Chapter 77 What a coincidence
Then I went to the nearby Qianmen Street Office, spent an hour finishing this week's work, and then stayed with Chen Xueru for another hour.

When he arrived at the steel mill, it was almost time for lunch, just in time.

"Stupid column!"

"I'm coming."

Sha Zhu joined the factory in April last year. This is his second year as an apprentice and his salary will be increased soon. Plus, he rides a tricycle on Sundays, so his life is pretty good.

"Hurry up, the treat we said the other day, find a plate to put the dishes out, and add two servings of white flour, I have a target."

The factory has now imposed purchase limits on white flour to prevent workers from taking advantage of the situation by buying it in bulk.

"okay!"

Sha Zhu was thinking about the heirloom, and since he had promised it last time, he didn't hesitate and quickly prepared the food and handed it over.

As soon as Li Zhiguo took over, he saw someone coming in from the cafeteria door.

"Da Mao, what a coincidence!"

"Li Zhiguo, why are you here?"

Xu Damao had a gloomy face. Yesterday he took his wife out to hide for a whole day and came back very late. As a result, they met at the factory at noon today!
"What's wrong? You people in the publicity department don't know about my situation yet. I have worked hard for the steel mill and spent my youth there. I am also a part of the factory. I am on standby."

Li Zhiguo wondered if Damao was up to no good, otherwise why would he be away from the hospital for several Sundays in a row?

"I said the wrong thing."

Xu Damao thought that if he couldn't afford to offend him, he could just hide. He quickly handed the lunch box into the window, got the food and wanted to run away.

"Da Mao, wait a minute, I want to discuss something with you."

Li Zhiguo stopped the man and said, "Where can you run to? You have to go back to the yard at night."

"Ugh!"

Xu Damao sighed and could only turn his head away, silently telling himself to stay awake.

The two arrived early and found a table to sit down. Li Zhiguo raised his hand and saw Xu Damao shrinking back with his lunch box.

"Da Mao, you are so stingy. Even the stupid Zhu knows to treat me to a meal, but you are still hiding it. I will let your wife treat us another day."

Li Zhiguo joked, I always feel that Xu Damao seems to be weaker and easier to bully than before?

"Silly Zhu invites you?"

Xu Damao was a little confused, but he also thought it was normal. How could Sha Zhu have any brains? He was just stupid.

After calming down, he thought of his wife and had to push the lunch box forward. "Take whatever you want to eat. The dishes are all the same."

"Just kidding, I can still take advantage of my brother."

Li Zhiguo shook his head. He didn’t dare to use Xu Damao’s lunch box.

He then said, "Da Mao, do you dare to show a short film in the courtyard?"

"What? Showing movies in the theater? Li Zhiguo, what is your request?"

Xu Damao is so annoyed. Is he planning to do something big again? Can't he just quiet down?

"Da Mao, it's like this, my brother-in-law and father-in-law have gone to work in the city and have not been to our courtyard yet.

I want to arrange for you to have dinner at my house this Saturday evening, and then you can show us a short movie to make the whole courtyard festive. Is there anything wrong with that? "

Li Zhiguo also had a sudden idea. He missed the movie showing in the factory before and did not come.

Xu Damao was stunned for a moment before he said, "I can show the movie, but I can't lend this equipment out. If someone from the department goes to the countryside, they have to register. If I bring it to the hospital, it will be considered private use, which is not appropriate."

"Da Mao, those who achieve great things do not care about trivial matters. Do you know the gap between you and me? You lack a bit of courage. If the factory does not allow it, can't you rent it from the cinema?
Your father, Lao Xu, my brother Xu is the backbone of the cinema. What's wrong with him using some equipment?

You take care of this matter, and I will collect the movie tickets, five cents each. There are eighty people in our courtyard, excluding the children. That's four dollars, enough for your escape fee.

It's settled. The movie will be shown on Saturday evening at 7:30, so that it won't interfere with dinner or everyone's rest. I'll go back this afternoon and talk to Uncle San to finalize this."

Li Zhiguo didn't give people a chance to refuse. He brought his father-in-law into the yard, so there had to be some grand scene!

"No, you've decided it now!"

Xu Damao was holding the lunch box, confused. He hadn't figured out whether he could do it or not.

"Otherwise, this is a good thing! You show the movie and I'll take care of it, and people in the hospital will also talk about your kindness.

The location is in the middle courtyard, which is more spacious. At night, we can close the front gate and not worry about people from the outer courtyards."

Li Zhiguo didn't say much, he ate the vegetables with big mouthfuls, and also took a few bites of white flour, two taels each, to help him resist hunger.

"This this……"

Xu Damao still wanted to resist, but this matter was either impossible to do or very troublesome.

"Da Mao, you should think about this carefully. I'm done eating. We can talk about this in detail later."

Li Zhiguo ate a few bites of the vegetables, took a bowl of noodles and left. He had eaten too much in the morning and was not hungry.

He quickly went to workshop 3, where Liu Haizhong worked as a fitter.

Originally, Liu Haizhong was a forger when he first joined the factory and even reached the first level. However, because it was too hard, he was transferred to the fitter workshop. Since then, he has been lagging behind Yi Zhonghai.

Plus, his talent was indeed lacking, and his work was a bit rough. In the original drama, he didn't even make it to level 8 until his retirement.

The steel rolling mill is a key factory in the capital, so it is naturally one level higher than those in other places, including the factory leaders.

Upgrading is relatively easier and the assessment is not that strict.

"Second uncle."

"Hey, Li Zhiguo, you're here today."

When Liu Haizhong saw the people coming, he immediately took the tools in his hand and handed them to the apprentice next to him, and said, "Lan Zhigang, you go ahead and do your work. I'll be right back."

"Okay master!"

Lan Zhigang glanced at Li Zhiguo, who was a celebrity in the factory.

"Second Uncle, I have an idea. I plan to let Xu Damao show a movie in our hospital this Saturday...

You are the manager of the backyard, so you must take the lead in this matter. Let the courtyard see your ability, and it will be a good thing if it is reported to the factory.

Damao is still hesitating. He is still in the cafeteria. Why don’t you go and do some ideological work on him? This is for the sake of our backyard!"

Li Zhiguo felt that it was not safe and needed someone to supervise, and Liu Haizhong was the best choice.

"Oh, I think this is a good idea. I'll go find Damao right away."

Liu Haizhong was moved. This was no small matter. He could invite a few apprentices to the courtyard to watch the fun and see his leadership ability.

Liu Haizhong ran to the cafeteria and saw Xu Damao sitting there in a daze.

"Da Mao, why are you still hesitating? Li Zhiguo's idea is very good. You can show a movie in our theater on Saturday night. Second Uncle supports you."

"No, Second Master, Li Zhiguo just came to see you?"

Xu Damao had been tricked many times and had gradually developed the ability to think. He guessed it immediately, but it seemed he could not resist.

"He was the one who came to me. He had good intentions. Damao, the movie screening is settled. Just tell others that I asked you to do it."

Liu Haizhong patted Xu Damao's shoulder. There was some weight in his hand. After all, he was a blacksmith and had some brute strength.

Xu Damao's neck shrank and the expression on his face gradually became numb.

"Dongxu, I'm busy."

Li Zhiguo went to the second workshop. There were still five minutes before dinner, so there was still time to chat.

The workers pointed and talked, saying that it was not surprising that Li Zhiguo came. Others were still at their posts and had only come once on the 3rd.

Just find Jia Dongxu directly, which is intriguing.

"Li Zhiguo, why are you looking for me?"

Jia Dongxu was still drilling screw holes. He had become very skilled and could even talk while moving his hands non-stop.

"Good news! Let's go outside and talk."

Li Zhiguo said, and called out again, "Uncle, after lunch, I have something to talk to you about. I have an idea and I need your help."

"Okay! All the uncles are in the workshop at noon."

Yi Zhonghai felt proud. Look, Li Zhiguo was still very confident in his skills.

Jia Dongxu wanted to resist, but was pulled away and couldn't struggle anymore.

"Huai Ru, give me the lunch box. Don't go to the cafeteria today. I'll get you some food."

"Uh-huh!"

Although Qin Huairu didn't know why her man was looking for Jia Dongxu, she didn't ask much and hurriedly handed over the lunch box.

All the workers in the workshop just watched Li Zhiguo drag the man away. Not only the team leader, even the workshop director turned a blind eye. The man was also a worker from the second workshop. The meat was rotten in the pot.

"Li Zhiguo, what on earth is going on with you?"

Jia Dongxu looked unhappy, so why couldn't we talk to him nicely and give him some face?

"Good news!" Li Zhiguo said, "You got married, but you haven't had a wedding banquet yet. How can you be proud of it if this gets out?

You are my brother, I thought about it and decided that I couldn’t keep cheating you, so I thought of a way to make it up to you.”

"Make up for it? Bihua is already showing her pregnancy, how can we still hold a wedding banquet? How can we make up for it?"

Jia Dongxu was very angry when talking about this. It's all your fault, you bad boy. You still have the nerve to mention your brother.

"Why are you in such a hurry? Just listen to what I have to say.

I plan to have Xu Damao show a movie in our courtyard this Saturday. I will take care of it. In the name of your Jia family, you will be able to gain back your reputation then."

Li Zhiguo is completely considerate of others. As a brother, there is nothing to say when he has done this.

"Are you serious? How much do I have to pay?"

Jia Dongxu was tempted, but still on guard. He thought this was a villain and he might fall into his trap.

“Everyone in the hospital, except the children who couldn’t go to school, gave five cents each, the same as the ticket price at the cinema.

This money is for Xu Damao's service fee. He needs to rent projection equipment. There are three people in your family, so you can at least come up with 15 cents.

In addition, you can prepare some tea leaves, boil a few more pots of water, and be responsible for serving tea and water to people together with your mother. This is not shameful.

Think about it, you've taken good care of everyone this time, and you've invited people to watch a movie, and when your child is born, you can hold a full-month banquet, so won't you have earned everything?"

Li Zhiguo said, and then added, "It's almost time for dinner. If you think it's okay, I'll talk to Xu Damao about it. If not, forget it. Just treat it as a waste of my kindness."

"Okay, I'll only give 1.5 cents, and I'll pay for the tea. I won't give you anything more than that."

Jia Dongxu gritted his teeth and decided that this was not a loss.

"Don't worry, this time it's Uncle Three who will collect the money and keep the account. Well, I'm going to get food, we'll talk later."

Li Zhiguo rushed to the cafeteria. Fortunately, there were only workers at the window. He wanted to queue up, but the worker in front of him gave up his seat and let him go first.

"Oh, thanks guys! Silly Zhu, come and get the food. It's for your sister Qin. I'll pay for it."

"coming!"

Sha Zhu hurried over and filled a lunch box with it. After all, it was public property and no one was taking advantage of anyone.

Li Zhiguo returned to the workshop with his lunch box. He felt that showing movies had great potential and there was no rush as he had a week to prepare.

When they arrived at the workshop door, the bell rang and they saw the workers rushing out. Jia Dongxu was also mixed in the crowd with his lunch box, and he was really enthusiastic about eating.

"Huai Ru, the meal is here, and I brought you something good."

As Li Zhiguo spoke, he took out an oil-paper bag from his jacket pocket. When he opened it, there was three taels of chopped beef inside as a snack for his wife.

"Ah! Brother, where did you get the beef?"

Qin Huairu knew it from when she was at a restaurant before. She had never seen what beef looked like before in the village.

"Don't worry about it, just eat! I've already eaten."

Li Zhiguo sat next to his wife and watched her eat. This was also a good thing. He couldn't always treat others badly, as she was pregnant.

"Well! I can't finish it by myself. When Aunt Chen and Sister Hua come, I'll share some with them."

Qin Huairu is not a generous person, but Sister Hua and the others are really nice to her.

"You eat first. Let's make an appointment. I'll treat Sister Hua and the others to a meal. We can't be stingy."

Li Zhiguo is not short of money, what he lacks is time and he doesn't want to be too busy.

"No need! Sister Hua and the others have things to do after work."

Qin Huairu was not very happy about it, as it would cost a lot of money to invite so many people.

"Okay, I'll listen to you. It's not a festival, so it's not a good idea to treat us.

You eat yours, I have a pack of beef here, which I originally meant to save for Jingru, but she can’t finish it all.”

Li Zhiguo then took out another bag of cooked beef as a reward. It was the Jiuxiang yellow beef from the vegetable market, which tasted very good.

"Ok!"

Qin Huairu did not refuse this time. After eating two slices of beef, she did not forget to feed the man one piece, her eyes full of smiles.

"Oh my, you two are really an eyesore!"

Sister Hua came with a lunch box, followed by several female workers.

Before Li Zhiguo could speak, Qin Huairu said, "Sister Hua, my husband brought some beef. This is for you."

"He brought beef?"

Sister Hua didn’t quite believe it, thinking that he wasn’t the kind of person who would be good to his wife, but when she went up to take a look, it turned out to be true.

"Sisters, Li Zhiguo is treating us, Chi!"

Sister Hua happily took a bag of beef and went to the long table in the front to eat. Every workshop had some discarded old tables, which were just right for workers to eat on. They could also place lunch boxes, tea cups, etc. on them, which was convenient.

Li Zhiguo is waiting for Yi Zhonghai at the moment, so he is not in a hurry.

"Huai Ru, bring our father, Third Uncle, and Guangming to the courtyard for dinner this Saturday. I have arranged for Xu Damao to show a movie in the courtyard on Saturday night."

He said this, and it was basically settled. Xu Damao would soon find that he could not escape because the pressure came from all sides.
Not long after, Yi Zhonghai also arrived at the workshop with a lunch box. He ate the same food as his fellow workers. Only cadres could have their own meals, so they had to have some privileges.

"Li Zhiguo, what do you want me to do for you?"

Yi Zhonghai is very positive. Although he thinks Li Zhiguo's moral character is not up to standard, he still advises people to be good, which is a good starting point.

"Lin Jianshe, Wang Jianjun, Xu Weijun, Xu Weiyang, Zhao Weiguo, Zhao Fengnian, Zhou Weidong, Li Jianguo...all of you come over, there is good news."

Li Zhiguo called all the workshop workers who had come to his house for a drink last time, but Tang Rude was not there. Did he slip away?
"coming!"

Everyone was a little reluctant, fearing that you would say good things, but they couldn't avoid it.

At this time, Sister Hua's group of people also came over with their lunch boxes to watch the fun. As for the package of beef, it had already been divided. Don't underestimate it. It's only three taels of cooked beef. Everyone can get one or two slices.

"Li Zhiguo, what invention are you planning to make?"

Sister Hua said frankly that they treated Qin Huairu as a sister and did not treat Li Zhiguo as an outsider.

"It really does."

Li Zhiguo touched the stubble on his chin and said, "Last time it was a pencil sharpener, this time I want to make two types of razors."

This is not a secret. Whether it is said or not, it is collective in the end. How could he keep this invention until many years later, when the day lily is cold and there is no shortage of these three or two jujubes?

"Razor? What do you mean?"

Yi Zhonghai became interested and did not underestimate it. Just like the pencil sharpener from last time, who would have thought of it if Li Zhiguo had not made it?
At this time, Jia Dongxu also came over with a lunch box. Thinking that Li Zhiguo wanted to help him this time, he would not bother with him for the time being, but he would never forget the hatred of having his wife taken away.

"Simple!"

Li Zhiguo took out a pen and paper, and relying on his skills as a fashion designer and handicraftsman, he quickly started drawing on the paper.

There are two types of razors. One is a classic model that is still in use sixty years later. It is composed of two pieces of metal holding a blade and a screw underneath to fix it for shaving.

The advantage is that it is cheap and you only need to replace the blade. The disadvantage is that it is too sharp and easily scratched, causing some bleeding.

But for men, it doesn’t matter if we don’t shed tears or bleed!

There is also an evolved model, which has an independent cutter head with narrow blades fixed inside, ranging from one to four. The cutter head is expensive, and the screw can be used repeatedly.

For people with thick beards, manual razors are always the best.

"Swipe!"

He drew more than two dozen design drawings in a few minutes, showing them from various angles.

After a little thought, he marked the dimensions on it, accurate to millimeters.

"Uncle, you take the lead in making the parts, and I will check whether they are qualified. Our second workshop will also receive a certificate of honor jointly."

Li Zhiguo also had a sudden idea. Why did he have to do it himself? This is a fitter's workshop. There are a lot of toolmakers who can use them directly.

"it is good!"

Yi Zhonghai looked at the drawings drawn by others throughout the whole process. This is really good. The first model is not complicated, it can even be said to be simple, but it is practical and low-cost at first glance.

But the curvature of the handle of the second model is something that ordinary people cannot imagine. It has a delicate structure and is full of beauty.

"No, what's the use of this thing? Isn't it convenient to use a ready-made razor?"

Jia Dongxu was a little confused. He shaved himself at home, so there was nothing wrong with that.

"Dongxu, don't talk nonsense."

Yi Zhonghai quickly stopped his apprentice, telling him not to take ignorance as a joke.

Yi Zhonghai immediately got busy. He had the highest rank in the second workshop and knew who had the best skills. Jia Dongxu was excluded first because he couldn't do anything well.

Not long after, the dark-faced workshop director rushed over after hearing the news. After learning the details of the situation, he immediately offered his full support, even at the cost of stopping his original work.

We are all working for the public, and it makes no difference whether we start a day earlier or later. Honor is still the most important thing.

(End of this chapter)