Chapter 114: Technical Features of the Fourth-Generation Accord

Under Zhao Siyan’s strange, alien-gazing stare, Zhao Guoyang could only feel helpless. He muttered inwardly, If I’d known she would be like this, I never would have reminded her. Not even a thank-you—just a whole string of questions.

Zhao Guoyang had no desire to keep dwelling on the matter, but Zhao Siyan was not about to let it go.

As the mustached man began asking the second question, she lightly jabbed Zhao Guoyang with her elbow. “Quick, quick! Listen carefully to the question and tell me the answer!”

Zhao Guoyang rolled his eyes and said, thoroughly speechless, “Comrade Zhao Siyan, haven’t you already won a brooch? Why are you still—”

“What do you mean? I’m not doing this for myself. The two of us came here together, so wouldn’t it be nice if we each got one?” Zhao Siyan pouted, her voice carrying a hint of reproach.

After being rebuked by the girl, Zhao Guoyang seemed unable to find any grounds for argument. He could only fall silent and listen to the mustached man’s question.

The second question was somewhat more difficult. He asked which generation the Honda Accord had reached and what technical features the newest Accord possessed.

If the auto show had been held in a Western country, the question would not have been particularly challenging.

After all, the Accord was Honda’s flagship model, a legendary car that sold extremely well in Western countries and enjoyed a broad customer base.

But to the visitors present, the question was exceedingly difficult.

One had to remember that in the early 1990s, Honda had not yet established any joint-venture plants in China. Most Honda vehicles seen domestically were fully imported.

Some people might have heard of the brand, but asking them to name the generation of its best-selling model and describe its technical features was plainly asking too much.

In truth, the mustached man had never expected anyone to answer. He had merely wanted to pose the question himself and then provide the answer, giving his own company a little extra publicity.

What nobody could have imagined, however, was that among the people present stood someone whose knowledge of Honda automobiles had reached an astonishing level—one that even surpassed the mustached man’s own.

After the man asked the question in Japanese, Zhao Guoyang glanced at Zhao Siyan, who was looking at him expectantly, and answered casually, “The Accord is now in its fourth generation. Its key technologies include four-wheel steering, the SRS driver airbag system, and, on the engine side, the use of an engine equipped with a two-stage balancing shaft…”

As Zhao Guoyang whispered to Zhao Siyan and pointed her toward the right answer, Li Kejian, Fang Xuesen, and the others had already arrived under the guidance of the staff. They stood silently, watching him.

…

Earlier, while Zhao Guoyang and Zhao Siyan had gone out to make a phone call, Wang Ziqing and Liang Xiaofeng had recounted Zhao Guoyang’s astonishing remarks from the previous day to several senior officials in full detail.

After hearing them out, both Huang Zhigang, the mayor of Songjiang, and Ji Chongxuan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a doctoral supervisor at Peking University, had exchanged bewildered glances, unable to believe their ears.

Fang Xuesen and Li Kejian, meanwhile, had looked at each other, their expressions growing even more solemn.

Mayor Huang, who had originally harbored some doubts about Zhao Guoyang’s abilities, now wanted more than anyone to meet him.

After failing to find him for half the morning, he had nearly ordered someone to call for him over the public-address system.

At long last, they had found the man himself. The senior officials had just been preparing to have someone “drag” him over so they could question him properly when, to their surprise, the fellow had become so engrossed in participating in someone else’s event that the leaders could not make heads or tails of him.

Wang Ziqing had initially wanted to call Zhao Guoyang over, but Li Kejian signaled that it was unnecessary. Instead, he mingled with the crowd with considerable interest, eager to see how the young man would perform.

Ji Chongxuan was fluent in Japanese. After hearing the mustached man’s first question, he had assumed that Zhao Guoyang and Zhao Siyan would certainly be unable to answer it.

Who could have expected Zhao Siyan to respond with such ease? Everyone had been startled. There was no doubt about it—the credit had to belong to Zhao Guoyang.

Li Kejian turned to Wang Ziqing. “Ziqing, who is that girl?”

Wang Ziqing froze for a moment, then quickly replied, “Elder Li, she is Zhao Siyan, a graduate student at the School of Mechanical Engineering of Jinling University of Technology. She came to the exhibition with her adviser, Professor Zhu Maotao, and she is also a member of our Jiangnan Provincial delegation…”

“Oh, she’s Maotao’s student.” Li Kejian nodded and continued watching.

When the mustached man put forward his second question and Zhao Guoyang once again began “imparting knowledge” to Zhao Siyan, the spectators were utterly dumbfounded.

As the beautiful interpreter began relaying the question, Ji Chongxuan could not help turning his eyes toward his old friend beside him.

“I say, Old Li, this young fellow you’ve taken a liking to is quite a freak! Even I wouldn’t dare claim I could answer this question correctly with absolute certainty. Yet look at him—he seems completely confident, as though it were nothing at all! This… this is simply monstrous!”

Li Kejian had no mind to answer him. He gave a vague “Mm” and said, “Old Ji, don’t interrupt. Why don’t we just listen to the boy’s answer?”

Ji Chongxuan gave a mocking laugh and turned to Mayor Huang and Director Fang. “Old Li has studied foreign automobile performance more extensively than anyone else. He certainly has the standard answer to this question. Now we’ll see whether this young fellow can measure up!”

Mayor Huang Zhigang nodded slightly, his eyes shining as he addressed Fang Xuesen. “Director Fang, whether or not Zhao Guoyang can answer this question, Songjiang is determined to have this talent. Director Fang, you must do me this favor. Please, be willing to let him go…”

Fang Xuesen seemed to have anticipated that Mayor Huang would say this. He replied directly, “Mayor Huang, this isn’t something we can decide ourselves. The young man belongs to Jiangnan Province. Even if the Machinery Industry Commission wants to transfer him, we still have to follow the proper procedures.”

At this, Huang Zhigang’s gaze fell upon the timid Wang Ziqing standing nearby.

No matter how bold Wang Ziqing might have been, faced with someone several ranks above him—the imposing authority of a mayor of a directly administered municipality—he would never have dared say no.

Liang Xiaofeng, who was following behind Huang Zhigang, fanned the flames. “Mayor, you may not know this, but I already asked Director Wang yesterday to release him to us. Director Wang, however, rejected me without even blinking…”

Under Mayor Huang’s piercing stare, Wang Ziqing steadied himself and said respectfully, “Mayor Huang, this matter mainly depends on what Zhao Guoyang himself wants. The reason I turned down Director Liang so firmly yesterday was that Little Zhao’s position was very clear…”

Wang Ziqing was just preparing to explain himself properly when the beautiful interpreter finished stating the question.

The moment she stopped speaking, Zhao Siyan raised her hand. “I know the answer!”

When the beautiful interpreter saw that Zhao Siyan had seized the opportunity again, her expression darkened slightly.

In her opinion, even someone from inside Honda might not necessarily have been able to answer Mr. Okamoto’s question.

And yet this young girl, who at most possessed some general knowledge of Honda, had the audacity to snatch the question. What an utter lack of self-awareness!

Though she was deeply displeased, the interpreter still nodded courteously at Zhao Siyan and invited her onto the stage to answer.

Zhao Siyan turned back and glanced at Zhao Guoyang. She blinked at him, then walked onto the stage brimming with confidence.