Xie Yuyao and Party Secretary Liu left the pharmaceutical factory first, while Dr. Zhuang was kept behind by Factory Director Liu.
Factory Director Liu sat in his armchair and handed Dr. Zhuang the contract he had just signed. "Are you very familiar with this Xie educated youth?"
"Not really. I just trained a group of medical trainees during my last rural tour, and she was one of them. Later, at a friend's invitation, I helped her production team with a rescue mission deep in the mountains," Dr. Zhuang said casually, glancing quickly at the contract.
When the supplementary clause allocating 2% of revenue to his name came into view, his pupils suddenly dilated, his face filled with disbelief: "She proposed this?"
"Who else could it be but her? Didn't you discuss this with her before doing any follow-up work?" Director Liu knew from his reaction that the question was unnecessary. "You two, I really don't know what to say."
"Xie Yuyao dared to let you take the medicine and prescription directly without fear that you would use her name to steal the results, and she didn't forget your hard work when she could profit from it, giving you a considerable reward. And you also helped her apply for patents and complete the listing process without any selfish motives. If it were someone else with ulterior motives, the result would be completely different."
Dr. Zhuang frowned slightly: "This is not appropriate. Let's revise the contract. I'll go talk to Xie Zhiqing."
“The contract is already signed, and I think Xie Zhiqing is a shrewd and calculating person who can't be easily swayed. Just accept it,” Director Liu advised, then changed the subject, “I see Xie Zhiqing is so young, does he have a girlfriend?”
Dr. Zhuang teased, "What? Which young man do you want to drag out for a spin this time?"
His senior brother was good in every way, except for his love of being a matchmaker, which made him both laugh and cry.
"Don't laugh, I'm serious. Such a good girl deserves an excellent man." After saying that, Director Liu pointed out several outstanding young men from his relatives' next generation.
Seeing his expression, Dr. Zhuang chuckled and said, "Don't rush, she already has a boyfriend."
"Who is it? Is he worthy of her?" Director Liu asked, disappointed for a second, unwilling to give up.
"A retired soldier, a good person, and he has a good relationship with the third young master of the Ye family in Beijing."
After hearing what Dr. Zhuang said, Director Liu had no choice but to abandon the idea. No matter how much he wanted to bring Xie Yuyao to his home, he wouldn't go against a veteran.
Xie Yuyao had no idea that Director Liu had the idea of introducing someone to her. After she and Secretary Liu left the factory, she suggested, "Let's go see if there are any books on herb cultivation. If we can learn from them, we can avoid some detours."
Secretary Liu naturally agreed without hesitation. Qin Guoqiang wanted to drive them both, but Xie Yuyao refused, saying, "We'll just enjoy the scenery along the way. You wait for Dr. Zhuang."
After walking for more than ten minutes, the two finally saw the bus stop. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that the dilapidated and rudimentary bus stop sign only displayed one bus route.
After waiting for about ten more minutes, she finally boarded the bus. Looking at the dilapidated buildings waiting to be rebuilt outside the window, Xie Yuyao had a strange feeling, as if she were strolling through a nostalgic painting.
No matter what she has gone through, she will never forget where she came from and who she is. Now, as an outsider, she does things that involve cause and effect, the biggest reason being that the brigade leader has devoted himself to the people of Qingshantun. Since she has been taken care of by him, she wants to repay him in any way she can.
If this can lead to prosperity for the entire Qingshantun village, then her time as an educated youth will not have been in vain.
Her life plan has remained unchanged: take the college entrance examination and return to the city.
Therefore, when she arrived at the Xinhua Bookstore in the provincial capital, in addition to looking for books related to medicinal herbs, she also bought many excellent literary works. Furthermore, by asking the clerks, she found quite a few physics and chemistry books, as well as humanities books such as history and geography, in the dusty corners.
Now they are discarded, forgotten, and gathering dust in corners. But by the second half of next year, they will become hot commodities among young people, and books will be hard to find.
Thinking of the members of the educated youth team, she simply waved her hand and bought up all the discarded books.
The shop assistant looked at her with suspicion and wariness: "Why are you buying so many books?"
Xie Yuyao casually made up a lie: "My grandfather is afraid of the cold, so he wanted to take these books back to burn as paper money to keep warm. Anyway, no one wants these books, so let them make the most of their remaining value."
The shop assistant was speechless. Who would waste money buying books just to burn as firewood? This isn't waste paper from a recycling center.
Xie Yuyao gave a reasonable explanation for her question: "Those waste papers have a lot of bacteria. If they hurt the elderly, it would be a loss."
Party Secretary Liu, who observed the whole thing: ...
He knew Xie Yuyao was studious, and even the members of the educated youth team picked up their old textbooks during their spare time from work. He just hadn't expected her to be willing to spend so much money to buy so many sets. Had she learned something?
Secretary Liu helped carry the purchased books back to the guesthouse. When they were alone on the way, he quietly asked, "Your family is in Beijing. Have you heard some inside information?"
"No, I've been reading newspapers and listening to the radio, and I've made some plans for the future." After Xie Yuyao finished speaking, she looked at Secretary Liu with a mysterious and meaningful gaze. "Reading more books can't be wrong, right?"
Party Secretary Liu nodded, seemingly lost in thought the whole way.
Back in his room at the guesthouse, Secretary Liu said, "Could you transfer me a set of the duplicate books you bought?"
"No problem, you can choose." Xie Yuyao took the books out of the sack and let Secretary Liu pick them out.
Secretary Liu didn't know which books would be useful either. He rubbed his hands together and asked directly, "I have several younger relatives who didn't continue their education after graduating from junior high school. What books would be suitable for you?"
Xie Yuyao glanced around and frowned, saying, "Why don't you go home and ask them what they think? If they want to go further, it would be best if they continued to high school."
Not everyone has the perseverance and persistence of Zhao Jianbin and Yu Wenjiang. Given Secretary Liu's position, his descendants will certainly have more options and may not necessarily want to continue their studies.
Her blunt use of "going a step further" was more of a metaphor for the future when higher education would lead to more opportunities. She implied that university degrees would be highly valuable for the next decade or so, guaranteeing job placement after graduation. Job placement was only abolished in 1996, and the process of completely and thoroughly ending around 2000 was a different story.
It would be best if Secretary Liu could understand her deeper meaning. If he mistakenly thought it was just about academic progress, that would be fine too; it would be up to his descendants to choose.
After listening to Xie Yuyao's words, Secretary Liu, who always had a keen mind, fell into deep thought.
After a long while, he came to his senses and said, "You're right. I'll go back and ask them to put the books away."
Secretary Liu helped put the books back into the sack and returned to his room. He thought of a certain possibility, and his heart pounded rapidly. He wished he could fly home immediately and pack up his nephews and nieces to send them to high school to continue their studies.
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