Fusion System: Rebirth in a Courtyard - Bird Fighting Chronicles

Chapter 93 Wise words awaken the lost traveler, clever schemes pave the way for advancement

The Lantern Festival, celebrated with glutinous rice balls, had just passed, and the festive atmosphere at the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill hadn't quite dissipated when a restless energy began to fill the forging workshop. Lin Chen was squatting beside the machine tools in the precision forging group, using a self-made micrometer to measure the accuracy of newly forged gears, when suddenly a series of heavy footsteps sounded behind him, accompanied by Sha Zhu's signature loud voice: "Lin Chen! You'd better help me think of a way!"

Lin Chen straightened up, wiping the oil off his hands. He saw Sha Zhu wearing an oil-stained cafeteria uniform, his hair disheveled, and his eyes bloodshot. He clutched a crumpled enamel mug, several pieces of enamel chipped off the rim, clearly indicating he had just rushed over from the cafeteria. "Don't panic," Lin Chen said, pulling him to the rest area in the corner of the workshop and refilling the mug with hot water. "Tell me slowly, what happened?"

Sha Zhu gulped down a mouthful of hot water, his chest heaving as he cursed, "That old bastard Yi Zhonghai is simply outrageous! Yesterday, the canteen was short two pounds of pork, and he insisted to the workshop foreman that I stole it and took it home, calling me a 'habitual offender,' all because I didn't agree to help him repair his old house last time!" He slammed his enamel mug on the table, the bottom hitting the surface with a dull thud. "I've worked in this canteen for eight years; my cooking skills are among the best in the factory, if not the best. Why should I suffer this injustice? I don't want to do this lousy job for another day!"

Lin Chen paused, his hand holding the water glass still. He had heard about this before. Yesterday afternoon, when the workshop director, Zhou Jianguo, talked to him about the development of the new mold, he mentioned the "pork theft case" in the canteen, saying that Yi Zhonghai had taken the initiative to "expose" Sha Zhu and even produced so-called "evidence"—Sha Zhu had given Qin Huairu a bowl of braised pork a few days ago. "Have you completely fallen out with Yi Zhonghai?" Lin Chen asked.

"Fall into a rift? It should have fallen out a long time ago!" Sha Zhu slapped his thigh, his face full of regret. "I used to treat him like my own father, I believed everything he said, and I sent lunchboxes from the canteen to the Jia family every day, breaking my sister Yushui's heart. And what did I get in return? He just used me as a tool to support himself in his old age! Last time he asked me to marry Qin Huairu, I didn't agree, and he's been making things difficult for me ever since!" He became more and more agitated as he spoke, his voice trembling with tears. "My father didn't care about me when I was young, and I thought I could make a living with my own skills, but I never expected to have to suffer this kind of humiliation in this factory."

Lin Chen looked at the burly man, over six feet tall, whose eyes were reddening, and felt a pang of sympathy. Sha Zhu wasn't inherently bad; he was just straightforward and stubborn. He'd been manipulated by Yi Zhonghai's "retirement promises" for so many years, and now that he'd finally woken up, the resentment in his heart was unimaginable. "Changing jobs isn't difficult," Lin Chen put down his water glass, his tone firm, "but you need to think carefully about what you want to do after leaving the cafeteria."

"What else can I do? I can't do anything except cook." Sha Zhu hung his head, instantly losing his spirit. Although he was a technical backbone in the canteen, he knew nothing about forging and fitting in the workshop. He felt uneasy about leaving his familiar position.

"You're wrong," Lin Chen shook his head, pulled a crumpled newspaper from his toolbox, and pointed to the job posting. "The military region's guesthouse is hiring a head chef. Requirements include over eight years of experience working in a canteen, being able to cook Northern home-style dishes, and understanding ingredient management. These conditions are practically tailor-made for you."

Sha Zhu leaned closer for a look, and his eyes lit up instantly: "The military district guesthouse? That's a great place! The benefits are much better than our factory, and no one would dare to falsely accuse me. But... but how do I get in? It must be incredibly competitive." His newly ignited hope was extinguished again. He was just a canteen cook at a steel rolling mill, with no background or connections. How could he compete with those who had connections?

"I'll find you the connections, but you'll have to prove yourself." Lin Chen pulled a small notebook from his pocket, which contained the name and contact information of the logistics director of the military region's guesthouse. "I met this Director Zhang when I was helping the military region repair forging equipment. He told me that the guesthouse's chefs were skilled, but the management was poor, resulting in serious food waste. He was worried about not being able to find a suitable head chef. Not only are you a good cook, but you've also managed ingredients in our factory canteen for so many years, so you have experience in cost control. That's your advantage."

Sha Zhu looked at the notebook in Lin Chen's hand, then at his confident expression, and his confidence returned: "You tell me what to do, and I'll do it! I'll do anything to get out of this awful place!"

"Tomorrow, go to the canteen to apply for a leave of absence without pay, then come with me to see Director Zhang." Lin Chen handed the notebook to Sha Zhu and added, "When you meet him, don't just talk about your cooking skills; focus on how you manage the ingredients. Our factory canteen's monthly ingredient costs are 30% lower than the military region's guesthouse. If you can figure that out, it'll be more effective than anything else. Oh, and also, make one of your signature dishes to bring along so they can taste your cooking."

Sha Zhu gripped the notebook tightly, nodded heavily, and his eyes reddened again, but this time it was with emotion: "Lin Chen, I always thought you were just like those other people in the courtyard, full of ulterior motives. Now I know that you really care about me. I helped the Jia family before because I was fooled by Yi Zhonghai. From now on, I know who will treat me well."

The next morning, Sha Zhu went to the canteen to apply for a leave of absence without pay. The canteen manager was reluctant to let him go and wanted him to stay, but Sha Zhu was determined this time. He packed his things and left. He went home, changed into a clean Zhongshan suit, and made his best dish, "Nine-Turned Intestines," packed it in a thermos, and went to the military district guesthouse with Lin Chen.

Director Zhang, a tall, middle-aged veteran, spoke with a crisp, efficient manner. Initially, he was somewhat wary of Sha Zhu, seeing his ordinary attire. However, when Sha Zhu explained his experience managing the canteen in detail and presented his cost calculations, Director Zhang's eyes lit up. After tasting Sha Zhu's "Nine-Turned Intestines," finding them perfectly balanced between salty and sweet, and rich yet not greasy, Director Zhang immediately decided: "You're hired! Start work next Monday, head chef position, monthly salary 50% higher than your job at the steel mill, plus a food and oil allowance!"

Sha Zhu stood there, stunned, not reacting for a long time. It was only after Lin Chen nudged him that he hurriedly thanked him. Leaving the guesthouse, Sha Zhu stomped his feet excitedly and dragged Lin Chen to the state-run restaurant for a meal, but Lin Chen stopped him with a smile: "Don't rush to celebrate. There's still something to take care of. You need to completely break things off with Yi Zhonghai, otherwise he'll cause you trouble again."

Lin Chen's words reminded Sha Zhu. He recalled Yi Zhonghai's scheming over the years, and his anger flared up again: "I'm going to settle accounts with him right now! I'll show him that I, Sha Zhu, am not someone to be trifled with!"

"Don't be impulsive," Lin Chen pulled him back. "Arguing with him is useless. We need to let him know that you're not someone to mess with, so he won't dare to provoke you again. Do you remember the time Yi Zhonghai helped Qin Huairu change the test sample? I have evidence." Lin Chen took out a photo from his pocket. It was a photo he took with the system during the last test. The photo clearly showed Yi Zhonghai secretly replacing Qin Huairu's sample.

That evening, Sha Zhu returned to the courtyard house with the photos. At the stone table in the middle courtyard, Yi Zhonghai was playing chess with Yan Bugui. Seeing Sha Zhu return, Yi Zhonghai even pretended to greet him: "Zhu Zi, back from the canteen? The braised pork there was pretty good today."

Sha Zhu ignored him and slammed the photo on the stone table: "Yi Zhonghai, stop pretending! You helped Qin Huairu revise the assessment samples and then framed me for stealing pork. Do you really think I'm stupid?" He pointed to the scene in the photo, his voice booming, "I've already sent a copy of this photo to the factory's union. If you dare to cause me any more trouble, I'll expose your misappropriation of apprentice welfare subsidies from the Jia family!"

Upon seeing the photo, Yi Zhonghai's face turned deathly pale, and the chess piece in his hand fell to the ground with a thud. Yan Bugui also stopped playing, his eyes darting towards Yi Zhonghai, clearly knowing something as well. "Zhuzi, let me explain, I was just..." Yi Zhonghai tried to argue.

"There's nothing to explain!" Sha Zhu interrupted him. "I used to respect you as an elder, but you treated me like a tool for old age; now I'm not going to serve you anymore! I've already found a new job at the military guesthouse. From now on, we'll go our separate ways and never contact each other again!" After saying that, he turned and left without looking at Yi Zhonghai again.

Yi Zhonghai stood frozen in place, his face alternating between pale and flushed. Yan Bugui put away the chessboard, offering a few insincere words of comfort, while secretly plotting how to distance himself from Yi Zhonghai. The surrounding neighbors, who had been watching the commotion, also began to whisper among themselves; Yi Zhonghai's image of "fairness" had completely collapsed.

Having resolved the issue with Sha Zhu, Lin Chen focused his energy on developing a new mold. While his previous "high-efficiency forging mold" improved production efficiency, its lifespan was still insufficient when forging high-strength alloy parts. Lin Chen wanted to develop a more wear-resistant mold material, but several attempts failed.

That evening, Lin Chen was working overtime in the workshop, brooding over a pile of alloy scrap. Suddenly, a system notification popped up: "Multiple high-hardness alloy scraps detected. You can attempt to fuse silicon carbide and chromium steel to create a highly wear-resistant composite material. This will consume 500 points. Fuse?"

Lin Chen's eyes lit up. Why hadn't he thought of fusing silicon carbide before? Silicon carbide has extremely high hardness; if it could be fused with chrome steel, it would definitely improve the mold's wear resistance. He immediately clicked "Yes" and put the collected silicon carbide particles and chrome steel scrap into the fusion space. During the fusion process, a faint smell of rust filled the air. Lin Chen deliberately turned on the workshop's ventilation fans to avoid being discovered by patrolling security guards.

Two hours later, the fusion was complete. A glossy black composite material appeared in the fusion space, smooth on the surface and hard in texture. Lin Chen used the system to assess it; its hardness was three times higher than the previous mold material, and its lifespan was expected to be extended tenfold. Excitedly, he picked up the material and worked through the night to process it into a mold.

The next morning, Lin Chen took the new mold to the workshop. Director Zhou Jianguo was checking the production progress when he saw the new mold in Lin Chen's hand and asked curiously, "Xiao Lin, is this the new mold you made? How's it?"

"Director, you'll see when you see it." Lin Chen installed the mold on the forging machine and began forging high-strength alloy parts. In the past, when forging these kinds of parts, a set of molds would wear out after half a day at most, but this time, more than a hundred parts were forged using the new molds, and the mold surfaces were still intact, and the precision of the parts far exceeded the requirements.

Zhou Jianguo stared in disbelief, picked up the part and measured it with a micrometer, then excitedly patted Lin Chen on the shoulder: "Good lad! You're amazing! With this set of molds, our workshop's production efficiency can double, and the scrap rate can be reduced! I'll write a report to the factory management right away and apply for a technological innovation award for you!"

The news quickly spread throughout the entire steel rolling mill, and even the factory manager came to the workshop to inspect it. Seeing the amazing effect of the new mold, the factory manager decided on the spot to promote Lin Chen's mold technology throughout the factory, and also rewarded Lin Chen with two hundred yuan in cash and a certificate of "Factory-level Technical Innovation Expert".

Lin Chen's reputation grew, and apprentices in the workshop vied to become his students. Liu Guangtian idolized Lin Chen, studying with him every day after get off work and making rapid progress in his skills. Seeing his son's transformation, Liu Haizhong respected Lin Chen even more and never mentioned the "apprenticeship ceremony" again, often bringing Lin Chen homemade pickled vegetables.

That afternoon, Lin Chen was explaining forging techniques to his apprentices when Su Qing suddenly entered the workshop. She was wearing the blue uniform of the finance department, holding a folder in her hand. Seeing Lin Chen, she gave a faint smile: "Master Lin, could I trouble you for a few minutes? There's a technical subsidy report that needs your signature."

Lin Chen followed Su Qing to the corridor outside the workshop. Su Qing handed her a folder and whispered, "I found the records of Yi Zhonghai's allowances that you asked me to check last time. He has deducted more than 3,000 yuan in apprentice benefits over the past few years, most of which went to the Jia family. I have compiled the evidence and put it on the last page of the report."

Lin Chen opened the folder and, sure enough, found the detailed allowance disbursement record on the last page, along with Yi Zhonghai's signature. He felt a warmth in his heart; Su Qing was not only upright but also very thoughtful, knowing he wanted to completely resolve Yi Zhonghai's problem. "Thank you, Comrade Su," Lin Chen said, signing the folder and handing it back to her.

"You're welcome," Su Qing shook her head. "I've seen you help Sha Zhu find a job, help Qin Huairu establish herself, and even develop new technologies to improve production efficiency. The factory needs people like you." She paused, then added, "By the way, the factory is organizing a trip for key technical personnel to other places next week. You're on the list, so remember to be prepared."

Lin Chen was taken aback; he hadn't known about this. It seemed that the development of the new mold had finally earned him the factory's approval. "I understand, thank you for telling me," Lin Chen said with a smile.

Su Qing nodded and turned to leave. Lin Chen watched her retreating figure, a strange feeling rising within him. Su Qing's integrity and rationality were like a soothing balm, slowly calming the resentment that had festered since his rebirth. He suddenly realized how wonderful it was to have such a like-minded friend.

Back at the courtyard house that evening, Lin Chen had just entered when he saw Sha Zhu standing at the door carrying two bottles of baijiu (Chinese liquor) and a bag of pig's head meat. "Lin Chen, I'm starting work at the guesthouse tomorrow, so I came to thank you." Sha Zhu handed over the items, his face full of sincere smiles. "I had someone buy this liquor for me; let's have a couple of drinks tonight, you and I."

Lin Chen took the things and smiled as he ushered Sha Zhu into the house. He took out two enamel mugs, poured in some baijiu (Chinese liquor), and clinked glasses with Sha Zhu. "Work hard at the guesthouse from now on. With your skills, you'll definitely make a name for yourself," Lin Chen said.

"Don't worry!" Sha Zhu took a sip of his drink, smacked his lips, and said, "I've already contacted Yu Shui. I'll go see her next week off and apologize. I was foolish before, neglecting her like a younger sister." He put down his glass, looked at Lin Chen, and said, "Lin Chen, if it weren't for you, I'd still be suffering in the cafeteria, and my relationship with Yu Shui wouldn't have improved. From now on, if you need anything, just say the word. I, Sha Zhu, will go through fire and water for you!"

Lin Chen smiled. He knew that Sha Zhu was a loyal and affectionate person. "We're neighbors, it's only right that we help each other out." He put a piece of pig's head on Sha Zhu's plate. "By the way, Qin Huairu is doing well in the landscaping team now, and she's even been recognized as an outstanding worker. If you ever go back to the courtyard house, don't hold a grudge against her for what happened before."

"I know," Sha Zhu nodded. "When I went back to the hospital last time, I saw her watering the flowers in the yard. She seemed much more at ease than before. I was foolish before, and she and Yi Zhonghai schemed against me. Now everyone is making a living on their own, which is great."

The two chatted and drank, talking about interesting things in the workshop, the changes in the courtyard, and their future plans. Moonlight streamed in through the window, bathing them in warmth and tranquility. Looking at the simple-minded Zhu in front of him, Lin Chen suddenly felt that this courtyard, once filled with scheming and contradictions, was slowly changing.

It was late at night, and Sha Zhu was drunk, muttering, "I need to work hard and take good care of my sister from now on." Lin Chen took him back to his house, then returned to his own room and opened the system panel. He had accumulated over five thousand points, and his system level was almost up to six. Looking at the "Skill Fusion" function on the panel, he was filled with anticipation.