Courtyard House: Starting as an eighth-grade worker, with too many wives.

"Today we need to move this whole pile to the processing workshop next door."

The dispatcher pointed to the mountain of steel ingots in front of him and said casually.

Are you sure it's all of them?

Yi Zhonghai almost thought he had misheard, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"That must be all of them."

The dispatcher looked at them both as if they were idiots.

"Maybe this isn't enough; there are still new ones coming out of the steel furnace over there."

"You two, stop standing there and get to work!"

"You're moving too slowly and delaying the project. You'll be in big trouble."

Upon hearing this, the two of them dared not waste any more time, quickly put on their work gloves, gritted their teeth, and started working.

They had never done such heavy physical labor in their lives.

This job was more torturous for them than torture.

Just lifting the first steel ingot was enough to make their legs weak and they felt like they didn't even belong to them anymore.

"Are there still so many?"

Looking at the mountain of steel ingots behind him, Sha Zhu felt only darkness before his eyes, unable to see even a glimmer of hope.

"Let's get to work."

Yi Zhonghai gritted his teeth, sweat streaming down his face.

"Li Jianguo is a man of his word."

"If we don't finish today, neither of us will get a single penny of pay."

Yi Zhonghai didn't care about the pain in his legs anymore; he could only grit his teeth and work desperately.

Sha Zhu is a little better, after all, he's young and a chef who flips the wok, so he still has a lot of strength.

Even so, he was panting heavily after working for a short while, and he could barely lift his arms.

The two of them worked diligently, unaware of how long they had been working.

Yi Zhonghai was so exhausted that he could no longer hold on. He raised his arm to wipe the sweat from his head and wanted to find a place to sit down, catch his breath, and have a drink of water.

"Be careful!"

"You can't sit there!"

Suddenly someone shouted from behind.

Yi Zhonghai subconsciously turned his head to look behind him.

As a result, it was immediately noticeable that the tall stack of steel ingots next to them suddenly began to loosen and slip.

He froze on the spot, completely forgetting to dodge.

By the time he realized what was happening and tried to dodge to the side, the falling steel ingot had already slammed heavily onto his leg.

Being hit by a solid steel ingot is on a completely different level than the time he bumped into the door frame at home.

The instant the steel ingot struck his leg, Yi Zhonghai let out a heart-wrenching scream.

"what!"

"My legs!"

The workers in the surrounding workshops were startled by what they saw and rushed over to remove the steel ingots that were pressing on his legs.

When his leg emerged from under the steel ingot, it was already a bloody mess.

The surface of the steel ingot was uneven and the edges were very sharp. You can imagine how serious the damage would be if it were hit hard by something so heavy.

Yi Zhonghai couldn't even feel his legs anymore; apart from the excruciating pain, he had no other sensation.

He stared at the blood seeping from his pants, his vision blurred, and he almost fainted.

Upon receiving the news, the doctor on duty at the clinic rushed over with his first-aid kit and knelt down to treat his wound.

On the other side, Li Jianguo was explaining to the experts how the alloy composition affects the quality of steel when suddenly someone hurriedly knocked on the door and rushed in.

"What's the rush?"

Li Jianguo has never liked this kind of rash approach. In his view, those who do scientific research need not only knowledge and curiosity, but also meticulousness and composure.

"Director Li, something's happened! Someone in the workshop has been injured by falling steel!"

Upon hearing that someone was injured, Li Jianguo's heart skipped a beat. He immediately dropped the documents he was working on and rushed outside, the experts quickly following behind. As he walked, he asked the messenger:

"What exactly happened? Who's injured? How did it happen? Tell me in detail."

The visitor recounted the entire incident in detail:

"Master Yi may not be clear about which steel pieces can be moved and which cannot. During the break, he sat on a stack of steel pieces, which was not placed securely and slid down."

Upon hearing that Yi Zhonghai was the injured party, Li Jianguo's expression visibly relaxed.

He even had the mood to talk about other things:

"How are those two new guys doing today? Have they been slacking off?"

"They're not slacking off, but their physical strength is really poor. Their work efficiency is less than half of ours. Director Li, should we consider changing their positions? I feel that this job is not suitable for them."

Li Jianguo didn't address the issue of the job transfer, only saying:

"No job is superior to another. Their participation in this project is very meaningful, and I hope they can fully experience every aspect of Project 2.8—moving steel is one of them."

He spoke so eloquently that those listening nearby couldn't help but nod in agreement.

"Director Li, you really take good care of them, letting them experience all sorts of work. I'm so envious! Do you think I have a chance to join the project? I can do all the heavy lifting!"

Seeing that someone actually took his casual remark seriously, Li Jianguo couldn't help but laugh:

"You're doing a great job right now, and I don't need anyone else for the time being."

Of course he wouldn't agree—the reason he brought those two into the project was to mess with them.

What he just said was merely a nice way of putting this point on a veneer. That way, no matter who asks, they'll think he meant well, rather than deliberately trying to cause trouble.

When Li Jianguo arrived at the workshop, he saw Yi Zhonghai surrounded by workers, and the factory doctor was treating his wounds.

When they arrived, the bandaging was almost finished. The doctor skillfully completed the final step, packed up his things, and stood up.

"Director Li, don't worry, it's not serious, just a minor scratch. I'll be fine after a couple of days of rest."

"Okay, thank you for your hard work, doctor."

After the doctor left, Li Jianguo glanced coldly at the two men and sneered:

"You two are so useless! You can't even work half as efficiently as others, and you even manage to hurt yourselves?"

I suspect you're deliberately using this opportunity to slack off!

His face darkened, which was quite frightening.

"Yi Zhonghai can't even do this simple task right. His work performance is unsatisfactory today, and his salary will be deducted!"

The area was surrounded by workers who wanted to watch the commotion. With the weather getting colder, there was less work at the steel mill, and no overtime was required, so everyone naturally gathered around at the slightest sound.

Xu Damao has always loved to join in the fun, especially when it comes to things related to Sha Zhu; he never misses a thing.

Seeing that Yi Zhonghai was injured, he deliberately whispered to himself, "Isn't this a job done by two people? How come Uncle Guang is injured, and where is Sha Zhu?"

Turning his head, he saw Sha Zhu standing in the crowd and immediately said to Li Jianguo, "Director, it's not fair to only punish Yi Zhonghai, is it? Sha Zhu should be punished too. We can't be biased."

Li Jianguo raised an eyebrow, not expecting Xu Damao to be so "useful," even managing to trick Sha Zhu along with him—just what he wanted.

"Xu Damao, you're spewing filth, shut up!"

Sha Zhu was so angry that he started cursing on the spot. Xu Damao had caused him trouble time and time again, and he really wanted to beat the bastard up.

"Alright!"

Li Jianguo glanced indifferently at the entire room, and Xu Damao immediately fell silent.

At this moment, Li Jianguo spoke up: "Xu Damao is right. Efficiency issues are not the responsibility of one person. If anyone should be punished, everyone should be punished."

He nodded with a smile, appearing fair and impartial: "He Yuzhu and Master Yi will have their wages docked. We told you to work hard, but you haven't improved at all!"

He Yuzhu had no way to express his grievances. Their inefficiency was due to Yi Zhonghai's already inconvenient legs. In addition, he had never done this kind of work before, so how could he possibly be fast?

"Li Jianguo, you're doing this on purpose! You're deliberately trying to cause trouble for us!"

Sha Zhu immediately started making a scene, convinced that Li Jianguo was abusing his power to retaliate against them.

"Come on, you idiot Zhu. Why would Director Li bother with someone like you? Do you really think you're something special?"

Although the words were harsh, they made sense, and many people around laughed.

"If you can't even do your job well, don't spout nonsense!"

"That's right, Director Li kindly brought you into the project team, don't be ungrateful!"

"What good intentions? If you like it, then come!" Sha Zhu got even angrier when he heard someone say that this was a "good thing".

This was clearly a scheme set up by Li Jianguo to frame someone, but they've turned it into taking care of him?

"I really want to, but unfortunately Director Li doesn't want it! You're so picky about such a small job, you're really useless."

After being rebuked by Sha Zhu, the worker started teasing him, his tone tinged with sarcasm.

Who doesn't know that Director Li is leading a key national materials project? If it succeeds, everyone involved, even those doing menial tasks, will receive recognition and awards. Who in the entire factory wouldn't want to benefit from that?

Sha Zhu was speechless; it seemed his salary was definitely going to be withheld.

In the corner at the far end of the workshop, steel was piled up like a small mountain. Dim yellow light shone down from above, and the cold, hard metal edges gleamed with a faint bluish light, making one feel a chill just looking at them.

A worker in his forties, wearing faded blue overalls, straightened up, threw the cotton yarn in his hand aside, and turned to look at Li Jianguo, who was bending over to inspect the steel.

"Director Li, we've almost finished preparing the materials here." He rubbed the grease off his hands, and black shavings fell off in a flurry. "Next, when it comes to processing parts, among the experienced workers in the factory, Master Yi's skills are definitely top-notch."

He raised his right thumb and waved it in the air.

Hearing this, several workers who were busy nearby stopped what they were doing and gathered around. Some took off their hats to fan themselves, while others put their tools aside, their eyes shining with the kind of light that only comes when talking about a capable person.

"Yes, yes, Master Yi is an eighth-grade fitter. His hands are very precious! I've heard the old masters say that in the entire steel rolling mill, you can count the number of eighth-grade fitters on one hand."

"Let me tell you, when the parts get to him, he doesn't even need to measure them. He just touches them with his finger—" The worker speaking imitated Yi Zhonghai's gesture, extending his right index finger, squinting his eyes, and slowly gliding his fingertip along the edge of a steel pipe, as if touching some precious gem. "Whether it's up to standard or not, he knows it perfectly well. The precision can be controlled to the millimeter level, even more accurate than a machine! His craftsmanship is honed over decades."

Yi Zhonghai stood not far away, head down, slowly and meticulously adjusting the white knitted gloves in his hands. He stretched out each finger of the glove, then pressed it down with his palm, his movements as focused as if he were handling some precious object.

Upon hearing these words, he couldn't suppress the smile on his lips, and the fine wrinkles at the corners of his eyes seemed to be brimming with laughter, seeping out layer upon layer.

He lowered his eyelids, his gaze falling on his own hands.

His knuckles were large and thick, like old tree roots, covered with calluses layer upon layer, as hard as iron. Yet his hands remained steady; even if he were to thread a needle right now, he was confident he could do it on the first try.

These hands have touched at least 80,000,000, if not 100,000.

For decades, he stood at the workbench, honing his skills with files, hammers, and calipers. In those years, the workshop was freezing cold in winter, his hands would crack and bleed, but he would still grit his teeth and stand there filing parts. In the summer, it was like a sauna, sweat dripping onto the workpieces, but he would endure it all.

If it weren't for those hands, would those people in the courtyard have been so obedient to him?

If it weren't for his hands, the factory leaders would have to address him respectfully as "Master Yi."

But unfortunately—

His gaze passed over the shoulders of several workers and landed on the young man who was writing and drawing in a notebook.

Li Jianguo.

A greenhorn, inexperienced and unreliable. Relying on his few years of schooling and a bit of knowledge, he takes his position too seriously and tries to outdo him at every turn.