Zhang Zhen has always been relatively tolerant towards Xu Qiang.

One of the most important reasons is that Xu Qiang is a rare talented young man in his life. Although people often say that diligence can make up for lack of talent, in fact, those who can truly drive the development of national science and technology are gifted talents, and geniuses among geniuses. In his eyes, Xu Qiang is undoubtedly such a person.

So even if he knew that Xu Qiang sometimes did some "excessive" things, he would turn a blind eye, because compared with the contribution Xu Qiang could make to the country, other things, as long as they were not illegal, were not worth mentioning...

……

Two days later, when Xu Qiang arrived at the Fifth Ministry of Machine Building, it was already past six in the afternoon.

At this time, everyone in the office had already gone off work, but what Xu Qiang didn't expect was that after the guard checked his ID at the gate, he was invited to Zhang Zhen's office not long after.

Although he is over 60 years old, Zhang Zhen still maintains a very high work intensity every day.

Like his previous factory manager Liu Biao, Zhang Zhen basically never got off work on time. Sometimes, he even worked until one or two o'clock in the morning. In the entire office building, his office was the only one that was brightly lit.

Before entering Zhang Zhen's office, Xu Qiang had prepared himself to be scolded. After all, the notice had arrived half a month ago, but he had only reported here now. This was first of all a violation of discipline, and secondly a disrespect to the leader.

However, when Xu Qiang entered the office, the scene in front of him surprised him greatly.

"Here you go, sit down!"

Seeing Xu Qiang coming, Zhang Zhen put down the documents in his hand, smiled and motioned him to sit down, and then asked his secretary to pour tea for Xu Qiang.

"Minister Zhang, I..."

"Have you eaten yet?"

Xu Qiang wanted to explain a few more words, but was interrupted by Zhang Zhen.

"I've eaten. I bought two steamed buns after getting off the train. I'm not hungry anymore."

"That's good." Zhang Zhen nodded and continued, "You've been very diligent recently and have written a lot of papers. You must have put in a lot of effort, right?"

"I just hope to take over the 8702 project and make some contributions to the research and development of new explosives in our country." Seeing that Zhang Zhen got to the point, Xu Qiang also quickly expressed his opinion.

"If you are determined to deal with me, then I will give you this opportunity..."

"That's great!" Xu Qiang's eyes lit up when he heard that.

"But there are some things I need to make clear to you." Zhang Zhen paused, then continued, "First of all, this project was first taken over by Professor Xu Yuanming. Although he is seriously injured now, no matter who takes over in the future, the credit for the project will belong to him. And after you take over this time, you will need to cooperate with his original team, including the early research materials, which were also produced by Professor Xu..."

"Minister Zhang, don't worry. I will accept this project even if you don't give me bonuses and honors." Xu Qiang smiled and continued, "Professor Xu has always been my idol and role model. Being able to take over his project is a recognition of me by the organization and an honor. I will do my best to complete this project."

Xu Qiang didn't expect Zhang Zhen to make such a request to him, but he quickly reacted and gave a reply.

The reason why Zhang Zhen wanted to give this credit to Xu Yuanming was because he had indeed contributed a lot to this project before, which cannot be denied. Even if Xu Qiang took over, he would still need to refer to Xu Yuanming's previous research materials.

In addition, Zhang Zhen's arrangement can also appease the members of Xu Yuanming's original team, especially his disciples. If Xu Qiang does not compete for the first credit, these members of the original team will be more willing to cooperate with Xu Qiang's work and complete the project with all their strength. It can be seen that Zhang Zhen is quite thoughtful. In fact, for Xu Qiang, he has already won the National Science and Technology Progress Award once, and the aramid paper project has actually already predicted the first prize next year, so there is not much difference between winning one more award and one less award. Anyway, the 8702 project is just a transitional project for Xu Qiang. The product parameter requirements of the project can be met with an "outdated" CL-01 explosive. In the future, he will have two explosives, CL-02 and CL-20, synthesis formulas and production processes, which are the real highlights.

What's more, from the very beginning, what Xu Qiang really wanted was to have his own research institute in Shanghai, so that he could have certain personnel and procurement rights. This was his real intention.

"I'm glad you said that..." Zhang Zhen nodded with satisfaction after hearing that.

"I have always had a heart to serve my country. I don't care about honor or anything like that." Xu Qiang said quickly.

"Haha, this is rare." Zhang Zhen smiled after hearing this, and said after a moment: "In addition, the research and development period of this project is very short. At present, our country's demand for this kind of explosives is very urgent, so I hope that within a year, you can come up with a result, even if it is a phased result..."

"This..." Xu Qiang was embarrassed when he heard this.

Even though this project is a sure win, Xu Qiang must not appear too relaxed at this time, otherwise it will be detrimental to the subsequent negotiations.

"Xu Qiang, I just want a phased result, even if it's just a technical breakthrough in the laboratory." Zhang Zhen never thought Xu Qiang had so many tricks, so he continued, "You have to know that I have also taken on a lot of pressure to get you to take on this project. Currently, many people in the department have doubts about your technical ability to develop new explosives, so what I mean is that you need to come up with a convincing result in a short period of time."

"Okay." Xu Qiang nodded and agreed at this time.

"As for your plan to build a chemical research institute in Shanghai..." Zhang Zhen frowned and said, "This will require a huge investment and involves many things, including personnel transfers, equipment purchases, and laboratory site selection. It won't be completed in a short time. For the time being, the First Ministry of Machine Building has a special chemical research institute in Shanghai. You can work with them first. When our institute is built, you can go there to work..."

"Minister Zhang, the research units of the First Ministry of Machine Building mainly focus on civil machinery, telecommunications, and ships. Although they involve the chemical industry, they are still somewhat different from the chemical technology needed by our military." Xu Qiang paused and continued, "Especially in terms of military explosives. Traditional engineering explosives do not require too high explosive power. Generally, ammonium nitrate explosives are sufficient to meet the needs of most projects. However, military explosives are powerful and costly. They are two different products from traditional explosives. In addition, the research and development risks of this kind of military explosives are quite high. If an accident really happens, will it affect our relationship with the First Ministry of Machine Building?"

Xu Qiang realized that Zhang Zhen wanted to temporarily place him in the First Ministry of Machine Building's laboratory in Shanghai. Although he also proposed to build a specialized chemical research institute in Shanghai, in fact, if Xu Qiang really accepted this arrangement, the matter of the Shanghai research institute would most likely never happen again.

Therefore, he had to let Zhang Zhen build the Shanghai Research Institute as soon as possible, especially when the project was in progress. Otherwise, when the project was completed, Xu Qiang might not have the capital to bargain with the department.

"You don't have to worry about this. They are also a professional R&D department, and they have risk assessments and safety plans for this project," said Zhang Zhen.

"Minister Zhang, I think it would be better if our department could build this research institute within two months, I guarantee that we can complete this project within a year!"

Seeing that Zhang Zhen was still hesitant, Xu Qiang simply used his "ultimate move".

You know, Xu Yuanming's 8702 project had taken four years to complete but still failed halfway. If Xu Qiang could complete this project within a year, it would undoubtedly be a major breakthrough and would completely remove the huge rock that was weighing on Zhang Zhen.

"Can you complete this project within a year!?" Sure enough, when Zhang Zhen heard Xu Qiang say this, his eyes suddenly lit up.

"I can assure you that as long as the institute can be built within two months, I can definitely complete the 8702 project within a year. In fact, in addition to the 8702 project, I will also work on aramid long fibers and other military projects in this institute in the future. Shanghai has many advantages that many cities do not have, including its talent and industrial scale. The industrial scale, in particular, accounts for almost one-third of the country, which is very helpful for my scientific research." In order to make Zhang Zhen determined to establish a research institute in Shanghai, Xu Qiang mentioned the research on aramid long fibers again.

Like aramid paper, the research and development of aramid long fibers also has great significance for the domestic military industry. It is not only important for military improvement, but also for the development of civilian products. Zhang Zhen is well aware of this.

"Xu Qiang, we are a military-industrial unit, and we must keep our word. I heard that when you were at the 9304 Factory, you liked to issue military orders..."

"I can also issue a military order now!" Xu Qiang replied straightforwardly, saying, "If I fail to complete the mission, I am willing to accept any punishment from the department!"

"Yes." Zhang Zhen nodded and looked directly at Xu Qiang. After a moment, he said, "That's it. I will arrange a project work meeting tomorrow. You will be in charge of the 8702 project. In addition, within two months, the department will establish a new chemical research institute in Shanghai. You will temporarily serve as the head of this institute..." (End of this chapter)