Chapter 39

This news was undoubtedly a tremendous surprise for Wu Fengshan, not only giving him face in the entire division but also making him stand out in the railway bureau! After a brief moment of thought, he said, "Xiao Tang, which train are you taking back?"

Tang Jing replied, "Director Sun booked the train at 15:25 in the afternoon, arriving in Guhe at 19:40 in the evening."

Wu Fengshan said, "Alright, I got it. When you three arrive, go home and rest first. Report to the section at 7:30 AM tomorrow. This time, I will give you a good reward!"

Tang Jing smiled and said, "Thank you, Section Chief!"

Around 2:30 PM, Sun Hai Ping finally received a call from Director Zhang Chaorong of the railway bureau. Director Zhang informed him over the phone that the division had decided to hold a grand naming and commendation conference at 8:00 AM the next day in the division auditorium, with over a thousand employees attending. He was to bring the contestants directly back to Tongshui, where rooms had already been reserved for them at a small hotel.

Sun Hai Ping immediately informed the nine contestants. Being commended and rewarded was a good thing, and everyone was naturally very happy. Tang Jing suddenly remembered that Section Chief Wu had asked them to report to the section at 7:30 AM the next day and was about to call him. When Sun Hai Ping heard about this, he said, "You don't need to make that call. Your section chief and the party secretary will both attend this meeting!"

As it was almost time for the train to depart, everyone packed their things and headed to the station, boarding the train bound for Tongshui. This train passed through Guhe station, and the original plan was for Xiao Yuanhang and the other two to get off at Guhe, while the local participants would return to their respective homes. The three contestants from Linquan would change trains at Tongshui and return to Linquan the next morning. Now, they had to attend the naming and commendation conference at the division, so Xiao Yuanhang and the other two would pass by their homes without stopping and continue to Tongshui.

To Xiao Yuanhang's surprise, when the train arrived at Guhe, Section Chief Wu Fengshan, Party Secretary Ma Dezhi, and Deputy Section Chief Tang Xue Mei also boarded the train! They were all old acquaintances of Sun Hai Ping, and after boarding, they chatted warmly. From their conversation, it became clear that the division office had only notified them to attend the meeting in Tongshui at around 3:00 PM. There was only one train to Tongshui that evening, and Deputy Section Chief Tang Xue Mei had been pulled onto this train right after getting off another one.

Sun Hai Ping, of course, did not hesitate to praise Xiao Yuanhang and the others, which made Wu Fengshan feel very pleased. He waved Xiao Yuanhang over and said earnestly, "Xiao Yuanhang, well done. Last time, I encouraged you to bring back another technical champion from the railway bureau, and you did it. I meant what I said. After this meeting, I will discuss and promote you to train conductor!"

"Thank you, Section Chief! Thank you, Section Chief!" Xiao Yuanhang had been waiting for these words from Wu Fengshan and quickly expressed his gratitude. As long as he became a train conductor, he would have a cadre status, and his future would be much brighter!

Of course, with Sun Hai Ping, the head of the passenger transport department, present, Wu Fengshan did not say, "I will promote you to train conductor after this meeting," to avoid appearing too autocratic in front of the division leaders. However, everyone understood that Xiao Yuanhang's promotion to train conductor was a done deal.

"Absolutely, I fully support promoting Xiao Yuanhang to train conductor. Xiao Yuanhang, you must work hard and strive to win the first place for the train conductor team again next year!" Sun Hai Ping added.

Xiao Yuanhang nodded firmly and said, "Thank you for the encouragement, Director! I will do my best next year!"

At 11:40 PM, the train arrived at Tongshui station. Section Chief Wu and the others, thanks to the contestants, also stayed at the division's small hotel. The hotel had received notification from the division office and had prepared a midnight snack for them. After arriving, everyone ate the snack and then returned to their respective rooms to rest.

The next morning, breakfast was served at 6:30 AM. After eating, the contestants, led by Sun Hai Ping, arrived at the division auditorium at 7:00 AM. The conference banner was already hung on the stage, and the staff was making the final preparations. Tao Hong, the deputy director of the division office, saw Sun Hai Ping and the others and hurriedly greeted them, inviting them to sit in the front row. The staff immediately draped red sashes and flowers on them. Sun Hai Ping, Engineer Qiu Zhi, and Engineer Liang Daren from the vocational education department were also draped with red sashes and flowers, indicating that they were also being commended!

Starting at 7:30 AM, the employees from Tongshui region, organized by their respective sections, began to enter the auditorium, which could hold over 1,500 people. By 7:50 AM, the auditorium was already full. The leaders of the Guhe, Tongshui, and Linquan train sections and the heads of the division's various departments were seated in the second row behind the contestants. The leaders and employees of the Tongshui region's various sections sat together.

At 7:55 AM, led by Division Chief Xue Baoguo, the main leaders of the division ascended the stage. The entire audience immediately stood up, giving a thunderous applause to welcome the division leaders to their seats. The railway is a "high, large, and semi-military" enterprise, with a strong sense of time. If a meeting is scheduled for 8:00 AM, it will start exactly at 8:00 AM. At 8:00 AM, the commendation conference began!

The first item on the agenda was a speech by Deputy Division Chief Zhang Chaorong, who oversees passenger transport. In his speech, Director Zhang first explained the background, purpose, and significance of the naming and commendation conference. He then highly praised the contestants for their hard work and spirit of striving for excellence, commending them for winning the first place in the railway bureau's technical performance competition. He specifically mentioned and praised Xiao Yuanhang, the technical champion of the railway bureau, and called on everyone to learn from them.

The second item on the agenda was a speech by the division's Party Secretary Luo Zhiyuan. He required the propaganda department to vigorously promote their spirit of striving for excellence and called on all Party members and cadres in the division to learn from them. He also instructed the propaganda department to organize a team to interview the nine contestants and publish a collection of reportage literature about them.

The third item on the agenda was a speech by Division Chief Xue Baoguo. While praising the contestants for their hard work and the honor they brought to the division, he also proposed that in the selection and appointment of cadres, priority should be given to those who performed well in the technical performance competition...

The fourth item on the agenda was the announcement of the commendation and reward decisions by the first deputy division chief, Zou Dongliang. Zou Dongliang announced, "After deliberation by the division's Party committee, it has been decided to confer the title of 'Advanced Worker' on Xiao Yuanhang, Tang Jing... and Sun Hai Ping, Engineer Qiu Zhi, and Engineer Liang Daren, among 11 comrades. According to the railway bureau's reward standards, the contestants who placed in the bureau's competition will be rewarded, and those who did not place, as well as Sun Hai Ping, Engineer Qiu Zhi, and Engineer Liang Daren, among 7 comrades, will each receive a cash reward of 50 yuan as an encouragement!"

Everyone thought the announcement of the rewards was over and applauded enthusiastically. However, after the applause subsided, Director Zou continued, "The division has also decided to grant a one-level wage increase to each of the nine contestants!"

"Wow..." In the auditorium with over 1,500 people, the applause was like a tidal wave, lasting for a long time...

What a grand gesture, truly a grand gesture! Xiao Yuanhang silently marveled. Although a one-level wage increase was only 9 yuan, it seemed small, but it was 9 yuan per month, 108 yuan per year, and it would continue until retirement. He was only 18 years old, and he still had 42 years until retirement, which would amount to a significant income!

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PS: Finally, I have stabilized on the list. Thank you for the full support from my brothers and the generous reward from the book friend "Mountain Without Old Cat"!

{Piaotian Literature}