Courtyard House: Primordial Chaos Pearl

On the third day after the opening of Hongxing Hardware Processing Factory, Director Zhao from the radio factory arrived with legal and financial personnel. In the conference room, Director Zhao pushed a thick joint venture agreement in front of Lin Dong: "Director Lin, our factory holds 49% of the shares, providing sales channels and production qualifications; you hold 51% of the shares, contributing technology and existing equipment, with profits distributed according to shareholding. This is the optimal solution, and also the maximum that the bureau can approve."

Lin Dong picked up the agreement, and He Yushui leaned over to look at it together—she had specifically checked the relevant policies beforehand and knew about the equity restrictions in joint ventures between collective enterprises and individual workshops. "Director Zhao," Lin Dong pointed to the technical clauses in the agreement, "the production process of core components must be exclusively controlled by us, and your factory will be responsible for assembly and sales. This clause needs to be added."

Factory Director Zhao was prepared and nodded with a smile: "No problem. What we need is a stable supply chain and high-quality products. With the core technology in your hands, we feel more at ease." He was most afraid that Lin Dong would hide anything, but now that the other party had taken the initiative to clarify responsibilities, his concerns were dispelled. The two sides hit it off immediately and finalized the supplementary terms that same day. They only needed the bureau's approval before officially signing the contract.

No sooner had the good news been settled than trouble struck. That afternoon, Station Chief Wang of the agricultural machinery station stormed in, clutching a fuel injector in his hand: "Director Lin, look at this! The surrounding communes bought a batch of 'Red Star' brand fuel injectors, and when they were installed in their diesel engines, they emitted black smoke. We took them apart, and the workmanship was ridiculously shoddy! This is ruining our reputation!"

Lin Dong took the fuel injector and immediately recognized it as a counterfeit—the outer shell lacked the delicate texture of the Chaos Pearl's molding, and the precision of the inner wall was more than a millimeter off. "Station Chief Wang, don't worry," he immediately gathered the workers, "compile our product numbers and anti-counterfeiting marks. Tomorrow I will personally go to the surrounding communes to help everyone exchange the counterfeit products."

He Yuzhu stamped his feet anxiously: "This must be some small workshop deliberately counterfeiting our products because they sell well! We have to report them to the Industry and Commerce Bureau!" "We should report them, but we have to protect our reputation first," Lin Dong said calmly. "Our fuel injectors are key components for agricultural machinery operations. If we delay the autumn harvest, we'll bear a huge responsibility."

The next morning, Lin Dong, along with He Yuzhu and two workers, set off in the truck borrowed from Boss Li. At each commune, they demonstrated the difference between genuine and counterfeit products, replaced counterfeit parts for farmers free of charge, and even left their after-sales contact information. Looking at the disassembled parts, the farmers exclaimed, "Director Lin's products are definitely reliable! From now on, we'll only buy Red Star brand!"

This five-day "anti-counterfeiting trip" not only didn't result in losses, but also led to additional orders from five communes. Even more surprisingly, Director Zhang of the regional agricultural machinery bureau, upon hearing about it, personally called Lin Dong: "Director Lin, you have quite the vision! The bureau is preparing to purchase a batch of improved seeder parts, a total of 5,000 sets. Can you handle the order?"

Five thousand sets of spare parts, at a cost of eight yuan per set and a selling price of fifteen yuan per set, would yield a net profit of thirty-five thousand yuan! Lin Dong immediately approved: "We can take it! Delivery in forty days, guaranteed to meet the bureau's technical standards." After hanging up the phone, He Yuzhu excitedly hugged the worker: "We're going to make a fortune!"

Back at the factory, Lin Dong immediately convened a mobilization meeting. He Yushui had already optimized the part structure diagram based on the drawings from the Agricultural Machinery Bureau: "When using chaotic beads for shaping, the precision of key parts must be controlled within 0.005 millimeters. I have drawn a detailed parameter table." She distributed the table to the workers. These days, she had been learning the techniques of using chaotic beads to assist in production from Lin Dong and was already able to independently formulate technical standards.

Just as the entire factory was working overtime to meet demand, a familiar figure appeared at the factory gate—Jia Dongxu, wearing faded work clothes and carrying two pounds of apples, stood there awkwardly. "Brother Lin Dong," he said, rubbing his hands together, "I've come to thank you. The twenty yuan you gave me last time helped my family get through a difficult time."

Lin Dong invited him into his office, where Jia Dongxu finally revealed the truth: "Our factory received a batch of agricultural machinery parts processing work. The precision requirements are too high, and we've scrapped three batches. The factory manager said that if I can't do it well again, I'll be fired. I heard that you have good technical skills here, and I'd like to ask you to take a look at the blueprints."

He Yuzhu scoffed, "Why didn't you think of asking for help when you were stealing the parts?" Lin Dong stopped him and took the blueprints from Jia Dongxu's hand—they were the secondary parts supplied by the regional agricultural machinery bureau. "These parts don't have high precision requirements," he said, taking out paper and pen and drawing a few key processing points. "Make them according to these dimensions, and I guarantee there won't be any problems."

Jia Dongxu was stunned, not expecting Lin Dong to be so agreeable. "Brother Lin Dong, I..." He wanted to say thank you, but didn't know how to express it. "From now on, work hard and don't get any crooked ideas." Lin Dong handed him a packet of genuine parts samples. "Take these to compare. If there are any problems, come find me."

Jia Dongxu left, thanking him profusely. He Yuzhu asked, puzzled, "Why are you still helping him? The Jia family bullied you a lot back then." "He earns his living through his own abilities now," Lin Dong said with a smile. "Helping him is also helping ourselves—his factory makes secondary parts, and we make core components. It's a perfect match, and we'll have more confidence when taking on large orders in the future."

Sure enough, a week later Jia Dongxu returned with good news: "Our factory followed your method and all the parts passed inspection! The factory manager asked me to ask if we could cooperate with you long-term and become your supporting processing plant?" Lin Dong immediately signed a cooperation agreement with him, outsourcing the processing of secondary parts to Jia Dongxu's factory, which solved the production capacity problem and gave the other party a legitimate path.

The counterfeit goods case also made progress. Based on the counterfeit samples provided by Lin Dong, the industrial and commercial team traced the source to an illegal workshop in the suburbs, and immediately seized all equipment and finished products. Director Zhang called specifically: "Factory Director Lin, from now on your products can apply for the regional high-quality product label, and the industrial and commercial team will give you special protection."

Just as the factory was bustling with activity, Yan Bugui suddenly appeared at the factory gate. He was wearing a faded Zhongshan suit, clutching a cloth bag, with Yan Jiecheng following behind. "Lin Dong," Yan Bugui said, unusually humble, "I heard you're hiring technicians here. Jiecheng studied at a hardware factory for two years. Do you think he could..."

Lin Dong knew Yan Jiecheng's background—he had been fired from the hardware factory for cutting corners, his skills were mediocre, and he was prone to cheating. "Uncle, we need to test the practical skills of the technicians we're hiring," he said, pointing to the workers who were adjusting the equipment. "Let Jiecheng try. If he can adjust the precision of that part to 0.01 millimeters, he'll stay."

Yan Jiecheng walked over slowly, fiddling with the parts for a long time, but the precision of the parts couldn't even reach 0.1 millimeters, and his face turned red. Yan Bugui sighed and took out an abacus from his cloth bag: "This is the skill I've accumulated over half my life. I'll help you with the accounts, eight yuan a month will do."

"Uncle, we have a full-time accountant now." Lin Dong handed him twenty yuan. "Go back now, and don't let Jie Cheng go astray again. Take this money; consider it compensation for the things I borrowed from you before." Yan Bugui looked at the money in his hand, his lips moved, but in the end he didn't say anything. He pulled Yan Jie Cheng away—he knew this was the last bit of respect Lin Dong would give him.

On the day the joint venture agreement was approved, Director Zhang of the regional agricultural machinery bureau personally came to unveil the plaque. As the new "Hongxing United Hardware Factory" sign was hung up, firecrackers went off, and representatives from the agricultural machinery stations of the surrounding communes and workers from the radio factory all came. Director Zhang shook Lin Dong's hand: "Director Lin, your factory has not only solved employment problems but also solved a major issue for the agricultural machinery industry. The bureau has decided to designate your factory as a designated production base for agricultural machinery parts."

After the unveiling ceremony, He Yushui ran over with a set of blueprints: "Brother Lin Dong, based on the shaping principle of the Chaos Bead, I optimized the structure of the seeder parts, which can increase the sowing efficiency by 20%. The people from the Agricultural Machinery Bureau said they are willing to pay an extra 10% to purchase it!" Lin Dong took the blueprints, looked at the clear parameters on them, and nodded with satisfaction—He Yushui was already able to independently use the auxiliary functions of the Chaos Bead and had become the core of the factory's technology.

At the celebration banquet that evening, He Yuzhu raised his glass and toasted Lin Dong: "Lin Dong, I always thought you were just lucky, but now I realize you're really capable. If it weren't for you, I'd still be stuck working in the cafeteria."

"It's the result of our joint efforts," Lin Dong replied. "In the future, the factory will be expanded. You will be in charge of production management, and Yu Shui will be in charge of technology research and development. We will have a clear division of labor and make Hongxing Factory a benchmark enterprise in the suburbs of Beijing." His gaze swept over the workers present, and he had a bigger plan in mind—he wanted to use the Chaos Pearl to develop more advanced agricultural machinery and help farmers solve more practical problems.

The celebration banquet had just ended when Jia Dongxu rushed over, holding an urgent order: "Brother Lin Dong, the agricultural machinery station in the neighboring county urgently needs five hundred sets of fuel injectors. They say they need to finish preparing for the autumn harvest before the heavy rain. Do you think you can expedite it?"

Lin Dong glanced at the order, then at the increasingly gloomy sky outside, and immediately said, "No problem! I'll organize the workers to work overtime tonight and ship it to you first thing tomorrow morning." Jia Dongxu's eyes reddened with emotion: "Thank you, Brother Lin Dong, I thank you on behalf of the farmers in the neighboring county!"

That night, the factory was brightly lit. Lin Dong entered the chaotic space and activated the precision shaping function at maximum power. He Yushui led the technical team to debug the equipment, while He Yuzhu organized the workers to pack the parts. By 3 a.m., all 500 sets of fuel injectors were completed and loaded onto the trucks; the sky was already beginning to lighten.

Watching the truck drive away, Lin Dong stood at the factory gate, with He Yushui and He Yuzhu standing beside him. "Brother Lin Dong," He Yushui said softly, "my parents wrote to me, asking me to stay at the factory after graduation. They also want to come to Beijing to help us."

"Great!" Lin Dong said with a smile. "Let's build a staff dormitory so that all the workers can live comfortably. In the future, we'll also build a technical school to train more skilled workers." His gaze was fixed on the distance, where there was a wider world and grander goals.

Six months later, Hongxing United Hardware Factory's products were sold to five surrounding areas. Lin Dong used the money he earned to build employee dormitories and a technical training center, and also recruited a group of rural youths, who were personally trained by He Yushui. Jia Dongxu's factory also expanded its scale and became Hongxing Factory's most stable supporting supplier. The Jia family's life improved, and Jia Zhangshi never went to the courtyard to cause trouble again.

That day, Lin Dong took He Yushui to the city to purchase equipment. Passing by the Hongxing Courtyard, they made a point of stopping. Inside the courtyard, Yan Bugui was teaching his grandson to use an abacus, while Liu Haizhong was helping a neighbor repair a bicycle—without a target to scheme against, the two old men were quite content. Yi Zhonghai sat under the locust tree by the door, saw Lin Dong's car, and waved with a smile.

Lin Dong got out of the car and handed Yi Zhonghai a cigarette: "Uncle, how have you been lately?" "I'm doing great," Yi Zhonghai took the cigarette. "I heard your factory is getting bigger and bigger. I knew you were a promising young man." He looked at He Yushui behind Lin Dong and nodded with satisfaction—he had long heard that Lin Dong and He Yushui were getting married soon.

As they got into the car to leave, He Yushui looked out at the courtyard house and asked softly, "Brother Lin Dong, have you ever hated the people here?" Lin Dong shook his head: "I used to, but not anymore. It's these experiences that have made me realize that only when I become strong can I control my own destiny."

The car drove onto the highway, heading towards the factory. Lin Dong looked at the smooth road ahead, his heart filled with hope. He knew that the Chaos Pearl had given him a starting point, but what truly sustained him to where he was today was his down-to-earth hard work and his magnanimous approach to life. In the future, he would lead the Red Star Factory to create even more miracles in this era brimming with opportunities.