Chen Hao slapped the last piece of tape onto the edge of the sculpture's base, and his knee cracked as he straightened up. He ignored it, glanced down at the checklist on his tablet, and crossed out "structural fixation."
Susan crouched beside "On the Verge of Falling," a soft cloth in her hand, gently wiping away fingerprints from the side of the metal plate. Her cuff had a hole in it; the piece of tape she'd torn off yesterday was still stuck to the tip of the bracket, unused.
“The angle is fine,” she said. “The lighting is adjusted, and the shadows are deep enough.”
Carl stood three steps away, having just put away his tool interface. He tapped his finger in the air, and the wall-mounted lighting module lit up again, the beam slicing down at an angle and landing precisely where the cable was hidden.
“The nano-coating is effective,” he said. “It eliminates reflections and increases earthquake resistance by two levels.”
Nana walked over from backstage, carrying a gray box. "The backup projection film replacement plan has been deployed, and the holographic film loading is complete. The adhesive production in the manual area has been replenished, and the inventory has reached the target."
Chen Hao looked up at the circular light strip on the ceiling of the main venue. "Where's the sound system?"
"The support reinforcement is complete," Carl said. "The gel curing time is eighteen minutes, but it actually took ten minutes. The vibration monitoring system has been restarted, and there are currently no abnormalities."
“Okay.” Chen Hao turned to the next page of the list. “Let’s go through the whole thing again.”
The four split into two groups. Chen Hao and Nana headed towards the main passage, while Susan stayed in the art exhibition area for final confirmation. Carl followed half a step behind her, ready to adjust the equipment parameters at any time.
The display boards on both sides of the corridor were all in place. The left side was the interactive technology area, and the right side was the art exhibition area. Light-colored arrows marked the floor in the middle to guide the visitor route. Chen Hao walked along, using a laser rangefinder to scan the distances.
“This sign is crooked,” he said.
Nana leaned closer to look, "Three degrees off."
"Adjust it."
Nana reached out and straightened the sign, while Chen Hao used the instrument to verify its position. The two continued forward, and when they reached the entrance to the game area, they noticed a shallow mark on the ground.
"Was it left over from yesterday's move?" Nana asked.
"It should be." Chen Hao squatted down and took a look. "It doesn't affect the flow of traffic, so no action is needed."
They walked through the simulated food stalls, checking that every power outlet was sealed. Nana opened her tablet, compared it with the supplies distribution map, and marked six key monitoring points.
“The lighting module has three sets of response delays,” she said. “I have set it to pending repair status and will have it inspected after the opening ceremony.”
"Okay." Chen Hao nodded. "As long as it doesn't stall on the spot."
“The probability is less than 0.2 percent,” Nana said, “unless someone steps on the line.”
"Then let's pray that no one dances into the exhibition area."
The two returned to the central control console, where Chen Hao placed the tablet on the table and began checking off items one by one. Stage area confirmed, exhibition area division confirmed, safety passage unobstructed confirmed, emergency kit location confirmed.
"What's missing?" he asked.
“You missed the sign-in desk,” Nana said.
"Oh right." He flipped back and checked the "Reception Functions" box. "Now it's all set."
On the other side, Susan walked around the sculpture for the third time. She stepped back five paces and squinted to observe the overall visual effect. The cables were completely hidden in the shadows, and the forward-leaning posture of the metal plate was more obvious than during the day, like a piece of debris tossed about by the wind.
“Reduce the light intensity by another half degree,” she told Carl.
Carl operates the terminal, fine-tuning the overhead light. The shadow extends downwards, making the base contact point almost invisible.
“That’s enough,” Susan said. “That’s it.”
“Ground vibration levels are stable.” Carl looked at the data stream. “The resonance amplitude is within acceptable limits.”
"Won't it fall over, will it?"
“No,” Carl said. “The carbon fiber rope has a strength three and a half times that of the design value.”
Susan reached out and touched the edge. The device wobbled slightly, then quickly stopped.
“It looks like it’s going to collapse,” she said.
“But it won’t,” Carl said.
"I like this feeling."
They retreated together behind the police line. The entire art exhibition area fell silent, with only the sound of footsteps echoing in the distance.
Chen Hao and Nana are back.
"I've gone through the whole thing once," Chen Hao said. "There are basically no problems."
“I tidied up the sign-in table while I was at it,” Nana added. “The ID stickers are sorted by color and Susan’s labels are very clear.”
Susan smiled. "They're just dots, red, yellow, blue, and green."
"That's enough," Chen Hao said. "Anyone can tell the difference."
He glanced at the time. "Two more hours to finish."
"The sealing of supplies has been completed," Nana said. "The emergency kits have been placed in their designated compartments."
“I just confirmed the transport route,” Carl said. “The moving route will be unobstructed tomorrow.”
"Then...that's about it?" Chen Hao said, turning the tablet to the last page.
The sign above reads: **Cultural Festival Preparation Status – Pending Launch**
He paused for a moment, his finger hovering over the confirm button.
"Are you really going to press it?" he asked.
No one answered.
Nana stood still, her hands hanging naturally at her sides. Susan glanced down at the tips of her shoes, then looked up at the sculpture. Karl's gaze swept across the entire system's operational status; all the green lights were on.
Chen Hao grinned. "Hey, did we forget something?"
"We have plenty of food supplies," Nana said.
“Thirty percent of the power is redundant,” Carl said.
"The audience flow test passed," Susan said.
"The security plan has been filed," Nana added.
"I even cleaned the toilets thoroughly." Chen Hao scratched his head. "Why do I still feel so empty inside?"
“Because you haven’t eaten yet,” Susan said.
“Yeah, that’s true.” Chen Hao rubbed his stomach. “I’ve only had two energy bars since this morning.”
“There are still hot meals available in the logistics area,” Nana said. “You can pick them up now.”
"No rush," Chen Hao waved his hand. "Let me light this thing first."
He stared at the tablet screen, took a deep breath, and said, "Come on, witness history."
Press the confirmation button with your finger.
A system notification sounded: **The preparation process for the cultural festival has been completed. All projects are now in standby mode.**
"It's done." Chen Hao released his grip. "We really got it done."
Nana glanced down at the terminal and updated the log. Susan took out her notebook and wrote on the last page: "Exhibition setup complete."
Carl shut down his portable terminal and stood at the edge of the exhibition area.
Four people stood in the center of the main venue, surrounded by silence. The lights shone evenly on the empty booths, like squares waiting to be filled.
Chen Hao turned and walked to the back of the control panel, pulling open a small drawer. Inside lay an unopened energy bar, the packaging slightly crumpled.
"Oh, a private collection?" Susan noticed.
"Emergency supplies." Chen Hao took them out and shook them. "For saving lives in critical moments."
Just as he was about to tear open the packaging, he suddenly heard a soft sound from above.
It wasn't an explosion, nor a break; it was more like some kind of mechanical part jammed while rotating.
He looked up.
In the overhead light array, the second module from the left in the third row flashed briefly, dimmed for half a second, and then returned to normal.
“That one just now…” he said.
Nana immediately brought up the monitoring interface: "Lighting group B7 briefly lost contact, but has now been restored."
"What happened?" Chen Hao asked.
"It could be signal interference," Nana said, looking at the data stream. "Or a poor connection."
Is it serious?
“A single point of failure does not affect the overall system,” Nana said. “But I suggest checking the lines again before the opening ceremony.”
Chen Hao stared at the lamp without saying a word.
Susan walked over to him and said, "It just flashed by."
"Hmm." Chen Hao nodded. "It might be voltage fluctuations."
He stuffed the energy bar back into the drawer and closed the cabinet door.
“I’ll go check the distribution box,” Carl said.
"Let's go together," Chen Hao said.
The three walked towards the backstage area. Nana stayed behind, continuing to stare at the monitor screen.
Susan stood alone in front of the sculpture. She raised her hand and lightly pushed the metal plate with her fingertips.
The device remained completely still.
But she thought she saw it move a little.
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