Sail across the sea

Chapter 549: Being on guard against others is essential

After chatting and joking for a while, Gu Songtao, who was late, finally arrived.

Everyone called out "Boss," and had Gu Songtao sit in the seat of honor. Pan Chang called the waiter and ordered the dishes to be served.

Shortly after, various dishes were served. Pan Chang opened a bottle of Moutai, which was said to be a special edition treasured by his grandfather. Everyone poured some for each other, exchanged blessings, and began to drink and eat, enjoying themselves immensely.

After a few rounds of drinks, Gu Songtao looked at Gao Fan and asked with a smile, "Gao Fan, I heard your mother-in-law has arrived in Beijing?"

Gao Fan was taken aback, and after a moment he said with a wry smile, "Director Gu is really well-informed. I just flew here from Maolin with my mother-in-law today, and Director Gu already knows about it."

He didn't call Gu Songtao "boss," but rather by his official title. The meaning was clear: Gu Songtao certainly didn't know about this because he shared a dormitory with him, but rather because Xu Ying was the deputy director of the Economic Commission, and Gu Songtao was concerned about it because of his work.

Pan Chang and the others, unaware of this, looked at the two with curiosity.

Pan Chang, being the most straightforward, asked, "What happened? How did the eldest brother know that the sixth brother's mother-in-law came to Beijing?"

Gu Songtao pointed at Gao Fan and said, "You all don't know yet, do you? Lao Liu's mother-in-law is here in Beijing to take up a position as the deputy director of the Economic Commission. The Economic Commission and the Planning Commission are one and the same. How could I not know about something this big?"

"I see, congratulations!" Everyone suddenly realized and offered their congratulations to Gao Fan.

The deputy director of the Economic Commission is a high-ranking official, and everyone should definitely congratulate him on this.

"I haven't finished yet," Gu Songtao waved his hand. "Does everyone know why Director Xu came to Beijing to take up his post?"

Everyone shook their heads in unison, while Gao Fan looked helpless; there really were no secrets within the system.

"He was personally appointed by Comrade So-and-so." Gu Songtao kept everyone in suspense before finally revealing the answer.

Upon hearing the name of a certain comrade, the expressions on everyone's faces changed. Even those like Wu Zixian and Chen Chuanlin, who were on the path of scientific research, knew that a regular promotion was a completely different matter from a comrade personally appointing someone, and that such things were not something to be taken lightly.

"I asked my mother-in-law, and she said it's just a rumor." Gao Fan had no choice but to come forward and refute the rumor.

Okay, actually we're debunking the truth, because what Gu Songtao said wasn't a rumor, it's just that Gao Fan, as Xu Ying's family member, couldn't admit it.

"According to her, a report she was responsible for drafting received affirmation from the Central Committee. Coincidentally, the Central Committee needed to carry out this kind of work, so they transferred her here to be specifically in charge of this task," Gao Fan said, repeating the story he had agreed upon with Xu Ying.

Gu Songtao chuckled, but didn't emphasize the matter of personally appointing the generals again. These kinds of things are best left unsaid; saying too much is counterproductive. He picked up where Gao Fan left off, saying, "The Economic Commission also copied Director Xu's report to our Planning Commission. The Commission then assigned this task to our department, so for a long time to come, I'll be working under the leadership of Lao Liu's mother-in-law."

"What exactly is the job?" Wu Zixian asked, then quickly added, "It's not a secret, is it?"

"It's not a secret, but we won't publicize it either," Gu Songtao said. "The main point is to ensure the security of key industrial chains. To use a concept proposed in the report, it's called 'independent and controllable,' which is actually what we used to mean by independence and self-reliance."

"Isn't this something we've always advocated? Why can't we publicize it?" Wu Zixian asked, somewhat puzzled.

Gao Fan said, "Indeed, it is the concept of independence and self-reliance that we have always advocated, so when the boss said not to keep it a secret, that's what he meant. However, our country is currently in negotiations to rejoin GATT and must commit to fully opening the market. If we vigorously promote independence and self-reliance at this time, it would conflict with the commitment to rejoin GATT."

"The government's intention is that this matter must be done, but it should not be done in a high-profile manner. It's like what they used to say: enter the village quietly, and don't fire a shot."

Gu Songtao said, "There has been some debate about this matter within our State Planning Commission. Some comrades believe that since we made commitments when we resumed operations, we should abide by those commitments. Western countries value the spirit of contracts. If we make commitments on one hand and then try to do something else on the other, we will be looked down upon."

Gao Fan was speechless, realizing once again the necessity of having Yuan Xiaoyan run the journal. In this era, people genuinely believed in the myth of Western countries' emphasis on the spirit of contracts, to the point that they were psychologically defenseless against the West.

"Whether the West values ​​the spirit of contracts or not is another matter. Independence is something we absolutely must achieve. As the saying goes, 'One should not have the heart to harm others, but one must be wary of others.' If we don't have any trump cards up our sleeves, what will we do if the West suddenly goes crazy and abandons the spirit of contracts?" Gao Fan said.

Pan Chang nodded and said, "That's what my elders said too. Always be a little timid first, then a gentleman. Don't entrust your life and death to someone else's trust."

Gu Songtao said, "What you both said makes sense, and our leaders in the Planning Commission also think so. In any case, the country has this spirit, and for us at the bottom, we just need to follow the central government's instructions. That's why I said earlier that I estimate I will be working under Director Xu for a long time to come."

Gao Fan laughed and said, "Then you'll have to pick up your old lessons again. My mother-in-law used to be the deputy director of our province's Chemical Industry Department, in charge of production. She's a veteran in the chemical industry. If she knows you studied chemical engineering, she'll definitely ask you some questions. If you don't know the answers, your image in the eyes of your superiors will be ruined."

"Such a thing is true?" Gu Songtao was clearly serious, his face stiffening.

He wasn't a very good student in college, and often needed tutoring from Wu Zixian and Chen Chuanlin before exams. These past few years, working in administration at the Planning Commission, he's completely neglected his studies, even going to Lop Nur. Getting him to pick it up again now will be quite difficult.

Gao Fan realized his joke had gone too far and startled Gu Songtao. However, it seemed inappropriate to change his mind now, so he could only retract his words, saying:
"Anyway, take some time to read the book, and you'll be able to answer a few questions. My mother-in-law isn't going to ask you anything too difficult, is she?"

"That's true." Gu Songtao was slightly relieved, and then thought that if he could demonstrate some chemical knowledge while working under Xu Ying, he might be able to gain Xu Ying's favor, which would definitely be of great benefit to him.

In this sense, Gao Fan's reminder today is still very important; I should go back and find my university textbooks.

(End of this chapter)