Song Shan's conversation with Gao Juanjuan went smoothly. Gao Juanjuan was promoted by Song Shan and had always respected him.

"Boss, thank you for your guidance and support all this time. I will be retiring in a few months, and I have no objection to retiring early to make way for the younger generation."

However, I hope the leadership can give my child some consideration. Gao Juanjuan made this request.

“I can grant your request right now. We all retire eventually, and it’s only natural to take care of our own employees.” Song Shan agreed immediately.

Song Shan was so enthusiastic because he knew Li Xuewu wouldn't stay long, and he would be the top candidate for factory director. Helping Li Xuewu's close associate now was essentially giving Li Xuewu face, hoping that the associate wouldn't speak ill of him when the higher-ups sought their opinions.

Xu Damao himself worked in the personnel department, so he recused himself from the evaluation process, which was conducted by other colleagues in the personnel department.

After the inspection concluded, the document appointing Comrade Xu Damao as the head of the personnel department of the first branch factory was quickly printed and sent to the personnel department of the main factory along with other documents for filing.

Unable to enjoy the envious glances from the other employees at Branch Factory One, Xu Damao, accompanied by two personnel officers, headed to the main factory to coordinate recruitment matters. This trip served two purposes: firstly, to secure 50 skilled workers from the main factory; secondly, some of the positions allocated by the leaders that required paperwork could be handled by Xu Damao and his team, saving them the trip to Branch Factory One.

This time, the plan was to stay for at least two weeks, so Xu Damao chose all the staff members whose homes were in the city. This made it convenient for everyone to go home and reunite with their families, and also saved them the trouble of staying in guesthouses.

Personnel Department of the main factory.

"Sister Li, we're really sorry to trouble you this time. We estimate we'll be staying here for two weeks until all the recruits are finalized," Xu Damao said to Li Hui.

The current head of the personnel department is Li Hui, the former deputy head, who used to be kind to Xu Damao.

“Da Mao, we’re old acquaintances, there’s no trouble at all. Besides, you’re my equal now, so you’ll have to treat us to a meal,” Li Hui said with a smile.

This former projectionist is now on par with me. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before he surpasses me.

"Absolutely. Sister Li, how about this, come to my house tonight, I'll cook for you myself. You can invite a few people, and I'll invite your old acquaintance Gao Jin too."

Xu Damao extended an invitation. Gao Jin and Li Hui joined the factory around the same time, and both worked in the administration building here. They were very familiar with each other, often visiting each other's offices, and had a good relationship.

"Okay, then I'll invite our deputy section chief, Xie Ting, along. I'll have her work with you from now on." Knowing that everyone at dinner that night would be acquaintances, Li Hui readily agreed. Now, she was considered a powerful figure among the middle-level cadres, and she really wouldn't go to dinner if just anyone invited her.

After settling things over here and arranging a temporary office for his two subordinates in the personnel department, Xu Damao then strolled over to the publicity department.

"Brother Gao, Director Gao, I must congratulate you in advance." When Xu Damao walked into Gao Jin's office, he saw a middle-aged man with a ruddy complexion, completely different from his previous dejected appearance.

"Da Mao, keep your voice down." Gao Jin saw that it was Xu Da Mao, so he quickly ran out of the office and then closed the door, acting all sneaky.

"Da Mao, I realize I underestimated you. I only confirmed it myself last night, how did you know now? I dare say there are no more than five people who know this right now." Gao Jin unconsciously began to think highly of Xu Da Mao again.

"Brother Gao, you look radiant and full of energy right now. Don't even mention me, just ask anyone and they'll know that something good is going to happen to you."

"For middle-aged men, it's either power or sex. So I knew exactly what you were thinking," Xu Damao replied.

"Then why can't I be the other way around? Who are you looking down on?" Gao Jin couldn't stand the way Xu Damao was glancing at him.

"I didn't mean to imply that you, Brother Gao, have a harmonious family," Xu Damao said guiltily.

“A harmonious family is expected, no, you rascal, you're so young but your mind is not right,” Gao Jin said with a smile.

Gao Jin took a while to understand these overused tropes from later generations. As for the "three great joys for middle-aged men," Xu Damao didn't dare to mention them as they weren't appropriate for the occasion.

Xu Damao didn't press the other party for details. These kinds of things are all done privately and not to be discussed with outsiders. And what could be said was all stuff that Xu Damao wasn't interested in.

"Da Mao, your recruitment this time has really stirred up a storm at the main factory," Gao Jin exclaimed.

His former subordinate turned around and ran off to Tongzhou. At the time, many people were skeptical, and Gao Jin was one of them. In the eyes of the old Beijingers, Tongzhou was truly outside the city, a suburb of the suburbs, a place only those who had made mistakes would go.

But in just over two years, Tongzhou has become a completely different place. The physical distance hasn't changed, but with improved transportation and more frequent personnel exchanges, everyone has come to accept the branch factory. Surprisingly, Xu Damao is doing quite well there.

This time, because the No. 1 factory had 15 openings, the factory leaders hadn't even thought about how to allocate them yet, but several department heads and section chiefs who needed them started to approach the factory leaders to try and secure them.

Even Gao Jin himself had relatives and friends come to him for help.

"By the way, tell your brother if you can get one or two of those spots. I have relatives whose children need to work. Don't worry, handle it however you need to, I won't make things difficult for you."

Gao Jin asked quietly.

“My dear Brother Gao, if anyone else asked, the answer would be absolutely no, but since it’s your Brother Gao asking, even if it’s not available, I’ll make sure. I’ll try to find another leader to spare a spot, but it can only be one. You can decide which one to give it to,” Xu Damao assured him, patting his chest.

Xu Damao couldn't possibly pass up such a lucrative opportunity. Of course, that required a certain level of connection; it wasn't something anyone could simply buy with money. The unwritten rules of the underworld dictated that money had to be paid, and favors had to be given in return.

"Okay, that's enough. I'll let you know when I've thought it over." Gao Jin also understood how precious a spot was.

Next, Xu Damao told Gao Jin about the dinner invitation for that evening, and Gao Jin immediately agreed. At this time, when someone from his own factory invited him to dinner, he would worry about whether the other person had any demands, but Xu Damao didn't have that concern.