Chapter 601 – New Employees
The two of them continued to marvel, and then Master Zhong spoke, “Recently, I heard that after the company planned to buy machines, the employees in the factory were a bit worried. They were afraid they would be laid off if they were no longer needed.”
Lu Xia chuckled upon hearing this, “Then you can tell them not to worry. Although the company has machines now, the size of the factory will increase in the future, and we’ll still need a lot of people. We won’t lay them off.”
“Really? That’s great!”
Master Zhong was very happy. She was familiar with most of the people in the factory because she often came here, as she needed to personally inspect every batch of products to ensure cosmetic quality. They were all dedicated workers, and she would probably feel reluctant if they were laid off.
At this point, Ye Lin looked puzzled and asked, “Will the factory still need so many people with the machines?”
“Of course!”
Lu Xia explained to her, “The machines can only handle the production of cosmetics. Tasks like preparing ingredients, cleaning, bottling, transportation, and overseeing the machines all require human involvement. As the scale of our operations grows in the future, we’ll need even more people!”
“That makes sense. By the way, according to what you said, I should increase the orders with the porcelain factory we cooperate with in advance. Otherwise, it might not be on time. I just don’t know if we can get a discount for larger orders.”
“Definitely. Currently, we have our packaging bottles sourced from one factory, and it’s a big order. They definitely wouldn’t want to lose us. When the time comes, I’ll remind them to be more careful, especially with the brand logo on the bottles, to ensure it’s not crooked!”
“Don’t worry, I’ll inspect them thoroughly.”
…
Because the company was growing rapidly, they recently conducted another round of hiring. This time, they finally found a human resources specialist. Even for the factory, they hired someone who had previously been a factory manager at a state-owned factory.
This person’s name was Zeng Jun. He used to be the second-in-command at the state-owned factory, essentially the deputy factory manager. However, due to internal politics and false accusations, he was later dismissed from his position.
After hearing about his experience, Lu Xia observed him carefully and noticed that despite coming from a state-owned factory, he didn’t carry the typical air of superiority associated with such backgrounds. On the contrary, he was humble and honest. She learned that he had been a discharged soldier, which further eased her concerns.
She decided to hire him directly to manage the cosmetics factory.
In fact, when the company’s inventory was increasing, Lu Xia had sought help from her uncle to find several discharged soldiers to work as security guards and oversee the warehouse for safety.
These individuals had all suffered severe injuries during their service, resulting in disabilities, but it didn’t affect their daily lives.
Perhaps seeing this, Zeng Jun had a very favorable impression of the company. He worked diligently, and under his management, the factory was no longer as chaotic as before. Lu Xia finally felt at ease.
Since Liu Song transitioned to become the business manager, there was no longer anyone to handle the role of the manager’s assistant. So, Ye Lin found herself busy again.
Fortunately, they later hired an assistant, a young girl who was a college graduate.
Normally, it was quite rare to find college graduates at this point, as after graduation, schools usually assign jobs and graduates don’t typically seek positions in private enterprises like theirs.
However, this girl named Yang Lili was an exception. After graduating, she was assigned to work as a teacher at a primary school, teaching first-grade students.
As it turned out, she didn’t have much patience for the job, and the crying and fussing of the children in her class drove her to the point where she couldn’t bear it. No matter what, she didn’t want to go to work again.
Her family advised and scolded her, and in an attempt to help her adjust to her job, they even discussed with the school to transfer her to a logistics role where she wouldn’t have to deal with students.
However, she didn’t particularly like this job either and found it monotonous every day.
But for the sake of her family, she persisted.
It wasn’t until her family noticed that she hadn’t been smiling much since starting her job and became concerned that they sat down to have a detailed conversation with her and learned about her true feelings.
So, they agreed to let her resign.
*
Chapter 602 – Hu Cuihua’s Graduation
.
After resigning, she wanted to find a job she liked, but she wasn’t very satisfied with the few she tried.
It wasn’t until she came to Xia Lin that she finally found a job she liked and a direction to strive for.
Now she worked diligently and was especially enthusiastic.
Lu Xia and Ye Lin were also very satisfied with her. After she arrived, she helped Ye Lin a lot, making her feel a bit more relaxed.
Lu Xia and the others had already decided to let her train in the assistant position for a while. Once she fully adapted, they would send her out to work as a business manager, and she seemed very willing.
Moreover, her personality was somewhat similar to Liu Song’s—both had daring personalities.
It suited the company’s expansion plans.
As for the assistant position, they were prepared this time. They had pre-selected a few candidates and had them start in administrative roles in the company. If they performed well, they would be promoted to assistants.
Because there was a clear path for advancement, the assistants were quite motivated.
After organizing things in the company, Lu Xia’s school was nearing the end-of-term exams.
Of course, at this time, Hu Cuihua, Lu Xia’s former roommate who was a year younger, was also about to graduate.
She had finished her final exams early and had been waiting for her graduation assignment. She was quite nervous. Earlier, she had come to Lu Xia, asking if she could get a good job assignment.
Lu Xia reassured her, affirming that it wouldn’t be too bad, and she left with some peace of mind.
Lu Xia was right—Hu Cuihua was indeed assigned to a very good job.
She got a job at the foreign trade department of their home province’s government, and she became a cadre.
She was very happy when she found out and specially came to tell Lu Xia the news.
Lu Xia congratulated her and asked about her departure date, then arranged for their other roommates to see her off.
Even though everyone was busy, when someone they had lived with for two years was leaving, they had to make time to meet.
So, on the evening before her departure, they all had dinner together as a farewell.
Although they were reluctant, they tried to show happiness and wished Hu Cuihua the best in her new beginning. After dinner, each of them gave her a gift.
Hu Cuihua couldn’t hold back her tears when she saw these gifts. “Wah… I’m afraid I won’t see you all again in the future!”
Lu Xia, teary-eyed as well, comforted her, “How could that be? There are still many years in life, and we will meet again.”
The others also chimed in, “Yes, with such developed transportation now, we might meet anytime.”
Ye Nan added, “I travel around all year round. Maybe next time I’ll go to your place for a business trip.”
Upon hearing this, Hu Cuihua immediately said, “If you go, you must contact me!”
“Sure, don’t worry. When the time comes, I’ll have you treat me to a meal and really make you pay!”
Hu Cuihua finally smiled through her teary eyes upon hearing this. “Okay, I’ll treat you to my mom’s delicious steamed buns. They’re so good!”
“Great, then I must try them!”
Seeing her off for a long distance, because they all had work the next day, they couldn’t accompany her to the station. So, tonight was the final farewell.
They each tightly hugged her, and in the end, they waved goodbye before parting ways.
Until they saw her disappear at the school gate, Lu Xia heard Yu Wan sigh, “Do you think… we’ll see her again in the future?”
“We definitely will!” Lu Xia said confidently. “Just like I said earlier, life is so long, and there will be times for us to reunite. Maybe this parting is for an even better reunion in the future.”
“You’re right, parting is for a better reunion. Let’s wish her well.”
Wish her a bright future and smooth sailing ahead!
