The train driver in the courtyard

4 pm.

The playground of Nanma Commune Primary School.

The so-called playground was actually a vegetable garden. Under the guidance of their teachers, the children planted and watered the vegetables, and the harvested vegetables were used as lunch for the children.

The children had a great time, carrying water and hoeing the ground with great skill, their laughter filling the air.

Sudden.

Dark clouds rolled across the northern sky, and in no time, the temperature plummeted to below zero. A fierce wind swept in, carrying heavy snowflakes that blanketed the land.

The children shivered from the sudden cold snap.

"Hurry up and get into the classroom!" The teacher realized what was happening and immediately organized the children to enter the classroom, using desks and chairs to block the door.

The roofs of several dilapidated thatched houses not far away were swept into the sky by the gale, and with a loud "boom", half of the roof was also torn off.

They looked up at the new beams on the roof with lingering fear; if the house hadn't been repaired a couple of days ago, it probably would have collapsed too.

As evening approached, the snow fell heavier and heavier, covering the roads with a thick layer of snow.

The children couldn't go home, so the principal brought over the cotton-padded clothes and quilts that had been delivered a couple of days ago and distributed them to the children to keep them warm.

The cotton-padded clothes and quilts are embroidered with five-pointed stars.

"Go and rest, it's alright, everything's been arranged." The principal covered two burlap sacks with his hands and leaned against the door.

The kerosene lamp went out, and the little ones curled up in their blankets, smelling the fresh cotton, and whispered, "This blanket is so warm."

Inside, all was peaceful, while outside, the snow fell heavier and heavier.

It got dark.

The residents of the courtyard lit a heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed), and the house quickly became warm.

"Luckily, I listened to Brother Aiguo this time, otherwise I would have been freezing." Xu Damao washed Xiao Xuhua's feet with hot water and tucked her into the warm quilt.

"Yes, who would have thought that it would snow so heavily in April or May?" Liu Lan was also a little scared.

If what Jia Dongxu said is true, then his whole family will have to sleep in a cold pit right now.

In this world, some people are happy while others are sad.

While the residents enjoyed the warmth of the heated kang (traditional heated brick bed), Jia Dongxu was at a loss.

There's no coal at home. All the cotton quilts and cotton-padded clothes have been taken apart and washed, and now they're frozen solid.

Jia Dongxu hunched his neck and crawled into the covers, but then suddenly jumped up—the chill went straight to his bones.

"Qin Huairu! How can anyone sleep like this?!"

Qin Huairu was also shivering from the cold, and barely managed to stand up: "How about I go to Uncle Yi's house to borrow some coal?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongxu frowned.

"Didn't that old man's coal run out a long time ago in the winter?"

"I saw that an old man bought a lot of coal this time, and he even helped the deaf old lady buy some." Qin Huairu sensed that Jia Dongxu's mood was off.

"You old fool, you've been treating me like a fool."

Even if Jia Dongxu was stupid, he realized that he had been used as a pawn by Yi Zhonghai.

He didn't actually mind being a gun; after all, that was his value.
The key point is that Yi Zhonghai clearly treated him like Sha Zhu, like a fool.

"I'll definitely have to settle this score with him later."

Jia Dongxu is well aware that Yi Zhonghai is still needed.

People have to bow their heads under the eaves.

He gritted his teeth, swallowed his anger, and nodded to Qin Huairu: "Go to Uncle Yi's house and borrow some coal."

"understood."

At this time, Yi Zhonghai's family also lit the kang (heated brick bed).

Opening the door a crack, he saw Qin Huairu, whose lips were purple from the cold, and frowned: "You didn't store any coal at home? Look at you, why didn't you take the neighborhood committee's notice to heart?"

Qin Huairu smiled awkwardly: "Uncle, Dongxu was in the wrong. He didn't listen to you. The child is just crying because he's cold."

"Well, what can I do? I'm Dongxu's mentor, so I have to help him out no matter what."

Yi Zhonghai then reluctantly pulled out half a basket of coal ash.

When Qin Huairu returned home, Jia Dongxu saw that there was only half a basket of coal ash and frowned, asking, "What did Yi Zhonghai say?"

"No, it's nothing. It's just that he doesn't have much coal at home, so he told us to use it sparingly." Qin Huairu was worried that Jia Dongxu would cause trouble, so she covered up the whole thing.

Jia Dongxu understood a bit, and his eyes turned cold.

The snow outside is falling heavier and heavier.

It was getting darker and darker outside.

early morning.

Li Aiguo climbed out of the warm kang (heated brick bed), put on the newly made black cotton shoes, which were especially warm.

Chen Xueru had already started preparing breakfast.

Li Aiguo pulled the small stove from the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove) into the main room, washed up, and then opened the door.

Snowflakes were still falling outside, and the 20-centimeter-thick snow had covered the steps in front of the door.

Zhang Gangzhu pushed open the door and greeted Li Aiguo: "Brother Aiguo, this is the first time I've ever seen such a severe cold snap in spring."

“Yes, it’s almost December now.” Li Aiguo cracked his knuckles and shouted, “Get the patrol team organized, let’s clear the roads in the yard and the street first.”

"Okay." Zhang Gangzhu turned around, went into the house, and grabbed a spoon.

The whistles soon sounded, and the young members of the neighborhood patrol team, hearing the sound, quickly braved the wind and snow to gather at the gate of the compound, each carrying a shovel.

"Let's clear the paths that everyone usually walks on first, so that no one falls down later."

With a wave of his hand, Li Aiguo dispersed the young people patrolling the streets.

At this time, the residents in the courtyard and along the street also got up and picked up shovels to join the snow-shoveling army.

Director Wang of the subdistrict office, along with his staff, arrived at work early today to inspect the situation from house to house.

Seeing Li Aiguo organizing snow shoveling, they stopped to greet him.

“Great, Patriotism. Ever since our neighborhood had a patrol team, the neighborhood office hasn’t had to worry about these things.”

“Aunt Wang, the patrol team is also the street office's patrol team. We still need your guidance as the helmsman. You are the head of the family, and the team members are like the grass of the motherland. You need to water them more.” Li Aiguo said, leaning on his shovel and exhaling white breath.

"You naughty little monkey."

Director Wang chuckled to himself, then took a breath and asked, "This snow will probably last for a few days. Several elderly people living alone in the neighborhood will need your patrol team to help keep an eye on them."

"Don't worry, Gangzhu isn't on duty today. I'll have him keep an eye on things."

After a brief chat, Director Wang hurriedly left, eager to inspect the neighborhood.

The snow on the road was very thick, but there were many people participating in the snow removal, and it didn't take much effort to clear a road.

After clearing a road, Li Aiguo told the patrol team members to go back and rest, and he also took his shovel and went home.

Chen Xueru was also in a hurry to get to the neighborhood office, and had already put the food on the table.

"With such heavy snow today, the neighborhood office must be very busy."

“It’s not safe for you with your big belly.” Li Aiguo picked up a steamed bun.

"It's okay, it's only been six months, there's plenty of time."

Hearing this, Li Aiguo, knowing Chen Xueru's temperament, didn't try to persuade her any further, only telling her to be careful when walking.

The meal was very simple, consisting only of steamed buns and fried eggs.

After eating three steamed buns and five fried eggs, Li Aiguo took Xiao Hongsheng and Xiao Mingwei to Aunt Liu's house.

It's snowing today, so school will definitely be closed.

After leaving home, Li Aiguo rode his motorcycle to take Chen Xueru to the neighborhood office, and then went to the studio.

As soon as he entered, Zhang Wendian rubbed his dark circles and said excitedly, "Aiguo, I figured out how to adjust the fuel additive last night."

His hair was a mess, and the thin jacket he was wearing smelled strange; it was obvious he hadn't left the studio for several days.

A gust of cold wind blew in from outside the door, and Zhang Wendian couldn't help but shiver and look outside.

Seeing the heavy snow falling outside, he exclaimed in surprise, "Ah, it's winter again? I've been in the studio for a year?"

Li Aiguo: "."

Fuel additives are actually divided into different generations based on the development progress of the automotive industry.

Solid fuel additives used in later generations are mainly used in direct injection engines. The cleaning additives used are specifically designed to solve the problem of carbon deposits on fuel injectors, combustion chambers and pistons in high-temperature zones. The main ingredient is polyetheramine.

The mainstream models of this era use "carburetor engines," and the main problem is low-temperature carbon buildup.

The fuel additive that Li Aiguo developed this time contains polyisobutylene imide.

This stuff can be synthesized in a chemistry lab, and to prevent the formula from being leaked, some chemical additives are added.

“This is it.” Li Aiguo picked up the test tube and went into the studio, where a wild car expert and several other car experts were still assembling a custom-made SUV.

Seeing the bulletproof SUV still parked nearby, Li Aiguo stopped and asked, "Old Tan, is there still no news from Xiao Yi's family?"

"Not at the moment. Should I contact Xiao Yi's family's foreign affairs department? That person left their phone number last time." The wild car expert also found it strange.

Sadam paid the full amount for the bulletproof off-road vehicle, but almost half a year has passed and he still hasn't driven it away.

"No need. Just take good care of it and drive it around every now and then. Don't let it break down." Li Aiguo knew that Lao Sa was busy gathering resources for something big and couldn't spare the time to deal with this.

"We start it up every few days."

The automotive expert replied, noticing the test tube in Li Aiguo's hand, and asked curiously, "Aiguo, what's this?"

"Fuel additive, this stuff can improve the problem of carbon buildup in cars," Zhang Wendian came out from the back and explained.

Upon hearing this, the wild car expert's gaze towards the test tube immediately changed, and the other car experts nearby also gathered around.

Is this thing even useful?

"Yes, carbon buildup is caused by incomplete combustion, and the only solution is to disassemble the engine and clean it."

"Adding this in rashly might blow up the engine."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Wendian shouted, "This was developed in our lab, what could possibly be wrong with it? You bunch of uneducated bastards!"

These experts are at least vocational school graduates, so they can be considered cultured people.

However, compared to Professor Zhang Wendian, a pioneering scholar, they could indeed be considered uncultured. "Professor Zhang, please don't be angry. These young men are just worried about things going wrong."

Knowing that Zhang Wendian, this eccentric chemist, had a bad temper, the wild car expert quickly apologized.

"Whether it works or not, we'll find out once we try it."

"But all the cars here are new."

"yes."

Fuel additives mainly address the issue of carbon buildup, but these new cars don't have any carbon buildup at all, so it's impossible to conduct experiments on them.

Li Aiguo, an automotive expert, borrowed a GAZ truck from the truck fleet. The truck was twenty years old and its engine had never been overhauled.

The truck, panting and billowing black smoke, drove through the snow, leaving a dark trail in its wake.

If Li Aiguo hadn't known it was a truck, he would have thought a single-cylinder tractor had come by.

The driver is a genius for being able to operate such a truck for transportation.

When Li Aiguo saw a dark-skinned man jump out of the truck, he immediately understood; the skin color matched.

The driver's name was Chen Erhei. He looked to be at least forty years old, but was actually only twenty-five and had just gotten married.

My wife says I look a bit old.

“He certainly looks old.” Li Aiguo told Chen Erhei to open the hood and have an automotive expert add fuel additive.

"Start it."

"Huh?!" Chen Erhei was dumbfounded: "Weren't we supposed to be repairing the engine? To be honest, I'm used to it, but the problem is that after washing off the cigarette ash, I still have a strange smell. My wife says I've been pickled and won't let me sleep on the bed tonight."

"It's fixed now. Try lighting it first." Li Aiguo screwed the cap on.

"No, I see you only added a few drops of water, and that's all?"

"Don't worry, it will work perfectly."

Seeing that Li Aiguo insisted, Chen Erhei had no choice but to get in the car, start it again, jump out and squat behind the truck.

The exhaust pipe was still emitting black smoke, and it was even a little blacker.

"Nothing has changed."

"No, the engine sounds quieter now."

"There's less black smoke now."

"Holy crap, the engine's young!"

Since taking over the car, Chen Erhei had never heard such a pleasant engine sound, nor had he ever seen such bluish exhaust fumes.

The truck drivers who were watching were also stunned.

"This thing is amazing."

"In the past, this effect only occurred after the engine had just been cleaned."

Director Zhang from the logistics department originally planned to notify the truck convoy to send out vehicles, but upon hearing that an experiment was being conducted here, he braved the snow to come over.

After understanding the whole story, Director Zhang raised a crucial question: "Aiguo, can this fuel additive save fuel?"

"Fuel additives can clean carbon deposits inside the engine and improve engine efficiency. Higher efficiency can save fuel to a certain extent."

Li Aiguo had the carbon content of the exhaust gas measured while he explained the situation.

The carbon content would certainly exceed the standard in later generations, but it was considered environmentally friendly in this era.

"This is definitely good stuff!" Director Zhang exclaimed, perking up as well.

Although the Qianmen Locomotive Depot mainly uses trains for transportation, it also frequently needs to transfer goods, and the truck fleet consumes a lot of fuel every year.

These days, fuel is a controlled resource and extremely precious. The logistics department has had to beg and plead for fuel quotas.

Even if fuel additives can save 5% of fuel per vehicle, the cumulative effect can be quite significant.

"Please make a batch as soon as possible and distribute them to the trucks. I'll go find the section chief now."

These past two days, the trucks in the section have needed to help the local area transport supplies, which is a critical time for fuel consumption. Director Zhang didn't dare to delay and braved the snow to come to Section Chief Xing's office.

Section Chief Xing just spoke with the leaders of the engineering section and arranged the snow removal work within the section.

Upon learning that the studio had developed a fuel additive, I couldn't help but slap my thigh and exclaim, "I didn't expect that in just a few days, Aiguo has come up with another great product!"

"The product is good, but the key is to get it produced as soon as possible," Director Zhang said anxiously.

“Let’s go, I’ll talk to Aiguo.”

When Section Chief Xing brought Director Zhang to the studio, Li Aiguo had already started large-scale production of fuel additives in the laboratory.

"Patriotism, are there any issues with production volume?"

"The amount of fuel additive used is very small. The laboratory can meet the needs of the locomotive depot. However, to achieve large-scale production, we still need to cooperate with chemical plants."

Section Chief Xing understood Li Aiguo's plan: with such a good effect, the fuel additive must be sold abroad to earn foreign exchange.

"I remember you have experience cooperating with Jingcheng Chemical, right? How about we have Jingcheng Chemical produce this fuel additive again?"

Li Aiguo also had this plan, and during the lunch break, he asked Zhang Wendian to contact Jingcheng Chemical Company.

When the factory manager of Jingcheng Chemical learned that another new product was going to be launched, he scratched his head in frustration: "Wait a minute, why have we been doing all this work for the Qianmen Locomotive Depot lately?"

Chief Engineer Zhu said with a smile, "Factory Director, just yesterday, the Ministry of Chemical Industry placed an order for a full two hundred tons of automotive antifreeze, with extra subsidies included. I think the importance of this fuel additive is no less than that of the antifreeze."

Upon hearing this, the factory manager's expression changed slightly, and he smiled: "Hey, everyone is working hard for construction, why distinguish between us? Our Beijing Chemical Industry may be of average quality, but our ideological awareness is top-notch in the country."

"Hey Lao Zhu, go to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot right away and contact Comrade Aiguo to see what his specific needs are."

"Please convey our factory's determination to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot."

"Understood." Professor Zhu couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

As the chief engineer of Jingcheng Chemical, Professor Zhu is well aware that Jingcheng Chemical is now lagging behind in both technology and scale due to aging equipment and the relocation of its previous coking projects to the suburbs.

Without orders, they couldn't receive the full subsidies, and the factory's technicians and employees only received their basic wages at the end of the year.

We have now secured two orders from the Qianmen Locomotive Depot. This allows us to contribute to the construction and also provides us with subsidies, making it a win-win situation.

Professor Zhu took it very seriously and led several chief engineers to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot that very afternoon.

Fuel additives are easy to manufacture; the key is to add chemical additives to prevent them from being counterfeited.

After finishing his work in the laboratory, Zhang Wendian personally assisted Professor Zhu in planning large-scale production.

Li Aiguo then delivered the fuel additive he had prepared to the truck fleet.

The truck convoy also received a notification from the ministry to help transfer goods from the freight trains arriving from Tanggu Wharf in Tianjin.

"Tanggu Wharf? Could it be that the ocean-going freighter hired by Hextech has arrived?" Li Aiguo went to the weather station before leaving get off work.

This cold snap was quite severe, and the weather stations, which have access to firsthand information, were mobilized.

Firstly, it prevents anyone from causing trouble, and secondly, it allows for timely feedback on the local situation.

Old Cat was in charge of this matter.

When he saw Li Aiguo come in, he stood up and helped brush the snowflakes off his clothes: "This situation is rare in a century, but fortunately, the warning was issued in time and no major losses were caused."

The supplies that have been stored in various regions have now begun to be distributed.

The second batch of cargo ships from overseas has also docked, bringing grain and cotton clothing, which local officials are currently distributing.

Li Aiguo handed the old cat a cigarette and picked up a work report to read.

The affected area is very large.

The spring-planted millet and sorghum are being pulled up, and most of the sweet potatoes have been frozen to death, requiring replanting and reseeding. A large-scale reduction in yield is expected.

However, the relief food will be delivered soon, and the lives of the commune members will not be affected.

Despite advance stockpiling of supplies, grain stores in the capital city still experienced food shortages due to the dense population.

"The grain should be delivered to the grain store this afternoon," Old Cat added from the side.

"With the grain and the coal we stockpiled recently, we've weathered this cold snap safely," Li Aiguo nodded.

"Yes, some rats in the coastal areas couldn't resist coming out and causing trouble this time. Fortunately, we were prepared and caught more than twenty of them." Old Cat handed over another document, feeling somewhat impressed.

When Li Aiguo warned him that someone was planning to cause trouble, he was somewhat dismissive.

After all, there aren't many rats left along the coast after several rounds of cleanup, so they probably won't dare to cause any more trouble.

Unexpectedly, Li Aiguo's guess was correct.

Li Aiguo took it; the record contained information about some troublemakers who took advantage of the situation.

They received a message from over there, and taking advantage of the unusual weather, they jumped out to do some messy things and mislead people.

Before they could even take action, they were immediately subdued. In addition, with food and warm clothing distributed in place, they didn't even make a ripple.

"These people are always looking for trouble, so they won't miss any opportunity."

Old Cat still needed to report the situation to the farmer. Li Aiguo only stayed for a short while before riding his motorcycle to the street office to pick up Chen Xueru and then returning to the courtyard house.

Just as I reached the door, the old man announced: "The grain store at the street corner has received a new batch of grain. Each household is limited to purchasing fifty catties. Those who are short of grain should hurry up and buy some."

Upon hearing the notice, the residents of the compound all sprang into action.

After all, no one can be sure how many more days this cold snap will last. Having food at home brings peace of mind.

Li Aiguo didn't lack food, but he neither bought food himself nor joined the group.

People are very wary these days. I heard recently that a hidden Dieter was caught in the south.

That guy was a commune member, and he hid it very well. He was only discovered by the people in the production team because he refused to eat from the communal pot.

Later, the militia found two boxes of small yellow croakers, over a thousand kilograms of refined white flour, and a radio in his cellar.

After Li Aiguo took the ration book, He Yushui also came to his door, wanting to go with him.

When they arrived at the grain store, a long queue had already formed outside, with Xu Damao and Yan Jiecheng in the line.

Jia Dongxu also strolled over from a distance, carrying a bag.

Xu Damao feigned surprise and said, "Jia Dongxu, you look quite energetic. Everyone else is wearing a cotton-padded coat, but you're wearing just a thin shirt. That's impressive."

Yan Jiecheng chimed in from the side, "Who was it that said it was impossible to snow a couple of days ago?!"

The young people in line all knew about the mess Jia Dongxu had made, and they burst into laughter.

"It's not cold at all, look, I'm even sweating!" Jia Dongxu was dressed in thin clothes, and the cold wind made his nose run and he sneezed several times.

(End of this chapter)