Rebirth in 1960, My Industrial Age

Chapter 439 Zhou Xianyang: Can I get promoted?

"Sigh, it's been almost seven months since the Lunar New Year, you're much busier than me."

While eating, Zhou Fengnian did not forget to scold his son. He usually advocated focusing on eating, but today he really couldn't help himself.

When Zhou Fengnian returned, he saw Zhou Xianyang forcibly hug his grandson and then press himself against the child.

His grandson was like a kitten with its limbs held down, constantly being scratched by his father. He couldn't resist Zhou Xianyang at all and cried out in frustration.

Finally, Zhou Fengnian went over and slapped Zhou Xianyang twice to calm him down. When he returned to the courtyard, he found that his granddaughter had been frightened to tears by her father, Zhou Xianyang.

"How long do you plan to stay this time? Are you going to stay for a few days and then go back to Dongshan Province? If it's really not possible, you can buy a house there. Otherwise, Qing'an will have nowhere to live if she takes the kids there."

Zhou Fengnian turned his head and asked, "There aren't many hotels now, and even fewer in neighboring cities. Two months ago, Bai Qing'an took his son and daughter to visit Zhou Xianyang, but they ended up having to ask Bai Yuhao to arrange their accommodation."

The guesthouses there are no good. Even the city-owned guesthouses haven't been renovated in over a decade, so the safety and environment are just average.

Zhou Fengnian was a little worried about his grandson, after all, child abduction is rampant nowadays, and once a child is abducted, it is very difficult to find him.

"I'll stay until at least the end of the year. I might go there for a look, but I'll only stay for a day or two at most before coming back."
"I haven't been idle for the past six months. I've arranged everything at the Fiberhome mobile phone factory, including production and shipping."

Zhou Xianyang said with a smile, "I don't need to keep an eye on things over there all the time, especially with Motorola's people there. They're even more concerned about phone production than I am."

Motorola's early mobile phones were already selling very well, but now they've released a phone that's even lighter and more convenient than their early models, which is naturally going to attract a lot of attention from consumers.

Especially now that the standard of living for Amis people is quite good, a mobile phone is something that, apart from the more expensive models, is affordable for more than half of Amis taxpayers.

It's not that no one wants to copy and join in, to grab such a large market, but they have to first research digital communication technology and then develop digital mobile phones.

These two steps have stalled them; it will take at least three or four more years to develop a successful product. By then, Motorola's phones will definitely occupy nearly 70% of the global market.

The remaining 30% consists of digital mobile phones from Huaxia and Fiberhome.

"By the way, Dad, there's something I wanted to ask you. Are you familiar with the new technology development experimental zone?"

Zhou Fengnian shook his head and said, "I don't know, what is this for?"

Zhou Xianyang pouted and asked, "Dad, how come you don't even know this? This is a policy to promote the development of high-tech industries, giving private enterprises the opportunity to cooperate with universities, including Tsinghua University."

"The professorship at Tsinghua University is just the least prominent of all my positions, and I haven't been to Tsinghua University for a long time except to supervise graduate and doctoral students."

Zhou Fengnian's calm tone silenced Zhou Xianyang, leaving him unable to utter a single word.

"Besides, do you know what I'm busy with? Even provincial-level matters don't qualify to be on my desk. If I had to know about such trivial matters, I'd probably be so busy I wouldn't be able to close my eyes in peace."

"Good, good, good, as expected of my father, Zhou Xianyang."

Zhou Xianyang gave a frustrated thumbs-up, took a few breaths, and then continued, "It's a new place to attract businesses, near many universities, with a lot of support policies that allow us to recruit college graduates, similar to a special economic zone."

Zhou Fengnian said, "Why didn't you say so earlier? So you're planning to move the company in now?"

"That won't be the case. Instead of leaving the factory, I'm thinking of opening my own electronics research institute here. What do you think?"

Zhou Xianyang said, "But we're short on manpower. Could you introduce me to a few capable people? Otherwise, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to recruit anyone."

These days, college graduates are still waiting for job assignments, and even if they are assigned to rural towns, they still feel that it is better than working in a private company.

Unless there's a genuine lack of funds or other reasons for not being able to allocate resources, few people would choose private companies.

However, things are different now. The new technology industry development pilot zone established by Beijing has indeed provided a lot of policies, and after thinking it over, Zhou Xianyang felt that he could move in.

If Zhou Xianyang could recruit another well-known and capable person, he would be able to recruit many college students to focus on research.

"Dad, why don't you stay with me?"

"Don't even think about it! What kind of person am I? How could I easily lend my name to someone else? Didn't you see that I didn't even have my name registered with your cousin? Although I set it up, the company is basically his."

Zhou Fengnian was referring to Jishi Biopharmaceutical Company, where a special drug for treating diabetes has entered the clinical trial stage, and the experimental progress is steadily advancing.

He originally invested in this company to help develop new drugs, but due to his status, he couldn't openly have any relationship with it. At most, he could go there to help his nephew for a day or two.

At Zhou Fengnian's level, he's not allowed to have any connections with any private sector.

"There are a few people, but I don't know if they're willing. You'll have to go and ask them yourself."

Zhou Fengnian's words gave Zhou Xianyang a glimmer of hope, and he quickly asked, "Dad, who are they?"

"Many of the older generation of researchers at the Electronics Research Institute are older than me. They should all have retired by now. I don't know if they would be willing to come out and do research again."

After Zhou Fengnian finished speaking, he took out paper and pen, wrote down the phone number and address he remembered, and then handed them to Zhou Xianyang.

"When you visit them, be extremely polite. If they are unwilling, don't beg them a second time; that would be like taking advantage of them. Also, don't bother them if they are unwell."

Zhou Fengnian gave them a lot of instructions. These people were all old acquaintances of his. During those dangerous years, it was Zhou Fengnian who protected them and helped them get through it.

Some of them weren't as energetic as Yan Zhengzhi, who returned to teach at the university after retirement. They were truly resting and recuperating after retirement. Zhou Fengnian still heard from them a few years ago, but he didn't know how they were doing now.

However, these people are all very important R&D talents, and even the lowest level one is a Level 5 engineer.

If Zhou Xianyang weren't his son, he probably wouldn't even have the right to come and invite him.

"Okay, I'll make time to go take a look in the next day or the day after."

Zhou Xianyang put away the note, then smiled and said to his son and daughter, "Zeqian, Shuyu, Dad will take you to Beihai Park tomorrow."

However, Zhou Zeqian and Zhou Shuyu both looked up at him at the same time, and then lowered their heads without saying anything.

Bai Qing'an chuckled and said, "Your son and daughter don't recognize you anymore. Who told you to leave for so long?"

"Let's see if you dare to stay away for six months again. If you don't come back, Zeqian and Shuyu will have nothing to do with you anymore."

Zhou Xianyang said angrily, "These two kids don't even recognize their own father."

"Don't take your son out to play recklessly. Zeqian and Shuyu have been going out quite a lot. I have arrangements for their education, so don't interfere."

Zhou Fengnian directly used his paternal authority to tell his son that it was rare to have some time to teach his grandson. He emphasized the importance of laying a good foundation in his childhood, saying that he might be able to go to university at fifteen and get a doctorate at twenty.
Zhou Fengnian wasn't sure about others, since it's difficult to predict future achievements from academic studies, and academics and research are two different things; being good at academics doesn't necessarily mean being good at scientific research. But his grandson seemed to possess both intelligence, which is why Zhou Fengnian devoted some of his energy to personally guiding his grandson's studies.

Moreover, he was only allowed to study for half the day, and the rest of the time was spent by the nanny or his mother, Bai Qing'an, taking him out to relax.

The results are already quite impressive. At just three years old, he has already learned all the commonly used characters and started learning elementary school math. Moreover, he grasps math concepts very quickly and has already mastered addition and subtraction.

This performance surpassed that of all her peers, and Bai Qing'an was overjoyed to see her son's abilities, laughing with delight every day.

She would often bring her son to Bai Yujie to show off how smart her son was, but she was soon scolded by Bai Yujie for it.

Now, even Grandpa Bai likes Zhou Zeqian. He's smart and steady, not at all like a child, and he's practically a member of the Bai family.

He was also his great-great-grandson, so it would be strange if Old Master Bai didn't like him. He even took Zhou Zeqian around the retirement cadre compound and showed him off to his old colleagues.

However, Bai Yongkang's old friends knew whose son Zhou Zeqian was, so they kept praising Zhou Fengnian, but not him.

Although Zhou Zeqian is only three years old, many people already know him; if he becomes successful in the future, he will definitely be able to take over all of Zhou Fengnian's resources.

When Zhou Xianyang heard about his son's performance over the past six months at the dinner table, he could hardly believe it. He was also smart when he was young, but he didn't perform like his son.

However, after the initial surprise, he laughed and said that he would definitely take Zeqian and Shuyu out for a stroll tomorrow.

After dinner, Zhou Fengnian was in his study looking at the documents and materials he had brought back.

He got home early today, and he needs to familiarize himself with all of this tomorrow, so he'll have to work overtime at home.

However, Zhou Fengnian had only been looking at it for a short while when Zhou Xianyang tiptoed open the study door, quietly walked in, and then closed the door again.

Seeing this, Zhou Fengnian frowned, sighed and asked, "What kind of trick are you up to now? You're sneaking around in your own home like a thief."

What trouble have you gotten yourself into this time? And you're keeping it from your mother.

"That's not true. Can't you have a better opinion of me? Don't my achievements deserve a word of praise from you?"

Zhou Xianyang immediately said unhappily, "I am now a leading representative of private entrepreneurs in the mainland. How could I be described like this by my own father?"

"Okay, I was just guessing."

Zhou Fengnian apologized, "You were so tiptoeing around, I thought you were trying to hide something from your mother."
"Let me make this clear first, your mother and I talk about almost everything. If you make a mistake, it will be difficult for me to hide it from her."

"I didn't do anything wrong. I've been busy with factory matters in Dongshan Province, and I haven't had any dealings with any of the other cadres besides Brother Bai."

Zhou Xianyang paused for a moment, then said, "You were at Ren Zheng's house before, right? I overheard something about you."

"The Ren family? My business?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fengnian became curious and put down the documents to ask, "What does it have to do with me?"

Zhou Xianyang asked in a low voice, "Dad, you didn't get promoted this time. Does that mean you'll have a chance next time?"

"Did the Ren family send you to ask this? What did you tell them?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fengnian initially thought that his foolish son had been instigated, but then he thought that although Zhou Xianyang did not like research, with his intelligence, he should not be so easily tricked into coming back to ask him about such things.

Besides, this kid isn't young anymore, so Zhou Fengnian needs to tell him some things he should know.

"No, it was Secretary Ren who remarked it with emotion, and then he didn't say anything more."

Zhou Xianyang recalled and pondered, saying, "Afterwards, I observed Secretary Ren several times, and it didn't seem like he was saying it to me on purpose, but rather unintentionally."

"Whether it was intentional or unintentional, I will pretend I don't know anything about this kind of thing from now on. Dealing with these people is the most troublesome thing, and I don't want to get involved with them anymore."

Zhou Fengnian shook his head and said that it was only because he had outstanding achievements and strong abilities, and also because he had a reputation for a "bad temper" and used to flip the table whenever something happened.

Otherwise, those people would definitely plot against him, and it would be a subtle and insidious scheme; after all, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open but hard to guard against a hidden arrow, and even the security guards couldn't protect him from a hidden scheme.

"Besides, do you think I'm on a rocket? I've only been the vice dean for a few years. I haven't even warmed up the seat yet. If I get promoted again, where will I go?"

Zhou Fengnian instructed Zhou Xianyang: "Just focus on doing your business well. If you lead hundreds of thousands of workers to own cars and houses in the future, then not only me, but even my superiors will have to call you Mr. Zhou."

If the manufacturing industry has hundreds of thousands of workers, Zhou Xianyang can make a small request one day and it will be on his boss's desk the next day.

Zhou Xianyang pursed his lips and said, "Don't be in such a hurry. Give me thirty or twenty years. You'll see in twenty years."

Zhou Fengnian waved his hand and said, "Go back and rest."

"Alright, let's go back."

After Zhou Xianyang finished speaking, he prepared to turn and leave. However, when he reached the door of the study, he couldn't contain his curiosity and turned back to ask, "Dad, why don't you tell me something? Will you..."

"Go, go and get some rest!"

Zhou Fengnian waved his hand to shoo him away, but seeing that Zhou Xianyang hadn't left, he casually said, "Wait eight or nine years, and see if I want to or not. It has nothing to do with you, and you don't rely on me."

"Alright, time to rest!"

------

The next day.

Although Zhou Fengnian said he wouldn't let Zhou Xianyang take his grandson running around, he was, after all, Zhou Xianyang's son. If Zhou Xianyang didn't cause trouble, he wouldn't care.

When Zhou Fengnian arrived at the Academy of Sciences building, just as he was about to go upstairs, his phone rang.

Zhou Fengnian took it out and looked at it, and immediately said curiously, "This Qian Zhi, I'm already downstairs and he's still calling. I'm downstairs, what's the rush? Let me come up and we'll talk."

"Boss, you'd better not come up yet. What I want to say is related to this matter."

Qian Zhi quickly said on the other end of the phone, "Director Dang is here to see you again, right outside your office."

(End of this chapter)