Wang Meili asked Yan Fugui to call the rest of the family outside.
"These two are comrades from the cadre section of the steel rolling mill. Lao Yi and Lao Liu should know each other. This is Section Chief Sun, and this is Section Chief Liu. We came together today to inspect Xu Damao."
Since you are in charge of the compound, I'm asking what your opinions are on Xu Damao. Of course, these opinions must be based on the truth, not fabricated. Making things up might get you punished.
Wang Meili was worried that the others wouldn't keep their mouths shut, so she spoke the unpleasant truths upfront.
After being lectured by Wang Meili, the group was too intimidated to speak. This opinion, being a personal one, was inevitably influenced by subjective emotions. But they couldn't just say anything now, so they were at a loss for words.
"Sir, could you please tell us what aspects we were evaluating Xu Damao for? That way we can have a more targeted response."
At crucial moments, Yi Zhonghai proved himself capable, displaying the demeanor of a great general, and asked the key questions.
"Oh, just talk about Xu Damao's usual performance. Don't be too reserved. Tell us what you think, and we'll take notes as a reference for our work," Section Chief Sun said with a smile, but he didn't mention that he was evaluating Xu Damao.
“I’m an old man in this compound, so I’ll speak first. I’ve watched Xu Damao grow up, so I should say I know him very well.”
I think Xu Damao used to be a good person, but in the past year he's often away from home and doesn't spend much time in the compound. Sometimes he doesn't pay enough attention to what's happening in the compound. For example, the deaf old lady in our backyard, who lives in the same compound as Damao, said she hasn't seen him come to visit for several months.
Yi Zhonghai knew that Xu Damao's evaluation was a sure sign of a promotion. If the promotion was successful, wouldn't he be out of the compound's control? Since he couldn't lie, he decided to tell the truth, using the old lady's words to do so.
As Yi Zhonghai spoke, he clearly noticed out of the corner of his eye that Wang Meili's gaze was unfriendly, and that Section Chief Liu, who was in charge of taking notes, trembled slightly. He gritted his teeth and continued speaking.
"Also, Da Mao is a nice guy, he likes to joke around, but sometimes he goes a bit too far. For example, the old lady said that her grandson had to pay a lot of money in compensation last time because he got into a fight with Da Mao."
"In addition, although Xu Damao is now showing movies, his education level is a bit low. He only graduated from junior high school and did not pass the high school entrance exam."
Sometimes after showing movies, they would bring back local specialties from the villagers; my third uncle received some once.
After making up his mind, Yi Zhonghai didn't look at anyone else and started talking nonstop, taking the opportunity to criticize Yan Fugui.
Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui stared at Yi Zhonghai in surprise. Although they were slow to realize what was happening, they knew that people usually said nice things at this time. But Yi Zhonghai's words, while mostly true, sounded so awkward.
Yi Zhonghai wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Wang Meili.
"Alright, Lao Yi, we're a bit short on time. Your opinions are quite comprehensive. We'll have Lao Liu and Lao Yan discuss it later. You can sign this in a bit."
Yi Zhonghai was interrupted and didn't say anything more. Anyway, he had said what he should and shouldn't have said, and whether others listened or not was their business.
Less than a minute later, Section Chief Liu, who was in charge of taking notes, asked Yi Zhonghai to sign.
Yi Zhonghai held the record sheet and slowly looked at the contents, his face growing increasingly dark.
"Old Yi, you're not very educated, you can't read, can you? Let me read it to you." Yan Fugui, seeing Yi Zhonghai's expression, became curious and spontaneously read the text to Yi Zhonghai.
"Comrade Xu Damao, in order to better serve the public and ensure film screenings, has given up his rest time at home and has been frequently traveling on business trips. His work is arduous..."
Comrade Xu Damao had a firm political stance, a good reputation among the masses, and dared to fight against bad elements...
Comrade Xu Damao is diligent in his studies, adept at thinking, and possesses considerable practical and theoretical knowledge…
Comrade Xu Damao has long been deeply rooted in the grassroots, caring for people in difficulty and having a deep concern for the surrounding residents...
···”
Yan Fugui almost burst out laughing when he read this.
Old Yi said Xu Damao was out fooling around instead of at home, but it was portrayed as him working hard on a business trip; he said Xu Damao fought with Sha Zhu and demanded compensation, but it was portrayed as him standing firm and fighting against bad elements; he said Xu Damao was uneducated, but it was portrayed as him being diligent in his studies and good at thinking; he said Xu Damao received gifts while showing movies in the countryside and gave himself a local specialty, but it was portrayed as him caring about people in need.
Is there something wrong with him? No, there is nothing wrong with him. He is indeed a person in need, and Xu Damao is helping people in need.
"This Section Chief Liu is a real talent. Of all the talent in the world, Section Chief Liu possesses eight-tenths." Yan Fugui thought to himself.
Wang Meili and Liu Haizhong were also shocked by Section Chief Liu's record. They were talking about the same thing and the same person, but they sounded so different.
"Old Yi, is there a problem with the record? If not, sign it quickly. Secretary Wu and Factory Director Qin are urging us to sign it."
Section Chief Sun didn't tolerate Yi Zhonghai's behavior and urged him to sign off directly. How could a problem arise in their area of responsibility when the leadership had already made the decision? If a problem occurred, it would be a political incident, and their personnel department would have to bear the responsibility.
"No, it's very well written, very truthful. I'll sign it right away." Upon hearing the names of the two factory leaders, Yi Zhonghai didn't even struggle before signing and pressing his fingerprints.
With Yi Zhonghai's introduction, Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui knew what to say. Yan Fugui, in particular, took all the words used in elementary school Chinese textbooks to praise certain figures and applied them to Xu Damao, making Section Chief Liu too lazy to take notes.
"Today's inspection went very smoothly, and I thank you three for your cooperation and support. I would like to remind you that, since this is during the inspection phase, you must keep today's conversation confidential to avoid causing any unnecessary trouble."
Section Chief Sun gave the three of them some final instructions. After he finished speaking, the conversation ended, and he left with Director Wang.
"Old Yi, you went a bit too far today. Ruining someone's future is like killing their parents. You shouldn't have said that," Yan Fugui said to Yi Zhonghai after the others left.
“Yes. We’ve been arguing about this and that in the courtyard, but we’ve never broken the rules like this before. How are we supposed to manage the courtyard and gain the respect of the people if you do this?”
Liu Haizhong echoed this. But what he said also made sense; this courtyard house had always had basic rules and operated within those rules, without anyone breaking them.
"Xu Damao is going to get rich. In the future, everyone will follow his example, and once people's hearts are scattered, the compound will be difficult to manage."
By the way, about today's matter, please... never mind.
Yi Zhonghai originally wanted Liu Haizhong and Yan Fugui to keep today's conversation a secret, but considering their personalities, he figured it would be pointless to talk to them. So he decided to keep quiet and let them do whatever they wanted. He figured Xu Damao couldn't do anything to him anyway, and he could just ignore him in the future.
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