Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

Meanwhile, at the Red Star Courtyard, Zhang Guilan's divorce scandal was also making headlines.

Zhao Xiulan had already helped Zhang Guilan submit her divorce application, and the neighborhood committee staff had also come to mediate several times. However, Jia Zhangshi threw a tantrum and refused to agree, even causing a scene at Zhang Guilan's parents' home.

Upon learning of this, Zhang Guilan's two older brothers immediately led a group of people to the courtyard house. They blocked the entrance to the Jia family's residence, banging on the table and shouting.

"Mrs. Jia! My sister has suffered in your family for so many years, divorce is the only right thing to do! If you dare to cause any more trouble, don't blame us for being impolite!"

The Jia family was already in the wrong, and they were so frightened by the two strong men that they immediately lost their temper.

Jia Dongxu lay on the bed, looking at the noisy courtyard, and could only sigh.

The neighbors were divided into two factions: one sympathized with Zhang Guilan's plight and felt that her divorce was a relief for her.

The other faction felt she was "unfaithful" and gossiped behind her back. The conflict within the courtyard house became increasingly acute.

Unbeknownst to anyone, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense had already received news of fluctuations in the pass rate of parts at the steel rolling mill, and an investigation team was on its way.

A crisp notification sound suddenly rang in Lin Weidong's mind:

[Ding! The host has upheld his principles and remained steadfast in the face of false accusations, triggering a system reward!]

[Reward: One solution for a military production quality traceability system!]

These past two days, with Lin Weidong at home, Jia Zhangshi would occasionally come to the door to make sarcastic remarks, but ever since Lin Weidong slapped her twice, she only dared to gossip in the yard.

These past few days, Yan Bugui felt that the air in the courtyard was sweet. Now that Lin Weidong had collapsed, if he weren't so reluctant to spend the money, he would have loved to buy two strings of firecrackers to celebrate.

That day, Yang Weimin was sitting in the factory director's office when the cigarette between his fingers burned halfway down, and he only snapped back to reality when it burned his finger.

The steel procurement files spread out on the table were crumpled from being flipped through.

Yesterday afternoon, he received confirmation that an investigation team from the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense would be stationed at the steel rolling mill early this morning to specifically investigate fluctuations in the pass rate of military parts and steel quality issues.

"Old Zhou, please 'organize' this batch of files again."

"Just say that this batch of substandard steel was produced by a small local state-owned factory with inadequate technology, and that we are also victims, and it has nothing to do with the factory."

Old Zhou's face turned pale, and he nodded while wiping the sweat from his forehead: "Factory Director, this...is this going to work? If the investigation team investigates further, we won't be able to hide the fact that we bypassed the material bureau's designated supplier."

"Investigate further? If we don't, we're both finished! That factory manager, Mr. Li, gave me a lot of scarce cotton cloth and sugar back then. If this gets out, we'll both end up in jail!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the office door was pushed open, and Deputy Factory Director Li Huaide walked in.

He held a document in his hand, his face expressionless: "Director Yang, the procurement files are important documents for the factory. According to regulations, they must be archived for future reference and cannot be altered arbitrarily. I have already had the original supply contracts, quality inspection reports, and material allocation orders locked in a secure cabinet."

Factory Director Yang's face instantly darkened: "Li Huaide, what do you mean?"

"It doesn't mean anything. Military production cannot tolerate any fraud. If the investigation team is coming, let them find out the truth."

The two stared at each other, sparks flying in the air.

Factory Director Yang knew that Li Huaide had always disliked him and was now likely to take advantage of his misfortune. He gritted his teeth but dared not lash out on the spot, for Li Huaide held evidence that he could not refute.

Meanwhile, the chatter in the workshop was like the buzzing of flies, never ceasing.

"Have you heard? People from the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense are coming to investigate!"

"They're definitely after Factory Director Yang! That batch of steel wasn't allocated by the Materials Bureau at all; he got it from a small factory on his own. Something's been fishy for a long time!"

"Chief Engineer Lin is so wronged! He was clearly framed, yet he's been suspended!"

The workers huddled together in twos and threes, whispering among themselves. Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong, locked up in the security office, were blaming each other through the iron bars.

"It's all your fault! You said framing someone was foolproof, but now look what's happened, the investigation team is here, we're all doomed!" Yi Zhonghai yelled, the bruises on his face still visible, his eyes filled with resentment.

Liu Haizhong slumped to the ground, his face ashen.

His biggest ambition in life was to climb the social ladder, but now he has not only failed to obtain any official position, but has also become a prisoner.

He glared at Yi Zhonghai and said resentfully, "If you hadn't egged me on, would I have followed you into doing such a stupid thing? Director Yang promised me that he would promote me to deputy workshop director after it was all done, but now it seems like it was all empty talk!"

The two of them exchanged insults, their spittle flying everywhere, completely losing their former imposing manner in the courtyard.

Lin Weidong's home, however, was quiet.

Lin Weidong was holding a pen, marking key points on the drawing. From the machine tool number of the part to the batch source of the steel, and then to the process parameters of heat treatment, the dense handwriting formed a clear quality traceability chain.

Beside him lay two other items: fragments of a broken office lock, deformed from being pried open, and a copy of the entry and exit records for the workshop's scrap warehouse. These two items were irrefutable evidence of Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong's framing.

"Dongzi, the investigation team is here. You'd better stay calm."

He sighed, "That Yang Weimin guy will definitely try every means to muddy the waters."

Lin Weidong put down his pen: "The truth cannot be hidden, and falsehood cannot be made true. The evidence I have is enough to expose all the lies."

At 9:00 a.m. sharp, three jeeps slowly drove into the gate of the steel rolling mill.

The car door opened, and three cadres dressed in Zhongshan suits stepped out. The one in the lead was an old cadre with gray hair and sharp eyes like an eagle; he was none other than Old Chen, the head of the investigation team.

Factory Director Yang was already waiting at the door with his men, his face plastered with a fawning smile: "Team Leader Chen, you must be tired from your journey! I've prepared lunch at the guesthouse, please rest for a bit..."

"No need. We're here to investigate a case, not to eat and drink. Now, take us to see the military parts inspection report, the original steel procurement files, and Comrade Lin Weidong's suspension document."

Director Yang's smile froze on his face, and he could only nod awkwardly, leading the investigation team toward the office building.

In the conference room, Old Chen got straight to the point: "From what we understand, the pass rate of military artillery shell casings produced by the steel rolling mill has been fluctuating abnormally recently, and a batch of special steel also has serious quality problems. Director Yang, can you explain this to us?"

Factory Director Yang composed himself and began to feign ignorance: "Team Leader Chen, this is a misunderstanding! That batch of steel was produced by a small local state-owned factory with outdated technology, and the steel it produced did not meet the standards. We are also victims."

"As for the fluctuation in the pass rate, it's because... because Comrade Lin Weidong was young and impetuous, and his technical approach was somewhat reckless, which led to problems in the processing."

"Oh? So, according to you, Comrade Lin Weidong was suspended from his duties because of his overly ambitious technological advancements?"

"Yes...yes!" Factory Director Yang nodded quickly.