The next day, Xu Damao still went to the hospital to see Liu Haizhong.

Entering the ward, I saw Liu Haizhong staring blankly at the ceiling, completely oblivious to the opinions of those around him. He seemed to have aged considerably overnight, transforming from a middle-aged man into a little old man.

"Da Mao, you're here. Quickly help Second Aunt talk to Old Liu. He's been like this ever since he woke up. He doesn't eat, drink, or speak, and he doesn't respond when I call him. I'm worried that if this continues, his health will collapse sooner or later."

It's true that women are stronger in crucial moments. Both women had sons who ran away, but the second aunt handled it better than the second uncle.

Xu Damao was at a loss seeing Liu Haizhong's condition; he called out several times but received no response. After thinking for a moment, a sudden idea struck him.

"Second Uncle, I heard on my way here that someone is planning to replace you in your position." Xu Damao was preparing to go for something drastic. Actually, this wasn't exactly false information; there were indeed people in the compound interested in the position of the head steward and were making moves around.

"What? How did they manage to take him down? My son has already escaped, and yet some people are still kicking me when I'm down. They're so ruthless."

Sure enough, Liu Haizhong, obsessed with officialdom, instantly cleared his mind upon hearing that his second uncle's position might be in jeopardy. However, thinking about how his son had just run away, and how all his hard work over the years had resulted in such betrayal, he couldn't help but feel a deep sorrow, and this grown man actually burst into tears in the hospital room.

Aunt Er was about to try to persuade Liu Haizhong when Xu Damao stopped her.

"Releasing his emotions like this might be good for him; otherwise, if he keeps bottling them up, he'll get sick sooner or later."

Since Xu Damao's words made some sense, the second aunt didn't try to dissuade him. However, after a while, probably because she was getting more and more upset, the second aunt also started crying with him.

The two cried for a while, only stopping when a nurse came to comfort them. To be honest, hearing them cry made Xu Damao feel bad too.

Regardless of the unknown plot developments, aside from being somewhat obsessed with officialdom, Liu Haizhong hasn't harmed anyone so far. And this obsession with officialdom is ingrained in the Chinese psyche, including Xu Damao himself, though Liu Haizhong's display is rather obvious.

Xu Damao thought that perhaps it was because his eldest son left that Lao Liu's mentality changed, leading to those evil deeds during the special period that followed.

"Da Mao, thank you. I understand now that character is what matters in critical moments. Apart from the few people who brought your second uncle over yesterday, you're the only one who's come to see Old Liu so far."

The second aunt was praising Xu Damao to Lao Liu.

"That's only right." Xu Damao probably wouldn't have bothered coming over today if he hadn't been really free. Liu Haizhong was just dizzy from shock; he'll be discharged once he recovers. Why would anyone else take time off to come?

After chatting with Liu Haizhong for a while, Xu Damao made an excuse to go back to his meeting.

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

After spending two weeks at the main factory, Xu Damao successfully completed his recruitment task and returned to the branch factory. He had barely settled in when the main factory informed him that Secretary Yang would be visiting the branch factory and would be bringing the new deputy factory director with him.

This was Secretary Yang's first inspection of the No. 1 Factory since taking office, and Li Xuewu attached great importance to it, holding multiple meetings to arrange the welcoming work and leading a team to clean the inside and outside of the No. 1 Factory again and again. Li Xuewu also walked the inspection route several times, and even personally tested the double bed in the guesthouse where he rested at noon to ensure that everything was perfect, comparable to later generations.

Now, although Li Xuewu and Yang Zhenhua are only half a rank apart, that half rank difference is not insignificant. Under normal circumstances, Li Xuewu would need to first go back to work as an ordinary deputy factory director, then advance to deputy secretary and deputy factory director, then factory director, and finally secretary.

Even if everything goes smoothly, it will still take at least five years to achieve this, and there will also be vacant positions. This is why Li Xuewu later took the risk during a special period. If those above don't move, those below can't move.

Therefore, as a subordinate or deputy, one must either be strong enough to directly remove the top leader, or honestly cooperate with the top leader to do all the work well so that the top leader can be promoted, and then one can have a position, or find a way to seek a better job elsewhere.

Amidst everyone's anticipation, Secretary Yang and the newly arrived deputy factory director, Song Chunjiang, arrived. Song Chunjiang's rank remained the same—from deputy director of the main factory managing only a few people—to deputy director of the first branch factory managing several thousand. However, his importance had increased dramatically. While seated on the platform, a smile never left his face.

Today's meeting was attended by nearly a hundred people, including those at the middle management level and above, including deputies, filling the meeting room to capacity. After an introduction, Song Chunjiang delivered his inaugural speech, his resounding statement earning him considerable applause.

"Next, please welcome Secretary Yang from our main factory to speak to everyone," Li Xuewu said, presiding over the meeting.

"I am very happy today. Why? Because I have arrived at our factory's largest branch, which is also the strongest branch, and I see passion and hope."

Along the way...

Yang Zhenhua shared his impressions from the journey and praised the spirit and enthusiasm of the workers and cadres of the First Branch Factory.

After the welcome party ended, Li Xuewu and other factory leaders accompanied Yang Zhenhua on a tour of the various workshops in the first branch factory, including the newly expanded workshops. This was none of the business of ordinary middle-level managers like Xu Damao.

"You've done a good job. You've planned ahead, anticipated problems, and implemented things step by step, which allows you to better utilize your full production capacity. By the way, has the recruitment of workers finished yet?"

Haha, the number of positions you guys provided for the General Manager has really given me a headache; so many people are asking about them. I even saw your young HR manager recruiting at the main factory the other day. By the way, what's his name?

Yang Zhenhua suddenly thought of the young man who had come to him to report on his work. He couldn't remember the name, but he had a vague impression of him.

"I'm sorry to have troubled the leaders. Our first round of recruitment has ended, and the workers are now learning in other workshops."

You mean Xu Damao? That kid stayed at the main factory for two weeks. Heh, I heard he doesn't want to come back.”

Li Xuewu answered with a smile.

"Yes, I thought it was a good name, easy to remember, and the young man was quite interesting," Yang Zhenhua casually complimented.

The investigation continued, and Li Xuewu, being a shrewd person, immediately gave instructions to the office staff around him.

"Call Xu Damao over and have him accompany the leader on the inspection."

The office staff looked on with envy and quickly ran to the personnel department.

"Section Chief Xu, hurry up! Factory Director Li is calling you. Go to the workshop, the inspection team is over there." After saying that, the man ran off in a flash, as if he was afraid that if he was slow, he would miss out on the benefits.

Xu Damao looked surprised. What did this leader's inspection have to do with him? Could it be a problem with the recruitment? Feigning confusion, Xu Damao quickly followed.