The train driver in the courtyard

At 10:30 a.m., the top leaders of the State Farms General Farm came to the well site.

The top leader also wore a red safety helmet and a simple Zhongshan suit.

Looking at the middle-aged man in front of him, who was not yet fifty but had a full head of white hair, Li Aiguo felt deeply moved. In just a few years, he had built an oil base from scratch in this barren place. The old man's efforts were truly remarkable.

Li Aiguo really wanted to talk about the development of the domestic petroleum industry in later generations, but he couldn't. He could only do his best to let the leaders see more of it.

The high-ranking leader walked to the double-headed donkey-headed machine, looking at the two donkey heads and the rotating power wheel next to them.

And those huge walking beams are all made of high-strength steel. Pipelines are only installed where needed, along with various safety protection accessories.

Only by standing under the nodding donkey machine can you realize how big this thing is; it's like standing in front of an elephant.

Although the pumping speed is not fast, the large donkey head keeps repeating the work.

The workers at the well site were very excited when the big leader arrived.

Also accompanying us were comrades from the Publicity Department of the State Farm General Farm, who brought cameras and squatted down to record precious moments.

The top leader looked closely from the side, then walked around the nodding donkey machine once, and praised it repeatedly: "Good, good, you've done a great job!"

"Thank you, leaders!" said several technicians and workers nearby excitedly.

The senior leader then inquired about the detailed parameters of the oil pumping machine and learned about the working principle of the double-headed donkey oil pump from Li Aiguo.

After learning about the entire process, he was even more impressed with Li Aiguo.

"The railway has created something great!" The senior leader said, shaking Li Aiguo's hand. "I think this double-headed donkey oil pump is much better than the old-fashioned oil pump. We should hurry up and promote good things."

These words, seemingly directed at Li Aiguo, were actually meant to express his attitude to the leaders nearby.

Those leaders were well aware of this, and several of them expressed their opinions at the time.

“We have calculated that using a double-headed donkey pumping unit will increase production by 30%, and I recommend that we make a large-scale purchase immediately.”

"Our equipment department has raised enough funds."

"We are training installation workers, and installation can begin as soon as the oil pumping unit arrives."

At this point, those leaders who had originally wanted to stick with the old-fashioned oil pumps were speechless.

If they dare to raise any objections, the top leader can throw the specifications and performance of the double-headed donkey oil pump in their faces.

What? You can't build it? Then shut up!
Li Aiguo also realized that this was the real reason why the top leader inspected the well site.

The senior leader lingered there until noon, chatted with the workers at the well site, took a group photo with Li Aiguo, and had lunch before finally leaving.

Now that the decision has been made to promote the oil pumping unit on a large scale, the manufacturing work must be put on the agenda.

After the top leader returned to the main site, he immediately convened a meeting. Due to the well site visit, the meeting went very smoothly.

The conference approved a plan for large-scale procurement of double-headed donkey oil pumping units.

"We can contact the railway department about this later. Let's think about how to reward our patriotic comrades."

If it were someone else, even a top leader probably wouldn't be this attentive.

why?
Because Comrade Aiguo is a railway worker who traveled thousands of miles to the State Farm, which is already quite remarkable, and he also experienced the theft of blueprints recently.

In particular, because some people insisted on using the old Russian oil pumping unit, the State Farm General Farm did not provide much support for the development of the double-headed donkey oil pumping unit.

The comrades on the railway were not angry at all. Instead, they worked hard and diligently to develop the technology and build it so well.

Both morally and logically, the State Farm General Farm owes them a debt.

The key point is that he is still so young, not even thirty years old, and he has already received so many honors.

"Sigh!" The higher-ups thought about it, the less they knew how to reward the patriotic comrade.

“I think Comrade Aiguo is a model of a ‘five-good’ and ‘three-old and four-strict’ ​​comrade. He has made great contributions again this time and should be awarded the Red Banner.” Chief Engineer Wan raised his hand at this moment.

Hear this.

The leaders below all changed their expressions slightly and exchanged glances.

The so-called "five good things" are good ideology, good production, good technology, good life, and good work style.

"Three honests and four strictnesses" means being an honest person, speaking the truth, and doing honest work; and having strict requirements, a tight organization, a serious attitude, and strict discipline.

This is the spirit that Daqing has long advocated.

That's not the point; the point is awarding the red flag.

To date, the State Farm General Farm has only awarded red flags to the captains of Drilling Team 1205, Drilling Team 1202, Drilling Team 1206, Xue Guobang (oil production team captain), and Zhu Hongchang (deputy captain of the hydropower command).

There were five people in total, and they were known as the "Five Red Flags".

This honor is not only a symbol of personal achievement, but also embodies the spirit of "sharing the country's burdens and striving for national glory".

"There are only five red flags. If we add one more person, wouldn't that make six red flags?" A leader disagreed, feeling uncomfortable that the highest honor in the oil industry had been taken by an outsider.

"Five sides or six sides, it's just a number. The most important thing is the spirit of Comrade Aiguo." Chief Engineer Wan argued forcefully. He had talked a lot with Li Aiguo recently and the more they talked, the more he felt that this kid was extraordinary. There was also the design of the heating equipment to follow.

"I think it's a good idea. If the oil pumping unit is upgraded, it wouldn't be too much to give them an extra red flag."

"Yes, we agree."

The leaders then expressed their opinions.

"That's settled then. The red flag will be awarded to the patriotic comrade." The top leader made the final decision.

When Li Aiguo received the award, he was packing his bags, preparing to leave Daqing.

The oil pumping unit has now been successfully developed, and the next step is production. The railway department has contacted the Baoding Coal Machinery Factory and plans to hand over the production to them.

Li Aiguo needed to rush back to the Qianmen Locomotive Depot to coordinate with the engineers there.

"Five red flags?" Li Aiguo was also a little confused.

Only after Chief Engineer Wan explained it did they understand the meaning of the title.

"Let's go, the big boss is waiting." Before Li Aiguo could react, Chief Engineer Wan pulled him by the arm and got him into the jeep.

The workers at the well site also learned of this news.

"I never expected our well site to produce a five-flag team," the captain said, lighting a cigarette and slapping his thigh.

Ma Lanhua quietly voiced her objection: "Captain, Comrade Aiguo is not one of our drilling team members."

“He worked at our well site, he ate our pork, so he’s one of ours.” The captain glanced at Ma Lanhua and then said, “Ma Lanhua, immediately notify everyone to hang up the banner. We’re going to celebrate!”

Malan Flower: "."

****
"Comrade Patriot, on behalf of the State Farm General Farm, I present you with the red flag. I hope you will continue your efforts and make new contributions in your future work."

Inside the main hall of the State Farm, a senior leader handed a flag to Li Aiguo.

Li Aiguo held the flag high, his heart filled with excitement.

The awards ceremony was brief, lasting less than twenty minutes. The well site leaders and employee representatives left one after another to head to the front line of production.

"Comrade Aiguo, why don't you come to the State Farm General Headquarters and become a leader?" The senior leader invited Li Aiguo into his office and said half-jokingly.

"Hehe, sure, then I won't do anything from now on, I'll just sit in the office every day having meetings and drinking tea." Li Aiguo chuckled.

The top leader chuckled and said, "Then let's forget about it."

“I know I did a good job this time, but I have no intention of getting a reward.”

"I was able to become a train driver because the new society gave me the opportunity, and the organization nurtured me."

At this point, the senior leader waved his hand and said, "This is also due to your own efforts."

After speaking, the senior leader looked at Li Aiguo and asked, "What are your wishes?"

"I only wish for our motherland to become stronger and stronger!"

"I just want my descendants to be able to stand tall and never have to experience the same kind of suffering as before."

"I just want us to produce more oil and not be held hostage by others."

"I only want to contribute to the prosperity of the country."

These words sounded somewhat grandiose, even a bit cheesy, but the top leader didn't sense any falsehood in them.

"There must be a reason why you've been able to achieve so much in just a few years."

"What a pity, if only you were one of our colleagues in the petroleum sector."

The top leader nodded.

Of course, he knew that the leaders of several departments valued Li Aiguo highly and hoped that Li Aiguo would achieve even better results.

For example, the aviation sector is still waiting for the advent of armed helicopters, the world's most powerful armed helicopters, the kind that can directly crush the US.

The conversation was eventually recorded and sent to higher-level leaders in Beijing.

After reading it, the higher-ups remarked, "Comrade Aiguo's heartfelt words are the real reason why we all work so hard."

The higher-ups felt that Li Aiguo was the same kind of person as them, only thinking about the prosperity of the country, and had no other thoughts or needs.

"Comrade Aiguo has a high level of ideological awareness, and more importantly, his thinking is very upright; he only thinks about what's best for his own people." The leader in charge of the report nodded.

Mentioning this, the superior recalled the weather station report he had received recently and asked his assistant, "Has that Russian Dieter been caught?"

"The weather station should have started to take action. Because it involves the Cheka, we have to be careful."

The assistant didn't say it explicitly, but the higher-ups knew that some people still held unrealistic expectations of the big brother.

"Tell the weather station to investigate this matter thoroughly. Don't worry about any obstacles!"

Li Aiguo is still at the well site because he needs to hand over the maintenance work of the double-headed donkey-headed drilling rig to the drilling team and also train some installation workers.

Ma Lanhua's fifth team was transferred here to receive installation training, and will be converted into installers when large-scale installations begin.

After finishing his work, Li Aiguo returned to his shack at the State Farm General Farm to pack his luggage and took a train back to Beijing.

The jeep had just left when a man burst in.

"Where are they? Where is Comrade Sixth Red Flag?"

The man was somewhat depressed upon learning that Li Aiguo had left.

"I was originally planning to exchange experiences with the sixth red flag, but..."

****
Inside the Beijing Friendship Hotel.

Anton paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, feeling gloomy as if enveloped by a thick fog.

According to the agreement with Selyov, the other party should use the excuse of "going to Beijing for medical treatment" to send over the roll of drawings.

But now not only has Selyov not shown up, he's also not receiving telegrams. He's completely disappeared.

"Anton! How long are we going to drag this out until we reach an agreement?"

The door to the room was pushed open from the outside, and Gennady, the head of the negotiation team, could no longer contain his anger.

According to the original plan, they should have signed the purchase agreement a month ago, and the first batch of oil tanker trains had already been transported back and were ready for use.

Everything stalled because of Anton's words, "Wait a little longer."

“Professor, please calm down.” Anton’s tone was as gentle as ever, trying to soothe him. “Our arrangements are foolproof and will not delay your work.”

But this time Gennady's "intellectual temper" kicked in, and he took two steps forward: "I don't care about arrangements! The agreement must be signed now, or I will immediately send a telegram back to Moscow reporting all your delays!"

"Professor, could you please repeat that?"

Anton revealed a ferocious expression and pointed the black muzzle of his gun directly at Gennady's forehead.

Gennady broke out in a cold sweat and dared not say another word.

After Gennady left, Anton put away his pistol and was about to take out his radio to contact the agricultural reclamation farm again.

The phone rang.

"Hello?" Anton held the receiver.

"Uncle, someone asked me to tell you to go to table number three at Lao Mo Restaurant for dinner tonight." The voice on the other end of the phone was a child's, soft and unclear.

"Anything else?" Anton's heart skipped a beat. This was the "alternative method of communication" he and Selyov had agreed upon, and there had to be a follow-up code.

"That uncle said, 'The pickled cucumber strips at home are ready to eat.'"

"Okay, thank you, little one."

Serev, being cautious, even used a child to deliver the message, thus avoiding being overheard.

Anton quickly changed into a gray Zhongshan suit, his mask pulled down to his chin, and his hat brim pulled down very low, revealing only half of his cold, hard eyes.

He chambered a bullet, the safety clicked softly, and then touched his right sleeve, where his life-saving weapon was kept.

After doing all this, Anton left the Friendship Hotel under the pretext of going to the park.

Instead of taking a car, he strolled along the path to the square outside the Old Mo restaurant.

He chose a stone bench with a view of the main entrance and sat down. He waited from afternoon until dusk. Most of the people coming in and out of the restaurant were cadres in Zhongshan suits and young men and women holding hands.

The clinking of cups and plates mixed with laughter drifted out, without anything unusual.

It wasn't until it was completely dark that Anton adjusted his collar and slipped into the restaurant with the crowd.

When the receptionist saw that it was the Russian, he was extremely enthusiastic. After finding out that he had made an appointment, he immediately led Anton to table number three.

Anton walked along, seemingly casually glancing around.

Table number three was located in a corner. At the table in front of it was a young couple. The man had his back to them, so they couldn't see his face clearly, but he was quite tall.

The woman looked to be about twenty years old, with lipstick on her lips; she was clearly the kind of woman who followed fashion trends.

Right now, the fashionable woman is yelling at the man, either complaining that he's too stingy to order steak or that he doesn't know proper dining etiquette.

Anton chuckled inwardly. This man seemed like an honest man being manipulated by his wife; how pitiful.

It's only because the female students at the University of Tokyo are so assertive that they're considered good men, since in Russia, a man who doesn't hit women is considered a good man.

He turned his attention back to the man at table number three.

It was Selyov.

He looked exactly like in the file photo, wearing a gray cadre uniform, his expression calm to the point of being deliberately composed.

Anton felt a sudden weight lift from his heart; he sensed something was amiss, but couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"You, sit across from me."

Anton walked to the table, giving orders to Selyov while scanning the surroundings. There was nothing unusual. The woman was already complaining that the man hadn't prepared a television for their wedding.

Perhaps he was being too sensitive. Anton took a deep breath, sat down, and looked at Selyov, saying, "Where are the blueprints?"

Selyov took a roll of newspaper from his pocket and handed it to him.

Anton reached out to take it, but then stopped for some reason. This was too easy! Could there be a problem?

His hand froze in mid-air. Before he could speak, Selyov suddenly pulled back the newspaper and said in a very low voice, "Comrade, I risked my life for these blueprints. The agricultural reclamation headquarters is already suspicious... What about my share of the profits?"

When Anton saw that Selyov was asking for a reward, he finally felt relieved. It would be abnormal not to ask for something in return for taking such a big risk to steal the blueprints.

"Don't worry, you'll be transferred back soon. In addition to a promotion, our Internal Affairs Department will also give you a commendation."

The salary increase was one thing, but the key thing was that the Ministry of Internal Affairs recorded a commendation for him, which was equivalent to eliminating the risk of being investigated later, which was especially important.

Anton was confident that Selyov would be satisfied, and sure enough, Selyov hesitated for a moment before handing over the newspaper.

Anton suppressed his excitement and reached out to take the newspaper. When his fingertips touched the newspaper, he froze.

A gun barrel was pressed against his waist from behind.

A cold voice rang in my ears: "Don't make a sound, come out with me now."

"I will definitely cooperate." Anton replied perfunctorily, reaching for the pistol at his waist, but finding nothing.

"Still not behaving yourself?" The gun barrel slammed down hard, and Anton almost cried out in pain.

He glanced at Selyov, who was sitting opposite him, and realized immediately that he had fallen into a trap.

"Don't do anything, I'll go with you." He slowly stood up, held hostage by the men behind him. Suddenly, one of them put his arm around his shoulder and said in a friendly tone, like an old friend, "Aiha, long time no see! My family has prepared some good wine, come on, let's have a couple of drinks!"

The man had a thick coat draped over his arm, which just covered the gun that was pressed against Anton's waist.

The two walked out close together, and the waiter, thinking they were true friends, smiled and opened the door, saying, "Take care, come again next time!"

Anton wasn't panicked at all. As a highly trained Cheka, he had a hundred ways to escape.

For example, suddenly shouting and causing chaos, or taking hostage a waiter carrying a tray nearby.

But just as he was about to trip the other person, the gun in his lower back pressed against him, causing him pain.

He tried to grab the waiter, but the man's arm cleverly blocked his movement, and he didn't reveal a single flaw throughout.

They were completely suppressed.

It wasn't until he stepped out of the restaurant and felt the cold wind rushing into his collar that Anton truly panicked.

In the darkness outside the door, the outlines of two jeeps could be vaguely seen, their headlights on.

“Friends, I’m from Moscow, a member of the delegation. You’ve arrested the wrong person.” Anton stopped in his tracks.

"You're the one I'm after."

The man stomped his leg hard behind him, and Anton couldn't help but walk forward, as if he had left on his own.

Using the force, Anton whirled around, and when he saw the face behind him, he gasped, "It's you?!"

It's that "man who got scolded by his wife" from earlier!
"If I'm not mistaken, we're in the same industry. Could you tell me your name?"

Before he could finish speaking, the man's hand moved with lightning speed, slicing precisely into his carotid artery.

Anton's vision went black, his body swayed, and he was about to fall.

The man helped him up and reached out to pry open his sleeve, revealing a small crossbow the size of a palm. The steel needles in the quiver gleamed with a bluish light, clearly poisoned.

"That was close!" Old Cat, who was providing backup, ran over, his face pale. "Aiguo, if you had been a second later, that steel needle would have hit you!"

Zhou Ke, who was in charge of the perimeter, also rushed over. Looking at Anton, who was being restrained, he couldn't help but ask, "Aiguo, how do you know he has a problem?"

"do not know."

"Then why did you suddenly attack?"

"I'm too lazy to listen to this guy's nonsense." Li Aiguo stuffed the crossbow into his pocket. It was a good thing, and he had to keep it.

This thing is well-concealed; we can have the equipment department replicate a batch of it.

Zhou Ke was about to ask more questions when Lao Mao stopped him, and then the two of them escorted Anton into the jeep.

Selyov was also brought out by the woman and put into the jeep.

"Driver, how did I do?" The woman was still a little excited. Her name was Wang Miao. She was originally a logistics staff member at the meteorological station, and she did clerical work.

“Good, I will report the commendation.” Li Aiguo and Wang Miao were in charge of escorting Anton. After the jeep left the square and bumped around, Anton gradually woke up.

Li Aiguo couldn't help but look at this guy with higher regard; regardless of his skill level, his physical fitness was quite good.

Seeing that his hands were cuffed and his feet were shackled, Anton said with a wry smile, "You guys better watch out."

After saying that, Anton turned his head, recognized Wang Miao, and clicked his tongue twice, saying, "Your performance was excellent. I observed you for a full half minute and didn't even realize we were in the same line of work."

"You've misunderstood. I'm a logistics staff member and haven't received any training."

Upon hearing Wang Miao's words, Anton was completely stunned.

He received special training in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, particularly in analyzing whether someone was trained through their actions and language, which earned him the code name "Hound".

It was precisely because of this skill that he was sent here to carry out the mission, but the other side actually sent an ordinary person to arrest him.

It actually worked!

It took Anton a while to realize the benefits of this method. Even the most professional Dieter couldn't completely disguise himself as a real ordinary person.

The only problem is, who would dare to issue such an order?

"Who sent you?"

Wang Miao pointed to Li Aiguo sitting next to her: "Look."

Anton looked at Li Aiguo, stared blankly for a moment, and then suddenly smiled bitterly: "I actually figured this out a long time ago. Only someone like you, who is definitely one step ahead of me, could come up with this method and dare to do it. Let's shake hands."

Anton tried to reach out, but realized he was handcuffed, so he could only give Li Aiguo an awkward smile.

"Comrade, I'm Anton, codename Hound. May I know your name?"

His response was yet another swift and precise chop to the neck.

Anton's vision went black, and he fainted again in the back seat.

The jeep carrying the prisoners disappeared into the night of the capital, leaving only the soft sound of tires rolling over the road, which was quickly dispersed by the breeze.

(End of this chapter)