The atmosphere in the technical department is slowly changing. As soon as Liu Li sat down in the morning, Technician Zhang across from her looked up and said, "Good morning, Xiao Liu."

These words surprised Liu Li. In the past, Chief Engineer Zhang always had a stern face, either buried in drawing or chatting with other technicians about theory. When he spoke to her, it was always in a businesslike tone, like "Xiao Liu, proofread this drawing." But today, he actually took the initiative to greet her, and his tone was even a little relaxed.

"Good morning, Engineer Zhang," Liu Li quickly replied with a smile.

Later, she went to the filing cabinet to look for the "Mechanical Design Handbook". After flipping through it for a long time, she couldn't find the one she was looking for. Suddenly, the technician next to her said, "Looking for the module table? Turn to the back, the blue one is new, it was just brought in last year, and it's more complete than the old one."

Master Li used to act like Section Chief Chen, always putting on airs of a senior technician, but today he actually took the initiative to strike up a conversation. Liu Li knew in her heart that this was all because of the positive reviews coming back from the workshop—in the factory, if the frontline workers said it was easy to use, it was more effective than anything else.

Around nine o'clock, Section Chief Chen, carrying his enamel mug with "Model Worker" printed on it, swayed over to Liu Li's desk. Without saying a word, he picked up the part drawing that Liu Li was proofreading, ran his finger across it a couple of times, and stopped at the geometric tolerance markings: "The datum selection is decent, it takes machining and measurement into account. The enlarged view is also cleverly placed, otherwise, with all the lines piled up, who could see it clearly?"

He put down the blueprints, his gaze falling on Liu Li's face. The scrutiny he used to show was replaced by genuine approval: "The workshop feedback on the process for shaft B-07-34 is good. Director Zhao called specifically to say that the workers followed his instructions, resulting in fewer defective products and faster learning. It's practical and well done."

She spoke softly, but everyone in the office who hadn't gone far heard her. Liu Li stood up and said sincerely, "Thank you, Section Chief. I still have a lot to learn from my colleagues."

"Don't just talk about learning, you also have to take on responsibilities." Section Chief Chen turned around and went back to his office, quickly bringing back a thick stack of blueprints. "The factory has taken on a new job in mining equipment. The 'hydraulic coupler shell' is the core component. It has a complex structure and high precision requirements. You'll be responsible for writing the process."

Liu Li took the blueprints, unfolded them, and frowned immediately—it involved cavities, irregularly shaped flow channels, and several deep holes, making it much more difficult than the previous bushings. This was no ordinary task; it was clear that Section Chief Chen trusted her and wanted to test her.

"Don't worry, I'll definitely do a good job." She held the blueprints in her arms; they were quite heavy.

"If you don't understand anything, come to me, or ask Xiao Fu." Section Chief Chen glanced at Fu Jingchen diagonally across from him. "Xiao Fu used to intern at a mining machinery factory, so he knows about this."

Fu Jingchen looked up and met Liu Li's gaze. He nodded slightly, his eyes filled with encouragement.

The lunch break bell rang, and all the colleagues went to the cafeteria, but Liu Li was still staring at the blueprints. Fu Jingchen walked over, pulled up an empty chair, and sat down: "This job isn't easy, is it? Especially the geometric tolerances of the stop and sealing groove. If the datum is chosen wrong, everything else is for nothing."

He took a pencil out of his pocket and drew a simple reference diagram on the draft paper: "Look, using the main bearing hole and the large end face as the reference, and applying it throughout all processes, can reduce errors."

Liu Li leaned closer to look, and the more she looked, the clearer it became: "That's right! I was wondering how to avoid the reference conversion, but now it all makes sense!"

As the two were engrossed in their conversation, Xiao Zhou from the production department pushed open the door and entered, his voice booming: "Hey, Engineer Fu, Technician Liu, still busy even during lunch break? Section Chief Chen was right, important tasks still need you guys!" Seeing the blueprints on the table, he added, "Technician Liu, the workshop foremen all praise your process design, keep it up!"

Liu Li's face flushed slightly, and she subconsciously moved her chair to the side. Fu Jingchen smiled and smoothed things over, saying, "The mission is urgent, let's familiarize ourselves with things first."

After Xiao Zhou left, Fu Jingchen stood up: "Let's go eat first, and we'll meet again this afternoon. I'll take the blueprints back with me and take a look at them at noon."

In the afternoon, Liu Li didn't go to the workshop—the coupler casing wasn't even a physical prototype yet, so going there would be pointless. She hunched over her desk, organizing her thoughts, sketching out the process step by step on draft paper, from marking the blank to rough machining, then boring the flow channels and drilling deep holes. When she encountered something she wasn't sure about, she consulted the experienced technicians.

"Engineer Wang, look at this deep hole. It's difficult to remove chips with a regular drill bit, and the cooling can't keep up. Would it be okay to use a BTA deep hole drill?" she asked, pointing to the oil hole on the drawing.

Master Wang adjusted his reading glasses: "The BTA system is good, but our factory doesn't have that equipment; it's too expensive. It's better to drill in sections, then expand after drilling, and finally ream it. It's slower, but more stable."

"Thank you, Engineer Wang!" Liu Li quickly jotted it down in her notebook—this was all the experience of a master craftsman, much more practical than anything in books.

As darkness fell, only a few people remained in the office. Liu Li neatly stacked the blueprints, tucked the draft papers inside in order, and put the manual back in its original place in the filing cabinet. Before leaving, Section Chief Chen came over and patted her on the shoulder. He didn't say anything, but the corners of his mouth were downturned, though a hint of a smile could be seen.

Liu Li picked up her pen and wrote the part name—"hydraulic coupler housing"—on the new process card, then wrote her own name. The pen tip scratched across the paper, making a soft, steady sound, much like the confidence she felt. The new job was difficult, but she knew it was a crucial step in establishing herself in the technical department, and she was well-prepared.