Chapter 44: The Ministry Inspection Delegation and Praise from the Director-General

The temporary interrogation room of the militia company extracted a confession from the man in the flat cap before dawn.

He confessed that he had been instructed by a cultural relic smuggler nicknamed "Old K" to specifically acquire military-related technological intelligence.

As for Mrs. Jia, she was simply a foolish woman who had stumbled into the plot.

The militia company directly handed Mrs. Jia over to the police substation, and the charge of attempted theft of state secrets would be more than enough to land her in serious trouble.

The factory was shaken by a major enemy infiltration case. Factory Director Yang was furious and personally oversaw the security department, demanding a thorough investigation.

Inside the technical department's laboratory, however, the atmosphere was entirely different.

He Yuzhu, Engineer Chen, and Su Qing surrounded the basin of dark brown lubricating grease that had successfully passed the eight-hour high-pressure test. There was no joy of solving a case on their faces, only solemnity.

"The core formula proportions were not leaked, but the production process and the few pages Mrs. Jia stole a look at..." Engineer Chen said with deep worry, "What if the enemy agents have chemical experts who can reverse-engineer it..."

"Don't worry," He Yuzhu said in a steady tone. "The technical difficulties lie in the addition sequence and temperature control. Just looking at the superficial data won't allow them to replicate it. The crucial point is that the ministry inspection delegation is arriving this afternoon! We must ensure nothing goes wrong!"

Factory Director Yang pushed the door open, his expression equally serious. "Yuzhu, I just received official notice. Department Director Qian, who oversees industrial innovation, is personally leading a team and will arrive in an hour!"

"The main focus is your waste oil recycling and the new type of lubricating grease! The factory office has already arranged the reception, and your end... absolutely cannot afford any mistakes!"

"Understood!" He Yuzhu, Engineer Chen, and Su Qing replied in unison.

"Are the oil samples ready over at the recycled oil workshop?" Factory Director Yang pressed further.

"The final batch of waste engine oil processed overnight has already settled and separated. The upper layer of clear oil has been sampled and is just waiting for the inspection delegation to arrive for the on-site mixing demonstration!" Engineer Chen replied.

"Good! I'll go check the workshop again!" Factory Director Yang left in a hurry.

He Yuzhu watched Factory Director Yang's departing figure, his brows furrowing imperceptibly.

Director Li Huaide's side was too quiet, and that wasn't normal. He Yuzhu turned to Engineer Chen and Su Qing. "Let's go to the workshop as well. Let's go through every single step ourselves once more!"

………

The waste oil recycling workshop was temporarily converted from an old warehouse.

Several large enamel reaction kettles were lined up against the wall, connected to simple heating and stirring devices.

At that moment, the workshop was filled with a faint scent of engine oil and lye.

When the three of them entered, the workers were busy doing the final cleanup. Workshop Director Lao Han hurried over. "Group Leader He! The oil samples are all ready! Over there!" He pointed to several clean enamel basins with lids covered in the corner.

He Yuzhu walked over and checked the basin lids one by one. The recycled base oil in the basins was clear and translucent, emitting a healthy amber glow, with the acid value test report pasted right beside the basin.

"Director Qian and the others have arrived! They're almost at the workshop entrance!" A factory office clerk rushed in breathlessly to report.

A slight commotion immediately rippled through the workshop, and the workers instinctively straightened their backs.

He Yuzhu's gaze swept over the oil basins in the corner, finally landing on the one closest to the door.

On the edge of the basin lid, there seemed to be a trace of extremely fine, grayish-white powder.

Without changing his expression, he walked over, lightly brushed his finger across the edge of the lid, and felt a tiny gritty texture on his fingertips.

Bringing it close to his nose, he detected no unusual odor. His gaze instantly turned sharp!

"Lao Han!" He Yuzhu's voice was low, yet carried an unquestionable urgency. "Immediately move the basin of oil near the door all the way to the back! Label it 'Pending Treatment'! Quickly!"

Lao Han was momentarily stunned, not quite understanding, but seeing He Yuzhu's stern expression, he complied immediately. Together with two workers, they moved that basin of oil to the corner and swiftly slapped a "Pending Treatment" slip onto it.

Almost simultaneously, the workshop doors were pushed open.

Factory Director Yang accompanied an elderly man with graying hair, black-framed glasses, and a scholarly demeanor as they walked in, followed by several ministry cadres and factory leaders.

Li Huaide was conspicuously among them, wearing a perfectly measured smile.

"Director Qian, leaders, this is the waste oil recycling workshop we set up through self-reliance!" Factory Director Yang introduced enthusiastically. "This is the project leader, procurement section comrade He Yuzhu!"

Director Qian looked warmly at He Yuzhu. "Comrade Xiao He, young and promising! I hear you not only developed recycled oil, but also utilized tung oil and local resources to develop a new type of lubricating grease? Remarkable!"

"Director, you flatter me. It's all the strength of the collective," He Yuzhu replied neither servilely nor overbearingly. "Please inspect the quality of the recycled oil on-site, leaders."

Director Qian walked over to a reaction kettle, picked up a clean glass measuring cup, and unscrewed the sampling valve at the bottom of one of the kettles.

Golden recycled base oil gushed out, pouring into the measuring cup, clear and translucent.

"This is the freshly processed base oil," He Yuzhu handed the measuring cup to Director Qian. "The acid value, viscosity, and impurity content all meet standards. Next, we will add Yunnan tung oil and specific additives to prepare the new lubricating grease."

Director Qian took the measuring cup, examined it closely, and handed it to the technical expert beside him.

The expert smelled it and nodded. "Appearance and initial olfactory test look good."

The smile at the corner of Li Huaide's mouth deepened slightly, his gaze seemingly inadvertently sweeping over the oil basin in the corner labeled "Pending Treatment."

"Comrade Xiao He," Director Qian said with high spirits, "can you demonstrate on-site the process of mixing this recycled oil and tung oil? Let us see this 'alchemy through crude methods' with our own eyes?"

"Of course!" He Yuzhu replied, walking toward the row of prepared oil basins by the wall.

Everyone's eyes focused on him. A trace of imperceptible coldness flashed in Li Huaide's eyes.

He Yuzhu reached out toward the basin closest to the back and lifted it steadily. The basin contained the same clarified recycled oil.

Su Qing cooperatively brought over a small bucket of golden tung oil and a porcelain bowl containing a mixture of graphite and gypsum powder.

Engineer Chen started up a small stirring and heating device.

He Yuzhu poured the recycled oil into the heating tank, heated it to sixty degrees, and then slowly added the tung oil.

The two liquids began to merge under the agitation. Then, following a precise sequence, he added the graphite-gypsum powder mixture and refined animal fat little by little, his movements precise and smooth.

The workshop was filled only with the hum of the stirring device and the distinct aroma of heated grease. A dark brown paste gradually formed.

"Done!" He Yuzhu turned off the heating, and the stirring stopped.

He took out a small spoonful of viscous lubricating grease, smeared it on a smooth steel plate, and showed it to Director Qian. "Director, please look. The oil film is uniform and highly adhesive."

Director Qian touched it with his finger with great interest, then picked up the steel plate to look against the light and nodded. "Mm, indeed very good!"

Just at that moment, a muffled "clatter" suddenly came from the corner of the workshop, followed by a worker's panicked voice: "Oh! Director Han! This... this basin of oil..."

Everyone looked toward the source of the sound.

They saw Workshop Director Lao Han crouching in the corner, in front of him being the moved basin of oil bearing the "Pending Treatment" label.

The lid had been knocked to the ground, and some of the oil in the basin had spilled out.

Shockingly, the oil spilled on the ground clearly showed a layer of grayish-white sandy impurities settled at the bottom! And at the base of the basin, an even thicker layer had deposited!

"What is going on?!" Factory Director Yang's expression changed, and he demanded sternly.

Lao Han turned pale and pointed at the oil basin. "This... this basin of oil... it was fine just a moment ago... why... why is there so much sand in it?!"

The entire workshop fell instantly silent!

All eyes turned to that obviously contaminated basin of oil! The ministry leaders furrowed their brows!

A look of well-timed astonishment and distress appeared on Li Huaide's face. He stepped forward, pointed at the oil basin, and asked accusingly, "Comrade He Yuzhu! What is the meaning of this?! Are these the qualified oil samples you prepared?! Why is there sand in them?! Can oil like this be used on machinery?! Aren't you making a mockery of the leadership?!"

Everyone's focus locked onto He Yuzhu, the atmosphere growing oppressive to the extreme.

There was no panic on He Yuzhu's face. He calmly walked over to the contaminated basin of oil, squatted down, pinched a bit of the settled grit with his fingers, and inspected it.

"Director, Factory Director Yang, leaders," He Yuzhu stood up, his voice clear and steady. "This basin of oil was never intended to be a qualified oil sample shown to the leaders."

Pointing at the eye-catching "Pending Treatment" label on the basin, He Yuzhu stated calmly, "This is a batch of waste oil processed yesterday. During the settling and separation phase, we found an unusually heavy amount of sediment at the bottom. It was already marked as 'pending treatment' and set aside for re-refining."

"Just before the leaders entered, to avoid any confusion, I specifically had Director Han move it to the corner and label it."

He Yuzhu shifted his gaze to Li Huaide, his eyes calm and ripple-free. "Deputy Factory Director Li, from the spot where you were standing just now, you should have been able to see this label. Are you jumping to conclusions in such a rush because you assumed we would deliberately display substandard products in front of the ministry leaders?"

The expression on Li Huaide's face froze instantly. He opened his mouth, but not a single word came out.

He had been so focused on waiting to see He Yuzhu make a fool of himself that he hadn't paid any attention to the label in that corner!

Director Qian's gaze swept back and forth between He Yuzhu and Li Huaide, his eyes deep.

He then turned to Factory Director Yang. "Comrade Yang Weimin, it seems your factory's management procedures still need standardization. However, this Comrade Xiao He is unflappable and meticulous. Not bad!"

He turned his attention back to the freshly brewed, steaming pot of dark brown lubricating grease in front of He Yuzhu, a smile appearing on his face. "Come, Xiao He, let us see just how solid the ultimate result of your 'alchemy through crude methods' really is!"