In his own words, it was because he had spent so much time there, developed an emotional attachment to the steel mill, and wanted to see it get better day by day.
But is that even possible?
The possibility is not high.
"Bang bang bang!"
There was a knock on the door.
Looking at the mess on the table, Shen Yuanliang's wife said helplessly, "You should clean it up properly. I wonder who came."
After saying that, he went to open the door.
As soon as the door opened, Wang Shouren was standing at the entrance.
She welcomed Wang Shouren in as if he were her savior: "Shouren, could you please talk to your master? All he does all day is drink. Tell me, if he can't be the chief engineer, he shouldn't be. His family has plenty of food and drink. Why does he have to ruin himself like this?"
"Okay, sister-in-law, I understand. Don't worry, I'm here to persuade my brother." Wang Shouren came in with the gifts, and casually placed them in her hands.
To be fair, Shen Yuanliang's family background wasn't too bad.
After all, he was an engineer, and his standard of living was in the top 10% of the entire city of Beijing.
The children in the family are quite promising; they have all been admitted to university.
If you study for a few more years, you'll be considered successful. These days, university graduates are guaranteed job placement.
His wife was content, feeling that her life had been worthwhile, and that nothing was missing. But unfortunately, her husband was a worry, always looking gloomy, which annoyed her as well.
As I walked in, I saw Shen Yuanliang sighing and drinking.
Upon seeing Wang Shouren arrive, Shen Yuanliang waved to him and said, "Sit down."
Wang Shouren sat down, and Shen Yuanliang poured him a glass of wine.
Before Wang Shouren could even speak, he started talking on his own.
“Tell me, tell me, we’ve been in the steel rolling mill for so many years, what bad things could we possibly do? That technology, it’s clearly meant to be innovative, but they insist on suppressing it, they want stability. If they had suppressed you like that back then, the steel rolling mill wouldn’t be what it is today.”
Wang Shouren naturally understood what Shen Yuanliang meant.
As a standard technician, besides performing routine maintenance, Shen Yuanliang possessed a strong desire to improve. He wanted to develop more user-friendly machinery, and he had been researching these things for years. He originally thought that after ten years, he could finally unleash his full potential and get to work properly, which was also why he refused Wang Shouren's offer.
He wanted to improve the standards of the steel rolling mill first, and then deal with the rest later.
“Tell me again. Before, you came up with an idea, and Engineer Zhao reported it without hesitation, organizing a workshop for you to conduct experiments. And me,” Shen Yuanliang pointed to himself, “I also came up with an idea, I wanted to organize an experimental workshop too, and guess what he said? He said the factory didn't have the energy for that. I swear, they don't have the energy! Cough cough… cough cough… yue…”
Wang Shouren sighed, stood up, and patted Shen Yuanliang on the back.
Shen Yuanliang raised his head, his eyes red-rimmed: "Tell me, aren't they bullying us?"
“Yes,” Wang Shouren said. “If all else fails, come to my place. They’ll regret it then.”
"Yes! Well said, I'll go to your place! It's settled then, I'll resign tomorrow! I'm going to..." At this point, Shen Yuanliang stopped, slumped onto the table, and fell fast asleep.
His wife stood at the door, looking at him with concern.
“Sister-in-law, did you hear that? He’s quitting his job tomorrow and coming to work for me. Here, this is his first month’s salary. Give it to him tomorrow when he wakes up.” Wang Shouren cheerfully pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to her.
His wife paused for a moment, then nodded, but as soon as she took the envelope, something felt off!
This weight?
Just as he was about to say something, Wang Shouren interrupted him.
"Sister-in-law, that's just how the pay is at our factory. You can give this to him tomorrow; he'll probably go work for us, so you don't need to worry so much. If my master goes to work for me, would I let him do that?"
For ambitious and driven individuals, Wang Shouren's school is indeed a good choice.
"Okay, then later..."
"Sister-in-law, let's talk later. I'm leaving now." Wang Shouren didn't want to argue with her any longer. He was very busy lately and had to rush to his next event.
After Qin Huairu returned yesterday, she said that someone was going to inspect the area, and today, Director Wu called to invite her to dinner.
Logically speaking, someone as busy as him is unlikely to invite people to dinner. Even if he did, it would be a private chat over drinks. This kind of formal invitation probably means he's acting as a middleman.
We couldn't refuse to give Director Wu face.
I rode my motorcycle to the location he gave me.
The location was easy to find; it was a three-courtyard house with no sign, but two servants stood at the entrance.
Wang Shouren also visited this kind of place.
It's somewhat similar to the private kitchens we have today.
As soon as Wang Shouren arrived, a servant came up and welcomed him inside.
The interior is nicely decorated, understated yet luxurious and tasteful. A rockery sits in the courtyard, and the sound of flowing water adds to the tranquility.
Led by the waiter, we walked from the front yard to the middle yard, where people were already waiting in the reception room.
"Here you are. Come, come, come." Director Wu stood up when he saw Wang Shouren and beckoned to him. Next to him sat a middle-aged man in his forties, whom Wang Shouren also knew.
He was the son of one of the old men in his "nursing home".
We met a few times and had some exchanges, but then I got busy and never saw him again.
His name is quite unique; his surname is Dongfang and his given name is Fuxing.
"Come, let me introduce you. This is Dongfang Fuxing, an old friend of mine. And this is Wang Shouren, the factory director of Dayun Motorcycle Factory."
"Brother Fuxing, long time no see, how are you?" Wang Shouren greeted him cheerfully.
"That's good, that's good."
"Oh, so you two know each other." Director Wu never expected that these two would actually know each other.
Now that you know each other, what does it mean that Dongfang Fuxing asked him to organize this meeting?
Dongfang Fuxing understood Director Wu's question. He smiled and said, "Most of my interactions with Shouren are private. My father received help from Shouren in the past few years and has always wanted me to have a proper conversation with him. To my shame, I've been traveling around since 1976 and only recently returned to this place. I originally wanted to make an appointment with Shouren, but I don't know where he is now. I thought about going home to ask my father, but I'm afraid he'll be angry. So, I asked you, Lao Wu, to help me make a connection."
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