Courtyard House: I'm an engineer, and a fairy godmother transferred me to a different position.

"The Canton Fair is just our first appearance on the international stage."

"Our goal is to get 'Made in China' products directly onto the shelves in Tokyo!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the conference room erupted in laughter again.

As the laughter subsided, someone raised a concern: "Old Chen, the Japanese trade barriers might not be so easy to overcome."

"breakthrough?"

Director Chen turned around, a meaningful smile appearing on his lips.

"Who said we were going to break through?"

He paused, looking at the puzzled expressions on everyone's faces, and said, word by word, "They won't let our rice cookers into their market, fine."

"They're just relying on having a 'father' up there."

"Since they're so eager to find someone else a father, why don't we find them another one..."

Anyone attending the Ministry of Foreign Trade meeting at this time is a shrewd individual. Upon hearing the word "father," everyone's minds raced, and they almost immediately understood who it referred to—

The Russian bear from the north.

Sure enough, Director Chen's voice continued:

"We can sell the rice cooker to the Russians at a discounted price first."

"Then, let that 'father' from Japan resell the goods to them."

The conference room fell into an eerie silence.

After a few seconds of silence, a burning light shone in everyone's eyes.

"Whether the quail on that island recognizes its ancestors or not is irrelevant," Director Chen's voice echoed in the conference room. "But for the giant bear in the north, do you think it would turn away gold offered to it so readily?" He paused, his fingertips lightly tapping the table. "As for that quail..." A low chuckle escaped his lips, "Do they dare to say a single word of dissent to this 'elder'?"

He strolled back to his seat with composure, picked up the cup of warm tea, and let the rising steam brush against his face: "Unless they want to relive their past and form another team to experience the charm of digging potatoes on the ice field."

"ha!"

The laughter in the room could no longer be contained and erupted in a thunderous roar. This time, the laughter was no longer filled with initial surprise, but with heartfelt admiration and delight at such an ingenious arrangement.

Orders from the Canton Fair poured in like snowflakes, igniting a burning passion within the Ministry of Foreign Trade. This further convinced everyone involved that the establishment of Hongxing Chuanghui Machinery Factory was not only inevitable, but also a gamble worth taking everything on.

In early May, the outskirts of Beijing were already carrying the warmth of summer. Under the watchful eyes and anticipation of countless people, the Hongxing Chuanghui Machinery Factory finally unveiled its grand opening. Six brand-new factory buildings stood majestically, the machines inside having long since finished their low-pitched testing, awaiting their full operation. Today was its official inauguration day.

The sky over the eastern suburbs was crystal clear. Above the factory gate, a red sign with gold lettering hung high, flanked by colorful flags that fluttered in the wind, accompanied by the deafening sound of gongs and drums. As a key project jointly promoted by the departments of the two ministries, Director Lin of the Ministry of Machine Building and Director Chen of the Ministry of Foreign Trade arrived side by side. Behind them followed personnel from their respective departments' publicity offices. In these days shrouded in the shadow of natural disasters, the completion of this factory was undoubtedly a rare bright spot in the industrial landscape of Beijing, and the two ministries naturally wanted to leave a significant mark on it.

As the unveiling ceremony began, Director Chen from the Ministry of Foreign Trade stepped onto the stage first. He adjusted the microphone, and his loud voice resonated throughout every corner of the factory area:

"Comrades! Precious time is of the essence; I'll only speak to the core—the establishment of the Hongxing Foreign Exchange Machinery Factory is far more than just the birth of a factory!" He gestured forcefully towards the neat rows of factory buildings. "This is a brand new starting point for our country's light industry to step onto the world stage and earn foreign exchange! The electric kettles, geothermal blankets, induction cookers, and rice cookers that Comrade Liu Guangqi has researched have already won a reputation in our northern neighbors and on the stage of the Canton Fair. Now, we must rely on our Hongxing Factory to continuously manufacture these 'foreign exchange tools,' letting the whole world see clearly..."

He raised his voice, each word ringing out: "The strength of our country's light industry is among the world's best!"

As soon as he finished speaking, applause erupted like a sudden thunderclap in the height of summer. The workers' faces flushed with excitement, and the colorful flags in their hands waved like a surging red tide.

Liu Guangqi stood to the side of the stage, flanked by Wang Jianguo and the new factory leadership team transferred from the two ministries. Hearing Director Chen mention his name on stage, he felt little pride, but rather a heavy burden weighing on his shoulders. His gaze swept over the expectant faces below the stage, over the rows of factory buildings gleaming metallically in the sunlight. Those once cold lines on blueprints had now transformed into steel frames and heavy bricks, standing firmly on the earth. The impact of this reality far surpassed any form of commendation.

It is worth mentioning that although Wang Jianguo was the deputy factory director in charge of production, the position of factory director was filled by someone from the Ministry of Foreign Trade because the primary mission of the new factory was to generate foreign exchange. The heads of the various departments were jointly appointed by the two ministries. Only Liu Guangqi's position as chief engineer was a special secondment arrangement.

Not far away, Director Lin of the Ministry of Machine Building looked at Director Chen, who was speaking eloquently on the stage, and whispered to the person next to him, "Look at Old Chen's enthusiasm... If you didn't know better, you might think that those new gadgets were invented by their Ministry of Foreign Trade." His tone was slightly sarcastic, but he couldn't hide the deep-seated sense of shared glory.

The thunderous applause gradually subsided. After Director Chen finished speaking, Director Lin from the First Ministry of Machine Building steadily walked to the front of the stage. Similarly, he did not elaborate much, but simply and concisely delivered a few words.

With that, the official speech segment finally came to an end. The workers below the stage were already quite impatient, eagerly anticipating the main event to come.

Immediately following was the announcement of the appointment that captivated everyone's attention.

Director Lin cleared his throat, his gaze sharp and intense, slowly sweeping across the room. After announcing the appointments of the new factory's director and deputy director, he deliberately paused for a moment, creating a brief silence. Then, he read out each word clearly and forcefully:

"After thorough deliberation, the Ministry has decided to temporarily appoint Comrade Liu Guangqi as the Chief Technical Engineer of Hongxing Chuanghui Machinery Factory!"

The moment the last word faded, a thunderous applause, more enthusiastic and longer than ever before, erupted, sweeping across the entire factory area. This applause was entirely different from the perfunctory clapping offered to the directors earlier.

The applause was thunderous, like a sudden downpour pounding on a tin roof, each clap carrying real weight. Someone whistled enthusiastically, the sharp sound piercing the air.

"good!"

"Who else could it be but Chief Engineer Liu!"

Director Chen and Director Lin on the podium exchanged glances briefly, each catching an unexpected tremor in the other's eyes. They knew Liu Guangqi enjoyed a high reputation among the workers, but they hadn't realized it was this profound.

The applause from the audience did not stop; instead, it grew even more intense.

Everyone knows perfectly well that the soul and pillar of Hongxing Chuanghui Machinery Factory has never been those sitting in the office, but rather the person standing below the stage right now—Liu Guangqi.

Liu Guangqi steadily stepped onto the stage and accepted the appointment letter. His gaze slowly swept over the faces below the stage, soaked with engine oil and sweat, and a complex surge of emotion welled up in his chest.

"Comrades!" His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to every corner. "Technology is the foundation of our factory's survival. From now on, I and everyone will work together to polish every product that leaves our factory to perfection."

"What we gain isn't just foreign exchange, it's face!"

"We want foreigners to think of China so that the first thing that comes to mind is—'Red Star Factory products are top-notch!'"

Before the words were even finished, a rough shout erupted from the group of workers: "Chief Engineer Liu, we're sticking with you!"

Immediately following, voices of agreement arose one after another, merging into a wave of sound filled with trust and expectation.

After the ceremony, Directors Lin and Chen did not leave immediately, but instead moved to the production workshop with the new factory's leadership team.

The assembly lines stood in neat rows, gleaming with the cold, hard sheen of metal. Having finished his inspection, Director Chen turned around, a gentle yet undeniable smile on his face, and said to Liu Guangqi:

"Comrade Guangqi, we have a general understanding of the situation in the workshops. Next, let's have a short meeting." He paused slightly, his tone calm but emphasizing, "Perfect timing, there are also some situations in the department that I need to discuss with you."

The air in the meeting room seemed to become thick and subtle after the workshop tour.

Several cigarette butts had quietly appeared in the white porcelain ashtray. Along the way, Lin and Chen had meticulously questioned the production line's cost accounting, performance parameters, and even working efficiency, clearly having come prepared.

At this moment, the two leaders sat down comfortably, temporarily setting aside the topic of the production line. Director Chen took out a document from his briefcase; it was short, but when he pushed it in front of Liu Guangqi, it seemed to carry an invisible weight.

"Comrade Guangqi, take a look at this." Director Chen's tone remained unhurried.

Liu Guangqi took the paper, his gaze sweeping across it like lightning. The numbers and words on it seemed to come alive, rushing into his mind.

Summary of orders from the Canton Fair.

When Liu Guangqi's gaze fell upon the glaring red circle at the bottom and the astronomical number within it, even though he had anticipated it, his breath caught in his throat. The number was like a piece of red iron just pulled from a furnace, scorching and burning his eyes.

Sitting to the side, Wang Jianguo couldn't help but lean forward for a peek, and he jumped so hard he almost slipped off his chair. He turned to Liu Guangqi in astonishment, his lips moved a few times, but ultimately no sound came out.

This was an overwhelming flood of orders, enough to make one dizzy.

"Old Lin and I have made a preliminary estimate," Director Chen said, stubbing out his cigarette butt in the ashtray and leaning forward slightly to get closer to the customer. "Even if we run all the production lines at our Hongxing factory at full capacity and have the workers working in shifts around the clock, it will be incredibly difficult to secure all of these orders before the Spring Festival."

Director Lin tapped the table lightly with his knuckles at the opportune moment and said, "The difficulty lies in the fact that delivery deadlines in the international market are ironclad rules, and there are never any exceptions for anyone."

At this point, the two leaders exchanged a meaningful glance.

Finally, Director Lin broke the brief silence: "The Ministry of Light Industry has also heard about the commotion caused by the rice cookers at the Canton Fair. They... have already expressed their intention to me and Lao Chen through formal channels, hoping to explore the possibility of production cooperation with their subordinate electrical appliance factories."

"Of course," Director Chen added slowly, his gaze falling on Liu Guangqi's face, "we can't overstep our bounds on this matter. In the end, we still have to listen to your opinion. After all, you led the team to work on this rice cooker from blueprints to finished product, bit by bit."

Liu Guangqi understood instantly.

This involves diverting some orders to factories under the Ministry of Light Industry for joint production.

When Wang Jianguo heard that "the Ministry of Light Industry's Electrical Appliance Factory will also participate in production," his expression changed drastically, and he became extremely anxious. This rice cooker was the trump card that their Hongxing Factory had worked so hard to establish, and with their foothold still unstable, how could they easily hand over their core technological achievement to others?

However, he could only suppress this anxiety. It was the era of a planned economy, and the production tasks and resource allocation of each directly affiliated factory were all planned and coordinated by higher-level ministries. As the deputy factory director in charge of production, he was powerless to change the decisions made at the ministerial level.

In a sense, the Ministry of Light Industry may not currently have the same influence as the Ministry of Machine Building, which oversees heavy industry, given that heavy industry is crucial to national defense and the lifeline of the overall industrial sector. However, the Ministry of Light Industry has its own unique strengths—namely, its exceptional ability to generate foreign exchange. In recent years, most of the commodities that have earned the country valuable foreign exchange at the Canton Fair were purchased by the Ministry of Light Industry.

Moreover, everyday heating appliances such as rice cookers and induction cookers fall under the jurisdiction of light industry.

In the field of electrical appliance manufacturing, factories directly under the Ministry of Light Industry are the most suitable units to take on orders.

If there are enough orders, allowing these factories to join the production will surely increase output significantly and earn more valuable foreign exchange for the country.

Recalling the more than 80 million US dollars in transaction volume achieved in the first year of the Canton Fair, which accounted for 20% of the country's foreign exchange earnings that year, one can see the crucial role of the Ministry of Light Industry in generating foreign exchange.

Today, even if a rice cooker business alone only earns $20 million a year, it's enough to make the country stand taller.

Liu Guangqi remained silent.