Chapter 147
The reason why canned food is considered a "luxury item" by ordinary people is not only because of its high price, but also because of its low production.
There are only more than 50 canneries in all provinces and cities across the country. Some remote provinces don't even have a single cannery.
Under such conditions of resource scarcity, the heavy machinery factory actually opened its own cannery!
Moreover, their canned food is not sold to the public. There is no trademark or label on the can. Apart from a production date, there is nothing else on the can!
All products are supplied to the employees of this factory.
"We had no choice but to shut down your cannery. Many of the factories in the planned canning program were short of raw materials," Ye Manzhi said with a smile. "Though your cannery only had a staff of twenty or so, it was churning out 250 tons of canned food every day. After canning fruit, they also canned luncheon meat, making them a major consumer of sugar, salt, and pork. Crucially, their products were all off-plan and never circulated on the market!"
The Heavy Machinery Factory is a unit directly under the central government and belongs to the heavy industry sector that is a key development sector of the country. It is a typical representative of a good unit nowadays and can almost do whatever it wants in the industrial system of the entire province.
Of course, the employee benefits are also among the best.
Bian Queqiao was busy serving food to the little girl and complained, "When the cannery was doing well, I could get a canned food ticket every month to satisfy my hunger. Ever since the cannery was ordered to close by the Ministry of Industry, everyone in the factory has been complaining."
"Oh, it's all about work," Ye Manzhi said with a smile. "Secretary, when the time comes, just mention the food factory and forget about the Industry Department!"
"The Department of Industry shut down our cannery to ensure production at other food factories!" Bian Queqiao reminded him. "I'm not kidding. Our factory workers are really holding a grudge against this!"
"Employees are employees, leaders are leaders, and everything can be discussed."
Wu Yuzhuo was conscientiously preparing the braised saury in the lunch box. After she had picked out all the small bones on both sides of the saury, she finally found the energy to help her mother with some side hustle. "Aunt Qiaoqiao, we can discuss anything."
"What are you discussing? Do you understand?" Bian Queqiao stroked her pigtails and said enviously, "You've been taking care of Youyan all by yourself. My two children are still back home!"
"My brother-in-law's job transfer hasn't been finalized yet? Aren't there any vacancies at the heavy machinery factory?" Ye Manzhi asked.
"In recent years, the factory has been reducing staffing. Apart from recent college graduates and technical secondary school graduates, there are no hiring targets at all. Even if there were targets, it wouldn't be our turn!"
Although Bian Queqiao stayed in Binjiang after graduating from university, she had little roots here and actually had few connections.
His wife has done well in recent years and has become the head of the supply and marketing department at the winery in his hometown. He would definitely not be happy if he was asked to give up his job in his hometown and come to the provincial capital to work as a worker or clerk.
But it is absolutely impossible to ask Bian Queqiao to give up the good job at the heavy machinery factory.
The couple had to live apart temporarily, and her parents-in-law helped take care of the child.
Fortunately, her husband works in supply and marketing and has the opportunity to come to Binjiang on business trips, so the couple can occasionally reunite.
"My father-in-law sent me a telegram last month, urging me to go back to my hometown to work."
Ye Manzhi curled her lips and said, "It's easy to go back, but it's hard to get out again. If you go back to your hometown, will you still find a job with such good pay?"
Bian Queqiao sighed, "I've been away for six or seven years since we started college. The last time I went back to my hometown for the New Year, my eldest son and I felt a little estranged."
"That's nothing. Since your rented house is spacious, why not bring both kids to Binjiang to go to school? The teaching level at the Heavy Machinery Factory's children's school is much higher than at local schools. My child Youyan goes to kindergarten, and they can even learn dancing and painting."
Bian Queqiao had considered bringing her child to Binjiang before, but she had just started working at a new company and was very busy, so she really didn't have time to take care of the child alone.
Ye Manzhi gave her some bad advice. "Both children are in school now, so you don't need to take care of them during the day. The factory school and kindergarten follow the workers' schedule. Bring them here first. By then, your wife and children will be in Binjiang, and your brother-in-law will definitely try his best to find a way to develop in Binjiang. You and your wife have been stuck in a stalemate, and there's no suitable opportunity to change the status quo. If you keep wasting time, the two children will grow up and no longer need their mother."
Bian Queqiao looked at the young comrade Wu Yuzhuo, whose cheeks were bulging and whose appetite was excellent, and said with determination, "I'll go to the school for children of children tomorrow to inquire about the transfer requirements and bring the child over first."
*
It was a rare opportunity for old classmates to get together and chat, so Ye Manzhi spent most of the day relaxing at the heavy machinery factory before taking her children home.
The next day when she went to work, she first introduced to Niu Enjiu the idea of borrowing equipment from the cannery.
"They have two semi-mechanical production lines that can produce canned fruits and vegetables, as well as canned luncheon meat. The equipment isn't very advanced, but it's no problem for them to carry out production."
Niu Enjiu stood up and asked, "Are they really willing to lend us the equipment?"
"It's not certain yet. We need to send someone to discuss it, but I think it's very likely." Ye Manzhi whispered, "The provincial department has just closed down some small factories. As long as the shortage of production materials is not solved, their cannery will not be able to open. Equipment is not afraid of being used, but afraid of being put away. So much equipment will be scrapped after a few years. It's better to transfer it to us..."
"The Heavy Machinery Factory opened this cannery to provide benefits to its employees. After the cannery closed, the employee benefits also stopped. I think we can start from this aspect and promise them that we will provide a certain number of cans of canned food free of charge every year for a certain number of years. We can use these cans to exchange for the two sets of production equipment."
Niu Enjiu clapped his hands and said, "Director Ye, your information is quite valuable. Haha, why didn't we think of the Heavy Machinery Factory before?"
Ye Manzhi smiled and said, "Although they have the equipment, twenty or thirty workers can complete the entire year's production. The output of these two sets of equipment is actually not enough to support our production tasks."
In the canning workshop of the food factory, there are nearly 500 regular workers and more than 100 temporary workers.
These two sets of equipment are a drop in the bucket for them.
Niu Enjiu said with a bright smile, "Let's first give some employees some work to do and complete some of the production tasks. The early cherries are ripe recently, and we've signed a purchase agreement with the commune orchard. Yesterday I was still worried about how to produce canned cherries this year. If we can really get this equipment, we'll work in three shifts, without stopping, and start canning cherries first!"
He paced back and forth in the office, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that this matter was reliable. He couldn't help but stop and ask, "Who is responsible for this matter at the Heavy Machinery Factory? Let's find a way to invite them out and entertain them."
"Director of General Affairs."
The director of the heavy machinery factory is at the same level as the provincial and ministerial leaders. A small food factory like theirs has no way of communicating with the director and is lucky enough to be able to contact a general affairs director.
"Then let's make an appointment with the Director of General Affairs and invite them to our food factory guesthouse to discuss it."
Ye Manzhi felt that if he stepped forward, it would probably make things more difficult, or even ruin the situation.
So, she acted as if she was not greedy for credit and followed the director's lead. She said sincerely, "Director, you should personally take charge of the banquet for the Director of General Affairs. I will stay in the factory to organize everyone to build the factory building, prepare the site for the new equipment, and provide logistical support!"
Niu Enjiu looked at her in surprise. He didn't expect that she would take a step back at the critical moment.
Although he wants to have the final say in the factory, he considers himself a leader who can tolerate others.
As long as the food factory can develop according to his plan and no major chaos occurs, his deputies can give full play to their talents.
He thought for a moment and said, "Okay, let's divide the work and cooperate. I'll coordinate with the heavy machinery factory."
…
Ye Manzhi pushed the dinner invitation to Director Niu, and she went to the Industry Bureau to check if there were any other canneries that had been closed down.
However, there is no other unit as wealthy as the Heavy Machinery Factory.
Apart from the cannery of the heavy machinery factory, only a small cannery in Dehua District was closed down. However, their scale was too small, and the canning production used a crude method that had long been eliminated by the food factory, so it had little borrowing value.
While she was wondering where else she could get some money and equipment, Zhou Ruyi brought in some documents. Then, standing in front of the desk, she whispered, "Director, Section Chief Liu just went into Deputy Director Chen's office."
As Ye Manzhi signed the document, she asked, "Which Chief Liu?"
"It's Liu Sheng, the head of the Supply and Marketing Department!"
Ye Manzhi nodded without saying anything.
She is the deputy director of operations. In addition to being in charge of two workshops, she is also in charge of the finance department and the supply and marketing department.
He is the immediate superior of Liu Sheng, the head of the supply and marketing department.
However, there were some old scores between her and Liu Sheng.
She always took revenge on the spot. When Liu Sheng tricked her once, she retaliated immediately.
Because the bribery of the judges was exposed, Liu Sheng suffered a great loss and even missed the opportunity to be promoted to deputy factory director.
When Ye Manzhi faced him, she felt quite open-minded and had no resentment, after all, she had already taken revenge.
But Liu Sheng was obviously uncomfortable when facing her.
Except for the time when she first took office and came to report on her work with the chief financial officer, he rarely came to her office after that.
Of course, it may also be related to the fact that she is often away from the office.
Who knows.
Seeing that his leader had no reaction, Zhou Ruyi continued to report: "The early cherries over at Xiangqian Commune are almost ripe, but I heard that there seems to be something wrong with the cherries this year."
Ye Manzhi asked, "What's the problem? Insufficient production or something?"
"It seems they're not sweet enough. The Supply and Marketing Department sent someone to the orchard in Xiangqian Commune to check. Although it's not ready to pick yet, they're noticeably sourer than the same period last year. Canning cherries requires a lot of sugar, and if the cherries aren't sweet enough, even more sugar is needed."
Ye Manzhi finally took it seriously and stopped.
Each factory has a target for sugar usage.
The annual raw material consumption was determined at the beginning of the year. Once the sugar consumption in canned cherries exceeds the standard, this year's quota will definitely not be enough.
Food factories are major users of sugar and oil, but their superiors have very strict control over the sugar quota.
The amount of sugar used in each product is accurate to the single digit, so when making plans, there is no chance to make more.
Zhou Ruyi leaned in close to her and reported, "Just now, when I passed by Director Chen's office, I heard Section Chief Liu mention Xiangqian Commune. I think it has something to do with this batch of early cherries."
Ye Manzhi frowned subconsciously, as she was in charge of the Supply and Marketing Department.
Liu Sheng didn't report to her, but went to Chen Qian instead. What was he doing?
Moreover, the contract work of the canning workshop had long been transferred from Chen Qian to her.
She thought for a while, and seeing Zhou Ruyi still waiting opposite, she smiled and asked, "Ruyi, is there anything else?"
Zhou Ruyi hesitated and said, "Director, besides Section Chief Liu's matter, there's actually another piece of news that's not too big or too small."
"Um?"
"There seems to be a bad rumor going around the factory lately."
"What rumors?"
"It's mainly the workers in the canning workshop. Some say the factory leadership can't get the money from higher-ups to buy production equipment, so the canning workshop can't be rebuilt. They might be reducing staff soon," Zhou Ruyi whispered. "Several workers have already used connections to transfer to other workshops."
"Did you succeed in establishing connections? Has anyone applied for a transfer recently?" Ye Manyi asked.
"Not yet. They seem to have contacted directors and team leaders from other workshops," Zhou Ruyi said. "But some people think the canning workshop is hopeless. They've been working on the construction site for the past two days without putting in any effort, just waiting to be transferred to other workshops."
The advantage of Ye Manzhi choosing Zhou Ruyi as his secretary finally came to light at this time.
She had just taken on the position and was still in the stage of familiarizing herself with the environment. Although she often found opportunities to go to the workshop, she had no idea of the employees' private thoughts and trends.
Zhou Ruyi had previously worked in the canning workshop and had many relatives and friends there. Although these relatives held relatively low positions, mostly working in the workshops, their network of connections stretched across the entire factory, keeping them well-informed about all sorts of factory gossip.
Secretary Xiao Zhou is a bit like Liu Jinbao back then.
Ye Manzhi screwed up her Parker pen, placed it gently on the table, and then imagined the possible impact of this rumor.
The construction of the new factory requires everyone's efforts. If it causes panic and forces workers to use their connections to find new jobs, it will indeed be detrimental to stability.
Difficulties are not scary, what is scary is the loss of people’s hearts.
This unhealthy trend must be put to an end in time.
"Ruyi, the information you provided was very timely! I'm overwhelmed with things to do here, and I can't take care of some details. If you encounter similar situations in the future, please let me know immediately!"
Ye Manzhi was generous in giving the secretary some positive feedback.
When she was working as Xia Zhuyun's secretary, Xia often praised her and made her clearly understand what she should and should not do.
It saves secretaries time in trying to figure out what their leaders are thinking, and makes their work very efficient.
With a ready-made example in hand, Ye Manzhi continued Director Xia's working style and mainly praised his young secretary.
Zhou Ruyi didn't expect that just a piece of gossip could get direct affirmation from the leader, and she nodded vigorously.
She is only a few years younger than Director Ye, but ever since she became the director's secretary, she has always felt excited and uneasy.
Since the establishment of the food factory, the leadership secretaries have all been promoted from the factory headquarters, and the factory leaders have never selected secretaries from the grassroots workshops.
In the words of her parents, Zhou Ruyi's transfer from the workshop to the leadership was a leap forward.
Director Ye is so young and yet she is already the deputy director. She is also the only female director in the factory. She definitely has a bright future ahead of her.
When one person succeeds, everyone around him will benefit. If she works hard under her leader, maybe she can become a director or a section chief in the future!
"I'll go to the workshop later. Ruyi, go to the Propaganda Department and ask them to send a propaganda officer over."
Ye Manzhi didn't consider Liu Sheng's problem for the time being.
He took a blue work suit from the hanger and put it on, picked up his notebook, and went straight to the cannery building under construction.
The construction site is still bustling with activity, but if you look closely, you can indeed find that some employees are slow and have low work morale.
When Director Hou of the second workshop noticed her, he ran over and greeted her.
"Director Hou, there have been some rumors circulating in the factory these past few days. Have you noticed anything that's affecting everyone?"
Director Hou was surprised to find the new factory director so well-informed. He paused for a moment before replying, "Most comrades are quite rational, but a small number are quite active."
Ye Manzhi nodded and said, "The sun is too strong now, let's all rest for a while. I haven't had a formal communication with everyone since I took over our canning workshop. It's a good opportunity to organize a symposium with everyone."
"That's great, I'll gather the people over right away."
When they heard that the deputy director was going to hold a meeting, everyone stopped working. Hundreds of people immediately put down their work and ran to the shady area in front of the factory to sit on the ground.
Ye Manzhi stood at the front of the open space, holding up a loud speaker and laughing, "As the deputy director of our canning workshop, I've been in charge for some time. I originally wanted to hold the first symposium on the day the canning workshop resumed production, but today I happened to have the opportunity, so I thought I'd take advantage of the break to chat with everyone."
Director Hou turned around and said to the employees, "Director Ye is already standing in front of you. If you have any questions, please ask him in person!"
Someone in the crowd immediately shouted, "Director, when can our canning workshop resume work?"
"Oh, you asked the wrong question. You should ask whether the canning workshop can resume work?" another young worker joked with a smile.
“Hahaha~”
The young men around him burst into laughter.
Ye Manzhi looked at the worker who asked the question and asked with a smile, "What is this comrade's name?"
"Ma Zhichao!" the young man said, his chin held high. "What's going on? What are the instructions from the factory director?"
"The factory director doesn't have any instructions. Ma Zhichao, before I answer your question, let me ask you a question," Ye Manzhi asked with a smile, "What was the total output of our canning workshop last year?"
"About one or two thousand tons."
"Yes, 2,100 tons." Ye Manzhi looked at all the workers in front of him and continued to ask, "Does anyone know the province's canned food production last year?"
The employees don’t care about these things, so naturally they can’t answer them.
Director Hou had a slight understanding and raised his hand and said, "More than 3,000 tons."
"Yes, in 1963, the province had two canneries and one canning workshop, with a total canned food production of 3,190 tons!" Ye Manzhi shouted through a loud speaker. "The canning workshop of Binjiang No. 1 Food Factory was the only one in the province, and our output accounted for two-thirds of the province's canned food production! What a concept!"
One employee said proudly: "We are number one in the province!"
"Yes, we're the best at canned food!" Ye Manzhi gave a thumbs-up. "Many of you know that I used to work at the Provincial Department of Industry. The provincial leaders have always been supporting our province's famous brand products. The First Food Factory has decades of experience and can be considered a time-honored brand. Our Binjiang and Great Wall canned foods are quite well-known outside of Beijing. I've even seen our products on the counter in Wangfujing, Beijing."
The workers were both relieved and saddened. One lamented, "A hero never brags about his past achievements. Now that the workshop has burned down, what's the point of still talking about them?"
Ye Manzhi said, "The workshop burned down, but the sign is still there! As long as the sign is there, neither the province nor the factory will give up the canning workshop of the First Food Factory! Our factory has mature technology and skilled workers. Rebuilding and resuming work is much more cost-effective than building a new cannery!"
"There's been a rumor circulating in the factory lately. Some say they're going to reduce the staff in the canning workshop," Ye Manyi said firmly. "I can tell you very clearly that this rumor is completely nonsense!"
"The city has been downsizing its population in recent years, and our food factory has also been downsizing somewhat. I completely understand everyone's concerns! However, I hope everyone can keep up with the times and view the issue with perspective. Since last year, the economy of our province, and even the country, has begun to fully recover! Now is a critical period for boosting production and catching up with others."
"I can tell you responsibly that our factory will not reduce its workforce. When the time is right, we will even recruit more workers!"
The crowd was buzzing with discussion.
"Is this true? Our factory is hiring?"
"When we need manpower, of course we have to hire!" Ye Manzhi asked, "Does anyone know how many employees the Shanghai Meilin Cannery has?"
Director Hou guessed, "Given their production scale, they must have at least a thousand people, right?"
Ye Manzhi held up two fingers. "Meilin has 2,000 employees! And how many people work in the canning workshop of our First Food Factory? Regular workers plus temporary workers, a total of 637! I heard our factory has a slogan, what is it?"
Someone in the crowd immediately shouted in unison: "Compare with the advanced, learn from the advanced, catch up with the advanced, surpass the advanced!"
"Yes, our goal is to catch up with the advanced ones! As the largest canned food manufacturer in the province, our goal has never been just to resume production and work, but to catch up with and surpass the advanced companies in the country!"
Ma Zhichao said loudly enough for most people to hear, "How can we catch up with others when we don't even have a complete set of production equipment?"
"Comrade Ma Zhichao's concerns are legitimate, but pouring cold water on everyone's enthusiasm is highly undesirable!" Ye Manzhi said seriously, "Ever since I arrived at our food factory, I've been trying to find a way to get canned food production equipment, and now I'm seeing some progress. I've reported the situation to Director Niu, and the factory is currently moving forward with this project. I'm confident we'll hear good news soon."
"But I also hope everyone won't rush and give the factory leaders some time. We will gradually replenish the equipment and allow everyone to return to work in batches!"
Ye Manzhi turned around and waved, calling the propaganda officer over.
"The day after the February 27 fire, reporters took photos of the aftermath. I've already contacted the newspaper and requested those photos. Today, I've also asked someone from our publicity department to use their cameras to help everyone capture this moment!"
"Compared to February 27th, the canning workshop today is full of life! And before long, perhaps in three months, or even by the end of this year, this entire factory will undergo another earth-shaking transformation!"
Ye Manzhi pointed to the construction site behind him and said, "The former canning workshop was inherited from our predecessors after decades of accumulation. The future canning workshop was built by us brick by brick, tile by tile. Everyone present today is a veteran of the canning workshop, and their names are worthy of being written into our factory history!"
"I think it's better to take a day like this than to wait for a day. There's no need for everyone to dress up. Let's just take a group photo in front of this open space with the factory building behind us as the background!"
"Director Ye, are you really taking a picture of us?"
"Of course!"
"Well, I can't stand straight to take the photo. Can you take a photo of me working?"
"Sure. Everyone, find your seats. We'll have the Propaganda Department take a group photo for us later. The factory will submit the photos from February 27th, today's photos, and the photos from the day we officially resume work to the newspaper editor for publication. I've already thought of a title for the pictures: 'New Life.'"
One worker started to jeer, "Hahaha, I think it should be called 'Hot and Booming'."
Someone else chimed in, saying, "No, no, no, it's called 'Burning with Desire'."
"What's 'Burning with Desire'? It's called 'Rise from the Ashes'!"
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