Kissed and Seduced By the Most Rough Man in the Village-Chapter 470: Conditions More Difficult Than Reaching the Heavens

The next day, Mr. Su had finished his breakfast by around 6:00 AM and braved the snowstorm to head to the Steel Mill. Not only did he arrive early, but so did everyone else who had worked in the factory the previous day. Together, they spent nearly two hours assembling the energy-saving stoves, and Mr. Su wasted no time in grabbing the finished products to head straight to the city’s leadership office.

Though it was only the sixth day of the new year, the leadership office was already buzzing with activity, as officials often returned to work a few days before the official start. The usual festive atmosphere was absent, replaced by a sense of urgency and business as usual. Mr. Su explained his purpose to the secretary, who then led him to a waiting room where he joined a group of over ten individuals, all eager and tense, waiting to be seen.

The room was filled with the rustling of papers, and the occasional nervous chatter was interrupted by long periods of silence. No one seemed in the mood for casual conversation, all too focused on their respective matters. Mr. Su waited from morning until almost 3:00 PM before the secretary finally came back to guide him to the leader’s office.

Upon seeing Mr. Su, the leader, Mu Haifeng, greeted him with a smile full of expectation. "Old Su, is this new steel alloy ready for production?"

"Not yet," Mr. Su answered, a little sheepish.

The leader’s smile faltered for a moment but quickly returned. "Then what brings you here today? What’s so urgent?"

Mr. Su hastily took out one of the energy-saving stoves and presented it to the leader. "This is a new type of stove we’ve developed. We’ve tested it, and it uses a third less coal than the traditional stoves in the same sized rooms over the same amount of time. We also tested it yesterday, and in the same size and temperature conditions, the room heated up six degrees more than a regular stove."

"Really?" Mu Haifeng asked, surprised.

Mr. Su nodded earnestly. "We would never lie about something like this."

"Well, let’s take it to some offices and test it out," Mu Haifeng said, his demeanor now more serious.

He stood up, instructed his secretary, and within minutes, they were led to two empty offices. "Wait here, I’ll be right back after seeing the next person," Mu Haifeng said before leaving.

Mr. Su stood by the doors of the offices, waiting quietly. After about an hour and a half, Mu Haifeng returned, now accompanied by two other leaders. "Let’s go check the results," he said to Mr. Su.

They walked into the first office, where a traditional coal stove was running. The thermometer showed a temperature of three degrees Celsius. In the second office, with the energy-saving stove, the thermometer read twelve degrees. The temperature difference stunned the leaders, and their eyes widened in disbelief.

Mu Haifeng, holding the thermometer, grinned and joked, "You said it would increase by six degrees, but it’s a full nine degrees!"

Mr. Su smiled slightly, "We let it burn for half an hour longer today. It could also be that the results weren’t as perfect when I tested it myself yesterday; the factory’s technicians are much more experienced."

The leaders exchanged remarks and checked the coal residues, confirming Mr. Su’s claims. Everyone was visibly excited.

"Great! This energy-saving stove is fantastic! We should start production immediately and distribute it nationwide so that the public can use it by next year!" one of the leaders exclaimed, visibly eager.

Mu Haifeng nodded in agreement. "I’ll call the leaders at Machinery Factory to discuss this right now."

Mr. Su quickly added, "Our employees think that there isn’t much technical difficulty in this. Why not have our factory produce it? We could open a workshop and hire some of the Steel Mill employees’ families to teach them and have them produce it going forward."

As soon as Mr. Su finished speaking, the mood in the room shifted, and the leaders’ expressions turned serious.

"This is clearly something for Machinery Factory. If Steel Mill opens a production line for it, things will get chaotic," one of them stated flatly.

"However, we did develop this stove ourselves. During the meeting before the New Year, you asked for new products to boost production and income. We thought we could open a small workshop, train some employees’ families, and have them produce it," Mr. Su explained, though he knew it wasn’t quite following the official regulations.

The city leaders, after considering the situation for a while, came to a conclusion. "It’s not feasible for Steel Mill to produce this stove. However, Machinery Factory is already overloaded, and if we want them to take on this product, we’ll have to open a new workshop, which will require about five to six hundred employees. We can allocate two-fifths of those positions to Steel Mill employees’ families, but the remaining three-fifths must be filled by people from the city at large."

The words were heavy, and the implication was clear: Mr. Su was being given a stern reminder of his responsibility to the greater good. "We, as Chinese, can’t just think about our own people. We must also take responsibility for society and the country," Mu Haifeng added, his tone firm.

Mr. Su felt the weight of the words and understood that he couldn’t protest. With the metaphorical weight of the world on his shoulders, he nodded in resignation.

"The person who helped develop this stove will, of course, have a job," Mu Haifeng continued. "We won’t forget their contribution. We’ll pay them a salary as a level-three employee, at forty-five yuan a month."

Mr. Su’s face lit up for a moment, but then Mu Haifeng added, "But there are additional conditions from above that need to be met, otherwise, it won’t be feasible with Machinery Factory."

"What conditions?" Mr. Su asked, his heart sinking.

"I’ll give you one month. If you can come up with two more new products or open two more workshops for energy-saving stoves, or if you can produce the new steel alloy by the national congress, I’ll extend the production team to at least one thousand people. Then, Steel Mill employees’ families will be able to secure four hundred positions."

Mu Haifeng spoke with an air of nonchalance, but to Mr. Su, the conditions seemed nearly impossible. It felt like climbing the steepest mountain, almost as if the task were impossible to achieve.

Mr. Su felt his chest tighten. These were conditions that he knew would be incredibly difficult to meet, especially in such a short period of time. But he also understood that getting the support of Machinery Factory’s leadership and employees would not be easy either.

After a long pause, Mr. Su finally spoke, "I understand. I’ll go back and discuss it with the employees at the factory."

"Good, we’ll be waiting for your positive news," Mu Haifeng said with a friendly pat on Mr. Su’s shoulder.

Though the words were encouraging, Mr. Su left the office with a heavy heart, his face grim as he walked out into the cold. The conditions were as daunting as reaching the heavens themselves.