A hundred flavors of life

Chapter 1475 Giving in? Grandma! (Please subscribe!)
Since winning the karaoke competition and having it broadcast on television, Hua Shier has been like a celebrity in the factory area. People, whether they know him or not, greet him and ask for his autograph. He is riding high on success.

But the more successful he became, the more uncomfortable and anxious those who disliked him became, like Secretary Zhang.

Secretary Zhang has recently been putting a lot of pressure on Hua Shier with the new factory director, to the point that the new director has no good impression of him as an engineer and has decided to make an example of him to deter others.

That noon, after getting his food at the canteen, Hua Shier, smiling amidst the compliments of his coworkers, went with Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye to find seats. Before they could find an empty table, they heard someone calling him from the canteen entrance:
"Xiao Cui."

Hua Shier looked in the direction of the sound and saw Secretary Zhang and a middle-aged man wearing glasses standing at the entrance of the cafeteria, looking at him. The middle-aged man had a rather imposing presence, while Secretary Zhang was half a step behind him from the moment he stood there, with a servile look on his face.

Without a doubt, that middle-aged man must be the new factory manager.

Hua Shier handed the lunchbox to Zhao Hailong, telling him to go and get seats with Liu Ye first. Then, smiling, he walked over and, before the other could speak, said:

"Secretary Zhang, I'm not criticizing you, but are you older than me? Why do you call me Little Cui?"

"Is it because you think you're so important because you're the factory manager's secretary? That makes you seem very bureaucratic, like a dog bullying its master!"

"From now on, remember to address me by my job title when we're at work. You have to call me Engineer Cui. And when we leave work, you have to call me Brother Cui based on our age. Do you agree with what I'm saying?"

Hua Shier finished speaking in one breath, and the new factory director and Secretary Zhang's faces turned dark. What bureaucrats, what a bully who abuses his power, none of them sounded like good words.

Secretary Zhang said urgently, "What nonsense are you talking about? This is our new factory director, Director Chen. I'm here to introduce you to the new leader."

Hua Shier chuckled and looked at the new factory director:
"You must be the new Factory Director Chen. Hello, hello. I'm Cui, an engineer at our factory."

Factory Director Chen, his face dark, interrupted him before he could finish, saying, "Cui Guoming, you don't recognize me, but I've heard so much about you."

He asked with a half-smile, "What's this? You just won a singing competition?"

Hua Shier smiled and nodded: "Not worth mentioning!"

Factory Director Chen continued with that ambiguous smile, "Bring glory to our factory!"

Hua Twelve might disagree with what others said, but the factory director insisted that he was absolutely right:
"You're too kind, factory manager. It's nothing I should do!"

Factory Director Chen said coldly, "You really think I'm praising you? I heard you don't like going to work, right?"

Seeing the other party's cold face, Hua Shier said unconcernedly:

"You must have heard that from a dog, otherwise why don't you speak like a human? Whether I like going to work or not, can't you check my attendance? Look at how many days off I've taken throughout the year!"

Secretary Zhang instinctively retorted angrily, "Who are you calling a dog!"

Hua Shier looked at him and smiled:
"So you were the one who said that! Everyone knows who's up to no good. What, you couldn't get me through the old factory director, so now you have a new master and you want to act like a dog relying on his new master? You'd better show me some respect now?"

As soon as the smell of gunpowder wafted out, the workers eating in the canteen all looked over. Factory Director Chen sensed the negative impact and turned to walk towards the small canteen, saying:
"Have Cui Guoming come to the private room later!"

Secretary Zhang wanted to repeat the factory director's order, but Hua Shier turned and left, too lazy to listen to another word of nonsense. He found Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye's table, put down his plate, and started eating.

Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye approached him from the left and right:
"No, Brother Cui, you still have the appetite to eat?"

Hua Twelve laughed and said:

"What's wrong? Are you going to let me go hungry? Hurry up and eat! These potato slices are pretty good, they're about five-tenths as good as Sha Zhu's!"

Zhao Hailong: "Who is Sha Zhu?"

Liu Ye was speechless: "Is that the point? The point is that the factory director and Secretary Zhang don't seem to have any good intentions!"

Zhao Hailong also realized: "Right, right, at the factory director's office meeting last Thursday, they called out our technical department by name, but they didn't see you. Director Chen's face was as long as a shoehorn!"

Hua Shier, who was eating, suddenly stood up and said to Zhao Hailong from behind, "Greetings, Factory Director!"

Zhao Hailong fell backward to the ground, then quickly scrambled to his feet: "Factory manager, I was wrong. I didn't mean you were a shoehorn; I meant I was a pig's kidney."

Looking up, he saw Hua Shier and Liu Ye chuckling. Looking around, there was no factory manager to be seen, and the surrounding workers were also chuckling.

Zhao Hailong was furious: "Brother Cui, you're really something, aren't you? You're so shrewd!"

Hua Shier pulled him down to sit: "Hurry up and eat. Forget about the factory director and secretary. Don't let the cicadas' chirping stop you from farming!"

Seeing that he was taking it all in stride, Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye were no longer too worried.

When they had almost finished eating, Secretary Zhang came out from the small kitchen, called out "Engineer Cui," beckoned to him with her finger, and then turned and went back inside.

Seeing the other person's expression, Hua Shier felt an itch to beat him up: "That bastard, I'll give him a good beating later!"

Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye both thought he was joking, but the former spoke earnestly:
"Brother Cui, why don't you just give in?"

Liu Ye also said, "That's right, a wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. It's nothing to back down a bit, and no one will laugh at you then!"

Hua Twelve smiled and said:
"What's there to back down about? I've never backed down before. Besides, let me tell you, this is good news!"

"I've calculated it all, and my chance to get promoted to engineer has arrived! I'm treating everyone to barbecue tonight, and nobody's allowed to leave after get off work!"

He stood up with a smile and walked towards the small kitchen.

Upon entering the private room, one could see the factory director sitting in the main seat, with the deputy factory director to his left and the factory's union chairman to his right. Secretary Zhang was sitting near the door.

"Good leadership!"

Hua Shier addressed everyone with just one sentence.

Factory Director Chen ate silently, while the deputy factory director and the union chairman had intended to greet Engineer Hua Shier, but seeing that the factory director was not speaking, they sensed something was amiss and simply kept quiet.

Secretary Zhang snorted coldly; "What are you standing there for? Hurry up!"

Hua Shier smiled. He understood the drinking culture. He immediately picked up the empty wine glass on the table and poured himself a glass of wine.

"I'd like to offer a toast to all the leaders, but it's just a small token of my respect!"

After Hua Shier drank a glass of wine, Director Chen's expression improved considerably, and he felt that Cui Guoming at least knew how to respect his superiors.

Factory Director Chen said in a pretentious manner:
"Xiao Cui, everyone here has reported that you're slacking off. While that's not entirely unforgivable, it's certainly not a good thing."

Hua Shier looked at the deputy factory director and the chairman of the trade union, both of whom looked bewildered. It was clearly not what they had reported, but since it was the factory director who said it, they did not object.

Secretary Zhang had a smug look on his face, as if he were the one who had reported the situation.

Hua Shier waved his hand to interrupt:
"Director Chen, this is a malicious slander against me. I'm not bragging. You're new to our factory, so you may not know the situation. Ask Deputy Director Liu next to you, ask the chairman of the trade union. Who else but me can figure out how to operate those old, broken machines from the S-League era in our factory?"

"If I were to slack off, our factory would have stopped production long ago!"

Deputy Factory Director Liu and the union chairman nodded in agreement, but Factory Director Chen didn't believe a word of it. He slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "Who are you asking? I only believe what I see with my own eyes. I've only been at this factory for a few days, and I've already seen you late and leave early several times. When I hold factory meetings, you always ask for leave and don't come. What are you trying to do!"

After finishing speaking, Director Chen took off his watch and said to the person next to him:
"Look at my broken watch, it's stopped again. This watch won't work unless you fix it."

Everyone knew that Director Chen was trying to put Hua Shier in a bad light.

After finishing speaking, Director Chen chuckled and said:
"Xiao Cui, taking leave to participate in a singing competition is a bad thing. You like singing, right? Sing us a song, and after you finish, write a self-criticism, and that'll be the end of it. Go ahead and sing."

Secretary Zhang was overjoyed, while the others remained silent, as this was somewhat humiliating.

Factory Director Chen glanced at the expressions on his tablemates' faces, his smile unchanged. So what if the old factory director treasured him? He simply didn't care. What do you mean, "We can't fix machines without you?" Keep that a joke!

Without Butcher Zhang, do we have to eat pigs with hair on?
Hua Shier, however, was not angry. He smiled and took two steps back.

"Alright, the next song is dedicated to our dear factory manager. May your life be as joyful and wonderful as the lyrics say!"

He began by singing: "Iron gate, iron window, iron chains, you hold onto the iron window and look outside."

Factory Director Chen's expression immediately changed, and he slammed his wine glass down on the table.

Normally, when the owner gets angry, a good dog will stand up and bark a couple of times. Secretary Zhang got up and pushed Hua Twelve:
"I asked you to sing, and what kind of rubbish did you sing?!"

"You want to fight? Everyone saw it. I was defending myself!"

Hua Shier gouged out the eyes and kicked the groin. That's what it means to defeat an enemy in one move!
Secretary Zhang let out a scream, covering his face with one hand and his crotch with the other.

Hua Shier reached out and grabbed his hair, slamming the frame onto the table. His glasses shattered instantly, and his nose was covered in blood.

Factory Director Chen stood up, pointed at Hua Shier, and angrily said, "Cui Guoming, what do you think you're doing? You dare to hit someone? I'm firing you!"

Hua Shier released Secretary Zhang, who was like a dead dog, and suddenly had an SX70 instant camera in his hand. He took a picture of the table and everyone present!

Factory Director Chen had a bad feeling: "Why are you taking pictures!"

The SX70 camera automatically outputs the image. Hua Shier held the photo and shook it, and the captured image appeared on it.

He said with a smile:

"Director Chen has such an air of authority! I can't remember Article 100-something of the Constitution, but there's one I remember clearly—our Guo family is a socialist Guo family led by the working class and based on the worker-peasant alliance!"

"As the factory director, not only do you drink alcohol during lunch on a weekday, but you also make me, a working-class person, sing for you. Director Chen, you've only just taken office, and you're already acting like a big shot. Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

In short, everyone at the table trembled. This matter was originally nothing, but according to Hua Shier, it would blow up. If it were brought to the forefront, Director Chen's tenure as director would be over.

Factory Director Chen couldn't possibly admit: "You're lying. You were the one who was late and left early, and you took leave to go to the singing competition. I was just trying to give you a tactful reprimand!"

Hua Twelve interrupted directly:
"What nonsense! It's true I participated in the karaoke singing competition, but firstly, I took leave from work. What did I do wrong by taking leave? What are you criticizing me for?!"

"Oh, I see. You think it's wrong for me to take leave. You're trying to exploit me, you wicked capitalist!"

Factory Director Chen was numb. He had a feeling of "Who am I? Where am I?" It was as if he had returned to twenty years ago.

Look closely, Hua Shier doesn't have any red armbands on his arms!

Hua Twelve continued:

"Secondly, in his work report on March 15th this year, General Secretary Li pointed out in the section on building spiritual civilization that we should invigorate and guide various forms of mass science popularization and cultural and recreational activities in urban and rural areas."

"The General Office just issued Document No. 45 on August 1st this year, titled 'Notice on Striving to Enrich Employees' Leisure Life After Implementing the New Working Hours System'."

The first paragraph of the document states: "The implementation of the new working hours system has given employees more leisure time to engage in cultural, sports, sightseeing, and entertainment activities. This is to meet the growing spiritual and cultural needs of the people and enrich the leisure life of employees."

"Article 3 of Chapter 1 of the Trade Union Charter, Item (5) of the Rights of Members: Workers have the right to enjoy preferential treatment in cultural, educational, sports, tourism, and recuperation activities organized by the trade union, and to enjoy various rewards given by the trade union."

Hua Shier sneered: "The karaoke competition I participated in was organized by the city's labor union and television station, precisely in response to the Guo family's call. Now, Director Chen is criticizing me, saying that I made a mistake by taking leave in response to the call. I think it's Director Chen who made the mistake!"

"You capitalist who's trying to exploit my workers' rights!"

"You bureaucrat who's trying to turn back the clock of history!"

Factory Director Chen's legs trembled, sweat beaded on his forehead, and he could barely stand, so he sat down in his chair: "I didn't, I didn't."

He was completely dumbfounded. Who was this person? He knew the policies and laws better than he, a proper leader, and could probably recite them all by heart.

Hua Shier took out a small tape recorder from his pocket:
"I recorded it all. You can't just say it's not there and then it's not!"

After he finished speaking, he pointed to the union leaders of the machinery factory:

"As the leader of our factory's trade union, you don't stand up for me, a worker, but instead stand by and laugh at me. I'll report this to the municipal trade union later. You're going against the organization's plans. I think your time in this position is over."

The man quickly said, "Little Cui, we have no grudge against each other. What can I do if the factory manager wants to mess with you?"

Factory Director Chen quickly explained, "Xiao Cui, it's a misunderstanding, it's a misunderstanding!"

Hua Shier chuckled: "What misunderstanding? Didn't you just fire me? I'm leaving now. You want me to sing for you? Grandma, we'll settle this later when we have a place to settle things! We'll see how things go!"

He put away the tape recorder and photos, kicked Secretary Zhang who was foaming at the mouth, and then turned and left.

Surprisingly, Secretary Zhang, who was foaming at the mouth just now, stopped foaming after being kicked by him and slowly woke up: "Is it dawn yet?"

Only after taking in her surroundings did she remember what had just happened. Feeling pain all over her body, Secretary Zhang cried out:
"Factory manager, you have to stand up for me! Look how lawless Cui Guoming is! He dares to hit people right in front of you! You have to fire him!"

Before Factory Director Chen could speak, the deputy factory director pointed at him and started cursing:
"You're the one who stirred up trouble, you deserve to be hit!"

Factory Director Chen's expression changed several times. He turned to the deputy factory director and said, "Old Liu, you have to help me this time."

Deputy Factory Director Liu said, "I've tried to advise you before, but you wouldn't listen!"

Factory Director Chen said with a wry smile, "I never expected that Cui Guoming would be like a firecracker, exploding at the slightest provocation!"

As soon as Hua Shier stepped out of the small canteen, Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye came up to him, both asking with concern:

"Brother Cui, are you alright? Did the factory manager say anything?"

"It's okay, I'll go home and rest for a few days. When I get back, your brother Cui will be a senior engineer. Oh, by the way, the plan to have barbecue tonight is still on, you two have to come!"

He smiled as he went back to his office to pack his things, then rode off on his bike.

Zhao Hailong and Liu Ye said, "Is Brother Cui too traumatized? I feel like he's been fired."

Thanks to 08a, Little Tiger of the Demon Realm, and Brother Li Meng of the God of Death for their donations, and thanks to the brothers who voted for monthly tickets and recommendations. Thank you so much!