Courtyard Houses: The Great Masters of a Nation Hidden Within

Upon hearing this, Pang Xiulan immediately protested, knowing she would be beaten when she got home; who could stand that?

She was about to say something when Gao Jianguo waved his hand at her, cutting her off: "It's true it's an internal conflict, but for the two of you to make such a scene so late at night is unacceptable. Here's what we'll do: either you go to the neighborhood committee office, or the Women's Federation. If you think he's gone too far and these two places can't handle it, then go to the police station. If you're worried, Teacher Yan and I will go with you."

Liu Haizhong, listening from the side, felt uneasy. Why couldn't he go along? But then he glanced at his feet and became happy again—Gao Jianguo, that kid, really knows how to take care of the older comrades.

Hearing Gao Jianguo's words, Xu Damao's legs began to tremble. He knew in his heart that if he beat up Pang Xiulan without asking any questions, which of these places would treat him well? The Women's Federation was even worse; going there might be worse than being at the police station.

What's worse is that once they enter these places, Pang Xiulan's secret will most likely be exposed, which would cause a huge problem.

Pang Xiulan was also hesitant. She knew these places very well, especially the Women's Federation and the police station. During her time in reformatory, she had dealt with these two places the most, and she would rather die than go there if she could avoid it.

After thinking it over, Pang Xiulan spoke first: "Leader Gao, it's really not a big deal. We can just go back and discuss it ourselves. As you said, this is an internal conflict among the people, so let's resolve it internally. We won't trouble the police station and the Women's Federation leaders."

Xu Damao also snapped out of his daze: "Zhendong, oh no, Section Chief Gao, let's handle this ourselves when we get back. We can manage it internally. Let's not trouble these comrades."

As he spoke, his hand reached out and grabbed Pang Xiulan's hair: "Get your ass back home right now!"

Gao Jianguo grunted an "Mmm" through his nose, glancing at Xu Damao's hand. Xu Damao then realized what was happening and sheepishly withdrew his hand. Pang Xiulan, now enraged, kicked Xu Damao.

Gao Jianguo glanced at Pang Xiulan again. The woman quickly lowered her head, putting on an honest appearance, but her eyes were anything but honest, darting around erratically.

Gao Jianguo said, "Go back and talk this out. Don't resort to violence. If you still don't go, Master Liu will have to take you to the police station for a lesson."

Liu Haizhong, realizing he'd finally gotten his chance, quickly nodded, "Yes, yes, Section Chief Gao is right."

After seeing the couple go inside and the onlookers disperse, Gao Jianguo went back to rest.

From beginning to end, the elderly couple from the Xu family stayed at home the whole time, without even showing their faces.

-

Wednesday arrived before we knew it.

Gao Jianguo's book has been out for several days now.

In the office of the leader of the 17th Ministry of Machinery Industry, the leader held Gao Jianguo's book "Project Management Methods" and slapped his thigh in approval as he flipped through it.

"So that's how costs are calculated? Now it's all clear."

"Quality control to this extent in advance? Is that even possible?"

"Look, planning, execution, inspection, and handling—each step is interconnected, working in a loop to lock the problem in place."

"This progress network diagram is interesting; it's much better than that Gantt chart. It clearly shows how the tasks are related and how the timeline is structured."

"Oh, he hasn't abandoned the old tricks of Zhuge Liang; he's staying grounded, staying grounded."

"This trick works well. It doesn't look complicated, but deviations in cost, schedule, and plan are immediately noticeable. It's perfect for people with limited cultural background."

"Wow, this risk source classification is so comprehensive, and the identification methods and coping strategies are all included. They even consider retaining and abandoning them as handling measures. This is truly eye-opening!"

These past few days, whenever the leader has a spare moment, he's glued to this book. Firstly, the book is truly excellent; secondly, he feels a special warmth in it—this precious book is one he unearthed himself.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. The leader let the person in.

It was Secretary Zheng who arrived, clutching a notebook: "Sir, people from our ministry's subordinate units in Beijing, as well as other departments, are all inquiring about the book 'Project Management Methods' with the Machinery Industry Press. The publisher is confused too, so they've all referred the information to me."

The leader took a sip of tea, then became interested: "Oh? What did they say? Tell me."

Secretary Zheng opened his notebook and reported the information one by one.

"These are the main aspects."

"The general consensus is that this book is well-written, clearly organized, comprehensive, and covers all aspects. It includes both theory and practice, offers numerous solutions, and is closely related to actual work. It can help solve current problems encountered in project management, even urgent issues."

The leader nodded, a smile spreading across his face: "There are still plenty of discerning customers, haha."

Secretary Zheng continued, "However, most people say that although the book is good, it's still a bit difficult to read on their own, and they want to find out about the author so they can ask him in person."

The leader chuckled: "That might be difficult. Zhendong's side is swamped with work."

After laughing, the leader pondered for a moment and then said, "However, just letting everyone work on their own is indeed a waste of time. This task can't be left undone; we need to have Zhendong bring out a batch of seeds first, otherwise, promotion will be too slow."

Secretary Zheng suggested, "Sir, besides our subordinate units and other government departments, could we also expand this to our directly affiliated universities?"

The leader slammed his hand on the table: "Yes! Xiao Zheng, that's a great idea. Universities are the cradle of education."

He tilted his head back, closed his eyes, thought for a moment, then opened his eyes and said, "Xiao Zheng, remember this."

"Notify all subordinate units and affiliated universities, and also inform other departments, that we are preparing to hold a training session on 'Project Management Methods,' with the author himself giving the lecture. Ask them about their plans to participate."

"Contact Comrade Gao Jianguo of the Third Steel Rolling Mill and ask him to set aside some time, based on his current work, to prepare the lecture materials so that he can personally deliver the lecture."

"Once Comrade Gao Jianguo's schedule is finalized, based on the feedback from the notifications and reports, and taking into account his availability, we will develop a training plan and notify all units to participate in the training according to the plan."

Secretary Zheng took notes meticulously and then went out to run errands.

Elsewhere in Beijing, a renowned scholar who had returned from overseas was also flipping through Gao Jianguo's book. As he read, he remarked to his companion, "This book is excellent. It thoroughly explains the management of research projects, and it puts systems theory into practice to a certain extent in this area. I've seen some of these things abroad, but in China, this is the first book to explain this so clearly and comprehensively."

The accompanying person reported, "Teacher, we heard from the 17th Ministry of Machine Building that the author of this book is only in his twenties. The 17th Ministry of Machine Building plans to invite him to hold a training course so that interested people from various units and universities can attend and help them get started and promote this system more quickly."

The scholar was even more impressed: "So young? Such a promising young man! If I weren't so busy with this, I'd love to attend. You must go; it will be incredibly beneficial for your future work."

He then laughed, "With this training course in place, he's essentially established his own school of thought."