Gu Zhiyuan looked up and replied casually, "Harvester."
The man scratched his head, realizing he had asked a stupid question. Wasn't the mission to design a new type of harvester suitable for Jing Province?
What else can Gu Zhiyuan design?
He just chuckled and moved aside.
Lu Kai walked in and saw everyone gathered around Gu Zhiyuan. His eyes lit up, and he walked over with a smile, asking, "Old Gu, have you got any leads?"
As he spoke, he glanced casually at the blueprints in front of Gu Zhiyuan, then paused, a strange look appearing on his face: "So you've designed a harvester? We're on the same page! I also have some ideas about a new type of harvester suitable for our Jing Province—"
He stopped halfway through his sentence.
Someone nearby couldn't help but say, "What a coincidence! You two have the same idea! Let's see who comes out on top then!"
As soon as he said that, he was kicked by the person next to him, who glared at him and said, "What a clever one! You think you're the only one with a mouth who can talk?"
The silence in the room was deafening; no one dared to speak.
The veteran designer chuckled and said, "Well, it's getting late, so we won't disturb them with their design and drawing. We'll go take a look around the workshop—"
They quickly left with everyone.
Only Gu Zhiyuan and Lu Kai remained in the office.
Lu Kai's smile seemed unaffected; in fact, he leaned even closer, as if he felt he shared a common language with Gu Zhiyuan: "Do you think the same way I do? I've seen it in the countryside; harvesting is much harder. If we could design a harvester suitable for rice, it would greatly reduce the burden on farmers!"
Gu Zhiyuan didn't speak; the only sound was the pen scratching across the drawing paper.
Lu Kai put on quite a show, first explaining his theories and ideas, citing several examples from books, such as this one and that one.
Later, she inquired about Gu Zhiyuan's design progress: "It looks like yours is only in its initial stages. You need to hurry. We don't have much time, only three months. More than ten days have already passed! This is just the exterior design; the internal structure design is the real highlight!"
...
After Gu Zhiyuan finished the last stroke, he looked up at Lu Kai and said only one sentence: "Since we are designing the same type of product, have you forgotten to avoid suspicion?"
As she spoke, she gestured with her pen for Lu Kai to stand further away.
Lu Kai was taken aback, then quickly recovered and gave him a look that said, "How could you say that?" He continued, "We're colleagues, and we're both trying to help farmers reduce their burden! Why say such things? Besides, even though my A03 project wasn't as good as yours, I still have my professional ethics and dignity, okay? Moreover, I've already started the internal structural design, far ahead of your schedule! What do you mean by that? Are you implying that I've been peeking at your drawings?"
"I just wanted to talk to you more, hoping we could spark some inspiration! I didn't expect you to misunderstand! I know you've been holding a grudge against me because of the conflict between my daughter Pearl and your son, Xiao Xu. But let's keep business separate from personal matters, we can't mix them up, can we..."
It was as if he had been wronged.
Gu Zhiyuan frowned, unsure how to describe his feelings and Lu Kai's behavior.
I just feel strange, an indescribable discomfort, but I can't pinpoint where the discomfort comes from.
However, he was too lazy to waste words with Lu Kai. No matter how friendly Lu Kai acted, in his eyes, Lu Kai was treacherous and cunning, and that he was just putting on a good show.
Everyone says Lu Kai is gentle and mild-mannered, but Gu Zhiyuan, who is he? After only two brief interactions, he could tell that Lu Kai's so-called gentleness and mild-manneredness were just a protective facade.
At this moment, these words seem to have hit a nerve, prompting an eagerness to distance oneself and offer explanations.
As the little girl in the house would say, people who sleep in the same bed can't be two different people! The fact that Lu Kai could take a liking to Xu Zhenzhu and insisted on marrying her proves that they are cut from the same cloth.
He said that Xu Ningyan was absolutely right!
So he simply tapped the table with his pen and said, "In that case, remember to stay away from me and my drawings, thank you!"
With just a few words, Lu Kai's expression changed.
Lu Kai gritted his teeth, barely managing to keep his face from contorting, and managed to put on a look of being misunderstood and helplessly unable to explain himself.
Unfortunately, there were only the two of them in the room. After saying this, Gu Zhiyuan lowered his head again, his efforts were in vain.
Just as I was about to say something, the phone on the table rang.
Lu Kai was closer and answered the phone without thinking. After hearing what was said on the other end, Lu Kai's expression changed, and he looked at Gu Zhiyuan in surprise: "He's here. I'll let him answer the phone right away."
After saying that, he turned to Gu Zhiyuan and said, "Old Gu, I got a call from the department store. Your little Xu is in trouble—"
Gu Zhiyuan suddenly stood up, took a few steps around the table, stepped in front of Lu Kai, and almost snatched the phone away.
"Hello, I am Gu Zhiyuan."
A strange voice came from the other end of the phone: "Are you Comrade Xu Ningyan's wife? Comrade Xu went to the countryside for an inspection and had an accident in the Yanchi Production Team under the Hongxing Commune. Now she's missing—"
Gu Zhiyuan's brow twitched, but he steadied himself: "What exactly happened? What's the situation now?"
"Come to our department store quickly. Our supply and marketing section chief, Mr. Li, is on his way to the Yanchi production team. If you make it in time, you can come with him..."
Before he could finish speaking, Gu Zhiyuan hung up the phone decisively, stuffed the blueprints on the table into the drawer, and walked out.
Lu Kai followed behind, asking, "Old Gu, what happened? What's wrong with Comrade Xu? Do you need our help?"
Gu Zhiyuan ignored him.
They happened to run into Lin's father, who, seeing Gu Zhiyuan's hurried appearance and hearing Lu Kai's question, immediately sensed something was wrong: "What's wrong? Did something happen to Xiao Xu?"
Gu Zhiyuan nodded to Lin's father: "Director Lin, I need to ask for leave! I just received a call from the department store. My daughter, Aning, had an accident in the countryside and is missing. I need to go with their department store vehicle to the place where the accident happened—"
Knowing the gravity of the situation, Mr. Lin's expression immediately turned serious: "This is a matter of life and death, so go quickly! Don't worry about the factory. If anything happens or if you need anything, just call the factory!"
Gu Zhiyuan gave a perfunctory reply, ran downstairs, got on his bike, and quickly disappeared from sight.
Lin's father sighed, his heart filled with worry. He stared blankly in the direction Gu Zhiyuan had gone, hoping that Gu was alright.
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