During this period in Huaguo, the textile industry was still something to be proud of.
The performance of Shanghu Town's First Garment Factory was impressive not just in town, but could rank among the top in the entire city. For this reason, although the garment factory cooperated with Lu Chuyu's side quite readily due to Secretary Guo's influence, they were secretly dismissive. How large could an order for work uniforms from a food factory be?
Over the course of a year, at most a few hundred pieces. For the First Garment Factory, that was just a small order—hardly worth all the fuss about separate designs and separate pattern-making.
Though they felt unconvinced, who could blame them? Outsiders always seemed to have an easier time of it these days. They could only send an experienced master worker to coordinate with Lu Chuyu's side on design and pattern-making. After all, this was the town's first joint venture factory, so they had to give due respect.
Who could have imagined that they would become the first state-owned factory in Shanghu Town—no, in all of Nanhu City—to earn foreign exchange for the country?
"What? A thousand sets of work uniforms just for the production workshop workers? That white, funeral-looking uniform? Do they even have that many workers on the production line? That foreign woman is really wasteful, and she wants pure cotton fabric too. Tsk tsk tsk."
Zhang Aiguo, the factory director of the First Garment Factory, was completely baffled.
Lin Fuqiang, deputy director of the sales department, was beaming with delight. "Director, you don't understand—this is just the first batch of orders. They said that since the food factory produces ready-to-eat food products, hygiene and safety are of utmost importance. Every time workers enter the production workshop, they have to change into clean uniforms. Because of this, the food factory even has a dedicated laundry room. Considering wear and tear from frequent changes, they've ordered a thousand sets for now. Most importantly, the food factory will place the order through their investment company in the United States, with payment in US dollars. Our factory is going to earn foreign exchange for the country!"
"What?!"
Zhang Aiguo stood up excitedly, slapping both hands on the desk. "Are you sure it's US dollars? This is no joke."
"I confirmed it no fewer than three times with the assistant beside that foreign woman. The fax from the US should arrive within the next couple of days."
"What foreign woman? That's our patriotic overseas Chinese, Ms. Lu of Shanghu Town. I'm telling you, Lin Fuqiang, watch your mouth. We need to show her respect."
Zhang Aiguo had completely changed his tune.
A thousand sets of work uniforms, all in pure cotton fabric, plus matching sleeve covers and hats—priced at 17.8 yuan per set. A thousand sets came to 17,800 yuan, which converted to over ten thousand US dollars.
Though the order wasn't large, it was over ten thousand US dollars—the first foreign exchange the First Garment Factory had ever earned for the country!
If this deal went through, they would be the first state-owned factory in all of Nanhu City to earn foreign exchange.
"Go call the production department people for a meeting. This order absolutely cannot have any mistakes—not even a single loose thread. Have the most experienced veteran workers in the production workshop handle it."
Guo Weihua was also delighted when he heard the news. This was a good start.
.
What Lu Chuyu hadn't expected was that Amelia, far away in Las Vegas, would give her a pleasant surprise.
Amelia had fallen in love. Her boyfriend was the purchasing manager of Taylor, Incorporated, the third-largest retail distributor in the United States.
Taylor, Incorporated primarily dealt in the production and distribution of cross-border snacks and pet food.
When Amelia received Lu Chuyu's international call and learned that Lu Chuyu had actually invested in an instant food factory in Huaguo, she was intrigued. Las Vegas had its "Chinese restaurants," and although Huaguo was quite backward, when it came to Chinese cuisine in the United States, people still gave a thumbs up.
Moreover, Amelia was eager to prove herself, so she voluntarily shared her personal news—once the food products were produced, she would be more than happy to introduce them to her boyfriend for promotion.
She knew very well that if she were still just a lobby receptionist at Caesars Palace, her boyfriend might still date her, but at most it would just be a fling.
But now it was different. Her current title was First Special Assistant to the Chairman of Las Vegas Harrah's Lu Investment Company.
With that title, her boyfriend might actually consider marrying her. Although the company currently looked—no, to be honest, was—just a shell, her boss's surname was Harrah's. There were some things she didn't even need to say; she was sure her boyfriend could read between the lines.
For an employee with such "ambition" as Amelia, Lu Chuyu was naturally satisfied. But she couldn't show any sign of weakness, so she spoke with a relaxed tone that suggested she didn't think much of it. "Fine. I like good employees who think about the company. I'll give you a bonus at the end of the year."
"Thank you, boss. You're an angel. Please rest assured—the work you've entrusted to me, I will complete perfectly."
"Don't disappoint me—this is also a small test of your abilities."
After hanging up the phone, Lu Chuyu was in a wonderful mood.
She had originally planned to attend the Canton Fair in Guang City next spring, but now she had an additional path open up.
Lu Chuyu had great confidence in the taste of Master Lu Instant Noodles. As long as Amelia's boyfriend had no problems with his sense of taste, the order was as good as sealed.
The speed of China's engineering teams, known as the "infrastructure maniacs," was naturally beyond question.
Moreover, the state-owned construction company had directly dispatched three engineering teams, working around the clock in three shifts. In less than half a month, the production workshop was already completed, and the foundations for the office building and worker dormitories had been laid. If not for an autumn rain a few days ago that delayed progress by two days, the worker cafeteria and bathhouse would have been nearly finished as well.
Wearing a safety helmet, Lu Chuyu stood at the main gate of the food factory, her mood quite cheerful.
It was now the busiest time of the autumn harvest. She had already planned to start the food factory's recruitment exam once the harvest ended in a few days. The written test would use the town middle school's facilities. Although she didn't require academic qualifications for production line workers, they still needed to be literate, so a written test was absolutely necessary.
After passing the written test came the interview. At the current construction pace, the worker dormitories would be up in less than a month, and once the machines were installed, production could begin.
Calculating it this way, time was still quite tight. She wondered how Liu Changxing's inquiries were going. Lu Chuyu was prepared to "poach talent," because in this era, ability didn't necessarily mean recognition—what mattered wasn't just capability, but also one's class background.
Shanghu Town's first joint venture accepting foreign investment—Master Lu Food Factory—was officially beginning recruitment.
The Nanhu Daily devoted three full pages to introducing the food factory and its recruitment details. Even though the chief editor of Nanhu Daily had the foresight to increase print runs in advance, the newspapers were snatched up the moment they were released.
No household registration restrictions—as long as applicants were between 18 and 35 years old, whether urban or rural registered, they could sign up for the recruitment exam. After passing the written test and interview, they could become factory workers. The probation period was three months, with a monthly salary of 35 yuan in Chinese currency. Upon completing the probation period, they could be directly converted to regular employees, earning 60 yuan per month.
Most importantly, many positions had no educational requirements, but literacy was mandatory. With one week remaining until the written test, many illiterate people were filled with regret—why hadn't they studied harder at the village literacy classes? But some refused to give up, cramming desperately and begging others to teach them to read.
Sixty yuan a month for regular workers! Even workers at state-owned factories in the city could hardly earn 60 yuan a month.
The production line was recruiting 180 frontline operators, whose main job was handling specific food processing procedures. There were 30 porter positions—physical labor responsible for transporting raw materials and finished products—but they earned 10 yuan more per month than production line workers.
There were 60 packaging workers responsible for weighing, folding, and sealing finished products according to standards. There were 45 logistics workers handling factory support duties: laundry, cleaning public areas, garbage disposal, and serving food in the cafeteria. These two categories received the same pay as production line workers.
Nine quality inspectors required a high school diploma, responsible for process guidance and quality checks. Their salary was directly doubled—though the probation period was still 35 yuan per month, after conversion to regular status, they earned 118 yuan. Not to mention management, sales, procurement, and technical positions—some salaries were nearly catching up to state-owned factory directors.
Fortunately, Lu Changgui's family had temporarily moved to town due to renovations on the Lu ancestral home; otherwise, their doorstep would have been worn down by the crowds.
Lu Chuyu didn't let them sit idle either—she had clear arrangements for everyone.
Lu Baozhen was steady and gentle by nature, and comparatively speaking, she had one of the sharper minds in the Lu family, learning things quickly.
With her health largely restored after this period of recuperation, Lu Chuyu directly hired a retired accountant from a city state-owned factory to tutor her one-on-one, planning to assign her to the finance department.
Lu Chuyu remembered that after 1980, major universities would open night schools, and she would send Lu Baozhen there for further study. The finance department needed someone she could trust.
Although Lu Baoxi had also attended high school, her grades weren't worth mentioning—but at this time, management of high school diplomas wasn't too strict, so she could still obtain her graduation certificate.
After several interactions, Lu Chuyu found the young woman to be bold yet meticulous, with a strong sense of justice—perfect for the quality inspection department.
Aunt Shi Cuixia was assigned to the main cafeteria. Cafeteria procurement was considered a lucrative position, and Lu Chuyu planned to have Liu Jinfeng take it. First, because "clear water has no fish"—better to benefit one's own relatives than outsiders. Second, with Shi Cuixia keeping watch, Liu Jinfeng wouldn't dare go too far.
At least for now, her impression of Liu Jinfeng, her prospective cousin-in-law, was still fairly good. Lu Baohua was articulate and smooth-talking, so he was well-suited for running errands in the sales department.
At this moment, the Lu family members all had ruddy, glowing faces. Shi Cuixia in particular was so excited that her hands were trembling. A rural village woman who couldn't read a single character actually had the chance to become a worker—this was something she wouldn't even dare to dream of.
"Um, niece, I can't read. If I go, will I hold you back?"
"Auntie, if you can't read, you can learn. Have Uncle teach you—you'll pick it up gradually. The entire food factory has several hundred workers who all need to eat in the cafeteria. If someone with ill intentions causes trouble and the workers get sick from the food, it would delay production. I can't rest easy without one of our own keeping an eye on things, so please, Auntie, do your best to overcome the difficulty."
"Alright, alright, niece, don't you worry. I'll keep a close watch for you." Shi Cuixia suddenly felt that not only were the Lu family's ancestral graves emitting green smoke, but the graves of her own Shi family might well be too—she had become a worker as well.