Rebirth 1977 Great Era

Chapter 1166 Digging Pit and Fighting with Magic, Putting a Burden on You (Bonus Chapter for Monthly Tickets)

"No way!" Editor-in-Chief Xia waved his hands repeatedly:

"You asked Director Liao to solve your problem, right? If a high-ranking leader takes the lead, things can be done. If I take the lead, won't that create chaos?"

"Just tell Director Liao about this, and I'll contact him later."

Hearing this, Fang Yan understood what Editor-in-Chief Xia meant.

By bypassing the formal procedures of Director Liao and the Ministry of Health, and privately leading a large-scale recruitment of people from all over the country, especially these "returning experts," would seriously disrupt the official procedures being carried out by higher authorities.

In government offices, this is considered bypassing one's authority and interfering with the leader's arrangements, which can easily lead to trouble and offend the leader.

Editor-in-Chief Xia has been working within the system for so many years, he knows it like the back of his hand, and he knows that things must be done according to the rules.

It's not that he won't help.

In other words, we need to get Director Liao to take the lead in resolving the important matters first. Within the framework set by Director Liao, he is happy to use his personal connections to help make connections and contact specific people behind the scenes.

Fang Yan said to Editor-in-Chief Xia:

"I understand what Editor-in-Chief Xia means. I was indeed confused in my haste just now and didn't realize that the procedural rules couldn't be broken."

Editor-in-Chief Xia said:

"Of course. One or two people are fine, but if there are too many, that would be breaking the rules. You have Director Liao as your backer, so having him coordinate is perfectly legitimate. I could just send anyone to my front and have them pin me down."

After saying that, he pointed to his head:

"But don't worry, I've already noted down a few suitable candidates. These people are all really capable, they just suffered some setbacks in the past few years and haven't quite sorted out their feelings. Once Director Liao has made his decision, I'll give him a call to sound him out... They're all old acquaintances, so it'll be easy to talk to them."

Fang Yan slapped his thigh and said:
"That's wonderful! You're such a benefactor! Come over to my house for dinner tonight! It's been so long since we've gotten together."

"The last time was after revising the Imperial Medical Prescriptions Collection."

Editor-in-Chief Xia thought for a moment and nodded:

"Sure! What time tonight?"

He said in dialect:

"Six-thirty? You're bringing your wife along?"

"Okay!" Editor-in-Chief Xia nodded in agreement.

"Ring ring..." The phone rang just as the two finished speaking.

Editor-in-Chief Xia and Fang Yan exchanged a glance, signaling for him to take the call. Fang Yan said:

"Please come over. This call might be from someone else. Director Liao said things probably won't be done so quickly."

Editor-in-Chief Xia then answered the phone, and as expected, just as Fang Yan had said, it was someone else calling. As soon as Editor-in-Chief Xia hung up, the phone rang again.

"Jingle Bell!"

This time he answered and said "hello".

Then he covered the microphone and said to the dialect:

"Director Liao! They're looking for you!"

Fang Yan quickly took the phone.

"Director Liao, I speak in dialect!"

Director Liao didn't waste any words and went straight to the point:

"The situation has been verified. The list was drawn up by Director Sun according to the principle of nearby allocation. In addition, several places in the Northwest have aid missions in Xinjiang this year, so he did not include people in the list."

"But there can't be no one at all, can there?" Fang Yan asked.

Director Liao said to Fang Yan:

“He’s trying to dodge my questions. Don’t worry about it. I’ll have him send a letter directly to them. They’ll have to get at least two people for you.”

"Wouldn't that exceed the limit?" Fang Yan asked.

Director Liao responded:

"His list was incomplete to begin with! All thirty places must be filled; if there are any vacancies in the Northwest, we'll fill them in the Northwest, and the places for the other institutes will remain the same."

Fang Yan was taken aback and said:
"But the funds I signed off on were for thirty people."

Director Liao said:
"That's his own business. If you do your job well, he won't find fault with you!"

Fang Yan responded after hearing this, and then mentioned what Editor-in-Chief Xia had said to Director Liao. Director Liao said, "Editor-in-Chief Xia's approach is feasible."

He paused on the other end of the phone, then said:
“These ‘returning experts’ are precisely the kind of people the policy is supposed to take care of. You’re making connections privately and then going through the formal transfer process. This is not against the rules and it fills the gap. It’s a good thing.”

"Have Editor-in-Chief Xia contact them as he sees fit, and once he's confirmed the candidates, send me the list. I'll have Lao Li's people handle it."

Fang Yan felt a weight lifted off her shoulders: "Thank you so much, Director Liao."

"No need to thank me," Director Liao changed the subject, "You've set up the framework for the research institute, which is more important than anything else."

After saying this, he continued:
"Alright, you guys go ahead and finalize the list, I have other things to do."

"Okay!" Fang Yan replied, then hung up the phone.

Editor-in-Chief Xia said:

"Director Liao really has guts! This is all set."

“I’ll send a telegram to Lao Qian in Shaanxi right away, asking him to screen out the qualified people first. Once you’ve made your decision, we’ll get in touch.”

The dialect reminded him:
"There are other places too!"

Editor-in-Chief Xia was both amused and exasperated, and said:
"I know, I know. I'll bring it to you when I come over tonight. You can go ahead and do your thing."

Fang Yan nodded, but just as he was about to leave, Editor-in-Chief Xia reminded him:

"You'd better make some preparations first. The research institute will need to coordinate things like the resettlement of these people's families and their housing when they return."

Fang Yan nodded and said:

"I know, this is easy to handle."

As long as we can generate foreign exchange upon returning, all these problems can be solved.

Then Editor-in-Chief Xia lowered his voice and reminded him:
"By the way, many of these people are old rightists from back then, and their files have some blemishes. Don't be too strict when you take them in. Since Director Liao said he would take care of them, he has to do it properly."

He said in dialect:

"Don't worry about that, it's all in the past."

My dad was the same way back then, but when he came back, he solved the problem.

After saying goodbye to Editor-in-Chief Xia, Fang Yan went to the Secret Recipe Research Institute. Zeng Luquan had been busy there these past few days, and even Professor Jin Shiyuan had gone to proctor the graduate students' exams.

He said to him in dialect:

"You've been working hard lately. Our research institute is going to expand, and we'll be transferring people over, which will make your workload much easier."

"Expansion?" Old Zeng asked, somewhat surprised.

Fang Yan then told Zeng Luquan about the recent events, and Zeng Luquan finally understood that the Secret Formula Research Institute was about to enter a period of rapid development.

“That’s definitely the right thing to do. Right now, I have to do both research and management all by myself. Lao He isn’t here, my senior brother is busy, and it’s the same on your end. This unit is almost unable to function,” Zeng Luquan said.

“I’ve seen all the difficulties you’ve faced in the institute during this time. This expansion isn’t just about adding a few more people; it’s about spreading out the work. In the future, research will be divided into sub-departments, with dedicated people overseeing pharmacology, processing, and clinical validation. We also need people to manage daily scheduling and data archiving.”

“I still want you and Lao He to take the lead in managing this area. You and Lao He were the first to come in, you are familiar with the institute’s foundation, and you understand the technology. The people below respect you. The newly transferred experts each have their own expertise, and we need someone who can coordinate and unify them. Otherwise, if everyone does their own thing, the momentum will be lost.”

Zeng Luquan was taken aback, and subconsciously waved his hand: "How could I be good at that? I'm okay at doing research, but managing people..."

Fang Yan waved his hand and said:
“You can do it. We’ll set up a general office, you’ll be the director, and you’ll have two assistants, one to manage personnel and attendance, and the other to manage procurement.”

"You don't need to oversee all the research, but you need to compile the progress of each department and bring it to you. We'll meet once a week, and if there are any problems we can't solve, we'll work together to find solutions."

Zeng Luquan suddenly realized:

"Now that you mention it, it's like you've connected all those scattered tasks from before?"

"That's exactly what I mean," Fang Yan nodded.

After saying that, he paused, then turned to Zeng Luquan and said:
"You don't need to rush to agree. Think about it for the next couple of days. When the newcomers arrive, you can help them get familiar with the environment and gradually get them started. I trust you."

These words warmed Zeng Luquan's heart, and he squeezed the pen in his hand:
"Okay, I'll give it a try. But let me make this clear beforehand, if I mess it up..."

“It won’t break down,” Fang Yan patted his shoulder. “If we really run into trouble, I’ll cover for you. If our research institute is to move forward, someone has to step up and take responsibility. I think you’re the one.”

After finishing his business here, Fang Yan got into his car and drove home.

Although the project on ancient books from Nanyang was not completed today, it was still a worthwhile trip.

P.S.: We've balanced the books again!
(End of this chapter)