Chapter 27
In fact, Xu Zhenguo's sigh and Luo Mei's rage were not only due to Xu Chen's imprisonment, but also had a deeper reason. While Li Muxue and Xu Chen focused all their energy on the college entrance examination, a major turning point in their lives, the city they lived in was also quietly undergoing a tremendous change that caught everyone off guard.
This city, once known as the heavy industrial base of New China, resembles an old steel beast crouching on the northern plains. Its breath was once the thick smoke rising from countless chimneys; its pulse was once the boiling molten iron in its smelters. Decades ago, it was the pride of the Republic's industry, a symbol of quality and power. Blast furnaces glowed red against the sky, and the roar of machine tools was the city's most vibrant background noise.
However, time is the most merciless grinder.
In November 1999, more than six months before Xu Chen's college entrance examination, the early winter sunset painted the sky a desolate red. The wind whistled through the bare treetops, like someone weeping softly. In the red brick building housing the family members of Huaxing Machinery Factory, Li Muxue sat at the dining table, holding a bowl of noodles with soybean paste, her gaze unconsciously drifting to the window.
From afar, you can see the machine factory's iconic water tower, which now appears particularly lonely. It once overlooked the bustling factory area, but now it only reflects the broken bricks and weeds scattered on the ground.
"Mom, are you getting used to your new job? If it's really not working out, you could try working at Dad's auto repair shop. He says it's doing pretty well there..." Li Muxue's voice was timid, trembling as she tentatively probed her mother's emotions, because she knew her mother was in a very bad mood right now...
Sure enough, Qiao Kexin's reply was tinged with annoyance: "Go to a car repair shop? Do you know how to fix cars? Alright, stop asking about adult stuff. Focus on your studies and prepare for the college entrance exam!"
Qiao Kexin's frustration stemmed from two words: being laid off.
Huaxing Machinery Factory officially ceased production a month ago...
"Buzz..." Before, even before reaching the factory gate, one could hear the deep hum of the machine tools running in the workshop. The sound was deafening, full of power, and was a familiar background sound for the workers. But now, there is only the howling of the wind blowing through the empty factory area, and the occasional clanging sound of something collapsing coming from the cracks in the iron gate.
The factory gates, those two dark gray iron doors, are now tightly shut, like a mouth that wants to shout but can't make a sound. The large gold characters "State-owned Huaxing Machinery Factory" on the lintel have lost their luster, covered with a thin layer of dust, and some strokes have even peeled off, revealing the dull metal underneath.
As the wave of state-owned enterprise reforms swept through this heavy industrial city in the late 1990s, factories closed down and relocated one after another. Hundreds of thousands of workers lost their secure jobs overnight and were forced to find their own way to make a living. This was the inspiration for Liu Huan's "Starting Over," a song that was very popular at the time...
When Li Muxue heard from her mother that Huaxing Machinery Factory had ceased production, she was somewhat incredulous. So she decided to spend her weekend off visiting the former workshops, factory buildings, machine tools, and…
Li Muxue still remembers that afternoon when she sneaked into Huaxing Machinery Factory. There were no guards at the gate anymore, and she easily crossed the empty square and pushed open the heavy iron gate.
Time seemed to stand still in the workshop. The massive machine tools stood silently, like the skeletons of prehistoric beasts. The air was thick with the smell of machine oil and rust—a familiar scent to Li Muxue, the scent of her parents. Parts and tools lay scattered on the floor, as if the workers had only left temporarily and would soon return to continue their unfinished work. But she knew they wouldn't come back.
Her fingers gently brushed across the control panel of a machine tool, on which her father's name, "Li Junsheng," was engraved. This machine had once been her father's pride; he had worked there for over a decade, training more than a dozen apprentices. Now, it was just a pile of scrap metal.
"Muxue, what are you doing here?"
Li Muxue turned around and saw Xu Chen standing at the workshop door, his figure appearing particularly slender in the backlight.
"Let me take a look," she said softly. "My mom said these machines are going to be removed next month."
Xu Chen walked over and stood beside her. The two young people seemed so small in this vast space.
Xu Chen remembered that when he was a child, his father, Xu Zhenguo, would wear blue overalls and thick gloves, and when he came home from work, he always smelled of machine oil and metal shavings. Back then, his father stood ramrod straight, his eyes filled with the pride of being a "Huaxing worker." But that look disappeared when he became the foreman of the third workshop, replaced by a greedy, desire-filled gaze.
“Look, that gantry planer…” Li Muxue’s voice trembled slightly as she pointed to the enormous machine that stood alone on an empty plot of land in the factory area.
It was a massive gantry planer, once the "big guy" of the workshop, capable of processing enormous workpieces. Now, it lay there quietly, its massive body covered in dust and fallen leaves. Sunlight streamed through the skylight in the workshop ceiling, casting a dim glow on its bed. The machine's guideways were covered in rust and debris, and the once nimble tool post now stood motionless like a frozen sculpture. Without lubrication, the metal joints emitted a dry, grating groan, as if they might crack at any moment.
“My mom said that the last batch of machines in the factory will be taken away soon. So I want to see them one last time.”
Li Muxue's voice was very low...
Xu Chen remained silent. He recalled his father, Xu Zhenguo, sitting under the dim light, chain-smoking. In the swirling smoke, his father's face appeared exceptionally tired and lost. On the table lay a document; the words "production halted" and "restructuring" pierced Xu Zhenguo's eyes like needles.
Once, this factory area was a symbol of vitality and a source of hope. Workers, dressed in uniform overalls, rode bicycles, forming a torrent during rush hour, the loud ringing of bicycle bells the rhythm of the city. The aroma of food wafted from the canteen, and the club showed movies on weekends... It was a life filled with a strong sense of collective honor and belonging.
Now, only silence and desolation remain. Rusty iron, dusty machines, empty workshops, and workers who, like their parents, have suddenly lost their sense of direction…
(To be continued)
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