dognovel Chapter 1404 Even Jesus couldn't help.
Chapter 1404 Even Jesus couldn't help.
Chapter 1404 Even Jesus couldn't help.
"In the metallurgical industry, you need metallurgy first before you can get gold."
Li Xuewu, clutching a leather glove, tilted his head slightly upwards to gaze at the towering furnace and couldn't help but sigh.
The people standing behind him exchanged glances, but no one said anything, nor did they find what he said funny.
To be honest, this is nonsense. Without metallurgical furnaces, where would the metallurgical industry come from? Li Xuewu is just spouting nonsense.
But who among those standing here is such an ignorant and incompetent person? They are all pondering the deeper meaning behind the leader's words.
"You have to give to receive."
Wang Shuqiong wore a light yellow thin woolen coat and had a neat short hairstyle, making her look very capable.
She smiled and took the initiative to continue Li Xuewu's conversation, saying, "Last year, the metallurgical plant invested more than 70 yuan in equipment upgrades and technological innovations. It does sound like a lot of pressure."
“70 yuan is enough to build a factory.” Li Xuewu turned around and said to her with a smile, “I remember how much the initial funding for the hardware factory was? 10 yuan? It was 10 yuan, Comrade Zongfang.”
"Yes, sir, it's 10 yuan."
Yang Zongfang had changed his hairstyle after the New Year, making him look even more mature and composed. At this moment, he was looking up at the tall tower in front of him, just like Li Xuewu had done earlier. When he suddenly heard Li Xuewu's question, he nodded in response.
Yang Shuxing squinted at him, then glanced at the old turtle-like Yin Zhongyao without leaving a trace, his gaze meaningful, as if even the high sun could not melt the chill emanating from him.
"Everyone says starting a business is difficult, but maintaining it is even more difficult." Li Xuewu nodded, turned around and looked at the work site, and said, "I can now feel that starting a business is no easier than maintaining it."
“I think we should look at things from two perspectives.” Wang Shuqiong took two small steps forward and looked at the tower, saying, “It is because of continuous investment, including the 30 yuan two years ago, the 70 yuan last year, and the budget of 50 yuan this year, that our factory has a chance to be reborn and has the ability to strive for excellence.”
"Is the total investment 150 million yuan?" Li Haiyang, who had just taken office in the steel city, asked with slight surprise, "Is it all for equipment innovation and technological transformation in the metallurgical plant?"
"If I could have this 1.5 million, I'd be so grateful!"
Li Xuewu glanced back at him and said, "This year, the group can only allocate 50 yuan for technological upgrades. We'll have to figure out the rest ourselves."
"Find a way yourself?" Li Haiyang found this suggestion interesting and asked with a light laugh, "Have you thought of a way?"
"Well, if you can't think of it, you have to force yourself to."
Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and joked, "Tighten your belts, and if that doesn't work, sell everything you own. If that still doesn't work, then you'll have to resort to crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide."
He pointed at Li Haiyang and said, "We're the only two newcomers in this team, so if anyone's going to make a name for themselves, it has to be us two who step up first."
“That’s really true—” Li Haiyang glanced at everyone present today and said with a smile, “Then I’ll follow your arrangements?”
“No problem.” Li Xuewu turned around and took two steps in this direction, saying, “We’ll go back together then, and I’ll take care of crying and making a scene.”
"Oh, so I'll be in charge of hanging myself?"
Li Haiyang couldn't help but laugh out loud. Seeing that everyone else was laughing too, he said, "Before I came to the steel city, my superiors told me to work hard and withstand the difficulties at work. Now it seems I'm a little overwhelmed—"
"Hahaha—" Li Xuewu laughed casually, which was a formal introduction of Li Haiyang to everyone, and also brought the management team of the metallurgical plant together.
As for whether some people are dissatisfied or not, he doesn't care. He says the team needs to be united, and anyone who isn't united is an outcast.
The saying "first cry, then make a scene, then threaten suicide" is a joke. Given Li Haiyang and Li Xuewu's abilities, why would they go to such lengths?
To say that the metallurgical plant's finances were stretched thin due to its efforts to develop new equipment and processes, including steel smelting, special steel smelting, and non-ferrous metal and alloy smelting projects, was that it hadn't reached the point of selling everything it owned, is one of Li Xuewu's points.
But the saying "tighten your belt and live frugally" is not an exaggeration. At the time, no one present thought it was true. They all thought it was just a joke by Li Xuewu, like the following two sentences.
On March 17, at the third executive meeting of the metallurgical plant, Li Xuewu put forward the requirement to "conduct a comprehensive review of the metallurgical plant's fixed assets".
This wasn't just Li Xuewu targeting the metallurgical plant alone; it was a drastic crackdown on all of the group's industrial enterprises in Liaodong.
After announcing this decision at the meeting on the 17th, he immediately issued an order to the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group Office to draw personnel from various industrial enterprises and borrow audit, supervision, and finance personnel from the group to form an asset audit team.
He demanded that the Industrial Leading Group Office serve as the main auditing body, with the Group's Audit Department personnel as the primary operational force, and that personnel from various industrial enterprises and units in Liaodong be drawn upon to conduct a comprehensive and cross-inspection.
The inventory check is scheduled for the end of this month, specifically the 31st.
He gave these industrial enterprises less than 15 days before the inventory count. In other words, after receiving the news on the 17th, each industrial enterprise had to prepare for the audit and inventory work.
Li Xuewu's words at the project site, "Tighten your belt," really sent chills down the spines of some people.
How many audits and inventory checks has Hongxing Factory conducted since its establishment?
It's been countless times, almost every year, but it's rare, almost nonexistent, for someone like Li Xuewu to pull off such a surprise attack.
They have to deal with inspections and audits every year, so why do they break out in a cold sweat when Li Xuewu mentions organizing an audit?
Simply put, the scope of a routine year-end audit or inventory check is naturally different from the audit organized by the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group at Li Xuewu's request.
Previously, inventory checks were conducted primarily by individual industrial enterprises and carried out by relevant departments, essentially meaning they checked themselves.
But things are different now. Li Xuewu demanded that the audit team be formed, which involved three parties, and the main organizing body was the Industrial Leading Group Office, a place that doesn't care about personal relationships. How are they supposed to get through this?
Even if it's impossible to weather the storm, and personnel from various industrial enterprises and units are drawn upon to participate, it's still a cross-inventory process.
You're saying that having people means having opportunities?
That depends on how you look at it. It depends on whether the person you can find has a voice and whether they can speak up for you during the inventory process.
It's almost impossible. Judging from the news coming out of the office, the personnel transferred from various units are mainly young people who have just started working, and they are randomly selected without any distinction.
Not to mention that these young people are naive and lack social skills, even those who are knowledgeable in social interactions would not be able to make decisions.
They were mainly selected for this audit to do manual labor, to perform some of the "physical tasks" during the audit process.
So you're saying that auditing, regulatory, and finance personnel from the group can have a say?
Maybe so. But with three parties involved, who would dare to take the risk of shouldering such a huge responsibility for you?
Even a fool could see that Li Xuewu was about to start his second major initiative in Liaodong Industrial Park.
Auditing, supervision, and finance supervise each other, but the people in the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group Office are the ones who can truly determine the audit results.
You said that Zhou Peilan and others in the office are also young people, just starting out, how can they have the ability and responsibility to take on such a heavy task?
Don't forget who stands behind the Industrial Leading Group Office: Li Xuewu of the Group.
On the surface, it appears that Zhang Jing, the director of the Industrial Leading Group Office, is leading four young college graduates in organizing this audit operation. In reality, it is spearheaded by Li Xuewu of the group, with the support of the main responsible persons of the group's various industrial enterprises in Liaodong.
The audits of the group's ten major industrial enterprises in Liaodong were conducted almost simultaneously, leaving no time for anyone to react and coordinate.
You said I'm short of a piece of equipment, and the audit team is coming to my place first. Can I borrow one of your factory's pieces of equipment first?
Whether it would have worked before is unknown, but it certainly won't work now, because the audit team won't give them any time to coordinate equipment and assets.
The audit team's entry time into each industrial enterprise has been set, and Li Xuewu deliberately gave them half a month to cover up their accounts.
During this period, Zhang Jing also had the time and energy to select personnel to join the team for training, conduct closed-door group work, and prepare for the audit.
Within fifteen days, the assets must either be balanced or the losses must be made up; otherwise, the matter will be handled according to regulations.
Li Xuewu didn't want to deal with the messy history before he came to Liaodong. By following the clues from the materials he had reviewed in seclusion, he could roughly figure out a set of accounts in his mind, but it was a muddled mess.
Don't bother with unclear accounts, but once he arrived in Liaodong, the accounts could no longer remain unclear; they had to be crystal clear.
Why did Li Xuewu dare to make an audit request at this time?
Isn't he afraid of receiving too much feedback from his subordinates?
No worries, because he's not the only one who wants to audit the fixed assets of these ten industrial companies. From the perspective of group management, this is a necessary task and an opportunity to plug the holes in the dam.
From the perspective of the heads of these ten industrial enterprises, they also want to settle the past mess and start afresh.
Li Xuewu has given them a chance this time. He will let bygones be bygones and let them see what they do from now on.
If he doesn't stop after this audit, then don't blame him for being ruthless and taking drastic measures.
He demanded that everyone tighten their belts and go all out, even selling their possessions, to develop industry. At that time, no amount of crying, making a scene, or threatening suicide would work.
-
"Boss, Vice President Chen has arrived."
Li Xuewu was reviewing documents when Zhang Enyuan knocked lightly on the door to give a report. At the same time, he stepped aside to invite the person behind him in.
Li Xuewu had asked him to make an appointment with this Vice President Chen long ago, and the itinerary was also set, so he arranged for him to enter without hesitation.
This is how the secretary handles the schedule and meetings; he will contact the other party in advance to arrange a meeting time.
This time is basically fixed, unless the leader's conversation with someone is delayed, in which case the secretary needs to make up for it.
Whether making phone calls or running errands, they were busy running around.
The secretary also has certain rights, namely, to arrange who meets with the leader in front and who meets with the leader behind.
Unless Li Xuewu specifically emphasized it, the order of their meetings was basically determined on their way to work together every morning.
Chen Danian was the vice president of the headquarters of the Hongxing Steel Group United Savings Bank. It was Li Xuewu who called the headquarters, and Chen Danian, at the request and on behalf of the headquarters president Xie Lanzhi, came to the steel city to meet with Li Xuewu.
Hongxing United Savings Bank was established just three years ago, but it has developed rapidly. Based on its headquarters in Beijing, it has established branches and outlets in major cities across the country.
In Beijing, United Savings Bank has grown into a professional bank with savings, transfers, and insurance as its main businesses. In particular, it has surpassed its peers in commercial operations and can be considered a rising force.
Gangcheng, Yingcheng, Jinmen, Wucheng, and Yuezhou were among the first cities in which the Hongxing Factory expanded its economic and trade activities. Now, their total trade volume is increasing year by year, and corresponding financial services are also developing accordingly.
Chen Danian came to Liaodong this time at the request and invitation of Li Xuewu to conduct research. His purpose was to formally determine the location of the Liaodong branch of the United Savings Bank and the construction of other city branches.
Secondly, Li Xuewu hopes that the group will receive support and assistance from the United Savings Bank during the development of various industrial enterprises in Liaodong.
Li Xuewu was a leader of Hongxing Steel Group, and the United Savings Bank was a joint venture of the group. How could Chen Danian dare to act recklessly?
Upon entering the office, seeing Li Xuewu rise from behind his desk, I quickly took two steps forward and took the hand that Li Xuewu offered.
"Hello, Li Xuewu."
"Hello, Vice President Chen, thank you for your hard work."
Li Xuewu gently squeezed his hand, then let go, gesturing towards the sofa and saying, "Sit down and let's talk."
"Okay, thank you."
Despite being a guest from afar, Chen Danian still observed proper etiquette and waited for Li Xuewu to sit down before taking his own seat.
Li Xuewu looked at him and nodded, then asked, "Was the journey relatively smooth?"
"It's alright, just a day and a half on the train." Chen Danian smiled and said, "It was snowing in Beijing when I left."
Knowing that Li Xuewu was from the capital, he added, "This may be the last snowfall in the capital; the plum blossoms are all in bloom."
"The steel city is still covered in ice and snow."
Li Xuewu smiled slightly and said, "You can feel the obvious temperature difference, right? The only regret I had when I first came to the steel city was that I didn't bring more warm clothes."
"Hehehe, I've been here twice before," Chen Danian said with a smile. "This time I told myself to bring fewer clothes, but my wife was worried I'd get cold, so she insisted on giving me a leather jacket, which I'm wearing now."
He gestured to his half-open leather jacket, which was lined with fur and looked very warm.
This short leather jacket has only become popular in the last two years. It was developed by the Red Star Factory in cooperation with the Beijing Leather Factory as a tertiary industry project. They also collaborated with textile factories and prisons to set up a garment production line.
The main products produced are labor protection products, such as work clothes, security uniforms, sanitation worker uniforms, and clothing, gloves, shoes, etc., for all seasons.
Every factory must consider economic benefits; otherwise, if there is no profit on the books, it will fail the performance evaluation.
So the labor protection factory also started producing long leather coats, short leather coats, all-season leather shoes, and belts, among other products.
The quality is undoubtedly excellent, with supplies from Jicheng and Wucheng. The leather is indeed genuine, but the workmanship is just average, after all, it's a labor protection factory.
The garment factory that the prison collaborated with was no ordinary facility. Hongxing Jiangnan Leather Factory supplied the leather, and the garments produced by the prison's garment factory were novel in style and meticulous in workmanship, which were very popular among the staff.
This thing was considered a luxury item in any era, and most people couldn't afford it unless they had few children.
Leather jacket, suede one at that. If it weren't for the Red Star Factory having its own distribution channels, I wouldn't have enough coupons to buy one. This is a real bargain.
If you saw someone wearing a fur coat in Beijing during a winter in later times, you would definitely call them an idiot. But in this era, no matter how many layers you wear, you still feel cold, because it's really, really cold right now.
The same is true in the Northeast. Even though Gangcheng is not considered a northern city, Li Xuewu felt that it was at least 5 degrees colder than Beijing.
He certainly has suede jackets, but he doesn't wear them much; he usually wears wool coats unless he's on fieldwork.
Chen Danian showed Li Xuewu the leather jacket not for any other reason than to express his willingness to stay in Liaodong for a long time. It wasn't to flaunt his wealth or to talk nonsense.
Xie Lanzhi arranged for him to come to Liaodong so that he could stay there and guide and assist in the construction and expansion of the Liaodong branch.
"I don't smoke, you can smoke it yourself."
When Li Xuewu saw Chen Danian offering him a cigarette, he smiled and refused, saying, "I quit a few years ago and haven't picked it up again."
When Zhang Enyuan brought hot tea to Chen Danian, he saw that Chen Danian wanted to smoke, so he took out an ashtray from under the coffee table.
With such a grand display, how could Chen Danian possibly dare to draw a ticket? He didn't pay any attention to Li Xuewu's explanation and waved his hand with a smile.
Zhang Enyuan didn't care whether he wanted to smoke or not; he simply placed the ashtray in front of him and went about his own business.
Li Xuewu rested his hands on the sofa armrests, his right leg crossed over his left, and his body relaxed against the sofa.
He took the opportunity of small talk to carefully examine the other person a few times before getting to the point.
"Has the location for the Liaodong branch been chosen?"
"Yes, I'm here to look at a few sites." Chen Danian reported with a serious expression: "The Liaodong branch has selected a few sites and submitted them. President Xie and I both prefer to choose a site in Fengcheng, rather than Gangcheng."
As he said this, he carefully observed Li Xuewu's expression, and only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that there was nothing unusual about him.
Li Xuewu noticed his slight nervousness and slowly nodded, saying, "We should choose Fengcheng; Gangcheng is too small."
"Yes, that's what President Xie said too." Chen Danian's tone was noticeably lighter. He said, "It's just that the development focus of the Liaodong branch will still be on Gangcheng and Yingcheng, that's for sure."
"Yes, let's take a holistic approach and promote coordinated development."
Li Xuewu's answer was somewhat unexpected for Chen Danian. He had thought that Li Xuewu would insist that he place the main development direction of the United Savings Bank in southern Liaoning.
"I need your support and help," Li Xuewu said frankly, "especially in terms of financial management."
He put down his teacup, looked at Chen Danian and said, "The group is implementing organizational restructuring, and each first and second-level branch will be granted a certain degree of financial autonomy. You need to oversee this."
"Just like in Beijing, all financial transactions must go through the United Savings Bank's accounts, and businesses cannot see cash during operations."
“I understand—” Chen Danian suddenly understood the earnest words and repeated admonitions that Director Xie had given her before she came out.
Yes, yes, Li Xuewu is going to make great strides in Liaodong, and he will definitely need to use financial means to promote economic development. In this process, he will also implement a transitional phase of fiscal reform.
During this stage, the United Savings Bank needs to take responsibility and strictly control the flow of funds.
By keeping cash out of business operations, companies are preventing problems and errors from occurring in the process. This decision does not completely eliminate the possibility of problems, but it increases the cost and difficulty of violating regulations.
All salaries are paid through bank accounts, with all transactions tracked. Business-to-business transfers are conducted internally within the bank, eliminating any possibility of embezzlement.
Li Xuewu squinted slightly and tapped the sofa armrest with his finger, saying, "Secondly, to ensure production and promote the economy, you must be prepared to invest in and develop Liaodong in the long term."
"President Xie already emphasized this before I came out." Chen Danian hesitated for a moment before replying, "We can still guarantee the construction investment of United Energy Development Corporation and Yingcheng Port Area."
"It's not just these two projects."
Li Xuewu gently patted the armrest of the sofa and said, "As Director Li mentioned at this year's economic work conference, good steel should be used where it is most needed. Liaodong is the key area for the group's development over the next three years."
He pointed to the direction of the desk, signaling Zhang Enyuan to bring over the documents he had prepared and hand them to Chen Danian.
"The next three years will be crucial for the group, and they will be a major opportunity for the group's industrial development in Liaodong."
Li Xuewu gestured to Chen Danian to take a look at the document, which was an industrial construction plan released by the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group some time ago.
"For United Savings Bank, the next three years in Liaodong will be crucial, as we seek opportunities for development."
“Li Xuewu, this—” Chen Danian looked up and hesitated, “Isn’t it too risky to use such a large amount of funds to invest in industrial and trade construction, especially the construction of trade networks?”
“Risk and opportunity are twins.” Li Xuewu looked at him and said, “They are symbiotic. Without risk there is no opportunity, and without opportunity is fatal for United Savings Bank, which is in dire need of taking off.”
That's certainly true. Although the United Savings Bank seems to be developing very quickly, it has only been established for a short time and lacks a solid foundation.
A tall tree catches the wind and is easily toppled. With so many branches built and so much deposits absorbed, what's the point of keeping them? Let them grow moldy?
Li Xuewu didn't need to be too blunt with Chen Danian; as a bank manager, Chen Danian was more professional than him.
However, constrained by the mindset of this era, Chen Danian dared not be as bold as him, much less try to uncover the secrets of heaven.
Li Xuewu's meaning is actually quite easy to understand. The United Savings Bank wants to quickly invest its existing funds in the rapidly growing industrial enterprises of the group in Liaodong, and also take this opportunity to channel funds into the trade network construction that he is about to promote.
Over the next three years, he will focus on two main tasks: one is to comprehensively develop the group's industrial park in Liaodong and build an integrated industrial belt with Yingcheng to Fengcheng as the transportation line.
Another aspect is to build a trade network covering the entire Northeast and influencing Northeast Asia. Based on the Group's Sales Corporation and United Logistics Development Corporation, the products of Hongxing and United Trade will be promoted throughout the Northeast and then spread outwards to influence the trade market in Northeast Asia.
This ambition cannot be achieved without money. Even if Deputy Director Jing supports him unconditionally behind the scenes, he cannot openly make the budget for Liaodong Industry go out of control.
He needs to leverage the unprecedented vitality of the group's industry in Liaodong within just three years, making rapid progress in industrial construction and providing leverage in market supply and demand, which requires a huge amount of capital.
Money is not everything, but nothing is impossible without money.
Three years later, as the market gradually opened up, the group's industrial sector was not prepared to meet the market's test. One wrong step led to a series of setbacks.
Chen Danian was still apprehensive when he saw the plans about economic development and investment that Li Xuewu had his secretary hand to him.
From his perspective, Li Xuewu's investment and development plans were nothing short of gambling, and a reckless gamble with his eyes closed.
Given the uncertainty of whether future industries will continue to be needed for national development as they are today, and the uncertainty of future market changes, Li Xuewu decided to go all in.
This will certainly stimulate the group's industrial enterprises in Liaodong to quickly complete the technological and equipment innovation, completely change the current production pattern, and thoroughly bring production capacity onto the track of modern industrial enterprises.
Similarly, he could see that Li Xuewu's investment in market construction was a move to address the issue of product inventory being held up after the industrial production capacity exploded, thereby reducing the profit margins earned by middlemen.
But in reality, he completely failed to see that the domestic market had an absolute subservience to Red Star products, or even that they were unattainable.
Hongxing Factory produces a wide variety of products, including automobiles, electronics, and airplanes, but how many of these products are affordable for ordinary people?
To put it simply, even without discussing Liaodong industry, how much of the products produced by the Food Corporation are actually supplied to the inland market?
Canned goods are fine, and alcoholic beverages are also acceptable, but other food products, especially meat products, have received a very lukewarm response in the mainland market.
Many regions are still living far below the poverty line, so even if you provide them with industrial goods, they can't afford them.
Li Xuewu repeatedly emphasized the three-year timeframe, refusing to believe that the international market would open up to the domestic market and offer more trade opportunities after three years.
It was precisely because of this hesitation and worry that he did not immediately agree to Li Xuewu's request, and his attitude was ambiguous.
Li Xuewu was too radical. The international trade market is not isolated from the domestic market by a wall, but by a Great Wall that stands in the way of trade.
Putting everything else aside, the Ugly Emperor is eyeing us covetously, and the Northern Mao wants to perform surgery on us. Where are the good people in this world?
Chen Danian was certain that Li Xuewu's radicalism stemmed from youthful impetuosity. He was willing to spare no expense in terms of money and resources to return to the group and advance further in three years, even if it meant building a mountain of achievements.
But if they don't consider the future, won't their joint investment with the savings bank be doomed to fail?
When Li Xuewu leaves, who will he complain to?
Yes, he never imagined that three years later, the Ugly Emperor would suddenly bow down and even come to our house for a meeting.
Not only was Chen Danian completely taken aback, but even the Russian who was about to undergo surgery was caught off guard and utterly dumbfounded.
He couldn't understand it, so he regarded Li Xuewu's ambition to influence Northeast Asia in the next three years and conquer the Northeast Asian market after that as mere wishful thinking.
How can Li Xuewu persuade him?
No, Li Xuewu isn't good at persuading others; he's good at doing.
He didn't even care whether Chen Danian understood his ideas or whether he would follow his plans.
Let alone Chen Danian, how many members of the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group, even within the metallurgical plant, truly understood his working approach?
It's okay, they don't need to plan or understand. They just need to follow Li Xuewu's ideas.
Li Xuewu would direct them to do the work. When they had completed one-third of the task, they might have been puzzled. When they had completed two-thirds, they would still be confused. But when the dawn was about to break through the starry sky, they would find that they had followed Li Xuewu to the glorious other side.
That is the significance of leadership.
If Li Xuewu were to be forced to understand him and fully comprehend his thought process, wouldn't he be out of a job?
He came to Liaodong not to manage enterprises, but to work part-time at the metallurgical plant because the metallurgical plant is very important. In the future, the overall transformation of the metallurgical and steel rolling industries will be completed, and someone needs to be in charge.
His main task and goal is to mobilize the group's resources from a macro perspective to develop the Northeast region, develop industry, and boost the group's economic and trade capabilities.
Given Chen Danian's position, Li Xuewu would only explain things to him once. If Chen Danian understood, that was fine; if not, it didn't matter. But if Chen Danian dared to outwardly comply but inwardly defy him, then he should pack his bags and head back to the capital before he even had a chance to wear short sleeves.
Li Xuewu will have Xie Lanzhi find someone more sensible to do the work.
He is not a domineering person who cannot listen to opinions, nor is he a stubborn person who does not give others a chance to speak. It's just that in his position, he cannot listen to opinions on everything and listen to the voices of his subordinates on every issue. With so many things to do, how can he possibly do any work?
Sometimes, leaders need absolute authority and decision-making ability; their word is law, and they must do what they say.
He's determined to have his cake and eat it too in the Northeast Asian market. Even Jesus couldn't help him; Jesus has several teachers, after all.
-
"A resounding victory! A resounding victory—"
"Beep—what are you doing!"
Hearing Ma Baosen's booming voice approaching from afar, Zhou Linghua, who was about to leave, raised his hand and tapped Ma Baosen's forehead, amusedly reminding him, "Do you think this is the Water Curtain Cave? Which Monkey King are you looking for?"
"A great...great victory! I said a great victory, not the Great Sage!" Ma Baosen excitedly held up the thin newspaper in his hand, shaking it as he said, "I'm talking about good news!"
"What good news?" Wang Min also came out of the office and looked at him, saying, "Why did it take you so long to get the newspaper? Where have you been playing?"
"What do you mean, 'playing around'? I was distracted by reading the newspaper!" Ma Baosen said excitedly, his neck stiff. "I was stopped by this news."
“I think you’re just being lazy and can’t move—” Wang Min chuckled as he took a newspaper from his hand and said, “Where did this good news come from?”
"North? Which way could it be!"
Ma Baosen's voice trembled slightly as he spoke; he was genuinely excited, experiencing a sense of pride and honor.
Although everyone has been avoiding talking about what's happening in the north these days, how can we hide the fact that so many supplies have been taken away from the weapons factory, steel mill, and steel aircraft?
Actually, everyone is afraid and worried, but due to publicity and security requirements, we can't discuss it casually and deliberately ignore it. Everyone just goes about their lives as usual.
Some people were just too timid; those with yards secretly started planning to dig cellars, which were actually air-raid shelters.
They don't even consider that if mushrooms were planted on their heads, what kind of hole could protect them, unless it's a professionally dug cave?
However, it is absolutely impossible for ordinary people to build such professional protective measures, and they cannot even block out air pollution.
The principle of equality for all beings is not a joke.
Ma Baosen's loud chatter drew everyone's attention in the office, especially Zhou Linghua and Wang Min, who stood silently at the door after receiving the newspaper, as if time had stood still.
Zhang Jing came out of the office and, seeing this scene, asked, "What's going on? Why are you making such a fuss?"
"Director, a great victory!"
Zhou Linghua read it first, finishing the entire newspaper in his hand. However, he was so engrossed in his joy that he didn't notice Director Zhang Jing's question, which was answered by Wang Min.
Wang Min was beaming with excitement, no less so than Ma Baosen, and shouted it out in an almost screaming voice.
Zhang Jing raised an eyebrow slightly, walked to the door with the others in the office, and took the newspaper to read.
On March 15th, ...the enemy launched three fierce attacks against our defenses, employing various artillery pieces...deep into our territory. Our side...deployed helicopter formations to anticipate the enemy's moves...and engaged in fierce fighting for nearly six hours...completely thwarting the enemy's advance, effectively striking a blow to their arrogance, and capturing...
"What a great victory!"
Zhang Jing carefully read every word of the newspaper report about the battle three days ago. Even someone as calm and composed as him couldn't help but feel a little excited. Although he wasn't as excited as Ma Baosen and Wang Min, the tremor in his voice was undeniable.
A resounding victory, an absolute victory! A surprise attack that caught the enemy completely off guard. They had no idea what preparations they had made to deal with their incursions.
They thought they would be facing the same teams as before, but they never expected that there would be so much advanced equipment and so many highly skilled combat personnel involved, which completely caught them off guard and left them dumbfounded.
The capture of prisoners alone took up a third of the entire report, a long list of them, including both personnel and equipment, all of whom were taken prisoner.
Aside from firearms, they also captured tanks and artillery, truly demonstrating the terrifying combat power of the 3rd Regiment and thoroughly proving in this actual combat just how hardcore the weapons and equipment produced by the Red Star Steel Group are.
Li Xuewu cherished this practical experience so much that he even sent up the equipment for the "fixed-point long-distance expansion experiment of gas storage equipment" just to see how effective the artifact that even Art had gone crazy for was in actual combat.
He came to class a little late today. Huang Gan had stayed in Gangcheng for a few days and finally finished discussing things. He was preparing to return to Beijing.
Now that he is the host, it is natural for him to see them off, which can be considered as fulfilling his duty as a host.
These days, Li Xuewu didn't have time to spend with him. It was Zhao Laosi who went back to the steel city to prepare supplies and happened to take on this job.
The two were naturally familiar with each other; Zhao Laosi was the head of the club's security department, and they had known each other for more than three years.
Huang Gan has a very easygoing personality, and he spent a lot of time enjoying himself with Zhao Laosi in the steel city these past few days, which helped him relax and have some fun.
After seeing Grandpa Huang off, Li Xuewu arrived at the metallurgical plant for work. As soon as he entered the office building, he heard a conversation that was more lively than usual.
He didn't pay much attention, but Zhang Enyuan raised an eyebrow, as if he already knew what had happened.
When Li Xuewu reached the third floor and was about to walk to his office, he found a group of young people standing near the door, seemingly discussing something, their faces full of excitement.
"The leader is here—"
Someone reminded them of this, and everyone stopped talking, their faces turning red with suppressed emotion.
Li Xuewu glanced at the group and asked with a smile, "Is this a New Year's tea party? It looks so lively."
"Leader, it's a great victory." After talking for so long, Wang Min still spoke with some excitement in his voice after seeing Li Xuewu: "Our equipment has made a great contribution."
"Hehe, just for this?"
Li Xuewu took the newspaper from Zhang Jing, glanced at it, and nodded, saying, "We should indeed be happy. Isn't the purpose of our hard work, industrial development, and economic revitalization all for today?"
"Sir, you already knew?"
Wang Min couldn't detect any surprise on Li Xuewu's face and asked with some astonishment, "You found out on the 15th, the same day?"
"It's not that fast. Do you think I have eyes in the sky or ears in the wind?" Li Xuewu laughed as he handed the newspaper back to Zhang Jing, and then explained to Wang Min, "I only knew about this news less than five hours before you, which was in the early hours of this morning."
"That was before the announcement!"
Wang Min raised his eyebrows and looked at him expectantly, saying, "Leader, we are all so excited. You must be even more proud and excited than us. Please say a few words to us."
"Yes, let the leader say a few words!"
Upon hearing Wang Min's remark, the others joined in the commotion. They were all young people; otherwise, they wouldn't have gathered here.
They clapped enthusiastically, eager to hear Li Xuewu explain the deeper meaning behind the matter.
They are younger, more eager to win, and more passionate; they are the wealth and treasure of this era, and the source of the Hongxing Steel Group's fortune.
As Li Xuewu said, everyone is united in purpose, gathered in the steel city and fighting in Liaodong for a common goal. When they heard the news, no one was not excited and proud. This is the meaning of their hard work and industrial development.
"What should I say? What do you want to hear?" Li Xuewu smiled and looked at everyone, saying, "I don't have much to say, so I'll just talk about something practical."
He turned to Zhang Enyuan behind him and said, "Notify the cafeteria to have extra food at noon. We need meat dishes. One dish isn't enough; we need two."
"Great!"
Young people are so energetic. When they heard that there would be two meat dishes for lunch, they all clapped and cheered, their voices echoing throughout the office building.
The cheers also reached the hearts of many people.
We share the same ideals and beliefs.
(End of this chapter)