A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

Chapter 695: Install the defensive towers first, and wait for you to come and raid our base.

Jiang Xia's goal was clear: he wanted to quietly plant the seeds of "group-based" operation for future generations on the land of the Red Star Machinery Factory.

Today, the Hongxing Factory is vastly different in scale. Branch factories, workshops, and cooperative units bearing the "Hongxing" name have sprung up like mushrooms after rain, each undertaking different production and research and development tasks. Although nominally still under the jurisdiction of the head office, they have become self-contained in actual operation, interconnected yet relatively independent. This already possesses the rudiments of a group.

What is corporatization?

In written terms, it refers to an organizational form that integrates multiple independent legal entities (subsidiaries, branches, and affiliated companies) under unified strategic management through capital ties or contractual relationships. Its core lies in "centralized decision-making, decentralized operation, resource sharing, and risk sharing."

However, under the planned economy system of the 1960s, talking about "independent legal entities" was simply a pipe dream, and it was completely incompatible with the policies. But this did not mean that the essence could not be learned from. What he wanted to do was to explore and build a mechanism similar to a "group decision-making level" within the existing framework, a "brain" that could make the huge machine of Hongxing Factory run more efficiently.

To put it bluntly, Jiangxia aims to break free from the "big factory syndrome" and liberate its constrained productive forces!

The problems at Hongxing Factory are now clearly visible: the seeds of a "free-rider" mentality are quietly sprouting. The entire factory area resembles a slow-moving "giant octopus." Information transmission is like being stuck in a quagmire, layer upon layer; the decision-making process is even more frustratingly slow.

It's only been a short time since they changed their name!

Look at the mountain of documents piled up on Yang Youning's desk: the emergency report on equipment failure at the tractor branch factory only arrived three days ago;

The pressure cooker factory, which has attracted much attention, has its raw material inventory already saturated, yet its new application report has been placed at the top of the pile of documents due to certain "favors".

The most worrying thing is that the excavator manufacturing plant, which is just a wall away, urgently needs special hydraulic cylinders to solve its immediate problem, but its plea for help has been ruthlessly suppressed to the very bottom...

The operation has grown larger, but it's no longer the monolithic entity it once was.

We should change the management method.

…………

Under the cover of night, Minister Xia of the First Ministry of Machine Building arrived quietly at the brightly lit secret workshop of the Red Star Factory without alerting anyone.

His trip was precisely to find Jiang Xia, who was instructing Master Qin and other experienced craftsmen to rush out the equipment needed by Teacher Fangzhou.

Jiang Xia was not surprised by Minister Xia's arrival. As expected, Yang Youning, that "foolish fool," resorted to his old tricks of "crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide" to pester Minister Xia. Unfortunately for him, Minister Xia was already immune to these tactics—others had long since mastered them.

Minister Xia himself is a prime example.

"Save your breath! Garlic? That smell is too overpowering! I'm using ginger!"

Minister Xia, annoyed, pulled two slices of ginger from his sleeve and accurately smashed them onto Yang Youning's forehead, who was about to start rolling around in pain. He then dialed Jiang Xia's internal phone number.

Out of respect for and skepticism about the ideas previously put forward by Jiang Xia, Minister Xia decided to come and listen to the young man's "brilliant insights" in person.

An elderly man and a young boy strolled slowly along the main road of the factory area. The "air-powered" lights hanging high on both sides emitted a slightly cold, hard metallic light in the night, casting their shadows that were sometimes long and sometimes short.

"Yang Youning insisted on going with you to work on that audit project, and I had no objection. He's too deeply immersed in the details; it's time he was given a broader perspective to see the bigger picture. However..."

Minister Xia stopped and turned to look at Jiang Xia with a sharp gaze.

"That 'decision-making body' you mentioned? Xiao Jiang, a small factory like ours, and we still need a 'decision-making body'? That sounds... a bit overstepping! Our organizational principle is democratic centralism; the Party Committee and the Factory Committee are the decision-making bodies. Isn't that enough?"

Jiang Xia immediately grasped Minister Xia's sensitive point: Yes... not just anyone can use this word now.

"Minister, you're right. I misused my words and didn't consider things carefully. The Party Committee and the Factory Committee are certainly our core leadership forces. What I meant was not to create another team, but rather..."

Jiang Xia racked his brains and came up with a more appropriate explanation: "Is it because we feel that, given the current state of the Red Star Factory, our existing leadership style might need some... optimization? Or rather, we need a more efficient 'think tank' or 'coordination department'?"

Minister Xia patted Jiang Xia's head, and Jiang Xia's ahoge (cowlick) on his head bounced up like a spring when he let go.

Hey, that's fun. Is this what they mean by "heavy snow weighs down the green pine, yet the green pine stands tall and straight"?

Keep filming...

Under Minister Xia's seemingly forceful but actually gentle movements, the ahoge (cowlick) was repeatedly pressed down and then bounced back up...

"Remember not to use those kinds of words again! You know, it's lucky it was me, otherwise someone else might have thought you're getting cocky..."

They've definitely gotten a bit carried away...

That theory is inherently incompatible with the current planned economy. However, there's no other way; it has to be brought up.

Given the current situation, even someone as compliant as Secretary Liu strongly suggests that when Jiangxia goes down to conduct the inspection, he should ride in the infantry fighting vehicle that the original "Fourth Team Wheel" team has newly designed based on Jiangxia's blueprints.

Don't think this is unnecessary. Given people's current level of martial spirit, it would be quite normal for Jiang Xia to be shot twenty times in the back and for the investigation to conclude that he committed suicide.

I've seen how some development zones starting with the letter S can commit such outrageous acts; it's no surprise that they've been driven to suicide.

As the investigation deepened, it was foreseeable that the Red Star Machinery Factory, Jiangxia's "old nest," would be raided.

In the early 1960s, the world was a mixed bag, and one should not underestimate the ruthlessness of certain individuals.

Moreover, we should think ahead before taking any steps. If the Hongxing Machinery Plant is indeed transformed into a modern, group-oriented operation, it can maintain normal production even during windy conditions.

In this way, this most advanced machinery factory in China can serve as a baseline for maintaining the standardization of Chinese industry.

Yes, that's the crux of the matter behind Jiang Xia's somewhat outrageous remarks!

If you want to attack the enemy's crystal tower, your own fountain cannot be blocked!

Jiang Xia nodded in apology. "The current situation at our Hongxing Factory is actually a bit... a bit like a miniature, extremely complex 'large consortium.' The head office is the core, and the branch factories, workshops, and cooperating units below are the components of the consortium. They each have their own expertise and tasks, and they depend on each other. But now, all information, all conflicts, and all resource allocations are flooding towards the head office, towards Director Yang and his few colleagues, waiting for their approval and signatures. It's like..."

The two happened to walk to the small platform behind the machinery factory. Jiang Xia pointed and said, "If all the goods are piled up on one small platform and wait for the only dispatcher to direct the loading and unloading, how can there not be a traffic jam? How can the efficiency be high?"

Minister Xia tossed Jiang Xia a cigarette, and the two of them lit it together under the streetlight.

"...Hmm. As the business expands, the problems become apparent. You mentioned before that the pressure cooker factory was overflowing with materials and still submitting reports for more, while the excavator factory was running out of supplies? This kind of waste and obstruction is heartbreaking! This is definitely not a solution. So, how will your 'staff department' and 'coordination department' resolve this?"

“My idea is that, taking advantage of this audit project, we can try to establish a smoother internal mechanism. This mechanism can be temporarily called the ‘Large Consortium Coordination Group’ or the ‘Resource Optimization Committee’; the name doesn’t matter. The core lies in two points…”

Minister Xia waved his hand to interrupt Jiang Xia: "Have you forgotten what I said earlier? Don't use sensitive words!"

"Uh……"

…………

Another round of discussion ensued.

Minister Xia stubbed out his cigarette with two fingers and put the pipe in his pocket. Little Dai Mao stared in disbelief.

Hey, Minister, with your practiced movements, it's hard to imagine you being a decent person. I remember reading in a movie that people who have a habit of flicking cigarette butts are usually not good people...

Minister Xia patted his pocket: "I'm used to being a sniper, but this move was taught to me by an instructor from the Alliance..."

Oh, I see. Then there's no problem...

"Let's write a report!"

Minister Xia stopped, hands behind his back, gazing up at the twinkling stars in the night sky, then down at the solid ground beneath his feet, as if weighing something. After a long while, he slowly exhaled, a barely perceptible smile appearing on his face:

"Your idea of ​​an opportunity is flawed. Why does the absence of both the factory director and deputy director constitute an opportunity? You little rascal, you're not being honest!"

"Hehehe, with Big Yellow, the guard dog, gone, the weasel dares to come out and steal chickens!"

"Hahaha...you little rascal! You're full of tricks. That old bastard Li Changfu is afraid you'll get taken advantage of, so he seizes every opportunity to sow discord between me and me, trying to get me to help you out...I went to see him a few days ago and said a couple of bad things about you. That old bastard brought me a plate of pebbles to slurp up..."

"Oh! You saw Master? Is he alright?"

"Great...it couldn't be better! Once you finish your tasks, you might be able to see him!"

"Really?"

"Ok!"