Chapter 7

After work, Lin Qiangsheng didn't wait for his father and ran back home first.

When he got home, he found that his mother Xu Hongmei was not there. He lit the stove and then prepared the meal.

Lin Qiangsheng's cooking skills were still pretty good, even though his knife skills were a bit lacking. In his previous life, he had cooked for many years and was quite proficient.

He washed his hands first, then stewed some pickled cabbage and tofu, and prepared the fish at the same time. Living by the river had its advantages; there was no shortage of fish to eat.

By the time his father Lin Xiangrong came back, the pickled cabbage and tofu were already on the table.

"Hey, when did you learn to cook?" Lin Xiangrong entered the room, looked around, and found his wife was not there. He saw his son watching the stove in the kitchen and smelled the fish cooking, and asked in surprise.

Lin Qiangsheng chuckled and said, "Mom hasn't come back yet, so I started cooking. Everyone can eat as soon as they get home."

Lin Xiangrong looked at his more sensible son and felt very pleased. He nodded and said, "Good, let's see how your cooking tastes in a bit."

Lin Xiangrong walked into the house, hung his clothes behind the door, and sighed softly, shaking his head with a smile.

His son's recent behavior had really surprised him, one surprise after another, leaving him almost overwhelmed.

When the fish was ready, his mother Xu Hongmei also pushed the gate open and came back.

"Mom, you're back." Lin Qiangsheng greeted her at the door.

Xu Hongmei put the bike in the shed, turned around, and smiled, saying, "Did your dad start cooking?"

Lin Xiangrong also came out and laughed, "No, it was my son who cooked!"

Xu Hongmei asked in surprise, "Really?!" She looked at her son in shock, wondering how he had suddenly grown so much!

"It's not that hard, just stew it and it's done," Lin Qiangsheng said casually.

Xu Hongmei smiled, patted her clothes and pants, and walked into the house.

The family sat down to eat, and Lin Xiangrong asked his wife, "How did it go? Did you get a job assignment?"

Lin Qiangsheng was also curious and looked at his mother.

Xu Hongmei smiled and said, "Of course, as soon as I explained my situation, the city bureau assigned me a job. The leaders even welcomed me back and gave me a desk."

Lin Xiangrong asked with concern, "Did they give you any specific tasks?"

Xu Hongmei laughed, "I just started today, and the leadership isn't fully in place yet. They'll assign tasks in a few days. It won't be that quick."

Lin Xiangrong nodded and said, "It's important to focus on work. If you don't do anything, it's a waste of time!"

Xu Hongmei pretended to be angry, "Go to hell, no good words! Can I be like that?"

The couple both laughed, and the family had a lively dinner.

The next day, when Lin Qiangsheng arrived at the workshop, he saw the assembled car parked in front of the spray booth.

It had been painted yesterday afternoon and should be dry after a night in the oven.

"Mr. Wang, the oven-dried paint is quite interesting, isn't it?" Lin Qiangsheng approached the spray painter Wang Shengjun and said.

Wang Shengjun looked tired, but he smiled when he saw Lin Qiangsheng, "Ha, do you think using the oven to dry paint is unreliable?"

Lin Qiangsheng shook his head, "Not at all, it's just a test car, mainly to see the effect."

Wang Shengjun laughed heartily and patted Lin Qiangsheng's shoulder hard, "Don't talk nonsense. If there's a problem with the paint, come to me."

Lin Qiangsheng swayed, wincing from the pat. He chuckled and looked at the black matte paint on the car, nodding.

Mr. Wang's spray painting skills were indeed excellent, with a very even surface and no flaws. Apart from the current matte finish, it was as good as it could be domestically. For a better finish, like a shiny metallic paint, they would have to import it.

The current car paint technology in the country couldn't even match the Soviet level.

More and more workers gathered around, all looking at the novelty. This was a car made by their factory, which was truly amazing!

"Can our auto repair factory really make cars? Does that mean we'll become a car manufacturing factory?" one apprentice asked in confusion.

"Being a car manufacturing factory would be great! Being a proper worker is also good!" another apprentice said.

"Great my ass! Where's the freedom of an auto repair factory?" Gu Hongliang sneered.

Mr. Gu turned his head, raised his hand, and hit Gu Hongliang on the head, angry, "What are you talking nonsense for? What you do is decided by the leadership, not you."

Gu Hongliang quickly dodged his father and ran to the side.

"Qiangsheng, how did you come up with this car design?" Chen Bing walked up to Lin Qiangsheng, stood for a while, and finally asked his question.

Lin Qiangsheng looked at the eager Chen Bing and smiled, "Just think hard about it, and you'll naturally have some ideas."

Chen Bing shook his head, "I do have ideas, but I can't put them together!"

Lin Qiangsheng asked in confusion, "What can't you put together?"

Chen Bing hesitated for a long time and said, "It's just... just, sigh!"

"It's just that you can't draw it," Zou Xue, who had been behind them, said with a smile.

Lin Qiangsheng said, "Oh, just practice drawing cars more often. If you can draw half a car, you can draw what's in your mind."

Chen Bing looked back at Zou Xue, turned around, and nodded silently.

Zou Xue smiled and looked at Lin Qiangsheng, her eyes shining, "Qiangsheng, do you think we can make a car? There are several old Jeeps in the yard that can't be fixed. What if we modify one? This car is just put together, right?"

Chen Bing said, "It's not that easy. This car has been re-paneled, it's a completely new body!"

Lin Qiangsheng smiled and said, "We can definitely modify a car from the Jeeps in the yard. It's called a modification, no problem."

Zou Xue said in surprise, "Really?! I was just talking."

Chen Bing also looked at Lin Qiangsheng in surprise and asked, "Can we modify our Jeeps? How?"

Lin Qiangsheng smiled and walked to the meeting room in another workshop, with Chen Bing, Zou Xue, and a few interested apprentices following him.

Lin Qiangsheng came to the table, took out a drawing from underneath.

He held a pen, thought for a moment, and then started drawing.

Chen Bing looked at Zou Xue, then watched Lin Qiangsheng carefully, trying to figure out what he would draw. He couldn't imagine how a Jeep could be modified.

Lin Qiangsheng measured and then quickly drew the four sides, setting the size of the car. Then he marked the key points to determine the proportions of the car parts.

He started with the roof, then extended it to the hood, the exhaust, and the fenders.

"Wow! You can modify it like that! Why didn't I think of it!" Chen Bing exclaimed as he saw Lin Qiangsheng gradually draw the entire Jeep.

"It looks so good! Much better than our 212 Jeep!" Zou Xue said in amazement.

The others stretched their necks to look and also exclaimed in admiration and excitement.

Lin Qiangsheng roughly finished the tires, took the drawing to a small blackboard, and fixed it with tacks.

He smiled and asked the crowd, "How does it look? Is the car okay?"

"Wow!" A series of exclamations, gasps, and smacks of approval.

Lin Qiangsheng smiled and watched as the crowd surged forward, pushing him to the side.

Chen Bing looked at the car design on the drawing, his eyes shining, and asked Lin Qiangsheng, "How do you think of these things? How can you completely change a Jeep like that?"

"Is it better or worse?" Lin Qiangsheng asked with a smile.

Chen Bing shook his head, unable to describe his feelings.

"It's more handsome!" Zou Xue said, her eyes wide as she looked at the car design.

"Ha ha ha..."

Everyone around laughed, making Zou Xue blush in embarrassment.

She glared at everyone and asked, "Qiangsheng, since you drew this car, why don't you name it?"

"Right! Qiangsheng, name the car, and we'll build it!" Chen Bing clapped his hands and said loudly.

Lin Qiangsheng looked at everyone looking at him and said happily, "I'll call it the Wrangler!"

"Oh!" Chen Bing and the others were surprised for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

Zou Xue muttered a few times and said softly, "This name doesn't sound like a car name!"

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