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

However, no matter how good Jiang Fan's original intention was, there will always be people who are used to eating from the same pot, who want to be lazy but still want to get the most money.

Once the interests of these people are affected, someone will inevitably jump out to refute them.

Finally, someone in the crowd couldn't hold back any longer and retorted with a stiff neck:

"Hey boss, how many pieces should we order to ensure a minimum? What if you set the minimum order too high, and everyone works themselves to the bone but still doesn't get the basic work points? Wouldn't all that hard work be for nothing?"

Jiang Fan glanced at the troublemaker, but instead of getting angry, he nodded approvingly.

"That's an excellent question, as it touches upon the fairness of the system. To prevent unreasonable quotas and to prevent the 'fastest oxen' from being whipped and the honest ones from being bullied, all production quotas in our workshop are determined through discussion and approval by the workers' representative assembly!"

"We should work together to find a balance, revise the quotas regularly, and increase them appropriately as our skills improve, but never to such an extent that people will be unable to meet them even if they work themselves to the bone."

"Moreover, everything is completely open and transparent. The work points and unit price for each process, as well as each person's daily performance, are all posted on the wall before the end of the workday for everyone to supervise."

At this point, Jiang Fan glanced at everyone's tense faces, his tone suddenly softening as he unleashed his true trump card:

"What I just talked about were the punishments and the bottom line. Next, I'll tell you about the additional reward system!"

"As long as our workshop achieves the basic production quota profit, any excess will be calculated in double the work points."

"For example, if our production quota is 100 gas cylinders per day, and we exceed that by 1%, the price for the excess will be calculated at 1.1 times the original price. If we exceed that by 10% to 30%, the price will be calculated at 1.3 times the original price for each additional 1% of excess production. If we exceed that by more than 30%, the price per unit will double or even more, with no upper limit!"

These words caused an uproar in the room!

Standing on the high platform, Jiang Fan looked at the greed that instantly flashed in the eyes of the workers below and nodded to himself.

As a prophet, he knew all too well how simple and honest the workers of this era were, and how much they longed to change their fate of poverty.

In later generations, this piece-rate overproduction system might have been ruined by capitalists long ago. But in the new China at this moment, in state-owned factories that truly belonged to the workers, the phrase "no cap on overproduction" was an absolute nuclear weapon that could make people risk their lives on machine tools.

He wanted to use this forward-thinking salary system to revitalize this massive industrial machine.

However, Zhou Chunsheng, who was standing to his side and behind, couldn't hold back any longer and leaned forward, asking anxiously in a low voice:

"Engineer Jiang, isn't this...aren't these things a bit too strict? This unlimited reward, and that stringent set of penalties...have you discussed it with the higher-ups yet?"

Jiang Fan immediately turned to look at Zhou Chunsheng, and said to him with an extremely serious expression:

"Engineer Zhou, don't worry. I will naturally write a detailed reform report and submit it to the factory manager. But if we are going to do this, we must be strict."

"But this strictness is only for those who want to slack off. For those who want to work hard and earn more money to support their families, it's a great thing."

"In the past, the 'iron rice bowl' system, where everyone received the same pay regardless of how much they worked, ultimately hurt the most capable people, as well as our country and factories."

Zhou Chunsheng opened his mouth, but seeing Jiang Fan's determined gaze, he didn't utter any further rebuttal.

Jiang Fan turned around again, knowing that the workers were still frantically calculating in their minds, so he raised his voice again:

"Alright, I've told you everything I needed to."

"There's no need for everyone to express their opinions now. You'll know whether the system is good or not after a few days. I'm not forcing anyone."

"But I'm putting this out there today: as long as you work diligently, I, Jiang Fan, guarantee that this steel rolling mill will never mistreat any worker who puts in the effort."

"Now, let's get down to business. Anyone who wants to work on the gas cylinder production line and is willing to learn the core technologies, come and line up with Engineer Zhou to register now."

"The process is divided into several groups: material cutting, stamping, welding, grinding, and assembly."

"Each dish has a dedicated master chef to guide you. The better your skills, the more work points you'll earn. Spots are limited, first come, first served!"

The crowd fell silent for several seconds, everyone watching.

Suddenly, a middle-aged worker stepped forward and said:

"Mr. Zhou, I'm signing up. I had three years of experience in riveting and welding, and my skills haven't deteriorated. Do you think I could go straight to the welding team?"

Zhou Chunsheng did not agree directly, but instead habitually glanced at Jiang Fan.

After what happened in the past two days, he now completely regards Jiang Fan as his pillar of support.

Jiang Fan smiled and nodded, saying:

"Whether you can take the job or not, you have to show everyone and Engineer Zhou your real skills, and then he can judge!"

"If your skills are excellent, then go straight for the welding job and get a high score. If your skills are rusty, then obediently follow his instructions and become an assistant!"

Once the first person took the lead in trying something new, others immediately followed suit.

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people swarmed around Zhou Chunsheng, chattering and vying to ask about the work process and the unit price of work points, afraid that their good job would be snatched away by someone else.

Of course, there are also those on the fringes of the crowd who are used to cheating and shirking their duties, standing still and watching coldly, wanting to see which way the wind blows first.

Seeing that the situation was settled, Jiang Fan took a few steps back and stood at the base of the wall. Watching the workers enthusiastically signing up, the tension in his heart finally eased.

The pilot project in the workshop has been successfully implemented. The next priority is to quickly go back and write a report to submit to Director He.

Anyway, this is something that has been proven by history, and the higher-ups are looking for ways to reform industry, so there shouldn't be any major problems.

Thinking about this, another matter weighing on my mind resurfaced:

What happened to Grandpa? He hasn't come to work for several days in a row. I have to go to the old house to check on him as soon as possible.

So he quickly went to Zhou Chunsheng, who was surrounded by the crowd, and whispered in his ear:

"Zhou, you decide on the number of openings, but make sure to reserve a good spot for Master Jiang Daiji."

"The delicate work of mold assembly will be handled by him. He was originally a top-notch carpenter, and he has a good eye for it. He will definitely have no problem doing this job."

"I have some urgent business to attend to. Keep an eye on things in the workshop for now. Once you're done, give those group leaders in the machining workshop a good talking-to. Thanks for your help."

Zhou Chunsheng was sweating profusely from the work, so he quickly nodded and went back to registering the workers.

After making the arrangements, Jiang Fan turned around and quickly left the noisy steel rolling mill, heading straight for his great-grandfather's house.

No matter what troubles my great-grandfather encounters, he must take on the mold assembly job that I left him.

After all, in the magnificent industrial wave that followed, there was an irreplaceable core skill, which was the iron rice bowl that no one could take away!