A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

Chapter 735 1 light 1 dark

"Oh, Uncle Li, this is a bit too precious!" Jiang Xia held up a slice of melon, golden juice dripping from between his fingers, its sweet aroma mixed with the scent of sunshine.

"This is nothing! I bought these melons from a young girl from the mainland. Hey, you wouldn't believe it, that girl was so young, about your age, and she went to the frontier to help with construction all by herself! She planted melons and built canals in the Gobi Desert, braving the wind and sand. Her spirit was truly remarkable!"

"I got my money's worth buying these melons! Consider it a donation to support our frontier builders!"

Jiang Xia was taken aback. A young girl? Going to the frontier alone?

This combination instantly brought to mind a name that would become legendary in later generations: the legendary figure known as the "Watermelon Goddess."

But he quickly shook his head, dismissing the overly coincidental guess. His gaze fell again on the hideous scars on Li Huaide's arm, and his thoughts were pulled back.

“Uncle Li,” Jiang Xia took a bite of the melon, which was sweet and refreshing, but her tone became a little somber. She pointed to his arm and asked, “What happened to this injury? It doesn’t look like a scrape.”

Li Huaide's smile faded slightly. Following Jiang Xia's gaze, he glanced at his forearm and casually shook it off: "Hey! It's nothing serious! Before the New Year, a few naive young men, incited by some bad guys from outside, tried to sneak into the factory to cause trouble, targeting the machine tools. I happened to run into them. When I stopped them, one of the punks pulled out a knife and slashed a few times."

"They...they think we're taking over their territory, they don't understand that this machine is meant to create jobs for everyone."

Yang Youning was eating a watermelon when he heard this and slammed the watermelon rind on the table: "You son of a bitch! You dare touch our machines?"

Seeing the worried looks on Jiang Xia and Yang Youning's faces, Li Huaide smiled again, took a big gulp of strong tea, and said in a calmer tone: "Don't worry, the people have been apprehended and the matter has been investigated. It was just a very small number of bad elements causing trouble, and our comrades on the border handled it cleanly and efficiently."

This injury is nothing serious; consider it a souvenir the Gobi Desert left for me!

"Well, we later found out it was just some bad elements outside stirring things up, saying we built the factory to seize resources. Actually, once the factory was up and running, the first batch we made were hoes and sickles for the nearby communes. Once we got our punch presses set up, they were many times faster than their blacksmith shops!"

"Later, those few lads were taught a lesson, and their families even brought milk curds to apologize." Li Huaide picked up his enamel mug and took a sip of tea. "It's alright, now the factory gets along well with the surrounding people, and they even help us watch the warehouse."

Jiang Xia listened, able to imagine the danger of that time. The border region is indeed far from peaceful now. External forces are always trying to stir up trouble, and a few uninformed young people are easily instigated, but most people know the truth.

As Li Huaide said, only when the machines are running, producing hoes and rolling rails, can life improve. The border regions are far from peaceful; infiltration and instigation by foreign forces frequently occur. Behind Li Huaide's seemingly casual words lies real danger!

To protect state property, he stood in front without hesitation!

"Uncle Li...you've suffered so much!" Jiang Xia said sincerely, his tone filled with respect.

"Alright, alright, stop looking at it. This scar won't make you want to drink anymore." Li Huaide felt a little uncomfortable being stared at, so he changed the subject, leaned closer, and asked in a low voice, "Let's get down to business, Xiao Jiang. Why did you rush me back from the border? What important mission do you have? It can't just be for this gossip, can it?"

Jiang Xia didn't answer immediately. Instead, he showed Li Huaide the resolution covered in red stamps. While Li Huaide was looking at the document, Jiang Xia began searching for the remaining No. 13 cigars.

"That's the situation! Uncle Li, I'm thinking, how about we split into two lines?"

Jiang Xia lit the cigar himself and put it into Li Huaide's mouth.

Looking at the execution order covered in red stamps, Li Huaide felt this was the pinnacle of his life. Sure enough, following this kid was the right decision!

If something happens, he'll really pull you up!

Li Huaide now felt like he had met a young master. If it weren't for Yang Erlengzi getting in his way, who knows what he might have done to express his feelings.

"I want you and Director Yang to maintain a public image and deal with those uninvited guests, ensuring that all necessary procedures are followed."

"And what about you?" Li Huaide raised an eyebrow.

“I’ll crawl down there.” Jiang Xia pointed to the carriage floor. “I’ll talk to the researchers directly and see which projects are truly stuck at technical hurdles and which are just stalling. We need to protect what needs to be protected and cut what needs to be cut. We need to spend our money wisely.”

Li Huaide smiled reservedly: "Understood! I'm good at setting up the stage! I guarantee I'll beat the drums and gongs loudly enough to attract everyone's attention! Don't worry, I'll make sure Yang Erlengzi cooperates with me perfectly!"

Yang Youning was happily eating the old man's melon when he heard this, and nodded.

It took him a while to realize that the old man was referring to him cooperating with his work.

(??へ??╬)!

You bastard, you got all cocky after just one trip to the frontier? I…

Yang Youning looked at the scars on Li Huaide's arm and said, "I'll listen to you!"

……

Just as Jiang Xia and his group were sharing the melons and finalizing their action plan, they were heading to their destination.

Inside a certain research institute and its affiliated units, well-informed individuals have already learned of the impending arrival of the review team.

The atmosphere in the small, smoke-filled conference room was so heavy it could be wrung out. Several middle-aged men in Zhongshan suits, each with a different expression, sat around the table, their faces all looking rather grim.

"Have you heard? The inspection team list is out!" A middle-aged man with a parted hairstyle and a pale face lowered his voice and tapped his fingers nervously on the table.

"I saw them too. Where did these two come from? I've never heard of them before!"

"Something's definitely up to no good! In the past, everyone's workplace was clearly stated, but this time, it's just one name?"

"Hmph!" A square-faced man sitting in the main seat snorted coldly, stubbing out his cigarette. "What's the panic! So what if it's an inspection team? Which of our projects isn't proceeding according to plan? The accounts are clear, and the progress is smooth! Do you think they can find fault with us?"

"The accounts are clear?" The man with the parted hair gave a wry smile. "Old Liu, you forgot about last year's batch of imported components... and that 'technical consulting fee' from last month..."

The square-faced man's eyes flashed sharply as he glanced at the man with the parted hair, who immediately fell silent.

"What's the panic!" Old Liu said in a deep voice, "We'll meet force with force! When the inspection team comes, we'll treat them well! We'll give them the reports and showcase our achievements! Let them see what we've accomplished!"

He paused, his voice lowered, tinged with a chilling undertone: "As for those... 'unclear' things, deal with them thoroughly in the next couple of days! Be quick and efficient! Don't leave any loose ends!"

"Cut off the tail?" The man with the parted hair was taken aback. "You mean..."

"Clean up all the experimental records and material lists that reveal problems." The man lowered his voice. "If all else fails, just say the machine malfunctioned and all the data was burned—as long as there's no evidence, what can they do to me?"

"If that doesn't work... take them to the border! The Russians have a ton of official business to do, they probably want to find someone to test if it works..."

The room fell silent instantly, with only the smoke swirling around it.