My Terrible Life in Those Years

I feel like I'm being looked down upon.

I couldn't tell whether they were looking down on my education or my clothes.

Now there's a fee to enter the job market?

Five yuan for the entrance fee? That's two days' worth of breakfast money!

At that moment, I felt that every penny was incredibly precious.

"Are you going in or not? If not, let's go to the regular outdoor job fair! It's free there!"

The security guard showed no intention of waiting for me to make up my mind, and the people in line behind me pushed forward.

When I heard it was free, I immediately made way and quickly left the queue.

I'm only just beginning to understand the situation.

It turns out that this place is divided into different areas.

Upstairs, entry is based on education level or entrance fee, while downstairs in an open-air tent, there are many job postings; this area is open to the public free of charge.

Of course, I estimate that the quality of the companies recruiting also varies.

Which reputable company would recruit in a hot, open-air shed?

Which company with real strength doesn't operate in a spacious, air-conditioned building, all impeccably dressed and with respectable people?

I think I can go inside and check out the situation before making a decision. At this stage, I don't have the luxury of being picky.

Anyway, the job fair won't end until the afternoon, so there's plenty of time.

The large tent inside was set up in the recessed open space in the middle of the job market, and at a glance, there were at least dozens of stalls recruiting workers.

There are all sorts of things, from all kinds of industries.

Each company had a job posting in front of their booth. I looked at the first few, and they all said things like "no educational background required" or "no work experience required."

Most of the positions are for ordinary jobs, such as clerks, assistants, and most commonly, salespersons and management trainees.

I felt a little relieved; the job requirements here were quite suitable for me.

As for this so-called reserve cadre, this is the first time I've ever seen or heard of it.

Before I even got close to the job posting booths, several people at the booths were already calling out to me with registration forms in hand: "Hey handsome, looking for a job? Come take a look!"

"What kind of job are you looking for? We have many different types of jobs to choose from!"

……

What's going on?

I was suddenly a little confused. Why did I feel like I was in a buyer's market here, and they seemed to be desperately short of new employees? Did that put me in a dominant position?

I approached out of curiosity and asked, "What does your company do?"

Two enthusiastic recruitment representatives immediately came out, brought me a stool to sit on, and placed a form and pen in front of me.

"Fill out the information, fill out the information first!"

I held the pen, completely at a loss.

"Um, how about you tell me first, what do you mainly do? What types of jobs are you hiring?"

"You fill it out first, we can talk as you fill it out, it won't take long." The recruiter was so enthusiastic that it was hard to resist.

"We're a technology company... We'll explain as you fill out the form."

I felt a little helpless. Is it really that urgent to fill out a personal information form?

I put pen to paper and began writing.

I think I noticed that the people at the job fair booths on either side of me looked a little dejected when they saw me start filling out the forms.

I filled in the phone number field, then suddenly stopped.

I just remembered something. If they want to notify me to come to work, how will they find me?

"Hmm? Why did you stop? Finish filling it out, write down everything that needs to be filled in!"

"It's the recruiter's representative, Little Glasses, who urged us on."

I paused writing, a little confused, and asked, "Didn't you say you were going to introduce me to the company?"

"Yes, yes, please fill out these forms, and we'll discuss it with you while we look at the forms!"

Looking at the bespectacled young man who wasn't much older than me, I smiled and said, "Why don't we talk first? What if we're not a good match? Wouldn't it be a waste of time?"

The man with glasses paused for a moment, seemingly not expecting that someone who looked like he was new to the workforce would have such a thoughtful mind.

Just as he was about to speak, a young man in a white shirt, who looked slightly more mature than the man with glasses, came up from behind.

"Okay, let's chat first. Get to the basics, and if you think it's suitable, you can consider it and then fill out the form!"

I immediately turned to the man in the white shirt, thinking to myself, "Does this even look like a job posting?"

"Jiang Ning, hmm, your handwriting is quite good. You just arrived in Huacheng?" The man in the white shirt didn't mention his company or personal background. He first looked at the part of the information I had written and started chatting. He did seem to have some experience.

"Yes, I just arrived in Huacheng yesterday. I came here today to look for a job."

"What work experience have you had before? What kind of jobs have you done?"

"I haven't done any full-time jobs, but I've done quite a few part-time ones. Some were deliverymen, some were handing out flyers, and I even did part-time work for over a year while I was in school," I said frankly.

"Here's the thing, our company is a computer hardware and software company, and the people we're recruiting this time are being trained as management trainees." The man in the white shirt began to introduce the company.

Oh, it's quite close to my major.

I have a college diploma, and what I studied was computer information management, right?

I became interested.

"So, what are the main job responsibilities of this position?"

"Every aspect! It covers everything. From order taking and processing, to order entry, payment collection, installation, delivery, and inventory clearance—a whole range of tasks. We plan to train people in this role comprehensively, so that once they've developed their skills, they can be given priority consideration as new store managers when we open new branches! Therefore, this position is called a management trainee!"

The white shirt seems to have said these words to quite a few people, quite fluently and passionately, easily resonating with them.

Sure enough, it worked! My interest was heightened to a whole new level.

"I've only learned basic, outdated programming before. Will I be able to do it?" Before leaving school, the language I learned was five years outdated, and the software programs in the industry had long been obsolete.

"Don't worry, that's how I got here. A year ago, I was just like you, coming here to look for a job. Then I went through training and learning step by step. Look at me, now I'm leading a team and recruiting!"

The man in the white shirt smiled broadly, probably feeling a little proud of himself for having learned so much this year.

Using one's own personal experience to explain things significantly enhances their persuasiveness.

"So, it seems you're comfortable with our job duties and position? Shall we discuss compensation?"

White shirts and blouses should be used as a timely and effective measure.

Huh? So direct? So to the point?

I nodded, picked up my pen again, and tried to finish filling in the remaining information.

I was also talking as I wrote.

"How long is the training?" Approximately.

"About half a month. It varies from person to person. Some are faster, some are slower." The man in the white shirt looked at me as I continued, and his face visibly relaxed.

"How is the compensation calculated?" I finally asked the question that had been on my mind.

The man in the white shirt deliberately lowered his voice: "1500 during the probation period! After that, it depends on the position, but it won't be less than 2000."

My heart skipped a beat. So many?

The pen tip almost tilted as I was writing, but I forced myself to calm down.

Keep telling yourself: stay calm, stay composed, stay peaceful!

I still can't force myself to calm down.

"When can I start work?" I blurted out.

The man in the white shirt leaned back slightly.

"That's right. As I just told you, the start date depends on how well you perform during your training; some will start earlier, some later. But it generally won't exceed ten days."

This time, I wrote the rest very quickly, finishing in two minutes.

It was handed over to the man in the white shirt.

"See, is this okay?"

He glanced at it briefly and nodded.

Then, he handed me a piece of paper with the address and company phone number written on it.

"Come to our company at 10:00 AM tomorrow. We'll discuss the specific arrangements once you arrive."

The guy with glasses seems a bit excited? What's he getting excited about? Am I going to be your underling sometime soon?

I'm actually quite excited. I've found a job already? And there's even training? And such a high salary? My first real job?

I want to sing, I want to belt out a song, I want to make a phone call...

Finally, he handed me another piece of paper.

It reads: Training Confirmation Form.

Upon seeing that content, the euphoria I was feeling abruptly cut short, as if my throat had been choked.

The document lists the start date and content of the training, but the last thing it lists is the training fee?!

I pointed to the training fee and asked the man in the white shirt, my mind in turmoil.

"Why is there a training fee?"

"Oh, this? This can be deducted from your salary," he said casually.

I felt relieved. Is that so?

"How exactly is this fee calculated?"

The man in the white shirt lowered his voice again: "It's like this, your probationary salary is 1500, and the training is calculated at half a month according to the standard. We normally charge 750, but since you are a management trainee, we will only charge you 500."

I was puzzled.

"It's like this, you know, software and hardware are valuable things, and we can't teach you for free. If you ask around, even the most basic hardware course costs over a thousand. We're being very fair! And it's deducted from your salary."

I did the math, and the first month's fee is 1500. If they really deduct 500 from the training fee, it seems acceptable.

After all, I really don't know anything about hardware.

Computers are just becoming common these days, and it seems reasonable that a single one costs several thousand dollars.

I nodded, thinking it was barely acceptable.

"Is the training fee only deducted when I receive my salary?" I was still being meticulous.

At this point, I raised my voice a little so I could make sure he heard me.

I also need to confirm what he said.

Just then, a few people walked by, and a faint, pleasant fragrance immediately wafted into my nose.

It seemed that when they heard me mention the training fee, the people behind them stopped walking.

I involuntarily turned my head to the backstage area, where a slightly mature, sophisticated working woman with exquisite makeup stood behind me, frowning as she looked at the training confirmation forms in my hand.

The man in the white shirt seemed to notice a crowd gathered around him, and he didn't look like someone looking for a job; rather, he appeared to be a company representative recruiting.

He immediately gestured to the little glasses.

"Why don't you come inside and sit down, Jiang Ning? We can talk slowly."

I thought to myself, if we're going to talk, why can't we talk openly here? Why do we have to go inside?

The working woman suddenly asked the person next to her, "What's going on? There are job postings and training fees here? Why are we put in this position?"

The guy with glasses and I, especially the guy in the white shirt, both turned pale!