Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

The next day, everyone went to work early, leaving only a group of women and children in the courtyard.

Aunt Yi has been so worried lately because of Yi Zhonghai's detention.

Looking at the few hundred yuan left in her savings, the old lady sighed, "Oh dear, what am I going to do? Without income, this money won't be enough for my retirement."

"Recently, the neighborhood committee stopped making matchboxes for me because of Lao Yi. If all else fails, I might as well go back to the countryside."

The older woman got up and started packing her things to see if she could go back to the countryside first, and then decide what to do if Yi Zhonghai came back later.

Just then, the deaf old woman, who hadn't seen the older woman emptying her chamber pot, knocked on the door, "knock knock knock."

Hearing the knock, an older woman put down the clothes she was holding and went to open the door. When she saw that it was a deaf old woman, the older woman quickly invited her in.

"Why didn't Xiao Yi's wife empty my chamber pot this morning?"

"Grandma, I was busy collecting the laundry and forgot. I'll go empty your pantry as soon as I'm done."

Upon seeing this, the deaf old woman quickly asked, "Where are you going?"

Then, the older woman looked troubled and told the deaf old woman her concerns. After listening, the deaf old woman said, "If you dare to leave, I'm afraid my old bones won't make it through this winter."

The old woman looked troubled and sighed, "Grandma, it's not that I'm heartless, it's just that we're starving."

"Don't worry about the money. As long as you stay and continue to take care of me, I'll give you ten yuan every month."

Ten yuan is no small sum these days! The old woman suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with disbelief.

The deaf old woman knew that the matter was settled when she saw the other party's expression; she had accumulated a considerable fortune over her life.

As a remnant of the Qing Dynasty, she had amassed a considerable fortune of valuable antiques and paintings, and even hid several heavy jars of gold under her bed. This amount of money was nothing more than a drop in the ocean for her.

"Don't worry, as long as you serve me well, you'll get your share of the benefits."

"As long as you continue to support me in my old age, all my assets after I pass away, including the house I live in now, will be yours."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged woman's mind immediately shifted.

Going back to the countryside means hardship, but staying in the city means not only having food to eat, but also receiving ten yuan a month.

Moreover, you can inherit the deaf old lady's estate. Where else can you find such a good deal?

She immediately nodded in agreement: "Grandma, don't worry, I will definitely take good care of you."

The deaf old woman nodded in satisfaction and slowly went back into the house, leaning on her cane. She knew in her heart that she was getting old and couldn't live without someone to take care of her; offering money to keep people around was the safest way.

After putting down her clothes, the woman rushed to the deaf old lady's house to cook her a bowl of noodles. Not only that, she also cleaned the house.

At the same time, Lin Weidong was sitting at his desk in his office, writing a letter to his mentor at Harbin Institute of Technology.

There wasn't a single superfluous word on the paper; it simply mentioned that he possessed a complete set of production blueprints for a new type of automatic rifle, whose performance far surpassed that of currently in service.

This blueprint for the Type 95 automatic rifle is a great gift from the system, and it is also the key to propelling the country's military industry forward by a significant step.

He believed that the teacher would take the letter seriously once they saw it.

After having lunch in the cafeteria, Lin Weidong went directly to the post office to mail the letter.

Two days after receiving the letter, Chen Yuqiao read its contents and immediately contacted several of his old friends who were involved in weapons development.

After reading Lin Weidong's letter, the group decided to go to Beijing to verify the truth of the matter. It wasn't that they didn't believe Lin Weidong, but the matter was too important.

Just a few days later, the train station in Beijing welcomed a group of special guests.

Lin Weidong's mentor, accompanied by three weapons experts in military uniforms, arrived at his door, looking travel-worn.

They went straight to Lin Weidong's house after leaving the train station. When Qin Huairu saw that so many people from the Lin family had come and specifically asked for Lin Weidong, she went to the steel rolling mill to inform Lin Weidong.

At Lin Weidong's home, Lin Weidong slowly unfolded the blueprints.

The experts' eyes lit up as they looked at the densely packed lines and data on the yellowed sketch paper.

When they turned to the last page of performance parameters, an expert with graying hair slapped his thigh, his voice trembling: "Great! Excellent! This gun's design is far ahead of its time!"

After the initial excitement, the experts quickly calmed down.

The leading expert solemnly grasped Lin Weidong's hand: "Comrade Weidong, this blueprint is of great significance, and I must immediately return to the weapons research institute to report it. Rest assured, I will absolutely not steal your work."

"Haha, you flatter me, old man. I, Lin Weidong, am not the kind of person who would think that way."

The speed at which the message was reported was faster than expected.

Five days later, an official document was delivered to the steel rolling mill.

The weapons research institute, in conjunction with the steel rolling mill, established a special workshop to take full responsibility for the research and development and trial production of the Type 95 automatic rifle. The project leader was Lin Weidong.

Li Huaide held the document, his hands trembling with excitement.

He immediately made the decision to allocate the best equipment and technical personnel from the steel rolling mill to fully cooperate with Lin Weidong's work.

That evening, Li Huaide took his wife and children to his father-in-law's house for dinner.

Li Huaide's father-in-law was a recently retired senior official with a sharp eye. After listening to his story about Lin Weidong, he understood.

He immediately advised, "Huai De, Lin Weidong is a very capable guy. Don't worry about anything else, just put all your effort into helping him and keep up with him. Countless credits will fall on your head in the future!"

Li Huaide poured wine for his father-in-law while nodding repeatedly.

In the days that followed, his support for Lin Weidong went to the point of granting his every request.

Li Huaide provided full support to Lin Weidong in both production and logistics.

At the Xu family home, Xu Damao was lying on the bed recovering from his injuries.

The fractured areas were all put in casts, but fortunately Lin Weidong didn't kill them, so they can still recover.

Xu's parents already knew how he got injured. Xu's mother sat by the bed, tidying his clothes while muttering to herself.

"I told you long ago, don't mess with Lin Weidong! Who does that kid think he is now? You wouldn't listen, and now look what happened, you tried to steal a chicken but lost the rice instead!"

Xu Damao was seething with anger, but dared not refute it.

He was covered in injuries and could barely get out of bed, so he had no confidence to shout. He could only keep his head down and let his mother scold him, but the hatred in his heart grew wildly like weeds.

Meanwhile, at Sha Zhu's house, everyone was overjoyed. Qin Huairu had been feeling sleepy lately and had no appetite. A check-up at the hospital revealed that she was pregnant with her second child.

When Sha Zhu heard the news, he smiled at everyone he met in the yard and walked with a swagger.

He held Qin Huairu's hand, grinning from ear to ear: "Great! Great! We have another baby! I'll definitely work hard from now on so you and the three of you can live a life of luxury!"

Qin Huairu blushed and gently patted him, her eyes full of smiles.

When He Daqing heard that Qin Huairu was pregnant with her second child, he began to pray that it would be a boy. He Yuzhu already had a daughter and was just one son away from having both a son and a daughter.