I'm in the county town, and you say I'm a big shot?

Chapter 725, 724: "I am also disabled, and I also need a hearing aid to hear what you are saying."

On a spring morning, tender buds sprouted from the old camphor tree at the entrance of Nanxin Qiangsheng Modeling Factory. As usual, Old Zhou, the deaf-mute gatekeeper, hung the birdcage on the branch on time.

Everyone in the factory is saying that the county has sold the factory, and they have suddenly gone from being employees of a state-owned enterprise to workers of a private enterprise. They all say that their status as "masters of the enterprise" is gone.

However, Lao Zhou didn't feel that life was any different. Every day, he still had to do the same thing: guard the gate.

What truly put his mind at ease was that the two months' wages owed by the factory had finally been paid in full.

No more, no less, exactly three thousand yuan.

He was already content. He'd sold it, so be it. Whoever bought the factory, he'd just be the gatekeeper, as long as he paid wages on time.

He was content with 1500 yuan a month; what could a disabled person like himself possibly hope for?

He was feeding the lark in its cage with breadcrumbs when he saw a young man with a backpack walking towards him, seemingly about to enter the gate. He quickly stopped him, pointed to a table near the entrance of the duty room with a notebook on it, and gestured for the young man to register.

The young man smiled, picked up a ballpoint pen, and quickly wrote down his name, phone number, where he came from, and the purpose of his visit as required.

Shen Yi, 135xxxxx, Shanghai, seeking a factory manager for a modeling plant job.

Old Zhou looked at it carefully. Although he was deaf and mute, he could read, and he was quite surprised.

Look at this young man, he has a buzz cut, very short stubble, and is wearing a stylish jacket, jeans, and sneakers. He looks quite respectable and doesn't seem like a disabled person. What is he applying for?
However, since Old Zhou couldn't speak and communication was inconvenient, he smiled and pointed to the two-story building to the west, indicating that he should go there.

"Thank you," Shen Yi said, and strode into the factory gate.

Shen Yi really did come to apply for the job.

However, he did not go directly to the office building. Instead, he went into the model making workshop, which is the tallest building in the factory, and then looked around the assembly and splicing workshop and the landscape making workshop. Finally, he went up to the second floor on the west side of the factory area and knocked on the door with the sign "Factory Director's Office".

"Please come in."

As soon as Shen Yi entered, he saw a young woman of similar age sitting behind an old desk. She was dressed in a gray-white business suit, looking refined, beautiful, and capable, seemingly out of place in the factory environment.

"Are you Ms. Bai Ou, CEO of Tuofang Technology and acting factory manager of Nanxin Qiangsheng Modeling Factory?" Shen Yi asked politely.

"Yes, I am Bai Ou. May I ask who you are?"

"My name is Shen Yi, and I'm here to apply for the factory manager position," Shen Yi said, getting straight to the point.

"This is my resume." Shen Yi said, taking out a document from his backpack and handing it to the other person.

"You graduated from the College of Design and Innovation at Tongji University? You were previously a senior designer and project manager at LKK Creative Design Group's Shanghai branch?"

Bai Ou looked at the other person's resume; it was incredibly impressive. Tongji University, needless to say, is a long-established 985 university, and their industrial design program is very strong in China.

As for LKK Innovation Design Group, after Bai Ou acquired Johnson Modeling Factory, he also learned about some information on domestic industrial design models.

Shen Yi's company, LKK, and another company, Langjian, are known as the "two giants" in the domestic industrial design industry. They are often referred to as "LKK and Langjian" by the industry. Being able to serve as a project manager in LKK Group must mean he has some skills.

"These are some projects I worked on when I was working at LKK Group." Shen Yi took out another document and handed it to Bai Ou.

I looked at the white lotus root.

The "Echo" series of cultural and creative speakers, featuring traditional Chinese cloud and thunder patterns as its core visual element, is a portable Bluetooth speaker that blends wood craftsmanship with acoustic design. It won the Silver Award at the 2010 China Design Red Star Awards.

The "Know the Time" series of intelligent desktop landscapes, which integrates physical sand table models, intelligent light and shadow and sensors into desktop artworks, won the third prize of the 2013 China Excellent Industrial Design Award.

"These are my personal ideas for upgrading and transforming Qiangsheng Modeling Factory to turn a profit." Shen Yi handed another document to Bai Ou.

Goodness, a thick stack of papers; looks like they've done detailed research.

I. Core Concept: From "Processing Plant" to "Social Innovation Design Brand" Transformation Goal: A "Social Innovation Design Workshop" or "Benefit Enterprise" with the unique perspective and craftsmanship of people with disabilities at its core. Its competitiveness lies in unique design, exquisite craftsmanship, and moving stories.

II. Strengthen “Branding and Narrative Capabilities”: Create Brand Stories.
Third, upgrade "intelligent manufacturing" capabilities by introducing advanced but not complex technologies, such as laser cutting machines, small CNC (numerical control machine tools), and 3D printers.
IV. Establish a "Design and Prototyping Center".
V. Implementation Path and Steps
Bai Ou examined it closely.

"Mr. Bai, this is based on the information your company posted online, combined with my understanding of Qiangsheng Modeling Factory. Of course, if I take on the role of factory manager, I will make adjustments according to the actual situation of the factory," Shen Yi explained.

Bai Ou didn't answer immediately. Her slender fingers lightly traced the pages, making a soft rustling sound. She raised her eyes, her gaze lingering on Shen Yi's face for a moment before she slowly spoke:
“Designer Shen,” she pushed the documents to the center of the table, “judging from this proposal, you have a deep understanding of industrial design. A platform like LKK should be able to provide you with broader opportunities for development.”

She leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on the old desk: "I'm curious, what made you willing to leave Shanghai and come to a small county like Nanxin, and even to manage a welfare factory?"

“You should know better than anyone that the employees here need to put in more effort than ordinary workers. If you’re going to be frank, you’ll have to work much harder to achieve the goals in your plan, and there’s no guarantee you’ll succeed.”

As she spoke, she lightly touched the words "welfare factory for the disabled" with her fingertip, saying, "This choice doesn't quite make sense."

Shen Yi smiled and said, "President Bai, as any chess player knows, a seemingly hopeless game can be turned into a living one if you can actually make it work. That sense of accomplishment is much stronger and purer than that of an ordinary game." His tone was calm.

"Moreover, the salary and benefits offered by your company are very attractive to me."

He paused for a moment, then naturally raised his right hand and took out a device the size of a kidney bean from his left ear, gently placing it on the table.

“And most importantly,” he said softly, “I am also disabled, and I need a hearing aid to hear what you are saying.”

Bai Ou was silent for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "Designer Shen, congratulations! You've been hired. You're now the factory manager of Nanxin Qiangsheng Modeling Factory." She then stood up and extended her right hand, saying, "Welcome to the Tuofang family."

(End of this chapter)