The train driver in the courtyard

Li Aiguo didn't inquire further, since it wasn't the same factory and accidents were more complicated. Asking about it rashly would make people think he had ulterior motives.

Because he needed to plan large-scale production, Li Aiguo was busy at the locomotive depot until the afternoon before going home.

As soon as he entered the house, Xu Damao peeked in, his eyes darting around, and said in a low voice, "Jia Dongxu had an accident in the workshop, he's probably not going to make it."

"What's going on?" Li Aiguo offered Xu Damao a cigarette.

"He was working overtime at noon operating the plate rolling machine when he suddenly fell. His clothes got caught in the machine and he was pulled in along with them. It was said to be a terrible ordeal; his whole body was deformed."

Xu Damao took the cigarette with trembling hands and lit it after striking the match twice.

Although he didn't get along with Jia Dongxu, he was also taken aback by this sudden accident.

Li Aiguo lit a cigarette and asked, "Is Yi Zhonghai also nearby?"

"How did you know?" Xu Damao asked.

"Are there only the two of them?" Li Aiguo felt like he understood something.

To everyone's surprise, Xu Damao shook his head: "No, there was also a leader from the logistics department who delivered the supplies, and he even helped carry the person to the infirmary later."

Li Aiguo was somewhat confused.

I originally thought that Yi Zhonghai was responsible for Jia Dongxu's death.

There were outsiders involved. What exactly happened?

Could it be that Jia Dongxu's death was just an accident?

Was it destined by fate?

Xu Damao didn't notice anything unusual about Li Aiguo and continued, "Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and several factory leaders are discussing things in the factory right now. Qin Huairu has also been called there."

Upon hearing this, Li Aiguo asked, "How does the factory classify this?"

"It was an accident. If it were a production accident, the workshop director and leaders would all be criticized. The accident was caused by Jia Dongxu's carelessness; he crawled into the plate rolling machine himself."

Li Aiguo was also aware of this claim.

If an accident happens in the workshop, we try to distance ourselves from it as much as possible, avoiding any connection to production accidents. Otherwise, the entire workshop will be punished and disqualified from awards.

"Jia Dongxu is an unlucky fellow. I told you long ago that he was destined to die young and couldn't control Qin Huairu, but he just wouldn't believe me." Xu Damao had also calmed down by now and started to speak sarcastically.

"The more beautiful a woman is, the more she needs a strong man to keep her in check. How could his cowardly manner possibly work?"

"I advised Jia Dongxu before, but that bastard thought I was jealous of him. Now look what happened, he's dead!"

Li Aiguo didn't respond; Xu Damao had indeed sided with him back then.

Xu Damao continued, "Qin Huairu should be very happy now. I heard that Jia Dongxu spent all his salary and even beat and scolded Qin Huairu. Now that Jia Dongxu is dead, Qin Huairu can get a pension and even take over his job."

At this point, Xu Damao suddenly burst out laughing.

"Jia Zhangshi was also an unlucky woman. If she hadn't remarried, she would have received a share of Jia Dongxu's pension."

Well, after going around in circles, Jia Dongxu and Jia Zhangshi both became the "unlucky ones" in his eyes.

"I don't think this matter will just end like this," Li Aiguo said, taking a drag of his cigarette.

An old hag like Jia Zhangshi would definitely take this opportunity to cause trouble, especially since it involves a large sum of money.

As they were talking, a commotion came from outside.

Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Qin Huairu walked in from outside. Qin Huairu was holding a stick in her hand, and a faint sadness was on their faces.

The residents in the compound also knew about Jia Dongxu's accident, and their gazes toward Qin Huairu were filled with sympathy.

Chinese people believe in respecting the dead.

Even if the residents disliked Jia Dongxu, now that he's dead, all grudges have vanished.

"Grandpa, how's the situation?"

"He was already beyond saving when he was taken to the infirmary. We discussed it and decided to send Jia Dongxu back to his hometown for burial."

Yi Zhonghai's face was ashen. He nodded to the residents as he walked into the Jia family's house.

Qin Huairu paused as she walked past Li Aiguo and Xu Damao.

His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he didn't speak.

She thought that marrying Jia Dongxu would bring her a good life, but now she has no good life, and Jia Dongxu is dead.

On the contrary, Li Aiguo is now a train driver, a national model worker, and is living a very prosperous life.

The contrast made me feel even worse.

Li Aiguo didn't give Qin Huairu a second glance, chatted with Xu Damao for a few words, and then went inside.

He has too many things to do and no time to deal with these trivial matters.

evening.

On her way back, Chen Xueru also learned about Jia Dongxu's accident. When she got home, she was filled with sorrow: "I never thought that such a good person could just be gone like that."

"This matter probably won't end like this." Li Aiguo held Xiao Hongsheng in his arms, while Xiao Mingwei and Xiao Dongfang also stretched out their arms, babbling and wanting their father to hold them.

There was no other way, so Li Aiguo had to let Xiao Hongsheng ride on his shoulders and lift one child with each arm. It was only because he was strong that he could manage to carry these three children.

"What's wrong?" Chen Xueru asked as she put on her apron and cooked.

"Don't forget, there's also Jia Zhangshi."

"That's true. With Jia Dongxu gone, Jia Zhangshi certainly won't let this go easily." Chen Xueru was somewhat worried about Qin Huairu.

“If we send Jia Dongxu back, Jia Zhangshi will definitely cause trouble.” Inside the Jia family’s house, the three stewards, Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Bugui, gathered together to discuss Jia Dongxu’s funeral arrangements with Qin Huairu.

According to their plan, they would simply send Jia Dongxu back to his hometown for burial.

However, none of the three stewards were willing to step forward.

Both Jia Zhangshi and Jia Bake are in Jiajiazhuang. They might dig a pit and bury them alive.

"All Jia Zhangshi wants is money," the third uncle glanced at her, but seeing that she didn't respond, he swallowed the rest of his words.

It was obvious to everyone that Qin Huairu did not want to give the pension to Jia Zhangshi.

Upon seeing this, Qin Huairu's eyes reddened, and she began to wipe away her tears: "Gentlemen, Dongxu is dead, leaving us, a widow and her child, and I'm heavily pregnant. If you don't help me, I won't be able to survive."

It must be said that Qin Huairu's acting skills are indeed very high, her performance was vivid and expressive, and tears streamed down her face.

Coupled with her frail appearance, anyone who saw her would feel pity for her.

The three stewards immediately softened.

"How about the three of us escort Jia Dongxu back together?" the third uncle suggested.

Yi Zhonghai glanced at him irritably: "You think you can beat that group from Jiajiazhuang Commune?"

Third Uncle: "."

Yi Zhonghai pondered for a moment, then counted on his fingers: "In our compound, I guess only Li Aiguo can intimidate Jia Zhangshi."

As he spoke, Yi Zhonghai looked at Liu Haizhong: "Haizhong, you have a good relationship with Aiguo. Go and ask him to help send Jia Dongxu back."

Liu Haizhong was unwilling at that time.

Given the mess Jia Dongxu made back then, how could he possibly ask Li Aiguo to step in?

But Qin Huairu started crying softly again. Liu Haizhong couldn't withstand the pressure and had no choice but to reluctantly agree.

When Liu Haizhong arrived at the Li family home, Li Aiguo was already drawing blueprints in his study.

"Patriotism, I know you and Jia Dongxu didn't get along. Now that he's dead, Qin Huairu is a pitiful widow and orphan. Please help her out." Liu Haizhong forced himself to explain the situation.

Li Aiguo looked up at him and said decisively, "Second Uncle, I can help with other things, but I really can't do this one. Please go back."

Li Aiguo refused without even making an excuse. Liu Haizhong knew this was unreasonable and could only nod awkwardly.

"I'm just afraid something will happen."

"Since you're worried about things going wrong, go through the proper channels and follow the procedures," Li Aiguo casually remarked as he saw him to the door.

After thinking about it carefully, Liu Haizhong's eyes lit up.

Yes, we can have the steel mill contact Jiajiazhuang Commune. Even if the commune sides with Jia Ba, they can't go too far.

Liu Haizhong returned to the Jia family's house and told Yi Zhonghai and Uncle San about the plan.

"Patriotism still has its ways; at least we won't get beaten up this time." The old man beamed.

Yi Zhonghai simply nodded: "Actually, I had been planning to contact the factory for a while, but I just didn't want to trouble the organization."

Liu Haizhong: "."

Perhaps spurred by Jia Dongxu's accident, Ms. Chen spent the entire night reflecting on the unpredictability of life and the need to do what she wanted to do as soon as possible.

Li Aiguo had originally intended to offer some words of comfort, but seeing her busy at the sewing machine, he felt relieved.

Now that Ms. Chen's job is on track and not too busy, she has started to relearn fashion design.

Now, Li Aiguo's clothes and the children's clothes are all handmade by Miss Chen.

The night is getting darker.

Darkness enveloped the courtyard, isolating it from all joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, leaving only peace.

Li Aiguo was leaning against the bed, flipping through blueprints, when he heard the door open and looked up.

Under the dim light, the white silk cheongsam wrapped around the young woman's figure, every inch of the fabric seemed to be bathed in soft light.

The silk slid down her shoulders and neck, outlining a narrow arc on her back. Her waist was extremely slender, and then naturally flowed down to her hips, making her waist and hips look exceptionally well-defined.

"This is my new dress design, do you think it looks good?" The young woman walked towards the bed, the satin hem of her skirt brushing against her calves, the side slit swaying with her steps, occasionally revealing a glimpse of her fair thigh.

This is something I've always wanted to do.

What else can Li Aiguo say?

Of course, I won't say anything.

****
The next day, Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and Uncle San, along with Qin Huairu, escorted Jia Dongxu back to Jiajiazhuang for burial.

The accident at the steel rolling mill had a significant impact, even reaching the Qianmen Locomotive Depot.

As soon as Li Aiguo arrived at work, the Qianmen Locomotive Depot held a safety meeting.

Leaders and employees in all workshops and sections are required to learn safe operating procedures and strictly investigate any non-standard operating behaviors, with severe penalties for any violations.

After Section Chief Xing finished speaking, the section leader in charge of safety also gave a speech, and then the leaders of each workshop were invited to come on stage to make guarantees.

Li Aiguo, as the leader of the studio, also went on stage to speak.

Half a day passed just like that, but Li Aiguo didn't feel that he had wasted any time. He believed that it was never too much to pay attention to safety.

The technicians in the workshop, however, thought the accident was rather absurd. The plate rolling machine had a protective railing around it, which needed to be closed when it was running. Coincidentally, the railing malfunctioned and couldn't be locked.

Even more coincidentally, Jia Dongxu tripped and fell inside the plate rolling machine.

Even Deputy Factory Director Li, who came to gossip, gave his assessment after smoking a cigarette: "This guy is just an unlucky fellow."

Li Aiguo understood the purpose of Deputy Factory Director Li's trip and smiled, "The section only requires us to strengthen safety training; there are no other requirements."

Deputy Factory Director Li was immediately relieved.

The oil tank workshop has now become the main workshop of the steel rolling mill. I'm afraid that the Qianmen Locomotive Depot will give the orders to other factories because of this.

"Patriotism, come visit your uncle sometime. I have some good tea there."

After Deputy Director Li left, Li Aiguo received a phone call; it was a colleague from Baoding Coal Machinery Factory who had arrived.

The deputy factory director Zhang and several engineers who came this time were all old acquaintances, making it easier to talk about work.

"I never expected you to actually develop the oil pumping unit." Deputy Factory Director Zhang looked at the blueprints and was deeply moved.

When Li Aiguo told him that he was going to develop an oil pumping machine, he thought the young man was joking.

Currently, only a handful of countries in the world are capable of independently developing oil pumping units, and their industries are highly developed.

In such a short time, not only was the oil pumping unit developed, but it also received recognition from the State Farms General Farm.

The leaders of the Ministry of Petroleum emphasized the importance of this production task in a phone call, stressing that no effort should be spared to achieve mass production in the shortest possible time.

"We'll need your help with mass production." Li Aiguo handed over the blueprints and explained his ideas for mass production.

Unlike ordinary mechanical products, oil pumping units require high quality because they need to work continuously in the field.

The parts require special anti-corrosion processes, and production personnel need to receive specialized training.

This includes equipment operation, process parameter control, and quality inspection methods to ensure standardized operation.

These things actually have nothing to do with Li Aiguo and his studio, but they can't stand to see substandard pumping units appearing at the well site.

Deputy Factory Director Zhang understood the importance of quality: "Aiguo, please rest assured, our factory has already designated this task as a critical mission, and we will definitely not let such a good product down."

Li Aiguo knew the nature of this kind of leader who came from a technical background; once he spoke, he meant it. So he handed over the coordination work to Zong Xianfeng and the wild car expert.

Over the next two days, Li Aiguo kept an eye on the mass production of the oil pumping unit while helping Professor Qi research armed helicopters in the 116 Engineering Workshop.

The engine has now been manufactured, and the fuselage and other parts have been transported from other places. We are waiting for equipment such as the radio altimeter and VHF radio to be transported from Harbin Aircraft Industry Group.

Professor Qi has always been worried about one thing: "Our hydraulic system has a relatively high failure rate. If it fails, the helicopter may crash in the air."

“Since one system isn’t enough, why don’t we install another one and create an emergency hydraulic system?” Li Aiguo suggested directly.

"Who would make two sets of parts? Wouldn't that just increase the weight?" Professor Qi was about to reject the idea when he suddenly realized that the biggest advantage of the new attack helicopter was its payload capacity, which was almost five times that of the old helicopter.

Faced with overwhelming loads, a little extra weight doesn't seem to matter.

"You know what, that's actually a good idea."

After figuring it out, Professor Qi and his team of researchers got to work.

Time passed by day by day amidst our busy lives.

Three days later, Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, and the Third Uncle returned with Qin Huairu.

As soon as Qin Huairu entered the courtyard, she went back to her room, and the three stewards were surrounded by the residents by the pool.

The old man sighed, "He's gone just like that."

The second aunt asked, "Buried?"

"It's buried. Luckily, I listened to Aiguo and had the steel mill leaders contact the commune. The commune sent militiamen, all armed. Otherwise, it would have been a huge problem." The third uncle nodded.

"Militia? Has this gotten this big?" Li Aiguo frowned as well.

“Aiguo, you don’t know, this time Jia Zhangshi isn’t just eyeing the compensation money, she’s also after Jia Dongxu’s job. She wants to take over Jia Dongxu’s position,” Liu Haizhong said with a helpless expression, smoking a cigarette.

Upon hearing this, the onlookers exchanged bewildered glances.

"Jia Zhangshi has never done any work in her life, and now she wants to go to the factory to work as a laborer?"

"Are you stupid? Before, Jia Zhangshi was fed by Lao Jia and Jia Dongxu, but now she's just a commune member and life isn't easy for her."

“If Jia Zhangshi takes over the job, she will become a formal worker.”

Li Aiguo was also stunned by Jia Zhangshi's thought process.

In the original timeline, when Jia Dongxu died, Qin Huairu was heavily pregnant and unable to go to work, making Jia Zhangshi the most suitable person to take over.

Once Jia Zhangshi retires, Qin Huairu can take over, so that the Jia family will have two people receiving salaries, and their lives won't be so bumpy.

But now that Jia Zhangshi has remarried, she probably doesn't have the qualifications to take over the family business, right?

Li Aiguo is not a legal expert, nor does he understand these things.

The residents were somewhat panicked at the thought that Jia Zhangshi might take over and return to the courtyard house.

"Second Uncle, you're a leader in the factory now. You'd better pay attention to Qin Huairu's succession," the Third Aunt said anxiously.

"Okay, I'll go to the factory tomorrow and take a look." Liu Haizhong was pleased to have been called upon.

Liu Haizhong's current mindset suggests he's treating the compound as his own territory.

He's a leader in the factory now. If he can expand and strengthen his business within the company and improve his reputation, he can get promoted in the future.

Yi Zhonghai originally wanted to take on this job, but when he saw that no one was paying attention to him, he was so angry that he was practically fuming.

When he got home, the older woman immediately poured Yi Zhonghai some hot water.

"The people in this compound are getting more and more outrageous. They bypassed me to go see Second Uncle. Can that idiot get anything done?" Yi Zhonghai said with a gloomy face.

The older woman didn't respond to the conversation, but instead inquired about Jia Dongxu's funeral. After learning that everything went smoothly, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's wrong with you, old woman?"

An older woman stood up, closed the door, turned around, stared intently at Yi Zhonghai, and asked, "Old Yi, now it's just the two of us. Tell me, how did Jia Dongxu die? Did you kill him?"

"What nonsense are you talking about! He's my apprentice, how could I harm him? Besides, Lao Zhou was there at the time, he was watching from the side. It was just that Jia Dongxu accidentally had the accident."

Seeing Yi Zhonghai's furious expression, the middle-aged woman finally felt relieved.

These past two nights, an older woman has been dreaming of Jia Dongxu, dragging his half-flattened body, accusing Yi Zhonghai of ruining him.

Perhaps she misunderstood the old man. Although he wasn't a good person, he couldn't possibly do something so heinous. The old woman muttered a few words to herself before going inside to busy herself.

Yi Zhonghai sat there with his eyes slightly narrowed, seemingly lost in thought.

The next day, the second uncle went to the factory to apply for Qin Huairu to take over the job. The factory verbally agreed, but some procedures still needed to be followed.

"Huai Ru, don't worry, the factory will definitely agree."

"Thank you so much, Uncle. I really don't know what I would have done without you."

After her second uncle left, Qin Huairu sat in a chair rubbing her stomach, looking depressed. If she couldn't take over the job, how would she live her life?

As Master Lu said, "People's joys and sorrows are always hard to understand."

While Qin Huairu was troubled by the succession issue, Li Aiguo's side was making particularly encouraging progress.

After several busy days, the engineers at the coal machinery plant, together with the researchers at the Qianmen Locomotive Depot, have completed the mass production work to a near-complete stage.

The factory responsible for manufacturing the equipment organized its staff to work day and night to produce the equipment as soon as it received the order.

The production was completed in just one week, and the equipment was transported to the coal machinery plant.

Li Aiguo originally planned to take the untrained automotive experts to Baoding Coal Machinery Plant to supervise mass production.

However, as the development of the armed helicopter reached a critical stage, the task was handed over to Wild Car Expert and Zong Xianfeng.

That afternoon, the two followed Deputy Director Zhang of the coal machinery factory and took a train to Baoding Coal Machinery Factory.

Li Aiguo rarely left work early, and planned to go to the weather station to check on the results of Anton's interrogation. Li Aiguo had many doubts about Anton's appearance.

As soon as I pushed open the studio door, Zhang Yazhi was standing at the door with a little girl.

The little girl had bright, curved eyes and wore clean clothes; it was Zhao Miaomiao.

"Uncle Li, I got perfect scores on both my midterm exams. Here's the test paper." Zhao Miaomiao held up the test paper, looking at him with a "you should praise me" expression.

"I told Miaomiao you were busy with work, but she insisted on coming over," Zhang Yazhi said, a little embarrassed.

"It's alright, come on, let Uncle take a good look." Li Aiguo took the test paper. Zhao Miaomiao was already in the fourth grade of elementary school, and the test was quite difficult. It was not easy to get a perfect score.

This girl is also a promising student. Li Aiguo squatted down and asked, "Miaomiao, what do you want?"

"I want to go home and see my mother," Zhao Miaomiao said timidly, glancing furtively at Zhang Yazhi.

Li Aiguo hadn't expected this request. He rubbed his hair and said, "Okay, I'll go back with you next weekend."

After chatting for a while, Li Aiguo took Zhao Miaomiao on the train. Seeing that it was getting late, he sent the two of them back.

After Li Aiguo left, Zhao Miaomiao tugged at Zhang Yazhi's arm somewhat embarrassedly: "Mom, did I do something wrong?"

“You, I am your mother now, and Liu Xiu’e will always be your mother. It is only right that you go to see her. How could your mother be angry?” Zhao Yazhi picked up Zhao Miaomiao and placed her on her lap.

Li Aiguo was taken to the weather station, where the interrogation of An Dong was ongoing, but no results had been reached yet.

Li Aiguo wasn't surprised. Cheka officers like Anton must have undergone rigorous training and wouldn't be so easy to pry open.

Anyway, there's no rush. The Russian negotiation team seems to be waiting for instructions; they haven't searched for the missing Anton, nor have they signed an agreement.

The matter has reached a stalemate.

Li Aiguo returned to the courtyard house at six o'clock in the evening.

It's already summer, but the sun stays up a bit longer, so it's still very bright.

Just as I turned the corner, I saw an oxcart carrying a full load of people rushing toward the courtyard.

An old woman stood proudly on an oxcart, holding onto the side of the cart with one hand, striking a pose reminiscent of a classic figure. She carried a tattered plaque on her shoulder, the words of which were illegible.

A large manure cart was being towed behind the oxcart.

Biological armored forces?

“Honey, if I can take over the family business, I’ll bring you to the city too. Then you’ll be a city dweller.”

"Hey guys, did you hear that? Do a good job this time. Give it your all and get your sister-in-law's workstation back. I'll treat you to Quanjude."

A dozen or so commune members jumped off the oxcart, carrying shovels, hoes, and one guy even held up a pitchfork.

Upon closer inspection, Li Aiguo saw that the plaque clearly read "Jia Zhangshi's mother".

Well, this Jia Zhangshi is really brave, she directly led the people of Jiajiazhuang to besiege the courtyard!
Yan Jiecheng happened to be at the gate. As soon as he saw these guys, he knew they weren't there to steal eggs. He quickly jumped up and shouted, "Something bad has happened! The people from Jiajiazhuang are attacking!"

(End of this chapter)