu Ruoxi messaged him without revealing who she was.
• Jiang Fan guessed that Little Wildcat was Qiao Yifei, so Chu Ruoxi kept up the misunderstanding and asked what he thought of her before falling asleep while waiting for his reply.
• After working through the night, Jiang Fan admired the grasslands near the Northern Controlled Nuclear Fusion Base and found he was still energetic thanks to the Stay-Up-Late Capsule.
• Zhang Wenshan called Jiang Fan to breakfast, where the remaining researchers greeted him and asked when they would begin modifying the fusion setup.
• Jiang Fan brought out the thick plan he had prepared overnight, astonishing the researchers, who asked whether he had gone without sleep.

Jiang Fan drove the researchers at the experimental base through an intensive day of work on his modification plan, then stayed up all night preparing more details. After Zhou Huaide ordered him to rest, Jiang Fan ate and replied to Qiao Yifei’s messages by telling her not to contact him because he had a girlfriend.

• Jiang Fan divided his plan among the researchers, whose coordinated work let them finish the first stage in less than half a day.
• Jiang Fan reviewed the researchers’ modifications, approved them, and continued preparing more plans while Zhou Huaide supported the team.
• Zhou Huaide ended the day’s work after ten in the evening, but Jiang Fan stayed in the records room to keep working.
• The next morning, Zhou Huaide discovered that Jiang Fan had worked through the night and ordered him to return to his quarters and rest.
• Jiang Fan ate the food delivered to his quarters and told Qiao Yifei not to message him because he had a girlfriend.

Jiang Fan completed the tokamak development project with Zhou Huaide and the researchers, though he warned that achieving steady, sustained fusion would require another year and at least ten billion in funding. After the team celebrated, Zhou Huaide asked about an ignition test, and Jiang Fan estimated a seventy percent chance of maintaining stable fusion for one hundred seconds.

• Jiang Fan told Little Wildcat that Chu Ruoxi was his girlfriend, and Chu Ruoxi, secretly posing as Qiao Yifei, was delighted by his answer.
• Chu Ruoxi asked what Jiang Fan liked about her, but he deleted Little Wildcat before replying.
• Jiang Fan inspected the tokamak modifications, found one component off by 0.02 degrees, and told Zhou Huaide to have the team correct it.
• Jiang Fan and the researchers completed the controlled nuclear fusion project, and Zhou Huaide announced their success.
• Jiang Fan told Zhou Huaide that the tokamak could only be used once and gave a seventy percent estimate for keeping fusion stable for one hundred seconds; Zhou Huaide said he would contact the chief.

The chief reviewed Professor Li’s crystalline silicon solar energy project when Zhou Huaide called to claim Northern Base had achieved one hundred seconds of controlled nuclear fusion. Doubting him, the chief agreed to watch a brief remote demonstration, which began on the conference hall screen.

• Professor Li presented his solar energy project, and the chief and review staff approved of its prospects.
• Zhou Huaide told the chief that Northern Base had kept nuclear fusion under stable control for one hundred seconds.
• The chief doubted Zhou Huaide and insisted on a remote video call instead of visiting Northern Base.
• The chief told the conference room about his agreement with Zhou Huaide, and the staff dismissed the possibility of a breakthrough.
• Zhou Huaide requested the video call, and the chief had the staff project Northern Base’s research institute on the screen.

Jiang Fan led the Northern Base’s ignition attempt for its modified tokamak, but the device showed no reaction after ignition. The chief accused Zhou Huaide’s promised expert of being a fraud.

• Jiang Fan and the researchers activated the tokamak’s magnetic confinement systems and prepared it for ignition.
• The chief ordered the Northern Base to begin the experiment as officials in the Capital watched by video.
• Jiang Fan started the ignition countdown and pressed the ignition button, but the tokamak showed no change after ten seconds.
• Zhou Huaide and the researchers panicked and asked Jiang Fan what had gone wrong.
• The chief berated Zhou Huaide and called the expert he had found a fraud.

Jiang Fan and the Northern Base researchers discovered that a loose wire in the laser ignition device had prevented the controlled nuclear fusion ignition. Zhou Huaide got Wang Bo to identify the fault, and the team repaired it, leaving the ignition attempt ready to resume.

• When the tokamak data showed no faults, Jiang Fan and the researchers searched the control switches for the cause of the failed ignition.
• A researcher found a wiring problem in the laser ignition control switch, and Zhou Huaide learned that the staff familiar with the device had been transferred away.
• Zhou Huaide called the fighter jet research base and asked Zhang Honglei to find Wang Bo, who had previously managed the ignition device.
• Wang Bo told Zhou Huaide that a wire beneath the control button was loose, and the researchers found and reconnected it.
• After the call ended, Zhang Honglei reflected on Zhou Huaide's past and regretted that he had left fighter jet development for controlled nuclear fusion research.

Jiang Fan and Zhou Huaide ignited the Northern Base’s tokamak, and its nuclear fusion reaction remained stable long enough to astonish officials watching remotely. As the reaction continued, the chief demanded to know how long it had lasted.

• Jiang Fan reported that repairs to the laser ignition circuit were complete and that the tokamak systems were ready for a test.
• Zhou Huaide secured the chief’s permission for one more ignition attempt and demanded the return of the original researchers and ten billion in funding if fusion remained stable for 100 seconds.
• Jiang Fan and Zhou Huaide began the ignition test, and the tokamak produced a bright fusion reaction that stayed stable for several seconds.
• Jiang Fan monitored the readings while Zhou Huaide held back his excitement, knowing the 100-second target had not yet been reached.
• Officials watching at the National Science and Technology Administration saw the stable fusion reaction and called it an artificial sun.
• The chief asked the technician how long the nuclear fusion had remained stable.