Chapter 32: The Talent Pool of Chinese Students in America

"This factory is mine now!"

Standing by the window, looking at the sprawling factory buildings and towering chimneys behind him, Li Yi'an lit a thick cigar. Like all the big bosses, he smoked with a look of satisfaction.

"I never imagined it!"

Walking up to the boss, Zhang Weilun looked at the vast factory complex and said, "Such a big factory, and you didn't have to spend a penny!"

"Don't talk nonsense. I did spend a lot of money. Didn't you see? The bank interest alone is twenty-five thousand, and in the future, I'll have to bear high property taxes every year..."

Li Yi'an almost said, "Don't accuse me of coercion and plunder; I'm not that kind of person." He continued, "Moreover, this business is difficult! One careless move, and this factory could become a money pit!"

Who understands my hardships!

Seeing Li Yi'an's pretentious look, Zhang Weilun laughed, "Business is tough, but I believe you wouldn't acquire this company without a reason, and you definitely won't let it lose money!"

As the company's lawyer, Zhang Weilun scrutinized Li Yi'an, "No one wants it to lose money. Karl didn't either, but the key is to keep the business going. Otherwise, it's destined to lose money!"

Seeing Karl's somewhat dejected expression, Li Yi'an walked over, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "In the future, the company will rely heavily on you."

"Working hard is fine. The only problem is..."

Karl put away his smile and said, "To restart production, we need to hire workers. But you know, people have either gone to the army or to other factories. Skilled workers are hard to find, and even unskilled workers are scarce. Unless..."

After some thought, Karl made a significant decision and said, "Unless we go to the South and hire those black people. Many factories are using black workers now; they are not only cheap but also obedient..."

Obedient? They've been subjected to the Ku Klux Klan in the South for nearly a hundred years.

World War II marked the beginning of large-scale black migration to the North, eventually taking over industrial cities in the North. The self-proclaimed "beacon" of America still discriminates directly against blacks, even considering them inferior and unfit to be cannon fodder. While recruiting one in ten white men, they recruited only a few hundred thousand blacks, less than 5% of the 23 million black population. Meanwhile, northern factories, spurred by the war, expanded production and needed many workers, but white men were largely drafted, so blacks became their only choice.

Blacks began to migrate north, ultimately taking over cities like Chicago, which turned into slums—a classic case of reaping what you sow.

Despite wanting to contribute to the "blackening" of America, Li Yi'an flatly rejected the idea.

"What? Using black people? Absolutely not!"

The boss's veto made Karl, who had made a tough decision against his ancestors' wishes, quickly backtrack, "The boss is right, absolutely not. But we still need to find workers!"

At this point, Zhang Weilun chimed in, "Yes, boss, to resume production, we must first recruit workers."

"Use Chinese workers!"

Using Chinese workers? Zhang Weilun was taken aback.

Li Yi'an took a puff of his cigar. He had never intended to use white workers! Why didn't Zhu Yihai enter the factory back then? Because of American discrimination!

"Weilun, those Americans would rather use black people than Chinese workers. Why can't our factory exclusively hire Chinese workers?"

"Exclusively hire Chinese... Is that possible?"

"Why not?"

Taking another puff of his cigar, Li Yi'an sneered, "In the future, my factory won't cater to those white or black workers' whims. Exclusively hiring Chinese workers—what's wrong with that? Of course, if we lack technical personnel, we can supplement from other sources. But whenever possible, under equal conditions, Chinese workers take precedence!"

Karl, listening to Li Yi'an's words, not only felt no discomfort but also thought it was the truth and wholeheartedly agreed.

It's not just the truth; it's human nature. Human nature is that when one's family is harmed, one won't nitpick oneself but will go after the perpetrator with a vengeance!

Er, that's white leftism. Nowadays, it's not so left; some countries lean a bit right.

In fact, exclusively hiring Chinese workers had Li Yi'an's ulterior motives. After all, the United States was just a stepping stone; he ultimately aimed to become a local emperor in North Borneo.

Not only would people move there, but this factory would also relocate. It would be best to take a group of skilled workers along, essential for developing North Borneo.

After making this decision, Li Yi'an remembered another matter and instructed Karl, "By the way, Karl, such a big factory can't do without security forces. I don't want to be surrounded by a bunch of gangsters all the time; it's safer to have our own people. We need to hire some armed security."

"I know, boss."

Karl smiled. Every factory needs security personnel.

"I happen to know some trustworthy people; boss, you'll definitely trust them."

Glancing at Zhang Weilun, Li Yi'an said, "Weilun, our factory needs not only workers but also many engineers. Do you have any suitable recommendations?"

He asked because of Yuan Jialiu's connection. Chinese students in America at that time were mostly in contact with each other, and there were definitely many engineers among them.

"Boss, you asked the right person."

Zhang Weilun adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and smiled, "Boss, there are quite a few Chinese engineers in America. Not to mention those who came from Southwest Associated University in recent years, even those public and private students from Tsinghua, Jiaotong University, Central University, and Zhejiang University before the war are mostly in American companies now. If you're willing, they'd surely be happy to work for our own company!"

"Indeed, we Chinese are not inferior to foreigners. Weilun, let them know, including Mr. Yuan, whom we dined with last time. If they join my company, I guarantee their treatment won't be worse than foreign companies! Whatever equipment foreign companies have, we'll get the same. In short, support our own people!"

Others might not know, but how could Li Yi'an not be aware of the many big names among these students? Not to mention, at least several Nobel Prize winners or near-winners were among them. If he could recruit them, not only would the company gain many engineers, but he also wouldn't have to worry about a lack of talent when moving to North Borneo in the future...