Chapter 66: It Came Out!
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Liu Shang walked quickly up to the pump.
Wang Wanlin, who was working on the pump, was at a loss and offered a kind reminder, "Engineer Liu, the pump is completely seized by a swollen part today. It can't be moved at all."
"And you're not as strong as I am!"
"If it were a normal problem, I would have fixed it long ago."
"Don't mind me telling President Song that I don't know anything; I've repaired plenty of pumps over the past few years."
"Today's problem is definitely not easy to handle, and it's filthy. You shouldn't touch it!"
Liu Shang just shook his head at the well-meaning advice, still insisting on tackling it himself, asking Wang Wanlin to assist him.
In desperation, Wang Wanlin could only sigh and step aside.
Seeing Liu Shang's "pretentious" posture as he prepared to fix the pump, Fan Song, Yang Xu, and the others jeered inwardly: *This kid is unbelievably arrogant! What makes him think he knows better? Are all the experienced people here idiots compared to him?*
Not only them, but even Xu Tiande, President Zhong, and everyone from the client's oil production plant were not optimistic about Liu Shang's chances of repairing the pump.
But they were proven wrong in an instant. Within less than a minute, the plunger that had been stuck fast—the one that hadn't budged no matter how hard everyone had tried—was suddenly pulled free by Liu Shang with a loud 'bang'.
Seeing this sudden turn of events, Wang Wanlin and the others, who had been on the verge of a nervous breakdown, subconsciously jumped up and shouted.
"Holy shit! It's out!"
"It actually came out!"
"Great! As long as the plunger can be removed, the pump can be repaired in no time!"
In an instant, their joy and excitement spread to everyone present.
Song Guangyuan, Pan Qingfeng, Zhang Zhengmao, Shen Chengcheng, Xu Tiande, President Zhong, and Han Ping, the captain of the oil production team, all surged forward, their eyes wide with a mixture of disbelief and hope.
"There are still ten minutes, ten minutes!"
"Quick, quick! Go help Engineer Liu and fix the pump!"
"Everyone not involved, step back! Get out of the way and don't get in his way!"
With the crowd's continuous shouting, the scene, which had fallen into a dead silence of despair, instantly erupted. The area became a hive of frantic, disorganized activity.
Meanwhile, under the breathless watch of Song Guangyuan, Pan Qingfeng, and the others, Liu Shang's movements were extremely concise, efficient, and crisp. Filled with a sense of power, he quickly dismantled the parts one by one and placed them neatly on the ground.
He then asked Wang Wanlin and the others to wipe them down with a clean oilcloth.
Next, Liu Shang moved to the other side of the pump body, opened the housing of the oil-loading section, and peered inside.
He couldn't help but frown. "The engine oil in here is full of impurities and sludge. It's no wonder the pump wasn't working properly!"
"Drain all this oil and replace it with new."
No one needed to give any further orders after Liu Shang spoke. Song Guangyuan and Pan Qingfeng personally took the lead.
"Didn't you hear him? Hurry up and drain the engine oil!"
"Then go get a brand new drum!"
But a single sentence from one of the workers doused their renewed hopes with a bucket of ice-cold water.
"President Song, our team doesn't have any engine oil."
"The request was submitted a long time ago, but the oil hasn't been delivered for at least two months."
Hearing this, Song Guangyuan felt his breath catch in his throat, and he nearly had a heart attack.
Pan Qingfeng stomped his foot anxiously, pointing at the pump and jabbing his finger in the air several times. "Brother Song, I have to wonder, what do the people in your company do all day?"
At this critical moment, Shen Chengcheng, the engineering contractor, remained calm and immediately directed his men, "Go, drain the engine oil from our cars!"
"We have so many vehicles; it should be enough for an emergency!"
His reminder was like a bolt of lightning. Everyone suddenly understood, and someone immediately ran to the cars to start draining the oil.
***
A few minutes later, Liu Shang returned to the pump and began re-installing the cleaned and replaced parts and plungers in the same efficient and orderly manner.
Finally, after securing the last piece, Liu Shang clapped the dust and grime from his hands. Then, under the intensely nervous gaze of everyone present, he pressed the start button.
The next moment, to everyone's immense relief, the pump roared back to life.
In terms of noise and smoothness, it was running much better than it had even before the breakdown!
A glance at the time showed there were still more than four minutes left before the inspection team was due to arrive.
At that moment, after a heart-pounding ordeal, everyone finally let out the breath they had been holding.
"You guys clean up the well site and the oil spill here."
"I'm going to wash my hands and change my clothes."
Now that the pump was repaired, there was nothing more for Liu Shang to do.
He didn't even need to give the order. Before he had finished speaking, the oil production team, who had been waiting on standby, rushed in with all their equipment.
At such a critical juncture, even Captain Han Ping himself joined the cleanup, heedless of whether his brand-new overalls would be stained with oil.
Overjoyed, Pan Qingfeng, Song Guangyuan, and the others strode over to Liu Shang, vigorously patting his shoulders and back.
"Liu Shang, good kid, great job!"
"Uncle Pan owes you a big one!"
Song Guangyuan just kept nodding. "Liu Shang, yes, you saved the company's reputation and prevented a major loss."
"Well done!"
***
Amidst the enthusiastic back-patting, Liu Shang walked into the on-site trailer with a wry smile to clean up and change.
He even had a brief suspicion that these guys were intentionally getting a little personal revenge, as their slaps were a bit too forceful.
Seeing the matter settled, Yang Xu, Fan Song, and the others who had questioned Liu Shang and waited to see him fail looked as if they had swallowed something foul.
Others who had expressed doubts, like Song Guangyuan, Pan Qingfeng, President Zhong, and Wang Wanlin, were happy but still couldn't understand how someone as young as Liu Shang, a freshman who had just passed his college entrance exams, could repair such a difficult pump.
Soon, just as everyone had finished tidying the site, the leaders and experts of the inspection team arrived as scheduled.
The subsequent inspection proceeded as expected—in an orderly, smooth fashion—and achieved excellent results.
The leaders from competing oil production plants, in particular, offered constant congratulations on the surface, but their eyes betrayed their envy and reluctance.
This only made Pan Qingfeng feel even more delighted.
In the afternoon, after seeing off the delegation, Pan Qingfeng let out an exhausted breath and then looked at Song Guangyuan and the others with a smile.
"Whew, today my nerves were on a roller coaster. One moment it was desperate, and the next, there was light at the end of the tunnel!"
"Brother Song, let's take this opportunity to find a big restaurant. Our group has to have a good drink and let off some steam."
"But our plant doesn't have that much spare cash, so you'll have to pay!"
Song Guangyuan waved his hands with a smile. "Oh, President Pan, today's trouble was due to my incompetence and poor management."
"I'm just lucky we didn't make a mistake and jeopardize your future, President Pan."
"Today's meal must be my treat. Consider it an apology to you, President Pan, and all the leaders and brothers here!"
Zhang Zhengmao smiled. "President Song, you're not incompetent."
"To have found a promising talent like Liu Shang... you truly make me envious!"
"Even now, I can't figure out how he repaired the pump so easily."
"Does that pump have a mind of its own?"
Hearing Zhang Zhengmao's words, Pan Qingfeng laughed. "Yes, yes, today's hero is Liu Shang."
"Tonight, he'll sit next to me, and he's going to have a few drinks with me!"
***
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