Returning to 1949, I decided to hand it over to the state.

Zhou Chunsheng was efficient and decisive. He finished the last bit of inspection in no time, closed his notebook, picked up his tool bag, and called Jiang Fan to walk out together.

The two walked out of the workshop side by side and headed forward along the factory road.

Along the way, Jiang Fan gradually discovered that most people in this era really are quite "outgoing and friendly".

Meng Tai is like that.

Song Ningyi is like this.

The Zhou Chunsheng in front of me is the same.

Even though today was only our second official meeting, we didn't feel awkward chatting at all.

Of course, a large part of the reason is that Zhou Chunsheng was clearly very interested in Jiang Fan's "overseas experience".

"Engineer Jiang, how many years have you been away?"

"The time wasn't particularly long."

"You studied mechanical engineering?"

"I've had quite a bit of experience with it; I've looked into machinery, materials, and industrial processes."

Zhou Chunsheng nodded repeatedly, his eyes behind his glasses brightening.

"That's great. What our factory needs most right now is people who have seen advanced things from outside."

At this point, he seemed to have opened up and started talking.

"I studied in Japan. Although the Japanese deserve to die, we can't just close our eyes and say that their industrial education, factory organization, and equipment maintenance systems are all worthwhile. We still have to learn what we should learn, and we can't ignore it just because we hate them."

That's actually a pretty good way of putting it.

This person is not only a technical cadre, but also very clear-headed.

It is not easy to have nationalistic sentiments without being swayed by them in making judgments, no matter the era.

"That's right," Jiang Fan replied.

"Technology, in the end, is something you have to use. You should hate what you hate and learn what you need to learn, otherwise you'll only suffer."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chunsheng immediately perked up.

"Yes, yes, that's exactly right!"

The two chatted more and more as they walked on.

Zhou Chunsheng asked whether the maintenance of equipment in foreign factories was more standardized, whether the training of workers was more detailed, and whether the material ratios and standardization were much more mature than those in China.

Although Jiang Fan had never actually been abroad, he had read a lot of materials on industrial history, mechanical history, and modern manufacturing. In addition, he had been good at making complex things sound plausible through his years of content creation. When it came to a real conversation, he was able to hold his own against Zhou Chunsheng.

As the conversation progressed, Zhou Chunsheng's gaze towards him clearly showed a greater degree of approval.

Jiang Fan could only sigh inwardly.

The books I read were definitely worth it.

At least now, the knowledge I've accumulated over the years by making science videos is finally not just being used for editing.

But as the two were chatting, Jiang Fan suddenly realized that the direction Zhou Chunsheng was leading him in didn't seem to be a short-distance transfer between factory areas.

Looking further ahead, it turned out to be a section of railway dedicated to the factory.

A train of mine cars was parked beside the railway.

Before Jiang Fan could react, he saw Zhou Chunsheng walking towards the car with practiced ease.

He was stunned for a moment.

The next second, I found myself being pulled into the car.

"No, Mr. Zhou," Jiang Fan finally couldn't help but ask, "Where are we going?"

Zhou Chunsheng put his tool bag aside and casually explained:

"Let's go check out the steel rolling mill."

"A steel rolling mill?"

"Yes." Zhou Chunsheng nodded.

"The new machines and workshops have been almost fully restored, and some finished products can be shipped out."

"The leaders are paying close attention to this now. Someone from the factory will be going over to check on it later. We need to go and make sure the equipment is in good working order so that nothing goes wrong when we start production."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Fan immediately understood a few things.

Steel rolling mill...

Large integrated steel enterprises like Ansteel could not have focused solely on basic steel smelting during the early years when they were run by the Japanese.

In order to improve efficiency and to more fully transform raw materials into finished products that can be sold directly, they often have some steel rolling processing capabilities to first roll semi-finished products into materials with uniform specifications and clear uses, so as to facilitate their market launch.

This step may not seem as "heavy" as steelmaking or ironmaking, but in reality it is even more important.

The faster the steel rolling mill recovers, the faster the finished products are produced, the sooner the plant can generate cash flow, and the faster it can connect the previously repaired ironmaking and steelmaking processes to form a complete production chain.

Steel, profiles, reinforcing bars, and iron bars are all essential materials for repairing factories, building houses, paving roads, making boxes, and packing.

Especially in an era when everything was in ruins and under construction, restoring the major steel rolling mills first could not only stabilize the current supply but also lay the foundation for large-scale production later.

The gas cylinders I make also require the use of steel rolling machining.

I just didn't expect my mother to come when I wanted to nurse.

With that thought in mind, he got into the car.

This train is a typical factory and mining-specific transport vehicle.

It is mainly used for hauling ore, materials, and tools, and also serves as a short-distance transport vehicle within the factory area and for transporting personnel.

In the Anshan area, the mines, factories, and railway system are closely intertwined. From the mining areas such as Gongchangling and Yingtaoyuan to the factories, and then to the supporting workshops and finished product points, the railway is like a network, forming the most important transportation lifeline of the entire heavy industry system.

It's important to understand that what large-scale steel industries fear most is never just "not being able to produce steel".

They were even more afraid that the goods wouldn't be able to get through.

If the ore can't be transported, the furnace has to be shut down; if the coking coal can't be transported, the furnace will be sluggish; if the finished products can't be shipped out, the warehouse will be clogged.

Therefore, railways and dedicated transportation systems are, in a sense, another set of blood vessels for steel mills.

There were no decent seats in the carriage, only empty floorboards and edges on both sides for people to hold onto.

Zhou Chunsheng was clearly used to it. He found a place to stand and held onto the iron frame next to him with his other hand.

Jiang Fan followed suit and stood still. As the car swayed forward, his gaze involuntarily drifted outwards.

The factory area, workshops, chimneys, dilapidated walls, temporarily piled steel, and equipment areas in a semi-repaired state... all receded into the distance.

At this moment, Zhou Chunsheng suddenly looked down at Jiang Fan's wrist.

"Mr. Jiang, what style is this watch? It looks quite unique."

Jiang Fan's heart skipped a beat.

broken.

Yesterday I was so busy fixing machines and dealing with people that I almost forgot about this thing in my hand that doesn't belong to 1949 at all.

He didn't dare show it on his face, but could only feign composure, glancing down at his watch, and mumbled:

"Oh, this... I don't really know what brand it is. I just bought it because it looked interesting."

At this point, he deliberately fiddled with the edge of the watch face, pretending to be indifferent.

"But it's still bad; it looks nice but is useless."

Fortunately, the table only displays numbers and doesn't have any fancy modern interface, otherwise it would be even more complicated to explain.

After saying that, he immediately and subtly changed the subject.

"Mr. Zhou, how long have you been working at the factory?"

Zhou Chunsheng indeed stopped staring at the watch and casually took it.

"It'll only be a month or two."

"After I returned from abroad and learned about the situation here, I didn't delay and immediately rushed to the Northeast. Being able to put what I've learned to use is a way of not wasting the resources the country has invested in me over the years."

Jiang Fan nodded, a thought also stirring in his heart.

In this day and age, people who can study abroad generally come from two backgrounds.

Either their family is extremely well-off, or they study abroad at their own expense.

They are either trained with national, public, or organizational resources.

Zhou Chunsheng clearly belongs to the latter category.

In that case, his return to China is not just a personal choice, but also a kind of natural sense of responsibility.

Since he has been in the factory for a month or two, he must know the internal situation much better than I do.

Thinking of this, Jiang Fan took the opportunity to steer the conversation toward what he cared about most.

"Yes, many people who go abroad don't want to come back. It's really not easy for someone like Engineer Zhou to come back."

At this point, he seemed to suddenly remember something and casually mentioned it.

"By the way, Engineer Zhou. I heard from Master Meng yesterday that our factory is currently thinking about developing new products in order to increase economic benefits."

"I think this is a great idea. If it really works out, there will be a lot of benefits."