The Fitter Master in the Courtyard: Surrounded by Dead Men

He put his bicycle back in his own private space, pushed open the door, and went inside, his figure disappearing into the tranquility of the room.

As dusk settled, a faint golden afterglow lingered on the horizon.

As Yang Ping pushed his bicycle into the familiar courtyard, he immediately noticed the lively scene at the Yan family's house.

The newly pasted red double happiness characters on the window are particularly eye-catching, exuding a warm and joyful atmosphere in the gradually darkening light.

No need to ask further, it must be that Yan Jiecheng got married today.

As for who the bride was, he knew perfectly well—who else could it be but Yu Li? Some things, after all, were not for him to interfere with or change.

Outside the Yan family's house, a group of children were peeking in, while inside came bursts of laughter and chatter. It seemed that familiar neighbors in the courtyard were eating wedding candies and exchanging auspicious words, and the air was filled with a kind of trivial yet genuine joy.

"Yang Ping! Are you off work?"

Yan Fugui's voice came from the crowd.

He strode to the door, clutching two candies wrapped in red paper in his hand, a broad smile on his face, and handed them directly to Yang Ping. "Here, take these! Share in the good fortune!"

"Okay, sure."

Yang Ping took the candy and offered his congratulations, "May Jie Cheng and Yu Li have a long and happy marriage, and may you soon have a healthy baby boy."

Thank you for your kind words!

Yan Fugui nodded repeatedly.

Yang Ping smiled, said nothing more, and pushed the cart toward her house.

Today is a big day for the Yan family, and he didn't want to linger, lest he disturb the celebration.

As he passed through the courtyard, he caught a glimpse of Jia Dongxu sitting under the eaves.

The bruises on his face hadn't faded yet, but now they were all smiles, making him look rather comical.

Jia Dongxu also saw him, and gave a heavy "humph" through his nose.

He uttered a sound, turned his face away, but ultimately didn't dare to utter a single dirty word.

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They were probably afraid that if they made too much noise, it would attract Ma Dachui's gang again, and they would be accused of "undermining unity" once more.

His hat was bound to get him another beating.

The woman next to her, Madam Jia, stared intently at Yang Ping with her eyes wide open, her lips pressed together until they turned white, but she ultimately dared not utter a sound.

Yang Ping pretended not to notice the mother and son's angry but silent demeanor.

His expression remained unchanged as he calmly crossed the courtyard and headed straight for the backyard.

The gate to the Liu family's house was ajar, and Liu Guangqi was still tied up inside.

It's been about half a month now. That kid has been tied up inside, his eyes are sunken, and his face is sallow. He looks exactly like a prisoner suffering in jail.

Liu Haizhong is so afraid that his son will grow wings and fly away that he hasn't dared to loosen his ties yet.

This man is truly ruthless; no wonder none of his sons are willing to take care of him in his old age.

But what's the point of binding them like this? You can keep their bodies, but not their hearts.

When the rope is untied, Liu Guangqi will probably run faster than a rabbit and never look back.

Yang Ping glanced at it, didn't linger, and pushed her bicycle into her own yard.

He had just received word that the higher-ups intended to promote him to deputy director, but he didn't know if the appointment would be approved by tomorrow.

He harbored some hope of becoming a leader.

**In a workshop at Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, the machines hummed.

Yang Ping had just finished polishing a part and was carefully measuring it with calipers.

Lin Dahai, carrying a freshly machined workpiece, walked straight up to him.

"Master Yang, my level 7 work is now at the top level, and I'd like to try working on irregularly shaped parts."

These words were spoken calmly, and Yang Ping remained expressionless upon hearing them, but Xie Quancai, standing beside him, was so shocked that his eyes widened.

"Lin Dahai, are you talking nonsense?"

Xie Quancai even called "Master Lin"

They forgot to call out his name and just called him by his given name.

"Absolutely true."

Lin Dahai gestured with his chin toward his workstation, "A batch of top-grade parts just came out. You'll understand once you go and take a look."

"This...this is impossible!"

Xie Quancai thought there was something wrong with his ears. "You were just getting close to top-grade a few days ago, and now you're top-grade?"

He strode over to Lin Dahai's material rack, picked up a part, and carefully measured it.

The caliper markings are clearly defined – top grade.

When Xie Quancai saw that the part was rated as top grade, he found it hard to accept.

He then inspected several finished parts, and without exception, they all met the top-grade standard, with near-perfect dimensional accuracy.

"How...how is this possible?"

Xie Quancai simply couldn't believe what he was seeing.

If that's true, wouldn't Lin Dahai be an unparalleled genius, just like his apprentice?

The commotion gradually drew the attention of the workers nearby.

After understanding the situation, everyone stepped forward to measure and examine Lin Dahai's craftsmanship.

The result left them looking at each other in bewilderment—all the parts were maintained at a top-tier standard.

"It's really...unbelievable."

"That's amazing! Master Lin can actually consistently produce top-grade parts."

I remember he had only just begun to grasp the basics of being considered top-tier a few days ago.

"With such talent, he's not much different from Master Yang."

"That still can't compare."

Master Yang is only in his early twenties, how can you compare? Besides, if Master Yang hadn't personally guided him, how could Master Lin have improved so quickly?

"I was wondering why Master Yang had been going to Master Lin's place so often these days. It turns out he was trying to get him on the path to becoming an eighth-level fitter."

Immediately, discussions arose.

Everyone's face was filled with astonishment.

No one expected Lin Dahai's skill level to improve so quickly that he could now rival Yang Ping.

Ultimately, everyone attributed all of this to Yang Ping.

These days, Yang Ping often personally guides Lin Dahai. Without such intensive and comprehensive instruction, it would be extremely difficult for him to stand firmly on the top line of the seventh-level fitter.

Thinking of this, everyone's admiration for Yang Ping deepened, and their respect for him grew even stronger.

"Okay, come and polish it on my workbench. The blueprints are right next to the machine tool."

Yang Ping stepped aside to give up her workstation.

He was not surprised by the scene before him.

When he shared his experience and memories as an eighth-level fitter with Lin Dahai, the latter already possessed the corresponding strength.

These past few days have merely been spent familiarizing myself with and consolidating my skills, and incidentally, putting on a show of gradual progress in front of everyone.

Lin Dahai did not hesitate at all.

He quickly sat down at Yang Ping's workstation, his eyes fixed on the design drawings of the irregularly shaped parts, memorizing all the parameters.

Next, he started tidying up the machine tools, removing the accumulated dust, calibrating the parts, and meticulously completing all the preparations.

Only when everything was ready did he take the special material, fix it on the lathe, and begin cutting and polishing.

Yang Ping silently observed all of this.

He had already foreseen the outcome, so his expression remained calm and unperturbed.

Xie Quancai and several of his fellow workers unconsciously held their breath.

They clenched their fists tightly, afraid that the slightest movement would disturb Lin Dahai, cause the test to fail, and dampen the young man's spirit.

At that moment, Lü Shuitian's footsteps approached from afar.

He came here out of curiosity because he saw Yang Ping, Xie Quancai and others gathered here to watch.

Upon seeing the alien parts that Lin Dahai was working on, Lü Shuitian's face immediately tightened, and he hurriedly raised his hand to cover his mouth.

At this critical juncture, if he were to make even the slightest noise and ruin the progress, he would want to slap himself twice.

Time passed quietly.

More and more people gathered, and the small work area gradually filled with figures.

But at Lü Shuitian's signal, everyone fell silent as statues, their eyes fixed on the spinning machine and Lin Dahai's steady hands.

More than half an hour passed in the low metallic hum.

Lin Dahai finally stopped moving.

He picked up the measuring ruler and carefully checked every dimension of the part.

The onlookers seemed to hold their breath, countless eyes fixed on the silver-gray component in his hand, awaiting the final verdict.

"Master Yang, you pass, but your accuracy is rated as low."

Lin Dahai picked up the part, turned around to report, but suddenly froze before he could finish speaking—

He was surprised to find that the area in front of him was now crowded with people, a dense mass of heads, numbering at least a hundred, which startled him so much that his hand trembled slightly.

"Let me confirm."

Yang Ping stepped forward steadily, took the parts and measuring tape, and began to verify them personally.

"Inspection passed, special components meet standards, rating is Level 8!"

He proclaimed loudly.

"It's done!"

"Excellent!"

"We've gained another level-eight master craftsman in our workshop!"

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Especially Lü Shuitian, who almost jumped up and rushed forward to hug Lin Dahai tightly.

He knew in his heart that this was inseparable from Yang Ping's guidance, but Yang Ping never liked being hugged like this, so he turned to Lin Dahai.

"Director Lü, please loosen your grip... I can't breathe!"

Lin Dahai hurriedly called out.

"Okay, okay!"

Lu Shuitian then released his arms, his face still flushed with excitement.

In the blink of an eye, the news of Lin Dahai's promotion to level eight fitter swept through the entire workshop like a gust of wind.

Everyone knows that this is an eighth-grade worker trained by Yang Ping.

Everyone admired Yang Ping even more, and their desire to learn from him grew even stronger.

Unfortunately, Director Yang had already given a stern warning over the loudspeaker: anyone who disturbs Yang Ping again will be demoted, have three months' salary deducted, and in serious cases, may even be dismissed from the factory.

These words acted like an iron gate, stopping everyone from their eager steps.

Where some are happy, others are naturally sad.

The one who was worried was none other than Yi Zhonghai.

Director Lü, who used to be very polite to him, now ignores him; even some senior fitters have started to give him attitude openly or covertly, and have even contradicted him to his face.

Now there's another level eight worker in the workshop, and his status is visibly declining.

Over the years, he has often overshadowed other senior workers.

I'm afraid that from now on, a backlash is coming—everyone will probably stand up and oppose him.

Yi Zhonghai knew in his heart that the days ahead would likely become increasingly difficult.

When Jia Dongxu heard the news, his face gradually darkened, becoming as gloomy as if covered with frost.

When he was successfully promoted to a fifth-level fitter, a glimmer of hope flashed through his mind, thinking that perhaps one day he would be able to see Yang Ping's back.

However, reality caught him off guard—Yang Ping had not only already reached the pinnacle of the eighth level, but had also personally cultivated another eighth-level craftsman, and many of his apprentices had also joined the ranks of senior technicians.

Such a gap is no longer a question of whether to catch up or not, but an insurmountable chasm looming ahead, and it continues to widen every minute and every second.

Standing amidst the noisy chatter and humming of machines in the workshop, he felt something cold slowly seeping into his chest.

At this moment, Yang Ping did not notice the lost gaze in the distance.

Lu Shuitian strode up to him, her eyes filled with earnest gratitude. "Yang Ping, I truly don't know how to thank you."

He lowered his voice, "If it weren't for you, Lin Dahai would probably still be that insignificant sixth-grade worker, and he wouldn't have the success he has today."

In his words, he unequivocally attributed all the credit to the young man before him.

"Director Lü, you're too kind. I was just doing what I promised you."

Yang Ping smiled, her expression indifferent.

"Look at my memory!"

Lu Shuitian suddenly slapped his forehead, "Director Yang asked me to come find you earlier, but I almost forgot."

As he spoke, he turned and led the way, his tone warm. "Perfect timing! This time, I have to tell the factory manager how much you've accomplished—training an eighth-grade worker is such a feat! I'll definitely get you a generous reward."

Yang Ping nodded and followed.

He was clear-headed; the factory director's summons was most likely related to a change in his position.

Yesterday, Lü Shuitian had already hinted that the position of deputy workshop director would likely fall to him, and he would only need to spend two hours a day guiding his colleagues, while he could spend the rest of his time studying in the R&D department.