Chapter 34: And so, we remember
Zhao Mingnong was no fool. He gave the Shanghai experts only the single drawing in front of him and asked them to make a trial batch of the new pen based on that drawing first.
He had invited all these people over so his workers could learn their skills. Besides, Zhao Mingnong and even the apprentices learning from the Shanghai experts would be promised not only their regular wages from the stationery factory, but a second salary from Shushan as well. This was an indirect way of keeping the entire Shushan Stationery Factory team firmly in their hands.
Zhao Mingnong had long since considered himself one of Shushan's people. If Shushan had not appeared in time, whether their factory could get back on its feet would still have been a huge obstacle.
Everyone in the Head Office's upper management cared only about their own interests. They could not abandon this gift factory, which had long since lost any prospect of profit, quickly enough. Had someone upstairs not wanted to move against Su Licheng, they would never have suddenly put him in charge of the factory's contracting arrangements and overseeing its shutdown. They wanted to use the livelihoods of an entire factory's workers to cut off Su Licheng's future. Their intentions were vicious. Zhao Mingnong looked simple and honest, but inwardly, he had lost all faith in the Head Office.
Shushan Chain had appeared just in time. At first, Zhao Mingnong had kept his guard up, watching to see whether they were swooping in to take advantage of the crisis. Yet before they had even confirmed their intention to take over the contract, they had already offered many sound suggestions.
Was that not genuine sincerity?
Su Can had shown great concern even for a single