The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 207 The Struggle Between Two Factions: Courtesy First, Then Force

The empty office naturally became the meeting room.

The logistics staff pieced together tables to form a long table, covered it with a red cloth, and equipped it with chairs, thus creating a simple meeting room.

When Qian Jin entered the conference room, he found that the scene inside was even worse than he had imagined.

Cheng Xia's men all sat on the left, Liao Chunfeng's men were clustered on the right, and Sun Jian and a few others huddled at the end of the long table.

Standing at the front of the long table, Qian Jin felt as if he were presiding over a negotiation with a clear divide between the two sides.

He took a sip of water, stood up, and solemnly placed his hands on the table, saying, "Comrades, we are the first foreign-related commercial unit established by the provincial and municipal supply and marketing cooperatives..."

He just started to make a big splash.

The people in the audience were all making their own little gestures.

The Cheng faction members began circulating newspapers and magazines, including the People's Daily and the Supply and Marketing News, and the Red Flag magazine. They whispered among themselves, saying they wanted to implement the latest instructions from the Central Committee.

The people on Liao's side were quite honest, each one burying their heads in taking notes.

But Qian Jin could tell at a glance that those people were just scribbling and drawing randomly.

This is understandable; the official director hasn't said anything yet, so what could the subordinates possibly remember?

Sun Jian and his gang were the most cunning; they squeezed into the back row and kept laughing incessantly.

They were watching the spectacle.

Watching the money flow in is quite a spectacle.

Let's also see the commotion created by the Cheng and Liao factions.

Qian Jin continued speaking when someone suddenly stood up and walked out; this time it was Ma Dehua.

When Ma Dehua saw Qian Jin's gaze shift over, he smiled and said, "Director, I'll go get the thermos and pour you a glass of water."

Qian Jin said calmly, "No need. I appreciate your warm service, but we don't need to prepare tea since we don't know how long this will last."

Ma Dehua chuckled and went out anyway: "I see Director Liao's mouth is quite dry, so why don't you go and get a pot of water for the comrades? Our work policy is to provide enthusiastic service, after all."

Qian Jin ignored him and continued with the meeting agenda.

The first topic today is the division of labor.

He's right. The Foreign Business Office of the Haibin City Supply and Marketing Cooperative is the first foreign-related business department in the provincial-level government agencies, and it will face many new challenges.

They need to solve various problems, such as how to engage with business, how to build an organizational structure, and how to carry out internal work. They want to set an example for other municipal-level sister units.

Qian Jin started planning these tasks last night, and this morning he made a preliminary organizational structure based on the roster. Now he is taking advantage of the meeting to make arrangements.

He found a ready-made system in foreign trade books from the 1980s and directly copied it to create an internal job assignment.

Cheng Xia, Liao Chunfeng, Sun Jian, and others were all waiting to find fault with his work arrangements so they could start a fight. So when the meeting got to the formal agenda, both sides quieted down and listened attentively, ready to find fault.

Qian Jin first distributed the proposed organizational structure plan provided by the Provincial Foreign Affairs Office, one copy to each person. This was a new document that he had just printed that morning, still smelling of ink.

After the materials were distributed, Qian Jin tapped his enamel mug, the crisp sound immediately silencing the whispers: "Comrades, you all have the materials ready in your hands now. The first page is the standard plan issued by the provincial cooperative, and the second page is a version I've modified to suit the work of our city's supply and marketing units..."

Upon hearing this, Liao Chunfeng took a sip of water and was the first to object: "Director Qian, the plan provided by the province must be a mature plan that has been guided by experts and tested in real-world work. It's not appropriate for you to modify it directly, is it?"

Qian Jin said, "Why don't you go and report your opinion to President Wei? This is the revised plan that President Wei approved this morning."

Liao Chunfeng, having made a fool of himself, could only lower his head and drink water again.

Cheng Xia chuckled to himself, then said, "Director Qian, comrades, please allow me to say a few words before we begin the meeting."

"Those who aren't qualified shouldn't take on difficult tasks, and subordinates shouldn't nitpick what the leaders say. How can we do a good job like that?"

Sun Jian agreed, saying, "You definitely won't do a good job."

Cheng Xia nodded and said nothing more.

He actually admired Qian Jin quite a bit, because he had seen the revised organizational structure plan, and the changes were significant and reasonable.

After carefully comparing the two proposals, the college students were all amazed.

Qian Jin's solution not only detailed the responsibilities of each position, but also marked the workflow when different positions interacted.

Their attitude towards Qian Jin changed somewhat.

Qian Jin was appointed director yesterday. He spent the whole day attending meetings with his superiors and certainly didn't have time to work on setting up the organizational structure.

In other words, he worked overtime last night, and this morning, while Cheng Xia and Liao Chunfeng were fighting, he was also doing his job.

Clearly, this young director is a capable leader.

This made the college students feel that he was more reliable than Cheng Xia and Liao Chunfeng.

Ignoring the ulterior motives of his subordinates, Qian Jin continued, "My revisions mainly consist of three points."

"First, establish an import and export commodity inspection team; second, separate foreign affairs reception from business negotiations; third..."

The staff in the Foreign Business Office are young and quick learners. In addition, their previous work was more or less related to foreign business, which is why they were selected by the Provincial Foreign Affairs Office to join this new department.

So they were somewhat knowledgeable in the field, and as soon as Qian Jin opened his mouth, they knew that Director Qian had some skills.

This made the meeting more formal, especially for the university students, who changed their attitude from just watching to taking notes.

Qian Jin continued, "Now I will announce the specific job assignments."

"Let's start from the grassroots level—the import and export documentation team, headed by Comrade Sun Meijuan, is responsible for reviewing letters of credit and preparing customs declaration documents..."

Sun Meijuan, whose name was called, sat up straight abruptly.

She was a quiet and reserved logistics newbie, usually in charge of the reporting work of the subordinate units. This time, she was in charge of the import and export documentation work, which was her old job.

But she never expected to become a team leader.

After hearing the appointment, her attitude became more positive. She quickened her pace in taking notes, the pen nib scratching across the paper, tearing several places.

"The foreign affairs reception team consists of six people, led by Comrade Zhang Hongmei, formerly from the administrative section." Qian Jin's gaze swept over the young women. "This will be our flagship position; you must be proficient in reception etiquette and at least able to conduct daily conversations in English..."

Quiet murmurs arose from the audience.

Li Xiang, a female college graduate who had just been assigned to the school, raised her hand: "Director Qian, I studied Russian in college."

“Perfect.” Qian Jin smiled. “Next time a Soviet business delegation visits, you’ll be the lead officer.”

"However, English also needs to be learned and practiced. Comrades, I don't care which foreign language you are good at, English must become a basic skill for you."

"After studying the international economic situation, I believe that English will become the mainstream language in global economic and trade activities."

"To be honest, our unit should become a seed bank for foreign-related economic activities in the province, and you all are the seeds. The organization will definitely assign you more important positions and has higher expectations for you..."

Everyone understood the subtext of that sentence.

The Foreign Investment Office of Haibin City is like the Whampoa Military Academy; everyone here is now an employee, but in the future, they will all become leaders in charge of business in various regions.

This has inspired many young people.

Some people even distanced themselves from Liao Chunfeng.

Liao Chunfeng cursed inwardly.

Young people are inexperienced and too easily fooled. I could make empty promises to fool them, and now Qian Jin can do the same.

He was deliberately looking for trouble.

However, Qian Jin's work was so meticulous that even after staring at it for a long time, he still couldn't find anything wrong.

As each position was announced, the atmosphere in the meeting room grew increasingly lively.

Qian Jin's arrangements took into account everyone's expertise while also leaving ample room for young people to develop.

Even Cheng Xia, who is usually the most critical, nodded repeatedly, speechless.

"Now, let's announce the division of responsibilities among the leadership team." Qian Jin's voice suddenly became serious. "Deputy Director Cheng Xia will be in charge of import and export business and foreign affairs warehousing and logistics."

Cheng Xia, who was sitting in the first row, was clearly stunned.

He thought that by going against Qian Jin, he would be marginalized in the work of building the organizational structure, but he did not expect to be given such real power.

He subconsciously touched his short, buzz-cut hair, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

“Deputy Director Liao Chunfeng is in charge of financial auditing and foreign affairs negotiations.” Qian Jin’s eyes met Liao Chunfeng’s. “Deputy Director Liao has worked in the finance department for eight years. I heard from President Wei that he also went to the province to study foreign trade courses. Without a doubt, he is the most suitable candidate in this field.”

Liao Chunfeng's knuckles, which were gripping the pen, were turning white.

His work assignments are undeniably important, and his authority is undeniably vast.

but……

As Qian Jin said, he had worked in the finance department for eight years and made outstanding contributions. Last year, he was promoted to the position of deputy section chief.

In addition, he went to the province to study foreign trade-related courses. He originally thought that the position of director of the foreign trade office was a sure thing, but in the end, Qian Jin took the job.

This made him resentful.

Even Qian Jin's attempts to befriend him were to no avail.

Because he only wanted to be the director; otherwise, he would suffer too much loss.

You know, when the province came to select people, some senior leaders advised him to stay in the finance department, but he felt that there were too many experts in the finance department, and it would be very difficult for him to get promoted later.

Privately, some people who didn't get along with him mocked his wishful thinking.

The reason he's now so determined to go against Qian Jin is because those mocking remarks have come true.

He became a laughing stock in the finance department and even the entire supply and marketing cooperative, a laughing stock who tried to steal a chicken but lost the rice instead.

This was unbearable for him, who was proud and arrogant.

There's no turning back now; he can only move forward, towards the position of department head.

"The detailed division of responsibilities has been printed and distributed." Qian Jin held up a stack of documents. "Group leaders can collect them after the meeting. Are there any questions before the meeting adjourns?"

The meeting room fell silent. Qian Jin's professional performance had exceeded everyone's expectations; they were impeccable in their professional field.

Several people secretly glanced at Cheng Xia.

Cheng Xia, who had initially intended to back down, noticed these gazes and quickly understood their intentions:
If you, boss, compromise with Director Qian, then we have nothing to say and we must compromise as well.

So he raised his hand and said, "Director Qian, I have a few humble opinions I'd like to offer."

"That's right, I suggest grouping them by business nature, because that's a long-standing tradition in our old supply and marketing system. I was in charge of procurement for five years and I'm familiar with local businesses..."

“Foreign affairs work is highly specialized,” Qian Jin interrupted him. “The province has clear guidelines, and our department’s organizational structure doesn’t have to follow the traditional approach.”

"Take you for example. You are indeed familiar with the products and personnel of local companies, but are you familiar with the situation of foreign companies?"

"Deputy Director Cheng, our unit will be dealing with foreign companies in the future!"

The two clashed again.

The air in the conference room seemed to freeze.

Cheng Xia's initial goodwill towards him was quickly dispelled.

He snorted with a livid face, using the act of drinking water to cover up his embarrassment.

Qian Jin looked at Liao Chunfeng.

Liao Chunfeng coughed once but did not make a sound.

Seeing this, Qian Jin gathered the documents together and slammed them on the table: "If no one has any objections, then let's arrange it this way for now. Okay, let's adjourn the meeting."

"Before we adjourn, let me say something. To be precise, today marks the first day of our department's establishment, which I think is a memorable day. So, shouldn't we have a team-building activity to celebrate?"

"Tonight at the State-run Second Restaurant, comrades are welcome to come for a gathering after get off work. I, as the director, will be treating."

Several young people genuinely began to applaud.

Their wages are low, and their families are of modest means. They consider it a treat to eat at a local restaurant to improve their lives, and they would never be willing to go to a state-run restaurant.

Liao Chunfeng glanced calmly at the young man who belonged to his faction among the group.

The young man felt embarrassed and silently clasped his hands together under the table.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

A young man wearing glasses mustered up his courage and approached Qian Jin: "Director Qian, to whom is our external liaison group responsible?"

Qian Jin smiled and said, "You are directly responsible to me."

He was responsible for contacting those people on the roster whose names did not have any special markings.

These are the people he wants to cultivate as his loyal followers.

Back in his office, Qian Jin continued to study and revise the work structure.

His position as director is not a sinecure; he has a lot of work to do.

Another important task is to enhance the employees' skills; he needs to obtain some reference books from the mall based on the current work requirements.

Outside the window, the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives was broadcasting "Ode to the Motherland".

The melodious singing echoed under the clear sky of September 1978.

After finishing get off work in the evening, Qian Jin went to the No. 2 State-run Restaurant to arrange his meal.

Considering that some people would need to go home after get off work to inform their families about the department gathering, he set the gathering time for 6:30.

Employees began arriving intermittently at the State-Owned Second Hotel around 6:00 AM.

Guan Dabao reserved the Donghai Hall, a large private room, for Qian Jin.

This is a well-known "connections-only" room; you can't get in without connections.

Sun Meijuan, Li Xiang, and several other female comrades came together. They were all young women and were considered the leading figures in their respective departments. Neither Cheng Xia nor Liao Chunfeng made a move against them.

After all, these days, the conduct of men and women is strictly investigated, so it's inconvenient for them to have contact with female comrades in private.

The women did not belong to either the Cheng or Liao factions, so they were the first to be recruited by Qian Jin and the first to respond to his arrangements to have dinner together.

The group pushed aside the heavy, dark green lacquered curtains of the East Sea Hall, and then froze in astonishment at the sight that filled the room—

The decoration of the Donghai Hall was quite luxurious by today's standards, after all, it was a place for entertaining foreign guests and high-ranking officials.

Six palace lanterns, each adorned with a glass dome inlaid with peony flowers, hung from the carved wooden beams. Tiny dust motes floated in the warm yellow light, illuminating the entire wall painted with waves and fishing boats.

The large round table, surrounded by forty maroon leather sofas, resembled a sleeping behemoth. The worn marks on the armrests gleamed with a warm patina, and each cushion was embroidered with the slogan "Welcome to the Second State-Owned Hotel" in red thread.

There is a female attendant in this room who is specifically responsible for handling the arrangements.

When she saw the guests arrive, she hurriedly stepped forward, pulled back the curtain, and led everyone around the mother-of-pearl-inlaid tea table to their seats.

Qian Jin asked them, "After all, autumn is here. Would you like to have some hot tea first?"

A complete set of blue and white porcelain teaware was laid out on the tea table, and wisps of steam were rising from the spout of the enamel teapot, filling the air with the sweet fragrance of jasmine.

Sun Meijuan hurriedly waved her hand.

She didn't know if drinking tea cost money and didn't want to create a financial burden for the young new director.

Li Xiang stared at the plaster bust in the center of the east wall. The leader's kind gaze passed through them and landed on the Seagull 120 camera in the glass display case.

Seeing that she was paying attention to the camera, the waitress smiled and said, "In 1970, when the leader came to our Haibin City for research, he dined at our restaurant. We took some photos of him with this camera at that time."

"Wow! There's a restroom in here? This is much better than the restrooms at our workplace!" Zheng Jinhong, wearing a polyester shirt, exclaimed casually.

She pushed open the carved wooden door and called to her new colleagues, "Look at these enamel basins in here. How white and bright they are! Unlike the basins in our office restrooms, which are always covered in grime."

In the six-square-meter space, small white towels printed with "Second State-Owned Hotel of Haibin City" are folded into neat squares, which are used for guests to wipe their hands.

After all, they were from the Supply and Marketing Cooperative, and the girls had seen all sorts of situations. They knew the purpose of these small towels, and no one took one home secretly.

The waitress, having received instructions from Guan Dabao, was eager to make money and showed great enthusiasm.

Seeing that the girls hadn't drunk tea, she poured them some chilled mung bean soup.

Then she asked Qian Jin solicitously, "Sir, what would you like to drink tonight?"

She had a bunch of small keys hanging from her waist. With a click, she opened a dark red lacquered cabinet, inside which were neatly stacked glass bottles with foreign letters printed on them. The top bottle of gold medal brandy still had a Chinese promotional sticker on its label.

This is not a foreign wine; it is a domestically produced wine intended for export.

Others gradually arrived as well.

The college students were the most shocked.

They were either newly hired by the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives this year or last year; they were all low-level clerks, and had never seen such a luxurious hotel before.

Actually, this was Qian Jin's first time entering the Donghai Hall; he usually ate in the main hall.

However, he had seen too many luxurious dining environments in short videos and TV dramas. No matter how modern restaurants are decorated, they cannot escape the limitations of history. In his eyes, they are at most grand, but not really anything special.

When the university students arrived, they were surprised to find that the bookshelf against the west wall held a hidden secret.

The top shelf held serious books such as the bound volume of "Selected Works of Leaders" and the local chronicle of Haibin City. Below that were magazines such as "Popular Cinema" and "Revolutionary Stories". Further down were popular novels such as "Tracks in the Snowy Forest" and "The Fiery Diamond".

In the bottom tin biscuit box, the restaurant's special peach shortbread was neatly stacked, with the word "Friendship" printed in bright red on the oil paper wrapping.

Qian Jin asked them to order.

The menu cover is made of custom-made silk, with the words "Special Banquet Menu for Donghai Hall" printed in gold lettering.

Waitresses dressed in dresses began serving glass fruit platters containing trendy fresh fruits such as apples and pears, with water droplets still clinging to the peels, making them a delight to behold.

The standing radio in the corner played the melody of "My Hometown by the Sea".

Following them, melon seeds, peanuts, and various snacks were continuously served. This was not the service provided by the East Sea Hall, but rather things that Qian Jin had brought himself, imitating the standard hospitality style of the Future Hotel to entertain his subordinates.

For nothing else.

The point was to let these bastards see the luxury of the Donghai Hall in the state-run No. 2 Hotel and witness Qian Jin's connections.

His purpose was achieved.

As the group drank sweet mung bean soup and ate various unfamiliar snacks, the way they looked at Qian Jin was no longer as unrestrained as it had been during the day.

They didn't even know that hotels nowadays could offer such services.

Even employees who had been to the state-run No. 2 Restaurant before restrained their unruly attitude and ate their snacks obediently.

The service now presented to them by the state-run Second Hotel was completely different from what they had received before.

It all depends on how the waiters treat them.

They were incredibly careful and attentive.

What about normally?

Normally, the waiters would frown and roll their eyes at them. If they said even a few extra words when ordering, the waiters would turn their backs and leave!
"Director Qian, shall we serve the dishes?" The tall and beautiful waitress came over for the third time to ask, the edge of the cold dish plate she was carrying already covered with water droplets.

Qian Jin checked the time.

It's 6:40.

He glanced at the table, which was only about half full, and smiled, "Let's not wait any longer, serve the food."

"Since you're so ungrateful, don't blame me for not being ungrateful in the future."

He didn't deliberately whisper the last sentence; he said it normally to everyone present.

The young people instinctively shivered.

For the first time this year, they felt the arrival of autumn in this empty private room.

(End of this chapter)