Chapter Seven: A Meeting of Minds

(1/3)

(1) When Qin Ke and Bian Xiaoqi arrived at the computer room, it was nearly 10 p.m. Luo Tong and Sun Shuqiang were still seated at the computers, diligently carrying out the tasks assigned by Qin Ke.

Qin Ke entered the room, but Bian Xiaoqi stayed outside the door, hoping to surprise Luo Tong.

As soon as Luo Tong saw Qin Ke, he immediately said, “Brother Qin, it’s been three hours already. Where have you been? An hour ago, I sent Xiao Sun to find you, but he couldn’t locate you. Were you kidnapped? Or did you run back to Tongyuan?”

Seeing Luo Tong babbling on, Qin Ke smiled and said, “How could I leave you two to suffer here alone? You’re making a fuss.”

“I’m just worried about you. This Dabashan area is full of high mountains, dense forests, deep ravines, and steep cliffs. If something happened to you, how would I explain it to Comrade Lu Juan?” Luo Tong chuckled.

Hearing Luo Tong mention Lu Juan again, Qin Ke felt somewhat guilty. Not seeing Bian Xiaoqi behind him, he quickly changed the topic. “You two were so eager to find me. Have you made any new discoveries?”

Luo Tong replied, “Brother Qin, it’s strange—no discoveries at all. Based on the frequency of the alert information from the past few days, there should have been a ‘system gentle restart’ alert at least once today. But none has appeared so far. All the statistical data you asked us to compile are normal.”

“Engineer Qin, here are the statistics we recorded,” Sun Shuqiang handed the notes to Qin Ke.

Qin Ke flipped through the records and indeed found nothing abnormal. “You’ve done a good job recording. If anything happened, we’d definitely catch it. It’s okay; we still have time. Don’t lose heart.”

At this moment, Bian Xiaoqi quietly entered and stood behind the three of them, smiling but silent.

Sun Shuqiang was the first to notice her and quickly stood to greet her. “Manager Bian, you’re here.”

Luo Tong turned around, his eyes widening in surprise as he stared at Bian Xiaoqi, his mind filled with the same questions Qin Ke had. Qin Ke looked at Luo Tong and laughed, “Manager Xiaoqi is here on behalf of the organization to comfort us. Is it really necessary to be so surprised?”

Luo Tong glanced at Bian Xiaoqi and then at Qin Ke, winking, “Manager Bian came to comfort us? That can’t be right. She must have come specially to see Brother Qin.”

Bian Xiaoqi smiled, “Luo Tong, how dare you doubt the organization’s care? Looks like I have to ask General Manager Cheng to send you to stay here in Dabashan for half a month or twenty days.”

Luo Tong laughed, “Manager Bian, if I can have a beauty by my side every day, I’d be glad to be sent here.” Then, he straightened up and said seriously, “Now I understand why Brother Qin disappeared for so long.”

Seeing Luo Tong so confident, Qin Ke laughed and said, “What are you always thinking about? I just took Manager Bian out for dinner earlier. What’s wrong with that?”

“Let’s get down to business,” Bian Xiaoqi said.

Qin Ke began, “The problem has already occurred, causing great impact to the client. We must find the root cause and provide the client with a convincing explanation. Manager Bian, please share the feedback you received from the client.”

Bian Xiaoqi said, “I arrived at the office this morning, but you had already left. General Manager Cheng was restless—he must have been under considerable pressure from the client. He said you two are responsible for the technical work, and communication with the client should be handled by us. At this critical moment, the sales team cannot stand by idly. He mentioned that you both have strong communication skills but worry that unexpected difficulties might ignite tensions. So, he sent me to assist you.”

Luo Tong added, “General Manager Cheng really has foresight. We’ve encountered a difficult man named Jia Yunsheng—rude and aggressive. Honestly, I rarely meet someone like him. When I see him, I just want to kick him, but thankfully Brother Qin’s calmness and confidence kept him in check. Otherwise, who knows what worse things he might have said.”

Bian Xiaoqi didn’t know Jia Yunsheng, so she looked at Qin Ke, who proceeded to recount Jia Yunsheng’s words and behavior.

Bian Xiaoqi said, “Putting the client first is exactly what you’re doing right. Your patience now does not mean accepting Jia Yunsheng’s verbal insults. I will discuss this with Director Fang. I believe Director Fang will provide you with a satisfactory response. Our marketing department will definitely stand by your side to protect your interests, but the prerequisite is that you must resolve the problem quickly.”

She continued, “Upon arriving at Tongyuan Telecom, I immediately met Director Fang. After the equipment issue arose, our company dispatched specialized technical and marketing personnel to support them, which he said showed how much we value their interests. He expressed gratitude and said that after the problem is solved, the cooperation between both sides will continue. I told him we will definitely resolve the issue and give him a satisfactory answer, also hoping for some time to work on it. We won’t back down without solving the problem. Director Fang praised your confidence in setting a three-day deadline. Upon hearing that, I was asked to come to Qianfo Town immediately, and Director Fang even sent his private car to pick me up.”

After looking at the three men for a while, she finally voiced her doubt: “You dared to set a deadline—that’s commendable courage. I don’t understand technology, so I worry that you might be acting rashly. I want to hear your thoughts.”

Sun Shuqiang lowered his head, silent.

After hours of fruitless work, Luo Tong’s confidence faltered, and he looked tense, saying nothing.

Seeing the gloomy atmosphere, Qin Ke laughed, “If you say it’s rash courage, Manager Bian, you’re only partly right. At that moment, facing Jia Yunsheng’s arrogance, we couldn’t let him have his way and crush our morale. So we had to make our stance clear.”

“Strategically, we underestimate the enemy; tactically, we respect the enemy. Rest assured, Manager Bian, we have the ability and confidence,” Qin Ke said solemnly.

“Hmph! Let’s see who laughs last—it will be us. Jia Yunsheng, just wait and see,” Qin Ke added disdainfully.

Seeing Qin Ke’s confident expression, Bian Xiaoqi relaxed.

(2)

Qin Ke then assigned the work schedule from tonight to tomorrow.

Luo Tong and Sun Shuqiang had been working for several hours straight and needed rest. Qin Ke told them to go immediately to a room on the second floor to sleep, so they could relieve him. He would take over the shift later at night and notify them immediately if there was any good news.

He also wanted Bian Xiaoqi to rest in another room, but she refused, saying that even if she lay down, she couldn’t sleep. Knowing that worries and pressure cause sleeplessness, he stopped insisting and said, “That’s fine; having company keeps me awake too. You can sit beside me, watch as I observe and query the system, I’ll talk, you take notes, and you can help me test.”

(2/3)

Past midnight, Luo Tong and Sun Shuqiang went to sleep.

Qin Ke sat at the computer, focusing intently on his queries. The room fell silent except for the rhythmic tapping of his keyboard.

Bian Xiaoqi remained silent, watching Qin Ke absorbed in his work. She liked seeing his focused expression. When Qin Ke said he needed to record something, she diligently took notes.

After a while, Bian Xiaoqi noticed Qin Ke sitting upright, his eyes still fixed on a graphical interface on the screen, muttering to himself, “Strange, this shouldn’t be.”

She softly asked, “Any new findings?”

Qin Ke replied, “Not yet. The device’s performance since yesterday has defied my expectations.”

“Tell me your analysis; let this ignorant one learn something,” Bian Xiaoqi said with interest.

Qin Ke stared at her blankly, seemingly not hearing her, and remained silent for a long moment.

Seeing his confused gaze, as if doubting her, Bian Xiaoqi grew a little angry. “I want to learn a little. You don’t want to teach me, but you don’t have to look at me like that.”

Qin Ke seemed still trapped in his thoughts. Suddenly noticing her changing expression, he snapped back to reality and asked, “What did you just say to me?”

Bian Xiaoqi, annoyed by his disregard, said, “Never mind! I don’t want to say it anymore.”

“Oh, you wanted to hear my analysis,” Qin Ke suddenly remembered her question and sincerely apologized, “Miss, please don’t be mad. Sorry, I was still pondering a nagging question.”

“That’s better,” Bian Xiaoqi said. Seeing his genuine apology, she forgave him and resumed her obedient, eager-to-listen demeanor.

“You look much better like this than when we exchange poems—humble and gentle. You’re a good student. Haha,” Qin Ke teased.

“You’re making me mad again. Annoying,” Bian Xiaoqi said, playfully pounding his back with a clenched fist.

Qin Ke thought this was fine; while explaining to Bian Xiaoqi, he could also clarify his own thoughts. So he patiently explained the differences among “cold start,” “hot start,” and “gentle start.” Though he used simple language, Bian Xiaoqi was still somewhat confused.

He said the “gentle start” was the apparent cause of the device’s problem. He was now trying to figure out what triggered the system’s “gentle start.” Given the device’s performance recently, this “gentle start” should occur daily. But from yesterday until now, more than 24 hours had passed without the expected alert. That was the cause of his puzzlement.

“I don’t understand your technical terms, but I get that the device is running normally now. Isn’t that what we want? Doesn’t that mean the problem is gone?” Bian Xiaoqi said excitedly.

Qin Ke shook his head. “No. Without finding the root cause, it’s not a true fix. What if it happens again? The device running normally might just be an illusion. Once conditions are met, the problem will reoccur. But how can I trigger those conditions?”

He drifted back into thought.

Bian Xiaoqi’s earlier excitement faded as she watched him.

“No, I’m stuck in a loop of habitual thinking. I need to change my approach,” Qin Ke muttered, then stared at Bian Xiaoqi’s lovely face, silent for a long time.

Seeing Qin Ke staring blankly at her, Bian Xiaoqi blushed and teased, “Why are you staring at me so much? Do I have the answer written on my face?”

Qin Ke didn’t answer but said, “Here’s what we’ll do: as a non-technical person, imagine yourself as a user and ask me questions from your perspective. If I can answer, it’s not a problem. If I can’t, then maybe that’s the issue.”

“What should I ask?” Bian Xiaoqi found his thought process interesting.

“Ask anything you want, whatever comes to mind. Don’t worry about sounding unprofessional or making a fool of yourself,” Qin Ke encouraged.

“Okay, then I’ll start,” Bian Xiaoqi said uncertainly but with anticipation.

“What is your equipment made of? Is it all working well now?” she asked immediately.

“Generally, telephone switching equipment consists of hardware and software. The hardware is the physical boards and components; the software runs inside the hardware. Hardware includes main processor boards, signaling boards, traffic processing boards, trunk boards—core components all in dual backup—as well as peripheral maintenance interface boards, storage disks, and power modules. If any of these have problems, or the software running on them does, the device would constantly malfunction. The current facts show the core hardware and software are fine.”

“Besides the core hardware units, the most numerous are the telephone user boards—this device has sixty-eight identical user boards. If one user’s phone line fails, that user can’t make calls; if a user board fails, all 32 users on it lose service. Since all two thousand-plus users can call, the problem Chen Ming reported earlier is unrelated to the user boards.”

Qin Ke explained patiently. Though Bian Xiaoqi didn’t grasp everything, she understood he ruled out hardware and software faults.

“Are there times when devices can’t be used properly? Under what circumstances?” she asked.

“For example, power outages, lightning strikes, fires, flooding—extreme conditions,” Qin Ke said.

“Those are very rare, right?” Bian Xiaoqi asked.

“Yes, you’re right. The most common issue used to be major software bugs—like the system failing to start, causing the whole device to collapse. But the current software is mature and has undergone repeated stress testing, so software issues can be basically ruled out,” Qin Ke said.

“What is your equipment used for?” Bian Xiaoqi continued.

(3/3)

“Of course, for making phone calls. Internal calls mean calls between users within Qianfo Town; external calls are to numbers outside Qianfo but within Tongyuan; calls beyond Tongyuan but within China are domestic long-distance; calls to other countries are international long-distance. It can also make special service calls, like 110 for police, 114 for directory assistance, 117 for time announcements, 119 for fire, 120 for emergency medical, 121 for weather, 122 for traffic accidents, and so forth,” Qin Ke explained one by one.

“Anything else besides calls?” Bian Xiaoqi pressed.

“Oh yes, it provides new services,” Qin Ke said.

“What are new services?” she asked, unfamiliar with the term.

“New services, also called value-added services, include abbreviated dialing, no-answer call forwarding, busy call forwarding, unconditional call forwarding, call waiting, call restrictions, three-way calling, hotline services, alarm clock services, busy call callback, do-not-disturb, caller ID, and so on,” Qin Ke counted on his fingers, explaining these new terms so Bian Xiaoqi understood and remembered them, feeling she had learned a lot.

Qin Ke answered every question, making Bian Xiaoqi feel increasingly unsure. She was reluctant to give up but didn’t know what else to ask.

Seeing her silent, Qin Ke smiled, “You’ve asked very well, a lot actually. Don’t lose heart. Think more, and ask when you remember something.” Then he turned back to the computer and resumed work.

(3)

The computer room fell silent again. Bian Xiaoqi, bored, stared at the three telephones on the table. She casually picked up one handset, dialed the number marked on the phone, and let it ring without answering. When the ringing stopped, she dialed another phone and repeated this, like a child playing pretend phone calls.

While playing, she recalled the new call forwarding services Qin Ke had explained and suddenly had an idea: If the first phone isn’t answered and forwards to the second, and the second also isn’t answered and forwards back to the first, endlessly cycling—what would happen to the device? This reminded her of palindrome poetry, so she asked Qin Ke, “Do you know about palindrome poems?”

Qin Ke looked surprised and laughed, “Why ask something unrelated to telecommunications?”

Bian Xiaoqi smiled, “Palindrome poetry is a unique Chinese rhetorical form using cyclic word order, called ‘palindromic style.’ It leverages Chinese’s mostly monosyllabic morphemes and syntax based on word order. Reading it cycles back and forth endlessly, creating a deeply moving, lively aesthetic. There are many types: ‘full palindrome’ means reading the poem backward from last to first character forms a new poem; ‘within-line palindrome’ completes a reversal within one line with the first half and second half as palindromes; ‘two-line palindrome’ means the next line is the reverse reading of the previous; ‘self-contained palindrome’ means the poem’s latter half replies to the first half; ‘circular palindrome’ means continuous reading forward to the end, then backward to the beginning.”

Speaking of her expertise, Bian Xiaoqi was eloquent and passionate.

Qin Ke listened in amazement. “Miss, we were just discussing our equipment problem; why did you suddenly think of palindrome poetry?”

Bian Xiaoqi laughed, “You can daydream, but I’m not allowed to imagine? When I was playing with the phones, I thought: what if the device encounters such a situation, endlessly cycling like a palindrome? Would it go on forever? Palindrome poems can confuse readers; would the device get confused too?”

Hearing her playful analogy, Qin Ke found it apt. His mind raced and suddenly everything clicked. He stared at Bian Xiaoqi with a beaming smile.

Seeing his expression, Bian Xiaoqi said, “You’re spacing out again? Don’t stare at me like that.”

Qin Ke got excited and babbled, “Xiaoqi, you’re Chang’e, you’re the mountain goddess, you’re the river god. No, you’re my goddess.”

Bian Xiaoqi was startled and touched his forehead. “Did something affect you? You’re not really losing it, are you?”

“No, Xiaoqi, your brilliant idea inspired me. We can test it immediately to verify your thought. Wait for my results,” Qin Ke said excitedly.

He turned to the computer and performed a series of operations. Then he pressed a sequence of numbers and “#” and “*” buttons on phones 2 and 3. Checking his watch, it was 3 a.m.—the device was now idle, with no one making calls, so testing wouldn’t disturb users.

He used phone 1 to call phone 2. Phone 2 wasn’t answered and automatically forwarded to phone 3. Phone 3 also wasn’t answered and forwarded back to phone 2. The ringing cycled between phones 2 and 3, rising and falling. After several rounds, the ringing suddenly stopped. Qin Ke quickly hung up phone 1 and heard a busy tone. Calling phone 2 again, he couldn’t get through; he also picked up phones 2 and 3, hearing busy tones on both.

He hurried to the computer and checked the system alerts. A recent “system gentle restart” alert appeared on the screen. He jumped up, shouting excitedly, “Found it! Found it!” Then he ran to Bian Xiaoqi, grabbed her legs, lifted her up, and spun her around the room, exclaiming, “Xiaoqi, we found the cause. You’re so smart; I like you so much.”

Bian Xiaoqi looked at his excited face, puzzled and anxious. “What’s wrong? Put me down and tell me what happened.”

Qin Ke held her tightly, looking up at her.

Bian Xiaoqi looked down at him and saw tears of joy welling in his eyes. She was touched and hugged his head.

After a long moment, Qin Ke put her down. Before she could steady herself, he kissed her cheek fiercely, making her blush deeply as she pounded his chest with her fists.

Once calm, Qin Ke explained carefully: “Xiaoqi, I had been struggling to trigger the ‘gentle restart’ alert, but couldn’t find a way. Your palindrome analogy and the idea of looping call forwarding inspired me. Since the system itself has no fatal faults, it must be the users’ call services triggering it. Most likely, this endless loop of call forwarding traps the system in a deadlock, prompting a ‘gentle restart’ to break the cycle. During this, all users experience a brief service interruption, unable to make calls. Now the system has recovered. You can test again—use phone 1 to call phone 3 first.”

Bian Xiaoqi immediately picked up phone 1’s handset and successfully called phone 3. After the ringing on phones 2 and 3 stopped, she found all three phones couldn’t make calls.

Qin Ke showed her the alert message on the computer: a second “gentle restart” alert had been reported by the system.

After two minutes, the alert cleared. Bian Xiaoqi dialed again, and calls went through once more.