Chapter 56: The Sample Amazes the Audience, Li Huaide Devises Another Treacherous Plot

The reaction machinery hummed lowly, and the instrument needle steadied firmly in the green zone.

He Yuzhu stared at the exit valve, calculating the time.

"Take the sample," he ordered.

The veteran worker operated the equipment immediately. Golden, viscous liquid flowed steadily into the sampling bottle, carrying a warm, clean industrial scent.

"Send it for testing!"

The laboratory was right next door, and the sample delivery was swift.

The workshop fell temporarily quiet, leaving only the hum of running machinery.

Everyone held their breath in anticipation. Ivanov rubbed his large hands, pacing back and forth in front of the laboratory door.

Seconds ticked by.

Suddenly, the laboratory door was flung open violently!

The elderly lab technician waved a piece of paper, his face flushed red. "The results are out! The data is out! Everything meets the standard! No! It exceeds the standard! The anti-wear index is fifteen percent higher than required! High-temperature stability... perfect!"

"Ura!" Ivanov was the first to roar. He lunged forward, snatched the report, and burst into a rapid-fire string of Russian.

The workshop remained silent for a single second, and then erupted into deafening cheers!

The workers tossed down their gloves, pounding each other on the shoulders, their faces covered in sweat and smiles.

A barely perceptible look of relief crossed He Yuzhu's face as well.

He took the report, glanced quickly over the key data, and nodded. "Get the bottling workshop ready. Seal and label the first batch immediately."

With the order given, the end of the production line sprang into life.

Military-green iron drums were delivered via conveyor belt, filled automatically by machine, sealed, and stamped with labels reading: "Red Star Rolling Mill," "Special Supply," and "High-Temperature Lubricating Grease."

Everything proceeded with tense efficiency.

Soon, the first batch of twenty sealed products was neatly stacked in the open space at the workshop entrance.

The military representative and Director Yang came over personally to inspect them.

The military representative opened a drum, dipped his fingers in to rub a bit of the grease, and brought it close to smell it. A look of satisfaction spread across his face as he heavily patted He Yuzhu's shoulder. "Good! Comrade He Yuzhu, on behalf of the soldiers on the front lines, I thank you!"

Director Yang was also beaming from ear to ear.

At that moment, a communications worker from the factory office ran over, panting heavily, "Director Yang! Engineer He! The fleet of Red Flag sedans from the municipal government has arrived! They say they are here to pick up the first batch of cargo and transport it directly to the railway station for shipment!"

Everyone looked up and indeed saw several Liberation trucks draped in camouflage netting, led by a black Red Flag sedan, driving directly into the open ground outside the workshop entrance.

As the convoy came to a steady halt, several people stepped out of the Red Flag sedan.

Besides the cadre from the Municipal Industrial Bureau, there was a middle-aged man wearing a cadre's tunic suit, carrying a leather briefcase and wearing a stern expression.

Director Yang and He Yuzhu stepped forward to greet them.

The Municipal Industrial Bureau cadre smiled as he introduced them, "Director Yang, Engineer He, this is Section Chief Liu from the Municipal Materials Coordination Office. This military supplies dispatch requires Section Chief Liu's final signature and confirmation before loading and shipping."

Section Chief Liu put on airs, giving a slight nod. His gaze swept over the row of oil drums as he spoke in a tone dripping with habitual bureaucracy, "Hmm, not slow at all. However, military supplies are no trivial matter; the procedures and processes cannot be sloppy in the least."

"Are the certificate of conformity, quality inspection report, production batch records, and raw material source proofs all prepared? I must check them one by one. I can only sign off once everything is confirmed without error."

A young staff officer trailing behind him immediately whipped out a file folder and a fountain pen, ready to take notes.

Director Yang's brows furrowed in a way that was almost imperceptible.

Of course these documents existed, but they were usually submitted later or sent along with the transport vehicle. It was rare for someone to demand on-the-spot verification right at the site, especially under such urgent military orders.

He Yuzhu's expression remained unchanged as he gestured to a nearby technician.

The technician immediately trotted back to the office, returning shortly with a stack of materials.

Section Chief Liu took them, adjusted his glasses, and began to slowly leaf through them page by page in a pretentious manner, his finger pointing and tracing along the paper surface.

"This raw material batch number... is the record clear?"

"The quality inspector's signature... looks a bit sloppy."

"The seal on the certificate of conformity... hmm, stamped straight enough, I suppose."

He leisurely picked faults. Clearly, there was nothing wrong, yet he deliberately dragged out the time.

The military representative watched from the side, his expression gradually darkening, while Director Yang's smile grew somewhat stiff.

Anyone could see that Section Chief Liu was intentionally making things difficult.

Watching Section Chief Liu's posturing, He Yuzhu's gaze turned slightly cold.

He stepped forward, bypassing Section Chief Liu entirely, and spoke calmly to the Municipal Industrial Bureau cadre, "Leader, the front lines are urgently waiting for these supplies. All procedures are complete and compliant, and we are ready to accept post-audit reviews from any department at any time."

"If Section Chief Liu needs more time to study them, could we let the transport fleet begin loading first? The transport distance is long, and we cannot afford to miss the departure schedule."

The Industrial Bureau cadre also felt Section Chief Liu was going too far and opened his mouth to speak.

Yet Section Chief Liu reacted as if his tail had been stepped on. He slammed his file folder shut, his voice rising sharply, "Comrade He Yuzhu! What kind of attitude is that? Procedure is procedure! Without complete paperwork, quality cannot be guaranteed! This is about being responsible to the soldiers on the front lines! Can you shoulder that responsibility?!"

It was a heavy accusation to throw around.

The atmosphere instantly froze.

At that exact moment, another voice chimed in, carrying a hint of hypocritical surprise, "Oh? Isn't this Section Chief Liu? How did we run into each other here? What a coincidence!"

Everyone looked back to see Li Huaide strolling over out of nowhere, holding a kraft paper file envelope and wearing a full smile.

Upon seeing Li Huaide, a fleeting flash of mutual acknowledgment crossed the depths of Section Chief Liu's eyes, though his face instantly switched to a smile. "Ah, Director Li! What a coincidence indeed! I'm here to verify the paperwork for this batch of urgent military supplies. You know how strict the rules are these days—we can't afford to be careless."

Li Huaide nodded repeatedly with a look of deep empathy. "Quite right! Quite right! Section Chief Liu's rigorous responsibility makes him a role model for us all!" Changing the subject as if suddenly remembering something, he patted the file envelope in his hand and sighed, "Ah, speaking of rules, that reminds me. While sorting through old union documents just now, I seemed to see a supplementary regulation from a few years ago regarding the procurement process for special chemical raw materials... It was from quite a while ago, and I don't know if it's been repealed or not... but it seemed to have special requirements for paperwork under certain exceptional circumstances..."

As he spoke, he slowly unsealed the file envelope, making a great show of pulling something out.

Section Chief Liu immediately chimed in, his tone growing even more severe, "Oh? Such a regulation exists? Then we must inspect things even more strictly! There must be no gray areas whatsoever! Director Li, hurry up and let's take a look!"

The two of them sang in harmony with seamless coordination, making it abundantly clear that their goal was to stall and obstruct!

The military representative's expression was already exceptionally grim, and Director Yang was so angry his hands trembled slightly.

Watching Li Huaide's hypocritical visage and Section Chief Liu's feigned sternness, He Yuzhu spoke up abruptly,

"Section Chief Liu, the supplementary regulation in Director Li's hand was issued in March 1962 with a one-year trial period, and was officially repealed in April 1963."

"The red-headed document announcing its repeal is archived in Cabinet 4, Volume 17 of the factory office archives, and Cabinet 3, Volume 9 of the Municipal Industrial Bureau archives."

"Do you need me to send someone to retrieve it right now? Or shall we make a direct phone call to the Municipal Industrial Bureau archives to verify?"

Li Huaide's hand pulling at the document froze instantly in mid-air, and Section Chief Liu stopped adjusting his glasses, his mouth hanging open in sheer astonishment.

The entire venue fell dead silent, every pair of eyes turning toward He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu looked calmly at Section Chief Liu. "Section Chief Liu, if you still have doubts about the current procedures, we can contact Minister Wang of the Military Commission's Logistics Department immediately. The urgent dispatch order for this mission was signed by him. Do you need me to provide his direct hotline?"

The color drained instantly from Section Chief Liu's face, and cold sweat beaded down his temples.
Contact the Minister of Military Logistics? They wouldn't dare if you gave them ten guts! He no longer dared to play games, scrambling for his fountain pen as his voice cracked into a higher register. "N-No doubts! The paperwork is complete! Fully compliant! I'll sign! I'll sign right now!"

He grabbed the file folder from the young staff officer and scrawled his name across the clearance slip.

Once finished, he addressed the Industrial Bureau cadre and the military representative, stammering, "No problems here! You can load the trucks!" With that, he scurried back into the Red Flag sedan.

Li Huaide sheepishly stuffed the unpulled document back into its envelope and turned tail to leave as well.

"Load the trucks!" The military representative waved his hand, his voice booming like a bell.

The workers, who had been bottling up their frustration, swung into immediate action, swiftly hauling the drums of grease onto the trucks and securing them tightly.

The Red Flag sedan led the way off.

The engine roars of the fully laden military-green trucks echoed as they drove out of the rolling mill gates one after another, speeding rapidly toward the railway station.

He Yuzhu stood quietly in place, watching the dust kicked up by the departing convoy, his gaze serene.