A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

In the underground courtyard of a certain courtyard in Beijing.

"Those damned little devils! They're wolves in sheep's clothing! How dare they so blatantly steal our comrades' inventions!"

A burly man missing a hand became furious after hearing someone explain what a patent was.

"Heh, what's there to be afraid of? We haven't established diplomatic relations with Japan yet, so legally speaking, there's nothing we can do."

"Then let's talk about the physical aspects!" the burly man grinned maliciously.

"Dream on! Behave yourself! The Alliance is giving us enough headaches right now! Latest news: there's a lot of commotion at the Golmud Pass, and the people in the Karakoram Mountains aren't behaving themselves either. Let's focus our attention on this side first!"

"The conditions in Tianshan are too harsh. I wonder if Wang Kui has delivered that batch of goods yet." The big man sighed.

"The lead box was received yesterday, and they are now heading towards the Tianshan Mountains!"

"What, so fast!"

"Traveling through the night, the little guy's modified steering mechanism works very well, saving a lot of effort!"

"Hahaha, this is our little one!"

The burly man laughed heartily, then his expression changed, and an astonishing aura suddenly surged forth:

"Such a good kid, are you just going to let a bow-legged guy bully him?"

"Alright, stop making things worse. Send the intelligence to the brat and see what he thinks. If he's not satisfied, we'll figure something out!" The old man in the middle made the final decision.

"Oh, right, take this to him..."

Early morning, in the courtyard with the jujube tree.

Jiang Xia, who was still lazing in bed, was abruptly woken up by Jiang Dong's repeated refusals to sit down.

Jiang Dong liked to do this when he was a child.

But, little girl, you now weigh a full 30 pounds!

Jiang Xia, who almost spat out two mouthfuls of blood, suddenly rolled over and grabbed the little girl, unleashing his back scratching technique.

The little girl opened her mouth wide and started wriggling on the bed like a caterpillar. The brother and sister made a fuss for a while before getting up and going out.

Enjoying the mutton soup from last night and munching on the cornbread that Jiang Qiu steamed this morning, it was so comforting!

What should I do today?

First, I'll go to the steel rolling mill to check in, then come back and take my family to the neighborhood office to register. Oh, and this afternoon I also have to take Jiang Qiu to take the transfer student exam.

This is of utmost importance; we must not forget it.

Just as I was pondering this, there was a knock on the courtyard door.

Jiang Dong broke free from his grandmother's embrace, rushed to the door, and mumbled, "Woof!"

The knocking on the door paused for a moment: "Is Jiang Xia home? I'm here to deliver a letter to him?"

"Woof woof woof woof~~"

"Huh? I've never heard of anyone keeping dogs?"

Hearing the murmurs outside the door, Jiang Dong shouted even more enthusiastically:

"Woof woof! ~cough cough cough~~woof!"

Jiang Xia hurried a few steps, grabbed his younger sister who was acting foolishly again, and opened the courtyard gate.

A young man in a Zhongshan suit stood at attention at the door.

"Comrade Jiangxia, someone asked me to bring you a letter. Take a look at it first, I'll wait here."

"Oh, by the way, there's this."

The young man then took out a white paper package and handed it over.

Having done all this, he ignored Jiang Xia's invitation and went straight to stand aside.

Jiang Xia could only open the envelope as he walked back.

Grandma Jiang returned the Mauser pistol to her waist, took Jiang Dong from her, and gave her two light taps on the bottom: "Who's outside the door?"

"I don't know him, but he should be with Wang Kui."

Before I could even open the envelope and look at it, my grandma gave me a flick on the head.

"Milk?"

"How can we let our comrades stand outside?"

"He won't come in, but I invited him. You can ask Fifth Brother if you don't believe me!"

Jiang Dong blinked his big eyes: "Meow!"

……

Jiang Xia was speechless after reading the contents of the letter.

"I really underestimated the quality of their cups!"

But what can be done?

There is no PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) system now, so it can be said that countries are all operating independently behind closed doors when it comes to patents.

Besides, even if Jiangxia registers it, so what? Foreign countries will still copy it. At most, they'll issue a statement condemning it.

"Since they're all doing their own thing, I might as well sell the design drawings too. That way, they won't have to scribble anything on them."

Jiang Xia nodded slightly and looked at Liu Ye, who was drinking mutton soup.

Yes, Liu Ye is the one in the Zhongshan suit.

Wang Kui and his gang were all a bit awkward. They ignored Jiang Xia's polite invitations, but became as obedient as Da Huang when Grandma Jiang yelled at them.

As Liu Ye held the large bowl, he answered Grandma Jiang's everyday questions with starry eyes.

Hearing Jiang Xia ask him, he replied rather impatiently, "The leader said to do it your way!"

After saying that, he turned around and grinned widely: "Grandma, I just got married. I'll bring my wife over when I have time so you can take a look!"

Grandma Jiang smiled warmly and stuffed a handful of dried dates into her hands.

Jiang Xia's forehead veins bulged. "That's my grandma!"

"Everything has to be done my way. I asked you to get that little notebook, are you going?"

Liu Ye pondered for a moment, then replied seriously, "The city of Beijing won't do, but outside of Dalian Port it's possible. The manpower is already prepared. If that's your requirement, I can pass the order down! The standard is that they can only be injured, not killed."

Jiang Xia coughed twice, "You guys are really well prepared."

"Come on, take me to find that little notebook! Grandma, I'll go and trick you into giving me the little notebook first before going to the neighborhood committee, okay?"

Hearing Jiang Xia say that, Grandma waved her hand: "Go do your thing, I'm not stupid. Take care of yourself!"

Liu Ye finished the meat soup in two gulps, stood up, wiped his mouth, and said, "Grandma, don't worry! As long as I can still breathe, no one can hurt him!"

"Don't talk nonsense, you need to take good care of yourself! Next time you come, this old woman will teach you this!"

Grandma Jiang casually waved her hand, and an iron nail was hammered into the jujube tree.

……

Sijiucheng Hotel.

As the only hotel currently catering to foreign guests, it is essentially a state-run guesthouse. Only the central building and the west building, built in 54, remain; the east building is likely still on the design institute's blueprints.

Since it involves foreign affairs, it's not something you can just enter whenever you want.

Fortunately, Liu Ye was brought along, and with the letter of introduction from the logistics department, the two were able to enter.

Inside the magnificent lobby of the central building, there was no front desk yet. After all, guests here don't need to check in.

After a brief discussion with the staff, Junichiro finally appeared before Jiang Xia an hour later, his legs hunched over. His first question was whether the jade had returned.

Jiang Xia tossed the small bag in his hand; the bag wasn't big, and it revealed just the right amount of jade.

"No, that kid Wang Kui is probably still eating sand. I came here today because I thought I might as well sell you the blueprints as well, since you're a big client."

"It's a private transaction!"

Junichiro, who had been staring intently at the pocket in Jiang Xia's hand, snapped out of his reverie when he heard him mention a private transaction.

Private transaction? This was the first time Junichiro had ever heard this term in this era and on this land.

Could it be that this kid has some ulterior motive?

Before he could think further, Jiang Xia pulled him aside and whispered, "We did such a big deal with you, but I didn't get any benefit. Since you're so generous, how about a complete set of air fryer blueprints for 10 pounds?"