Chapter 129: Qin Miao's Good Idea: Draw Lots!

Meeting room.

Come, San Shui, you're chairing the meeting today, you take the head seat!

No, Professor Yuan, you're my teacher and also my elder...

Qin Miao hadn't finished speaking when Professor Yuan already sat down beside him.

Qin Miao glanced at the person in work clothes: 'Factory Director Ruan, you sit here.'

Ruan Wenming quickly waved his hands: 'I always sit here when we have meetings!'

The head seat had been vacated, Ruan Wenming and Professor Yuan each took a side; seeing that this position would take half a day to wrangle, Qin Miao didn't want to waste time: 'Alright, then I'll sit here, let's get started quickly—after we finish, we'll do what needs to be done. For this truck cannon export project, we need to send someone over; what do you all think, big shots?'

Everyone looked at each other, nobody spoke.

Wei Gong, you speak first!

Wei Guoqiang stood up: 'Qin Professor, I'm blunt by nature, no beating around the bush now. When the factory was founded, we old-timers were always at the front. Now, the factory's products need to go abroad, helping train overseas artillerymen; we old-timers naturally should also be at the forefront!'

Let me say first, we're not doing this for travel subsidies; even if they don't pay us, we still have to go forward! The instructor taught us: belief like a rock, will like steel, dare to fight and win, press forward bravely! When facing danger, if we don't go, who will? The young people?

'Qin Professor, Wei Gong saying that makes me unwilling to accept.' Wei Ji stood up: 'You old-timers have already sweated and even bled for the factory; now it's our turn, the young people, to step up! Why only you can be at the front? Are we just flowers in a greenhouse? Without experiencing wind and rain, how can we grow?'

You little bastard, you dare talk to your father like that? Believe it or not, I'll beat you when we get back!

Factory rules: no fighting or brawling!

Once you're home, it's not the factory!

Even at home I'm not afraid of you! When people get old they still refuse to act old, with a bad back, they lie in bed groaning half the day after returning home, and during the day they pretend to be iron men—such a body, can it handle the tropics? And over there they're still at war; if a shell flies in, can your legs run?

You little bastard, you dare question your father, just watch your father not...

Qin Miao waved his hands: 'Enough, enough, you guys stop talking. Factory Director Ruan, what's your opinion?'

Ruan Wenming took a deep breath: 'Ah, this contradiction has been brewing in the factory for a while; I didn't expect today to have Professor Qin run into it. The old comrades have devoted half their lives; whenever a situation arises, they rush to volunteer, their enthusiasm moving; the young workers also consider the factory and the old comrades, inheriting the old comrades' spirit...'

Qin Miao helplessly: 'Factory Director Ruan, you're really soft; letting you speak turns out the same as not speaking—come up with a plan.'

Looking over to the other side, Professor Yuan sat there pondering; he's straightforward, faced with this matter he probably has no solution, so...

'I have a method that can cut through the knot quickly; it just depends on whether you agree or not.'

'Agree!'

'San Shui, your ideas have always been great; we'll listen to you!'

'Okay, then we'll draw lots; whoever draws gets to go—fair and reasonable!'

This... what kind of plan is this?

'Hey, what's with those looks? You just said you'd listen to me, and now you're like this?' Qin Miao said: 'Believe me, drawing lots is the most appropriate way; those who oppose drawing lots, please raise your hands!'

If he said those who agree to draw lots should raise hands, probably nobody would; now saying those who oppose should raise hands, still nobody does—but this means the plan passes.

'Good, nobody objected, my plan passes unanimously! Factory Director Ruan, tomorrow make a box, start drawing lots; those who draw go abroad, those who don't stay to work. Those who stay, don't think there's nothing to do—we've just gotten another big order; coming up, there'll be plenty to keep busy, maybe even work through the New Year; those going abroad will surely have it easy!'

Qin Miao looked at everyone: 'Alright, meeting adjourned!'

Having said that, Qin Miao grabbed his leather cap, left, hurriedly left, so as not to get tangled over such a small matter.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

'San Shui!'

'Qin Professor!'

Hearing the shouts behind him, Qin Miao got into the Range Rover, turned the key—this car is great, even in freezing weather it starts right up.

For this little matter, I've wasted a few more hours! Qin Miao pressed the accelerator, the car moved—time to head back!

Ha Gong Da, Materials Department.

Old Professor Ding Fantao heard Qin Miao's request, nodded easily: 'Understood, you need ferrite at the Curie point of 103 degrees Celsius; that's not hard, our Materials Department will run the experiment—during these exam days we should be able to produce it.'

The temperature point at which temperature-sensitive ferrite loses its magnetism is called the Curie point; for the Materials Department, studying the Curie points of various temperature-sensitive ferrites is also a common project, and Professor Ding Fantao has rich experience in it.

'Really? That's fantastic!' Qin Miao beamed: 'Professor Ding, once this material is successfully developed, I'll have my father's factory put up 100,000 yuan to buy the patent for this technology.'

Ding Fantao quickly waved his hands: 'No way! San Shui, you've helped our Materials Department so much; us helping you in return is only proper—we can't take money!'

Qin Miao smiled: 'I help the Materials Department because I'm from Ha Gong Da, but my father isn't, so the money must be given; in the future Ha Gong Da will undertake many research projects—if anyone wants to free-ride, they can cite my example to shut them up.'

Professor Ding stared, then his expression grew complex.

Besides, I still have other projects needing the Materials Department's help—I can't keep free-riding either.

'What project?'

'The coating on the inner pot of an electric rice cooker.' Qin Miao said.

The most crucial part inside an electric rice cooker is the mechanism that automatically trips when the rice reaches a certain degree of doneness; its core is ferrite at the Curie point of 103 degrees—magnetic at room temperature, losing magnetism at that critical point.

Once that's settled, another problem is the defect of sticking to the pot.

The pot liner will likely be made of ordinary steel, since stainless steel is too expensive and hard to obtain; scaling up, even if the military doesn't say anything, we shouldn't give them trouble.

In this way, problems like rust are not the most serious; the key is that when cooking rice, it sticks to the pot, at which point a coating needs to be added on top.