Sheng Xiping was standing behind Wang Jiachuan, and didn't say anything at first.

The people in front of him were all leaders and elders, and they were having a lively conversation, so he didn't want to interrupt.

At this moment, Wang Jiachuan pulled him along, and Sheng Xiping came to the front to greet Zhao Yongsheng.

Zhao Yongsheng was overjoyed to see Sheng Xiping and patted him on the shoulder.

“Young man, you’re capable. I heard that your youth commando team performed well this year. Among the four work teams, your team had the highest output.”

Good, that's how young people should be—energetic and driven. Excellent.

"Old Wang, when the bureau is selecting outstanding individuals this year, don't forget to nominate Xiping."

By the way, the official document has been issued from above, and our bureau will recruit two hundred people this year.

There are several thousand unemployed educated youth in our bureau, and forty or fifty units and departments are only given two hundred slots. Each forest farm will probably only have three or five slots.

With too many wolves and not enough meat to go around, the bureau decided to determine the number of educated youth based on their daily performance.

Although these words were addressed to Wang Jiachuan, they were actually meant for Sheng Xiping.

As the captain of the educated youth team, Sheng Xiping was proactive and hardworking, and performed exceptionally well.

As Zhao Yongsheng just said, Sheng Xiping will be selected as an advanced worker, so he will definitely be eligible for a job.

Wang Jiachuan understood and hurriedly nodded in agreement, "Yes, yes, Secretary Zhao, don't worry."

The forestry farm will ensure fairness and impartiality in this matter, without favoritism, and will allocate quotas based on daily performance.

Sheng Xiping was the most outstanding among the educated youth in Qianchuan Forest Farm, and no matter how the selection process was conducted, he would not be overlooked.

Just as Zhao Yongsheng was about to say a few more words, some more people came over to offer him a toast.

When Wang Jiachuan saw that they were all leaders from other bureaus, he and his companions decided it was inappropriate to stay and get involved. So they turned around and went back to their seats to continue drinking and eating.

"Xiping, did you understand what I just said? There's less than half of the winter production left. When you get back, you must supervise your subordinates' work carefully."

"We need to increase production, ensure quality, and pay attention to safety," Wang Jiachuan instructed Sheng Xiping with concern.

"Don't worry, Uncle. Our educated youth team will definitely work according to the operating procedures and will never cause any trouble for the farm."

Since it concerned his personal future, Sheng Xiping naturally couldn't be careless.

These days, what do recruitment quotas mean? A secure job.

Once recruited as a formal employee, not only will you receive a monthly salary with guaranteed income regardless of circumstances, but most importantly, your employer will provide all kinds of benefits, including medical care and pension.

Although Sheng Xiping was very clear that in another twenty years or so, there wouldn't be as many trees in the mountains, the Forestry Bureau would begin to decline, and this "iron rice bowl" wouldn't be as valuable.

But right now, it's definitely a job that many people would be willing to pay a fortune for.

Let's deal with the future later; for now, we should strive for what we should strive for.

Even if Sheng Xiping himself doesn't care, his parents do. To make his parents happy, Sheng Xiping has to get the job quota as soon as possible and become a formal worker.

"Yeah, I trust you to get things done."

"Keep up the good work. We're all nearing retirement, but you young people have a bright future ahead of you," Wang Jiachuan said with a smile.

"Aren't you going to thank Uncle Wang for his guidance? You'd better work even harder in the future and not let your superiors down, do you hear me?"

At this moment, Zhou Mingyuan gave his son-in-law a wink.

Upon receiving the message, Sheng Xiping immediately picked up the wine bottle, filled everyone at the table with wine, and then toasted Wang Jiachuan and the others.

The banquet started around 11:00 AM, and around 12:30 AM, the bride's family left. The others drank until around 1:00 AM, and then gradually said their goodbyes and left.

Wang Jiachuan, Zheng Xianyong, and others went directly to the forest railway and took a motorcycle back to the forest farm, while Sheng Xiping accompanied Zhou Mingyuan home.

Sheng Xiping stayed at the Zhou family's house for one night with his wife. On the seventh day of the first lunar month, Zhou Mingyuan found Sheng Xiping a ride to Shuguang Forest Farm. He walked the remaining ten miles back by himself.

Zhou Qinglan stayed at her parents' home, where she could stay until the start of the school term before returning home.

On the eighth day of the first lunar month, forestry workers took a vehicle up the mountain to continue their winter production work.

The temperature on the mountain warmed up slightly after the New Year, but several snowfalls during the holiday made the snow accumulation on the mountain even deeper.

Forestry workers braved the wind and snow on the mountain, bending over and shouting as they transported timber. Logs were carried down the mountain, loaded onto a small train, and then transported to the Songjianghe Timber Yard.

Then, the logs are either processed into boards or squares at the lumber mill and transported away, or they are loaded directly onto trucks and transported away.

Train after train, laden with the sweat and toil of forestry workers in Northeast China, were dispatched to all parts of the country to support national development.

The harvesting and transportation work after the New Year will probably be completed by the end of March. The three members of the Sheng family will go up the mountain, and it will take another month and a half.

Zhou Qinglan stayed at her parents' home for half a month, and on February 23, she returned to the forest farm escorted by Zhou Qingyue.

Next, primary and secondary schools in Qianchuan will start the new school year.

Logically, Zhou Qinglan should be entitled to at least three months of maternity leave. However, there is a shortage of teachers in primary and secondary schools in Qianchuan. If Zhou Qinglan takes leave, there will be no one to take care of the class.

The principal personally came to Zhang Shuzhen's and Zhou Qinglan's home to discuss whether Zhou Qinglan could return to school to teach.

Zhou Qinglan can go when she has classes, and come back to take care of the child when she doesn't have classes.

Zhou Qinglan thought about it for a moment. Anyway, the school wasn't far from home, so she could come back to deliver milk during breaks or when she didn't have classes.

Otherwise, no one in the class could keep the children in check, and Zhou Qinglan was worried that the children would all run wild.

However, this means Zhang Shuzhen will have to work harder. There are already many things to do at home, and Zhang Shuzhen will also have to take care of the children.

Fortunately, Zhang Shuzhen was very supportive of her daughter-in-law's work. After discussing it, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law agreed to the principal's request.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!