Dinner table meeting

  "You want to go to Labor Service Company as a manager?" Yang Xin looked at Lin Zhenhua with an incredulous gaze, and couldn't help but want to touch his forehead to see if he had a fever.

  "Right, what's wrong? Don't I look like a manager?" Lin Zhenhua raised his head and struck a cool pose. However, he was still holding a wok spoon in his hand, cooking, and his glorious image had been discounted by at least 20%.

  Yang Xin pouted and said: "You made such a big decision, why didn't you discuss it with me first?"

  "Hmm..." Lin Zhenhua was somewhat tongue-tied. Normally, such matters should be discussed with some close relatives, but he knew that his thinking was too advanced to be explained clearly to people from the past. It wasn't an easy task. Rather than trying hard to explain, it's better to act first and report later. After all, once things are done, others won't say anything. As someone had said: The winner is not criticized.

  "Little Hua, do you know how troublesome it is to work in a service company?" Yang Xin advised with a bitter tone, "Including your several brothers, such as Zhao Yongqun and Chu Hongyang, they are not easy to manage in the service company. The original manager Lei Yourong worked for only one year and then quit, going back to the labor department as deputy director, because these young people were too difficult to manage."

  "Are there any symptoms?"

  "Yes, it involves division of labor, attendance, bonuses, and all these things that everyone will quarrel about. Some people are careless when doing things, but when it comes to bonuses, they won't even give up a single cent. Before you retired, the Labor Service Company had already fought several times over the distribution of funds. Later, the factory simply cancelled the bonuses in the company, and because of this matter, Shi Guojun and Cao Wengang and others went to find the factory director to make trouble several times."

  "I know Shi Guojun and Cao Wenqiang," said Lin Zhenhua, "These two are also old enough, they should be at an age where they understand things?"

  "They are two educated youths who have just returned from the countryside, and they often stir up trouble with a group of fellow educated youth friends. They even came to me, saying that the factory is bullying the good and fearing the evil, and that we must make trouble. Now, only Director Zhu can keep them under control."

  Lin Zhenhua laughed: "It seems that ghosts are also afraid of evil people. Old Zhu still has a bit of bad luck."

  Yang Xindao said: "Director Zhu is a man without private motives, handling affairs impartially, and Shi Guojun and the others also respect him."

  "Hmm, this is an experience, evil cannot suppress justice." Lin Zhenhua said.

  "Xiao Hua Ge, isn't it good enough for you to stay in the technical department? Why must you become this manager?"

  "Yang Xin, these days, I've been thinking that people living in the world can't just think about their own comfortable life, they also need to do something for the people around them, and it's best if they can also do something for the country. I feel that our labor service company is really poorly managed, it's completely a parasite, only knowing how to suck blood from factories. These over 100 young people, no matter what they do, should be able to make a living."

  "But..." Yang Xin was moved by Lin Zhenhua's grand words, and she suddenly felt that her little brother should be the kind of person who does great things. However, can a labor service company established to arrange jobs for unemployed young people be considered a great undertaking?

  "Xiao Hua, what are you planning to do?" Yang Xin asked.

  "No rush, let's wait for Hong Yang and the others to come and discuss it together."

  Two people were talking, when Chu Hongyang and others came over with their shoulders leaning on each other. Seeing Yang Xin and Lin Zhenhua standing in the small kitchen chatting, everyone raised their eyebrows and exchanged some sly expressions.

  "Everyone is here, let's start the meeting." Lin Zhenhua announced.

  "Have a meeting?" Zhao Yongqun asked in confusion, "Xiaohua, didn't you say have dinner?"

  "I also think it's time for dinner, this stir-fried meat smells so good." Chu Hongyang echoed.

  "This dish shouldn't be called stir-fried meat slices, it should be called tenderloin. It's this piece of meat..." Peng Shaozhe, who was good at investigation, pressed his hand on Chu Hongyang's ribcage and said: "This is the tenderest part of pork."

  "Where are you pressing? If you want to press, you should press Yongqun's. He looks more like a pig." Chu Hongyang protested.

  "Xiao Hua, are we having a meeting or dinner?" Zhao Yongqun asked. "If it's dinner, we'll stay. If it's a meeting, you and Yang Xin can handle it, we won't disturb you."

  "Eating while meeting, neither delaying the other. Americans have roundtable meetings, we have dinner table meetings." Lin Zhenhua said, "You've all heard, I'm now the manager, from now on your salaries will be issued by me, so you'd better behave yourselves."

  "Got it!" replied Chu Hongyang, pointing at Zhao Yongqun: "Yongqun, you're in charge of serving the dishes. Shaozhe, since you're cultured, write a speech draft for Manager Lin. Yang Xin, just bear with it and be in charge of fanning Manager Lin."

  "Pfft!" Yang Xin's face turned red as she spat out a mouthful, thanks to Lin Zhenhua, her relationship with Chu Hongyang and the others was also very good, so she could still accept this kind of extremely risqué joke.

  To make Chu Hongyang and others come willingly, Lin Zhenhua really made a few dishes, a table full of fish and meat, which was comparable to the standard of ordinary people's festivals. Chu Hongyang and others would not be polite with Lin Zhenhua, and they ate three bowls of rice per person, only then did they pat their bellies contentedly and stop eating.

  "Xiao Hua, it's all right now, you can start the meeting." Chu Hongyang announced.

  Lin Zhenhua pointed to the empty plate on the table and asked: "How was the meat, everyone?"

  Zhao Yongqun disdainfully rebuked: "Nonsense! Is this even worth asking?"

  Lin Zhenhua asked again: "Do you want to eat it every day?"

  Zhao Yongqun's eyes lit up: "How about it, have you finally agreed to treat us to a big meal every day?"

  Lin Zhenhua gave him a glance and said, "What does the song say? Cherries are delicious but hard to plant, without hard work flowers won't bloom. Happiness won't fall from the sky, socialism can't be waited for. You want to eat meat every day, you have to create it yourself, understand? Create."

  Peng Shaozhe said: "Xiaohua, what do you mean? I'm a bit confused. Is what you're saying related to your being the manager?"

  Lin Zhenhua said: "Of course there is a relationship. I invited you all today just to share with you my ideas."

  "Hmm, let's talk about it." The three of them responded in unison. Ever since they heard that Lin Zhenhua had volunteered to be the manager of the labor service company, a question had been lingering in their minds - what was Lin Zhenhua thinking? In their opinion, after Lin Zhenhua returned from serving in the army, he had changed greatly and was no longer like the little troublemaker who used to skip school and get into fights.

  Lin Zhenhua said: "Everyone knows that since last year, our country has put forward the slogan of reform and opening up. The traditional big pot rice will definitely be broken. In the future society, it will be a real case of more work and more pay, less work and less pay. You now get only 24 yuan and 5 mao per month, this salary is not enough to get married and have children, let alone support yourself. Why? It's because our labor service company management is rigid, does not emphasize business operations, the company can't make money, relying solely on factory subsidies, of course there's no money to be divided."

  Chu Hongyang nodded: "That's right, I heard from my dad that the factory's profits this year were all given to the service company, and they couldn't even give out the Double Over Half Award."

  Lin Zhenhua continued: "In view of this situation, I proposed to the factory that I would take over the service company and operate it independently. My goal is to double everyone's salary within a year. What do you say, are you willing to follow me?"

  "Really?" Zhao Yongqun's eyes widened, "You mean I can get a salary of 50 yuan per month?"

  "At least double it," said Lin Zhenhua.

  "Haha, if that's the case, then it's awesome. My salary is not much less than my dad's, and I can finally stop him from showing off in front of me every day."

  Peng Shaozhe shook his head: "Xiaohua, don't think things are that simple. What do you plan to do? How can you earn so much money?"

  Lin Zhenhua spread his hands and said: "I don't know either. My idea is very simple: whatever makes money, do it."

  Chu Hongyang said, "I agree with what Xiaohua said. My dad is in the supply and marketing department, and often has township enterprises from Zhejiang come to find him to discuss business. The people of Zhejiang are like this, they do whatever makes money. Sometimes I think, if we could also be like this, maybe we wouldn't necessarily lose out on making money."

  Lin Zhenhua clapped his hands and said, "That's right, Hong Yang has hit the nail on the head. In fact, there is money everywhere in society, it's just a matter of whether we have the sensitivity to earn it. Now is an era of material scarcity, as long as you produce something, you can sell it out, and we are guarding a machinery factory, but still can't make money, isn't this a strange thing?"

  Zhao Yongqun listened to Lin Zhenhua's mouthful of terms and felt a bit dizzy. He turned his head and asked Peng Shaozhe in a low voice, "How do you write 'chā'?"

  Peng Shaozhe dipped his finger in water and wrote a "chui" character on the table. Zhao Yongqun stuck out his tongue: "I've seen this character before, I always read it as something strange happening."

  "Attention, no whispering when the leader is speaking." Lin Zhenhua slapped his hand on the table, his face stern with warning.

  Zhao Yongqun smiled and said: "Xiao Hua, I know you have skills. Actually, you don't need to hold any meetings. Just tell us a few people what you plan to do?"

  Lin Zhenhua said: "I think this way, we want to make money, we must set our sights outside the factory, and cannot rely on making money from within the factory. This kind of money is not honorable either. To aim at the outside, we must have our own products, as for what specific products, I still need to go to the market to understand further. However, some basic work needs to start now, I have already made a request to the factory department, and the factory department agreed to give us the land behind the garage, about 4 mu, we want to build our own factory building there."

  "Build a factory!" The three of them were stunned, "Xiao Hua, isn't this a bit too much?"

  "Not at all big." Lin Zhenhua said, "We need to produce our own products, how can we not have a venue? The factory has its own production tasks. If we occupy the factory's site, we will be subject to others. So, I think it is necessary to build our own factory first. In fact, it's not that complicated, just a big shed would do. As long as it can hold equipment and materials, it's fine."