Courtyard House: Starting as an eighth-grade worker, with too many wives.

……

A group of people blocked the front of the car, acting as if they had seen some important figure. Li Jianguo climbed out of the car, somewhat bewildered.

"What's wrong?"

Leading the way was Officer Cui, whose mouth was practically stretched to his ears in a wide grin.

"Director Li, we've been waiting for you to come back!"

"Something happened?" Li Jianguo's heart tightened. "If something happened, why didn't you write a letter? I left someone to tell you to pass on the message if anything happens—"

"No, no!"

Officer Cui quickly waved his hand.

"This is great news! Absolutely fantastic news!"

He smiled so hard his eyes narrowed into slits.

"The locomotive is finished! Engineer Liao said the power output can reach 1,500, but whether it will reach 600 or not, we'll have to test it in Tangshan to find out."

Li Jianguo paused for a moment, then smiled.

"Let's go take a look."

A short section of railway track was laid in the workshop, with a large, dark iron lump perched on top of it. Li Jianguo stood in front of it, craning his neck to look at it for a while. He had seen this thing before when he was a child. Back then, he would lean over the railing at the train station and think the trains were really big and majestic, like black dragons.

It's right here in front of me now, something I made myself.

Engineer Liao came forward, followed by Jiang Min. Both of them looked a little excited, but they were holding it in.

"Director Li."

Li Jianguo nodded.

"Don't just stand there, tell me what happened. Where are the blueprints?"

Liao stepped aside to make way.

"Let Xiaomin talk about it; she was a great help."

All eyes immediately turned to Jiang Min. Her face flushed red, her fingers twisted together, and her lips moved but no sound came out.

Seeing her like that, Li Jianguo softened his tone.

"Don't be nervous, just give me a general overview, I'll look at the blueprints for the details."

Jiang Min took a deep breath.

"This locomotive uses a four-axle hydraulic transmission. From the start of construction until now..."

As she spoke, her voice steadied. Li Jianguo listened while flipping through the blueprints, nodding occasionally. Being one of the top students in the school, she spoke clearly and logically, without any stage fright.

After she finished speaking, Li Jianguo closed the blueprints.

"There shouldn't be any major problems. The internal combustion engine can be tested to check the speed. If everything goes well, we can prepare for mass production."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Jiang Min couldn't help but ask:

"So, are we going on a business trip?"

Liao was also looking at him.

"The experiment can't be done here, so we have to go to Tangshan. We need to arrange someone quickly."

Li Jianguo nodded.

"You can decide among yourselves who will go. We'll depart in three days; use these days to make the necessary preparations."

That's settled.

Back in the office, Jiang Min followed behind without saying a word.

Li Jianguo turned to look at her.

"Did you miss me?"

Jiang Min blushed again and gave a soft "hmm" like a mosquito's buzz.

"I kind of want to."

Li Jianguo smiled and took the things off the car. One bag contained various foods given by Jiang's mother, and the other bag contained things he had prepared himself.

"This is from your mom, in case you're not used to the food. These are what I prepared; I'll share them with everyone when we get back. You go ahead and get busy; see you at the cafeteria tonight."

Jiang Min took the things, nodded, and left.

Li Jianguo went to the other office by himself.

Inside, a group of people were arguing around a table. Upon seeing him enter, their expressions immediately changed, and they surrounded him.

"Director Li, I heard you went to arrest spies?"

"Did you catch them? What do they look like?"

Li Jianguo was left speechless, both amused and exasperated by their questions.

"What spies? They're just a few commercial thieves hired by a foreign car company. They're utterly incompetent; they would have been caught long ago."

Someone clicked their tongue twice.

"Are our cars considered advanced even abroad?"

Li Jianguo glanced at him.

"Don't underestimate those blueprints. We're taking a shortcut to catch up now, and you'll have to keep working on it. The new locomotive isn't urgent, but we need to get it done as soon as possible so that we can reach anywhere in the country within eight hours in the future."

Within eight hours?

The group of people were stunned.

Our country is so big! A trip here, even a short one, takes at least a day and a night; a long one, several days and nights. Eight hours? Isn't that a dream?

"Director Li, is this... possible?"

Li Jianguo smiled.

"How will we know if it's possible or not if we don't try?"

They looked at Li Jianguo, unsure of what to feel. But Director Li was a man who never spoke without a plan. What he said he could do, he always accomplished.

Maybe...maybe it really will work?

"Alright, we'll talk about the future later. Let's talk about the present: who's going to Tangshan this time?"

"Go, everyone!"

They were almost all in a row.

Li Jianguo looked at them, thought for a moment, and nodded.

"Okay. There's no rush for the new project, let's go take a look together."

Just then, Director Yang came in from outside.

He heard about the business trip as soon as he arrived and chimed in for a few words. Then, someone boldly blurted out:

"Director Yang, we can't just go back to Tangshan, can we? You have to think of a solution."

Factory Director Yang was taken aback and looked at Li Jianguo.

Li Jianguo said slowly:

"I also think it's too much trouble. How about we build a testing site nearby?"

Factory Director Yang's face twitched.

"You make it sound so easy for you!"

His voice rose.

"Do you know how much that will cost? There's no railway here; we'll have to rebuild it, like building a small train station! All the money the factory earns goes to the higher-ups. Where am I supposed to get the money for you?"

Li Jianguo looked at him with a smile.

"Think about it again. With a testing ground, we won't need to travel for work anymore. How convenient!"

After holding it in for a long time, Director Yang finally let out a long sigh.

"Fine... I'll go apply to the higher-ups. Can't you guys be a little more lenient with me?"

Everyone suppressed their laughter and offered their advice all at once:

"Director Yang, you are the most decisive and charismatic director!"

"We are so lucky to work for you!"

"We'll raise a toast to you at the cafeteria tonight!"

Factory Director Yang felt embarrassed by their comments, waved his hand, and left.

Li Jianguo followed behind.

After they had walked a distance, Factory Director Yang asked him in a low voice:

"You really think it's necessary? That's not a small amount of money."

Li Jianguo nodded.

"We don't know the situation in Tangshan. How many people has the security department arrested in the past few days? If there's a technical leak there, we won't be able to find them. Here, the security is handled by our own people..."

Factory Director Yang remained silent for a while.

"Fine. I'll grind it down. If I can't grind it down, I'll squeeze it out of the factory. I refuse to believe we can't build it."

Li Jianguo thought about it.

"How about we use that money from this time? It's not much, but it'll be a safety net."

Factory Director Yang glared at him.

"That's for buying your equipment! Some things can only be bought with US dollars, so you can't spend them recklessly."

He waved his hand, looking helpless.

"Alright, don't worry about this, I'll handle it. You people..."

Li Jianguo smiled.

"Those who are capable should do more work. Thank you for your hard work, Director Yang."

"Are you staying at the factory these few days or going back home?"

"Let's go home. Take Minmin with us."

I'm leaving in three days. I've been packing for everyone and letting my family know. It's a business trip, and I don't know how long I'll be gone, so I need to give them an update.

Factory Director Yang nodded.

"Sure. I'll go see your father-in-law. His factory seems to be having some trouble with agricultural machinery lately."

Li Jianguo was stunned for a moment.

"What happened? I saw your aunt earlier, but she didn't say anything."

Factory Director Yang smiled and moved closer to him.

"Old Jiang is a proud man, he's probably too embarrassed to ask you directly. When you go there, don't ask directly, try to get the information indirectly, it's best to talk to their engineer. That old guy is very stubborn, if you suddenly do something for him, he'll definitely be happy."

He winked ambiguously.

"He's happy, you know..."

Li Jianguo touched his nose, looking a little embarrassed.

"I'm not ready to propose yet. When I get back, I'll ask the factory manager to be my witness."

Factory Director Yang's eyes lit up.