I painted an aircraft carrier on the courtyard house for Dongda University.

The next morning, Zhou Weiguo got up feeling refreshed. After washing up, he drove Natasha straight to the steel rolling mill.

As soon as he arrived at the factory gate, he saw Wang Jianguo carrying an empty lunchbox, waving at him from afar.

"For the country! Comrade Natasha!" Wang Jianguo strode up to her, a playful smile on his face. "Come on, come on, your second canteen is serving breakfast for the first time today. I came especially to join in the fun and try it out together!"

Zhou Weiguo became interested upon hearing this, and with a smile, started the car and drove towards the second canteen.

Upon entering the cafeteria, the scene before him immediately caught his eye—the once slightly dilapidated cafeteria had been cleaned up and made spotless, with tables and chairs arranged neatly, and a faint aroma of food wafting in the air.

There weren't many people in the canteen at that time, only about ten early-rising workers. Only two food windows were open, but everything was in good order.

"I'm really benefiting from working with you guys in the tech field!" Wang Jianguo exclaimed. "There aren't many factories in the entire city of Beijing that can provide such good breakfasts."

Zhou Weiguo followed his gaze to the window, where steaming hot soy milk and fried dough sticks were on one side, and large steamed buns and millet porridge were on the other, making one's mouth water.

The person getting food at the window turned out to be Ersheng.

"Ersheng, how are you settling in at the factory lately?" Zhou Weiguo greeted him with a smile.

When Ersheng looked up and saw it was him, he immediately flashed a憨厚 (honest and simple) smile: "Uncle Weiguo! You've come for breakfast! It's nothing new! The kitchen is mostly staffed by family members now, and Brother Zhuzi even arranged a few helpers for us. My dad said we were just sitting around anyway, so he had us brothers take turns making a hot breakfast for everyone. The factory is very supportive. What would you like to eat? I'll get it for you!"

"Give me three steamed buns and a bowl of porridge," Zhou Weiguo said. "Oh, by the way, I didn't bring a lunchbox. Do you have any bowls here?"

"Yes, yes, yes! Please wait a moment!" Er Sheng replied quickly and turned to get the bowls and chopsticks.

A short while later, Zhou Weiguo, Natasha, and Wang Jianguo brought their food and sat down at a table.

Zhou Weiguo took a bite of the steamed bun, and the familiar fresh aroma instantly spread in his mouth. He was stunned for a moment, then finished it in a few bites and picked up another one—two with pork and scallion filling and one with three kinds of seafood filling, each one with a rich and mellow flavor.

Still wanting more, he went to the window and grabbed a three-delicacy bun, asking as he ate, "Ersheng, why do these buns taste so familiar? Who makes them?"

Ersheng scratched his head and explained with a smile, "Haha, Uncle Guo, you must have eaten the steamed buns from Zhao Qingfeng's Steamed Bun Shop in Xidan, right? This skill was passed down to me by my uncle, who owns the Zhao Qingfeng Steamed Bun Shop in Xidan."

Zhou Weiguo suddenly realized, and exclaimed with a smile, "No wonder it's so authentic! Your father's fellow disciples are truly a hidden gem!"

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Zhou Weiguo said goodbye to Wang Jianguo and headed straight for the workshop. As soon as he entered the workshop, he saw a group of people gathered in a corner, all with excited expressions on their faces, occasionally whispering a few words to each other.

He squeezed in and was immediately stunned—a single-cylinder, two-stroke diesel engine was prominently displayed in the middle. Although the outer casing still showed some rough machining marks, the overall structure was complete and already took shape. He had only given out the blueprints not long ago, and yet a finished product had already been built?

"Engineer Zhou! You're here!" Mechanical engineer Zhang Heng was the first to spot him, quickly approaching him, his voice brimming with excitement. "The drawings you provided were so detailed! We worked through the night and finally assembled the engine. Please take a look!"

Zhou Weiguo walked closer for a careful inspection, reached out and touched the engine block, and nodded approvingly: "Not bad, not bad, the shape and structure match perfectly. Your efficiency is amazing!"

Zhang Heng smiled sheepishly: "It's mainly thanks to your excellent guidance on the blueprints, plus the hands-on work of several master craftsmen in the factory, and the use of the most advanced machine tools to process the parts, that we were able to achieve results so quickly. This is all thanks to everyone's hard work; we dare not take credit for it."

Zhou Weiguo patted him on the shoulder and raised his voice to those around him, saying, "Everyone, give it your all and get this engine running at its best. Once we've built the motorcycle, the next step is for me to lead you in building cars!"

"Great!" "Let's build cars!" The workshop erupted in cheers, and everyone's face was filled with anticipation and enthusiasm.

Seeing that everyone in the workshop was full of energy and high spirits, Zhou Weiguo didn't hesitate either. He rolled up his sleeves and took the lead in studying the blueprints of the tractor's transmission system.

The parameters of gear meshing, the load-bearing design of the drive shaft, the linkage structure of the clutch... He marked and modified the drawings while explaining the key points to the technicians who gathered around. The only sounds in the workshop were the clanging of tools and the occasional discussion.

Before he knew it, it was afternoon. Zhou Weiguo was squatting next to the machine tool, adjusting the sample of the transmission components. Beads of sweat dripped down his face, and his work clothes on his back were already soaked with sweat.

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded at the workshop door, and apprentice Xiao Song rushed in: "Engineer Zhou! There's a Master Wu outside looking for you; he says it's urgent!"

Zhou Weiguo wiped his sweat, handed the wrench to the technician next to him, and quickly walked out of the workshop.

Wu Yousheng was standing under the sycamore tree at the entrance of the workshop, clutching a brown paper envelope in his hand, looking somewhat anxious.

"Weiguo, come on! Come with me right now!" Without saying a word, Wu Yousheng grabbed Zhou Weiguo's arm and pulled him outside.

"Brother Wu, what's wrong? I'm busy here!"

Zhou Weiguo, completely bewildered, was dragged to a bicycle parked by the roadside. Before he could ask any questions, he was shoved onto the back seat. Wu Yousheng straddled the bike and pedaled furiously, only muttering, "Give me a hand, brother. You'll see when we get there!"

Zhou Weiguo felt something was off sitting on the bicycle, but seeing how anxious Brother Wu was, he couldn't say anything and could only lower his head and pretend to be an ostrich.

The bicycle wound its way through the alley where Wu Yousheng used to live until it finally stopped in front of the neighborhood office.

As soon as the two got out of the car, Wu Yousheng's face suddenly darkened, and he glanced warily at the corner of the wall diagonally opposite the street office.

Zhou Weiguo followed his gaze and saw Wu Yuejin leading three or four young men dressed in a slovenly manner, swaggering over.

Wu Yuejin's lips curled into a mocking smile as he sized Zhou Weiguo up and down: "You chose the path to hell when there was one. Not bad, kid, you've got some skills, managing to oust my brother from the steel mill?"

Zhou Weiguo was too lazy to argue with this brat. He frowned and waved his hand, saying, "Get lost. I have important business to attend to with Brother Wu. I don't have time to waste with you."

"Getting down to business?" Wu Yuejin suddenly leaned close to Zhou Weiguo's ear, his voice sinister, "You seem to be able to focus on business, but I wonder if your nephew He Yuzhu and niece He Yushui can be as 'stubborn' as you?"

P.S.: Please urge me to update more and give me good reviews. Thank you!