Many people have come to see Xu Damao recently, but he was quite surprised that someone had managed to get through to Wang Minzhi.

That night, after a passionate encounter, Xu Damao touched Wang Minzhi's increasingly protruding belly. They went to the hospital for a checkup, and the doctor said that once the baby was stable, they could exercise in moderation. So, the two of them had a friendly friendly match that night.

"Da Mao, when will the auto repair shop be established?" Wang Minzhi asked.

"I don't know. The plan is currently under review. It depends on communication with the leadership. It could take 1-2 months if things go smoothly, or 1-2 years if things go slowly, or it might not even be established at all," Xu Damao replied.

The establishment of a new plant is actually a lengthy process. After the steel rolling mill submits its plan to the ministry, a team led by a ministry leader will come to evaluate it, and finally the ministry will hold a meeting to discuss it. Although the steel rolling mill has already reported to the ministry's main leaders and received their approval, no step in the process can be omitted.

"What's wrong? Don't you usually not care about these things? Besides, even if it's built, it'll be in the city. My workplace won't be far away. What are you worried about?" Xu Damao thought the other person was worried that he would have to go to work in a very far place again.

"That's not what I'm worried about. I went to Yu Li's place tonight, and she said she wanted to go out and find a job instead of just doing odd jobs all the time. You know how stingy Uncle San's family is; she only has a few dollars to spare."

"Besides, there are a lot of people looking for work now, and it's hard to find casual jobs. She heard that you might be hiring, so she asked me to help her inquire. She just wants a stable job." Wang Minzhi explained the reasons in one breath.

Actually, it was Yan Fugui who suggested this to Yu Li. Xu Damao had found a job for his eldest son, but it cost a lot of money, so it was a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Yan Fugui knew that many people had been coming to Xu Damao to ask about work lately, so he started to have an idea. His daughter-in-law and Wang Minzhi had recently gotten along very well, spending every evening together discussing children's clothes.

So Yan Fugui wanted to use Wang Minzhi's connections to find Yu Li a job, preferably a free one, and ideally a permanent one. Yu Li thought her father-in-law's idea was a good one.

Since marrying into the family, she has been living in even more poverty than when she was a young woman, and she has long wanted to find something to do. But the jobs available outside are all short-term, multi-day jobs, and there are many other people competing for them, so she can't earn much money and often suffers mistreatment.

She watched Wang Minzhi go to and from work every day, and she couldn't be more envious. So, when she chatted with Wang Minzhi tonight, she deliberately brought up the topic and eventually mentioned that she wanted to find a job.

Wang Minzhi was very smart. She understood what the other person was thinking and felt some sympathy for their situation. However, Xu Damao always made the decisions in this kind of family matter, so she only said that she would go back and ask around.

“Don’t rush to agree to this. Just say that the factory hasn’t been officially approved yet, and we don’t know what kind of organization it will have, its staffing, or how many people it will need. If it’s established by then, and I happen to be able to make a decision, I will go to Yan Fugui then,” Xu Damao said.

Xu Damao wasn't bothered that people were contacting him through Wang Minzhi; it was normal interpersonal interaction, and there was bound to be some mutual benefit involved. However, getting a factory job wasn't just Yu Li's problem. Xu Damao would definitely approach Yan Fugui later. A factory job was possible, but it wouldn't be free.

Offering appropriate assistance is fine, but he doesn't want to one day become the "foolish Zhu" in the eyes of the Yan family, someone they're constantly watching and exploiting. Besides, with so many people in the compound, helping one and not helping another could end up leaving everyone in the compound with nothing.

"Okay, I understand, honey," Wang Minzhi replied.

"By the way, speaking of which, when the factory is set up someday, when you go back, ask your parents if they have any relatives who urgently need work. If so, I can help you ask around."

"Yes, thank you, honey. It seems my sister-in-law's younger brother hasn't found a job. Last time he came to my house, he asked my brother for help, but he didn't tell you because he was worried about causing you trouble. Now my brother is afraid to go to my sister-in-law's parents' house, saying he's losing face," Wang Minzhi said.

"Honey, I'm thinking about it again." Perhaps seeing how much Xu Damao cared about her family, Wang Minzhi's interest was piqued again.

-------------------------------------

The ministry's inspection team finally arrived. Led by a vice minister, the team consisted of about ten people from departments such as the Personnel Department and the General Office, and they arrived in three cars picked up by the steel rolling mill.

As the transportation department will become a major component of the future auto repair shop, it was naturally a key focus of the inspection, and Xu Damao also became one of the accompanying personnel.

"How many people will your newly established auto repair shop have? Have you made any estimates?" a member of the inspection team asked in the auto repair group.

This person is very young, but to become a member of the ministry's inspection team, he must be at least a division-level cadre.

"Boss, according to our estimates, the auto repair shop will need about 100 people in the initial stage. The number will increase later as the business develops, and it may eventually reach four or five hundred people," Xu Damao answered truthfully.

Unlike other manufacturing plants, auto repair shops don't need that many people in the early stages, but one or two hundred people is still a lot in the eyes of the other party, because Xu Damao clearly saw the astonishment.

“That’s quite a lot. I just heard that the machine repair shop is about this size,” the other person said to himself.

"By the way, I noticed that the previous factory managers of the secondary factories all had company cars. Will the two newly established factories have them too?" the other party asked again.

"I really don't know. Our factory has a small number of cars to begin with, and it's not easy to buy them from outside; it requires national regulations. You see, other factories had them before, but those were used cars that they no longer needed, and some were even captured Japanese cars from the battlefield." Xu Damao didn't expect the other party to ask this question.

"How much welfare did your factory give out last year?" the other party asked, asking another personal question.

"I wasn't at the steel rolling mill last year, so I'm not sure." Xu Damao didn't want to answer this question, so he evaded the question.

After that, the members of the inspection team didn't ask Xu Damao any further questions. Instead, they followed the deputy minister leading the team. Sure enough, someone so young to become a member of the inspection team must have powerful connections.

That evening, a high-profile reception was held at the steel rolling mill. All the head chefs from the mill were invited, and several factory leaders were also present.

Xu Damao wasn't qualified to participate in this special meal; he only realized it when he saw Sha Zhu bragging about it after returning home with his lunchbox.

"You don't know, ministerial-level leaders are just different. They're so easygoing. They said my cooking was good, and then they even toasted me with a glass of wine."

Sha Zhu was bragging in the Intermediate People's Court. Everyone else, upon hearing that such a high-ranking leader had given Sha Zhu a position, looked on with longing. No one doubted whether it was true or not, since no one had been able to verify it.

Not long after the inspection team left, Xu Damao was summoned by Li Xuewu.

"Da Mao, things have changed at the new factory," Li Xuewu said.