Being an emperor is not something he can do, so he can only rely on his connections.

September was still scorching hot, and much of Yunnan was ravaged by an unprecedented, catastrophic drought. Throughout the summer, only a few symbolic drizzles fell, like a heavenly raindrop clearing the dust from the concrete jungle of yellow sand.

This year marks the first year since the COVID-19 pandemic was lifted, and many businesses and factories are struggling to survive in the sluggish economy. Recent graduates are also worried about finding jobs, as three years of pandemic prevention and control have prevented them from engaging in social activities and significantly reduced their practical skills. Young employees are choosing to quit, while older employees are retiring. Meanwhile, middle-level managers are resorting to despicable tactics to climb the ladder, resorting to every possible means. The workplace atmosphere has reached a toxic state.

……

"Hello, Supervisor. My name is Yang Yu. I'm a recent graduate of Diannan University, majoring in electromechanical engineering. I passed the NCR Level 2 and Level 2 Construction Engineer exams while I was at school."

In the lobby of RW Rose Factory (company name), a boy in a short-sleeved T-shirt and shorts carried an overstuffed backpack. Perhaps because it was too hot, he'd taken off his jacket and stuffed it into the bag, making it bulge out even more. His expression was tense, his eyes glazed over, as he hunched over, handing his resume to the interviewers behind the desk.

The interviewee, Yang Yu, was 22 years old, a typical second-tier university graduate who had come here after seeing a job posting on his university's job board. The company had two interviewers, one older and one younger. The older one took the resume and examined it carefully, while the younger one tediously flipped through the folders on the table and gestured for the interviewee to sit down.

"Please take a seat."

Yang Yu put his bag on the stool next to him and sat down.

The young interviewer asked, "Have you ever participated in any professional skills competitions in school?"

"No, but I participated in the flower arrangement competition held by the school and won second place."

"Then may I ask if you have completed any machine tool operation or programming work during your four years in college?"

“Learning group collaboration simulates programming.”

At this time, the old interviewer put the resume on the table. The young interviewer took a look at it and asked: "Can you accept overtime? Can you accept night shifts? Also, can you accept holiday shifts?"

Yang Yu smiled and replied: "As long as the benefits can keep up, it's acceptable."

The young interviewer also smiled slightly, asked some professional questions in succession, and then put the resume into the folder.

"Okay, we've accepted your resume. You can go back and wait for notification. Our Human Resources Department will give you a reply within a week regarding the application results."

Watching Yang Yu leave, the old interviewer sighed slowly.

"Oh... Jingwei. This is the eighth one today, and he actually wrote that his specialty is playing basketball!"

The young interviewer chuckled.

"Haha, Master, all kids nowadays are like this. They don't know what they will do."

The young interviewer's name is Zhang Jingwei, and the old interviewer's surname is "Li". He is the supervisor of the energy workshop. Everyone in the company calls him Master Li. He is both Zhang Jingwei's master and his boss.

"Master Li, the interns for the Production and Sales departments have already been confirmed, and your workshop's interview quota has been exceeded. How about...let's call it a day for today?"

A clear female voice echoed from the lobby corridor. It was Xiao Yang from the Human Resources Department. She had joined the company a few months before Zhang Jingwei. She was a beautiful, fair-skinned girl with a broad forehead, a high nose bridge, and large, watery eyes crowned by naturally slender eyebrows. She was a typical Bai girl.

Zhang Jingwei checked the time on his phone, turned to the HR representative, Xiao Yang, and waved, "Sister Yang, please go home first. My master and I will select the candidates for tomorrow's interview."

"Okay, I'll leave the table here for now. I'll need it for the interview tomorrow. I'm leaving now. Bye."

As she spoke, she waved to him playfully and walked away towards the parking lot.

"Jingwei, tomorrow is Friday. I'll treat you all to a meal and invite everyone from our workshop." After saying that, Master Li held the teacup and took a sip.

"Master, do you want to call Manager Shi and the others?" Zhang Jingwei said slowly.

The Manager Shi that Zhang Jingwei mentioned is Master Li's old partner. The two entered the company together, one in charge of the energy workshop and the other in charge of the company's equipment and facilities. The two can talk about anything and can argue from morning to night over a technical problem, but Master Li is often left speechless by Manager Shi because Manager Shi majored in electrical engineering and Master Li majored in agronomy.

"Call me, it's a good opportunity to talk about something..." Master Li put down his teacup and seemed to be thinking about something.

"What's the matter?" Zhang Jingwei suddenly asked curiously.

"You'll know tomorrow!" Master Li said playfully, patting Zhang Jingwei's shoulder.

Zhang Jingwei just smiled and said nothing more. He knew that even if he asked questions, he would not get anything out of them. After all these years, he knew his master best.

This company is a branch of a state-owned group. The entire company has two general managers, one chief and one deputy general manager, four department managers and seven supervisors. Each manager and supervisor has one to three assistants. In addition, the workshop supervisor is also in charge of foremen of certain types of work, called "team leaders". The factory is neither too big nor too small, with about 500 general workers.

Zhang Jingwei is Master Li's assistant. He joined the company three years ago after graduation. At that time, Master Li was unwilling to have an assistant. Other supervisors thought he was "involved" and tried to put pressure on senior leaders to hire him. Only under pressure from the company's senior leaders did they reluctantly hire him.

Fortunately, I have worked diligently over the past three years and have won the recognition of Master Li.

Today, something new happened. Master Li, who had always disliked having assistants, took the initiative to contact the HR department to request one. Furthermore, even assistants who had been forcibly assigned to positions over the past few years were often transferred by Master Li due to "inability to adapt to the job," clearly demonstrating his appreciation for Zhang Jingwei's work ability.

After a busy day, after deciding on the candidates for tomorrow's interviews, Zhang Jingwei went home from get off work. At the age of 25, he was a widower. He had a house left to him by his parents in the city 20 kilometers away from the company, and a car transferred from his father. He had to work for half a lifetime to get these.

Fortunately, Zhang Jingwei's family is well-off. His father works in a government agency in the provincial capital, and his mother just retired last year. Her main task after retirement is to take care of the two of them. Although he does not live with his parents, his mother comes to fill his refrigerator every now and then.

......

As soon as he opened the door, Zhang Jingwei knew that his mother had been there. The floor was mopped and shiny, there were washed fruits on the table, and the messy sofa cushions were neatly folded.

There was a note on the shoe cabinet that read: "My dear, the hospital notified your father that he needs a follow-up check-up. I have to go back to accompany him. I bought you your favorite food and put it in the refrigerator. Smoke and drink less. If you meet the right girl, grab her quickly. You are not a child anymore!

——Love your mother"

At the end of the note, my mother drew a playful smiley face.

Zhang Jingwei smiled wryly, took out his phone, and called his mother: "Mom, what era is it still leaving notes? How is Dad's pneumonia?"

My mother giggled on the other end of the phone and said, "Your father has basically recovered, but I'm worried. You're so old and still haven't found a girlfriend. My old girlfriends are all grandmothers now, holding their grandchildren all day long. I envy them."

"There's nothing suitable. Dad has tested positive for nucleic acid. Why don't you take a sick leave and recuperate for a few days?"

After a few pleasantries with my family, I hung up the phone, slumped down on the sofa, turned on the TV, and watched the online drama I hadn't finished watching yesterday. Slowly, I fell asleep...

……

At this moment, a burst of horse neighing came into Zhang Jingwei's ears. He suddenly woke up, and when he opened his eyes, the scene in front of him made him gasp.

What caught his eye was a large mansion shrouded in blood. Armored warriors with sabers were whistling, slaughtering, and looting. Some in the courtyard were resisting, some begging for mercy, and still others fleeing with their valuables. But what caught his eye the most was a woman in white mourning clothes, lying on the ground. Her face was pale, tears streaming down her face, and she looked incredibly feminine and haggard. Her body, including her face, was covered in shoe prints. He was drawn to her because Zhang Jingwei was staring at her.

"She seems to be able to see me." Zhang Jingwei was shocked.

"Husband, you...you must live~" The woman in mourning clothes stretched out her hand towards Zhang Jingwei, while the man with a saber behind her had already swung his sword towards her neck.

"Hey, hey, hey, wait, behind you, behind you..." The scene was so real that Zhang Jingwei hurriedly shouted at her.

"Bang!!" The woman's head had been chopped off and rolled in front of him. Even though it was just a head, its eyes were still fixed on him.

Zhang Jingwei yelled, "Fuck, stop it!"

He woke up from his dream with a shout, and the TV was still showing scenes of preparations for battle.