Chapter 91 Commendation Ceremony: Be a very peaceful salted fish.
Qin Xiang wanted to attend the commendation ceremony of the foreign trade company, and Li Jianzhi accompanied her by boat to visit as a family member.
Qin Xiangxiang: "I used to really enjoy the award ceremonies held at my mom's factory when I was little. They were very lively, and we could get lots of things, like soap, toothpaste, and toothbrushes."
Li Jianzhi: "You can still get an award? A bicycle industry award?"
"That's true. If you're rated as excellent, you can earn a lot more money each year. Even if you don't use the bicycle tickets yourself, you can exchange them for others. However, bicycle tickets used to be rare, but they're not rare now. Most city families have them, and the streets are full of bicycles."
Li Jianzhi: "From now on, it will be TV tickets and refrigerator tickets."
"A television? I think we have one. It's so hard to find now. The Shanghai Radio Factory only produces about a thousand a year."
Li Jianzhi smiled and said, "I saw in the newspaper that a factory produced 98 television sets last year, which I found a bit funny."
Currently, television production capacity hasn't caught up. Large factories are producing a few thousand units, while small factories are producing less than a hundred. It's difficult to even watch TV right now. We'll have to wait another year or two for television production capacity to pick up. At that time, awards and recognition for outstanding employees in various companies will change from bicycle tickets to TV tickets.
The commendation ceremony in those days was held in an ordinary auditorium, simply decorated, with only red ribbons hanging on the windows and a banner reading "XXXX Commendation Ceremony" hanging on the stage.
It started with the leader giving a speech, summarizing various tasks, and then reporting on the order situation at this year's Spring Canton Fair, highlighting what breakthroughs had been achieved.
"Comrade Qin Xiangxiang, you are the recipient of this Outstanding Contribution Award. It is thanks to you that we were able to exceed our work targets for the first half of the year."
Qin Xiangxiang went on stage to receive an award and a bicycle ticket. She was very happy because even if she didn't use it herself, she could exchange it for a lot of things, so the trip was worthwhile.
She stepped off the stage and slipped the bicycle ticket into Li Jianzhi's hand, gesturing for him to keep it safe, saying, "If you lose it, you'll be held responsible."
Li Jianzhi chuckled and whispered to her, "That man over there is the director of the Qiaoxian Supply and Marketing Cooperative. You can go and talk to him."
"Why?"
Li Jianzhi: "Why don't you go and get to know the cotton-producing areas?"
Qin Xiangxiang: "..."
That's true. As a factory manager, you should maintain good relationships with the heads of various cotton-producing areas. This will make it easier to purchase raw cotton and avoid being clueless, forced to buy expensive cotton, or unable to purchase suitable cotton at all.
Many cotton-producing areas also have territorial protection, making it very difficult to purchase cotton from other regions. Therefore, it is very useful to maintain good relationships with cotton-producing areas within the same province.
Even if we don't do business with them now, we'll still need to do so when we buy cotton in the future.
In particular, these local supply and marketing cooperative directors have all sorts of connections, and the cotton cloth produced in their own factories can be purchased and sold by others. If the goods are good, they can also find ways to help coordinate high-quality raw cotton.
But... their textile factory isn't even finished yet, and they're already starting to build their network?
Li Jianzhi whispered to his wife, "I've already highlighted a few people for you. Go get to know them later, chat with them, and make sure they're familiar with you."
If you want to be a factory manager, you will inevitably have to deal with all sorts of people. Purchasing requires communicating with cotton-producing areas to coordinate the supply of suitable raw cotton for your factory. On the sales side, you need to communicate with the head of the commercial department, and you can also exchange defective fabrics with the commercial department for small items such as thermos bottles, towels, and enamel mugs, which can be used as employee benefits and rewards for outstanding employees.
There is no rule that more work equals more pay now. Most employees receive the same salary regardless of how much they work, so many people try to cheat, and those who work hard are the ones who suffer.
Li Jianzhi is quite supportive of rewarding hardworking employees. Even if he can't give them more cash rewards, he should still try to get some welfare benefits for hardworking employees.
"Let's go." Li Jianzhi pulled his wife forward to talk to the other person.
Qin Xiangxiang: "??????"
This damned man is actually a social butterfly!!!
Seeing her husband's expressionless face on ordinary days, she thought he was not good at talking, but in fact, his neither arrogant nor humble demeanor is quite endearing. He is neither too enthusiastic nor too distant.
After the commendation meeting, Qin Xiangxiang recognized many people, but she also felt very tired. When would she be dismissed as the factory director, and when would someone else be parachuted in to take over?
All she wanted to do was lie in the guesthouse bed and be a peaceful, lazy bum.
Qin Xiangxiang lay in bed, while Li Jianzhi, after returning to the guesthouse, kept writing in a small notebook, recording the names, positions, physical characteristics, and speech patterns of various key figures...
"Make a note of this when you have time, so that you won't fail to recognize me when we meet again in the future."
Qin Xiangxiang closed her eyes, thinking, "Fine..."
"Manager Meng said before that he would try to help us obtain quotas for purchasing some imported machines, which would be better spinning machines and looms, as these can most significantly improve the quality of textiles." Compared to other roundabout ways, Qin Xiangxiang couldn't stand her textile factory producing defective products, especially since she herself had once worked as a spinning machine operator in the spinning workshop. Poor spinning machines resulted in a high breakage rate, which was very challenging for female workers.
When she was a factory worker, she had a low number of fabric breaks per hour because she hated making defects. If the loom was not in good condition, it would easily skip patterns and cause loose threads to appear on the fabric.
Li Jianzhi: "It's good that you know what's going on."
Qin Xiang thought to herself, "I have absolutely no interest in this stuff. I'd much rather buy an imported piano than a spinning machine or a loom."
Imported pianos cost tens of thousands of yuan each; she really dared to dream. In the 1980s, tens of thousands of yuan could buy a property in Shanghai.
Li Jianzhi: "We'll buy them later!"
“Let’s buy two more pianos in the future, one for you and one for our daughter.”
Qin Xiangxiang was stunned: "You are the one who truly dares to dream."
The little drama queen closed her eyes and slept peacefully.
The next day, Qin Xiangxiang took some time to call her biological mother, Zhou Aodong. She called the factory, and when Zhou Aodong answered the phone, Master Li was also there. Everyone in the group had a happy expression on their faces.
"Think about it, we all saw it in the newspapers. You made a great contribution by saving the country from losses."
"Our factory has also issued a commendation for you. Who knows, you might be awarded the title of National Outstanding Female Textile Technician and the National Outstanding Contribution Award at the end of the year."
Mr. Li laughed heartily on the phone: "I told you I wasn't wrong about my judgment back then."
“You’re not just a workshop director, you’ve become the factory director, and you’ve even been recognized as a national outstanding worker.”
Qin Xiangxiang: "!"
Mr. Li, you've ruined my life!
Qin Xiangxiang threatened, "Master Li, the factory will be finished by the end of the year. Are you really coming? Our staff housing here is all rammed earth. The building materials we applied for for the factory construction aren't enough. There's only enough cement and steel for the main factory building. The other staff housing will have to make do..."
“Rammed earth houses are great. Your new factory has a large site, and there’s land in front of and behind the houses, right? You can even grow some vegetables and raise chickens. I haven’t experienced that kind of life in many years.”
Qin Xiangxiang: "..."
"I just want to live in a rammed earth house, because rammed earth houses are warm in winter and cool in summer!"
Qin Xiang thought to herself, "It's true that the devil is always one step ahead of the saint. It's a pity I've already built you a house with bricks and tiles."
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Aodong and Master Li exchanged a smile.
Master Li: "Thinking back on the year I've been away, I've grown a lot. He sounds like he has the air of a factory manager."
Zhou Aodong: "After the end of the year, I'll trouble you to take care of me."
Zhou Aodong was in a good mood. She even bought a cake on her way home. Her daughter wasn't home, so she and her husband shared it.
During this time, her relationship with Qin Wutong improved. Her grandson, Li Qingfeng, moved away with her daughter and son-in-law, and her mother-in-law no longer visited her home as often. The middle-aged couple lived a relatively relaxed life behind closed doors.
The weather grew hotter day by day, and summer arrived. This summer was just like the weather Qin Xiangxiang had encountered in her dream; it was the most severe heat wave and drought on the island in the past thirty years.
The waterworks frequently shut down, and in order to ensure water supply for the army and navy as well as urban residents, water was transported by ship from other places, but this could only barely guarantee the supply.
The sun protection measures that Li Jianzhi made for his family's vegetable garden last year have all come in handy this year. The straw curtains cover the soil and try to keep it moist. The water-permeable ceramic pots buried last year can still be used, which is very water-saving. The loofah, cucumber, tomatoes and other vegetables in the garden are growing normally.
In previous years, people on the island could manage to get through the summer, but this year the temperature is high and many families can't stand it, so they are trying to buy electric fans. Several families in the residential compound have added electric fans.
Qin Xiangxiang and her husband bought a brand new floor fan. She didn't sell the old one, but instead transported it to the factory construction site for the workers to use.
Construction of the factory is still ongoing, but the working hours of various units on the island have changed. They start work at dawn and stop when the sun gets too strong around nine or ten o'clock.
The sun sets around four or five in the afternoon. Before it gets dark, they continue working for a while. With the sea breeze on the island, Qin Xiangxiang had someone cook a big pot of mung bean soup every day, and no one on the construction site suffered from heatstroke.
"Director Qin, according to this construction schedule, the factory building can be completed on time."
Qin Xiangxiang nodded, thinking that it didn't matter if it wasn't on time. "Everyone's safety is the most important thing. In this hot weather, we shouldn't let anyone get heatstroke and suffer too much."
Chief Engineer Chen smiled and said, "Director Qin, you have a kind heart. Everyone remembers your kindness."
"Don't worry, I'll definitely build a beautiful factory for you."
Qin Xiangxiang now gets up at four or five in the morning to go out, and after finishing her work, she goes to sleep again at eight or nine. With a fan at home and ice cubes, she can comfortably get through the sweltering heat.
Last year, all the bamboo waterwheels that Li Jianzhi made got moldy and were thrown away. This year, he took Xiao Pang to cut bamboo again to make bamboo circulating water ornaments. Layer upon layer of bamboo strips, water flowing with a whooshing sound, and when the wind blows, a cool breeze blows through the room.
This bamboo water feature is very simple. At the top, there is a large earthenware pot filled with water, along with a cotton thread. The cotton thread automatically draws water and directs it to the first layer of bamboo strips, then it flows down the bamboo layer by layer, finally falling into the earthenware pot at the bottom. Once it is full, the water is poured back up to the top, creating a refreshing sound.
"Xiao Qin, your product is really clever. I'll make one too. It's been so hot this year. I've lived on the island for so many years, and this summer is the most unbearable."
Zhong Li tried to fan herself, but even that couldn't keep up. She asked around for help to buy electric fans. It was alright at night, but during the day it was unbearable.
"The sun outside is so bright it makes you dizzy."
Zhao Yangyang's work also changed to leaving early and returning early, getting up at four or five o'clock. At this time, the compound was also lively, with many family members getting up to water the vegetable garden and feed the chickens, chattering and talking in front of the well or tap.
Although it was tough, life was still pretty good. At least there was a water supply for one or two hours every day, with the collective pressurizing the system to supply water. We stored water in the tank regularly, and life went on as usual.
Zhao Yangyang was doing well, finishing work early to go home and enjoy the fan, while Lin Xiuqin felt even more uncomfortable seeing her.
Lin Xiuqin regretted coming to the island. She had forgotten that the island was suffering from a severe drought this year and was short of water. Although there was a water supply every day, people had to carry water in buckets, and water was very scarce.
It was difficult for her to take a bath; she had to painstakingly fetch water. There was no man in the family to help her. However, a man pursued her, but he was just an ordinary male teacher, and Lin Xiuqin really looked down on his salary of only thirty-odd yuan.
Zhao Yangyang lives in the family compound, where there is a pressurized water supply for one or two hours every day. Although the water quality is not very good, the water stored in the water tank can last for one or two days, or even two or three days, which is enough. The men can fetch water from the well to boil at home for their own drinking water.
Her daily work also turned into distributing disinfectant tablets door-to-door every morning, reminding people not to drink unboiled water to prevent disease, and disinfecting water tanks in a timely manner. After distributing the tablets, she would go home to rest.
There is a shortage of drinking water on the island right now, and large ships are used to transport water, not to mention other supplies.
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