Chapter 492
“It’s settled then. If you don’t agree, I won’t let your two cousins take the jobs,” Grandpa Gu said with a stern face, using a tone that made it clear there was no room for refusal.
Su Xiaoxiao paused for a moment, then eventually agreed honestly.
“But what about the four kids at home, with both of us working and Dad and Mom working too?” Shan Xinyun asked quietly.
Grandparents were both too old to help take care of so many children.
“The Steel Mill and the Machinery Factory both have children’s classes. The three boys are old enough, so we can send them there. Mom and Dad can take care of little Yunyun,” Zhu Peini said, waving her hand with a smile.
These were two of the larger factories in Shanghai, so such welfare arrangements were available.
With Shan Xinyun’s final concerns resolved, she and Huo Xiaojing cheerfully began rummaging through their luggage, pulling out gifts they had brought from their hometown. They handed out one by one to their family members.
Things weren’t exactly plentiful in these times, but they had prepared thoughtfully. There were local specialties such as pearl boxes, silk scarves, and dried seafood.
They put the items back in the rooms they had prepared earlier, intending to stay a few more days. After they had a reunion dinner with fifteen yuan worth of sweet dumplings, they planned to return to their hometown.
As everyone gathered in the living room, Mr. Su walked in from outside.
Everyone was momentarily surprised upon seeing him.
“Why are you back so early? Aren’t you very busy lately? Aren’t you coming back for lunch?” Mrs. Su asked, getting up to fetch a bowl and chopsticks for him.
Mr. Su smiled but didn’t respond. Instead, he looked at his daughter and said, “Tomorrow, both factories are recruiting employees, and they asked me to come back and check if Xiaoxiao has any questions.”
Although his daughter appeared to be an outsider in the matter, the energy-saving stoves were her creation.
Su Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and nodded. “I’ll write a few questions later, but why do they still have exams for recruitment?”
“Except for special cases, we always have exams for recruitment, and the educational requirement is at least high school,” Mr. Su said seriously.
After all, many high school graduates still didn’t have jobs, and their two factories offered high salaries, so they wouldn’t hire people with only a middle school education like other factories.
“By the way, the Machinery Factory would also like you to monitor the exam tomorrow. But if you don’t want to go, that’s fine too. I think they just want to see you and see if you have anything else to offer,” Mr. Su said, frowning when mentioning the Machinery Factory people.
Although this time the leaders had allocated 40% of the work slots to the Steel Mill, the people at the Machinery Factory were still dissatisfied.
They lost two hundred work positions, and it was said that they had complained a lot. In the end, the city leaders had to tell them that if they weren’t happy, they could add another production line to the Steel Mill, giving all the work positions to them. Only then did the Machinery Factory people quiet down.
So now, when the Machinery Factory brought up the matter again, they were sniping at each other.
“I’ll go take a look, but I don’t have anything special to show,” Su Xiaoxiao nodded, though she had no intention of pulling out any new tricks.
Her father was so angry, it was clear that the people at the Machinery Factory must have said or done something to upset him.
She planned to go see for herself tomorrow and figure out what sort of troublemakers they were.
With that thought in mind, Su Xiaoxiao even felt irritated during dinner.
“Don’t think so much during dinner, or you’ll lose your appetite,” Jiang Yexun gently coaxed, picking up a piece of fish and placing it in her bowl, making sure to remove the ginger slices.
“I think those people at the Machinery Factory must have argued with my dad,” Su Xiaoxiao bit into the fish, annoyed.
“It’s fine. The Steel Mill will definitely get another reward this year. By then, the people at the Machinery Factory won’t have a leg to stand on,” Jiang Yexun comforted her.
Seeing that his wife was still upset, he thought for a moment and then said, “Actually, I have another plan.”
“Hm?” Su Xiaoxiao’s eyes immediately brightened.
“Let’s go to the Machinery Factory tomorrow and see the situation. If they’re not worth dealing with, I’ll tell you then,” Jiang Yexun patted her head gently, reassuring her.
That finally made Su Xiaoxiao smile.
In truth, she had also thought about other small items, but in their era, steel was a scarce resource and couldn’t be wasted casually.
Mrs. Su watched the couple interact secretly from the side. Seeing her son-in-law smoothly calm her daughter down with just a few words, she quietly nudged her husband.
“Smooth talker,” Mr. Su muttered in dissatisfaction, and then quickly shoveled a couple of bites of rice into his mouth.
Mrs. Su rolled her eyes at him.
“The dishes you’re eating today were all cooked by your son-in-law. He can cook, earn money, and is good to your daughter. What more do you want?”
Mr. Su went silent.
He didn’t think his son-in-law was bad, but honestly, he still had some feelings of discomfort.