Chapter 125: Get Out Immediately

"Director Pei, what’s the matter?"

Seeing that the person on the other end had clearly hung up, Director Pei remained frozen, holding the phone to his ear for a long time. Wu Ya walked over and pressed the receiver down for him, then helped him slowly sit back into his chair.

"The leaders... they’re sick! They’re sick!"

At this moment, Director Pei was clearly so overwhelmed by the massive, unexpected surprise that he had lost his composure. He kept muttering the same thing over and over.

The leaders were sick.

"How are they sick?" Wu Ya almost burst out laughing, but he forced himself to hold it back.

It was understandable. He had gone to the leaders full of hope, only to be met with a cold shoulder. He had plummeted from high expectations into total despair. And now, suddenly, he had been catapulted from absolute disappointment back to the pinnacle of hope. To endure such intense emotional swings within a few hours—who could handle that? Especially after hearing Director Pei’s earlier venting of negativity, Wu Ya understood just how heavy the frustration in his heart had been. Therefore, he could fully empathize with Director Pei’s current behavior.

"They notified me to go to the sub-district office immediately to report on the new workshop proposal in detail! Wu Ya, you tell me, if this sudden change in attitude isn't being 'sick,' what is it? Did heaven finally open its eyes? Or is it what you called 'sincerity leads to success'? But that doesn't make sense; I only made one trip, which hardly counts as 'sincerity'!"

Director Pei frowned, rambling on and on, yet he still couldn't connect the dots to Wu Ya. He couldn't imagine that after they had finished discussing their plans today, they had gone their separate ways to take action. When things seemed hopeless and then suddenly turned around, if it wasn't his own doing, what else could it be? Why was he searching for every excuse under the sun, yet refusing to look at the person right in front of him?

"Director Pei, no matter the reason, haven't the leaders at the sub-district office already agreed? Haven't they told you to hurry over? Then what are you still dawdling here for?"

Regardless of the cause, business came first. Wu Ya gave the still-dazed Director Pei a nudge and urged him anxiously. This favor was owed to Huang Silu’s father; he didn't know the full extent of its weight, but since the leaders had agreed, he had to seize the opportunity without hesitation. Otherwise, if they offended the higher-ups, all the effort would have been for nothing!

"Oh, right, right! I must go immediately! Otherwise, I'll offend the leaders again; if they get annoyed, they might revoke their decision."

Director Pei quickly snapped out of his surprise. He stood up, straightened his clothes, and walked out the door. His speed was nothing like that of a man in his forties; he moved with the vigor of a high-spirited youth!

However—

*Whoosh!*

Before Wu Ya could even step out to see him off, Director Pei nearly collided with him!

"Why are you back?" Wu Ya asked, looking at the suddenly reappearing Director Pei with a face full of confusion. Hadn't he left? At the speed he was going, he should have already reached the end of the hallway. Why had he doubled back?

"It was you! Wu Ya, it was you who found someone to make the leaders change their minds! Right?"

Finally, he had thought of Wu Ya!

The two of them had acted separately. He was responsible for reporting to the leaders, while Wu Ya went to find someone to put in a good word. In the end, he had failed. But what about Wu Ya? From beginning to end, he hadn't said a word about how his side was progressing! As someone well-versed in the ways of officialdom, Director Pei naturally understood that leaders didn't change their minds on a whim. Unless... someone had spoken for him!

And wasn't that exactly what Wu Ya had gone to do? Moreover, since he returned, he had been teasing him, even provoking his temper, making him think Wu Ya was just mocking him. His attitude had been so casual, almost to the point of playing the fool. Thinking about it now, it wasn't that he lacked intelligence or was too young and naive to understand bureaucratic procedure. It was that... he had known clearly from the start that the matter was already settled! How ridiculous that he had played the clown, thinking the boy was just inexperienced.

"Hahaha, Director Pei, you finally thought of me! Thank you, thank you! But don't dwell on how it happened; hurry up and go report to the leaders! I don't even know myself how much weight the person who spoke for us carries!"

Amidst his laughter, Wu Ya pushed Director Pei out of the office again. This was a major event; he couldn't afford to be slow. Through Director Pei’s initial failure, Wu Ya had gained a deeper understanding of the treacherous nature of officialdom. Therefore, he could not afford to be careless.

"Fine! You just wait here for the news; I guarantee I'll bring back a satisfying answer!" Director Pei replied with a solemn expression. This time, there was no sign of his earlier panic. His pace was steady and light. Soon, he vanished from Wu Ya's sight.

"Heh, Fatty Huang, your old man’s influence is truly significant!"

Back at Huang Silu’s house, he had received the accurate news. At that time, Wu Ya hadn't realized the weight of it. Only now did he understand that there was such a massive difference between having connections and having none—it was like the difference between heaven and earth! This involved the direction of an enterprise and a person’s future!

*Clack, clack, clack...*

Accompanied by the roar of machinery, Wu Ya entered the workshop. Three assembly lines were neatly arranged in the huge space; from afar, they looked like three giant dragons. Beside the machines, the newly hired workers were working diligently. From their expressions, one could see how much they cherished these jobs.

"Heh, it’s true—people only truly understand the value of things once they've experienced hardship."

These workers had all been hired through connections in their previous factories. They not only felt superior but had also become arrogant and lazy. They would slack off, do the bare minimum, and just wait for their paychecks, showing no passion or drive. But with the factories shutting down and the wave of layoffs hitting, their comfortable lives were shattered, and the days of guaranteed employment were gone forever. Only then did they begin to bear the hardships of life and understand how difficult it was to make a living.

Now, Chenshe had given them a chance to work again, providing a stable income! And as long as they worked hard and produced more, their income was even higher than before. As a result, they were full of energy and cherished the opportunity, fearing that if they fell behind and were fired by the boss, they would never find a job with such high pay again.

"These are finished products. Why haven't they been bagged according to the standards?"

Suddenly, a stern, authoritative reprimand pierced through Wu Ya’s ears. He looked up, about ten meters away. A woman wearing work clothes with a "Foreman" badge on her chest was pointing at a pile of finished garments, questioning a worker at the end of the assembly line. He didn't walk over.

"Foreman Qi, I was just about to bag them, but..." The worker stopped there, glancing around with a hesitant expression.

"But what? Speak!"

"But I discovered that this batch of clothing has some flaws! However, the step where the flaws occurred is Sister Han’s station! So, you see..."

Sister Han’s station. Flaws.

Although the worker used a subtle term, Wu Ya knew this was a quality control issue. And from her stammering, it was clear this "Sister Han" had some significant background! Perhaps she was someone’s relative? In any case, she was definitely a "connected" individual. Otherwise, an ordinary worker wouldn't be so afraid of offending her.

"The problem is at Sister Han’s station?"

Sure enough, even this stern-looking Foreman Qi frowned upon hearing the name.

"Heh..." Wu Ya became interested. Although he didn't know who this Sister Han was, if she was slacking off, still treating this place like her old factory, and causing quality issues because she wanted to coast, then Wu Ya wouldn't let it slide—no matter who she was. That was beyond doubt.

What interested him wasn't Sister Han, but Foreman Qi! How would she handle this? That was the key point!

"Where is Sister Han? Where is she?" Foreman Qi thought for a moment, then looked at the worker and asked.

"She went to the canteen to get lunch."

"Lunch? It’s not even lunchtime yet. What kind of lunch is she getting? Go, call her back here!"

Foreman Qi’s face darkened immediately. A station worker wasn't at her post! It would be strange if there wasn't a quality issue! What was the job of an assembly line worker? Wasn't it to monitor the machines and fix problems as they arose? If the person wasn't even at the station, how could they fix anything? Fortunately, it was only the first day, and the assembly line was still operating at a medium-speed adaptation phase. Otherwise, even a few minutes of absence could result in a huge batch of defective products! This Sister Han was truly outrageous!

"Okay, I’ll go call her." The worker agreed and hurried away. Because she was nervous, she didn't even notice Wu Ya standing in the gap between the equipment.

"Heh, it seems this Sister Han has a strong backer! Daring to leave her post on the very first day of work—who gave her the nerve?" Watching the worker leave, a dark cloud gathered on Wu Ya’s face. It was only the first day, and someone was already daring to violate factory rules. If this continued, wouldn't all the bad habits of the old state-owned enterprises return?

"Well, that’s fine! The sooner problems appear, the easier they are to fix, and the better the results!" But his brow soon relaxed. Sister Han had connections? That was perfect. Since she dared to be the first to break the rules, he would use her as an example. Kill the chicken to scare the monkeys; strike the mountain to shake the tiger! He would frighten those who appeared obedient but were actually restless, waiting for a chance to slack off again once things settled down. He would make them realize that this was a private enterprise, not the old "iron rice bowl." If you don't work hard? Get out immediately!