Starting from 1950

Chapter 82 The Big Brother's Inner Conflict (Seeking First Subscription)

Natalia picked up a bit of powder, smelled it, and then tasted it.

"The basic flavor profile is based on the salty and savory taste of scallions and ginger, a simple approach suitable for wartime conditions. However, moisture protection and homogenization require industrialized packaging equipment."

She looked at Zhou Zheng, "Director Zhou, if I may be frank, relying on manual labor and rudimentary drying rooms, even with the workers' tremendous efforts, production capacity is extremely limited, and quality fluctuations are unavoidable. You need modern drying tunnels, automated noodle pressing production lines..."

Precise temperature and humidity control systems, and vacuum packaging equipment.

Zhou Zheng gave a bitter and helpless smile: "Comrade Natalia, the equipment you mentioned... is too far removed from our lives. The country is in dire need of rebuilding, and steel and machinery must first be used to support the military and basic industries. This 'defense of the homeland' is urgently needed by our soldiers, so we can only use makeshift methods to produce it as quickly as possible, even if it's crude and limited, it's better than nothing. We are racing against time, racing against the enemy's bullets on the front lines."

Natalia remained silent.

My father instructed me before I left: "Be more critical and point out shortcomings; don't make hasty judgments."

She looked at the simple environment before her, at the workers sweating profusely but with focused eyes, at the heavy and firm sense of responsibility on Zhou Zheng's face, and then at the pancake in her hand that contained simple wisdom.

I couldn't help but recall the scene of the people of our motherland persisting in production amidst the ruins during the early stages of the Great Patriotic War.

At that time, Natalia was still in school, and she was very familiar with this kind of creativity, cohesion, and spirit of sacrifice that arises under extremely difficult conditions.

After a brief silence, Natalia closed her notebook, her tone softening considerably: "Director Zhou, Comrade Su Yang, and all of you, your work... is truly remarkable. Developing such a convenient and practical food product under such limited conditions demonstrates immense wisdom. I retract my previous dismissive assessment."

She changed the subject: "I will report what I have seen and heard to my superiors as factually. Let's call it a day. Please arrange accommodation for us. I need a quiet environment to process the data collected today."

Zhou Zheng's eyes lit up, and he immediately nodded, "Of course! Comrade Natalia, thank you very much for your guidance!" He immediately called to Li Yan, "Quick! Take these two comrades to the best guesthouse in Tiexi!"

The crowd escorted the two distinguished guests out of the sweltering workshop.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief after watching the two get into the jeep borrowed from a brother unit.

Wang Cui couldn't help but speak up: "Factory Director, these two are behaving strangely."

Many officials nodded in agreement.

Indeed, for Victor, an active-duty pilot, composure and calmness are fundamental qualities.

Just now, however, he seemed to be deliberately provoking trouble.

And then there's Natalia; her attitude changed quite a bit before and after.

"Why worry about so much?" Zhou Zheng said with a smile, "Anyway, our reception work is done."

After saying that, he gave Su Yang an approving look: "You're pretty good, kid. You were neither humble nor arrogant, and you handled the difficult situation very well. You were both dignified and composed. I feel that you have some diplomatic talent."

"The factory manager is right. That man was deliberately causing trouble for Xinxue. My heart was in my throat." Ruan Sumei patted her chest, still feeling a bit scared.

Wu Xinxue's big, watery eyes looked at Su Yang at just the right moment.

Su Yang smiled modestly at everyone and didn't respond.

Zhou Zheng had no intention of letting everyone chat idly any longer. He waved his hand and said, "Alright! Now that we've passed this hurdle, everyone go back to work. Wang Cui, you guys in the workshop need to step up your efforts. The equipment over there from the older brother's side hasn't even appeared yet, so you can't slack off on production. Hurry up and get a truckload ready to send to Andong."

"I understand, factory manager," Wang Cui replied in a deep voice, and strode towards the workshop.

"Alright! Everyone else, go your separate ways." Zhou Zheng waved his hand and strode away.

Zhang Zhenguo suddenly said, "I've got nothing to do, so I'll go to Workshop 1 in the east and see if there's anything I can help with."

After saying that, he quickly chased after Wang Cui's retreating figure.

After everyone else left, Wu Xinxue said to Su Yang mysteriously, "Section Chief Zhang must have taken a liking to Aunt Wang. He's been going to Workshop One every day these days."

Su Yang was slightly taken aback; he hadn't really noticed this.

However, to be fair, Zhang Zhenguo and Wang Cui are quite a good match.

Both were former soldiers; one was the head of the security department, and the other was the workshop director.

In terms of age, one is 31 and the other is 27, which is considered a "leftover man" and "leftover woman" in this era.

However, both of them neglected their personal lives due to their revolutionary careers and had never been married before.

If the two of them could be together, it would be a beautiful story.

"Let's not talk about anything else, Sister Xinxue. I helped you today, how are you going to thank me?" Su Yang said with a smile.

"I'm your sister, it's only right that you help me."

Wu Xinxue first rolled her eyes at him, then couldn't help but ask, "How do you want me to thank you?"

"Please prepare a week's worth of foot bath water for me!"

"Pah! You're asking for it!"

After the two played around for a while, Wu Xinxue became a little worried.

"Su Yang, you've offended that Captain Victor. Won't you be in trouble?"

"So what if he's a captain?" Su Yang snorted. "I've killed several captains on the battlefield. Our factory director was a regimental political commissar before he retired, and he wasn't as arrogant as him. Besides, I'm just stating the facts. You're not a professional translator, so it's already great that you managed to fill in. If you ask me, that Victor is just arrogant and needs to be taught a lesson."

Wu Xinxue was momentarily stunned by the radiant look on his face, and murmured, "I promise to fetch you foot bath water for a week."

"What?" Su Yang asked in disbelief.

"Never mind if you didn't hear me!" Wu Xinxue snapped out of her daze, blushed slightly, and walked quickly forward with her hands behind her back.

"No! Explain yourself!" Su Yang quickly caught up.

As the sun sets, the factory's outline is sketched against the dim yellow sky.

The hum of the machines, the shouts of the workers, and the hiss of the steam mingled together, creating a symphony of self-reliance and relentless struggle.

The departure of the two "distinguished guests" allowed everyone in the factory to relax their tense nerves.

Su Yang squatted at the entrance of the security office. In the open space in front of him, Xiao Yu was using her sharp beak and claws to cut the rat she had just caught into strips of "rat meat" before swallowing it.

It would glance at Su Yang every now and then, its little head still unable to understand why Su Yang wouldn't eat such delicious food.

Su Yang ignored Xiao Yu.

He was mentally reviewing what had happened that day.

Combining the information he had seen in his previous life with the snippets he had overheard from high-ranking officers like Commander Zhai on the battlefield, he roughly figured out why these two people were behaving so badly today.

The Big Brother has been shirking its responsibilities since the start of the war, simply because he believes that the "little brother" in his eyes is bound to lose this battle and he doesn't want to lose his own planes, supplies, and troops.

Unexpectedly, after several battles, this little brother not only withstood the enemy's offensive, but even caused the enemy to show signs of complete defeat.

The senior management on the other side had mixed feelings.

While happy that their side had produced a formidable general, they couldn't help but worry that this junior member might challenge their position in the future.

However, as the elder brother in the camp, if the younger brother succeeds, the elder brother will definitely reward and support him.

But while support is important, some criticism is still necessary.