Courtyard House: Starting as a mediocre engineer

You know what, Chinese people have always loved watching a spectacle. Before long, Nanluoguxiang was packed with people, and even a group of chattering teenage girls came by.

Suddenly, someone shouted, "College students are entering the village! Villagers, evacuate quickly!"

Amidst laughter and chatter, the crowd ushered the group of girls into the inner circle.

Right next to Nanluoguxiang, there is a university. Many students there practice their singing early in the morning, making a racket like roosters crowing in the middle of the night. Nearby residents often shout insults at each other over the wall, and when they meet, they exchange sarcastic and sarcastic remarks.

This university later became quite famous, becoming the perennial newbie village for many online novels. The university's name is—Central Academy of Drama! Hmm.

That being said, the status of university students is what it is. Aside from mutual dislike, nothing much will really happen.

So, amidst laughter and chatter, Zhuang Zhongchen prepared to start the tricycle. After checking all the parts and the fuel tank, he began to pull hard on the rope beside him.

Two-stroke engines like these used to be used in tools like lawnmowers and chainsaws. The chainsaw in the movie *Saw* was originally a chainsaw, a tool used by lumberjacks. Pulling the rope would start the chainsaw's motor.

Here, Zhuang Zhongchen didn't have time to switch to electric start, so he kept the most primitive manual start method. While this starting method wasn't very convenient, its structure was extremely simple!

However, this pulling action looked rather comical, and a burst of laughter immediately arose from the surroundings.

"Chenzi, are you sure you can do it?"

"How can a man say no!"

The laughter was deafening; most people understood it. The older women, in particular, had flushed cheeks and were excitedly whispering among themselves. Only the young women and children looked completely bewildered, sensing the deep malice of the adult world.

"Chenzi, what exactly are you good at?!"

Amidst laughter, Zhuang Zhongchen yanked the accelerator, and the engine roared to life: "I'm not telling you! Your thoughts are filthy!"

"Hahaha!"

As Zhuang Zhongchen mounted his tricycle, he caught a glimpse of Qin Huairu, who was holding acacia flowers and rolling her eyes. A smirk played on his lips as he revved the engine, and the tricycle shot off.

Seeing the tricycle speed away, everyone gasped in unison, exclaiming "Holy crap!"

When he drove onto the main street, Zhuang Zhongchen felt like he had become the most dazzling guy in Beijing, attracting almost 100% of people's attention.

Speeding along, Zhuang Zhongchen felt his driving skills were finally coming in handy, as if he had returned to his former carefree, adventurous self. Amidst the astonished gazes of passersby, he continued to accelerate forward…

Before long, the tricycle rushed out of the city gate and onto a wide road in the outskirts of Beijing.

At this time, the old city walls of Beijing still remained, which is the area that later became the Second Ring Road. In those days, the distinction between native Beijingers and non-natives was quite strict. Only those within the city walls were considered city dwellers, while those outside were all considered country bumpkins. Even having a Beijing household registration was not enough; people from Haidu were considered country bumpkins. In this respect, everyone was treated equally.

Of course, the people of Haidu only recognize themselves as city dwellers, and consider anyone outside their circle as a country bumpkin. They treat people from the capital city the same way.

Anyway, these two cities have a love-hate relationship, and they're determined to carry the coffee and garlic war to the end!

Therefore, Zhuang Zhongchen's current location should be near the compound. Later, this area became part of the city center. But now it's considered the "outskirts of Beijing," the countryside. Yes... indeed, children of high-ranking officials are just like country bumpkins!

That said, since this is a "rural area," there aren't many vehicles or pedestrians on the road. Wouldn't that be tempting someone to speed? Zhuang Zhongchen suddenly stepped on the gas. Today, I'm going to be a wild and spirited young man!

Just as Zhuang Zhongchen was recklessly speeding and having a blast, someone suddenly waved from ahead: "Young man, stop for a second!"

Zhuang Zhongchen quickly pressed the brake. He looked closely and saw an old man in an old military uniform: "Sir, what's the matter?"

"Give me a ride, please."

"Alright! You'd better sit tight!"

It's just a test drive, a load test, anyway. And it's a good deed, right? It's worth at least an old lady's money.

Following the old man's directions, the tricycle arrived at the gate of a military compound. The old man was quite agile; he jumped off the tricycle immediately.

"Xiao Zhuang, I didn't expect your car to be so good!"

"It's alright, I modified it myself."

"Can our troops use it?" The old man didn't try to hide his identity.

Zhuang Zhongchen chuckled, not really caring about the old man's status: "It should be possible. Currently, sidecar tricycles cost around 7 to 8000 yuan. If these could be mass-produced, they should be around 2 to 3000 yuan. But the structure would have to be redesigned, requiring careful study by professionals. After all, this is just a modification of an ordinary tricycle, not a special model."

"Oh? You know about this?"

"I'd say I'm a technician!" Zhuang Zhongchen said modestly. "Actually, this type of vehicle is more suitable for countries with vast land and abundant resources. Take China, the US, and the Soviet Union, for example; they all meet this standard. Among them, the US has the most developed automotive industry. They have a special type of vehicle—the pickup truck."

"A pickup truck?"

"It's a small truck where you can sit in the front and load cargo in the back. The design concept is a simplified version of a pickup truck, which perfectly fills this gap in demand. Tell me, isn't this a vehicle?"

Indeed, the three-wheeled vehicle filled the market gap between three-wheeled vehicles and pickup trucks, giving ordinary people a motor vehicle that could carry both people and goods.

"So, you mean you're learning to drive pickup trucks? What about the performance? Does it reach the level of a pickup truck?"

"That's definitely far inferior. But it's cheap, isn't it? Let's compare it to a sidecar motorcycle. A sidecar motorcycle can only carry three people and can't haul much cargo. But this kind of vehicle has a much higher carrying capacity, right? And for every sidecar motorcycle produced, three or four of these can be made. Although it's not as agile as a sidecar motorcycle and isn't as fast, the quantity makes up for the quality. Not to mention pickup trucks. The advantages and disadvantages are quite obvious."

"Understood."

"By the way, I think it's more suitable for the militia. In peacetime, it can be used as a production tool, and in wartime, it can allow the militia to move quickly. As for the military vehicles, it's best to use military models."

"What's the use?"

"Of course it's useful. Grandpa, just imagine! If you weld a heavy machine gun onto it, you can drive over at high speed, fire, and then run away immediately. Or you can attach a rocket launcher, fire, and then retreat immediately. Isn't that guerrilla warfare?"

"That's true. Young man, where are you from?"

"It's from the Municipal Labor Bureau. This vehicle is also an official company car. If you're interested, you can come and take a look later."

"become!"