To be honest, this was the first time Xu Damao had witnessed Liu Haizhong, a level seven worker, complete the processing of a workpiece, and he was truly amazed. Xu Damao found it hard to believe that Liu Haizhong, someone he didn't particularly respect, could possess such an ability to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

"Old Liu, don't just stand there like an idiot. There are so many leaders here. Tell me about the workpiece you made." Xu Damao saw that Liu Haizhong was still staring at him and knew that the other man was at a loss.

After such a long period of forging and polishing, Liu Haizhong's initial unease in front of his superiors gradually subsided, and he was able to speak again. So he began to stammer about the workpiece he had just forged.

The senior leaders initially thought that this chubby, taciturn deputy director had gotten the job through connections and back channels, and they even had some complaints about the auto repair shop. But the expert's skill was immediately apparent.

Although the leaders weren't professionals in the industry, after so many years of work, they could tell at a glance who was doing a good job, and they all changed their opinions on Lao Liu and the auto repair shop.

Among them, Mr. Yue from the Ministry of Transport had visited many auto repair shops and had a deeper understanding of the chubby middle-aged man's abilities. After hearing Xu Damao introduce him as a level seven technician, he patted Liu Haizhong affectionately and said many encouraging words. This almost made Liu Haizhong, who had just begun to feel better, collapse again.

After making their way around, the leaders returned to the auto repair shop's conference room. After a brief discussion, the top leaders had to leave; after all, they were all very busy people, and their brief visit today was the culmination of a long period of coordination.

"Old Ma, isn't it a bit incongruous for your metallurgical system to have a car repair shop like this? Why don't you just transfer it to our city? That would be contributing to the development of Beijing." After the meeting, the vice mayor of Beijing said to Old Ma with a smile.

When he said this, Xu Damao and other lower-ranking officials were not in the office; only Yang Zhenhua and Li Xuewu were present at the steel rolling mill. The vice mayor's words were not unfounded; he had received a request from the Transportation Bureau.

After failing to achieve his goal with Elder Yue, Transportation Bureau Director Gong Shengli went to report the matter to the Vice Mayor. Previously, the Vice Mayor hadn't paid much attention, feeling it unnecessary to curry favor with the leaders of the Ministry of Metallurgy over this issue.

But after reviewing the overall strength of the auto repair shop, he knew that Hongxing Auto Repair Shop, relying on the steel mill's robust worker training system, was already beginning to stand out in the city's auto repair industry. If Hongxing Auto Repair Shop could be placed under the city's jurisdiction, it would undoubtedly raise the overall level of auto repair in Beijing.

So, taking advantage of the positive atmosphere that had just ended the symposium, he jokingly brought it up with Elder Ma to test the attitude of the Ministry of Metallurgy.

When Old Ma heard Old Yue's reminder, he thought it was a bit of an exaggeration and that things wouldn't develop so quickly. He didn't expect that before the people here had even left, the leaders from Beijing had already spoken up.

"My dear Mayor, our steel mill's auto repair shop serves your capital city, so why are you making such a fuss? Does it mean that just because it belongs to our Ministry of Metallurgy, it doesn't listen to your orders? Besides, what kind of industries doesn't your capital city have? Why are you focusing on such a small factory like ours?"

"This can be considered an experiment in our metallurgical industry's self-development and self-innovation. You can't just take away all our experimental samples," Old Ma replied with a smile.

In this kind of situation, you must be firm in your refusal, but your tone cannot be too harsh. If Xu Damao were in charge, he really wouldn't be able to answer that.

The vice mayor just laughed it off when he heard what Mr. Ma said. Today he was just testing the waters; if it really came to coordinating a change in a deputy-department-level unit, it would require the approval of the highest-ranking leader.

While the two top leaders were talking, Yang Zhenhua and Li Xuewu could only watch anxiously. Fortunately, it seemed that there was no actual loss to the steel rolling mill in the end. Especially for Yang Zhenhua, if he had ruined a factory during his tenure, he would have been considered to have "lost the factory's rights and disgraced it," leaving a bad name in the history of the steel rolling mill.

One was a deputy director-general and the other a director-general. They were usually the ones who had the final say in their units, but they couldn't get a word in edgewise next to such a high-ranking leader. Their ranks seemed to be only one or two levels apart, but in reality, it was a path that many people could never walk in their entire lives.

After the meeting, the top leaders and the top two executives from other factories left one after another, with Xu Damao standing at the door with Yang and Li to see them off.

"Xiao Xu, you did a great job organizing this skills competition. You showcased the solid abilities of our steel rolling mill workers. Keep up the good work, I have high hopes for you."

When Old Ma left, he shook hands with Xu Damao and said some encouraging words to him. To Xu Damao, these words were like chicken soup for the soul—they tasted good, but only for a moment, and he forgot the taste as soon as he turned around.

But Yang Zhenhua and Li Xuewu felt differently; they were both somewhat envious of Xu Damao's luck. They had frequent contact with Old Ma and knew his temperament—he truly remembered those he favored and would continue to follow them. In crucial moments, a single word from Old Ma could even save Xu Damao more than 10 years of hard work.

Of course, no one gave Xu Damao any pointers on this; these things are best left unsaid.

After all the leaders left, there was nothing major going on here for the time being, so Yang Zhenhua and Li Xuewu left the auto repair shop. The competition here would last for three days, and some leaders would come again for the final awards ceremony.

"Old Liu, you almost screwed over everyone at our auto repair shop today. You're always trying to imitate the boss and become the boss, so why are you useless when it really matters?"

With all the outside leaders gone, Xu Damao, the monkey, was left to run the auto repair shop, so naturally he wouldn't let Liu Haizhong get away so easily.

"Ah, I don't know what happened either. I was thinking about how to talk to the boss, but when the big boss came, my mind went blank and I couldn't follow his instructions at all," Liu Haizhong said, feeling aggrieved.

He wanted to perform well in front of his superiors, hoping to rise through the ranks after being favored by them. But reality was a slap in the face. He still wants to slap himself when he thinks back on how he stuttered.

After a busy day, the finalists among the contestants have been determined, and Yan Jiecheng, a blacksmith, is among them, causing quite a stir in the Hongxing Courtyard.

As the gatekeeper of the courtyard, Yan Fugui naturally wouldn't miss such an opportunity to boast about his son. He didn't let anyone who returned to the courtyard pass by, as if Yan Jiecheng would rise to prominence in the future.

"Tch, even if Yan Jiecheng, that coward, got first place, it wouldn't matter, let alone that he didn't even get first place." Beneath the surface praise, there will always be people with different opinions in private.