Chapter 6: Absolutely Impossible

“Victory Appliance Repair?”
“Everything can be fixed?”
“What on earth is this—?”

Yan Dong City.
Central Qilin War Zone.
Equipment Department Office.

Minister Zhang Mingrui stood in a crisp military uniform.
His shoulder boards bore the rank of Major General.
He held his personal phone, frowning deeply as he watched a livestream forwarded to him by Wang Qi.

Their acquaintance was limited; he only knew Wang Qi as a wealthy second-generation entrepreneur who ran a military museum. A few days ago, Wang Qi had used his connections to approach Zhang Mingrui with a request to purchase a scrapped tank.

Zhang Mingrui checked the credentials carefully and, seeing that the purpose was for national defense education and popularization, agreed to the sale.
He sold him a tank that was practically wrecked beyond repair.

“Fix it?”
“Is that piece of junk even repairable?”

Zhang Mingrui’s face was filled with doubt.
He knew the tank’s condition all too well.

It had been almost condemned when retired from the military.
The Equipment Department had removed all classified components, and it had sat in an open-air warehouse for three years.
Even the senior sergeants in the unit had shaken their heads, insisting it was only fit for scrap metal.

So when Wang Qi claimed the tank had been repaired, Zhang Mingrui didn’t believe it for a second.
He furrowed his brow and opened the livestream.

“A dynamic demonstration?”
Muttering as he listened to the streamer’s introduction.

On screen, a young man was surrounded by parts in a room that looked more like a small appliance repair workshop.
Seeing this, Zhang Mingrui was even more bewildered.

Repairing a tank in a household appliance shop?
What kind of international joke was this?
Not even factory engineers could fix one of those—how could a small-town repair shop manage it?
And a live demonstration to boot?

Zhang Mingrui was about to close the livestream instinctively.
But then, the camera shifted from indoors to outdoors.
The lighting brightened suddenly.

A battered armored beast appeared on screen.

“???”

Zhang Mingrui’s expression changed instantly.
What was going on?
Had that old Type 59 tank been resurrected?

As the Equipment Minister, the tank models were etched into Zhang Mingrui’s very bones.
He recognized the design immediately.
There was no mistake!
This was the prototype of the Type 59-1 medium tank.
Except for the paint, it was indistinguishable from the original factory model.

At this realization, Zhang Mingrui picked up the phone without hesitation.
“It’s me. Have Liu Yuan from Factory 912 run to my office.”
“I don’t care what he’s doing.”
“Right now! Immediately!”

Five minutes later, a middle-aged man arrived, out of breath.
His skin was weathered, dressed in army fatigues, with white gloves stained with grease.
He looked like he had just come from the repair shop.

What stood out most were the four chevrons on his shoulder boards—
anyone who had served in the military would recognize them as the insignia of a First-Class Sergeant.

Generals were everywhere in the military, but First-Class Sergeants were rare.
They were known for exceptional technical skills and long service.
Though their rank was not high, they received treatment equal to that of generals.

Liu Yuan was one such man.
He was the star technician of Factory 912, the armored vehicle repair plant directly under the Equipment Department.
A living fossil of the armored corps.
Having served for 26 years, he had repaired almost every tank model in the army.
Even Major General Zhang Mingrui greeted him respectfully as “Old Squad Leader.”

“Squad Leader Liu, take a look at this.”
Liu Yuan took the phone skeptically, glancing at it without understanding.
“Type 59? What about the 59?”

Then, his pupils suddenly froze.

“A moving Type 59?!”

The Type 59 tank was not uncommon, but a functioning one was a rarity.
With the complete modernization of equipment, none remained active in the army.
All had their classified parts removed and were quietly stored away in war zone depots.

Where on earth did the Type 59 on the screen come from?

Watching more closely, Liu Yuan felt the situation growing stranger by the second.
“Minister Zhang, this background looks like it’s from the civilian sector—”
“Oh my!”

“Could this 59 really be from the civilian world?”

Zhang Mingrui frowned deeply, then slowly spoke.
“Yes.”
“I sold a scrapped tank before, number 8993.”
“To a businessman for exhibition purposes.”
“That’s the very tank you’re seeing.”

A chilling silence fell over the room.

Liu Yuan knew tank 8993 all too well.
It belonged to his unit.
He remembered clearly—it was no longer a vehicle, just a pile of parts.

When Minister Zhang wanted to sell it, he had asked Liu Yuan if it could be repaired.
Liu Yuan’s reply was succinct: “If I can fix it, I’ll write my name backwards.”

And now?
8993 had been resurrected, whole and intact, roaring across the screen.

Watching the scene, Liu Yuan’s mind nearly shriveled, and he couldn’t help but curse.
“Damn it, who fixed it?”

“Who fixed it isn’t important,” Zhang Mingrui said with a stern expression.
He, in his high position, understood the gravity of the situation.
Selling the tank wasn’t illegal.
But for a sold wreck to be restarted was a serious matter.

He had sold a pile of completely damaged and broken parts.
What was now on screen was a fully functioning tank.

“The most important question is, how was this even fixed?”
Zhang Mingrui looked at Liu Yuan, his eyes filled with countless questions.

“Squad Leader Liu.”
“From your experience,”
“Is it possible this tank was repaired by civilians?”

Liu Yuan shook his head decisively.
“Absolutely impossible!”
“I said it back then.”
“Even if I worked on it personally, with all the professional equipment, I couldn’t fix it.”
“I’m even willing to say,”

Liu Yuan’s tone was resolute and unquestionable,
“that not even the original engineers who designed this tank could bring it back to life.”

He was not exaggerating.

This tank was born in the last century, older than himself.
It had served in four different units, operating at full capacity until its mechanical structure was thoroughly damaged.
After retirement, poor storage had caused severe deterioration of the remaining parts.

It was like a person who had died, then been left in a damp, warm place and decomposed by microbes.
Even heaven itself would shake its head at the thought of resurrection.

Moreover, the talent capable of repairing such machinery existed only within the military.
Those who could reassemble a pile of scrapped parts into a functioning tank were exceedingly rare.

Because the tank’s structure and powertrain were classified.
Still undisclosed to this day.
Outsiders simply could not fix it.

At this thought, Liu Yuan’s expression gradually froze.
The more he thought about it, the more terrifying it became.

“Minister Zhang, if this tank is truly repaired,”
“there are only two possibilities.”
“Either he is a genius,”
“or...”

Zhang Mingrui looked up, seeing the hesitation on Liu Yuan’s face.
They both realized at once:

“Or he has classified blueprints in his hands!”

With that thought, Zhang Mingrui quickly picked up the red phone on his desk.
“Hello, Security Department?”
“Send two officers to investigate livestream number 83541 on the Yinlang platform.”
“Within one day, I want this streamer’s entire network of contacts.”