Back to the 80s Machinery Factory

Chapter 315 (Dads, may your fortune be rolling in on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year) The seats need to be rearranged
The young clerk said, "Comrade Xiao Kong has other translation tasks."

He refused to say anything else.

Chen Luyang nodded, then turned around and looked around the conference room of the International Hotel.

This is a very beautiful rectangular conference room. There are pictures of peonies in full bloom hanging on the wall and a red carpet on the floor, which makes it look solemn and formal.

Just this table and seating arrangement...

Chen Luyang frowned slightly.

In order to highlight the core of li'yi of "distinguishing priorities", and also to pay attention to the ranking of officials' ranks.

The conference room is divided into a main table and a secondary table.

The main table is located in the center at the end of the conference room, decorated with flowers and the national flags of the two countries.

On both sides of the main table, there are two long tables serving as side tables.

The Chinese side is on the left, the Japanese side is on the right, and the main table is in the middle for the main officials to sit.

In theory, there is nothing wrong with this arrangement.

But according to Chen Luyang's understanding of Japan,

Compared with the domestic practice of arranging seats from the main table to the second table, the Japanese side prefers "equal arrangement".

The seating arrangement does not emphasize priority, but reflects the atmosphere of teamwork and the spirit of equality.

"Mr. Chen, is there a problem with the seating arrangement?"

The young clerk noticed that Chen Luyang's expression was not right and asked.

"Comrade, have we discussed our seating arrangements with the Japanese delegation in advance?" Chen Luyang asked.

"No."

The young clerk looked suspicious.

Is this necessary to communicate with them?

Guests should always follow the host's wishes. Just sit wherever the host arranges you to sit!

Besides, the arrangements here are formal and reasonable, and there are no problems.

Chen Luyang kindly reminded: "Comrade, we'd better communicate with the dispatching group first, so as not to cause any disagreements due to the seating issue later."

The little clerk is smart.

As soon as I heard Chen Luyang say this, I knew something was definitely wrong.

In order to avoid any trouble and complete the task successfully, the young clerk immediately turned around and ran to report to his section chief.

Chen Luyang also turned around and went to the hotel lobby to look for snacks.

Based on his experience working in a hotel for foreign guests, he knew that before every large-scale meeting, the hotel would prepare a large amount of cakes, candies, and alcoholic beverages.

As long as you talk nicely to the restaurant staff, you can basically get a plate of snacks.

For bilateral talks like this, which last for three to five hours each, it is impossible to come down.

The translator must also concentrate on judging and analyzing the vocabulary in the relevant context throughout the process, and convey the meaning of both parties in the most appropriate angle.

This is both a drain on mental and physical energy.

I really can't bear it if I don't eat more.

Chen Luyang walked around the hall and then fixed his eyes on a male waiter with thick eyebrows and big eyes in the lobby.

He walked up to the male waiter and said in a friendly manner that he was here to translate for his boss, but he had left too early in the morning and had not eaten much, so he asked if he could have something to eat.

After hearing this, the male waiter turned around and took out a plate of cakes, cookies and candies without saying a word.

Not only was there food, but they even poured him a cup of tea and let him drink it with the biscuits.

"Thank you, comrade!"

Chen Luyang took the food gratefully, sat on the sofa and started eating.

"You're welcome! Just tell us if you need anything."

The male waiter said frankly, "Our hotel has already reached a consensus. We will go all out to provide you with good service in the next few days."

As the two were talking, two figures hurriedly ran down the stairs.

I walked around the lobby.
The young clerk immediately spotted Chen Luyang making cookies with a crackling sound.

He pointed at Chen Luyang with the section chief beside him. The section chief immediately ran to Chen Luyang and said eagerly and politely:
"Mr. Chen, I'm so sorry to have wasted your time."

"We have a question about the seating arrangement in the conference room. Can you help us design it?"

Just now, after hearing the report from the young clerk, the section chief, in line with the principle of "better to say more than to miss out", went upstairs and knocked on the door of the translator of the dispatched delegation, wanting to communicate with him about the seating arrangement in the conference room.

Sure enough, after hearing the seating arrangements at the venue, the dispatching delegation expressed their opinions.

This seating arrangement that emphasizes the level of position does make them feel a little uncomfortable, and they hope to achieve a non-hierarchical seating arrangement.

This request immediately made the young clerk and the section chief feel troubled.

Although the opinions of Japanese friends need to be adopted, our own leaders must also be respected! !

If they don't arrange things properly and mess up the order, their leader will scold them to death!
It seemed that the provincial leaders would soon lead a team to the hotel.

The two had no choice but to ask Chen Luyang for help.

"Mr. Chen, your factory often communicates with Japanese experts, so you must have experience with this kind of seating arrangement. Could you please help us think of a solution?"

The section chief said this with a sincere look on his face.

As the old saying goes, if you can't solve the problem, you have to solve the person who raised the problem.

Since this problem was raised by Chen Luyang, we have to ask him to solve it!

"Okay! Let's go back to the conference room and take a look."

Chen Luyang also didn't want anything to go wrong with his future father-in-law.

He swallowed the biscuits on the plate, drank the tea in the cup, and put the plate on the small coffee table next to him.
Just as he was about to get up and leave, the cookie crumbs that fell on him also fell to the ground.

If this happened at Songting Hotel or somewhere else, any small debris that fell on the ground would just fall on the ground.

But when I think of the waiter at the International Hotel squatting on the floor to clean the carpet residue,

Chen Luyang immediately squatted on the ground, picked up the few crumbs that had fallen on the ground with his fingers, and threw them into the plate of leftovers.

This action not only warmed the hearts of the hotel staff,

The section chief and the young clerk were even more impressed!
We all talk about the "Five Good Behaviors and Four Beauties", but now we can see people spitting and blowing their noses everywhere on the streets.

The slogans were shouted loudly, but no one did anything.

How many people are like Chen Luyang, who would even bend down to pick up the cookie crumbs that fell on the ground?!
"Comrade! Thank you so much, we just need to clean these up."

The hotel employee in charge of cleaning the lobby ran over hurriedly, his voice full of gratitude.

"Thank you for your hard work, comrade."

Chen Luyang politely greeted the hotel staff and returned to the meeting room with the section chief and the clerk.

"Although our cultures are different from Japan's, we both essentially value etiquette and harmony."

"Japanese seating arrangements tend to take interpersonal relationships into consideration. If there is a lot of work collaboration between the two parties, even if their positions are not as high as those of the officials next to them, they will be placed next to the host."

"I suggest that the main table should retain its traditional arrangement to highlight respect for the principal officials; while other seats can be arranged flexibly and randomly according to the Japanese side's suggestion, so that the members of the delegation can feel a more relaxed atmosphere."

Time is tight and tasks are heavy.

As soon as Chen Luyang entered the room, he expressed his opinion directly.

"This not only reflects the etiquette spirit of clearly distinguishing between the primary and the secondary, but also incorporates the concepts of equality and cooperation."

finished,

Chen Luyang even modestly asked, "Do you two leaders think this arrangement is okay?" The word "leader" directly embarrassed the section chief and the clerk.
Although Chen Luyang looks young,
But he is the workshop director of a machinery factory, a senior engineer, and a translator appointed by the province.

If we really talk about their status in the world, it is not an exaggeration for them to call Chen Luyang "leader".

"Mr. Chen, please stop joking. I'm not a leader at all!"

The young clerk's face turned red and he couldn't help but hide behind the section chief.

"Mr. Chen, let's make the arrangements as you said."

The section chief pondered, "The main table is easy. We've prepared table cards for the leaders in advance, and they can just sit down according to their seats. But what about the secondary tables?"

Those who came to attend the symposium were either directors of this bureau or directors of that bureau.

Originally, they had placed nameplates on the tables according to the positions of officials from both countries.

After everyone was evacuated, there were no seat signs to guide us.

If the arrangements are not made well, it will be a big joke!

Chen Luyang looked at the layout of the conference room and frowned secretly.

In fact, the best solution is to set up a round table or semi-circular table meeting room.

This way, when everyone sits at the table, there is less of a sense of hierarchy, and everyone's identity is respected.

But it is impossible to change the meeting room now.

The restaurant couldn't find a round table that could be used temporarily.

"so!"

Chen Luyang said, "I know Japanese and can guide you at the venue."

"When the talks begin, you will be responsible for guiding our delegation and our provincial leaders to the main table. I will invite the officials of the delegation to choose their own seats."

The section chief gritted his teeth and said, "Okay!"

Now, we can only hope for the political literacy of the negotiators.

After the three of them finished discussing, a man hurried in.

"Is Comrade Chen Luyang here?"

When Chen Luyang turned around, he saw the little girl who translated yesterday standing in the lobby with a bag and calling for help.

"I'm here!"

Chen Luyang ran out.

"Hello, Comrade Chen Luyang. My name is Kong Chengju, and I'll be your assistant today. These are the materials I prepared for today's meeting. Please take a look!"

The little girl opened her briefcase and took out a thick stack of materials.

Chen Luyang looked at the little girl with a red face and two big braids in astonishment.

What are parents thinking!!!
Such a cute little girl, and given this name?!

In shock, Xiao Kong took out a pile of materials and placed them on the table.

Chen Luyang picked it up and flipped through it.

Oops...

This homework is done in detail enough.

Today's talks mainly focused on economic and cultural cooperation and exchanges between the two sides. The entire talk was based on Marx and Engels, and involved a lot of knowledge and vocabulary about Marx and Engels.

Among the materials prepared by Xiao Kong, the records of Marx and Engels' special terms and related conceptual explanations alone filled a small notebook.

Chen Luyang felt dizzy just looking at her.

He put down the information and asked, "Comrade Xiao Kong, have you memorized all of this?"

"Memorize it."

"Then do you understand what all this means?"

"I don't quite understand."

Kong Chengju answered truthfully, with a hint of grievance in his voice.

She really worked hard to study the materials and original philosophical works.

I also worked really hard to memorize all these Japanese proper nouns.

But philosophy...it's not something that can be figured out by just a sudden burst of effort!
Especially the original works of Marx and Engels, she really couldn't understand them no matter how hard she tried.

Especially that political economy thing... what the hell is that?!
The characters are all Chinese characters, but when they are put together, I really can't understand them.

She was originally worried that she would not be able to do the job and was so nervous that she couldn't even sleep.

But yesterday afternoon, the province sent a sudden notice saying that a Japanese translation expert would be in charge today, and she only needed to help out and learn and gain experience.

Upon hearing this news, Kong Chengju almost cheered!

Chen Luyang looked at the thick pile of information and sighed softly!

Fortunately, I had compiled a complete set of original works by Marx and Engels before traveling through time, and I had done considerable research on the concepts and theories contained therein.

Otherwise, no matter how good his Japanese is, he would be at a loss when faced with such a highly professional translation.

But it's better to have information than not.

Although there was no problem with his translation work in philosophy, he also needed to have a general understanding of other cultural and economic issues that the province wanted to discuss.

When Chen Luyang had almost finished reading the information in his hand, he heard the sound of a car outside.

Chen Tuo led a group of cadres out of the car and walked into the hotel.

While the officials of the dispatching group were going downstairs, Chen Luyang immediately ran out of the meeting room and stood behind Chen Tuo, perfectly blending in behind the leader and acting as an interpreter.

After the two sides exchanged greetings, Chen Tuo and the officials of the dispatching delegation walked into the conference room.

It was natural for him and the head of the dispatching group to sit at the main table.

However, the people accompanying him frowned slightly.

There was such a long row of seats and not even a seat at the table.

How close are they? Who sits in front and who sits in the back?
Fortunately, everyone's political literacy is online.

Although there were no table signs, everyone sat down one after another according to the usual order.

Chen Luyang also smiled and said to the Japanese representatives in Japanese: "Please feel free to choose the seat you like."

The members of the dispatching group nodded slightly and sat back in their seats.

Seeing both parties sitting down smoothly,

The section chief and the young clerk breathed a sigh of relief thankfully.

As the talks began,
Chen Luyang sat behind Chen Tuo, putting in 100% of his energy to serve as an interpreter for his future father-in-law.

Xiao Kong sat on the other side of Chen Luyang, studying and assisting Chen Luyang at the same time.

Chen Luyang is already very familiar with translation work.

There are two prerequisites for doing this job well. One is the translator's own language ability and expression ability.

The second is the ability level of the person you are interviewing.

The higher the speaking level of the speaker and the clearer the logic, the better the translated content will be.

Otherwise, if even the speaker doesn't understand what he is saying, the translator will be even less able to explain it.

But after becoming an interpreter for Chen Tuo,
Chen Luyang admired his pseudo-father-in-law from the bottom of his heart. He was really good at speaking!

Not only did he have a deep understanding of Marx's and Engels' thoughts, but he was also well-informed about the provincial situation and the conditions of various departments and industries.

(End of this chapter)