Seeing Xu Damao receive his salary at the cadre window, Jia Dongxu thought that since he was also a team leader, he should be able to receive his salary there as well, so he happily walked towards the window.

"Dongxu, where are you going? You won't get your salary over there, so just line up here. It'll be our turn soon." Yi Zhonghai stopped his apprentice as he headed in that direction.

The last time the steel rolling mill's cadre department and the street office went to inspect Xu Damao, he suspected that Xu Damao was going to be promoted. He just didn't expect it to be a cadre position and thought it was just a normal promotion.

But now Xu Damao is receiving his salary at the cadre window, which is obvious, so Xu Damao must have been transferred to cadre status. Yi Zhonghai has been in the steel rolling mill for decades, and in the new era for nearly ten years now; he has seen all kinds of situations.

Xu Damao's situation is rare, but it's not unheard of.

"Master, it's nothing, I'm just going to take a look over there." Jia Dongxu knew what kind of person his master was, so he just made up a reason to get away with it.

"Comrade, I'm here to collect my salary." Jia Dongxu said as he reached the window and saw an older woman inside.

"Hey, who are you? I don't recognize you. Are you newly promoted too?" the older woman inside asked. She was in charge of paying the salaries of the cadres, so she knew everyone in the steel rolling mill except for some newcomers and those who had just been promoted.

"By the way, ma'am, I was just promoted this month, it's normal that you don't recognize me. My name is Jia Dongxu, I'm from the workshop."

Jia Dongxu thought to himself, "So that's exactly where I get my salary. That bastard Xu Damao is really wicked; he didn't even tell me. I'll teach him a lesson when I get back."

"Wait a minute, I've been looking for your name for ages and I can't find it. Are you sure you're newly promoted? The cadre department only gave Xu Damao one name in this batch." After searching for a long time without finding the name, the older sister asked Jia Dongxu again.

“Yes, yes, I was nominated for team leader with Xu Damao. I just saw Xu Damao collecting his salary here, so I came over.” Jia Dongxu explained considerately to his older sister.

"What kind of team leader are you?" The older woman realized something was wrong at this point.

"I'm the newly appointed head of the apprentice management group in the fitter's workshop," Jia Dongxu said, puffing out his chest.

"What's your status? Are you a worker or a cadre?" the older woman continued to ask.

"I'm still a worker for now, but I'll promote me to a cadre position later." Jia Dongxu's words lacked a bit of confidence, and his chest shrank slightly.

"Are you kidding me? A workshop foreman coming to me to collect his wages? Who gave you the nerve? Don't you know this is the official staff window?"

The eldest sister's pent-up anger began to erupt. At this point, even eating at a restaurant could result in being assaulted by a waiter, let alone these factory accountants.

"No, I just saw Xu Damao getting paid by you too. Why can he, as the group leader, stay here, but I can't? We're both group leaders, you can't discriminate against us." Jia Dongxu's tone weakened, but he still managed to ask.

"Are you like Xu Damao? He's not a team leader anymore, he's a section chief. More importantly, he's a cadre now. How can you compare? Go back to where you came from."

The eldest sister urged Jia Dongxu to leave quickly. At this time, the situation was still relatively calm; if the struggle had intensified in a few years, these words from the eldest sister would have been enough to warrant a public humiliation. However, by then, the grass on Jia Dongxu's grave would be two feet tall.

While Jia Dongxu was arguing with someone, Yi Zhonghai arrived. After listening for a while, Yi Zhonghai's mind was racing. Xu Damao had really become a cadre. In those days, workers were the elder brothers, but they knew their own situation. The elder brothers weren't wealthy either, their wages and benefits were lower than those of cadres, and they were even being led by cadres.

"Dongxu, let's go, let's line up over there. Sorry, we made a mistake." Yi Zhonghai pulled Jia Dongxu, who was still in a daze, back to their own line.

Many people in the team recognized Xu Damao, and there was a lot of discussion about it. This kind of shock was far greater than that of a newly arrived senior leader. You see, it's like your childhood friend who used to play in the mud with you every day suddenly washing his hands and saying, "Brother, I don't play in the mud anymore, I'm a real estate developer now."

"Dongxu, don't compare yourself to Xu Damao. You're already better than most people," Yi Zhonghai said, trying to comfort his good apprentice who was still basking in the glow of Xu Damao's position as a cadre.

That evening, news of Xu Damao becoming a cadre had spread throughout the Hongxing Courtyard.

"Dongxu, don't be upset. Think about it, if someone like Xu Damao can become a leader, you definitely can too. Xu Damao has been a team leader for a few months longer than you, and I estimate that you'll be able to become a cadre by the end of the year."

Besides, doesn't your factory have quotas for transferring to management positions every year at the end of the year? Ask your mentor then, and have him pull some strings for you. I don't think it'll be a problem."

When Jia Zhangshi heard that Xu Damao had become a cadre, she felt unbalanced, but she still had to comfort her good son in this situation.

Sure enough, listening to Jia Zhangshi's absurd logic, Jia Dongxu felt much better and sat there imagining the good things that would happen after he was transferred to a cadre position at the end of the year.

"Hmm, you should be more careful about how you interact with other men in the future." Qin Huairu also thought that now that she was the wife of a cadre, she should also pay more attention to her words and actions.

Xu Damao's house. He returned late and had just arrived at the compound when Yan Fugui blocked him at the gate. He then pushed his cart back, with Yan Fugui following behind.

As soon as the door opened, Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong came in one after the other.

"Gentlemen, what did you discuss today?" Xu Damao asked curiously. He had just learned about the matter from Yan Fugui at the gate, and it had already spread throughout the compound.

"Da Mao, why don't you tell everyone in the compound about your good news? Look, you've become a cadre now, when are you going to invite us together to celebrate with you?"

Although Yan Fugui envied Xu Damao's official cadre position, he was more concerned about his own personal benefits.

"Old Yan, this is the difference between you and Da Mao. All you ever do is make a scene. If there's any real excitement, it should be us all congratulating Da Mao."

"Hey, Da Mao, you're from our Intermediate Court, and I've watched you grow up. Come to my house tomorrow, we'll have a drink together. While you're there, you can give your brother Guang Qi some pointers." Liu Haizhong was in a very good mood.

Under his leadership, the Intermediate Court has a wealth of talent, far surpassing the other two courts.

"Okay then, tomorrow at Lao Liu's house, and the day after at my house. I've always thought that Da Mao is the best among the young people of this generation, and now he's really made something of himself."

"Da Mao, you've made something of yourself. Remember to help the other young people in the compound, like Dong Xu, Sha Zhu, Guang Qi, and Jie Cheng."

At this moment, Yi Zhonghai was trying his best to salvage his image in Xu Damao's eyes. If he had known Xu Damao would end up like this, he shouldn't have said those things during the inspection. Now that he couldn't beat him, he had no choice but to join. Of course, this was contingent on Xu Damao not ruining his retirement plans.

As Yan Fugui listened to the other two old men preparing to take turns treating everyone, he deliberately tried to make himself inconspicuous. He was fine with eating, but treating everyone was absolutely out of the question.