Back to the 80s Machinery Factory

Chapter 521 Sister, I've held you back

Chapter 521 Sister, I've held you back~
With a soft sigh, Chen Tuo asked:

"Xiao Chen, have you been doing quite well in Pian'er City these past six months?"

Chen Luyang's attention was drawn back, and without even thinking, he shook his head: "It didn't go very smoothly."

Ok? ? ?
Upon hearing Chen Luyang's words, Chen Tuo and Chen Jinyue were both taken aback.

"The school is alright," Chen Luyang said.

"The economics department offered me a separate open course, where I would interpret the original texts and lead students in learning. I could also earn some royalties by translating the original texts every week."

“In the philosophy department, I was taking classes with third-year students. The professor wanted me to translate the original text as well, but I had to study and work on my major, so I really didn’t have the time and declined.”

"But in the end, I couldn't avoid it either." Chen Luyang sighed softly.

“My project involved the economics, philosophy, and mechanics departments. In the end, the philosophy professors still assigned me a bunch of materials to translate.”

Upon hearing the "project" he mentioned, Chen Jinyue said with interest:
"What exactly is going on with your project?"

Previously, Chen Tuo and Chen Jinyue had both looked at the generalization project in the Peking University Journal, but neither of them really knew what the project was about.

Now that I finally have the chance, I can't help but ask.

Chen Luyang explained, "The project I'm working on now is the standardization of car parts. There are so many car models on the market now, and the variety is endless. When repairing cars, it's not enough to rely solely on the mechanic's skills; you also need to know the parts."

"Often a car has no major problems, but it's just missing a part, and as a result, you have to wait for ten days to half a month."

“I was thinking that since I’ve opened a repair shop in Pian’er City, if I could get a batch of universal parts, I could replace them directly no matter which car model came in, making car repairs much less of a hassle. This would be convenient for everyone and also help the repair shop establish itself.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Jinyue didn't think much of it.
But Chen Tuo's pupils contracted, and his eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

"Is your project progressing smoothly?" Chen Jinyue asked.

"It didn't go very smoothly," Chen Luyang said truthfully.

"As a newcomer to this town, I had no one and no money to open a repair shop. I was completely clueless about what to do and had no idea who to ask for help."

"Producing the first batch of general-purpose parts was relatively easy. I found a few small workshops in Pian'er City. The master craftsmen in these workshops were quite skilled and could help me out."

"But when it came time to produce the second batch, the small workshops were no longer sufficient, and the large factories were unwilling to take on the task, so things stalled."

"I had no choice but to run around to technical schools, hoping to leverage their resources to develop production through industry-academia collaboration. I took a map and went from school to school all over the city, but no one paid any attention to me..."

When Chen Luyang said this, her voice was clearly tinged with bitterness.

"Fortunately, my senior brother is the deputy director of the Municipal Economic Commission. He saw that my project was good, so he pulled me into a pilot project in the city and assigned me to work at four large technical schools. Including the two I had found before, there are now a total of six technical schools working with us."

"Six technical schools?!"

Chen Jinyue clicked his tongue in astonishment and couldn't help but interject, "Isn't this the size of a small factory?"

Chen Luyang replied modestly, "Pretty much."

Chen Tuo slowly said, "Bringing in six technical schools is no small matter. Don't let your words about how things aren't going smoothly fool you; if you're on the right track, it'll create a huge opportunity."

Chen Luyang said in a serious tone, "It's not really a big picture yet, we've just gotten started."

Chen Luyang appeared shy and humble on the surface, but in her heart, she was already holding her head high!
This strategy of building suspense before acknowledging the negative aspects worked perfectly.

He first laid out his troubles, making Chen Jinyue and Chen Tuo worry about him.
Then, flaunting the achievement immediately makes it seem much more significant!
It not only makes you appear to have had a tough time, but also makes you seem capable, thus saving face and maintaining your dignity.

Just then, Mrs. Chen finished preparing the meal.

Chen Luyang quickly helped her mother set out the food, then sat down in a very familiar manner, acting as if she were one of the guests, squeezing herself right between her mother and Chen Jinyue.

Chen's mother asked happily, "Little Chen, have you had any fun experiences at school? Tell us about them!"

"There weren't many fun things, but the December 9th Movement at our school was quite interesting."

"As an outstanding student representative, I participated in the torch relay and also gave a speech in front of the statue of Li Dazhao. The atmosphere was wonderful!"

When the topic of the December 9th Movement came up, Chen Tuo became interested.

"How's it handled at your school?"

Chen Luyang said, "That's quite a lot. Our school has organized a series of activities, including campus dramas, exchange forums, alumni returning to campus to give speeches, and commemorative parties. We're busy from morning till night, we're really not idle at all."

Chen's mother asked in surprise, "Weren't you giving a speech? Why are you so busy now?"

Chen Luyang explained with a smile, "I'm an officer in the school's external relations department! I have to run around all the time to secure funding and find supplies, it's very busy."

At this point, Chen Luyang's eyes lit up, and she smiled:

"It's quite an interesting story. When I went out to solicit funding and supplies for the school, I ended up at Shijiazhuang Iron and Steel Plant by a twist of fate."

"Their factory manager is a really nice guy. He really liked me when he saw me and even told me to call him 'Grandpa'."

Chen Tuo looked up at him: "And then you yelled?"

Chen Luyang said with a righteous expression, "I called out, I called out on the spot."

Chen Tuo smiled with a complex and profound expression: "After he finished calling, did he give you the funds and supplies?"

"No," Chen Luyang answered honestly.

"No?!" Chen Tuo's voice immediately rose a beat.

"Because before I even called them, the factory's office director had already given me the funds and supplies," Chen Luyang explained.
"I saw Grandpa Lu when I was repairing cars at their factory after I left home."

Chen Tuo snorted coldly: "What didn't I give you? You still have the nerve to call me 'Grandpa'?"

Case solved!
With that one sentence, Chen Luyang instantly solved the case.

Lu Yongqiang is definitely related to Chen Tuo!

Chen Luyang chuckled and added a comment.

"He's such a big factory director, how often can ordinary people just meet him? The fact that he's willing to let me call him 'Grandpa' means I'm really lucky!"

"However, Grandpa Lu's title wasn't given in vain."

“When I went to the Municipal Economic Commission for a meeting, the principals of the technical schools and the factory directors didn’t recognize me and ignored me. Only my Uncle Lu came and talked to me. I was really touched at the time.”

“After my Uncle Lu finished speaking to me, the others started talking to me too.”

Chen's mother felt heartbroken upon hearing this.

“You’ve suffered a lot of injustices in Pian’er City these past six months.”

Chen Luyang said optimistically, "It's not like I've been wronged; it's just human nature."

"If we go to them with nothing and ask for their help in negotiating a partnership, it's not our responsibility, so it's normal for them not to agree."

"Just keep chatting. If we can find common ground, great. If not, we can just switch to something else."

"Well, in the end, I managed to secure two collaborations myself!"

Seeing Chen Luyang's optimistic and cheerful demeanor, Chen's mother became happier and happier.

She just loved the child's optimistic and cheerful spirit.

"That's all I'm saying, but don't let it interfere with your meal. Eat more meat!" Chen's mother happily put a piece of pork rib into his bowl.

"Mmm~" Chen Luyang happily took the rib and took a bite!
The braised sauce bursts in your mouth along with the meat broth, making it tender and fragrant.

"It's so fragrant!"

Chen Luyang couldn't help but grin at his mother.
"Seriously, from the time I was little until now, besides my mom, Auntie, your cooking is the best!"

Mrs. Chen said happily, "If it smells good, eat more. What else would you like to eat? Auntie will make it for you next time."

"Mmmmmmm!"

Seeing his wife being so affectionate with Chen Luyang, Chen Tuo was slightly unhappy.

But these unhappinesses are nothing compared to the December 9th Movement!
Chen Tuo asked, "What other forms will your school take in organizing this December 9th Movement?"

Chen Luyang immediately replied, "There are many different formats."

"In addition to the torch relay and speeches, there were also poetry recitals, campus plays, commemorative exhibitions, alumni returning to campus for symposiums, and even the music academy's choir was invited to sing 'Defend the Yellow River.' It was non-stop day and night, and the atmosphere was particularly vibrant."

Chen Tuo listened with great emotion.

"Pian'ercheng is really great! There are many talented people and many schools, and all kinds of opportunities are available."

Chen Luyang asked curiously, "Uncle, is our province planning to hold an event this year too?"

Chen Tuo nodded and said, "Now the country is repeatedly emphasizing the need to 'grasp both material and spiritual civilization'."

"The province has studied this several times and wants to organize a large-scale, province-wide mass cultural event, but the problem is that the format has not yet been finalized."

If we're really talking about organizing cultural and artistic activities,
Last summer, the provincial capital was filled with concerts, and drama troupes and dance troupes performed in factories and workplaces. It can be said that the cultural atmosphere was very strong throughout the city!

But if we just copy the same approach this year, the public's interest will be gone.

Upon hearing his future father-in-law express his concerns, Chen Luyang immediately took it seriously!

After thinking about it,
Chen Luyang said, "Uncle, I think if we're going to do this, we have to make it unique."

"Could this activity be organized like this, that is:

We can focus on leveraging the province's strengths:
In winter, we have ice lanterns and snow scenes, so we can hold public ice lantern exhibitions.
The factory has a large number of artistic talents among its employees, which can organize provincial-level exhibitions of calligraphy, painting, sketching, and woodcut comic strips from factories and mines, along with blackboard bulletins and display windows for competition;
In addition, we organized a province-wide reading month, with Xinhua Bookstore and libraries jointly setting up mobile book stalls and mobile library vehicles, and film screening teams and radio stations launching special columns, mobilizing government agencies, schools, factories and mines.

This approach not only offers a novel format that attracts and engages the public, but also effectively showcases the spirit and character of our province.

Chen Tuo raised an eyebrow slightly: "What about the theme and tone? How do we handle that?"

The reason the province is delaying its decision for so long, fearing it might go astray, is because everyone is uncertain.

One concern is that while the stage is lively, the audience is empty, and the people will forget about it after watching.
Secondly, there's the fear that the grand scale and extravagance will waste resources and manpower, without achieving any real results.

After hearing Chen Tuo's words, Chen Luyang said:
“This is easy to handle.”

"As long as we set a unified theme and bring together the ice and snow exhibition, the factory and mine calligraphy, painting, woodcut, and comic strip exhibition, and the Book Fragrance Month under the banner of 'spiritual civilization construction,' then the publicity message will be smooth sailing." "I think we can focus on the main theme of 'labor creation and cultural revitalization,' using everyday examples and tangible results to guide the public."

The ice lanterns emphasize 'unity and development'.
The calligraphy, painting, woodcut, and comic strip art all fall under the theme of "Labor is the most glorious."
The slogan for Reading Month is "Knowledge is power".

It is both down-to-earth and insightful.

This way, it will be lively without losing its essence, and we won't have to worry about it being just for show.

Um? ! ! !

Chen Tuo's eyes lit up.

"Well done, young man, you've got a good idea!"

No wonder he studied at Peking University, his mind is really sharp!
Chen Luyang said happily, "I'm just learning as I go. I was a member of the External Relations Department at school, and I usually followed our minister around, so I experienced a bit of everything."

"After seeing a lot, I figured out some of the tricks of the trade."

After listening, Chen Tuo tapped the rim of the teacup lightly with his fingertip, and his brows relaxed.

In fact, Chen Tuo had already had an idea about this matter in mind.

On the one hand, the ice lanterns and snow scenes in winter are an advantage of the provincial capital. If the ice lanterns and ice sculptures spontaneously built by the masses can be organized at the provincial level, they will not only have local characteristics, but also be well-known throughout the country.

On the other hand, there are a large number of workers with artistic talents in the province's factories and mines. Their poetry, calligraphy, comic strips, blackboard newspapers, and artistic performances all have a mass base. If these sparks scattered at the grassroots level can be brought together, they can also be combined into a powerful force.

Coupled with the rising enthusiasm for reading, Xinhua bookstores, libraries, factories, mines, and schools can mobilize to form a "provincial reading month" and raise the banner of spiritual civilization.

The idea is there, and the approach is not complicated. Looking at it on the table, every point is logical and in line with people's wishes.

However, when it comes to actual implementation, it involves countless complexities and is far more difficult than imagined.

The ice lantern exhibition involves the Municipal Public Utilities Bureau, the Parks and Gardens Bureau, and also requires the power supply bureau to provide power.

Workers' arts and culture activities involve factory and mine scheduling and trade union rehearsals. Who will cover the time and funding for these activities?
The "Reading Month" initiative requires the joint efforts of schools, Xinhua bookstores, and libraries.

Without a comprehensive and coordinated approach, it's easy to just shout slogans, but it will fail when it comes to actually doing them.

In addition, the various departments within the province each have their own ideas.

The propaganda department felt this was their responsibility, the education department wanted to focus on schools, and the labor union advocated prioritizing factories and mines.

Everyone said "okay," but when it came to the specific division of labor and funding, no one was willing to be the first to agree.

As a result, the plan was delayed again and again, and in the end, it could only be shelved for the time being.

He originally planned to learn from Peking University first, get a feel for the process, and then promote it to the province.

Unexpectedly, Chen Luyang's words were 80% in line with his own, and even the details matched.

In an instant, Chen Tuo's gaze towards Chen Luyang became much more tactful.

Just as he was about to praise Chen Luyang, Chen Luyang suddenly said, seemingly unintentionally:
"If only my Uncle Lu could give us two big eagles."

Chen Tuo: ? ? ? ?

We were just talking about provincial events, how did we suddenly switch to talking about eagles?

Isn't this transition a bit too abrupt?!
They don't leave themselves any room for maneuver at all!
Chen Luyang carefully considered her strategy and, taking advantage of Chen Tuo's good mood, quickly expressed her small wish.

"Uncle, whenever you mention cultural development, I start thinking about it..."

"Our repair shop is doing brisk business now, but the yard is empty, it's just missing two big eagles to guard the entrance."

As she spoke, Chen Luyang subtly glanced at Chen Tuo.

He was too embarrassed to ask Lu Yongqiang for the big eagle.
But if Chen Tuo nods, the two big eagles might be able to arrange it right away, which would save a lot of trouble!

To everyone's surprise, Chen Tuo smiled slightly and said, "Well, your idea is rather far-fetched."

Chen Luyang: ? ? ? ?
How do I respond to that?!
Chen Luyang forced a smile and said, "Uncle... this is also part of cultural development!"

Chen Tuo said calmly, "I can't control the cultural development of Pian'er City..."

wipe!
Chen Luyang's eyes darkened slightly.
If you won't help, fine, I'll ask for it myself when I get back!
As she pondered this, Chen Luyang involuntarily shifted her gaze to Chen Jinyue.

When their eyes met, Chen Jinyue blushed.

Speaking of which, the two of them were dating, they held hands and even kissed.

But I don't know why.

Every time Chen Jinyue saw Chen Luyang, his heart would race.

I can't help but blush, and I can't stop liking you from the bottom of my heart.

Hehe ~
Chen Luyang shoveled rice into her mouth while grinning foolishly at her partner.

So lovely!
Blushing is also pretty~
Mrs. Chen looked at her two children with a smile, feeling both gratified and moved:
“ε=(ο｀*))) Sigh, I wish time could go by faster.”

"Xiaoman is getting married soon this year."

What? ! ! !

Chen Luyang's smile froze instantly as she looked at her mother in disbelief.

"Auntie, you said Xiaoman is getting married?"

Mrs. Chen nodded: "Yes, her boyfriend is a colleague of yours at the factory. I heard they've already met each other's parents and are planning to get married this summer."

Saying,

Chen's mother still had some questions for Chen Jinyue that she couldn't quite remember.
"What was that young man's name again?"

“I remember his surname is Wu…”

Chen Luyang's voice trembled: "Wu Jingzhong."

Mrs. Chen patted her forehead: "Yes, yes, it's Wu Jingzhong... I've met this young man before, he looks quite clever..."

Damn it.

Xiao Wu's dog is getting married this year!

Chen Luyang's voice was hollow: "...No, they've only been dating for a short time! Isn't getting married a bit too fast?"

Chen Jinyue shook his head: "It's not going to happen soon. They met in the middle of last year and will get married this summer."

finished,

Chen's mother, Chen Jinyue, and Chen Luyang all fell silent.

Back then, Xiaoman and Xiaowu met through the matchmaking efforts of Chen Luyang and Chen Jinyue.

They're getting married soon!!!
I'm not even of legal marriage age yet!!!

Chen Luyang felt a little sad.

He looked up at Chen Jinyue and whispered:
"Sister Yue, I've kept you in suspense."

With Chen Jinyue's excellent qualities, if I weren't so young, I would have gotten married long ago.

"Nonsense!"

Chen Jinyue spoke softly, her beautiful eyes looking at Chen Luyang, gently comforting her:
"There's still a long way to go~"

Upon hearing this, Chen Luyang felt a sudden pang in her heart!
What he wanted to say
But since the girl's parents were both there, he couldn't say anything.

All I could do was look at my partner with a mixture of guilt and heartache.

My mouth, which is usually so talkative, is now completely unable to utter a single word.

for a long time,

"Yes... there's still a long way to go."

Chen Luyang softly repeated Chen Jinyue's words.

Immediately, the expression of distress, guilt, and heartache that had just been on her face vanished.

I'm optimistic all over again!
Good food is worth waiting for! And the longer it's cooked, the better it tastes!

Chen Luyang grinned foolishly at Chen Jinyue.

really...

He had just reached a dead end.

So what if we get married two years later?

Anyway, he'd already decided on this girl.