78: Bringing his wife and children to Harbin Institute of Technology

Ye Bingwen returned to Harbin, where it was snowing heavily.

After leaving the train station, he stood there for a long time before finally managing to flag down a horse-drawn carriage. The driver was an old man, wrapped in a cotton-padded coat whose color was indistinguishable.

Harbin Institute of Technology.

"One dollar."

The carriage moved slowly through the snow. Ye Bingwen leaned against the carriage floor, his mind filled with thoughts of the motor factory. They had produced the rotor in five days, and Professor Qian had drawn up the control circuit diagram. It wasn't that Professor Qian was particularly capable; it was Zhao Jianguo who was pushing them along.

The lab locks were replaced. Ma Kui made a copy of the key, saying there wasn't much progress at the police station. Director Wang denied borrowing the key, and the signatures in the register didn't match. The matter was at a standstill.

It was cold inside; the heating was off. Ye Bingwen opened the metal cabinet; the prototype was still there. He plugged it in and pressed the switch. The motor started running, its hum particularly clear in the quiet laboratory.

He stared at the motor for a long time. The prototype from the motor factory was just a shell, but Professor Qian was working on the control circuit. Once he figured it out, the prototype from the motor factory would be able to run. At that point, who could tell who was the original?

Turn off the motor and lock it. We can't wait any longer.

Director Sun of the school-run factory was repairing a lathe, his hands covered in grease. "The factory building is ready for you, and the equipment has been moved in. Come and take a look."

The warehouse clutter has been cleared away, the floor has been swept clean, and the walls have been whitewashed. Against the wall stand lathes, milling machines, and drilling machines; they've all been wiped down, and although old, they're still usable.

"Director Sun, thank you."

"Don't thank me. I have to do what Principal Liu asked me to do." Factory Director Sun pointed to the lathe, "This one has badly worn guide rails and isn't precise enough. I found you a new one from the warehouse, it's still unopened, and I'll bring it over tomorrow."

Ye Bingwen felt a surge of warmth in his heart. He went to the post office and sent a telegram: to Director Zhang of the county agricultural machinery factory to confirm the order, and to Su Min of the Light Industry Department to urge her to take out a loan.

As he approached the school gate, a black sedan was parked on the side of the road. Zhou Mingyi got out of the car.

"You know about what happened at the motor factory, right?"

"Know."

"Zhao Jianguo asked Factory Director Han to finish the prototype before the Lantern Festival and exhibit it at the industrial exhibition. When will your factory be able to produce a product?"

"Two months."

"That's too slow. Zhao Jianguo's prototype can be out in half a month. Your product will take two months to come out, by which time there will already be similar products on the market."

"I know. But there's nothing I can do."

Zhou Mingyi pulled a business card from his pocket. "Go find this person. There's a small motor factory in Shenyang. The equipment is old, but the workers are skilled. Give him the blueprints, and he can make your first batch of products in half a month."

The business card reads: Liu Yongqiang, Director of Shenyang Zhenxing Electric Motor Factory.

"Section Chief Zhou, why are you helping me?"

Zhou Mingyi was silent for a few seconds. "My brother is gone, but his debts remain. I'll pay them off for him."

"You don't need to pay it for him."

"I know. But I want to do it." He turned and got into the car.

Ye Bingwen stood at the school gate, looking at the business card in his hand. He neither threw it away nor made a phone call.

I called Zheng Shuyun that evening. I called the village branch, and the operator called for a long time.

"An'an is fine, she just cries at night and wants her dad."

Ye Bingwen held the microphone, his heart aching. "Tell her that Dad will come back to pick her up in a few days."

He hung up the phone and stood at the entrance of the convenience store. The winter night in Harbin was very dark, with lights twinkling in the distance.

He returned to his lodgings and began writing his factory plan. Equipment, personnel, production processes, quality control—he wrote it down item by item, until very late. After finishing the last page, he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a while. Tomorrow he would report to Principal Liu, the day after that he would go to Su Min to urge her to grant him the loan, and the day after that he would go to the motor factory to take a look.

He opened his eyes and looked at the prototype on the table. He reached out and touched the cold casing. No one could take his things away.

Ye Bingwen went to Liu Deben's office. Liu Deben flipped through the factory establishment plan.

"Where do the workers come from?"

"Borrow a few experienced workers from the school-run factory, and recruit a few apprentices."

"We can borrow experienced craftsmen, but where will we find apprentices?"

"Post a job advertisement."

"You've posted the notice, but can you guarantee the skills of the people who come?" Liu Deben looked at him. "I'll help you borrow three experienced workers from the school-run factory and recommend a few more from the mechanical engineering graduates. Their skills are guaranteed. But these people aren't being lent to you; they're being assigned to you. You'll be responsible for paying their wages, and the school will deduct it from your payment for the goods."

"OK."

"There's one more thing." Liu Deben took a piece of paper from the drawer. "It's an official letter from the Provincial Department of Industry. The province is going to hold an industrial exhibition, and the motor factory's prototype will be exhibited. They've invited you to go as well, saying it's for 'exchange and learning'."

Ye Bingwen took the official letter. "Principal Liu, I'll go."

"How did you feel when you went there and saw your skills being exhibited by others?"

"It's tough. But if I don't go, I won't know how far they've come."

Liu Deben smiled. "Okay. I'll go with you then."

Ye Bingwen went to the Light Industry Bureau. Su Min pushed the loan documents over. "Fifty thousand yuan, it will be transferred to your account next Monday. Please sign it."

Ye Bingwen signed the document.

"The prototype from the motor factory is finished, but it doesn't have the control circuit, so it won't turn. Professor Qian's project isn't progressing well either. You still have time." Su Min took a photograph from her drawer. "Do you recognize this person?"

A middle-aged man with a round face and wearing glasses.

"His name is Qian Xueming, a professor at Shenyang Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. Zhao Jianguo invited him to work on your control circuit. He stayed at the motor factory for three days last month, and when he left, he took a set of your control circuit boards with him. He didn't steal them; Director Wang gave them to him."

Ye Bingwen's fingers slowly clenched. The motor factory never intended to cooperate properly from the beginning.

"Comrade Su, thank you."

After leaving the Light Industry Hall, he boarded a bus and sat down by the window. The bus swayed and rocked along.

Back downstairs at his apartment building, Chen Zhiyuan stood at the entrance of the building, his face pale.

"Bingwen, something's happened at the motor factory. Chief Engineer Li called to say that Professor Qian's control circuit has been successfully debugged. The prototype is already running. They're going to exhibit the complete brushless motor at the exhibition."

Ye Bingwen stood in the cold wind, looking up at the gray sky.

"If they can do it, so can I. They'll exhibit, and I'll bring out my own product the day before." He turned and walked upstairs. "Chen Zhiyuan, call Liu Yongqiang in Shenyang for me. I need to go to Shenyang."

The train bound for Shenyang was packed with people returning to the city. Ye Bingwen stood at the junction of the carriages, one hand gripping the handrail, the other protecting the canvas bag in his arms. Inside the bag were the complete blueprints for a brushless motor, including the control circuitry. This was his last trump card.

Chen Zhiyuan was jostled and swayed from side to side. "Bingwen, is that Liu Yongqiang reliable? What if the person Zhou Mingyi introduced is part of Zhao Jianguo's trap?"