Major Heavy Industry: Starting with a Fake Marriage

The old worker sized Jiang Cheng up, his eyes filled with suspicion: "From Shenyang? What kind of equipment are you repairing?"

"We'll fix anything," Jiang Cheng said. "First, show us the equipment that's giving you the biggest headache."

The old worker looked at Sun Desheng, who nodded. The old worker led them to the back of the workshop and pointed to a huge lathe.

"This machine, a C620, was manufactured in 1958. It broke down last year; the spindle seized up. It's been repaired several times, but it can't be fixed. Now it's just scrap metal."

Jiang Cheng squatted down and shone a flashlight on the spindle. There was a deep scratch on the surface of the journal, and you could feel a clear groove when you touched it. He then checked the gearbox, guide rails, and lead screw, leaving no part unchecked.

"Can this machine still be repaired?" Sun Desheng asked cautiously, standing to the side.

Jiang Cheng stood up, thought for a moment, and said, "It can be repaired. But it will take time. The main shaft needs to be disassembled, re-ground, and the bearings replaced. The gearbox needs to be disassembled and the gears inspected. The guide rails need to be scraped. It will take at least half a month to repair everything."

Sun Desheng's eyes lit up: "Can it really be fixed?"

"Yes, when you're fixing it, have your factory's workers come and learn. I can't let this repair go to waste; I have to teach them."

Sun Desheng paused for a moment, then nodded vigorously: "Okay! Okay! Good! Good!!"

The old worker, listening nearby, showed some less suspicion, but not entirely. He looked at Jiang Cheng and asked, "Are you a fitter?"

"Yes."

"What level?"

Level 4.

The old worker fell silent. A level four fitter wasn't considered high-ranking. But he'd seen too many "experts" come and go, none of them able to solve real problems. Could this young man handle it?

Jiang Cheng sensed his suspicion but didn't explain. He turned to Sun Deming and said, "Deming, bring the tools. Let's disassemble the spindle first."

Sun Deming opened his toolbox and took out a wrench, screwdriver, hammer, and micrometer. Jiang Cheng took the wrench and began to disassemble. He disassembled slowly, checking every screw and numbering every part. The old worker watched from the side, initially just observing, but later he couldn't help but hand over tools, and eventually squatted down to disassemble with him.

"Young man, have you ever disassembled this kind of lathe?" the old worker asked.

"We've dismantled them. We've dismantled several in Shenyang."

"Is it fixed?"

"It's fixed. One of them is still in use."

The old worker nodded and didn't ask any more questions. But his hands moved faster, and he handed over the tools more accurately.

When they were halfway through dismantling, Wang Xiaojun suddenly exclaimed, "Master, look at this!"

Jiang Cheng walked over and saw Wang Xiaojun pointing to a shaft inside the gearbox. The shaft had a long crack that extended from the keyway all the way to the shoulder, and it was visible to the naked eye.

"This shaft is beyond repair," Jiang Cheng said. "It needs to be replaced with a new one."

Sun Desheng, listening nearby, turned pale: "Replace it with a new one? Where can I buy this kind of shaft?"

"No need to buy. We'll make it ourselves." Jiang Cheng looked at the dimensions of the shaft, took out his notebook, and drew a sketch. "Does your factory have lathes?"

"There is one, and it still works."

"Then we'll do it ourselves. First, we'll machine the blank, then mill the keyway, and finally heat treat it. It should be ready in three days."

The old worker took the sketch, looked at it, and then looked up at Jiang Cheng. The doubt in his eyes had turned into something else entirely.

"Young man, were you in the army?"

Jiang Cheng was taken aback for a moment: "No. What's wrong?"

"The way you work is like someone who's been in the military. Calm and collected, you know exactly what you're doing."

Jiang Cheng smiled but didn't say anything. He squatted down and continued dismantling.

On the first day, they disassembled the main shaft. On the second day, they disassembled the gearbox. On the third day, they cleaned all the parts and sorted them. Good parts were put in one pile, repairable parts in another, and scrapped parts in yet another. The veteran worker, along with a few young people from the factory, followed Jiang Cheng, learning step by step. They asked "why" at every step, and Jiang Cheng answered every question. Some questions were simple, some were tricky, but he never gave a perfunctory answer.

"Master Jiang, why did you disassemble the main shaft first, and then the gearbox?" a young worker asked.

"Because the spindle is the core. If the spindle is repaired, everything else is easy to handle. If the spindle is not repaired, no matter how well the gearbox is repaired, it's useless."

"Then why check the guide rail first, and then the leadscrew?"

"Because the guide rail is the foundation. If the guide rail is uneven, no matter how precise the lead screw is, it's useless."

The young worker nodded and wrote it down in his notebook. His notebook was old, with the words "Work Notes" written on the cover. The paper inside was yellowed, but the handwriting was neat and precise, stroke by stroke.

On the fifth day, Wang Xiaojun suddenly said to Jiang Cheng, "Master, I want to stay."

Jiang Cheng was grinding a shaft when he heard this. He put down what he was doing and looked at him: "Stay? Stay where?"

"I'll stay at this factory," Wang Xiaojun said. "This factory doesn't have any technicians. If I stay, I can help them."

Jiang Cheng looked at him and remained silent for a while. Then he said, "Have you thought this through? It's not certain whether this factory can survive."

Wang Xiaojun nodded: "I've thought it through. Even if this factory goes out of business, I can still teach these people the skills. Once they've learned them, they can work anywhere."

Looking at the young man, Jiang Cheng suddenly recalled his own past. Back then, he was just like that, following Huang Deqing, repairing machine after machine, grinding down part after part.

"I won't stop you from making your decision," Jiang Cheng said, "but you have to promise me one thing."

"What is it?"

"We can't give up on taking the college entrance exam. If we get accepted, we'll go to school. If we don't get accepted, we can try again next year."

Wang Xiaojun looked at him, his eyes reddening, but he didn't cry. He nodded.

In the days that followed, Jiang Cheng, along with Sun Deming and Wang Xiaojun, lived and ate at the factory. They repaired machines during the day and taught the workers at night. Sun Desheng vacated the best dormitory in the factory for them; although it was still drafty, it was lined with new straw and smelled of sunshine. The canteen meals were simple—cabbage and potatoes, with the occasional piece of meat—but they ate with relish. The workers became familiar with them and started calling Jiang Cheng "Master Jiang," Sun Deming "Master Sun," and Wang Xiaojun "Little Wang."

One evening, after repairing the machine, Jiang Cheng squatted in the yard smoking. Sun Desheng came over, squatted down next to him, and handed him an enamel mug. The mug contained baijiu (Chinese liquor), the kind sold in bulk, commonly known as "loose liquor," which smelled pungent but tasted warming.

In this day and age, there's no need to worry about drinking fake alcohol; it's all brewed from pure grains.

"Thank you, Master Jiang," Sun Desheng said.

"Don't thank me. It's not finished yet."

"It's not that I'm thanking you for fixing the machines. It's that I'm thanking you for teaching them." Sun Desheng looked at the workshop in the distance, the lights shining through the windows, casting shadows. "These people have been doing this for over ten years, and all they know is how to tighten screws and replace parts. When a machine breaks down, they take it apart, look at it, and replace what's broken. After replacing it, it breaks down again a few days later. They don't know why the machines break down, or how to prevent them from breaking down in the first place. Now that you've come, they know."