Chapter 261: The Saionji Cabinet's First Meeting

"That schedule…"

"The schedule can't be delayed," Laji said resolutely, "The President said during last month's inspection that this pipeline is tied to fuel supply for the next three years. Without oil, the four battleships in the dock are just scrap metal."

"Engineer Laji." Chen Feng walked straight to the command platform, "Progress as

"What about quality?"

"Weld Seam pass rate is 95.3%, pressure test pass rate is 100%." Laji handed over the inspection record, "But the pipe material has issues. Of the steel pipes supplied by Bethlehem Company of the United States, 3% have sand pits or inclusions."

Chen Feng flipped through the record, his brow furrowing. "Notify the procurement department to suspend the final payment to Bethlehem. Have them send a quality engineer to explain; otherwise we'll switch to Deguo procurement."

"But Deguo pipe prices are 20% higher…"

"Expensive as it is, we have to buy it," Chen Feng said, "If the oil pipeline leaks, it will pollute groundwater, and the remediation cost is ten times the price difference. Moreover, it will delay the schedule— the schedule, we can't afford any delay now."

He walked to the freshly welded pipe segment, hand feeling the warm weld seam. "Laji, are you from Mumbai?"

"Yes, President. My father works at the Mumbai Port Authority, and I graduated from Mumbai Engineering College." Laji said, "I came after seeing Lanfang's recruitment notice last year."

"Why choose this place? The treatment the Yingguo people give in India isn't bad either."

Laji was silent for a few seconds. "President, in India, engineers like me can only ever be assistants to the Yingguo. My father worked for thirty years and never rose above assistant engineer. Here…" He gestured to the pipeline before him, "This is my first large‑scale project. You trust me and give me a chance."

Chen Feng nodded, turned to Wang Bo and said, "Record this. After project completion, Engineer Laji will be promoted to Level‑3 Technical Specialist, with a monthly salary raised to eighty pounds."

Laji's eyes widened. "President, this… this is too much!"

"Not too much." Chen Feng patted his shoulder, "Someone who can handle a hundred‑kilometre oil pipeline is worth that price. Moreover, I want you to build a team—select promising workers, teach them to read schematics, survey, and weld. Next year we'll build a second pipeline and need more people like you."

"Yes! I'll definitely do it!"

Chen Feng continued walking along the pipeline. The workers saw him, stopped their tasks, and saluted. Chen Feng waved his hand, "Keep working, don't mind me."

He noticed a detail: although Arab workers and Chinese workers didn't share a language, their coordination was seamless. During hoisting, a single gesture conveyed the meaning; while welding, passing tools was fluid as water.

"How did you solve the translation issue?" he asked the foreman.

The foreman was a man in his forties from Fujian, named Old Chen. "President, it was indeed troublesome at first. Later we devised a set of 'construction hand signs.'" He gestured, "For example, this means 'lift', this means 'stop', this means 'move left'… Simple, but effective."

"What about casualties?"

"In three months of work, two severe injuries, both hoisting accidents. Twenty‑six minor injuries, mainly heatstroke and cuts," Old Chen said, "The medical team makes two rounds of rounds daily; the severely injured have been sent to Dubai Hospital, all costs covered."

"What about family accommodation?"

"Most Arab workers are from nearby tribes and live in their own tents. Chinese workers stay in the site dormitory, eight per room, with fans and mosquito nets," Old Chen paused, "The issue is food… Arab brothers don't eat pork, we Chinese love it, sometimes it causes friction."

Chen Feng thought for a moment. "Then the site canteen will have two sections: a steamed‑food section and a regular section. The steamed section uses beef and lamb; the regular can add pork. But we must label clearly to avoid confusion. Also, organize a weekly communal meal, with chefs from both sides teaching each other— we need integration, not a patchwork."

"Understood, I'll arrange it right away."

Continuing forward, Chen Feng arrived at the pressurization pump‑station site. Three large steam‑driven reciprocating pumps were being installed here, each rated at 500 horsepower, capable of pushing crude oil a hundred kilometres. Deguo engineer Hans Muller was overseeing the installation.

"Mr. Chen!" Muller greeted in stiff English, "These pumps are excellent! The latest model from Mannheim Machinery Plant, 15% more efficient than Yingguo goods."

"Can they be commissioned on schedule?"

"We'll debug next month; they can run by the end of October," Muller patted the pump body, "But there's a problem—the steam boiler needs a lot of water. The nearest water source is twenty kilometres away."

Chen Feng was prepared. "We're building a water‑supply pipeline parallel to the oil line. The source is deep underground water, supplying five thousand tonnes daily. Is that enough?"

"Enough! More than enough!" Muller said excitedly, "Mr. Chen, you've thought this through thoroughly. When I worked in Yingguo colonies, they never cared about such details; they always left engineers to solve them themselves."