1950s: After transmigrating into a capitalist, I relied on military industry to achieve a comeback.

Inside the factory manager's office, the cast iron furnace glowed red-hot, the kettle on the lid hissed, and the rising steam added a touch of humid warmth to the room. This warmth effectively shut out the freezing cold outside the window, creating two separate worlds.

Zhao Weiguo personally picked up the thermos and poured Lin Jiaoyue a cup of hot tea. The white porcelain mug was printed with the five bright red characters "Serve the People." Because it was full, the steam rose and blurred Lin Jiaoyue's young but overly calm face.

This scene left Wang Dana, the workshop director who followed in, speechless, his eyes practically popping out of their sockets.

Lin Hongsheng stood awkwardly at the base of the wall, his hands tightly tucked into the sleeves of his patched and tattered cotton-padded jacket. His back was slightly hunched, and his eyes were somewhat evasive. He looked exactly like an honest farmer who had never seen the world and was intimidated by the aura of a high-ranking leader.

But who could know how many turbulent waves were hidden beneath the lowered eyes of "Lin Bancheng," a man who once dominated the business world in southern Jiangsu and could set grain prices with a single word?

In his entire life, he had sat in intricately carved rosewood armchairs, drunk priceless pre-Qingming Longjing tea, and even when a warlord slammed a gun on the table and forced him to dine, he had never felt his palms sweat like this. It wasn't fear, but excitement, and even more so, an irrepressible pride in his daughter.

"Director Zhao, you're too kind. This... this is not appropriate. You are my elder." Lin Jiaoyue held the teacup with both hands, her fingertips slightly red from the heat. She bowed slightly, her tone carrying just the right amount of fear and gratitude. Her obedient appearance would make anyone feel affection for her.

"Of course! Why not! The expert is my teacher!" Zhao Weiguo laughed heartily, sitting down behind his desk with an air of superiority. His eyes gleamed as he looked Lin Jiaoyue up and down, as if trying to see something in her. "Comrade Lin, that move you made in the workshop just now really opened my eyes! Let's be frank, who did you learn this amazing skill from?"

The moment the question was posed, the air in the room seemed to freeze for a moment, and even the crackling sounds from the stove seemed unusually loud.

Lin Hongsheng, standing at the base of the wall, clenched his fist tightly in his sleeve, his thumb digging into his index finger joint, his heart leaping into his throat.

Lin Jiaoyue, however, had already prepared her answer. She didn't reply immediately, but lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling, a look of nostalgia and sadness appearing on her face. Her voice was as soft as snowflakes falling outside the window:

"Factory manager, I don't have any proper mentor. I used to have a distant uncle who studied abroad and returned to China. He ran a machine factory in Shanghai. But then things got chaotic, the factory was destroyed, and he was gone too..."

At this point, she gave a bitter smile, looked up, and her eyes were so clear that it was hard to doubt her: "Before he left, he left me several large boxes of books, all in foreign languages, and many densely drawn drawings. When I was little, I was weak and couldn't go out, and I had no playmates, so I would read those books every day. Although I couldn't recognize all the words, I could always understand the pictures. After more than ten years of trying to figure it out, I only understand a little bit."

These words were seven parts truth and three parts falsehood. The so-called "uncle" was dead and could not testify, so he was the best shield.

"Skimmies?" Zhao Weiguo was taken aback, then burst into hearty laughter, pointing at Lin Jiaoyue and saying to Wang Dana, "Listen to this! Old Wang, listen to this! If this is what you call 'skimmies,' then what about all those formally trained technicians in our factory? They wouldn't even qualify as hairs! You're a genius, girl!"

Wang Dana chuckled sheepishly, rubbing his hands together, his face crinkled with wrinkles, looking even happier than if he'd received an award himself. "Factory Manager," he said, "you know what? Just now, Engineer Liu's face was as green as that Soviet machine tool! He and three others spent a week studying it without daring to touch the wrench, and Comrade Lin cracked it in an hour. That's what you call... what's that phrase again? A 'dimensional reduction attack'!"

"Exactly! It's a game-changer!" Zhao Weiguo slammed his teacup on the table, spilling a few drops of tea, but he didn't bother wiping them away. His eyes gleamed. "Anyone can memorize what's in a book, but real skill is a gift from God. You're just born for this!"

Standing against the wall, Lin Hongsheng straightened his back slightly upon hearing this, but then quickly realized what he'd said and shrank back, continuing to play the quail. He lowered his eyelids, desperately controlling his facial muscles, afraid that his smugness would spill out: "Listen to this! This is my daughter, Lin Hongsheng's daughter! If this were ten years ago, I would have hosted a hundred-table banquet at the biggest restaurant in Suzhou, letting those old fogies see what a true prodigy of the Lin family looks like!"

As the laughter subsided, Zhao Weiguo's expression turned serious. He leaned forward, his tone becoming extremely solemn, carrying an undeniable authority: "Comrade Lin, Hongxing Factory is currently at a crucial stage of production and construction, and what we need most is talent like you. On behalf of the factory's Party Committee, I formally invite you to join us. Would you be willing to come to our factory's technical department as a technician?"

technician!

These three words struck Lin Hongsheng's mind, leaving him completely stunned. In this era, that was a legitimate cadre position, a golden rice bowl among iron rice bowls! With this status, who would dare to investigate where they, as displaced people, came from?

Lin Jiaoyue quickly began to calculate in her mind. With this identity, the Lin family would no longer be rootless duckweed, but rather a group with an organization. This camouflage was stronger than anything else.

She raised her head, her eyes clear and bright, her tone firm: "Thank you for your guidance, factory director! I'm willing! But... I'm young, I don't have a diploma, and I'm a woman, so I'm afraid I won't be able to convince everyone."

"At the Hongxing Factory, technology is the only true measure of success!" Zhao Weiguo waved his hand domineeringly. "Anyone who disagrees? Let him go and disassemble that Soviet-style machine tool and put it back together! If he has the ability, I, Zhao Weiguo, will personally serve him tea!"

He paused, took a pen from the drawer, and quickly scribbled something on a piece of paper, saying, "Considering your special circumstances, I'm giving you the status of a 'specially appointed technician,' directly under the technical department. You won't have to work regular hours; you'll only be handling complex and difficult cases. As for salary and benefits..."

Zhao Weiguo raised his head, held up four fingers, and said, slowly and deliberately, "According to the standard for an eighth-grade worker, it's forty-two yuan and fifty cents a month, plus two jin of meat coupons and five jin of refined grain coupons each month. What do you think?"

Forty-two yuan and fifty cents!

Lin Hongsheng gasped, stumbled, and almost lost his balance.

You know, he's working himself to the bone moving things around, and his monthly salary is only eighteen yuan! This girl, once she starts working in the factory, earns double his salary, and even more! In an era when a pound of pork only costs a few cents, that amount of money is enough for a family of five to eat white flour buns every day and still have half left over!

"Too much, Factory Manager, this...this is too much..." Lin Hongsheng instinctively waved his hands, his voice trembling. This time he wasn't acting; he was genuinely shocked by the treatment he received.

"Not many!" Zhao Weiguo declared decisively. "Talent is priceless! Zhou Haitao!"

"Here!" The clerk outside pushed open the door and entered.

"Take Comrade Xiao Lin to complete his onboarding process. Make it a special case and get it done immediately! Also, go to the finance department to get an advance on one month's salary so his family can settle down first!"

……

The night was deep, and the cold wind howled.

Inside the Lin family's courtyard, the doors and windows were tightly shut, and heavy old curtains were drawn. The dim oil lamp flickered, casting long shadows of the three people.

Lin Hongsheng laid the employment certificate with the red stamp flat on the chipped table. His rough fingers gently stroked the words "42.5 yuan" on it, his movements as gentle as if he were caressing a rare treasure.

This time, his face no longer showed the "flattered" and "obsequious" demeanor he had displayed in the factory office. Instead, it showed a long-lost composure and satisfaction befitting a person in a superior position.

"Jiaojiao, did Daddy act well outside just now?" Lin Hongsheng picked up the chipped, rough porcelain bowl, took a sip of the not-so-tasty tea froth, but his eyes were clear and sharp. "This forty-odd yuan, back when we were in Suzhou, probably wouldn't even be enough for your mother to buy a decent box of rouge. But now, this money carries a different weight, it's too heavy."

Su Wanqing, who was sitting beside her mending an old garment, stopped sewing when she heard this. She looked at the piece of paper, her eyes slightly red, not because of the large sum of money, but because of a sigh: "Yes, all those 'big yellow croakers' and 'Yuan Shikai silver dollars' piled up in our space could probably buy half of Harbin, but those things are now 'dead on the market,' a death sentence. But this forty-two yuan and fifty cents, you earned it hand in hand at the Red Star Factory, it's clean, legitimate 'working-class' money."

Lin Jiaoyue looked at her parents and nodded inwardly. Sure enough, how could the heads of such powerful families, who had witnessed immense wealth, be truly intimidated by such a small salary? Their vision had always been focused on survival and strategic planning.

"Dad, Mom, it would be best if you thought that way." Lin Jiaoyue lowered her voice, as if she were plotting something big. "We have to play our part completely. In the eyes of our neighbor Aunt Wang and Wang Dazhuang, who's been watching us, we have to act like we've won the lottery. We have to make them feel that this money is the lifeblood of our whole family, a windfall."

Lin Hongsheng leaned back in his chair and said seriously, "I know that. It's true that you shouldn't flaunt your wealth, but if you don't show any wealth at all, and you're earning a high salary while drinking sweet potato soup every day, it will seem fake and arouse suspicion. Now that you have this high salary, our family can 'slightly' improve our situation on the surface."

"That's right." Lin Jiaoyue's lips curled into a playful smile. "From now on, we'll openly buy some meat every now and then, and carry it in our hands so Aunt Wang can see it. If she asks, just loudly proclaim that your daughter earned it through her own hard work!"

Lin Hongsheng clapped his hands and laughed. "Hahaha! This is called feigning one move while secretly making another! Alright, tomorrow Dad will become this 'nouveau riche'!"

Watching the father and daughter's back-and-forth banter, Su Wanqing shook her head helplessly and got up to take the kettle off the stove. "Alright, stop laughing. Since you're going to play nouveau riche, you need to be careful what you buy tomorrow. Don't buy lean meat; only fools eat lean meat these days. Buy lard, the thicker the better. You can even eat the cracklings after rendering the oil. That's what you call a 'wealthy family'."

"Alright!" Lin Hongsheng stood up, walked around the room twice with his hands behind his back, exuding an air of authority. "After work tomorrow, I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative to queue up."

The oil lamp inside the room popped with a crackling sound.

Looking at her father, who was full of vigor, Lin Jiaoyue's resolve solidified. In this era of scarcity, the safest way to survive was to live a life that others felt was "within reach but out of reach."

"Dad, remember tomorrow, take bigger steps when you walk, and act all smug like you're 'I'm rich now'."

"Don't worry, daughter. Back in the day, I was never intimidated when doing business with foreigners in Shanghai. Playing a nouveau riche old farmer is a piece of cake for me, right?" Lin Hongsheng chuckled, blew out the oil lamp, and said, "Go to sleep! You still have to go to the factory tomorrow to earn that 42.5 yuan 'shield' for our family!"