Courtyard House: Initial Donation of 50 Million

If we turn our gaze to the original historical trajectory before Wang Huanbo's "butterfly" wings had flapped, within the compound of the Red Star Steel Rolling Mill, the actions and survival strategies of Li Huaide during the impending, tumultuous decade later known as the "Ten Years of Tumultuous Change" paint a complex picture of navigating the gray areas and navigating turbulent waters. This is not a narrative of Wang Huanbo's time and space, but rather a deduction and sketch of a possible "story" belonging to Li Huaide on another timeline, based on the original drama's plot.

In the original drama's narrative, Li Huaide's extraordinary "survival wisdom" and "resourcefulness" were already evident long before the "storm" began. He wasn't from a distinguished "old revolutionary" background, and while his in-laws had some connections, they weren't top-tier. His ability to secure a stable position as logistics director and later deputy director at the steel rolling mill was far more than just nepotism. He deeply understood the principle of "helping others is helping yourself," and was adept at navigating social situations. From leaders to workers, from the canteen to the warehouse, it seemed there was no link he couldn't reach, no scarce resource he couldn't obtain. He could solve problems that even the section chief struggled with using a few pounds of pork and a few bottles of good wine; he could also use seemingly heartfelt "intimate words" to temporarily silence those who had grievances against him. In an era of scarcity and rigid planning, this ability was a tremendous form of "soft power."

When the torrent of history swept in with an unprecedented "storm," many factories and units were instantly paralyzed. Leadership teams were impacted, production order was completely disrupted, and once highly respected master craftsmen and technical authorities were overthrown and criticized. People attacked each other due to differing opinions, factions, and even personal grudges, and armed clashes and production stoppages were commonplace. However, in this chaos, although the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill was not entirely unaffected, and the waves also crashed against its walls, it presented a peculiar, relatively "stable," and even "orderly" state internally. The machines did not completely stop running, and most production tasks could still be carried out with difficulty. Although there were university newspapers, criticism meetings, and various "fighting teams" flying their flags within the factory, there were no large-scale, prolonged armed clashes, nor were there any extreme incidents of unnatural deaths or disabilities among key leaders or technical backbone personnel.

All of this was inextricably linked to Li Huaide, who had already risen to the position of deputy factory director and wielded considerable real power (especially in areas of tangible benefits such as material allocation and personnel arrangements). He was not a resister of the "storm"; in a sense, he was even one of those who "went with the tide" or "rose by taking advantage of the situation." However, unlike many other radicals in other places who, once they gained power, acted recklessly and sought to completely crush their "opponents," Li Huaide displayed a more tactful and pragmatic approach.

First and foremost, he placed extreme importance on the crucial indicator of "production." No matter how loud the slogans were proclaimed, he remained acutely aware that the factory's very existence depended on output—completing the production tasks assigned by superiors and maintaining basic operations. This directly impacted the livelihoods of thousands of employees and the stability of his own position. Therefore, when certain "rebel" leaders clamored for a "shutdown to make revolution," Li Huaide would often step in to "coordinate," employing various methods: sometimes "persuasion and education," emphasizing the dialectical relationship between "grasping revolution and promoting production"; sometimes it involved exchanging favors, offering material quotas or easier positions; and sometimes it involved appeasement and division, supporting the relatively "moderate" faction or those with whom he had a past while suppressing the more radical one. He might not genuinely support any particular line, but he absolutely supported the reality of "keeping production running."

Secondly, he was adept at "protecting" valuable "assets"—referring not only to materials but also to people. For those in the factory who possessed key technologies, especially the veteran craftsmen and engineers not directly involved in sensitive political issues, Li Huaide often adopted a strategy of "overt approval but covert protection." When things were tense outside, and someone wanted to denounce a certain "bourgeois technical authority," he might preemptively use the pretext of "the factory's revolutionary committee needing to investigate their technical issues" or "isolation for writing self-criticism" to transfer them to relatively secluded warehouses, archives, or even "cowsheds" (often slightly better single rooms). Ostensibly, it was detention and investigation, but in reality, it was disguised protection, keeping them away from the eye of the storm, and even secretly providing them with basic living necessities. For cooks like Sha Zhu, who, despite their temper, were indispensable, he protected them in every way, firmly binding them to the canteen, using their skills to serve the factory's necessary "reception" work, and also providing Sha Zhu with a safe haven.

Furthermore, he was adept at using rules and resources to "balance" and "appease." Li Huaide held immense power over logistics, a power akin to "Satanic candy" in an era of extreme scarcity. He skillfully used his authority over resource allocation to maintain balance between factions: allocating more labor protection supplies to one faction, resolving housing difficulties for a few families in another, and arranging temporary factory jobs for the children of third parties… While this couldn't completely quell the disputes, it was enough to give most people "hope," preventing a complete breakdown in relations and a life-or-death struggle. Regarding the actual difficulties faced by ordinary worker families, as long as they didn't cross the line or provoke him, he would also provide some assistance within his authority, such as issuing more industrial coupons or helping to procure scarce medicines. This earned him considerable goodwill from many workers, especially veteran workers and neutral parties, who considered him "capable" and "practical," far superior to those who only shouted slogans.

More importantly, Li Huaide deeply understood the principle of "leaving a way out for others, so that you can meet again in the future," and rarely went to extremes. When dealing with disgraced opponents, such as the former factory director Yang Weimin (assuming he lost power in the later part of the original timeline), Li Huaide, after gaining the upper hand, did not pursue them relentlessly. Instead, he often showed leniency, arranging for them to hold sinecure positions (such as inspector or researcher) or have them sweep the streets (ostensibly punishment, but actually keeping them away from the core struggle), preserving their basic dignity and treatment. This approach of "not going too far" certainly contained elements of hypocrisy and calculation (preventing the other party from going down in flames while also leaving himself a way out), but in that crazy era, it was rare, ensuring that the political struggle within the factory remained at a relatively "civilized" level, preventing it from sliding into the abyss of physical extermination.

Of course, Li Huaide was by no means a saint, much less a "white" figure. In the midst of the storm, he also used his power to amass substantial benefits for himself, his family, and his cronies. Specially supplied goods, scarce resources, recruitment and promotion quotas… many of these flowed into his inner circle. His lifestyle remained consistently above average. For those who were "uncooperative," stood in his way, or whom he perceived as a threat, he would not hesitate to use methods to suppress and exclude them. His "protection" was selective and costly, contingent on your value and "obedience"; his "help" often came with implicit requests for reciprocation. He operated in a gray area, flexible in his approach, with everything centered on maintaining and expanding his own power and interests.

However, in those absurd and cruel years, Li Huaide, with his shrewd calculations, flexible tactics, and unwavering commitment to "production" and "stability," did indeed act as a "buffer" and "stabilizer" to a considerable extent. This ensured that while the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill was tossed about in the storm, its machinery rusted, morale low, and technology stagnant, it ultimately did not completely capsize and descend into bloody chaos and collapse like many of its sister units. Most employees' families were spared, basic production continued, and violence within the factory was kept at a low level. This, perhaps, is the unique role played by Li Huaide, a complex figure, within a specific historical context, a role that cannot be simply judged by right and wrong. His successful "landing" and relatively peaceful ending were also largely due to his "leaving room for maneuver" during this period and avoiding any deep-seated, irreconcilable hatred.

However, all of this will be a possible "story" on another timeline, unaffected by Wang Huanbo's "butterfly" influence. In this late autumn of 1955, the lights in the west courtyard still shine for technical blueprints, and Li Huaide is meticulously planning how to better complete the tasks assigned by Engineer Wang and solidify his position in the factory. The great tide of the era has not yet arrived, but the underlying character and logic of certain individuals seem to have already been foreshadowed. Where the future will lead remains uncertain. But what is certain is that when the storm truly arrives, different people will make different choices, enacting drastically different chapters of fate. And everything accumulated and changed at the Red Star Factory at this moment may become a crucial cornerstone and variable for resisting future storms.