The train driver in the courtyard

While Li Aiguo was busy participating in the rescue mission,

Detailed information about the Wude Chongpei Cannon was finally delivered to Harbin Military Engineering Institute.

The former dean was very concerned about the situation of the Wude Chongpei Cannon. After obtaining the information, he analyzed it in detail and came to the capital to report on his work.

"The Wude Chongpei Cannon has been proven in actual combat, and the results have exceeded our expectations. It's simply fantastic."

In particular, it features rapid assembly, making it more convenient to deploy than conventional cannons.

Comrade Li Aiguo also modified the design, greatly reducing the recoil.

I suggest this technology be classified as top secret; if it leaks, it could very well raise suspicion among some people.

The former dean was very clear about the true intentions of the higher-ups in approving the Wude Chongpei Cannon project.

The superior was looking at the documents and nodded, saying, "Then let's classify it as top secret. Things are progressing well in the south, and we might actually be able to achieve that goal. We also need to be wary of the Russians; they've been making more and more moves lately."

In the past, if we produced something good, we certainly wouldn't hide it from the Russians, after all, the two countries are like brothers.

However, information is still kept secret from the Russians in key areas, such as the giant mushrooms in Northwest China. Since the Russian experts left, information about them has been cut off.

"The high-pressure forming process of the hydraulic press significantly improves the metal density of the gun barrel, and the life of the gun barrel has reached the world's advanced level. It can still be used after 100 shells, which greatly reduces our maintenance costs."

“The aiming device can be used on cannons to improve firing accuracy.”

"The Wude Chongpei Cannon can be equipped with armor-piercing shells or even bunker-buster shells, so even if the enemy hides underground, they can't escape."

"We can mass-produce the Wude Chongpei cannons under the guise of producing ordinary mortars, but resources are currently scarce."

"We must build it!" the superior said immediately upon hearing this.

"My suggestion is also to mass-produce it, to accumulate a batch first, and if the Russian bear and the American family dare to go south, we can let them taste the consequences." The old dean nodded in agreement.

Where are you planning to produce it?

"This batch of Wude Chongpei cannons was produced in the Northwest."

I suggest that the subsequent production tasks be handed over to the Southwest, where there are also two 2,000-ton hydraulic presses, which are fully capable of handling the production work.

If there isn't enough workers, we can bring in a thousand workers from all over the country, and also recruit a group of university graduates.

The superior nodded: "Let's do it that way."

The vast and sparsely populated Northwest is indeed a good place for military production.

However, as the situation developed, it became too close to the border to form a strategic depth.

Although resuming production will take time, it will significantly improve safety.

Upon hearing this, the old director suggested, "Let's move the production of depleted uranium armor over there as well. I suggest that depleted uranium armor also be classified as top secret."

"Comrade Aiguo is truly a polymath." The higher-ups, who were also aware of the depleted uranium armor, praised him even more.

"I have studied Comrade Aiguo and found that he is good at conducting research based on practice, and the things he produces are particularly useful."

He has a particular talent for military equipment; if he could work at Harbin Military Engineering Institute, he would definitely be able to develop even more excellent products.”

Upon hearing this, the superior laughed: "You came all this way just for this, didn't you?"

Don't let Lao Teng hear you say that, or he'll get angry with you.

There are already many military experts, but there is only one patriot. It would be better to have a patriot working on railway equipment.

Most of the railway equipment and civilian products we've exported in recent years were developed by patriotic comrades. It's a real waste to put such talent in the military industry.

Seeing that the old dean was about to speak, the superior leader pointed at him with a cigarette between his fingers: "Developing military industry is not the goal. The real goal is people's livelihood. Things are not like before. War is actually about the economy. Only with an economic foundation can the military industry develop more smoothly."

"I was greedy." Hearing this, the old director knew there was no hope of getting the person back. He smiled and stood up: "I'll go back and arrange things right away."

After the old dean left, the superior leader put on his coat and prepared to continue his work when Leader Teng arrived again, carrying a bundle of documents.

"Speak of the devil, and he appears. I was just mentioning you to Old Chen."

When his assistant reminded him that he needed to rest, the superior waved his hand, indicating that the assistant should pour some tea for Boss Teng.

"Old Chen seems to be more motivated than before."

"You're here to report on your work again? Is there any new achievement on the railway?" The superior didn't mention the old director's poaching of people and went straight to the point.

"At Lao Xu's suggestion, Aiguo and his colleagues from the General Staff Hydrological Bureau jointly developed a weather forecasting network."

Based on this, our railway department has established a geological disaster early warning system to guide railway operations, and the results have been very good.

Leader Teng handed the documents to his superior.

"Just two days ago, the Railway Early Warning Center predicted the landslide in the Handan section in advance, avoiding a serious train accident. Comrade Li Aiguo is currently working with the railway soldiers to clear the railway."

"Comrade Patriot has indeed produced new results again."

The higher-ups took the documents and looked at them. They first read the report from the early warning center and praised the railway department for its speed of action.

"You predicted the landslide in advance, and this time you've launched another huge surprise."

He then picked up the weather forecast data and said while looking at it, "It looks like it's very accurate. Could we promote it nationwide?"

"We have contacted the Beijing Meteorological Observatory with the Hydrology Bureau and are preparing to broadcast the weather forecast after the news program, but we are worried that some colleagues will disagree."

Although Leader Teng didn't say it explicitly, there were only a handful of people in Beijing who could stop this.

"Weather forecasts are a great thing. They can predict geological disasters and guide people's production and lives. This is a great thing that benefits the country and the people."

The superior's words were the final word.

"Weather forecasts are all about predictions, and the real concern is that they might be inaccurate."

Leader Teng continued, "Comrade Aiguo just designed it recently. He's not the kind of unreliable person who won't do things he's not confident about; it's just that the difficulty level is extremely high."

"Forecasts are bound to be wrong. If anyone tries to use mistakes as an excuse, let them come to me." The higher-ups were growing increasingly fond of Li Aiguo, so naturally they had to protect him at this time.

Upon hearing this, Leader Teng was relieved: "Aiguo has made another great contribution this time. I was a little worried."

"how?"

"How should I reward him? Last time, when Aiguo designed the Great Off-Road, I let him choose his own reward. Guess what? This kid just asked me to contact the lab to process the bulletproof ceramic plates for the Great Off-Road."

The higher-ups had already seen the official car and were very satisfied. Upon hearing this, they chuckled and said, "He really is an interesting and good comrade. I'll write a large calligraphy piece for him."

"Oh, that's wonderful! On behalf of Comrade Aiguo, thank you so much." Leader Teng was taken aback at first, then excitedly stood up from his chair.

"We should give important positions to comrades who are patriotic and get things done, and we should protect them even more."

The superior had his assistant bring over writing materials and asked, "Comrade Aiguo, what are your hobbies?"

"He loves driving trains and he especially loves reading. He borrowed all the books in the locomotive depot's library."

"He enjoys reading." The superior pondered for a moment before putting down his brush.

Looking at the large characters, Leader Teng knew that this was more than just a large piece of calligraphy.

****
People are afraid of hard work, and hard work is afraid of being worn out.

Although the dredging project was arduous, the railway soldiers and local comrades worked around the clock, and it was completed in less than three days.

Subsequently, the ministry sent a professional team to repair the tracks.

Five days later, the railway was open.

A train roared in from a distance and came to a stop at the switch station.

"Oh, it's Train Captain Zhou. It's your shift again today."

"Comrade Patriot, I never expected to meet you again. I was planning to visit you after I finished this trip."

Train conductor Zhou was instructing the water deliveryman to add water to the dining car when he saw Li Aiguo walking over. He quickly greeted him with a smile and went up to him.

"Thank you so much this time. Otherwise, we might already be..." Train conductor Zhou called to a crew member who brought a bag down from the sleeping vehicle.

"This is a small token of our appreciation from our 235 bus crew. It's nothing valuable, just some local specialties."

"Train Captain Zhou, we're all family, there's no need to be so polite." Li Aiguo opened the bag and took a look.

The contents inside were a mixed bag, including mountain produce, cigarettes, alcohol, and a few pieces of cloth.

It is obvious that these items were collectively brought out by the 235 bus crew.

None of them were particularly valuable, so Li Aiguo didn't refuse and put them on the truck.

"Where's Driver Zhang? Why did we get a different driver today?" Li Aiguo glanced at the driver's quarters.

"Comrade Zhang Dahua went into premature labor after returning to Beijing due to overwork."

"How is the situation?" Li Aiguo's heart skipped a beat.

"I'm currently at our locomotive depot hospital, Mr. Li. It's time for my train to depart, I have to go."

After Train Captain Zhou left, Li Aiguo returned to Beijing with Zhang Tieling and the railway soldiers.

According to procedure, the first step is to report the situation to the Ministry of Railways.

However, they were told that Leader Teng had gone into the lake.

Li Aiguo handed the report to a leader and went back to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot bathroom to wash up.

The drought in Beijing is still ongoing. The locomotive depot has several wells that can pump water from underground, so the water supply is relatively normal.

Chen Xueru was off work today. When she saw Li Aiguo return, she excitedly ran out and said, "Oh, Brother Aiguo, you're back!"

Chen Xueru took Xiao Hongsheng and Xiao Minghui to Aunt Liu's house next door so they could play with the students from the mining school. After returning home, she immediately closed the door.

Two hours later, Chen Xueru picked up all the blankets and pillows that had fallen on the ground, and scooped a basin of clean water from the water tank.

After helping Li Aiguo clean up, Chen Xueru lay on the bed nestled against his chest and started chatting.

It was hot, and Li Aiguo was only wearing shorts.

Chen Xueru was slightly better off, as she was wearing a short-sleeved shirt.

Fortunately, the door was already bolted from the back, so there was no need to worry about outsiders barging in.

"These past few days, Liu Guangqi has been scolded by Liu Haizhong."

"What?" Li Aiguo sat up straight and took a cigarette from the cigarette case.

Chen Xueru, propping herself up on the bed, took a match from the table and lit it: "It seems the engineering bureau has some urgent task, and workers can volunteer to participate. They can get a subsidy of five jin of refined white flour and extra points. Many people have signed up to compete for advancement. But Liu Guangqi didn't sign up." Hearing this, Li Aiguo was slightly taken aback; this matter was actually somewhat related to him.

Why didn't Liu Guangqi sign up?
Chen Xueru wasn't the type to pry, so she didn't know the reason behind it.

After chatting for a while, Li Aiguo brought up Zhang Dahua's premature birth.

When Chen Xueru gave birth, Zhang Dahua came to visit her in person, and Chen Xueru also really liked this carefree girl.

"I'm preparing some gifts." Chen Xueru didn't even bother to rest. She got off the ground with her bare legs, squatted in front of the cabinet, and started working on it.

Just as Li Aiguo and Chen Xueru were preparing to go to the hospital, Liu Haizhong was glaring at Liu Guangqi and scolding him.

"What an honorable thing! You can even get heroin! Why don't you sign up? Where have you been these past few days?"

"It's Chunlan's father's birthday, so I...I asked for leave to go to Baoding." Liu Guangqi lowered his head.

Liu Haizhong was absolutely furious.

He is about the same age as Huang Chunlan's father, both in their fifties. How could he be old enough to celebrate a big birthday?

Moreover, this habit had been abandoned after liberation, and if the higher-ups found out about this, Liu Guangqi would inevitably be considered to be ideologically unmotivated.

“We finally managed to return to Beijing and become regular workers thanks to Aiguo’s connections. How can you still be thinking about the Huang family?” This was what angered Liu Hai the most.

"Father, you know Chunlan's temperament. If I don't go, she'll make a scene."

"This Huang Chunlan..." Liu Haizhong was at a loss for words when it came to his daughter-in-law.

He originally planned to have Huang Chunlan come to the capital as well, even if it was just to find her a temporary job, so the young couple could be together.

Who would have thought that Huang Chunlan had no such intention and only wanted to stay in Baoding.

Liu Haizhong tugged at the brass-buckled belt a few times, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to lift it. He said angrily, "Go back now, behave yourself, and stop causing trouble like this!"

"Then I'm leaving, Father." Liu Guangqi stood up blankly and left the house.

Looking at Liu Guangqi's retreating figure, Liu Haizhong sighed helplessly.

This son is good in every way, but his biggest flaw is that he's too easily swayed and always listens to his wife. How can they live like this?

"Dad, aren't you going to hit my eldest brother?" Liu Guangfu had been hiding inside, waiting to see a good show, but when he got bored, he quietly pushed open the door and came out.

Liu Haizhong picked up the brass-buckled belt: "Step with your left foot first! Roll over here and stick your butt out."

Liu Guangfu: "."

Liu Haizhong was always fair. After dealing with Liu Guangfu, he shouted into the house, "Liu Guangtian, get out here!"

A figure crawled out from the ground.

Liu Haizhong: "."

Liu Guangfu: "."

The second aunt was silent for a moment, looked at her dusty clothes, and picked up a broom.

****
At this moment, Li Aiguo had already brought Chen Xueru to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot Hospital.

Chen Xueru was familiar with the place and quickly found the ward.

Inside the ward, Zhang Dahua's technician husband, her older sister, and her parents-in-law were all gathered around the bedside, looking at the child with worry.

"Dahua, you should eat more."

"Mom, I've already eaten seven or eight steamed buns today."

When Zhang Dahua saw the two of them push the door open and enter, she forced a smile and sat up, saying, "Aiguo, Xueru, you're here."

Seeing her husband standing there dumbfounded, she quickly urged, "Hurry up and move a chair!"

"No need, we just came to see you." Li Aiguo quickly stopped the technician, handed him the net, and walked to the bedside.

"How about it?"

"It's a boy, born half a month premature, weighing less than four pounds. The doctor told me to breastfeed more, but I... I don't have enough milk," Zhang Dahua said, somewhat frustrated.

She was big and burly, and everyone said she could take care of several children, but she couldn't even feed one.

The technician had just placed the net bag on the table when his pupils constricted sharply when his eyes fell on the two cans of milk powder. He recoiled as if he had been electrocuted, grabbed the cans, and pushed them away.

"This...this is too valuable! You take it back...I can get milk coupons."

His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and his cheeks turned purplish-red.

Li Aiguo said with a smile, "This is a reward from our early warning center to Comrade Zhang Dahua for stopping the car in time before the accident occurred."

The technician knew, of course, that this was just an excuse.

As a train driver, braking upon receiving a signal is my duty; there's no great merit in that!
The technician felt embarrassed, as these two cans of milk powder were too expensive.

“Aiguo is my classmate, not some outsider,” Zhang Dahua shouted at the technician.

The technician then put the milk powder back and nodded to Li Aiguo, saying, "Thank you, Mr. Li."

While they were chatting, the ward doors were pushed open from the outside.

When the head nurse saw Li Aiguo in the ward, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Comrade Aiguo, the department has been looking for you everywhere. They've even called you here. You should go now."

Li Aiguo was also somewhat surprised to receive this news. He said goodbye to Zhang Dahua and hurriedly left with Chen Xueru.

Seeing this, the older sister asked in confusion, "Dahua, isn't your old classmate just a train driver? How come he's involved in both milk powder and meetings at the ministry?"

“He’s patriotic, he’s no ordinary train driver.” Zhang Dahua watched Li Aiguo’s retreating figure, a smile playing on her lips.

****
Section Chief Xing was still a little dizzy after the meeting.

It wasn't because the Qianmen Locomotive Depot received praise for its timely rescue, but because Leader Teng actually gave Li Aiguo a large calligraphy scroll.

"Patriotism, let me take another look." As soon as Xing Duanchang said this, he quickly changed his mind: "Forget it, don't open it. It would be troublesome if you folded the paper."

"In that case, take it back and frame it right away."

Li Aiguo was well aware of the importance of this calligraphy. He nodded to Section Chief Xing and turned to leave.

He was stopped again by Section Chief Xing.

"A few pheasants were sent over from Lao Wei Village Commune today. Take two back with you."

Wild pheasants taste far better than domestic chickens, but they are much rarer.

Li Aiguo took the note, went to the canteen to collect the pheasant, hung it on the handlebars of his bicycle, and returned to the courtyard.

“This is…” Chen Xueru spread out the large characters, suddenly stood up, and stared wide-eyed at Li Aiguo.

Li Aiguo nodded: "That's right, just as you thought. Go and invite Uncle San over right away, and have him bring the best framing tools."

"I'll go right now." Chen Xueru was both excited and flustered. With this calligraphy, she wouldn't have to worry about even the strongest winds.

The third uncle had just returned from school and was somewhat dismissive when he heard that Chen Xueru needed the best framing tools.

"Xueru, you're out of your depth. Framing is all about craftsmanship, it has nothing to do with tools. You've come to the right person, no one knows framing better than me."

"Old man, stop bragging and go quickly." The third aunt handed over the tools that the third uncle usually used.

I might even earn some extra money this time.

The third uncle took the tools and went to the Li family's house.

"Is it a landscape painting or calligraphy?" The old man asked slowly after drinking two enamel mugs of tea.

“It’s a calligraphy piece, Uncle, please be careful.” Li Aiguo said, putting on gloves and taking out the large calligraphy piece.

Seeing Li Aiguo's professional demeanor, the third uncle shook his head dismissively: "Do you need to be so cautious? This calligraphy is quite interesting. Study hard and improve every day."

The old man stared at the large characters, unable to look away: "These characters are magnificent, with a kind of overwhelming power. What great characters, what great characters!"

"Presented to Comrade Li Aiguo"

"Hey, there's a signature and seal below, let me take a look."

"This seal, this seal."

Upon seeing the seal clearly, the third uncle's face flushed red, and he could no longer utter a coherent sentence.

Four or five minutes later, he took a deep breath to suppress his shock.

"Patriotism, my framing tools are really not suitable anymore. I'll go buy some new ones right away. You wait here!"

After the third uncle finished speaking, he ran out in a flash, and when he came back, he brought a whole set of tools.

Palm brushes, flat brushes, cutting knives, awls, bamboo squeegees, wax boards, burnishing stones—everything you could want.

These tools don't look cheap.

"Uncle, how much did you spend on these things?" Li Aiguo asked, reaching into his pocket for money.

But the third uncle stopped him.

"Patriotism? What are you talking about? You're already doing me a huge favor by letting me frame this calligraphy. How could I possibly take your money?"

Outside the door, Xu Damao heard the Third Uncle's voice and turned to look at Liu Lan: "Wife, has Yan Bugui had a fever these past two days?"

"No!"

"Then why didn't he even accept the money that was offered to him?" Xu Damao was completely baffled.

The third uncle's mounting skills are indeed first-class; the large characters he mounts look particularly high-class.

Chen Xueru bought another frame and put the framed calligraphy inside, only then did she feel at ease.

The next day is the weekend.

Li Aiguo stayed in bed until after eight o'clock before getting up. As soon as he opened the door, he saw a group of people gathered outside.

Liu Haizhong stood in the middle of the crowd, holding a newspaper and saying loudly, "The newspaper says that starting today, every evening at 7:30, after the news program, there will be a weather forecast."

Li Aiguo squatted under the eaves, brushing his teeth with heavy breaths.

The national weather forecasting system is finally going online.

(End of this chapter)