Courtyard House: The Road to an Industrial Power

As soon as the morning whistle of the steel rolling mill sounded, Lin Weidong and Su Wanqing rode their bicycles into the factory area.

As soon as Lin Weidong entered the workshop, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure.

Ji Boxiao, dressed in a sharp Zhongshan suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, stood with his hands behind his back in front of the first four-axis CNC machine tool, pretending to examine it closely while touching his chin.

Lin Weidong frowned almost imperceptibly.

At the last machine tool launch ceremony, this arrogant guy, who thought he was the nephew of the Minister of Industry, was thoroughly humiliated and left in a sorry state. How come he suddenly appeared here?

Upon hearing footsteps, Ji Boxiao turned around and saw the person approaching. He immediately put on a deliberately enthusiastic smile and quickly went to greet them.

"Chief Engineer Lin! Technician Su!"

Su Wanqing simply nodded indifferently in response.

She really didn't have a good impression of this guy who had questioned four-axis machine tools last time and was also a Western-worshipper.

Ji Boxiao, however, seemed oblivious to her coldness and greeted her as usual: "Technician Su, long time no see, you still look as radiant as ever."

After he finished speaking, he turned to Lin Weidong and began to introduce himself in a rapid-fire manner.

As if afraid others wouldn't know his background: "Chief Engineer Lin, you must still remember me, my name is Ji Boxiao."

"I just returned from studying at a top industrial college in Russia, majoring in precision mechanical manufacturing."

"You know my uncle, he's Minister Liu Jie of the Ministry of Industry. My parents are also high-ranking government officials, and they've always worked in ministries."

After he finished speaking, he deliberately puffed out his chest, his eyes full of pride, hoping that the other person would show a look of surprise or envy.

In his view, his background and education were enough to impress anyone, and even if Lin Weidong was very capable, he should still give him some face.

Lin Weidong merely glanced at him indifferently, without even stopping, and walked straight toward the control panel of the machine tool.

It was as if Ji Boxiao was just an insignificant speck of air in the workshop.

In Lin Weidong's eyes, it was better to check the machine tool's operating data quickly and ensure that mass production could proceed smoothly than to waste time with an idiot like Ji Boxiao.

Seeing Ji Boda's frozen smile, Su Wanqing couldn't help but throw out a sarcastic remark: "Technician Ji, so what if you've returned from studying abroad?"

"So what if they're children of high-ranking officials? In military factories, it's real skills, not family background, that matter."

"You can't put on airs here. If you want to be respected, you have to show some real results."

"And let me tell you, little four-eyes, next time you go out, make sure you wash your eye boogers off."

After saying that, she ignored Ji Boxiao and quickly followed Lin Weidong's steps, taking out her notebook from her bag to record today's debugging parameters.

Ji Boxiao's face turned pale and then flushed in an instant.

He never expected that his family background and education, which he was so proud of, would be of no use to Lin Weidong, and Su Wanqing even mocked him in public.

He then raised his hand and touched the corner of his eye, only to find that there was no eye discharge at all.

He secretly compared his options: Su Wanqing was the daughter of the deputy director of the weapons research institute, from a prominent family, and she was beautiful and capable, making her the ideal partner.

"If he can win her over, and with the connections of his parents and uncle, his career will surely be smooth sailing, and he'll be on his way to great heights."

Lin Weidong is just a worker's son with no background. Even if he has achieved some success now, he will eventually be left far behind by him.

In fact, Ji Boxiao came to the steel rolling mill with a dual purpose.

On one hand, it was arranged by his uncle, Liu Jie. Liu Jie knew that Ji Boda was all talk and no action, possessing an overseas study resume but lacking practical experience.

The military projects that Lin Weidong is in charge of are all key national projects with high technical content. Learning from Lin Weidong for a period of time can not only accumulate practical experience, but also serve as a valuable asset.

Whether they stay in the Ministry of Industry or are transferred to other important positions, they will have more leverage in the future.

On the other hand, it was for Su Wanqing.

He had already found out Su Wanqing's background through his uncle and learned that she was the only daughter of the deputy director of the weapons research institute.

Young, beautiful, and exceptionally capable, he immediately set his sights on her. In his eyes, only a high-ranking official's son like himself was worthy of a wealthy young lady like Su Wanqing.

Ji Boxiao took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and forced himself to remain calm as he followed them, trying to blend into their work:

"Chief Engineer Lin, Technician Su, I've come here with a learning attitude."

"The technology of four-axis linkage machine tools is indeed advanced. I would like to learn more from you and contribute to the country's military industry."

Lin Weidong didn't respond at all. His fingers tapped rapidly on the control panel, bringing up the machine tool's operation log and carefully examining each piece of data.

The mass production of four-axis CNC machine tools is key to his next step in advancing the research and development of new weapons.

Only a sufficient number of precision machine tools can meet the processing needs of new weapon parts. This is related to the improvement of national defense capabilities and cannot be taken lightly.

Su Wanqing also stared intently at the data flashing on the screen, occasionally exchanging a few words with Lin Weidong: "Chief Engineer Lin, look here, the wear rate of the third set of tools is slightly higher than expected. Should we adjust the cutting parameters?"

"Hmm, let me see."

"Reduce the rotation speed by 5%, adjust the cutting depth to 0.3 millimeters, and try again."

"Okay." Su Wanqing immediately started adjusting, and the two worked together seamlessly, completely ignoring Ji Boxiao next to them.

Ji Boxiao stood aside, watching the two skillfully operate the machine tools and discuss technical issues, feeling both jealous and resentful.

He had learned the theoretical knowledge of precision machine tools during his studies abroad, but when it came to actual operation, he found that he knew nothing and didn't even have the right to participate.

This sense of defeat made him hate Lin Weidong even more and made him even more eager to prove himself.

He tried to start a conversation: "Chief Engineer Lin, when I was studying in Russia, I saw their most advanced three-axis machine tools. Their technology is far ahead of ours in China."

"Although four-axis machine tools are advanced, I think we can still learn from Russian technology in some aspects."

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Weidong interrupted him: "Technician Ji, our four-axis machine tool was independently developed based on actual domestic needs."

"All technical specifications have undergone repeated testing and fully meet military production standards. Russian technology has its advantages, but it also has aspects that are not suitable for us. Blindly copying it will only be superfluous."

Su Wanqing echoed, "Chief Engineer Lin is right. Our machine tools have surpassed those of the Russians in terms of precision and stability. This is our own technological achievement, and there's no need to belittle ourselves."

Ji Boxiao was speechless and embarrassed to the point of wanting to disappear.

He didn't expect that his attempt to show off his study abroad experience would instead result in him being ridiculed.

Lin Weidong and Su Wanqing ignored him and continued to work on debugging the machine tool.