Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 295 New official takes office
The next morning, just after breakfast at the canteen had ended, Zhao Tiezhu drove his farm tricycle to the entrance and parked it with the Guo brothers' luggage in the cargo bed.

Familiar employees gathered around, some offering Langfang specialties they had prepared in advance, others repeatedly urging them to "keep in touch after returning to Shouguang." Guo Yonghong and Guo Yongfu held everyone's hands, their eyes red-rimmed, repeatedly saying "thank you."

"Be careful on the road, and remember to call the company when you get to Shouguang," Li Zhe said earnestly, patting Guo Yonghong on the shoulder.

"Definitely! Mr. Li, please take care of yourselves and everyone else!" Guo Yonghong nodded vigorously, then pulled his younger brother onto the tricycle.

With the engine chugging along, the tricycle slowly drove away, the two brothers waving from the back of the vehicle until their figures disappeared at the end of the road.

"Everyone, don't leave yet. Let's go back to the cafeteria for a short meeting," Li Zhe said, turning to the group.

The employees put aside their reluctance and followed him to the cafeteria, soon filling several long tables.

Li Zhe stood in front of the table, his gaze sweeping over everyone, his expression more serious than usual: "The greenhouse planting for the second half of the year has already begun. Everyone has worked hard during this time, and last night's whole roasted lamb was the company's way of rewarding everyone. As long as everyone works hard, there will be similar gatherings in the future."

During my inspection of the greenhouses these past few days, I've also discovered quite a few problems—being late or leaving early, smoking inside the greenhouses, and instances of not working diligently or operating procedures improperly.

These may seem like small things, but they add up and harm the interests of all of us. This company doesn't just belong to me; it belongs to everyone. Any violation of regulations must be stopped!

He paused, his tone becoming even more resolute: "I'm making this clear: whoever violates the rules will be punished. Even if it's my father, if he doesn't work properly and breaks the rules, the company will still fire him!"

Old Li was speechless.

As soon as he said that, the cafeteria fell silent. Some employees lowered their heads in thought, some whispered among themselves, and others quietly straightened their backs—clearly, Li Zhe was serious this time.

"Given the increasing number of employees and the need for effective management, we have decided to establish a new Human Resources Department to be responsible for employee training, daily management, and performance evaluation," Li Zhe continued. "The Human Resources Department will be temporarily headed by Ma Lai Xiao as the deputy director, who will lead the work. Let's give her a round of applause as she comes up on stage to say a few words."

"Clap clap..." A series of light applause rang out, but many people in the audience were still whispering among themselves. After all, Malay Xiao used to grow crops in greenhouses with everyone and was just an ordinary employee. Suddenly becoming the "manager" of the human resources department, it was inevitable that some people would have doubts.

Malay Xiao took a deep breath, walked to the front of the stage, clutching a piece of paper tightly in his hand. His voice was a little nervous but very clear: "Hello everyone, I am Malay Xiao, you all know me."

Some might ask, "Why am I qualified for this deputy manager position?" The reasons are simple: First, I was among the first to join the company, growing with it from a few acres of greenhouses to where it is now; second, I was among the first technicians, so I understand greenhouse operations; third, I'm also a shareholder, and like everyone else, I hope the company thrives.

At this point, Li Zhe, Li Weidong, and others took the lead in applauding, and the applause gradually grew louder.

Malay Xiao composed himself and continued, "Our company's wages are the highest in Wan'an Town, and even in Langfang City. The company has not wronged anyone. But think about it the other way around, do our work attitude and sense of responsibility deserve the wages we receive?"

I know most people are working hard, but there's always a small minority who are slacking off. If this isn't addressed, this bad habit will corrupt the company's atmosphere. These "black sheep" must be severely punished!

She unfolded the form in her hand, her voice rising a few decibels: "I have just taken office and have not yet had time to formulate detailed rules. Here are three temporary requirements: First, starting today, smoking is strictly prohibited in the greenhouse. The first offense will result in a fine of 100 yuan, and the second offense will result in immediate dismissal and never being rehired."
Second, being late or leaving early is not allowed. The first time will result in a fine of two yuan, the second time five yuan, and the third time ten yuan. Those who are late multiple times within a quarter will be dismissed directly.

Third, those who violate the planting operation requirements will be fined 10 yuan for the first failure to meet the standard, 20 yuan for the second failure, and will be dismissed for multiple failures!

I will post these three rules on the cafeteria wall so that everyone can supervise each other. Those who repeatedly violate these rules will not be tolerated!

As soon as the Malay girl finished speaking, Li Zhe led the applause: "Everyone has heard what Manager Ma said clearly. I hope everyone will support her work."

I assure you first that I will never interfere with the management of the HR department. Whether you're a long-time employee or a new one, anyone who makes a mistake will be punished accordingly.

"I support the company's decision! And I agree with Manager Ma's three regulations!" Jin Baiwan was the first to stand up and express his opinion. He was fat and had a loud voice, which immediately livened up the atmosphere. "That's right, from now on, I'll be the first to report anyone who violates the regulations to Manager Ma!" Zhu Yimin echoed.

Old Li, Wang Rongsheng, Li Zhiqiang, and others nodded in agreement, indicating that they would abide by the rules.

Seeing that the core members had all expressed their support, the other employees no longer hesitated and all expressed their support.

After the meeting, Li Zhe called Ma Lai Xiao to the small canteen and poured her a cup of tea: "Sister-in-law, the newly built greenhouses all have storage rooms. Let my brother help you set one up as a temporary office."

"No need to trouble him, I can handle it myself." The Malaysian girl waved her hand, her eyes full of enthusiasm.

"So what are your plans for the work next?" Li Zhe asked.

The Malay girl held the teacup in both hands, a little embarrassed, and said, "I have no experience, so could you give me some pointers?"

"There's no need to rush into introducing new regulations. Let's focus on implementing these three first," Li Zhe said. "A good regulation is one that can be put into practice. If there are only regulations but they can't be enforced, people will feel that the regulations are just for show."

"You should start by checking daily attendance. Monitor the start and end times of work each day, and also make sure to walk around the greenhouse frequently to see if anyone is smoking or operating the equipment improperly."

“I understand!” Malay’s small eyes lit up, and he added, “I was also thinking of setting up a whistleblower mailbox so that employees can supervise each other and give a reward for verified reports. What do you think?”

Li Zhe frowned slightly: "This needs to be considered carefully. If the whistleblower system is not used properly, it can easily make everyone feel insecure and suspicious of each other, which will damage the company's atmosphere. It would be better to rely on you and the supervisors to keep an eye on things first, and then consider setting up supervisors when the system is more mature."

“You’re right, I was too hasty.” Malay Xiao nodded quickly. “Then I’ll go tidy up the office first, and I’ll discuss anything I don’t understand with you.”

After saying this, the young Malay soldier posted the rules and regulations on the wall and then left the cafeteria.

Li Zhe stayed in the small canteen and opened the company's accounts. As the company expanded, the expenses became more and more complicated. From agricultural supplies to employee salaries, every item had to be carefully checked. He gradually began to think about hiring a professional accountant and cashier.

By the time he sorted out the accounts, it was already past ten in the morning. He stretched, locked the documents in the cabinet, and planned to go talk to Zhu Yimin about the issue of the directly managed greenhouses.

In the past two days, Li Zhe inspected all the company's directly operated greenhouses. He was very dissatisfied with the overall situation, which is also the area he is most worried about. The vegetable greenhouses directly operated by the company should have been the company's key focus, but now they have become a weak link.

As Li Zhe left the cafeteria, he saw Li Jiugang washing vegetables by the sink and asked, "Brother Jiugang, have you seen Brother Zhu?"

“He’s probably busy in the shed right now. Go ask him over there.” Li Jiugang wiped his hands and pointed to the east.

Li Zhe headed straight for the directly managed greenhouse area and saw Ge Qingshan bending over to fertilize the greenhouse from afar. He walked over and asked, "Qingshan, how are the seedlings growing?"

"It's great. This greenhouse is planted with tomato seedlings, which were just transplanted and look very healthy." Ge Qingshan straightened up and wiped his sweat.

"Have you seen Brother Zhu?" Li Zhe looked around but didn't see Zhu Yimin.

Ge Qingshan said with a smile, "At 9:30, Director Bai called Brother Zhu away and said that he had scenes to shoot today, so he went to film the movie!"

(End of this chapter)