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She rode her bicycle to the military gate, and people greeted her along the way.
“Jia Jia, are you going to work?”
Wen Jiajia smiled and said, “Yes. Today is my first day at work.”
“That’s great! You are the first one in our family to work in the city this year.”
After a while, she met another person.
“Jia Jia, what time do you start work?”
Wen Jiajia slowed down and replied, “I’m reporting today. I heard that most workers in the pharmaceutical factory start work at 8 o’clock, so I plan to arrive before 8 o’clock.”
She didn’t want to leave a bad impression on her first day at work, especially since she hadn’t officially started the job yet.
“So what time do you get off work?”
Wen Jiajia thought for a moment and said, “It seems to be six o’clock.”
“Ouch! That’s quite late.”
Wen Jiajia smiled, waved her hand, and said, “Sister-in-law, let’s talk about it when we have time. I have to get going.”
“Hey, go ahead.”
Wen Jiajia learned her lesson and pedaled her bike so fast that it seemed like smoke was coming out of her mouth. Although some people called her along the way, they didn’t talk much, seeing how anxious she was.
It was already seven o’clock when she reached the gate.
It was the first time Wen Jiajia noticed how busy the road was in the early morning.
In addition to her, there were other people in the army who also had to go to work in the city. Wen Jiajia roughly counted about six or seven people, and they all rode bicycles.
But that’s normal; the bus leaves at 10 o’clock.
Then there were people from the nearby villages who used donkey carts to carry fresh vegetables or eggs to the city.
There were even some who came from the city. Wen Jiajia heard as she passed by. Most of these people were buyers from various factories. They came to the countryside to purchase supplies, and they had to come every few days.
The journey was very lively, and Wen Jiajia felt much more relaxed.
In summer, the sun rises early, but in winter, it might still be dark at this time of day.
If you are alone, even if there is no danger, you can still put yourself at risk by scaring yourself.
Wen Jiajia rode fast and did not stop, so she arrived at the entrance of the pharmaceutical factory after more than 30 minutes.
The security guard at the door did his duty and stopped Wen Jiajia. “Comrade, are you here to report?”
Wen Jiajia smiled and said, “Hello, comrade. I am here to report. Here is my letter of introduction.”
The security guard opened the letter of introduction and handed it back to her. “Hello, comrade. Welcome to the pharmaceutical factory.” Since she was a military dependent and had passed the recruitment examination, she was sure to get in.
Wen Jiajia felt happy. “Thank you, thank you.”
She took a deep breath and walked into the pharmaceutical factory with anticipation.
The pharmaceutical factory was very large, and the roads inside were also very wide. Because the pharmaceutical factory was wealthy, these roads were all flat and paved with cement.
People were coming and going inside, and Wen Jiajia looked around but didn’t attract much attention.
She first went to the Personnel Department and completed the job application process.
The person in the Personnel Department was very kind and said with a smile, “So it’s Comrade Wen. Our leader mentioned you specifically last week.”
Wen Jiajia was puzzled. “What did the leader say about me?”
“Well, your test scores are the highest. Various departments have asked us for you, thinking that you are a good writer and can handle document work in the future.”
“…”
Why did it sound so odd? Are there still people with good writing skills these days? Was this really a mockery of her?
“Comrade Wen, you have been assigned to the Sixth Workshop. Go to the office of the Sixth Workshop to find Director Zhu, and she will assign you a task,” the Personnel Department staff said, pointing her in the right direction.
Wen Jiajia found this overly enthusiastic. Could it be that all the workers were this enthusiastic?
She was completely confused and left with doubts.
But it was okay; enthusiasm was always better than indifference.
However, after Wen Jiajia left, the Personnel Department staff breathed a sigh of relief.
The leader did mention Comrade Wen Jiajia last week, saying that with her in place, the army would have no excuse to try to squeeze in more people.
After all, there were cases of people who got through the exam before. What would those people think if the army forced people into the pharmaceutical factory?
The nearby military unit was the boss of this area, and they always squeezed in a few positions for military dependents. It was only because of their factory director’s tough style that they could withstand the pressure. The bosses on both sides were causing headaches for everyone in the Personnel Department.
Wen Jiajia arrived at the Sixth Workshop and saw a large room divided into smaller rooms. Each room had large windows on the walls and open doors. The interconnected spaces were not stuffy and gave off a feeling of spaciousness.
Wen Jiajia wasn’t sure if it was because not all the people were present or for another reason, but the room was sparsely populated, though there were quite a few machines.
She noticed a room with an office sign and approached, knocking on the door.
“Enter—”
Wen Jiajia pushed the door open and walked in.
Sitting in the chair was a woman in her late 50s with graying hair cut very short, just slightly longer than most men’s hair. She was wearing a blue work uniform and cloth shoes, with a pen in her front pocket, suggesting she was ready to work at any time.
“Are you new here today?”
Wen Jiajia introduced herself: “Hello, Director. My name is Wen Jiajia, and I’m here to report today.”
The director extended her hand. “Let me see the letter of introduction.”
Wen Jiajia quickly handed her the letter.
The director nodded. “So you got in through the examination. For now, you can stay with me. I’ll arrange a job for you once you’re familiar with the work in our Sixth Workshop.”
After a pause, she explained, “Our pharmaceutical factory workshop is quite unique. It’s not like other places. If you don’t understand the situation clearly, you won’t be able to start your work effectively.”
Wen Jiajia replied hurriedly, “Okay, thank you, Director.”
The director waved her hand. “Go ahead. Your desk is in the next room. I’ll call you if there’s anything.”
Wen Jiajia walked out of the room lightly, closed the door, and proceeded to the next room.
This room was significantly larger, more than twice the size of the director’s office.
There were four desks inside, three of which had items already placed on them. Wen Jiajia chose the empty desk.
She put her backpack down and stroked the table with her fingertips.
Well, there wasn’t much dust, but she still wanted to wipe it off.
Just as she was about to get a rag, someone came to the door. She seemed surprised and glanced at the office door.
“Hello, comrade. My name is Wen Jiajia.” Wen Jiajia smiled and took the initiative to greet him.
The man walked straight to the desk to the right of Wen Jiajia, nodded, and said, “Hello, I’m Qiao He.”
Wen Jiajia realized he had no intention of chatting further, so she stopped talking.
She never liked being treated coldly.
When she entered earlier, she noticed a faucet in the open space by the door, so Wen Jiajia walked out with a rag.
Qiao He glanced at her lightly and shook his hands, causing the newspaper he was holding to rustle.
Wen Jiajia used the rag to carefully wipe the desk and office chair twice from inside to outside.
She waited until the wind had dried the water stains before she took out all the items from her backpack and put them away.
First, the kettle. Wen Jiajia brought water today, but when she first arrived, she saw the water room and thought she wouldn’t need to bring water from home anymore. After all, a full kettle of water was very heavy.
This was a kettle that could hold 1.5 liters of water.
Wen Jiajia had asked the two girls to take the smaller kettle to school.
Then there were the paper and pen, which Wen Jiajia stuffed into the drawer.
Paper didn’t seem necessary. She saw that other people’s desks were filled with the same notebooks. The factory probably provided special paper.
Wen Jiajia thought she needed to buy a small key. She noticed that other people’s drawers were locked.
She also put her umbrella and lunch box into another drawer, along with a raincoat.
The umbrella was hanging on the windowsill next to her desk, which was leaning against the window.
To be precise, all four desks in the room were next to the windows. There were four windows in total, providing good ventilation and lighting.
Just remember to close the windows every evening, or else if it rains at night, your desk will be in trouble.
Soon, the remaining two people in the office arrived.
There was a man and a woman. Wen Jiajia greeted them and learned that the man’s name was Li Haijun and the woman’s name was Sha Yue.
Sha Yue was very enthusiastic and said to her, “Finally, we have a new female comrade in the office. From now on, we won’t have to wait for the girls in the workshop when we go to the cafeteria for lunch.”
She meant they could have lunch together at noon.
Wen Jiajia smiled and said, “Thank you for your help then.”
Sha Yue’s desk was in front of her. Wen Jiajia saw her first carry an enamel cup to get water, then use a rag to wipe the table, and finally go to the bulletin board at the door to get a newspaper, reading it while drinking water.
The same was true for Li Haijun.
Wen Jiajia was a bit confused. Was there no work to do? This made her a little panicked but also somewhat happy.
Hey, who wouldn’t want an easy job, if possible?
After all, wanting to work on your own initiative is one thing, but being forced to work like a donkey on the production team every day is another.
Sha Yue felt she needed to introduce the fine traditions of their office to her new colleague. She glanced outside the door, shielded her face with a newspaper, and whispered to Wen Jiajia, “Comrade Wen, our office is quite relaxed. Although Director Xue has a bad temper, he doesn’t like to check on us. You can read the newspaper during regular hours. Sometimes we have to write articles. You know, it’s hard to write if you don’t read.”
So reading newspapers was also considered a form of work.
Wen Jiajia: “…”
Is writing articles your regular job? She couldn’t help but ask.
“Oh, that’s not all,” Sha Yue said, pointing to Li Haijun next to her. “Haijun’s work is scheduled, and from time to time he has to patrol and inspect the workshop next door, and arrange the work in the workshop.”
She quietly pointed at Qiao He and said, “Brother Qiao is responsible for workshop safety inspections, equipment inspections, safety lectures, and publicity.”
Finally, she pointed at herself and said, “Hey, I’m just a part-time worker. I joined the factory at the end of last year. Director Xue hasn’t assigned me a job yet.”
Wen Jiajia understood that Sha Yue was a member of the pharmaceutical factory.
She rested her chin on her hand and gazed out the window. What about herself?
Even Sha Yue, who had strong connections within the pharmaceutical factory, had not been assigned a job yet. How long would she have to wait?
***
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