Chapter 74

(Bowing to thank "Fengshen Yushao" for the two monthly votes support!)

September 23rd was an ordinary day, but for all the employees of the 760 Factory in Nanhui County, Linyang City, it was anything but ordinary, as this was the day the factory held a meeting to officially put the restructuring on the agenda.

Early that morning, when people went to work as usual, they found banners hanging at the factory gate, on prominent notice boards, and in the news corridor, all advocating for the end of the "big pot meal" and supporting reform and opening up. It was clear that this was the work of the factory's logistics department.

For the people in the factory, restructuring was not a new topic. In fact, a year ago, the county had already announced that it would study restructuring, with the 760 Factory as the primary target. The factory's propaganda department had been working with the county to prepare the employees and their families for nearly a year, and the employees were mentally prepared. Therefore, when the banners were suddenly hung up today, everyone was only surprised that the restructuring was really happening, but there were no major issues. People went to work as usual, and everything was normal.

For ordinary factory employees, everything was normal, but for Zhou Ming, this day was one he had been waiting for too long. Since his rebirth, whether it was making money with treasury bonds or later going to Nanjiang and Hongcheng to make money, it was all for the purpose of personally taking over the 760 Factory and giving it to his parents, so that they, who had bent their backs all their lives, could stand tall and be leaders.

That morning, Zhou Ming's parents got up early and prepared breakfast. When Zhou Ming woke up, he saw his parents and Su Han eating breakfast in the living room.

This scene made Zhou Ming pause for a moment, as it seemed like a typical scene of in-laws and daughter-in-law living together. In reality, after Zhou Ming brought Su Han back to the factory, he saw the state of her small restaurant and, worried that something might happen to her, asked her to stay at his house temporarily.

Zhou Ming went to the backyard to wash up. When he returned to the living room and sat down to eat, he noticed that his parents and Su Han were wearing the clothes he had brought back from Hongcheng. They were sitting there, clearly very nervous.

Zhou Ming said, "Mom, Dad, Su Han, you don't need to be so nervous, everything will be fine."

"But today is the day the county leaders come to our factory to announce the restructuring. How can I not be nervous? I know that Huang Zheng has been running to the county and even the city several times. His family already has connections in the county. Zhou Ming has only been out for two months, and even if he made some money, it will be very difficult to take over the factory from him!" Wang Fengqin said worriedly.

On the other side, Su Han also said, "I think Auntie's concerns are valid. Zhou Ming, you haven't said anything. How can Uncle and Auntie not worry about you?"

Zhou Ming was taken aback, not expecting that the mother and daughter-in-law would stand on the same side. However, he understood that this was definitely the result of Su Han's compromise and her proactive approach to getting closer to his mother.

"Mom, Su Han, it's not that I haven't said anything, but I've told you everything I know. You just don't believe me."

As soon as Zhou Ming finished speaking, Su Han said, "What did you say? You said you contacted some city leaders through your friends, and they would definitely help you solve the problem. But who are these city leaders? You've never met them. You just say others will speak for you and help you take over the 760 Factory. How can we believe you?"

Zhou Ming spread his hands helplessly, "That's the truth. If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do."

After breakfast, Zhou Ming and his parents, along with Su Han, watched TV at home for a while, then set out for the factory auditorium at nine o'clock.

At the entrance to the auditorium, they could see banners welcoming the county leaders and supporting reform and opening up, as well as the factory's restructuring.

At this moment, Zhou Ming's parents and Su Han looked even more nervous. Zhou Ming had to comfort them and tell them to relax. Suddenly, Su Han pointed to the auditorium and said, "Zhou Ming, look quickly. It seems something is wrong. Why hasn't the auditorium opened yet?"

Zhou Ming and his parents looked in the direction Su Han was pointing and saw that there were indeed many people gathered at the entrance to the auditorium. These people were all old employee representatives of the factory, who had come to the meeting to express their opinions on the restructuring. However, they were now standing at the entrance, chatting in groups of three or five.

"It can't be that the meeting has been canceled, can it?" Wang Fengqin said worriedly.

"I don't think so," Zhou Guoping said. "If the meeting was canceled, there would be a notice. Since these employee representatives are still here, it means the meeting hasn't been canceled. There must be something else going on."

"Whatever it is, the final result won't change," Zhou Ming said. "Mom, Dad, let's go over there first."

Zhou Guoping and Wang Fengqin nodded and led Zhou Ming and Su Han over.

As Zhou Ming and his family approached the entrance, they suddenly saw Huang Zheng in the crowd. Zhou Ming didn't want to have a conflict with him now and tried to avoid him, but Huang Zheng's eyes were sharp, and he immediately spotted Zhou Ming.

"Hey! Isn't this our Hong Kong businessman, Mr. Zhou Ming?"

Huang Zheng, who was originally a factory leader, now called out in a mocking tone, immediately drawing everyone's attention. Everyone looked over at Zhou Ming.

Having achieved his desired effect, Huang Zheng continued, "You may not know, but this young Mr. Zhou Ming, who left for two months, either to Nanjiang or Hongcheng, made a lot of money. He came back and told the county that he is a big businessman from Hongcheng and wants to participate in the factory's restructuring, aiming to take over our 760 Factory."

On the surface, Huang Zheng's words seemed to be praising Zhou Ming, but anyone with a normal IQ could tell he was being sarcastic. Everyone burst into laughter, pointing and commenting loudly at Zhou Ming and his parents.

Some of those who were closer to Huang Zheng sneered at Zhou Ming, "Zhou Ming, are you still asleep? Your father, Mr. Zhou, is a notorious liar in the factory, and you've turned out to be a little liar too. You call yourself a big businessman from Hongcheng? Why don't you say you're a central leader? That might be more believable. But there are police from the county here today. If you talk nonsense, you'll be handcuffed and taken away. For your own sake, get out of here and don't make a fool of yourself!"

Others were more neutral, "Mr. Zhou, you're an old employee of the factory. How do you discipline your child? This restructuring is a big deal for thousands of employees and their families. How can you let your child cause trouble here? If it's just the county leaders coming, it would be one thing, but we just received a notice that Mayor Chen of Linyang City will personally preside over the meeting. Take your child away quickly. If anything goes wrong today and delays the restructuring, how will you face all the employees and their families?"

Still others threatened Zhou Ming's parents, "Mr. Zhou, you're not a young man anymore. You usually seem so honest, but how can you do such a rash thing now? I warn you, don't let your child cause trouble here. If you mess up the restructuring today and embarrass our 760 Factory in front of the mayor, I'll dig up your family's graves!"

Zhou Ming's parents, who were usually honest and not good with words, were immediately flustered by the intense criticism and didn't know what to do. Su Han, on the other hand, was slightly more composed, as she had experienced many things with Zhou Ming and had great confidence in him.

This situation didn't surprise Zhou Ming. In fact, he had already warned his parents that they might face ridicule today. The reason was simple: these people had spent their entire lives in the factory, earning fixed salaries, and had no exposure to finance or economics. They couldn't imagine the possibility of getting rich overnight, let alone taking over the entire factory, which required not just money but deep connections.

In their eyes, even if Zhou Ming had a way to get rich overnight, he couldn't possibly have the necessary connections. Therefore, they saw him as a troublemaker.

Everyone in the 760 Factory knew about the relationship between Zhou Ming's parents and Huang Zheng and Ma Jianjun. Now that the factory was restructuring and Huang Zheng and Ma Jianjun were trying to take it over, it would be strange if Zhou Ming's family didn't come to cause trouble.

Wang Fengqin said to Zhou Ming, "Zhou Ming, why don't we go back first? We can come back after the meeting?"

"Mom, when Mayor Chen arrives and the meeting starts, this factory will be ours, and Dad will be the factory manager. We don't need to be afraid of them," Zhou Ming said.

On the other side, Su Han also comforted Zhou Ming's parents, "Yes, Uncle and Auntie, Zhou Ming is very capable. You should believe in him."

While comforting his parents with Su Han, Zhou Ming pointed at the old employee representatives and said, "You people, stop your nonsense. I'm here to take over this factory. Our family has no grudges with you, and I don't want to make things difficult for you, but with your attitude today, once I take over the factory, I will fire all of you!"

Zhou Ming's words made the crowd pause for a moment, then burst into even louder laughter. Some pointed at Zhou Ming and said, "Oh, how funny! What kind of daydream are you having? Look at yourself and your parents. You think you can take over this factory? Not in this life, not in the next!"

Some, with more aggressive tempers, threatened, "Good! I like your guts, young man, but if you can't fire me, don't blame me for being rough with you!"

Still others were more arrogant, "Oh, I'm so scared! I'm not afraid of you firing me; I'm afraid you don't have the power to do it!"

Seeing their expressions and hearing their words, Zhou Ming sneered, "Laugh while you can. Soon, you'll be crying."

Before the crowd could react to Zhou Ming's words, a person ran over, shouting, "Mayor Chen is here! Mayor Chen and the county leaders are here!"