industrial overlord

Chapter 303 The boss stepped aside

Lin Zhenhua found Cao Shulin's home according to the address Cao Shulin had left him a few years ago.This is a row of bungalows located in the family area of ​​the factory. Like the Hanhua Machinery Factory in the past, there are some small kitchens, storage rooms and chicken coops in front of the bungalows. Groups of reed chickens come and go in front of and behind the houses. Food, what an idyllic scene.

The day when Lin Zhenhua arrived happened to be Sunday, and a group of children were playing some kind of game outside, singing in tune while playing:
"We workers have power, hey we workers have power
Every day is busy, hey, every day is busy..."

Hearing this song, Lin Zhenhua smiled knowingly. He remembered that Cao Shulin sang this song on the viewing platform next to the Tiananmen Gate a few years ago.Cao Shulin also said at the time that this was the only song he could sing.It seems that this old Cao sang a lot at home, and he also sang with the children around him.

Lin Zhenhua was about to arrest a leading child to ask which room Cao Shulin's family lived in, when he heard an angry curse from a door: "Stop singing, sing something else!"

Lin Zhenhua heard the voice sound familiar, and walked towards that house with a thought.Walking to the door, I heard a female voice inside persuading me: "Shulin, what are you doing, the child is having fun, what's the point of singing some songs?"

"Sing nothing, don't sing this, I'm tired of listening to it." said the previous voice.

"Didn't you say you liked this the most?"

"That was in the past, I'm fucking annoyed when I hear this song now. Our workers have the power of fucking farts! Alas..."

With a sigh, Cao Shulin came out from the door.He stood by the door with a cigarette in his hand, his brows were tightly furrowed, and he looked at the group of children in a daze, without saying a word.Lin Zhenhua saw that Cao Shulin's body was still so strong, but his expression was completely different from three years ago, as if his soul had been taken out.

"Old Cao!" Lin Zhenhua stepped forward to greet him.

Cao Shulin turned his head inadvertently. When he saw Lin Zhenhua, he was stunned for a moment, and then a warm smile appeared on his face: "Xiao Lin? Ah, no, Manager Lin, why are you here? Hurry up, please come to the room sit."

Before Lin Zhenhua could say anything, Cao Shulin dragged him into the room and forced him to sit down on a sofa.As expected of Cao Shulin's background as a porter, he had great strength and nimble movements, and Lin Zhenhua didn't even have a chance to be polite.After making Lin Zhenhua sit down, Cao Shulin pulled his stunned wife over and said to her, "Tianxia, ​​let me introduce you. This is Manager Lin, Lin Zhenhua, Jiangnan Hanhua Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd." The deputy general manager of the company is capable! I told you."

Afterwards, he introduced his wife to Lin Zhenhua and said, "Manager Lin, this is my wife, He Tianxia, ​​a housewife, uneducated, uninformed, and unproficient, a typical three-no product."

He Tianxia punched Cao Shulin reproachfully, and then said to Lin Zhenhua, "Manager Lin, don't listen to his nonsense, I'm more educated than him. I work in the National Cotton Factory as a car operator."

"Put it down, your factory hasn't paid wages for several months, and you're still blocking the workers." Cao Shulin pretended to be contemptuous and said.

"Hello, hello? Isn't your factory only open for half the wages? Our factory even gave out 200 meters of cotton cloth. Is that not money?" He Tianxia refused to give up an inch of land. The dilemma they are facing can also be heard from the conversation between the couple.The couple are both employees of state-owned enterprises. In recent years, many state-owned enterprises have had a hard time. It is not uncommon for them to be paid in kind instead of wages.

"Old Cao, sister-in-law, I'm here to see you." Lin Zhenhua hastily opened his mouth to save the two from continuing to quarrel.

Only then did Cao Shulin stop attacking his wife. He waved to He Tianxia and said, "Tianxia, ​​go kill a chicken and let Manager Lin have dinner at home at noon today."

He Tianxia also seemed to realize that it was inappropriate to expose her family's ugliness in front of the guests. She smiled apologetically to Lin Zhenhua, and went out to arrange lunch.Although life at home is tense, a sumptuous lunch cannot be saved when guests from afar come.This was the period when state-owned enterprises had just lost, and workers still retained a certain reserve, or self-esteem.

After He Tianxia went out, Cao Shulin sat down opposite Lin Zhenhua and handed Lin Zhenhua a cigarette.Lin Zhenhua waved his hand, indicating that he would not smoke.Cao Shulin nodded and said, "By the way, I remembered, you don't know how to smoke. Well, Manager Lin, why did you come to Qingdao?"

Lin Zhenhua said: "Old Cao, my butt is still hot, you have already called me Manager Lin eight hundred times, I remember, you used to call me Xiao Lin."

Cao Shulin hesitated for a moment, then smiled self-deprecatingly, and said, "At that time, I was so crazy, I always thought I was a model worker, and I really didn't pay attention to a manager. Now it's no different than in the past."

Cao Shulin said these words in a calm manner, but Lin Zhenhua heard it, but his heart was full of displeasure.He said softly: "Old Cao, I don't care how you call others. If you still regard me as a friend, then call me Xiaolin. I told you that I was also a porter. If you I'll take it as Manager Lin, so I'll turn around and leave."

Cao Shulin smiled and said, "Okay, I'll call you Xiao Lin. In fact, I have always known that you Xiao Lin is a loyal person. During the Model Workers' Meeting, you didn't regard yourself as a manager. You talked with ordinary workers like us every day. Mixed together. We Shandong people like to make loyal friends."

"Old Cao, I heard you and sister-in-law talking just now, it seems that both of your factories are not working?" Lin Zhenhua asked.

Cao Shulin sighed, and said: "Isn't it impossible? The products in the factory are aging, and the leaders are focused on reforming, not focusing on production. People's township enterprises are small and easy to turn around. We produce whatever is lacking in the market. We are the third In the same way, things that were clearly unsalable were still produced continuously, and as a result, all the stocks were backlogged, and finally the factory collapsed. Now the factory has no working capital, and production has completely stopped. We all stay at home and take half of the money. salary. There seems to be a term called laid-off.”

Lin Zhenhua nodded. The word laid-off has just entered people's field of vision. After a few years, it will become a word that everyone knows and knows.

"How could it be like this!" Lin Zhenhua didn't know what to say, so he could only express his emotion.

Cao Shulin said: "Isn't this just reform? Didn't you hear people say that the current society is like this, the boss is on the sidelines, the second is sharing the fields, and the ninth is on the top, earning money in a nonchalant manner."

Lin Zhenhua smiled bitterly. Lin Zhenhua had also heard the jingle read by Cao Shulin.In the traditional concept of our country, there is the saying that workers, farmers, businessmen and soldiers.Workers are the big brother, and now they have stepped aside. Of course, this mainly refers to employees of state-owned enterprises.Farmers are ranked second. In recent years, the fields have been distributed to households, and their lives have improved a lot compared to the past.

Laojiu refers to intellectuals, also known as "stinky Laojiu".There are two theories about the ranking of Laojiu. One is from the model play "Taking Tiger Mountain Out of Wisdom", in which Yang Zirong broke into the bandits and was named Laojiu; Discrimination against intellectuals during the years, ranking them as No. 9 after "rich land against bad rightists, traitors, spies, capitalist roaders".

Since the reform, the country has advocated respect for knowledge and talents, and the social status of intellectuals has been greatly improved, so there is a saying that "the old nine have ascended to the sky".In fact, the treatment of intellectuals at that time did not improve in any particular way, and there was a saying that making missiles is not as good as selling tea eggs.

Finally, there is the dubious group of people, referring to those who were the first to do business in the sea. They belonged to the alternative in people's eyes back then, but it was precisely these people who made money, so why didn't this make the bosses feel resentful.

"Xiao Lin, are you really here to see me this time?" Cao Shulin finished complaining and began to get down to business.

Lin Zhenhua nodded and said, "Yes, didn't you call our company to find me? I happened to be on a business trip in Shanghai, and someone from the company told me that I would drop by."

"Oh, I'm so embarrassed that I made you go." Cao Shulin sincerely apologized, "Actually, I have nothing to do, just..."

Speaking of this, he hesitated a little, as if he didn't know whether to say it or not.He has a simple and honest nature, and when he encounters this kind of request for help, he can't hold back.

Lin Zhenhua said: "Old Cao, is there anything difficult to say between us brothers? If you have anything to say, just say it."

Cao Shulin said coyly: "That's it, Xiao Lin, you have also seen that the factories on both sides of your sister-in-law and I are not doing well now, and I don't know if they will be successful in the future. There are old parents in my house, and there are still factories below. If you have children, you can’t earn money like this. So, I discussed with your sister-in-law, I want to learn from those self-employed people outside, set up a stall, and start a small business..."

"Yes." Lin Zhenhua nodded, not interrupting Cao Shulin's words, and let him continue.

Cao Shulin paused for a while, and finally plucked up the courage to say: "To start a small business, you need some capital. Your sister-in-law and I have a heavy burden at home, and we have no savings over the years. I want to borrow some from my colleagues. Everyone lives. They were all very nervous, and no one could borrow money. Later, I thought of you..."

"Are you calling to ask me to borrow money?" Lin Zhenhua asked.In fact, when Xiang Zhe mentioned this matter to him, he had already guessed that this was the case. Could it be that Cao Shulin would not be willing to spend long-distance calls to Xunyang for things like borrowing money. , It also costs seven or eight yuan.

Cao Shulin embarrassedly admitted: "Yes. I have read several reports about Hanhua Heavy Industry in the newspaper, and your name is on it. I reckon that your company is profitable, and you are the leader. There may be a lot of bonuses and benefits in normal times, and there may be some living money on hand. However, I just ask first, it doesn't matter if you are inconvenient, and I will think of other ways. "

(End of this chapter)