Chapter 197: A Reward from the Organization
Whether in the chaotic end times or in this vibrant era, her daughter's inherent spirit never changed.
In the apocalypse, facing the desperate situation of running out of food, she dared to brave a horde of zombies with a rusty dagger in her hand, just to snatch back half a bag of dry rations for her sick and weak companions. The stubbornness in her eyes was like an inextinguishable fire.
Once in this peaceful place, this stubbornness takes on a different form. He would stay up late studying an old machine, and he would compete with a young man on the edge of a field to prove himself.
Even with blisters on her hands, the defiant light in her eyes when she looked up was exactly the same as when she looked up at her in the ruins back then.
Time may change everything, but the resilience and stubbornness etched into their bones are like seeds buried in the soil. No matter where they are, they will still take root and sprout, living a bold and passionate life.
Xu Zhili buried herself in her work again.
The drawings show a military off-road vehicle design based on existing technology with significant improvements.
She cleverly drew on the structural advantages of classic models from later generations, and optimized the power system, transmission structure and chassis suspension, with the goal of achieving higher horsepower, stronger off-road capability and more economical and fuel-efficient engine efficiency.
As the last precise line was drawn, she let out a long sigh of relief, feeling both exhausted and immensely satisfied.
This is already the third design scheme she has completed.
Previously, the preliminary design drawings for military transport vehicles and new fighter jets had been solemnly transferred to the technical department of the higher military region a month earlier through Ye Guowei of the county's armed forces department.
She didn't know where these blueprints would end up or how useful they would be, but she was willing to believe that every effort would not be in vain.
At first, the comrades from the county's armed forces department were skeptical when they saw these drawings. How could a rural girl understand these things?
However, after preliminary analysis by technical personnel, it was found that these designs were not only feasible, but also far exceeded the current level of technology.
As a result, her drawings were listed as "important information" and reported up the chain of command, eventually reaching the hands of experts at the military region's arsenal.
Xu Zhili blew away the pencil marks on the drawing, carefully rolled it up, and placed it with the other two copies.
Tomorrow she will go to the county again and hand these over to Minister Li of the Armed Forces Department.
Outside the window, the moon had already begun to set in the west.
"Sister Zhili! Sister Zhili! Come out quickly!"
Early in the morning, Xu Zhili was still washing up when she heard her youngest son, Tiezhu, who lived not far from her house, shouting loudly outside the yard.
She wiped her face and hurried out of the courtyard. "What's wrong, Tiezhu?"
"A military vehicle has arrived at the brigade headquarters. It looks very impressive. They said they're looking for you."
Tie Zhu's eyes sparkled with excitement.
Xu Zhili's heart stirred, and she quickly walked towards the brigade headquarters.
Along the way, many villagers were also heading in that direction, all wanting to see what the military vehicles looked like.
Sure enough, a lot of people had gathered in front of the brigade headquarters. A military green jeep was parked in the open space, and several children were wandering around the car, wanting to touch it but not daring to.
"Comrade Xu Zhili has arrived."
Someone shouted, and the crowd automatically parted to make way.
Xie Jianguo and Party Secretary Liu, two men in military uniforms, were talking at the entrance of the brigade headquarters.
Seeing Xu Zhili approaching, Secretary Wang quickly waved: "Little Xu Zhili, come here quickly, comrades from the military region's arsenal are looking for you!"
The two soldiers turned around. The older one was about forty years old, wearing glasses, and had a serious expression.
The younger one was in his early twenties, carrying a briefcase.
"You are Comrade Xu Zhili?"
The older soldier stepped forward and carefully examined the girl in front of him.
The girl was fair-skinned and had two braids. She looked like an ordinary country girl, and it was hard to imagine that those intricate design drawings came from her hand.
"I am Xu Zhili, hello, sir," Xu Zhili replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.
A hint of surprise flashed in the soldier's eyes, then he smiled: "I'm not a commander. My surname is Chen, and I'm the technical director of the military region's arsenal. This is Comrade Zhang."
The young man nodded in greeting.
Director Chen took out a folder from his briefcase. “Comrade Xu Zhili, the design drawings you submitted through the county armed forces department a few days ago have been studied by our experts.”
The crowd immediately fell silent, all eyes focused on the folder in Director Chen's hand.
Party Secretary Liu asked nervously, "Director Chen, did this girl's doodles cause trouble for the organization?"
Director Chen shook his head and suddenly gave Xu Zhili a solemn military salute: "On the contrary, Comrade Xu Zhili's design is excellent, especially the improvement plan for that military off-road vehicle. After our demonstration, it is completely feasible. It can not only improve the vehicle's performance, but also save a lot of fuel."
A gasp of surprise rang out from the crowd.
"There are also secret projects to improve the design. Although we cannot fully verify them yet, theoretical calculations show that this will significantly improve engine efficiency."
Director Chen became more and more excited as he spoke, "Comrade Xu Zhili, where did you learn all this knowledge?"
All eyes were once again focused on Xu Zhili.
She calmly replied, "Director Chen, my father was a technician in a machinery factory before he passed away. He left behind a lot of books and materials. I have loved studying these since I was a child. I also pay attention to articles in Popular Science magazine. I figured it out on my own."
She had already prepared this explanation.
Her father was indeed a technician at a machinery factory, and he did leave behind some books. Although this was far from enough to explain the source of her knowledge, it was the most reasonable explanation in an era of limited information.
Director Chen nodded thoughtfully, "Self-taught, that's rare, extremely rare."
He took an envelope from his briefcase. "In recognition of your contributions, the organization has decided to award you."
The envelope was handed to Xu Zhili; it was a thick stack of envelopes.
When she opened it, she found a full 1,100 yuan and various grain coupons and cloth coupons.
A gasp went up from the crowd.
One thousand yuan!
This was a huge sum of money in the rural areas at that time; a strong laborer couldn't earn more than 100 yuan a year!
"This...this is too much..."
Xu Zhili was genuinely surprised. She knew there would be a reward, but she didn't expect it to be so generous.
"You deserve it."
Director Chen smiled and said, "The organization hopes that you can continue to use your expertise. If you have any new design ideas, you can always pass them on to us through the county's armed forces department."
Xu Zhili gripped the envelope tightly and suddenly made a decision.
She took out two hundred yuan and some coupons and turned to Captain Xie: "Captain Xie, please give this money and coupons to the brigade headquarters. Our brigade has always wanted to dig fish ponds and plant citrus trees, right? These should be able to help."
Party Secretary Liu was equally stunned. "Zhi Li, this...this is a reward from the organization for you..."
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