Chapter 70
With an honest look, Atong conveyed the opinions of that group of Hong Kong businessmen exactly and clearly.
"The factory building is pretty good, but the machines are a bit old. Many of them need to be done manually. My sister's factory has not used these for a long time."
"I feel like the things I made are so tacky, and I'm just going to sell them in Hong Kong. They may not sell, and I don't want to cheat my sister."
"Even if I supervise it, I'm afraid there will be a lot of things that need to be revised."
"It's too much trouble, forget it."
…
In short, I just don't think highly of the existing equipment and technology in the factory.
Director Qian patted his belly angrily and cursed: "You still look down on our Fourth Food Factory? Humph, what do you know, you little girl? We are doing fine!"
The deputy factory manager at the side adjusted his glasses and asked, "So is there any room for maneuver? Atong, you are the one who is in charge of this matter, you can't just ignore it."
Atong said helplessly: "I certainly did persuade them. After all, I am now a member of the Fourth Food Factory. And my family members are also. But... eh... they said that if we really want to sign the contract, we can. But some of the existing equipment and management regulations must be rectified according to their requirements. If we can't meet the requirements, we won't accept it."
Although the factory had never made food for export, Director Qian had heard of it. The standards of such foreign-funded enterprises were very high. They were not as loose as the planned production standards in China. If the appearance or taste of the products was not good enough, they would not be accepted.
He had heard before that there was a food factory that was making food for export, but because the food did not look good, all the good products were returned without payment. The other party also claimed liability for breach of contract, which caused a lot of trouble.
Thinking of this, his fear of trouble returned.
The efficiency is not good, it is true. The food factory is a state-owned enterprise after all. It will not go bankrupt anyway. At most, when he goes to a general meeting, others will give him a cold look, and he will just pretend not to see it.
After thinking about it, Director Qian immediately changed his mind and said nonchalantly, "That's fine. If they don't like it, forget it."
What's the point of forgetting it? When the others heard this, they showed disapproval.
Although he was somewhat angry that his factory was despised, he also knew that the Fourth Food Factory was not that good. At least, judging from the bonuses alone, the current bonuses were much smaller than those a few years ago.
The factory director's family was rich and powerful, so he didn't care about these little things. But it was different for the ordinary workers. They finally had a chance to increase their income, but it was gone.
A worker representative present couldn't help but say: "I just made some changes according to their rules. It's okay. As long as they can place an order, we will definitely cooperate."
"You know nothing. You're just being picky. Do you think you can just change the rules?" Factory Director Qian retorted, "For things like machines, what can we use to update them? Northwest wind? It costs money! The factory is short of funds now, you know that. Or you pay for it?"
"As long as your thinking does not slip, there are always more solutions than problems."
"Don't chant to me here..."
Just as a quarrel was about to break out, Atong, who was standing nearby, raised her hand and interrupted the argument.
“Actually, I have a personal idea.”
Director Qian looked at her and asked, "What is it?"
Atong took a deep breath and said slowly, "I know this order, which requires renovation and the like, is actually very risky. I can understand that the factory is having difficulties. But I really don't want to miss this opportunity."
She raised her head and raised her voice: "I am willing to sign a military order and personally contract a production line. By the end of the year, I will pay the profits that should be handed over and bear my own profits and losses. If there is a loss, I will pay for it myself!"
*** ***
The afternoon class was hot and stuffy.
Chen Lanjun sat in the lecture hall, fanning herself with a small folding fan. On the podium, the teacher was citing a certain quotation and talking about ideological and political education.
She always paid 120% attention to her professional courses, but she only paid 80% attention to this kind of course. As she listened, she thought of the Fourth Food Factory.
She has already explained everything that needs to be explained to Atong, but she doesn't know how effective it will be.
Just as she was thinking, when the bell rang, Chen Lanjun walked out of the classroom with her textbook in her arms, and saw Atong standing at the corner, looking dejected.
When Chen Lanjun saw this expression, she had a rough idea in her mind.
As she got closer, Atong raised her eyes and said in a trembling voice, "I'm sorry, Sister Lan."
Chen Lanjun put her arm around her shoulders and consoled her, "It's not that serious. Come on, I'll treat you to a meal in the cafeteria. We can talk while we eat."
The cafeteria at Mingde University doesn't have many dishes, and they mainly serve food that satisfies the stomach. They don't charge money, only school meal tickets.
What’s unique is that there is a kind of pillow-shaped bread. Even before it comes out of the oven, the strong aroma can be smelled through the walls of the cafeteria and spread far away. The smell of this bread makes people drool.
It’s just that the price is a bit high, one meal ticket costs two taels, and students from ordinary families can buy less because the school only issues a limited number of food coupons each month.
But Chen Lanjun didn't eat in the school cafeteria most of the time, so she had plenty of meal tickets. She rushed to the window first, waved her meal ticket and shouted, "Comrade, please give me four loaves of bread."
After taking the bread and getting some free water, Chen Lanjun sat down opposite Atong and said, "Try this bread. It's a specialty of our school. It's very soft and fragrant."
Sweet things always soothe people's stomachs and thus their hearts.
Atong took two bites of bread, and the gloomy expression on her face dissipated a little.
Seeing that she was no longer so excited, Chen Lanjun asked, "What happened? Tell me slowly."
"Director Qian shook his head when he heard it and said I was playing the piano nonsense!"
Atong recounted what happened with a feeling of grievance, saying that Director Qian did not agree with her suggestion to take the contract.
"Sister Lan, I'm sorry, it's my fault. He refused."
"It doesn't matter." Chen Lanjun said, "This is just the first rejection. As the saying goes, three times is the limit. You should give him a few chances."
"you mean?"
Chen Lanjun pinched off a small piece of bread and stuffed it into her mouth: "From what you just said, the workers are actually still interested, right?"
"Yes." Atong said, "But it's useless. Now it's all the factory director's responsibility system. Without Director Qian's approval, this thing can't be done."
Chen Lanjun pondered for a moment and said, "I remember you mentioned this to me before when you were talking about the fourth issue, which was the on-the-spot situation. You said that Director Qian's wife was quite powerful. Is that right?"
Atong nodded: "Yes, Director Qian's wife. It seems that her family used to be cadres, so she is very confident when speaking."
Chen Lanjun smiled and said, "Then let's change our thinking this time. We can start from two aspects and use the route of 'surrounding the city from the countryside' to convince him."
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