Reborn in 97, I solved a cold case at the Municipal Bureau

Chapter 276 Labor is the most glorious
On the morning of April 16th, after Zhou Yi and Zhou Jianguo finished eating noodles, Zhou Yi went to work at the Municipal Bureau, while Zhou Jianguo was full of energy, as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

When Zhang Qiuxia got home and saw her husband's expression, she quickly asked, "What's wrong? Is there a change in your situation regarding being laid off?"

Zhou Jianguo changed into his work clothes from the Second Steel Company and said, "There's no turning back, but my son taught me a lesson: it's better to rely on yourself than on others. We still have to rely on ourselves to solve this problem."

"Rely on yourself?" Zhang Qiuxia was taken aback. Seeing Zhou Jianguo change his clothes and walk straight out, she asked, "Where are you going? Didn't they say yesterday that we didn't have to go to work after the list was announced?"

Yesterday, after the personnel department announced the list of laid-off workers, they also stated that the workers on the list no longer needed to come to the factory starting tomorrow, as the transfer of their employment contracts would take some time. As for the owed wages, the factory would find a solution as soon as possible.

Yesterday, many people were discussing whether or not they should go to work.

Many people's answer is no, because it's been a while, and most of the workers in the workshops have no work to do. Many people either chat or play cards, and some women are knitting sweaters.

Everyone felt that instead of wasting time here, they should find a way to make a living and see what they could do to earn money.

Therefore, Zhou Jianguo and his wife did not plan to go to the factory today.

Zhou Jianguo went out, got on his bicycle, and headed straight for the No. 2 Steel Company dormitory.

Because they now live in the dormitory of No. 1 Steel, most of the old workers are old neighbors who have been living in the dormitory of No. 2 Steel for many years.

According to Zhou Yi, the first step is to unite this group of people.

When Zhou Jianguo returned to the dormitory of the Second Steel Company, the first person he wanted to find was a man named Kong Laosan.

This man's real name is Kong Jingang. He is the third child in his family, and people who know him well call him Kong Laosan.

Kong Laosan had another nickname in the factory: Kong Model. Young people who joined the factory later might not know it, but older people like Zhou Jianguo knew it very well.

In 1985, a major safety accident almost occurred at the No. 2 Steel Plant. The cause was that in order to meet the production schedule, the workshop used a crane to lift steel ladles for operation without sufficient safety inspection.

It was a ten-ton steel ladle containing molten steel at 1,500 degrees Celsius.

When the steelworker Kong Laosan was lifting the ladle with the crane, he noticed that the ladle seemed to be tilting to one side, so he immediately rushed over to stop the crane from moving.

The crane operator didn't take it seriously, but Kong Laosan went up and forced the other party to put down the ladle.

The team leader rushed over, furious, and thought that Kong Laosan was crazy and had ruined the entire team's production schedule.

Because the matter was so serious, the factory's safety officer immediately came to conduct a re-inspection. The safety officer found that there was indeed a malfunction in the mechanical part on one side of the crane, which caused a slight tilt when lifting the steel ladle.

Furthermore, according to the safety officer's calculations, if the operation had not been stopped, it was highly likely that the faulty part would not have been able to withstand the weight and would have fallen during the hoisting process, causing the ladle to fall.

The consequences of that were something no one could bear, because there were more than twenty workers in the workshop at the time.

If it causes casualties, it will be a nationally shocking safety accident, and not only the factory leaders, but also the city leaders will suffer greatly.

Kong Laosan prevented such a huge accident from happening, and immediately became the focus of the entire factory, becoming a hero.

Not only did the factory hold a special commendation meeting for him, but it also solved his long-standing housing allocation problem. Furthermore, he was awarded honors such as one of the top ten model workers and a pacesetter of the times by the city.

That's why he's called Kong Mofan (孔模范), and even the factory director calls him that.

But some honest people are just prone to being taken advantage of, or perhaps they are too naive and inflexible.

The factory originally wanted to promote Kong Laosan to a higher position as a reserve cadre, since he had made great contributions to this matter.

As a result, he felt that being a worker was the most honorable thing, so he had to stick to his post, especially since he wasn't cut out to be a cadre.

This kind of thing was actually quite common in the 1980s, as most workers believed that labor was the most glorious thing.

But this kind of opportunity is a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

Moreover, honors are something that outsiders don't really care about for long, except for the person who received them.

It wouldn't have been a big deal, since most steel mill families are in similar situations anyway.

Kong Laosan is over 53 years old this year and will be able to retire in a year and a half. Because he is a front-line worker on the steel production line, which is a special job that requires long-term exposure to high temperatures, unlike Zhou Jianguo who drives a forklift, he can theoretically apply for formal retirement at the age of 55.

As a result, Kong Laosan's name was on the first list yesterday. Kong Laosan was immediately dumbfounded, and it is said that he fainted.

According to Zhou Yi, the search should focus on those with longer tenures and whose layoffs would have a greater impact on their families.

These are the people who are most likely to stand up, provided that their remaining illusions are shattered and they are made to recognize the facts.

On his way to the No. 2 Steel Company dormitory, Zhou Jianguo was thinking about who to look for, and the first person on the list was Kong Laosan.

He knocked on the door, and a weak voice from inside asked, "Who is it?"

"Third brother, it's me, Zhou Jianguo."

The door finally opened after a long while.

Kong Laosan was bent over, his face full of pain.

"Oh, what's wrong?" "Back pain, it's an old problem." After opening the door, Kong Laosan lay down directly on a single bed by the door.

The dormitories at No. 2 Steel Plant were mostly one-bedroom apartments, ranging from 30 to 40 square meters, with the largest being only 60 square meters. There were only a few of these apartments in total, and they were all allocated to retired cadres of the factory.

Kong Laosan's house was only a little over 30 square meters, the smallest type of apartment.

Because dormitories are limited, priority is given to dual-income families. Kong Laosan's family is a single-income family, but his wife and child are both disabled. He applied for housing many times.

Finally, it was only after I became a model worker that the factory director made a special exception and resolved the issue.

The single bed where Kong Laosan usually slept was located by the window near the door. He lay down, clutching his back in pain.

The house was filled with all sorts of junk, all of which his wife had collected. The floor was low and the lighting was already poor, and the pile of things made it even darker.

On the wall above the single bed, there are several certificates of merit issued by the factory, which have faded and turned white, covered with a thick layer of dust.

These things were once the greatest honors that Confucius was most proud of.

Now, it's worthless.

"Where's your sister-in-law?" Zhou Jianguo asked.

"I took Xiaohua to the vegetable market to pick up vegetable scraps."

Kong Laosan's wife was born with uneven feet, one leg longer than the other. Even her disability certificate was only approved by the neighborhood committee after Kong Laosan became a model worker.

When she married Kong Laosan, he was an old bachelor who was dirt poor.

She thought she would finally have someone to rely on, but the rope always breaks at the thinnest point. She gave birth to a daughter, who then contracted polio.

He already had little ability to work, and he also had to take care of his daughter who couldn't take care of herself, so the whole family depended on Kong Laosan for their livelihood.

After hearing this, Zhou Jianguo couldn't help but sigh. It seemed that his family's situation was indeed quite good compared to other laid-off workers.

The two started chatting casually, sighing every few sentences.

Zhou Jianguo felt indignant on behalf of Kong Laosan, saying that he only had a little over a year left before retirement, and the factory was being too cruel. But at least if he could get through this year and a half, he could collect his pension and wouldn't have to worry about anything afterward.

But Kong Laosan sighed and said he was afraid he wouldn't live to see the day he could receive his pension. He still had a year and a half left, and he wondered how his family would survive.

"Hey, I thought about it last night. If all else fails, I'll hang myself at the factory gate. I'm a model worker in the city, after all. I'll make them lose face. I'll let the whole of Hongcheng know how they drove us second-generation steelworkers to our deaths," Kong Laosan said angrily, his eyes wide.

Zhou Jianguo patted his arm and said, "Don't say that. A living person can't be killed by holding in their pee. I have an idea, but I need all of you old folks to support me, especially you. You are a model worker of our No. 2 Steel Company."

Upon hearing this, Kong Laosan turned to the side, looked up at Zhou Jianguo, and asked, "What's your idea?"

“Listen to me…” Zhou Jianguo explained what he wanted to do.

After hearing this, Kong Laosan sat up abruptly in bed: "Is it reliable?"

“My son… our fourth son does business in the south, and he happens to have connections there. These steel coils have been gathering dust in the warehouse for so long, why can’t we sell them? But it’s no use for me to make a fuss alone, and it’s no use for the two of us to make a fuss, we have to get everyone together.”

"Is this... illegal?"

"What law did we break? We didn't steal or rob anyone, isn't it only right that we seek justice for ourselves!" Zhou Jianguo's anger flared up. "Besides, there are so many of us, what can they do to us!"

"Kong Laosan, you dared to hang yourself at the factory gate, but you don't even dare to demand an explanation?"

These words ignited the fire in Kong Laosan's heart. His back pain vanished, and he climbed onto the single bed, tearing down the few photos of past glories from the wall and rolling them into a ball. "Zhou Jianguo, I'll listen to you. If they don't agree, I...I'll fight them to the death!"

……

The No. 2 Steel dormitory was deathly silent.

The entire No. 2 Steel Plant has more than 5,000 employees, and yesterday's layoff list announced the layoffs of more than 1,300 people, most of whom were older workers at the bottom.

Most people hadn't recovered yet, and like Zhou Jianguo and Kong Laosan, they hadn't slept all night.

They felt lost and confused about life and the future.

Suddenly, someone heard the sound of a spoon hitting a metal basin outside.

There was a constant banging, and at the same time, you could vaguely hear someone shouting, "Come out, everyone come out!"

One by one, people opened their doors and came out, peering out from their balconies.

Zhou Jianguo and Kong Laosan each had a metal basin and a spoon in their hands, and they banged on them while shouting.

Zhou Jianguo looked up and shouted at the people upstairs, "Don't hide inside anymore! I have something to say to you all about being laid off!"

(End of this chapter)