Xia Liang was led to the second floor of a three-story building. She knocked on the door, and a middle-aged man's voice came from inside: "Come in." After they entered, Xia Liang saw a middle-aged man reading a newspaper at his desk. The room, about ten square meters in size, had six desks. The middle-aged man sat at the one closest to the door and asked, "Comrade Peng Yingyan, what brings you here?" Peng Yingyan smiled and replied, "Director Wang, this is a distant relative of mine. My husband wrote to ask me to go with him to the army, and I thought I had some relatives back home..." "A clever and quick-witted little niece," Peng Yingyan said, "I called her over to take over my work." She then handed Xia Liang over, who quickly introduced herself, "Hello, Director Wang, my name is Xia Liang, I'm seventeen years old." Director Wang looked Xia Liang up and down and said, "Seventeen? Very young. Can she handle the work in the workshop?" Peng Yingyan continued, "Don't worry, I've already explained the job to her. I guarantee she'll pick it up quickly and won't delay production." She thought to herself that she'd have to teach Xia Liang properly later, making sure she hadn't never even touched a sewing machine before. Director Wang nodded, "Alright, come with me to the workshop." Peng Yingyan hadn't expected to be in the workshop so soon and looked at Xia Liang with a troubled expression. Xia Liang reassured her by waving her hand.
Upon arriving at the workshop, Director Wang called out, "Old Liu, come here for a moment." A middle-aged woman, around forty years old, walked over. She had a serious expression and didn't smile even when facing the leader, clearly a stern person. Director Wang introduced her, "Old Liu, this is the foreman of the tailoring workshop. She's conscientious, responsible, and capable. You'll be learning from her from now on." Pointing to Xia Liang, he added, "This is Comrade Peng Yingyan's relative; she'll be taking over her position." Xia Liang quickly greeted him, "Hello, Master Liu, my name is Xia Liang. I will definitely learn a lot from you in the future." Liu Hongli nodded to Xia Liang and led her to familiarize herself with her workstation. "Our factory is the largest garment factory in the city, with over two hundred sewing machines, divided into ten groups. Since you're new, just observe from the sidelines today. Once you're sure you can handle it, we'll assign you a machine." She then led Xia Liang to a young girl's workstation in group three and said, "Xiao Zhou, this is the new girl. Teach her." She then left. The girl, Xiao Zhou, had a round face, thick eyebrows, and big eyes; she had a friendly and approachable appearance. Sure enough, Xiao Zhou smiled and said to Xia Liang, "Hello, my name is Zhou Xiaohui, I'm twenty years old. You can just call me Xiaohui." "What's your name?" Xia Liang replied, "I'm seventeen years old. I'll call you Sister Xiaohui." The two young girls quickly became acquainted, and Zhou Xiaohui began to explain to Xia Liang how to thread a sewing machine and how to operate it. In fact, Xia Liang not only knew how to use a sewing machine but was also very good at it. In her previous life, after graduating from vocational school, she couldn't find a job and had no choice but to work in a factory, which happened to be a garment factory. The reason she hadn't mentioned that she knew how to use it was because the machines she used in her previous life were different from those of this era. Xia Liang had never used a sewing machine in this era, but after watching Zhou Xiaohui explain it once, she understood it. As Zhou Xiaohui demonstrated, she explained things to Xia Liang. Soon, they heard a bell ring. Zhou Xiaohui stopped what she was doing and pulled Xia Liang to the cafeteria. When they arrived, there was already a long queue. Zhou Xiaohui said, "We eat at noon and 5 pm every day. Come quickly when you hear the bell, or you won't get what you want." Xia Liang nodded, "Okay, I know." They waited in line for about ten minutes before they got there. Seeing that there was braised pork, stir-fried vegetables, and stewed green beans, Xia Liang thought to herself, "No wonder it's a state-owned enterprise. Since I transmigrated, I've never eaten meat in Dahe Village except for the day the family split up."
After guessing each other's names, the two found an empty seat and began to eat heartily. After the meal, Zhou Xiaohui took Xia Liang for a walk around the factory, pulling her to a small shop. Zhou Xiaohui explained, "This is a shop run by the factory; you can usually buy all kinds of labor supplies here." She then opened two plastic bags of soda and handed one to Xia Liang. The woman minding the shop said, "Two cents." Xia Liang quickly took out her money, but Zhou Xiaohui stopped her, saying, "You're an apprentice now, only earning eighteen yuan a month. Wait until you become a full-fledged employee like me and start earning thirty-five yuan before you treat me." Xia Liang didn't refuse; she would treat her next time.
The two returned to the workshop and began working. Zhou Xiaohui planned to have Xia Liang learn from her, just like in the morning. Xia Liang spoke up, "Sister Xiaohui, let me try!" Zhou Xiaohui looked at her in surprise and said, "Are you kidding? I watched for three days before I dared to try." Xia Liang smiled and said, "You'll see once I try." Zhou Xiaohui stood up and let Xia Liang sit on a stool to start working. As it turned out, Xia Liang was only a little clumsy at first, but after three minutes she was very quick. Zhou Xiaohui excitedly shouted, "Foreman, foreman, come quick!" Liu Hongli frowned when she heard Zhou Xiaohui's voice, but still came over, thinking that the newcomer had probably caused trouble. Walking up to Zhou Xiaohui's workstation, the team leader asked, "What's wrong? Why are you all flustered?" Zhou Xiaohui excitedly replied, "Look, team leader, Xia Liang is sewing too fast!" The team leader was also surprised to see Xia Liang's movements and asked, "Have you done this before?" Xia Liang said, "My grandma's house has a sewing machine. Every time I go to her house to watch her make clothes, I always pester her to teach me." Actually, Xia Liang's grandma's house couldn't afford a sewing machine. In her previous life, Xia Liang worked in a garment factory and worked there for many years. From being unfamiliar with the work at the beginning, she eventually earned three or four hundred yuan a day with a piece rate of a little over one yuan per piece. That's why she was able to save up enough for a down payment to buy a house in a big city at a young age.
Liu Lihong watched Xia Liang sew several pieces of clothing and nodded in satisfaction, saying, "Not bad, you can sew independently now. I'll give you a separate workstation later. Work hard, and if you keep this up, I'll help you become a full-time employee next month." Before Xia Liang could speak, a woman with triangular eyes spoke up, "Foreman, why? Why should a new girl like her become a full-time employee next month? I've been working for over a year and I'm still an apprentice!" She glared at Xia Liang, who was speechless. Liu Lihong picked up the clothes Xia Liang had just sewed and handed them to the woman, saying, "Look at these clothes she sewed. And look at your own. How dare you say you've been working for over a year? I remember you were like this when you first came. After more than a year, your sewing is still in such a terrible state. What are you good for? At this rate, you'll never become a full-time employee." With that, she walked away with her hands behind her back. Zhou Xiaohui chuckled gloatingly and pulled Xia Liang to tidy up the workstation next to them. As Xia Liang sat down at the newly tidied workstation, she heard Zhou Xiaohui say, "That woman just now is called Ma Xiuxiang. She's always gossiping about this and that, and she's not serious about her work. Every task she submits is returned because it's not done well, which lowers our overall quality and makes our whole group work overtime. Everyone hates her." Her words were full of resentment. Xia Liang thought, "It seems that Ma Xiuxiang is not only incompetent in her work, but also has poor interpersonal skills."
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