Chapter 16

"Thank you, Section Chief Duan. I will work even harder and strive to win first place again at the railway bureau's technical performance!" Xiao Yuanhang was overjoyed upon hearing this and quickly stood up to express his determination to Wu Fengshan, then downed the glass of wine in one gulp.

In railway enterprises, it is extremely difficult for workers to become officials, a high and unattainable threshold. Some people work as substitutes for officials for over a decade without getting the opportunity to become officials, and some even work as substitutes for their entire lives, retiring as workers without ever solving this issue. The position of train conductor is a regular official post, and promotions need to be reported to the railway division's organization department. After the division's organization department reviews and approves, they issue a formal personnel order!

Only by solving the official status can one have greater development opportunities. Railway grassroots units are different from local governments; the section chief has the final say, and the party secretary and other members of the leadership team are basically just figureheads. Once the section chief decides something, it is final and cannot be changed.

Wu Fengshan is a very strong-willed person. In the three years since he became the section chief of Guhe Train Section, he has always been decisive. The former party secretary struggled with him for two years but never gained the upper hand. The division, considering the overall work, decisively transferred the former party secretary to a logistics unit as the party secretary. Although still a party secretary and at the level of a section chief, a logistics unit cannot compare to the main transportation business.

The current party secretary, Ma Dezhi, was promoted from the deputy party secretary of Tongshui Train Section. He cooperates well with Wu Fengshan. In administrative matters, including the promotion of workers and the appointment of officials, he always follows Wu Fengshan's opinions. For matters involving the appointment and transfer of party and mass officials, he also consults Wu Fengshan. Seeing that Ma Dezhi is so understanding and does not interfere in party and mass affairs, Wu Fengshan basically respects Ma Dezhi's opinions. Therefore, the entire leadership team is harmonious, and the work of the staff and workers is very smooth.

Although Wu Fengshan said this at the dinner table, the deputy section chief in charge of passenger services, Tang Xue Mei, and others all heard it and echoed Wu Fengshan, encouraging Xiao Yuanhang to win first place at the railway bureau to bring glory to the section.

Xiao Yuanhang did not think that Section Chief Wu Fengshan would renege on the promise of a train conductor position. To the train attendants, the train conductor is a high-ranking position, but to the section chief, it is just an ordinary post. Guhe Train Section operates 8 pairs of passenger trains, and there are currently 42 train conductors. If he could really win first place in the railway bureau's technical performance for the train attendants, the position of train conductor would be his!

Although Xiao Yuanhang is a reincarnated person, he did not think he could easily win first place in the railway bureau's technical performance. The railway bureau's technical performance gathers the top experts in the industry, all of whom are highly intelligent and talented. To win first place in the railway bureau's competition, one needs not only to master various regulations and technical skills but also a bit of luck, which often plays a decisive role.

Most of the people at the two tables were women. Apart from Section Chief Wu Fengshan, Party Secretary Ma Dezhi, and Deputy Section Chief Hu Baoguo in charge of safety and operations, who smoked, no one else did. The office director, Yang Li, had prepared Liangyou cigarettes, and the cigarettes Xiao Yuanhang bought were not suitable to bring out. In his previous life, due to often staying up late to write materials, he had a heavy smoking habit. After reincarnation, he found his smoking habit much lighter, falling into the category of "smoking or not smoking is fine." Since reincarnation, he had not smoked a single cigarette. At the dinner table, he really wanted to smoke a cigarette but held back, as he was only 18 and feared leaving a bad impression on his superiors.

The celebration dinner ended in a lively atmosphere. After seeing off the section leaders, the head of the education department, Tian Fen, gathered everyone and announced the next work arrangements. All participants were given a three-day holiday. Three days later, Xiao Yuanhang, Tang Jing, and Song Chunli, who would participate in the railway bureau's technical performance, were to report to the education department for specialized training. The others would report back to their respective train teams and return to their work teams.

Xiao Yuanhang returned home before 9 PM. His parents were watching TV, a 14-inch black-and-white television they had bought last year, which could only receive two channels: the national and provincial channels. Seeing his son return, Xiao Qiliang said, "Wang Dahai came looking for you just now."

Hearing this name, Xiao Yuanhang immediately pictured Wang Dahai in his mind: big eyes, thick eyebrows, 1.8 meters tall, and a very robust build. Wang Dahai had grown up with Xiao Yuanhang since childhood and was his close friend and brother. They were the same age, with Xiao Yuanhang being one month older. They attended the same primary and middle schools, and in high school, they were in the same class. Xiao Yuanhang's good grades placed him in the fast track, while Wang Dahai's poor grades placed him in the slow track. Xiao Yuanhang worked for less than a year after high school, while Wang Dahai wandered around after graduating from high school for two years without a job, eventually gaining some fame in the Tie Xi district through his toughness.

"What did he want?" Xiao Yuanhang couldn't help but ask.

Xiao Qiliang said, "He didn't say. He asked what you were doing, and I told him you were at a company dinner. Then he left."

"Oh!" Wang Dahai must have come for something important. Xiao Yuanhang responded and started to leave. Xiao Qiliang asked, "Xiao Hang, where are you going?"

Xiao Yuanhang said, "It's too hot inside. I'm going to cool off at the end of the building."

Xiao Qiliang warned, "Xiao Hang, stay away from Wang Dahai. Hanging out with a troublemaker who causes problems everywhere will only get you into trouble!"

"Father, I know what to do!" Xiao Yuanhang understood his father's concerns, as all parents want their children to do well. However, he knew Wang Dahai best. Although Wang Dahai later went to prison for serious assault, their friendship remained unchanged.

Xiao Yuanhang went to Wang Dahai's house, but his father said he didn't know where he was and hadn't been home for several days. At that time, communication was extremely backward. Apart from government and enterprise office phones, only high-ranking officials had phones at home, and ordinary people, even if they had the money, couldn't install them. With Wang Dahai not at home, Xiao Yuanhang had no way to find him.

Xiao Yuanhang returned to his home, sat on a stone at the end of the building, and took out the pack of Liangyou cigarettes from his pocket. He opened it, took one out, and lit it. Looking at the dark surroundings and the dim light from the windows of the residential buildings, he took a deep puff, feeling that this first cigarette after reincarnation was very fragrant!

Xiao Yuanhang sat at the end of the building, waiting for Wang Dahai. He knew that if Wang Dahai really had something important, he would come back. He waited until 10 PM, when Wu Dama's convenience store closed and turned off the lights, but Wang Dahai still didn't appear. He had to get up and go home to sleep.

Not long after lying down in his small room, he heard someone gently knocking on the window. Xiao Yuanhang lifted the curtain and saw Wang Dahai outside. He opened the window, afraid that his parents in the main room would hear, and asked softly, "Dahai, what's up?"

Wang Dahai also spoke softly, "Second Brother, come out for a moment. I have an urgent matter and need your help."

Xiao Yuanhang has two siblings, with an older sister. He is the second in the family, and the neighbors call him "Little Second." Wang Dahai also calls him "Second Brother."

Xiao Yuanhang put on a pair of large shorts, threw on a jacket, and jumped out of the window. The two met at the end of the building. Xiao Yuanhang asked, "Dahai, what's the urgent matter?"

Wang Dahai said, "Yesterday, Xiaoqiang went to Tiandong and was beaten up by Sanmao and his gang. They beat Xiaoqiang for no reason. Of course, I had to stand up for him. We agreed to settle it with force at 8 PM at the Tiandong bridge. Although they had more people, we didn't lose. We took down three of them. Xiaoqiang was at the front and got hit twice with a kitchen knife on his head and shoulder. The hospital needs 200 yuan for the admission deposit. We only managed to gather 50 yuan. The wounds have been stitched and bandaged, but we can't afford to stay in the hospital. He's waiting in the hospital corridor. Do you have any money? Can you lend me some?"

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PS: Brothers, you're too awesome! After a day of hard work, the book has moved from 15th to 13th on the new book list. Just one more step to make it to the top. Old Qu sincerely asks everyone to give it one more push and try to make it to the top tomorrow!