Chapter 31: Joining the First Textile Mill

With a resolute look in his eyes, Dali declared, “Brother Lin, maybe I hesitated before, but when I was at the edge of life and death just now, all I could think about was her. I realize now, she’s the one for me in this life.”

“Then you’d better figure out how to explain that to your mother. She won’t be easy to convince,” Shi Guanglin said, turning his head toward the window, offering his final piece of advice.

Xiao Weiguo kept silent on the matter; after all, he’d just met them today, and it was unwise to speak too freely with new acquaintances. So, he simply listened to their banter, finding the gossip rather entertaining.

Before long, Xiao Weiguo caught his first glimpse of the capital. The truck was drawing ever closer to the city gate.

“We’re almost at Deshengmen. This must be your first time in the capital, right, Weiguo? Once you’ve reported in, I’ll give you two days off so you can settle in and explore the city,” Shi Guanglin said, gazing at the gate.

“Thank you, Brother Lin. Yes, it’s my first time here. So, this gate is called Deshengmen?” Xiao Weiguo asked, looking at the imposing entrance.

“That’s right. After entering through Deshengmen, we’ll pass Andingmen, head south to Chaoyangmen, and then go east. Eight li east of Chaoyangmen is our factory,” Dali, the veteran driver, explained the route to Xiao Weiguo.

“Do you know why our place is called Bali Zhuang? It’s because it’s eight li from Chaoyangmen, so it’s called Bali Zhuang—or to be precise, East Bali Zhuang. There are three other Bali Zhuang in the other directions, so we call them East, South, West, and North Bali Zhuang.”

“Compared to the city, that area is desolate. Apart from the First, Second, and Third Textile Factories, there’s nothing but wasteland in Bali Zhuang and Shili Bao.”

Once inside the city, Dali, buoyed by the admiring glances of pedestrians, began to recover from the accident and enthusiastically introduced everything to Xiao Weiguo.

Xiao Weiguo listened attentively, eager to absorb the local knowledge that he sorely lacked.

When they reached Chaoyangmen, Dali turned again to Xiao Weiguo and asked, “Weiguo, do you know why the capital is called the Forty-Nine City?”

“No, I don’t, Brother Dali. Please tell me,” Xiao Weiguo replied.

“The name comes from the city’s layout during the Ming Dynasty. The phrase ‘inner nine, outer seven, imperial four’ refers to the seven gates of the outer city, nine in the inner city, and four in the imperial city. The imperial and inner cities together make up the Forty-Nine City,” Dali recited, proud of his local knowledge.

Exiting Chaoyangmen, they followed Chaoyang Avenue eastward. Before long, they arrived at the First Textile Factory. Its main gate looked new, a sign the factory hadn’t been there long. According to Dali, it was built after 1956 to address the shortage of locally produced yarn, leading to the establishment of three textile factories—landmarks of the nation’s light industry.

At the gate, Shi Guanglin greeted the security guard with practiced familiarity, flicking a cigarette into his hand.

They headed straight for the warehouse. As they arrived, a middle-aged man came up and clapped Shi Guanglin on the shoulder. “Not bad, you’ve managed to gather all the supplies in just a few days.”

“You underestimate me, Old Yang. If I hadn’t been recruiting talent, I’d have been back two days ago,” Shi Guanglin boasted.

“By the way, did you prepare the introduction letter I asked for? Let me introduce our new procurement man, Xiao Weiguo.”

“Weiguo, this is our section chief, Yang Ligang.”

“Hello, Chief!” Xiao Weiguo greeted him quickly.

“It’s ready. Just pick it up from my office,” Chief Yang said, heading off.

“Unload the goods, you guys—I’ve got paperwork to do,” Shi Guanglin instructed the warehouse workers, then took Xiao Weiguo along.

“Temporary procurement officer, monthly wage nineteen yuan, five yuan allowance for a total of twenty-four. Probation period is three years. Work hard with Guanglin. If you do well, I’ll recommend you for early permanent status myself!” Yang Ligang handed Xiao Weiguo the introduction letter and explained the terms.

“What about our housing and ration tickets, Old Yang?” Shi Guanglin pressed.

“It’s unusual for temp workers to get housing,” the chief replied, a bit troubled.

“You know how unique our procurement work is. We need a place to stay. Weiguo doesn’t have anywhere yet,” Shi Guanglin insisted.

“All right, but you’d better make sure he proves himself and gets early permanent status. I’ve never seen Guanglin go this far for anyone,” Yang Ligang said.

“You don’t know how good Weiguo is. On the way back, he even came up with an invention for the automotive department,” Shi Guanglin said, then turned to Weiguo. “Come on, I’ll take you to sign in myself.”

He made sure to grab the introduction letter for the housing assignment on the way out.

Shi Guanglin took Xiao Weiguo to the personnel office, where they completed all the formalities, and Xiao Weiguo officially became a procurement officer at the textile factory.

After receiving his workwear and other supplies, they headed to the neighborhood committee office.

“Our Bali Zhuang subdistrict covers a huge area. When the cotton mill was built, the township was dissolved and replaced with the subdistrict. Its administrative boundaries stretch east to Shili Bao and the Jingbao Railway, west to Hongmiao and Xidawang Road, south to the Tonghui River, and north to Liulitun—over ten square kilometers,” Shi Guanglin explained as they walked.

“Comrade Liu, please help assign housing to our new colleague,” Shi Guanglin said to the staff member at the office.

“Does he want a dormitory or something else? Don’t tell me you want to be assigned to the city, Old Lin,” Comrade Liu replied.

“Our work is special; we procurement officers have to run all over the place. Living in the city helps a lot. Just give us a place near my home. That whole area is barren—there’s no way to get our work done if we stay there,” Shi Guanglin argued.

“All right, I’ll write an introduction letter. Just take it to the Nanluoguxiang subdistrict office—they’ll arrange it. But it’s ten kilometers from our factory. You’ll definitely need a bicycle,” Comrade Liu said with a sigh.

“Thank you, Comrade Liu.” Xiao Weiguo, smiling, took the letter and left the office with Shi Guanglin.

“Brother Lin, why insist on living in the city? And why did the committee handle it so quickly?” Xiao Weiguo asked, puzzled.

“It’s because I made a fuss last time. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have agreed so easily. Strictly speaking, it’s against the rules, but living in the city does make our work much easier. If you’d rather not, we can go back and change it—your choice,” Shi Guanglin replied frankly.