Courtyard House: From Deputy Division Commander to Civilian, Progressing All the Way

The moment Lin Yang walked into the conference room.

The meeting room, which had been filled with whispers, fell into a deathly silence.

More than a dozen pairs of eyes were fixed on Lin Yang.

They had all heard that the new director was a general who had fought his way up from the battlefield, but no one expected him to be so young.

Some senior technocrats, who considered themselves to be highly experienced, had a hint of doubt and disdain in their eyes.

You may be good at fighting wars, but managing the nation's steel industry requires extremely high professional skills! What could a mere twenty-something-year-old possibly know about blast furnace ironmaking or open-hearth steelmaking?

Lin Yang took in all the looks in their eyes.

He ignored the questions, walked straight to the head of the conference table, pulled out a chair, and sat down with an air of authority.

He placed his hands on the table, his deep, cold gaze like a sharp scalpel, slowly sweeping over everyone present.

The murderous aura forged from mountains of corpses and seas of blood, along with the oppressive aura of a superior, instantly filled the conference room like a tidal wave.

Those technocrats who had initially looked down on him felt a sudden chill run down their spines the moment they met Lin Yang's gaze. They instinctively lowered their heads, a chill creeping down their backs.

"Comrades, nice to meet you. I am Lin Yang."

Lin Yang's voice was deep and powerful, and he began his speech without any unnecessary words.

"I know that everyone here is an expert in the steel industry. You're probably thinking, 'What am I, a soldier, doing here giving orders?'"

A cold smile curled at the corner of Lin Yang's lips.

"I will only say one sentence today."

"The Central Committee sent me here, not to discuss technical details. The Central Committee sent me here to solve problems!"

"From today onwards, the Steel Industry Administration Bureau will be under militarized management!"

Lin Yang slammed his hand on the table, the sound like metal striking stone.

"I don't care if you're experts returned from the Soviet Union or veterans retained from the old factory. Under my command, only obedience to orders and fulfilling the national steel production targets with guaranteed quality and quantity are acceptable!"

"Anyone who dares to negotiate with me, assert their authority, or form cliques at this critical juncture..."

A terrifying killing intent flashed in Lin Yang's eyes.

"Li Huaide of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, this is your fate! I, Lin Yang, dared to arrest the US Commander-in-Chief on the battlefield, and here, I dare to send you all to jail!"

Quiet.

A deathly silence.

The dozen or so senior officials in the conference room were all stunned by Lin Yang's thunderous display of power. They had no doubt that this young man, who seemed like a god of death, would absolutely keep his word!

Those who had originally wanted to put on airs in front of the new director were now sweating profusely, and kept their thoughts to themselves.

"Meeting adjourned! Department heads, please compile your most pressing issues into a report and submit it to my office by 3 PM this afternoon!"

Lin Yang stood up and walked out of the conference room without any hesitation.

……

The easternmost side of the fourth floor.

Office of the Deputy Minister and Director.

This is an extremely spacious and bright suite. The outer room is where the secretary works, and the inner room is Lin Yang's private office.

Pushing open the door to the inner room, a faint scent of ink wafted out.

Instead of any pretentious calligraphy or paintings, the office walls were covered with a giant map of China that filled an entire wall!

The map is densely marked with various colored pins, showing the distribution of large steel mills, coal mines, and iron ore mines across the country. Anshan Iron and Steel, Wuhan Iron and Steel, Benxi Iron and Steel, Baotou Steel… each name represents a steel behemoth that the country is currently nurturing.

On the desk were several secure telephones of different colors.

Lin Yang walked to the desk and was about to sit down.

There was a gentle knock on the outer door.

"Enter."

The door was pushed open, and a young man who looked to be about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, dressed in a neat Zhongshan suit and wearing black-rimmed glasses, walked in somewhat reservedly, carrying a thick stack of documents.

He walked to a spot two meters in front of the desk, stood at attention, and bowed slightly.

"Hello, Vice Minister Lin! I am Chen Feng, your full-time work secretary assigned by the organization. I graduated from the Department of Industrial Management at Tsinghua University."

Although Chen Feng's voice sounded a little nervous, his words were clear and his eyes were very bright.

Looking at the legendary leader who was a few years younger than himself, he felt a mixture of immense admiration and trepidation.

Lin Yang looked Chen Feng up and down and nodded slightly.

A top student from Tsinghua University, he's definitely intelligent enough. What he needs now is a secretary who understands professional theory and is meticulous in her work.

"Chen Feng, sit down."

Lin Yang pointed to the chair opposite him and sat down in the large office chair.

"I don't like listening to nonsense, nor do I like making a big show of things."

There are only two requirements for working for me: first, absolute confidentiality; second, swift and decisive action.

Lin Yang's gaze fell on the documents that Chen Feng was holding.

"Immediately compile all the production logs, scrap rate reports, and major safety accident files from Ansteel, Wuhan Iron and Steel, and Shijingshan Iron and Steel Plant for the past three months, and put them on my desk!"

Lin Yang pulled a red pencil from the pen holder on the table, his eyes sharp as knives.

"I want to perform a complete overhaul of all the steel mills in the country in the shortest possible time!"

Chen Feng was startled and immediately replied loudly, "Yes, Minister! I'll get it sorted out right away!"

Sunlight streamed through the large glass window, illuminating Lin Yang's cold and resolute face.

He turned his head, his gaze fixed on the huge map of Chinese industry on the wall.

The red pencil in my hand points to a steel city on the map, its surface gleaming with a red glow.

He drew a glaring circle heavily.

"Click."

The pencil tip snapped with a crisp sound under immense force.

····

A broken red pencil lead left a glaring red mark on the map.

Lin Yang's gaze was fixed on Anshan, an industrial city located in the heart of the Liaodong Peninsula and surrounded by many barriers.

"Chen Feng".

Lin Yang threw down the broken pencil, turned around, and his deep eyes gleamed with the iron will and decisiveness of a soldier.

"Book two train tickets to the Northeast for tonight. Notify the guard platoon to pack their belongings."

Chen Feng paused for a moment, then quickly clutched the documents in his arms, asking hesitantly, "Minister, you just reported for duty today, and there are still many handover procedures to be completed in the ministry. Where are you going in this heavy snow?"

"To the front lines!"

Lin Yang strode to the coat rack, grabbed the officer's overcoat, and draped it over his shoulders.

"The formalities will be handled by Director Zhao and his team. Right now, the Republic's industrial front is at Anshan Iron and Steel!"

Lin Yang's voice was strong and resonant, echoing in the empty office.

"Of the '156 key projects' aided by our Soviet big brother, the expansion of Anshan Iron and Steel Group is the most important. With winter just days away, if the three major projects there cannot be completed before the ground freezes, the entire country's industrial plan will be delayed by a whole year!"

"The nation cannot afford to wait, and neither can the troops on the front lines!"

Lin Yang pushed open the office door and strode out.

"I, the director of the Steel Bureau, am not here sitting in Beijing drinking tea and reading newspapers. Go to the scene!"

……