CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: THE COMPETITION

Su Xiaoxiao looked at Master Wang, who changed his expression faster than a Sichuan opera face change, and was a bit puzzled.

Even if she wasn’t Liang Guofu’s daughter, was there a need for him to look at her like an enemy?

The contrast between his expressions was so great it made people uncomfortable.

Liang Guofu spoke at the right moment, "Old Wang, this is Comrade Su, who has come to our factory specifically to provide technical guidance."

"Humph."

Master Wang snorted coldly from his nose, immediately pulling a long face and continuing with his work.

Su Xiaoxiao: "..." She felt like this person seemed to have a lot against her. She didn’t think she had offended him before?

Seeing Master Wang like this, Liang Guofu’s expression was somewhat awkward.

He had finally managed to bring her here, so why was old Wang’s attitude like this?

"Comrade Su, how about we go see the factory manager first?"

Liang Guofu awkwardly changed the subject.

Su Xiaoxiao also wanted to meet the factory manager quickly and get the agreement signed so she could feel at ease.

She immediately followed Liang Guofu to the factory manager’s office.

The factory manager was an elderly man in his fifties, wearing a blue Mao suit, his hair was graying, and a pair of black-framed glasses perched on his nose.

At first glance, he appeared to be a kindly old man.

Seeing her come in, the old man stood up from his seat without any airs, greeting her with a smile, "This must be Comrade Xiao Su, hello, I’m Li Jianjun, the factory manager of the meat processing plant."

It was the first time Su Xiaoxiao encountered such an unpretentious leader, and she was flattered, "Hello, Director Li."

"Comrade Su, regarding the requirements you proposed, the factory leaders have discussed and unanimously approved them. If convenient, I hope you can start improving the sausage formula by tomorrow."

Li Jianjun was straightforward, getting to the point shortly after their simple introduction.

His straightforwardness suited Su Xiaoxiao’s preferences.

She didn’t hesitate and immediately agreed: "No problem."

Li Jianjun also found this young woman quite likable and immediately asked his secretary to bring out the agreement, and they both signed and stamped their fingerprints on the spot.

Just as the agreement was completed, someone knocked on the office door.

Secretary Xiao Zhou walked over to open the door and saw Master Wang standing outside, momentarily stunned, "Master Wang, is there something you need?"

Master Wang entered the office with a cold face, glanced at Su Xiaoxiao standing inside, snorted coldly, and looked away.

Su Xiaoxiao: She hadn’t dug up his ancestral grave, so why was he acting like this towards her?

Master Wang slapped a large hand on the factory manager’s desk with a loud bang, startling everyone in the room.

Su Xiaoxiao’s right eyelid involuntarily twitched, suddenly having a bad premonition.

Sure enough, as soon as she had this thought, she heard Master Wang speak in a voice filled with anger, "Factory Manager, I object."

Li Jianjun was baffled, "Object to what?"

Master Wang pointed a finger at Su Xiaoxiao, "This little girl isn’t even older than my daughter, so why is she here to guide my work?"

Li Jianjun’s forehead vein throbbed; he didn’t expect Master Wang, who usually seemed slick, to be so impulsive today?

He immediately pulled a grim face, "So what do you want?"

"Very simple, let this young girl compete with me. If she loses, she’ll have to roll back to wherever she came from immediately."

As he spoke, he gave Su Xiaoxiao a disdainful glance, "If I lose, not only will I obey the arrangements, but I’ll respectfully call her ’Master’ every time I see her."

Li Jianjun looked up at Su Xiaoxiao, "Comrade Su, how do you think this should be handled?"

Although it was phrased as a consultation, Su Xiaoxiao sensed some underlying meaning in Li Jianjun’s words.

It seemed that unless she showcased her skills, these people wouldn’t believe she had the capability.

She immediately nodded with a smile, "I have no problem with that."

Seeing her agreement, Li Jianjun’s smile became even more amiable.

He indeed harbored the thought of taking this opportunity to test the young girl’s abilities.

Since Su Xiaoxiao had just gotten off the train, everyone agreed to schedule the competition for the next day.

That evening, Li Jianguo and Liang Guofu, along with a few factory leaders, held a welcoming banquet for Su Xiaoxiao to show their esteem for her.

To Su Xiaoxiao’s surprise, Liu Fang was also present.

Seeing her, Liu Fang sneered and looked away.

She hadn’t expected the dead girl’s so-called honored guest to be hosted by Director Li himself.

Liu Fang was nearly driven insane with jealousy.

When she reported here, she was immediately taken to the workshop for newbie training, busy for half a day, all dusty, while that dead girl was treated like a guest of honor. How could she not be angry?

Seeing Su Xiaoxiao still wearing those old clothes, she felt a bit more balanced inside.

What if she’s an honored guest? She’s still a poor, unsophisticated country bumpkin.

At that moment, a waiter arrived with dishes, and when Liu Fang saw the steaming winter melon meatball soup, a plan formed in her mind.

This dead girl only relied on her face to charm people, so she would ruin that face.

Since the two of them were the youngest female comrades at the table, they were seated together.

The waiter cautiously carried the soup to the middle position between the two of them, just as he was about to place the soup on the table, his foot got caught by something, causing him to lose balance, and the soup pot he was holding tilted to one side uncontrollably.

The direction it tilted was right toward Su Xiaoxiao’s position.

Just as the pot of hot soup was about to spill on Su Xiaoxiao, a fair and delicate hand suddenly steadied the soup pot.

The waiter had just sighed in relief when he watched in shock as the direction of the pot changed, pouring towards the opposite direction from before.

Liu Fang, her plot successful, was ready to watch the show when she looked up, only to find the whole pot of winter melon meatball soup poured directly onto her head.

Meatballs mixed with winter melon pieces pelted down, leaving her stunned.

In a moment of shock, she jumped up from her seat like a spring, "Su Xiaoxiao, you did that on purpose, didn’t you? How could you be so malicious?"

Just after she finished speaking, she met Su Xiaoxiao’s amused eyes, "Comrade Liu, what do you mean? Didn’t you accidentally trip the waiter just now, and I kindly helped steady the pot?"

As she spoke, she sweetly smiled at the waitress, "Pretty sister, please tell them, isn’t that what happened?"

Calling her a pretty sister made the waitress, who was in her thirties, over the moon.

She immediately looked furiously at Liu Fang, "Comrade, why did you stretch your foot to trip me? Luckily the soup had cooled a little, or it would have scalded someone!"

Liu Fang, being criticized by a waitress in front of so many people, was immediately embarrassed.

"What do you mean? You weren’t careful and blame me? Who told you to be blind?"

She couldn’t care about anything else, sharply retorting back.

At home, she had always been pampered, with parents and three elder brothers showering her with love. When had she ever taken this kind of embarrassment?

Little did she know, as soon as she finished speaking, the surroundings fell into a deathly silence.