Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

Wei Hongjun didn't ask why Guangxi didn't ask the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry or the central government for more support, because he understood the concerns of the Guangxi cadres.

They built Liuzhou Iron and Steel with much difficulty. While Soviet aid and the central government mobilized a large number of technical personnel to participate in its construction, Guangxi truly expended the entire province's funds and manpower on its construction. Therefore, some selfish motives were undoubtedly involved.

Wei Hongjun said to Li Fuchun, Wang Heshou, and Lü Dong, "This isn't a good thing. We've built such a great steel plant, but if we can't increase steel production, it's a huge waste."

"The leadership of the steel mill should be strengthened and more technical personnel should be added."

Li Fuchun nodded.

Li Fuchun, a leader who has long been responsible for the development of China's heavy industry, is well aware of Liuzhou Iron and Steel's current problems, as they were also encountered at Anshan Iron and Steel, Wuhan Iron and Steel, and Baotou Iron and Steel.

At the time, many Chinese industrial officials had never seen such a large steel plant, and the technicians were also unfamiliar with it. Although Soviet experts provided hands-on instruction, truly understanding and applying it took time.

Ansteel, Baotou Steel, Wuhan Steel, and Xuanwu Steel, which are currently the most productive steel mills, all took several years of trial and error to understand how such large-scale steel mills operate, and only then were their steel production gradually reaching its designed output.

“First, we need to find a factory manager who is familiar with the steel industry and the operation of a steel plant.”

A train runs fast only because of its locomotive. Although this statement is a bit absolute, the importance of a capable leader to the team is undeniable.

Guangxi has no experience in steel mills, especially large ones. It's unclear how many years it will take for them to slowly figure out how to increase production.

The war in Vietnam cannot wait, the Soviet Union cannot wait, and China cannot waste such a good steel plant.

So Wei Hongjun said directly that Liugang needed to transfer a factory manager who was familiar with this industry from outside.

Lü Dong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry, said, "Comrade Li Wen, Director of the Anshan Iron and Steel Rolling Mill, is preparing to move to Beijing to serve as President of the Beijing Iron and Steel Institute. I believe Comrade Li Wen could be transferred to Liuzhou Iron and Steel."

Wang Heshou nodded immediately.

Then he introduced Li Wen to Wei Hongjun and Li Fuchun: "Secretary Wei, Vice Premier Li, I think Comrade Li Wen is indeed very suitable to work at Liuzhou Iron and Steel. Comrade Li Wen was in charge of propaganda work during the revolutionary era. However, when we took over Anshan Iron and Steel and the Anshan Steel Rolling Mill was established, Comrade Li Wen was appointed director. Comrade Li Wen is very studious and has always insisted on studying industrial knowledge at Anshan Iron and Steel's employee night school."

"Under his leadership, Anshan Iron and Steel's large-scale rolling mill achieved a breakthrough in steel rolling technology and increased production three years ahead of Soviet experts' expectations. The mill now produces high-quality rails and construction steel, with high-tech production. Annual sales at Anshan Iron and Steel's large-scale rolling mill now exceed 10 billion yuan."

"In 1957, Comrade Li Wen was ordered to take charge of the construction of a cold-rolled sheet metal mill, which officially started production at the end of last year."

"So the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry plans to transfer him to Beijing to serve as president of the Beijing Iron and Steel Institute. However, given Liuzhou Iron and Steel's current situation, transferring him here to serve as plant director is a good choice. He's familiar with steel mill operations and can increase Liuzhou Iron and Steel's production in a short period of time."

Wei Hongjun looked at Li Fuchun.

Because heavy industry had always been under Li Fuchun's charge. Li Fuchun nodded and said, "I know Comrade Li Wen. He has outstanding achievements at the Anshan Iron and Steel Rolling Mill and is also the deputy director and a member of the Party Committee. He made a very successful transition from a propaganda cadre to an industrial cadre. He is familiar with the operation of large steel mills."

Sometimes vision is everything. Industrial cadres who have seen large steel mills definitely have an advantage over those who have not.

As Li Wen, deputy director and party committee member of Anshan Iron and Steel, and director of its rolling mill, he was undoubtedly very familiar with Anshan Iron and Steel, a giant Chinese steel company with an annual output exceeding 600 million tons.

The cadres who have achieved great success in Anshan Iron and Steel are definitely better than the cadres in Guangxi who have never seen a large steel plant.

Wei Hongjun looked at Su Zhenhua, Gu Mu and the others and asked, "What do people in Guangxi think?"

Liuzhou Iron and Steel is, after all, the fruit of Guangxi's labor. Although this was merely a polite, procedural inquiry, it was still necessary to ask for Guangxi's opinion.

Su Zhenhua immediately said, "Secretary Wei, we have no objection."

The current director of Liuzhou Iron and Steel is Liu Shaowen, the former political commissar of the Guangxi Military Region.

This was a cadre from the Central Red Army who had participated in the Long March. His qualifications were similar to Wei Hongjun's. However, he had been working in Yan'an during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Later, when Yang Dezhi led the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Army to defend Yan'an, he joined Yang Dezhi's army.

After the Anti-Japanese War, he followed Yang Dezhi to the Northeast, and then followed Yang Dezhi from the Northeast to Guangxi. When he was awarded the rank, he was the political commissar of the Guangxi Military Region and became a lieutenant general.

Su Zhenhua was Liu Shaowen's legitimate supervisor. Liuzhou Iron and Steel had been Guangxi's largest project for the past two years, holding a crucial position in the region. Therefore, at Su Zhenhua's request, Liu Shaowen left the army to take full responsibility for the construction of Liuzhou Iron and Steel.

Liu Shaowen had made great contributions to the construction of Liuzhou Iron and Steel, so Su Zhenhua was reluctant to invite an outsider to serve as the director of Liuzhou Iron and Steel.

But Su Zhenhua understood that Liuzhou Iron and Steel needed a more professional factory manager, otherwise the production of Liuzhou Iron and Steel would increase too slowly.

As for Liu Shaowen, he wasn't capable of managing a steel mill. However, as a military officer who had personally participated in its construction, he would be of great use in the future. Guangxi, in particular, needed a cadre like Liu Shaowen who was daring and willing to fight, especially as the country sought to develop its industry.

Seeing Su Zhenhua nod, Wei Hongjun said to Li Fuchun: "Comrade Li Fuchun, after the joint discussion with the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry, you will submit a scoring report to the Secretariat, the State Council, and the Finance and Economics Working Committee."

This kind of internal cadre transfer within the industrial system was generally not a problem as long as the industry and Li Fuchun agreed. The Secretariat, the State Council, and the Finance and Economics Working Committee would not easily raise any objections.

Wei Hongjun had personally met Li Wen, a cadre who had been visiting Anshan Iron and Steel, the cradle of China's steel industry, several times. However, he and Li Wen had only briefly discussed the work at the rolling mill and hadn't gained a deeper understanding.

But judging by the attitudes of Wang Heshou and Lü Dong from the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry, they both expressed strong optimism about this cadre. So, he was appointed director of Liuzhou Iron and Steel. Furthermore, he came from Anshan Iron and Steel, having spent ten years there. This would serve as a bridge for Liuzhou Iron and Steel to secure support from Anshan Iron and Steel.

"This is..."

Wei Hongjun asked as he looked at the industrial map of Liuzhou.

"These are several military factories built with Soviet aid. They primarily produce bullets and shells for Soviet weapons. As for more specifics, we can't ask."

Wei Hongjun nodded.

This was a military collaboration between China, the Soviet Union, and Vietnam. Wei Hongjun did not interfere because these military factories were directly matched by the Soviet Union.

Wei Hongjun pointed to the other side and said, "This way?"

"This is also to support the factory built in Vietnam in the future."

"What factories are there?"

"That's a lot."

Gu Mu was very excited when talking about this, and said: "There are canning factories, flashlight factories, battery factories, military kettle factories, bicycle factories, glass factories..."

“And a bicycle factory?”

Wei Hongjun was amazed by the variety of factories. Gu Mu nodded and said, "During our negotiations with the Soviet Union, a young cadre, Comrade Yang from Jiangsu, who serves as director of the Liuzhou Industrial Zone, pointed out that Vietnam's transportation conditions are poor, gasoline is severely insufficient, and the roads are vulnerable to US bombing."

"So other modes of transportation can be chosen. Each bicycle produced in China can carry hundreds of kilograms. If there are 10,000 bicycles, millions of kilograms of supplies can be transported. Bicycles can take small roads and avoid US bombing. And the Vietnamese People's Army can also use bicycles."

"The Vietnamese representatives also agreed with this view. As a result, the Soviet Union approved a sum of money to support the construction of a bicycle factory in Liuzhou. The factory is almost complete and will be able to resume normal production next month."

Gu Mu is happy every time a factory is established in Guangxi.

The same is true for bicycle factories.

If it weren't for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it wouldn't have been easy for Guangxi to build a bicycle factory with an annual output of over 100,000 bicycles. But in this special period, this is not a problem.

China's current bicycles have many consistent technical standards. They have a body that meets unified technical standards and a high load capacity, capable of carrying hundreds of kilograms of items.

"So what is this glass factory?"

"Comrade Yang from Jiangsu said that the best military rations for war were canned food. However, there were no glass factories in Guangxi, so the glass needed for canning had to be custom-made from other places. This would greatly affect logistics. The Soviet side agreed with this view and supported the establishment of a glass factory in Liuzhou, specifically to support the Guangxi canning factory."

"Comrade Yang from Jiangsu? How did he participate in the negotiations with the Soviet Union and Vietnam?"

Wei Hongjun sent Jiangsu Yang to Guangxi mainly to let him participate in the industrial construction of Liuzhou. He did not expect that he would be involved in so many things.

Su Zhenhua was not surprised that Wei Hongjun knew Jiangsu Yang. This was because when Jiangsu Yang was assigned to Liuzhou, the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China communicated directly with the Organization Department of the Guangxi Provincial Party Committee.

Su Zhenhua said, "Secretary Wei, our Guangxi industrial base is poor and our talent pool is limited. Most cadres have never seen a factory and have little understanding of industry."

"Comrade Yang from Jiangsu is a university graduate who studied in the Soviet Union and participated in the construction of automobile factories like FAW and Second Automobile Works. We certainly want to make use of this kind of industrial talent. He understands industry and was in charge of industrial zone construction in Liuzhou. If it weren't for the strict regulations of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, Liuzhou would have long wanted to promote him to the position of Deputy Commissioner in charge of industry. His rank at Second Automobile Works was sufficient."

"Although he was only the director of the Liuzhou Industrial Zone, his job was to plan the entire Liuzhou industry. Therefore, when discussing the layout of Liuzhou's industry with the Soviet Union and Vietnam, he also attended the meeting."

Industrial talents like Jiangsu Yang are very popular nowadays, because local governments all know that they need industry to develop.

Yang from Jiangsu is no ordinary industrial talent. He's an industrial cadre who participated in the construction of FAW and Second Automobile Works. Furthermore, he graduated from the first class of young and middle-aged cadres at the Central Party School. So, of course, he's a treasure in Guangxi.

Jiangsu Yang lived up to expectations. When negotiating with the Soviet Union and Vietnam, he was always able to secure benefits for Guangxi and Liuzhou.

The Soviet Union poured in a lot of money, and a lot of machinery and equipment were shipped to Liuzhou. Within a year, hundreds of factories were established in Liuzhou.

Su Zhenhua's biggest wish was to make Guangxi an industrially developed province. If the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee had not introduced a strict cadre management plan, Su Zhenhua would have wanted to transfer Yang from Jiangsu to work in the province.

Wei Hongjun was also very interested in the development of Liuzhou, so he said: "Then let's go and take a look."

1086

Wei Hongjun and Li Fuchun came to Guangxi to inspect Liuzhou's industry. Officials from both Guangxi and Liuzhou gathered, and no one dared to neglect them. Wei Hongjun briefly chatted with them and then told them to get back to work. There was no need for dozens of people to accompany Wei Hongjun and delay everyone's work.

Wei Hongjun was also worried that his arrangement would give them other ideas, so he was very cautious in selecting the accompanying cadres and did not keep any accompanying cadres according to his own preferences.

From the Guangxi Provincial Party Committee and Government, only Su Zhenhua and Gu Mu, the provincial party secretary and the provincial governor, remained. Even Zhang Linchi, an old subordinate from the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region who had served as secretary-general of the Rural Work Department for many years after liberation, was sent back.

From Liuzhou, only Xiao Han, secretary of the Liuzhou Prefectural Committee, and Liang Shan, commissioner of the Liuzhou region, remained. They were accompanied by Jiangsu Yang and several other officials directly involved in the construction of the Liuzhou Industrial Zone.

Although there are still more than ten people and quite a few security personnel, there are dozens less than before.

Wei Hongjun mainly inspected the development of Liuzhou Industrial Zone. The development here is really in full swing, with construction everywhere.

The number of factories was far greater than originally planned. In addition to the factories Gu Mu had introduced, there was also a medical equipment factory specializing in the production of first aid kits, mainly producing simple battlefield medical equipment such as gauze and bandages.

There were also factories producing raincoats, cooking oil, and sewing machines. These factories could be considered Chinese, but Vietnam also contributed to the negotiations with the Soviet Union. In fact, some of these were not even considered by China itself, but were brought forward by Vietnam.

Guangxi's industrial base was weak, and Vietnam's was even weaker. Vietnam had virtually no ability to produce even basic necessities. Therefore, during this specific negotiation, Vietnam demanded everything from the Soviet Union.

Vietnam's demands also posed a significant headache for the Soviet Union. Weapons and ammunition were fine, but large quantities of daily necessities were also a challenge. The Soviet Union couldn't produce everything and then ship it over thousands of kilometers of railways.

Therefore, the best solution was to produce in China and then hand it over to Vietnam. Suddenly, Liuzhou was full of factories of all kinds. To enable China to produce as quickly as possible, the necessary machinery and equipment were shipped to China as soon as possible. Furthermore, the Soviet Union sent a large number of technical advisors to Liuzhou to help China build factories.

“Where did these construction teams come from?”

"The sources of the construction teams are very complex. Some are from the military region's infrastructure engineering corps, others from the provincial and Liuzhou municipal construction teams. Of course, the majority are mobilized from the various counties within the Liuzhou area. If there weren't so many construction teams, so many factories in the industrial zone, and the need to ensure water, electricity, communications, and transportation, there simply wouldn't be enough time."

Xiao Han, secretary of the Liuzhou Prefectural Party Committee, introduced this to Wei Hongjun. Strength lies in numbers, a fact perfectly demonstrated in large-scale projects like this one.

The Liuzhou Industrial Zone is practically a new Liuzhou. Without the involvement of so many engineering teams, it would have been impossible to build such a large new city in just one year.

In the early stages of socialist development, this centralized approach to construction was a major advantage for socialist countries. However, we shouldn't become completely complacent with this success. As the saying goes, times change, and with the development of socialist construction, production relations need constant adjustment, and this model needs to be refined.

“How is the money calculated?”

“It’s calculated based on the amount of work.”

Jiangsu Yang is the director of the Liuzhou Industrial Zone, fully responsible for its affairs. He immediately responded, "The military engineering corps, the provincial construction team, and our city's construction teams have accumulated considerable technical expertise. Therefore, they are responsible for large and challenging projects. We're unsure of the technical capabilities of the construction teams from other counties, so we'll have them handle simpler, less challenging projects first."

"Our industrial zone committee will settle their project payments based on the amount of work, quality, and difficulty of the work."

Wei Hongjun asked: "What are the capabilities of the engineering teams from the counties?"

"The skills vary. Many are only capable of building mud houses in rural areas, and they come here mainly to do odd jobs and simple construction. But there are also some construction teams from rural cooperatives who are quite skilled, having probably worked on county projects. As long as it's not a factory building with special requirements, they can take it on. Some of these rural cooperative engineering teams can even understand some simple design drawings."

Jiangsu Yang used to be a technician, and most of the people he came into contact with were intellectuals of this generation.

However, this time, during his visit to Liuzhou, he encountered a large number of newly illiterate farmers. Initially, Jiangsu Yang assumed that these peasant-based construction teams were limited to unskilled manual labor. However, once the project actually began, Jiangsu Yang was greatly surprised.

Because some of the peasant engineering teams from rural cooperatives are quite skilled. Not only can they understand simple design drawings, they can even draw simple drawings themselves.

In some engineering projects, they even have better solutions than the provincial government. Their methods may seem simple, but they are very clever in solving some difficult problems.

This gave Jiangsu Yang a deeper understanding of the fact that the people have unlimited creativity.

They were a group of uneducated peasants, having escaped illiteracy during the literacy campaign. But with experience, their learning and creativity were immense. Within a year, the technical proficiency of these engineering teams had greatly improved.

"Secretary Wei, our Liuzhou Industrial Zone has also opened a simple night school specifically for these engineering teams from rural cooperatives."