Knocking on the door of his Uncle Chen Changgui's house, it was his cousin Chen Gang who opened it, saying, "Why did you only arrive now? My father is about to get angry."
Chen Gang, who was thin and dark like his father, was four years older than Lu Weimin. After graduating from the provincial agricultural college, he was assigned to the regional agricultural research institute, which was considered a pretty good placement.
"Is Uncle in a bad mood?" Lu Weimin put down his bag and asked with a smile.
"Yeah, you really messed up this time. My father is very angry, scolding you for not making plans earlier. He says you only started digging the toilet when it was already full, and he also said something about your father..." Chen Gang didn't continue.
Lu Weimin knew what Chen Gang was leaving unsaid. He had previously thought he would be assigned back to the factory, so he hadn't made other plans. Uncle had even asked about it, and at the time, he thought everything was settled, so he didn't pay much attention. Now, he didn't expect things to turn out this way, and Uncle definitely had some thoughts about his father.
The relationship between his father and Uncle had never been good. The main reason was that despite his father being a model worker for many years, he couldn't get his mother's household registration transferred to the Changzhou factory, which also affected the household registration of his siblings. Uncle always blamed his father for being too honest and not willing to put aside his pride to talk to the factory leaders, which led to the current situation.
"Lu Weimin, you're here? Why did you only arrive now? Was there traffic?" Uncle, sitting on the sofa, sounded very stern as he put down the *Changjiang Daily*. "Let's eat."
Uncle still had that solemn and stern face, a look that would be fitting even for a regional party secretary. Lu Weimin thought with a touch of sarcasm, but unfortunately, Uncle was just the office director of the Linyang Regional Party School.
Aunt was very warm and asked Lu Weimin a few questions before inviting everyone to the table for dinner.
"Aunt, isn't Lan coming back?" Lu Weimin noticed his cousin wasn't home and asked out of curiosity.
"Never mind her; she's not eating at home today." Aunt's face darkened, and Lu Weimin immediately knew that his somewhat rebellious cousin must have done something to upset Uncle and Aunt.
Uncle had one son and one daughter. His cousin Chen Lan, the second child, was two years older than him. After graduating from the nursing school, she was assigned to the regional hospital. Compared to her brother's gentle and kind nature, Chen Lan was very outgoing and rebellious. Uncle and Aunt were always at a loss with her, but they couldn't do anything about it.
"Lu Weimin, this time I really want to scold you and your father. Since you can't enter Factory 195, why didn't you make plans earlier? Your father is the same; if he's not sure, he shouldn't make promises! Now, it's too late, and what good does it do? The regional personnel bureau has already made their decisions, and the units that can take people have already been arranged. You only came now, what can you do? You can only go back to the county!" Uncle put down his chopsticks and raised his voice, his face showing displeasure. "Lu Weimin, you know your father. He's so honest that you can't get a word out of him even with a stick. What can you expect from him? Any leader could have casually agreed, and he would have believed it without following up, just sitting there waiting for a miracle. Is there such a good thing?"
"Uncle, my father did run around a lot, and I know this. But..." Lu Weimin couldn't help but defend his father.
"But what? Your father is a model worker for many years, and your factory didn't give any special treatment? And he said a factory leader promised, but why did it change?"
Uncle, as the office director of the regional party school, understood the ins and outs of the situation. He also knew his brother-in-law's character. If he wasn't sure, he wouldn't have said anything. If he said it, it should have been fine. But this time, something big went wrong. Now, it was too late, and he couldn't change the outcome for his nephew, so he was particularly angry.
Lu Weimin briefly explained his situation and some of his suspicions, and Uncle fell silent.
Clearly, the Yao family had stabbed him in the back. The plan to assign him to the factory office was rejected at the factory party committee meeting. Chen Fazhong raised the issue of his semi-urban household, but Guo Zheng argued logically. The party secretary, Gu Yingliang, who had initially agreed to assign him to the factory office, changed his mind and rejected him. In the end, Liang Zhongda proposed that Yao Ping be assigned to the factory, and it was approved.
With the memories of his previous life, Lu Weimin understood the intricacies of the situation but couldn't change it. Or perhaps he didn't really want to change it. Sometimes, letting history take its course had its benefits, as it allowed him to see changes more clearly.
"Lu Weimin, it seems that someone in your factory's leadership has been playing tricks," Chen Changgui could already taste the defeat in this allocation battle.
When his nephew faced an opponent with far superior background and economic strength, losing was to be expected. In state-owned enterprises, such underhanded tactics were just as common as in local politics, and Chen Changgui knew this well.
For such matters, Chen Changgui was helpless. He was just the office director of the regional party school, and even in his nephew's allocation issue, he felt powerless, especially when it came to last-minute attempts to change things.
Lu Weimin didn't tell Uncle about Zhen Jingcai's efforts to help him. Uncle had already said over the phone that it would be difficult, and if other factors suddenly emerged, it would be a blow to Uncle's pride, especially in front of the Lu family.
That night, nothing was said. The next morning, Lu Weimin went to the regional organization department. However, Gao Yingcheng was busy with a meeting and only had a brief conversation at the office door, encouraging him to work hard in Nantang before heading to the meeting. This left Lu Weimin, who had planned to make a good impression, somewhat disappointed.
Gao Yingcheng was a fellow townsman of Zhen Jingcai, and they had maintained a good relationship. Lu Weimin had planned to use this opportunity to meet this influential figure in the Nantang regional committee, but it was clear that Gao Yingcheng didn't take much notice of him, only doing so out of respect for Zhen Jingcai.
Linyang region, with its thirteen counties and a population of 10.6 million, was the largest administrative region in Changjiang Province in terms of both area and population, even surpassing the provincial capital, Changzhou, by over 2 million people.
Of course, Linyang was a purely agricultural region, with a very low urban population, especially in the southern counties, which were national and provincial poverty-stricken areas. Every year, they relied on poverty alleviation funds and subsidies from higher-level governments to barely get by.
However, as the governing body of 10.6 million people, the Linyang Regional Committee was still seen as sacred and authoritative, even somewhat mysterious, in the eyes of the people of Linyang. The Linyang Regional Organization Department was even more revered by the officials of Linyang, and meeting someone like Gao Yingcheng was the dream of many newcomers like Lu Weimin.
Brothers, give me some votes!