Chapter 200

Capital, Railway Department.

Leaders, according to the requirements put forward in 1978, we need to manufacture brand-new passenger cars in the Sixth Five-Year Plan, gradually replacing the existing Type 22 passenger cars. Over the past two years, based on the original 25.5‑meter lightweight high‑speed train set and the Type 24 Guangzhou‑Shenzhen air‑conditioned train set, we have developed a 25.5‑meter Guangjiu air‑conditioned train set.

Chief Engineer Ma Rui Shan of Sifang Rolling Stock Works, brimming with enthusiasm, introduced: "This Type 25 train consists of nine soft‑seat cars, one soft‑seat announcement car, one dining car, and one air‑conditioned generator car; the whole train adopts centralized power supply technology from the generator car."

"Have you selected the power source for the generator car?" Leader Guo of the Railway Department asked.

"Yes, we have chosen the Type 280 diesel engine produced by the Dalian Diesel Engine Factory, which is powerful……" Ma Rui Shan continued: "So far, we have trial‑produced a train set, which is now undergoing trial runs on the railway line."

At present, China has not yet achieved full electrification of its railways; advanced electric locomotives are usually used on freight trains, pulling dozens or even hundreds of cars, whereas passenger trains normally have ten cars or fewer, so a diesel locomotive is sufficient.

Previously, pulling ordinary hard‑seat cars posed no big problem—at most just lighting and small electric fans—but with air‑conditioned cars, there is an air‑conditioning unit on the roof that consumes a lot of electricity, so at this point the whole train needs to carry a dedicated generator car.

"Report!" At that moment a secretary rushed in: "The Guangjiu Railway reports that the newly developed air‑conditioned train's generator car has broken down again!"

Ma Rui Shan's face changed instantly.

Normally, we could just report it to the Motive Power Division, and they would send people over for emergency repairs; this time we came to the Capital to report on the trial situation of the Type 25 train, which was supposed to be good news, but instead… we ended up losing face right in front of the Railway Department!

Engineer Ma, when working on railway trains we cannot afford the slightest carelessness; if such a train fails, it will pose a serious threat to the nation's property and people's lives, so you must honestly explain—just how reliable is this generator car?

Ma Rui Shan sighed; indeed, one cannot report only the good news and hide the bad!

Leader Guo, the technology of our train is an upgrade from the Type 24 air‑conditioned train; the generator car of the earlier Type 24 train set used two 200 kW generator sets, which originally lacked sufficient power, but fortunately the air‑conditioning on those Type 24 trains often broke down, so they could barely get by...

In 1965, to provide a comfortable environment for Overseas Chinese returning to China to attend the Canton Fair, Sifang Locomotive Works trial‑produced the Eastern first‑generation air‑conditioned soft‑seat passenger car, designated Type 24. After trial runs, it frequently encountered various problems, but as long as Overseas Chinese were not using it, when the air‑conditioning failed ordinary passengers would just put up with it.

Now, the Type 25 air‑conditioned train we are trial‑producing uses the Type KK30 air conditioner made by the Nanjing Air Conditioning Factory; it is an integrated roof‑mounted unit, which is much better than the split‑type air conditioner made by the Jincheng Locomotive Works used on the earlier Type 24 trains, although its power consumption is considerably higher.

Ma Rui Shan spoke frankly: "So we changed the previous two 200 kW generator sets into three 200 kW generator sets; with more units, the failure rate has gone up…… Our idea is that, once the train enters regular service, if one generator fails we can reduce the cooling capacity of the air‑conditioned train's cars or alternate cooling."

"Nonsense!" Leader Guo slammed the table: "The train we are trial‑producing must be stable and reliable! How can we make such a plan at the design stage? We are no longer just trial‑producing; we are moving into large‑scale deployment!"

Besides the Type 24 air‑conditioned train, we also trial‑produced the Sino‑Vietnam International Through‑Service Type 18 air‑conditioned passenger car, which used a distributed power supply system; at the same time we imported eight air‑conditioned cars from abroad, but even when all domestic air‑conditioned trains are added together they still amount to less than one percent of the total passenger train fleet, and they are all experimental.

Next, we are to put them into large‑scale operation; as the country develops and society advances, the proportion of air‑conditioned cars on southern railways must be continually increased!

Leader Guo stood up and paced back and forth: "No, absolutely not! Since the generator set has problems, we must replace it with a new one! Stop always trying to look after the units within our system; if they don't improve, we have no use for them!"

We have compared all domestic diesel engine factories, and the product of the Dalian Diesel Engine Factory is the most suitable; if we are to replace it… we can only purchase from abroad.

Purchasing abroad would consume precious foreign exchange! Although the Railway Department is a major player in the railway sector, openly asking the state for foreign exchange means we have to look to our superiors for approval, and it will leave a bad impression on them.

The Railway Department lacks ability; all it knows is to open its mouth and demand imports from abroad!

Leader Guo took a deep breath: "In short, the reliability issue must be solved; before it is resolved, do not come to the Capital to report work!"

Ma Rui Shan widened his eyes: "Leader Guo, you're not playing fair—you want the horse to run but not let it eat grass; you're making things difficult for us!"

All right, meeting adjourned!

Leader Guo stood up and strode out; at this moment, even if Ma Rui Shan chased after him, he would absolutely not stop.

First put some pressure on Engineer Ma and his team to see if they can come up with a solution; if they really can't, then the Railway Department will step in to coordinate the purchase of generator sets from abroad. That's right—if we don't push them a bit, they won't unleash their potential.

Ma Rui Shan didn't even know how he walked out of the meeting room; he blindly exited the compound, and before he realized it, he had arrived at the old‑Beijing fried sauce noodle shop on the street, which is his usual favorite spot—today…

First let's have a bowl of fried sauce noodles!

He turned around and saw that the few people he had brought with him had also followed him there.

Come on, go in—each of you gets a bowl of fried sauce noodles, my treat! Once you're full, you'll have energy. Next, we'll figure out how to fix the generator car problem; you've all heard that if we can't find a solution, Old Ma will be left out in the cold, and since you all work under me, if I lose the leaders' favor, you too… you know what that means!

This is pressure being passed down layer by layer!

After saying that, for some reason Ma Rui Shan suddenly felt much more at ease; he strode forward and entered the fried sauce noodle shop.

Before he even found an empty seat to sit down, his eyes suddenly lit up.

"Little Wang? What are you doing here?"

"I came nearby to see someone off; after seeing them off I got hungry and am having a bite here. What are you guys…"

"We're also here to eat fried sauce noodles—come, let's sit together and eat!"