Courtyard House: From Deputy Division Commander to Civilian, Progressing All the Way

Pei Yihong took a deep breath and stepped into the room.

He had expected to be greeted by a serious, cold interrogation room filled with case files, or a bureaucratic reception room.

But the scene before him completely stunned him.

This is a cozy temporary dining room. In the center of the room sits a round wooden table, on which are steaming dishes, several home-style dishes that look and smell delicious.

There was glistening twice-cooked pork, tempting red and shiny Mapo tofu, and a pot of chicken stew with mushrooms bubbling away. The rich aroma of meat wafted into Pei Yihong's nose, making his stomach, which hadn't tasted any meat for months, involuntarily rumble in protest.

At the head of the table sat a man wearing a dark gray sweater.

He wasn't wearing a military uniform or an overcoat; he looked like an ordinary family man. But as he sat there, he exuded an aura of unwavering, imposing authority, as steady as a mountain. His sharp, abyss-like eyes were silently fixed on Pei Yihong.

It was Lin Yang.

"Minister Lin...?" Pei Yihong had seen Lin Yang's photo in the newspaper and immediately recognized the famous, iron-fisted minister who held the power of life and death over the nation's most important assets.

He was suddenly jolted, never expecting that the person who wanted to see him was this legendary figure who held sway over Beijing!

Pei Yihong glanced subconsciously at his tattered cotton-padded coat, stained with coal dust, and felt a surge of intense embarrassment and inferiority. He took a half-step back, his voice hoarse, "Minister Lin... I'm too dirty. Don't get your place dirty. I'll just stand at the door and report my mistake."

Lin Yang looked at the awkward young man, stood up, and personally pulled out a chair.

"Coal black is the cleanest thing in the world because it can be used to forge the hardest steel. What's truly dirty is the human heart of those who devour people without spitting out the bones."

Lin Yang gestured to the chair, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable authority: "Sit down. There are no reports today, just lunch."

Pei Yihong was flattered and nervously sat down, half of his bottom on the chair.

He Yuzhu carried in a large bowl of white rice, served each of them a large bowl, and then silently retreated outside the door and closed it.

"Try it, this is my bodyguard's cooking. He was the best Tan family cuisine chef in Beijing back in the day." Lin Yang picked up his chopsticks and put a large piece of twice-cooked pork on Pei Yihong's plate.

Pei Yihong held the bowl in both hands, his eyes slightly moist. He hadn't received such equal treatment for three whole years. In the coal mine, he was treated worse than a dog. And now, a high-ranking official of the state was personally serving him food.

Without any hesitation, he shoveled the piece of meat into his mouth. The aroma of the meat exploded in his mouth, turning into a warm current that instantly dispelled the chill that had accumulated on his body for three years.

Lin Yang picked up a bottle of Xifeng liquor from the table, unscrewed the cap, and poured a glass for Pei Yihong and himself.

"I read the report you wrote three years ago about the declining efficiency of Blast Furnace No. 3." Lin Yang put down his wine bottle, picked up his glass, and looked intently at Pei Yihong. "While everyone else was shouting exaggerated slogans and exaggerating production figures, you used the most precise metallurgical data to point out the fatal flaw that substandard furnace temperature would lead to internal stress embrittlement in the steel. Because of that report, you were sent to count coal slag for three years."

Lin Yang and Pei Yihong clinked their glasses together, making a crisp sound.

"Pei Yihong, let me ask you this: During those three years, when you were eating coal dust in the cold wind, did you regret it?"

Pei Yihong put down his chopsticks and downed the strong liquor in his glass in one gulp. The liquor burned his cheeks as it went down his throat, and also ignited the long-suppressed flame of arrogance in his eyes.

He met Lin Yang's sharp gaze, his back ramrod straight, and answered, word by word:

"Reporting to the Minister. My only regret is that my report was just a pile of waste paper. Waste paper can't be forged into steel. If our country's heavy industry relies entirely on those false reports and slogans, then when the enemy's tanks come, our armor will be as fragile as paper and easily pierced by a single shot!"

"To prevent the country from producing waste steel that kills people, I, Pei Yihong, would rather spend my whole life counting coal slag in this coal yard than regret it!"

Resounding and powerful, every word cuts to the bone!

Upon hearing these words, Lin Yang's eyes finally shone with a bright light of admiration.

This is the person he wants!

He wasn't broken, nor did he become worldly and cynical through hardship; he maintained his absolute loyalty and fervor for the fundamental principles of industry. Such a person, once given power and a stage, will unleash an energy that is earth-shattering!

"Good! Well said, you can't make steel from waste paper!"

Lin Yang slammed his hand on the table, causing the plates and bowls on it to tremble slightly.

"But with me, your report won't become a piece of waste paper. I'll turn it into a guillotine hanging over the heads of those corrupt bureaucrats!"

Lin Yang put down his chopsticks, his expression instantly transforming from that of a host treating guests to a meal into that of a ruthless general who controlled the lifeline of the nation.

"Pei Yihong, I didn't come to the Northeast for an inspection; I came to make the surgery." Lin Yang stared intently at him. "The heavy industrial base of the Northeast is now like a giant terminally ill. Its veins don't flow with blood, but with the embezzled oil and steel of those parasites!"

Lin Yang took a thick file from his briefcase and pushed it in front of Pei Yihong.

"These are some of the clues my people secretly gathered. The Fengtian Heavy Machinery Plant, Anshan Iron and Steel Plant, and even military shipyards all have serious problems with raw material loss and falsification of production data."

Lin Yang's voice turned unusually cold, revealing a ruthless and decisive domineering air: "I want to conduct a thorough asset inventory and management restructuring of the entire Northeast industrial system. I need a sharp knife, a knife that knows every pipe and every workshop here, and that will never compromise with any interest group!"

Pei Yihong stared at the files on the table, his breathing instantly becoming rapid. He knew all too well the immense resistance behind this. It involved the livelihoods and official positions of countless people, and even touched upon certain deeply entrenched forces in the capital.

But he did not back down. His eyes, which had once only seen coal dust, now burned with an unprecedented fighting spirit.

"Minister, the problems in Northeast China are deeply entrenched and difficult to resolve. To truly address the root cause, we cannot simply rely on arresting a few individuals." Pei Yihong suppressed his inner excitement and began to demonstrate his strategic vision as a top industrial talent.

Pointing to several key points in the case file, he spoke eloquently: "Currently, corruption mainly focuses on the procurement of raw materials and the disposal of defective products. They resell high-quality steel by passing off inferior materials as superior ones, while filling blast furnaces with substandard materials. To solve this problem, we must establish an absolutely closed, traceable logistics and quality inspection system."