As word spread, more and more people gradually gathered in the workshop. They were all highly skilled master mechanics from the factory, summoned by the factory director to see whether Gou Deshun’s female apprentice really had what it took.
“Hey, is that the girl? She looks pretty young.”
“Master Gou is taking an apprentice? The sun must be rising in the west! Didn’t he say he’d never take an apprentice in his entire life?”
“I heard this girl argued with those people in the design department and even got Master Gou’s praise.”
“Stop talking and watch. Whether she really has the skills will be clear soon enough. Besides, the director said that if she doesn’t have what it takes, she can go back where she came from.”
Everyone was talking among themselves, their eyes fixed on Shu An.
Qiu Zhenghong also arrived, accompanied by Zhu Changgeng and several workshop supervisors.
He glanced at Gou Deshun, then at Shu An, and said expressionlessly, “Master Gou, it’s not that I’m unwilling to give you face, but our factory is a major factory. We have rules for hiring new people.”
“You say this girl has real skills, so let her show us what she can do. There are ten faulty vehicles in the workshop right now, all sent over from different sections with difficult problems. Have your apprentice inspect them one by one. As long as she can identify the problems with five of them, she’ll pass my test.”
Gou Deshun turned his head and glanced at Shu An.
Seeing her master’s look, Shu An immediately stood up and said, “Director Qiu, I know my situation is making things difficult for you, but don’t worry. Forget five vehicles—even if I fail to identify just one of the ten, I won’t join your factory today!”
Her master had already stood up for her, so no matter what, she had to win back some face for him.
The moment those words came out, the crowd watching immediately erupted.
“Ten? This female comrade really dares to say that!”
“You know, no one in the factory would dare claim they could diagnose all ten faulty vehicles.”
“The director set the target at five. In my opinion, that was already making things difficult for her, yet she actually has the nerve to boast that she can diagnose all ten?”
Qiu Zhenghong was also caught off guard by Shu An’s confidence. He muttered inwardly, This girl really has some nerve.
So he said, “Fine. Originally, I was going to say that we shouldn’t bully a young comrade like you. Since you said ten, then ten it is.”
Even Gou Deshun was startled by what the girl had said.
Good grief. Even I, your master, wouldn’t dare guarantee that you could diagnose all ten, and here you are volunteering yourself!
But in the eyes of the others, it only looked like the master had complete confidence in his apprentice.
Shu An immediately grabbed her jacket and put it on, then asked, “Director, can we begin?”
Qiu Zhenghong waved his hand, and someone immediately drove a vehicle over.
The first vehicle was a light-duty truck. After Shu An asked what the reported problem was and learned that it was an engine issue, she didn’t waste any time. She picked up her tools and began inspecting it.
Without hesitation, she crawled underneath the vehicle and shone her flashlight around. Then she went into the cab and stepped on the accelerator. In less than ten minutes, she climbed back out.
“This vehicle’s distributor is worn unevenly, causing the ignition timing to be off. Just replace the distributor assembly. If the vehicle is urgently needed and there’s no replacement available, you can cut down the cam and file it with a fine file. That should keep it running for another two months.”
“Wow—!”
The crowd immediately gasped.
“Really? She found the problem in just a few minutes?”
“Let’s wait and see. Maybe she just guessed.”
Someone nearby immediately wrote down what Shu An had said so that they could have a master mechanic verify it later.
The second vehicle was pushed over. Shu An looked it over, listened to the engine, then crouched down to inspect it.
“This one is somewhat similar to the previous one. The intake manifold gasket is leaking. Replace the gasket and tighten the bolts in a crisscross pattern.”
The third, fourth, and subsequent vehicles were brought over one after another. Shu An seemed almost like she had activated a cheat code, identifying the problems with astonishing precision.
Whether it was a carburetor float chamber with an excessively high fuel level or poor insulation in the ignition coil, she was able to pinpoint the issue immediately.
At first, everyone was surprised, but as she continued, even Zhu Changgeng began to feel nervous.
Could this girl actually have no idea what she’s talking about? Is she just making things up?
She never showed the slightest frustration at being stumped by a problem. Instead, she could basically glance at a vehicle a few times and immediately name the problem.
Unable to hold back, he moved over beside Gou Deshun and whispered, “Old Gou, are you sure your apprentice is reliable? She’s rattling these diagnoses off way too smoothly. What if she’s just making things up?”
Gou Deshun rolled his eyes at him.
“Anyone who can become my apprentice has to have real skills. Do you think she’s like those idiots you gave me?”
“Hey, Old Gou, listen to yourself. How can you make personal attacks when you’re talking? Besides, they’re not idiots. They’re college graduates. College graduates!”
“Oh, college graduates? You mean students who have grown up?”
“All right, all right. I’m not talking to you anymore. Every time I do, you start making sarcastic remarks.”
Before long, Shu An finished inspecting all ten faulty vehicles. She patted the dust off her clothes and walked over to Qiu Zhenghong.
“Director, I’ve identified the problems with all ten vehicles. You can have someone verify them.”
Qiu Zhenghong took the sheet of paper covered with her diagnoses and glanced over it. Her notes were surprisingly detailed and logical.
He then turned around and said, “Master Zhang, could you take a few of the other masters and check whether what this female comrade said is correct?”
“Yes, Director.”
The other master mechanics who had been watching were also extremely curious to find out whether her diagnoses were actually correct.
They were all experienced master mechanics. Vehicles like these were usually assigned to younger workers to repair, so for them, determining whether there was a problem and whether her diagnoses were accurate was something they could tell at a glance.
After everyone finished checking the vehicles, one of them said, “Director Qiu, this female comrade is right. Every single diagnosis is correct!”
“Good!”
Someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, then started applauding.
“Clap, clap, clap!”
Applause rang out, growing louder and more enthusiastic by the second.
Shu An secretly glanced toward the crowd and was surprised to discover that it was actually her cousin, Zhao Ming.
Zhao Ming clapped enthusiastically while giving his cousin a thumbs-up, his eyes filled with pride.
Gou Deshun stood to the side with his hands behind his back, looking perfectly calm. But the curve at the corners of his mouth simply wouldn’t go away. He was afraid he might burst out laughing from sheer delight.
However, when he glanced at Qiu Zhenghong, he decided to give him some face and said, “Director Qiu, how about it? All ten, not one fewer. Can my apprentice join the factory?”
Qiu Zhenghong looked at Shu An. She really was a talented young woman.
So he said to Gou Deshun, “She can join the factory. But Master Gou, you’re the master mechanic of our factory. You can’t just train one apprentice, can you? The factory has spent so many years cultivating you. No matter what, you should train a few more master mechanics for the factory, shouldn’t you?”
The smile that had just appeared on Gou Deshun’s face immediately disappeared.
He didn’t even need to think about it to know exactly what Qiu Zhenghong was planning.