Chapter 82: Special Recruitment

Li Xian knew that because he owed debts from running the factory, his family in the forest farm was looked down upon. This was unavoidable; in these times, people judged how well a family was doing primarily by how much savings they had.

In the isolated environment of the forest farm, a debt of over 400,000 seemed like a massive threat to outsiders.

Now the factory was earning 4,000 to 5,000 yuan a day, with a net profit of around 2,000 yuan. And this was just the beginning; Li Xian believed that as sales expanded to surrounding areas and production capacity increased, the factory's profits could easily rise by at least 50%, if not double.

He didn't take the 400,000 yuan debt seriously. 

However, he didn't expect that while he wasn't worried, others were now eyeing his new house. This made him extremely angry. "I said, Accountant Liu, who told you that our family is selling the house?"

Li Jie, who knew the real situation of the factory, chimed in, "That's right. My second brother owes money, but he can still make money! The house isn't for sale!"

Accountant Liu was about the same age as Li You.

Although there were higher-ranking officials in the forest farm like the deputy factory director and the group secretary, Liu's position was no small matter. He managed all the accounts and was responsible for audits, making him effectively the second-in-command.

In the forest farm, Liu was polite to Li You, whom he saw often. However, he had little patience for Li Xian, the younger generation.

He adjusted his glasses and ignored Li Xian.

Liu's wife, smiling, spoke to Li You, "Old Li, I heard your family is in a tight spot. You're not even staying at the forest farm now. Selling the house might be a good idea; otherwise, it might freeze over the winter and be worth even less next year. We can negotiate the price. I heard you spent quite a bit on the house. How about 10,000 yuan? We can give you the cash tomorrow if you agree."

Li Xian was furious, "So in your eyes, is our family so poor that we need to sell the house?"

Li Xian's face was filled with an indescribable mockery, which made Liu's wife somewhat angry.

"Old Li, who's in charge of your family?" She gave a dismissive glance at Li Xian and rudely questioned Li You.

"I'm in charge!" Li Daoyun, throwing his chopsticks on the table, said, "It cost us nearly 20,000 yuan to build those three rooms. Are you trying to take advantage of us? Get lost, we're not selling! Even if I die, it'll be in the Eight-Nine Forest Farm, in my own house!"

Given Li Daoyun's seniority, despite his impolite words, Liu and his wife had nothing to say.

Once the old man spoke, Li You also fell silent.

Seeing that they couldn't buy the house, Liu had no choice but to leave, frustrated.

"Scoundrels, so arrogant!" Liu's wife muttered as they left, immediately being pulled away by Liu.

"Damn it! What a load of nonsense!" Li Xian cursed as they exited the door.

Inside, Li Daoyun was also swearing, "Those damn crooks, it's not like her husband made honest money in those years. Look at her acting so proud!"

From Li Daoyun's complaints, Li Xian realized how Liu had become the "richest man in the forest farm." During the winter logging season, there were quotas for logging, but the forest farm itself needed timber, and surrounding areas also had demand. Since 1987, the forest farm had been allowed to sell a portion of its timber to the public.

However, timber prices were on a dual-track system: timber supplied to the forestry bureau was priced according to the plan, while timber sold to the public had a 20% "market circulation fee" added.

The measurement of timber was quite ambiguous. With control over the forest farm's accounts and the price difference in this dual system, Liu had made a lot of money over the years.

Though Li Xian didn't initially grasp the full picture, he seemed to vaguely understand something from Liu's "wealth story."

...

Although he didn't take the debt seriously, people's opinions were powerful. The purpose of running the factory was to improve life, but now it had caused trouble for his family, which was contrary to his original intention.

After the incident with Accountant Liu, Li Xian felt it was crucial to recruit more workers, increase production capacity, and continue expanding the coverage of Sina Paper Industry.

After thinking it over, he reached out to Zheng Weishi and Wang Linhe to inquire about the disabled association.

Seeing that Li Xian's attitude had softened, Wang Linhe waved his hand, "No need to discuss it here. I'll take you there tomorrow!"

After a night of restless tossing and turning, Li Xian finally fell asleep to the sound of Li Jie reciting vocabulary.

Early the next morning, Wang Linhe and Zheng Weishi arrived at Li Xian's place to drag him out of his warm bed.

The two old men didn't dare ride a motorcycle, so Li Xian had to walk with them for over half an hour to reach the Disabled Association of the Forestry Bureau.

The night before, Wang Linhe had already called the association's leaders. When everyone arrived, Li Xian saw that the small houses of the association were packed with people!

Most of the disabled individuals were deaf-mute, blind, or had mental disorders. 

There were also some with physical disabilities. The forestry bureau and farms needed large machines, such as chainsaws, electric saws, or seeders, which were quite dangerous. Injuries from such machines often resulted in severe disabilities.

Although the bureau had policies, disability often meant losing a job. Relying on welfare and subsidies, these people's situations were not very good; they barely managed to get by.

The paper factory's working environment was unsuitable for the blind and mentally disabled individuals.

Excluding these people, Li Xian spent the entire morning, ignoring the Disabled Association's pleas and Wang Linhe's insistence, selecting over twenty deaf-mutes and fifteen individuals with physical disabilities.

Looking at the grateful faces of the prospective factory workers, Li Xian sighed deeply.

Damn, I was planning to recruit thirty people...

Seeing Li Xian's stern expression, Zheng Weishi chuckled, "Xiao Li, why the long face? You're doing a good deed."

"Zheng, I beg you, stop teasing me. I need to figure out how to arrange these people once I bring them back."

Zheng Weishi laughed, "Don't worry about how to use them; you won't lose out. Just trust me."

Li Xian didn't quite understand the old man's words...

As he was puzzled, a man and a woman rushed into the Disabled Association. After a short while, they hurried out again and saw Li Xian leading the forty-plus people back to the factory. They hurriedly approached him.

Just as Li Xian exited the gate, someone grabbed his arm from behind.

Turning around, he saw a girl whose bangs were completely drenched in sweat, emitting a faint steam.

In mid-November's cold weather, she was wearing only a thin jacket. Perhaps due to running too fast, her cheeks were flushed, making her otherwise fair skin stand out.

She lowered her head, so Li Xian couldn't see her face, but she looked as fragile as a little chick.

"What are you doing?" Li Xian asked, puzzled.

"Ah…"

The girl released her grip and looked up.

Li Xian was stunned.

He swore he had never seen such a peak in natural beauty.

The girl seemed not to notice Li Xian's stunned gaze and pulled over a young boy who was panting and silent.

She pointed at the boy, then drew a circle on her temple with her finger and gave a thumbs-up. After patting the boy's arms and legs, she gave another thumbs-up.

After this series of actions, she shoved the boy into the group behind Li Xian and clasped her hands together, bowing to him.