Chapter 27: Zhao Guoyang's Choice

It must be said that Ma Jian was indeed a master of words. His remarks not only underscored how much his factory valued Zhao Guoyang, but also managed to avoid an open confrontation with Liang Hongjun and his colleagues—displaying a certain level of finesse.

Liang Hongjun waved his hand dismissively and said, "Director Ma, you make some valid points. Talents like young Zhao are certainly not something any enterprise would willingly let go."

"However, shouldn't we also respect the individual's choice? If young Zhao wishes to come to Yangcheng and join our Siyang Group, surely your factory can't forcibly hold him back, can it?"

"Frankly speaking, leaving aside the matter between our two factories, for young Zhao himself, only in a big city like Yangcheng can he truly give full play to his abilities, don't you think?"

Liang Hongjun spoke plainly, leaving Ma Jian with little room for rebuttal. In fact, Ma Jian also understood in his heart that, given Guoyang's talent and capabilities, staying in their small factory was something of a waste.

Seeing that Ma Jian had nothing to say in response, Liang Hongjun turned his gaze to Zhao Guoyang and asked, "So, young Zhao, what do you think? We're all waiting for your decision."

"Both Old Wang and I are sincerely inviting you to join Siyang Group. If you agree, we can proceed with the arrangements immediately. Within three days at most, we can settle your employment and household registration, and housing is but a word away."

Liang Hongjun's promise was deeply moving to Zhao Guoyang. In the 1990s, household registration was an immensely important matter. The difference between a rural and an urban registration was vast, and even among cities, a large city registration was worlds apart from a small one.

Especially household registrations in the three major cities—Beijing, Songjiang, and Yangcheng—were highly coveted by people across the country.

With a big city registration, the monthly ration coupons for grain and meat would increase significantly.

Moreover, Zhao Guoyang knew that Yangcheng was in the midst of its fastest period of development, brimming with business opportunities. If he were to develop his career here, his prospects would be bright, perhaps even a shortcut to success.

Yet, after careful consideration, Zhao Guoyang decided to politely decline Liang Hongjun’s invitation.

He had two reasons for refusing.

First, family. In this life, Zhao Guoyang valued kinship above all else. Family weighed heavily in his heart. His parents were growing older, and his younger siblings had yet to establish themselves—they needed his care and support.

The second reason related to the scale of Siyang Group. Siyang Group was a major manufacturer of motorcycles, a leader in the domestic industry. Inevitably, its future would remain bound to motorcycle production.

But after his rebirth, Zhao Guoyang’s ambitions went far beyond motorcycles. He aspired to leave a lasting mark on the global heavy industry stage. While such a dream seemed fanciful at present, Zhao Guoyang had unshakable confidence. He believed that as long as he could make full use of the knowledge in his mind, supplemented by strong financial backing, this dream was entirely within reach.

However, the precondition was that he needed to be in an enterprise where he could make the decisions—something Siyang Group could not offer him.

By contrast, Hongda Machinery Factory, though smaller in scale, offered a greater advantage in this regard. Sometimes, a small scale was not a disadvantage; rather, it would be easier for Zhao Guoyang to see his will realized.

According to his calculations, the wave of collective enterprise reforms would soon sweep through small and medium-sized cities, and Hongda Machinery Factory was likely to be privatized. If he could find a profitable path and accumulate enough capital, once the factory was restructured, he could buy shares—perhaps even become the largest shareholder.

This was something absolutely impossible in Siyang Group.

Given these two considerations, Zhao Guoyang’s choice was obvious.

"Minister Liang, I am truly grateful for your appreciation," Zhao Guoyang said sincerely to Liang Hongjun. "However, I am still very young and, for now, am not ready to live too far from home."

"Besides, I am doing well at Hongda Machinery Factory. Director Ma and the others value me highly, and I want to achieve something here. So, I must apologize to you, Minister Liang..."

Zhao Guoyang's words were clear, with no hint of bargaining. Though Liang Hongjun and Wang Hongxi were somewhat disappointed, they held Zhao Guoyang's character in even higher regard.

After Zhao Guoyang had made his position clear, Ma Jian was the happiest of all. Suppressing the joy on his face, he filled a glass with wine, stood up, and addressed the two technical officials from Siyang Group, "Minister Liang, Minister Wang, you’ve heard Guoyang’s decision. I’m sorry for having wasted your efforts. Allow me to offer this toast on his behalf."

Liang Hongjun was a man who knew how to let go. Hearing Ma Jian’s words, he showed no displeasure. After clinking glasses and downing his drink, he said, "Director Ma, I must admit I envy Hongda Machinery Factory for having such talent as young Zhao. With him, your technical standards are sure to make a qualitative leap."

"Haha! Then I’ll take your words as a good omen," Ma Jian replied, pouring another glass. "I hope our two companies can cooperate even more closely in the future."

"In terms of technology, there should be no problem. You can discuss this with our Director Zhang. Don’t forget, he’s the head of Siyang Group’s procurement department," Liang Hongjun said with a smile.

Having set aside the idea of poaching Zhao Guoyang, Liang Hongjun and Wang Hongxi no longer dwelled on the subject, turning instead to discuss order details.

Upon learning that Liang Hongjun had already approved an order of four hundred motorcycle frames, Zhang Zhongxiang responded cheerfully, "Well, Director Ma, I won’t haggle over a few more sets with you. Let’s do it this way—a glass of wine for forty sets. The glasses are right here, so it’s up to you!"

Hearing this, Ma Jian became instantly invigorated, exclaiming, "Director Zhang, do you mean it?"

Zhang Zhongxiang put on a stern face, "What, you doubt my word?"

Liang Hongjun chimed in, "Our Director Zhang never goes back on his word!"

Ma Jian hurriedly apologized, "I wouldn’t dare! Then I’ll have to do my best!"

"Director Ma, you…" Zhao Guoyang started to protest, unable to help himself.

"But I’ll only count what Director Ma drinks. If young Zhao drinks, it doesn’t count!" Zhang Zhongxiang quickly added.

"No problem, I’ll drink. For the sake of the factory’s orders, I’ll give it my all!" Ma Jian declared with gusto. With a bottle in one hand and a glass in the other, he began to drink.

Ten glasses down in one go, Ma Jian’s face turned as red as pork liver, and his speech grew slurred. He raised four fingers and said, "Director… Director Zhang, leaders, I… I’ve drunk ten glasses. That’s… that’s four hundred more sets for our factory, right?"

"No problem. With such boldness, Director Ma, I’ll keep my promise," Zhang Zhongxiang replied immediately.

To be honest, if it weren’t for Liang Hongjun's presence, he wouldn't even have come to dine with a small factory director and a technical section chief. But since the other party had real ability and a good attitude, it was worth giving them a chance.

Ma Jian sat back, thoroughly satisfied. This time, he had truly earned his merit with this order.

With the drinks winding down, Wang Hongxi set his glass aside and said to Zhao Guoyang, "Brother Zhao, forgive my bluntness, but are you really just a recent university graduate? You certainly don’t look the part."

Zhao Guoyang smiled, "I can assure you, I just graduated from Jinling University of Technology a few months ago."

Wang Hongxi nodded, still puzzled. "I believe you, but you seem to have a very broad range of knowledge. Take the application of spoked wheels, for example. I dare say that even the professors at Yangcheng University of Technology’s mechanical engineering department may not understand them as thoroughly as you do. Where did you learn all this?"

After Wang Hongxi had asked, Liang Hongjun also nodded in agreement. "What Old Wang said is exactly what I’ve been wondering. Young Zhao, your knowledge base far exceeds what I’d expect from an average graduate."

"In fact, I serve as a visiting professor at Yangcheng University of Technology myself, giving the occasional lecture. I’d say I have a reasonable understanding of today’s university students."

"But never have I encountered a student so conversant with advanced foreign technologies as you are. You’ve really piqued my curiosity…"