The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 264 Give them a good beating!

The November wind blows from the Northwest, carrying a deep chill, and when combined with the dampness from the sea, it's both wet and cold.

By four o'clock in the afternoon, the light had already dimmed to a leaden gray.

The municipal supply and marketing cooperative stood drab and gray in the deepening twilight, its dark windows resembling frozen, unclosed mouths.

The south-facing window of the president's office was cracked, letting in wisps of cold wind that made the edges of the neatly stacked latest "Supply and Marketing Bulletin" on the desk tremble slightly, and also made the yellowish light from the desk lamp sway erratically on the surface.

The president's secretary went to close the window, and casually remarked, "The autumn wind can't read, why is it turning the pages of a book like this?"

In the past, Wei Bin would respond with a joke.

But he wasn't in the mood at all today.

His entire attention was focused on a document lying open in the center of the large mahogany desk.

It was a document with an official red header, and its layout and printing exuded an air of official authority.

The secretary glanced casually at the top of the screen, where several large, printed characters were clearly visible:
Joint letter from the Light Industry Bureau of the Haibin Municipal Revolutionary Committee and the Foreign Affairs Office of the Haibin Municipal Economic Committee
Letter No. 114, Haiqing Foreign Affairs Office (1979)

The document is short and politely worded, but it leaves no room for argument.

The core meaning is just one thing:
To ensure the smooth progress of the equipment import project between Haibin Fertilizer Plant and Fusangchuanji Heavy Industry, a special joint working group has been formed. Comrade Qian Jin, director of the Municipal Foreign Trade Coordination Office under your unit, has been "reassigned" to serve as the "Chief Foreign Affairs Technical Advisor" of the working group. You are required to "report to the Light Industry Bureau within three days of receiving this letter."

The document was signed by three bright red, heavy official seals: the Light Industry Bureau, the Municipal Economic Commission, and the Municipal Government Office.

The three images imprinted in Wei Bin's eyes were like three red-hot branding irons.

"Damn it, those officials in the city are getting too powerful!" Wei Bin took a deep drag on his cigarette, the tobacco filling his lungs, but it couldn't quell the burning desire rising in his throat.

He stubbed out his cigarette hard in the nearly overflowing pile of cigarette butts in the enamel ashtray, then used his index finger to repeatedly poke at a name on the first page of the document:
"Qian Jin!"

The ink on the character "进" was almost blurred by his poking.

He abruptly pushed aside the heavy armchair and stood up, the chair legs screeching as they scraped against the concrete floor.

The window that the secretary had just closed was pushed open again by him.

The icy sea breeze rushed in, making his hair stand on end.

He spat fiercely in the direction of the city hall building, the spittle mixed with tobacco residue being swept away by the wind.

"What do you mean? You really want to transfer Qian Jin to me? That's quite impolite. Doesn't our supply and marketing cooperative need talent?"

His secretary urged him to close the window: "Wei She, it's cold and windy, don't catch a cold. What's wrong?"

Wei Bin said angrily, "I'm furious right now. Qian Jin just helped the No. 6 State-owned Cotton Mill introduce the production line from the American imperialists, and now they want to transfer him to help the fertilizer plant?"

"What does this mean? A temporary transfer? Hmph, I think it's blatant robbery, they're going to steal the money!"

His secretary tried to persuade him, but to no avail.

Wei Bin recently learned that, in accordance with the central government's spirit of opening up to the outside world, coastal cities with good port resources should take the lead in opening up their foreign trade economy and are preparing to establish a special unit to manage foreign trade.

With a new unit and a new leadership team, each city needs to select its best personnel to work there.

They might need to allocate funds to people working by the sea.

Wei Bin was unhappy.

This is my own sharp knife; I haven't even used it to kill many enemies yet, how can I hand it over!
He walked back to the table, picked up the old-fashioned black magnetic telephone, and dialed:

"Get me to the Municipal Government Office! Then transfer me to Deputy Secretary-General Niu's office!"

Wei Bin's roar almost drowned out the noise of the electricity, "Deputy Secretary Niu? I, Wei Bin... yes, yes, that's my subordinate Qian Jin!"

"...What do you mean by prioritizing the overall situation? Reform and opening up is the overall situation, and ensuring people's livelihood is the overall situation. If you take people away at this critical juncture, who will clear customs for that batch of West German small commodities when the shipment is due?"

"Who's going to challenge the port authority in warehouse palletizing? You're practically draining the foreign trade port of its lifeblood..."

The secretary listened intently; it seemed the person on the other end of the phone was saying something quite long.

Wei Bin was initially very angry.

But as the voice from the microphone continued, the color in his round face, which had been flushed red with anger, gradually faded away, like a sandcastle being washed away by the tide.

Instead, it has a somber, metallic blue, as if covered by a layer of cast iron's chill.

Finally, his voice softened, and after saying a few polite words, he fell silent. Only the howling wind outside the window and his increasingly rapid and heavy breathing remained in the room.

After hanging up the phone, he lit a cigarette and stood at the window looking out.

There was a full five minutes of silence.

With his back to his secretary, he said, "Xiao Zhou, go and invite Director Qian over."

The door was opened quickly, and Qian Jin walked in.

"Director Qian," Wei Bin handed him the secondment letter, "Pack your things. Now take this letter and report to the Light Industry Bureau immediately. Get to work in the work group as soon as possible and come back as soon as possible."

Qian Jin knew that he already knew the inside story of the fertilizer plant, so he stood at attention, said yes, and turned to leave.

Just as he was about to leave, Wei Bin suddenly shouted again, "Stop!"

Qian Jin stood still, his back straight as a spear, waiting quietly.

Wei Bin said unhappily, "Don't you have anything to say?"

Qian Jin said awkwardly, "President, I... I will definitely finish the work of the task force as soon as possible and come back as soon as possible..."

The reason for the embarrassment is that, from the perspective of the supply and marketing cooperative, he was simply creating work for himself, which affected the work of the cooperative's foreign affairs office.

“That’s not what I meant.” Wei Bin took a drag of his cigarette. “Don’t you have anything to say about this?”

Qian Jin then recounted in detail what happened at the dinner party organized by Wang Dong the previous night, and the findings of the investigation he had asked the Malaysian Chinese business leaders to conduct in the early hours of the morning. Finally, he earnestly apologized:

"I'm sorry, Wei She, I've increased the workload for our unit, but at the time..."

“You did the right thing back then. If you hadn’t spoken out about this to avoid work, you would have been a traitor!” Wei Bin slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

He walked up to Qian Jin with his hands behind his back, suppressing his anger, and said:
"I was born in 29. That was the year that that bastard Kanji Ishihara first presented his so-called theory of final war and the theory of no owner in Manchuria to the Kwantung Army. That was also the year they decided to occupy Manchuria and Mongolia by force!"

"But it's not 29 years now, it's 79 years, fifty years, half a century has passed. It's been 34 years since we drove out the invaders. Now it's an era that emphasizes Sino-Japanese friendship."

"This is the general direction of the country's diplomacy, and I, a cadre of a supply and marketing cooperative, cannot have any objections. However, the leader once said that the Chinese people and the Japanese people are of one mind and have only one enemy, namely the Japanese imperialists and the traitors of the Chinese nation!"

"These people from Kawasaki Heavy Industries are damned Japanese imperialists. You absolutely cannot be lenient with them!"

Qian Jin understood and solemnly said, "Please rest assured, Wei She, I will do my utmost to fight back against them."

Wei Bin said sternly, "Going all out isn't enough, you better remember that!"

His voice suddenly rose, booming across the small office like thunder—a tone he had never displayed at the expanded meeting of all cadres:
"This time! Dig out all the skills you've hidden deep inside! Squeeze them out! Leave nothing behind!"

"Give them all! Give them a good thrashing of those imperialists like Kawasaki! Avenge the Chinese people!"

Qian Jinda claimed that was true.

Wei Bin patted his arm and saw him out: "I will keep the news a secret, and you all should keep it a secret too. This time we are going to fight a counterattack against the invaders in foreign trade and economy!"

"Play it beautifully!"

Qian Jin said, "We will definitely win!"

He first reported to the Light Industry Bureau, and then the relevant leaders gave him a pep talk.

Same idea as Wei Bin.

Give those people from Kawasaki Heavy Industries a good beating.

Liu Chunlai, director of the Light Industry Bureau, pointed to the table with his finger and said:
"They are economic imperialists in peacetime. The existence of such people is a threat to peace between the two countries and a danger to our reform, opening up and economic development."

"Comrade Qian Jin, this time you're not leading a team to discuss cooperation, nor are you going to prevent losses for the country; you're going to fight a war!"

“I’ve discussed this with the city leaders. This Chuanqi Heavy Industry production line has already had an accident in Malacca, so why do they still dare to scam us?”

"It's very simple. They think that since we have just started reform and opening up, we have no experience in trading with international businessmen, and that we are weak, vulnerable to bullying, and susceptible to economic aggression!"

"As the leader said, 'A good start prevents a hundred blows.' If you throw this punch, you'll make those economic imperialists in the international community howl in despair, and they won't dare to extend their claws into China again."

"The city leaders said, if you do well, we'll all recommend you for commendation and even report it to the central government! If you don't, you can pack your bags and go home to take care of your wife and kids!"

Qian Jin was filled with fervor and once again shouted the slogan to fight the Japanese devils hard.

Liu Chunlai nodded at him: "Okay, now that we've finished talking about strategy, let's talk about tactics. Do you have any thoughts on this?"

Qian Jin nodded: "I already have an idea."

Liu Chunlai said with great interest, "Oh? Tell me about it."

Qian Jin said, "I think that after Chuanqi Heavy Industry suffered a setback in Malacca and Johor, they must be more prepared this time when they target us. They must have deliberately left loopholes in the contract for us."

"I need to find these vulnerabilities and figure out how to exploit them..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Chunlai frowned.

Not very satisfied.

It's too conventional, too ordinary, and its feasibility is extremely low.

Qian Jin continued, "Then we need to borrow troops."

Liu Chunlai frowned again, this time out of curiosity: "How do we borrow troops?"

Qian Jin said, "The United States has a group of people called lawyers. They have specialized experts in national trade law who are very good at extorting money."

“We ourselves are not good at fighting economic cases internationally, but these people are very good at it.”

"They have huge appetites, so we can make some concessions economically and let them make money. We're going to give Chuanqi Heavy Industry a good beating. We want a reputation for victory so that all the illegal economic groups in the world know that we're not to be trifled with!"

Liu Chunlai asked doubtfully, "Using the hands of American imperialist litigators? That might not be easy to do, would it?"

"You need to understand that imperialist powers are all in cahoots, especially the US, which has troops stationed in Japan. They're practically the supreme rulers of Japan. Would they help us fight against our own people?"

Qian Jin laughed.

Many leaders today are not familiar with the situation abroad, and they don't have much ability. They became leaders simply because they were able to do special things during a special era, and they rose to power in a muddle.

He then explained, "These lawyers are capitalists who hold American citizenship, and capital has no borders."

"They're not one of anyone's friends; they're only with money."

"So as long as we offer them great benefits, they can be used by us and become an economic mercenary force."

Liu Chunlai understood and said, "Okay, then go and carry it out."

The Light Industry Bureau's vehicle took him to the city government.

He returned once again to the familiar working group office, which had been converted from an unused archive room.

Two guards appeared at the office door, and Qian Jin was only allowed in after showing his secondment letter.

Clearly, the nature of the working group had changed at this point.

The working group that introduced advanced production lines has become the command center for the trade war.

In this situation, confidentiality is required.

The atmosphere in the office this time was much more tense than last time.

The air was like solidified stale porridge, containing only two smells: various smoky aromas mixed with the bitterness of tea stems.

The conference table was still made up of a few old, mottled, dark brown beechwood desks, piled high with small mountains of documents, curled-edge drawings, and stained cans serving as ashtrays.

There were more chairs: several benches, wooden chairs, and two rattan chairs, all filled with about a dozen people.

There was an old technician from the fertilizer plant wearing faded overalls and patched sleeves.

There was an elderly engineer from the Light Industry Bureau with gray hair and wearing large black-rimmed glasses.

There was a factory office clerk wearing a gray khaki Zhongshan suit, looking cautious and uneasy.

There were also two officials in dark blue uniforms with four pockets, their faces stern, representing the government to oversee the situation. Amidst the swirling smoke, everyone wore tense expressions, their brows furrowed, and remained completely silent.

Only the flickering glow of a cigarette butt and the occasional sound of a stool leg rubbing against the concrete floor proved that this place was not deathly silent.

After Qian entered the room, more than a dozen people looked up at him.

No one greeted them.

Their eyes were full of wariness.

Qian Jin showed the transfer letter to the cadre, who nodded and said, "Director Qian? Please sit down, I've heard so much about you."

The two of them introduced themselves in hushed tones.

It wasn't the municipal party committee and light industry bureau leaders from the previous working group, but rather staff members of the Central Special Branch stationed in Haibin City.

Yang Dagang didn't come. After Qian Jin sat down, he looked at the others. Since none of them seemed inclined to introduce themselves, he buried himself in his notebook and started writing and drawing.

Almost an hour later, the office door was pushed open with a loud bang.

A draft from the corridor brought someone in.

Yang Dagang.

Yang Dagang's demeanor and presence at this moment were different from those at the dinner last night and in Wang Dong's office this morning.

Very serious, very fierce.

His dark face was taut with muscles, and his leopard-like eyes swept over every face in the room, his gaze like a tangible searchlight.

When he saw Qian Jin, his gaze softened: "Brother Qian, Director Qian, you've arrived?"

Qian Jin stood up and shook hands with him.

Yang Dagang led him to the head of the long table, pulled out a chair, and pressed him down to sit.

He stepped aside and then:

"boom!!!"

A muffled thunderclap suddenly exploded in the office.

Yang Dagang slammed his massive fist, as thick as a battering ram, onto the table.

Of all the people in the room, except for Qian Jin who barely lifted his eyelids, everyone else felt as if an invisible hand was pressing down on their shoulders, and their breathing became labored.

The two special operations officers exchanged a glance and silently lowered their heads.

This is a veteran officer who has repeatedly distinguished himself on the front lines.

Can not afford to offend.

Yang Dagang slowly withdrew his fist.

His knuckles were bright red, with even faint traces of blood seeping from his skin, but he didn't even flinch.

He placed his fist flat on his palm, like a hammer that had just been stained with blood.

Now, the atmosphere in the office is tense and competitive:

"Everyone! Is everyone here?!"

His voice was deep and powerful, as if each word was being spat out from between his teeth.

A young man immediately stood up and said, "Reporting to Director Yang, everyone is here."

Yang Dagang didn't look at him; his gaze swept over the faces of the trembling crowd again, finally settling firmly on Qian Jin:
"This is Qian Jin, our fertilizer plant's savior."

"You all know my situation, Yang Dagang. I'm not good at speaking, I'm uneducated, all I know is how to fight. But fighting a war requires a commander-in-chief, and Comrade Qian Jin is the commander-in-chief this time!"

"Logically speaking, I should introduce Comrade Qian Jin and his great achievements to convince you, but there's no time, so I, Yang Dagang, will just give a concise and straightforward introduction."

"Our work group's mission has changed. From now on, you will follow Comrade Qian Jin's instructions. From today onwards, Comrade Qian Jin is the commander! You may disobey what I say, but anyone who dares to disobey him will be dealt with by me!"

Everyone quickly replied, "Understood!"

Yang Dagang nodded grimly:
"Our fertilizer plant almost made a terrible mistake, but fortunately, Comrade Qian Jin was a timely help and saved us from a fatal error."

"From now on, I don't care whether you agree with this comrade as I do. Anyway, as long as Comrade Qian Jin gives the order, whether it's technical oversight, negotiating prices, scrutinizing contracts, or adhering to terms, no matter who is involved, you have to cross the river for him or level the mountain for him!"

As he spoke, he raised his blood-stained hand and made a sweeping, bloody swirl in the air, sending a gust of foul wind through the air:
“Every single one of them, from the factory to any other organization, dares to play dirty tricks behind our backs and hold us back! Who dares to disobey orders or pretend to comply while secretly opposing us…”

His voice suddenly rose, and the words he uttered were like grenades thrown out:
"Don't blame me, Yang Dagang, for following the rules! I'll skin you alive, pull out the tendons and ligaments from between your bones, and stuff them into the boiler!"

The room was deathly silent.

Only the second hand of the old wall clock ticked away, each second striking a nerve.

Qian Jin stood up, saluted, and turned to face the crowd.

Yang Dagang turned to Qian Jin, his voice suddenly softening:

“Comrade Qian Jin, the head of the working group is a bureau leader. I have already spoken with them. They are not in charge. I am the deputy head, and I am in charge.”

"But as for the specifics of how to work, I'll follow your instructions. You need people, guns, and vehicles, and I, Yang Dagang, along with the thousands of flesh and blood in the factory, can be at your disposal. You give the order, and we'll do it. There's only one thing—win this battle!"

Qian Jin said, "Alright, then Director Yang, comrades, I won't stand on ceremony."

"Bring out the contract; let's review it first today."

Someone hurriedly pulled out a book the size of an A4 sheet of paper, which looked like a doctoral dissertation.

This contract is very detailed and complex.

Qian Jin opened it and saw a brightly colored letterhead from Sichuan Heavy Industry Group on white paper with black text.

The title is normal:
"Final Technical Confirmation and Acceptance Milestones for the MK-IV Optimized Integration Platform Equipment Package" (in Chinese, English, and Japanese)
Qian Jin sneered as soon as he saw it, pointing at the contract and saying:
"Do you understand? They've been prepared to take you to international court for a long time. Sino-Japanese trade contracts are written in English. Who are they for? The International Court of Justice!"

An experienced technician asked anxiously, "Director Qian, what should we do? We've reviewed this contract many times and haven't found any problems."

As he spoke, he looked at the three factory office clerks.

The clerks were embarrassed.

They are responsible for reviewing contracts, and if there are loopholes in the contracts that they failed to discover, then the responsibility lies with them.

One of the senior clerks defended his side, saying, "Perhaps, maybe—I mean, is there such a possibility?"

"The contract is fine. Those Japanese are very cunning. They gave us a formal contract, and then tampered with the equipment?"

"You see, we haven't seen the equipment ourselves; the technicians are the ones who review its performance..."

"You're still trying to shirk responsibility now!" Yang Dagang slammed his hat on the table.

"Let me tell you, every single one of us in this working group bears responsibility, and a great responsibility at that!"

"Let me tell you, first do what Director Qian says and handle things well to try and redeem yourself. Otherwise, when you return to the factory, you'll be suspended from your posts, and if it gets serious, I'll ask the higher authorities to conduct a disciplinary investigation, and we'll all be fired!"

The group was utterly devastated and dared not utter another word.

Qian Jin smiled and pressed Yang Dagang down, saying, "Director Yang, I'm not trying to smooth things over, but I want to say something fair."

He stood up and looked at everyone: "Kawasaki Heavy Industries set a trap for us to step into. This trap is naturally very ingenious and well-hidden. They came prepared, and we are not professionals, so it is understandable that we did not discover the problem."

"So comrades, let's put the past behind us and look forward and move forward."

“There must be problems in the contract and equipment data sheet, otherwise why would they wait for us to hold them accountable after the scandal breaks? It’s okay that we haven’t found anything yet, just keep trying, there’s still some time before formal negotiations.”

"Come on, comrades, let's get to work!"

Immediately, the office transformed into a wartime command post, devoid of gunfire but filled with documents.

Under the stark white light of the incandescent bulbs, the clerks flipped through the Chinese contracts, Qian Jin compared them with the English contracts, and the engineers and technicians discussed the equipment specifications.

Time is the key to victory.

Everyone has to work overtime.

Time passed by day or two, and another night came.

Outside the window, the night was as dark as ink in late autumn and early winter, and the cold air seeped in through the cracks in the window, but no one felt cold.

The room was full of men, and apart from Qian Jin, they were all heavy smokers, their bodies burning from smoking.

In addition, the hot tea is constantly steaming, and everyone's high anxiety and excessive thinking lead to a vigorous metabolism and a high calorie intake.

The ashtray was already overburdened, with twisted cigarette butts spilling onto the table and the floor.

To maintain secrecy, no cleaners came to clean, and everyone was sometimes too busy to clean properly.

As a result, cigarette butts and ash became entangled with scattered documents, thick foreign language technical dictionaries, and messy drawings.

The hands of the wall clock slid listlessly past ten o'clock at night.

Time was of the essence, and every step the minute hand took felt like a saw cutting through everyone's taut nerves.

"No, it still won't work!" The technical section chief, Engineer Zhao, abruptly removed the glasses wrapped in tape from his nose and vigorously rubbed his sunken, red eyes.

Yang Dagang looked over with a stern face.

Engineer Zhao didn't dare look at him, his head bowed, his face filled with utter despair: "We've scrutinized every single word! We've looked at every international standard, like ASTM, DIN, JIS..."

"I've scrutinized it over and over again, examining the material specifications, inspection methods, tolerance ranges..."

"The standard version cited in the Japanese contract is fine; the wording is precise, but it's hard to argue with!"

"That 'optimization and integration platform' trick was packaged perfectly in the technical appendix! Are they playing a game of deception? Using old stuff as new material? But we... we didn't find the trap."

Yang Dagang slammed his fist on the table, making the teacup lid rattle.

Qian Jin pressed him down and whispered, "Don't worry, I have a plan. Brother Yang, just be patient."

The others looked up, their eyes bloodshot and filled with the restlessness of trapped animals.

"Damn it, I really want to..."

"What do you really want?" Qian Jin asked gently. "Do you want to use your fists to reason with Tokyo about the contract terms? Or do you expect international friends to uphold justice?"

Qian Jin smiled and said, "The work is very difficult, which was expected. Because Chuanqi dared to do this because he was sure that we had a lack of technical information, legal means, and almost no experience in international arbitration."

His gaze slowly swept across the faces of the group, finally settling on the contract on the table, which seemed as solid as an impenetrable fortress.

"It seems we can't pry this iron plate with our current strength; we need to use someone else's help."

"Leverage connections?" A clerk suddenly looked up, as if grasping at a last straw. "Director Qian, you mean go to higher-ups? Go to the Light Industry Bureau? No, the Light Industry Bureau won't do. We have to go to the provincial level to find someone?"

Qian Jin shook his head slightly, making a very small gesture: "Distant water cannot quench immediate thirst, and there are few relevant talents in the province, and the coordination mechanism is complicated and the process is lengthy."

"Most importantly, what we need now is not macro-level guidance, but a sharp knife that can precisely strike the enemy's weak points, a tactical expert who can fight fire with fire on the battlefield where they are most proficient."

Yang Dagang said, "Director Qian, just tell me directly, what exactly do you need?"

Qian Jin said, "We need international trade law firms that understand international commercial law, are familiar with the tricks of Japanese companies, can exploit contract loopholes, and can set up countermeasures."

Yang Dagang asked expectantly, "Director Qian, do you have any more capable people like this in your team? I've heard that your Foreign Investment Office is full of hidden talents."

Qian Jin laughed and said, "Our Foreign Investment Office can't do much in this matter. Fortunately, the national leaders have a long-term vision and completed the normalization of diplomatic relations with the United States this year."

"We need to take advantage of this opportunity now, the opportunity provided by the national leadership, and get lawyers from the American empire to help us!"

Everyone was dumbfounded: "Huh?"

The special operations officer hurriedly said, "This requires approval from the leadership."

Qian Jin said, "I have already asked for permission, but you can ask again if you wish."

After these past few days of hard work, both those in charge and those in management have surely discovered it.

The four members of the pilgrimage team were no match for the formidable demon, Kawasaki Heavy Industries; they needed to send the Monkey King to fetch reinforcements!
(End of this chapter)