1994: Starting with unpaid leave

As soon as he stepped out of the factory gate, Dong Jianguo spotted his second brother waiting outside on a tricycle.

In Qiqihar, autumn is short and winter is long, and it gets colder day by day after the National Day holiday.

In previous years, the first snowfall usually occurred in mid-October.

Although it hasn't snowed yet this year, it looks like it will soon.

My second brother wore a brown leather jacket today and looked particularly energetic.

"Second Brother, what brings you here?"

"Let's stock up."

Dong Jianguo was somewhat puzzled:

"Just page me if you want to order anything, why bother coming all the way here yourself?"

"Why bother with all that trouble? Even if I page you, someone has to deliver it anyway. Besides, I don't have much to do today, so I'll just treat it as exercise!"

Second Brother Dong Weiguo stretched his legs and got out of the car.

"Come on in, let me have a drink of water!"

After saying that, he went straight into the factory yard.

Perhaps because he has been running a business and dealing with children every day, Dong Jianguo felt that his second brother had become visibly more cheerful these days.

Anyway, it's much better than when he was sullen and silent before.

Dong Jianguo smiled and followed his second brother happily.

As soon as the two brothers entered, they saw the red bread cart in the yard.

The second brother, who was walking in front, was taken aback. Seeing that the car was full of female factory workers, he couldn't help but turn around to look at his younger brother:

"This car? You..."

"It's registered under the factory's name."

"Isn't that what you bought?"

Dong Weiguo swallowed hard: "Jianguo, this car must cost tens of thousands, right? How much money have you actually made?!"

"Not much... The finance department just said that if I keep going like this, I'll be finished..."

"Do you want me to help you out?"

"No, no, it's not that bad. If I really needed money, I would definitely ask you for it."

Dong Jianguo patted his second brother on the shoulder, and the two brothers were about to go into the gatehouse to talk.

"Factory Director Jianguo!"

A crisp voice called out to Dong Jianguo.

He stopped and turned around. Pan Yan had already jumped out of the passenger seat and ran to Dong Jianguo.

She ran over but didn't speak immediately. Instead, she covered her chest, which was pounding from running, and after a couple of seconds, she smiled and spoke:

"Director Jianguo, aren't you going to take a look at the new cars?"

"No...you guys see."

When Dong Jianguo was in Shenzhen, he drove an Audi A6, so he naturally had no interest in the 94 minivan.

"Come and take a look, and while you're at it, say a few words to everyone to get everyone excited!"

As Pan Yan spoke, she reached out and grabbed Dong Jianguo's arm, pulling him to the front of the car.

Inside the gatehouse, Tian Lina kept watching the situation outside the window.

She was furious when she saw Erzhuzi grinning foolishly at a group of female workers.

Seeing Pan Yan pulling Dong Jianguo over as well, Zhou Xiuyun couldn't help but call out to her:

"Hey, hey, hey, why are you even touching her?! Xiuyun, I think you need to be careful, don't keep a golden lotus in your house without even knowing it."

Xiuyun looked completely bewildered: "What Golden Lotus?"

"Pan Jinlian!"

Tian Lina rolled her eyes.

Realizing what had happened, Xiuyun couldn't help but laugh and playfully punched her best friend: "Get lost, Jianguo isn't that kind of person."

"But men can't resist temptation!"

"Your husband now has over a dozen people working for him, and he's a factory manager, no less. What if someone steals your love away, and you're heavily pregnant? You'll have nowhere to turn to cry. Sister Hongmei, don't you think that makes sense?"

"This... can't be..."

"Look, even Sister Hongmei is hesitating!"

Tian Lina pointed to Pan Yan, who was standing next to Dong Jianguo with a beaming smile, and poked Xiuyun's waist:

"Do you know what you should be doing right now?"

"What are you doing?"

"Back then, we stood beside the founding of the nation to declare our sovereignty!"

"ah?!"

"Go for it! What are you afraid of!"

As she spoke, Tian Lina reached out to help Xiuyun straighten her hair and then straighten her collar before helping her good friend out of the gatehouse.

Zhao Hongmei hesitated for a moment, then followed.

Just as Dong Jianguo was about to say something to boost morale, he saw his wife come out and walked over to welcome her into the crowd.

"Let me say a few words..."

"Go ahead and talk, I enjoy listening to you."

Xiuyun replied softly, then gave Dong Jianguo a sweet smile.

Dong Jianguo nodded, stood beside his wife, and cleared his throat:

What do you guys think of this car?

"nice!"

"good!"

The female workers answered enthusiastically, giving Dong Jianguo plenty of face.

When Pan Yan saw Dong Jianguo change his position, she wanted to quietly move over and stand to Dong Jianguo's left, but Erzhuzi, for some reason, smiled and stood there first.

What an idiot!

Pan Yan cursed inwardly, but had no choice but to stand among a group of female workers.

Dong Jianguo waved to everyone and continued:

"But I'm not entirely satisfied with this car!"

Erzhuzi's grinning mouth twitched.

The female workers looked at each other, not understanding what Dong Jianguo meant.

Fortunately, he didn't keep us in suspense and quickly revealed the answer:

"I think our factory deserves better cars!"

"But given the limited resources available, this is the only way we can proceed as a temporary measure."

"The car is like that, and so are everyone!"

"We were all employees rejected by the textile factory. When the factory went out of business, we all lost our livelihoods. Now we're working just to support our families."

"Even the means of making a living are different!"

"The standard level is enough to eat your fill."

A better option is to eat well!

I hope that our factory's employees not only have enough to eat, but also eat well!

Not only should I do this myself, but I should also make sure my spouse, parents, and children do the same. What do you all think?!

"good!"

Hearing Dong Jianguo's words, the female workers were genuinely excited.

These are all plain words, unlike the flowery language of Gao Yi from the editing factory.

But after listening, they were moved by the truth of the story.

Who goes out to work not wanting their family to have a better life?

Pan Yan raised her hand and asked a question:

"Director Dong, how can we ensure we eat our fill and have good food?"

Dong Jianguo smiled:

"Of course, we need to figure out how to get the factory back on track first! If the factory is doing well, I'll have money to give everyone bonuses. If the factory fails, I can just go back to selling eggs, but you'll all have to find jobs again..."

"So, we need to work together with one mind and one goal, improve product quality, and control costs. Then we'll get more and more orders, and everyone's pockets will get fuller and fuller."

"Only when the factory prospers can everyone's lives improve; only when everyone prospers can we have a brighter future."

"Everyone agrees, right?"

"Clap! Clap! Clap!" The second brother, who was standing outside the crowd, was so excited that he was the first to clap.

The applause seemed contagious; one, two, three…

Soon, the female workers present all applauded Dong Jianguo!

Being sent home to wait for work by the textile factory is something no one feels good about.

But at the same time, everyone was also harboring a lot of resentment!

Who says I can't do it?

Who says I'm useless?

Who said I'm holding everyone back?

I can shine just as brightly in a different place!

Even if we move to a new factory, I can still help it grow bigger and stronger!

Once the indomitable spirit within a person is ignited, its power often exceeds their own imagination:

"Jianguo, you've touched a nerve!"

"Director Dong, you're absolutely right!"

"Don't worry, factory manager, we know what we're doing! We'll definitely do our best!"

……