Chapter 189: Secretary Su
Director Hu understood that someone like Su He valued leadership that delegated authority and gave her room to operate freely.
But as long as the factory’s performance improved, he, as the factory director, would naturally get credit for part of the success.
So why bother playing mind games with a young girl?
Might as well just let her do her thing!
As long as he controlled the overall direction and ensured she didn’t cause any major trouble, everything would be fine.
That’s why he took a broad-minded approach and immediately gave Su He half of the decision-making power.
Su He hadn’t expected that out of the three factory directors, the most perceptive would be Director Hu. She had actually placed the most hope in Director Feng before.
But thinking about it now, Director Feng was too bound by rules and regulations. Director Hu, this clever man, was the truly clear-headed one.
Su He smiled and said, “Director, since you trust me so much, I definitely won’t let you down.
At present, I have three projects.
The first is the accessories for the export hair accessories. This isn’t technically complex, but it’s valuable in its stability.
As long as the textile factory has foreign trade orders, our machinery factory can get a share of the profits.
The second is the instant noodle project that the food factory is about to launch. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
I can negotiate with the food factory—when the food factory from the S City comes to install the production line, our machinery factory’s people can be involved in the whole process.
Also, I have materials brought back by the S City food factory after their study trip to Country R. If our machinery factory’s R&D team can develop a more advanced instant noodle production line, I’ll take care of the sales problem.
Our goal is not just the domestic market—we’re going international and bringing in foreign exchange…”
Director Hu got so excited he could barely stay in his seat and interrupted, “But I heard the overseas market is dominated by Country R. Can we really compete?”
“As long as the product is solid, of course we can!”
Director Hu was still uncertain and urged her, “What’s the third project?”
“The third project is more grounded. While chatting with those foreign guests, they mentioned agricultural mechanization, which really inspired me.
Given our current situation, it’s not realistic to popularize large-scale agricultural machinery. But we can take a flexible approach.
Break it down—we can manufacture semi-manual, semi-mechanized small agricultural tools.
I saw a record about seed drills in a book I bought in the S City.
These seed drills are composed of a frame, hoppers, legs, and blades, and come in one-leg to seven-leg types, capable of sowing wheat, soybeans, sorghum, and so on.
But they require skilled operation to achieve uniform sowing and aren’t suitable for crops like corn that need more spacing. So gradually, people stopped using them.
I’m not a professional, but I think solving these issues shouldn’t be too difficult. It’s just that everyone in the country is focused on large-scale machinery right now—no one’s diving into this.
We could borrow ideas from bicycle chains or use something like a planting plate…”
Director Hu was a technician by background, though he hadn’t worked on the shop floor much since becoming a director.
As he listened to Su He, his eyes lit up!
He agreed completely—those old seed drills could absolutely be redesigned into simple sowing machines.
Records said a good seed drill could sow an acre a day. If they could actually create a practical, simple sowing machine, the machinery factory would thrive!
Although it was past sowing season in Beiliao Province, further south many places farmed two or three times a year. The market for a simple sowing machine was guaranteed!
At this moment, Su He added, “Although some developed countries look down on small agricultural machinery, for countries similar to ours, there’s definitely a market. We could export and earn foreign exchange.”
Director Hu couldn’t sit still anymore!
He felt like calling in the R&D team right then to start reworking the seed drill!
He was convinced that the best decision he ever made was what he’d just said to Su He.
Maybe Su He had been holding back earlier, and only told him about the agricultural machinery idea because of his willingness to share power.
He exclaimed, “Little Su, all three of your projects are excellent!
Hair accessories are the easiest—immediate results.
Small agricultural machines are medium difficulty—progress will come soon.
The instant noodle production line is the toughest. It might take time, but if we pull it off, it’ll be a huge breakthrough!
Little Su, you’re a hero of our machinery factory!
Don’t worry, I keep my word. You’ll have half the decision-making power in all three projects.
And if it’s an urgent matter, you’ll have full authority!”
Director Hu was being very open. But Su He, having painted many a grand vision herself, wasn’t easily swayed by such promises.
“Director, what title are you planning to give me? After all, if I don’t have a formal position, I won’t exactly have much standing.”
Director Hu thought for a while: “You’ll be my secretary! You’ll report directly to me. Routine matters will still go to Secretary Yang—you’ll only handle these three projects.”
As he spoke, he called Secretary Yang in: “There’s a general meeting this afternoon. Everyone who isn’t on a production task must attend. I’ve got something important to announce.
Also, from now on, Little Su is also my secretary. But her duties won’t overlap with yours. You’re the senior here—help guide her.”
Secretary Yang was a woman in her early forties. Her face stiffened for a moment when she heard this, but she quickly smiled and said, “Director, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of Little Su.”
Su He noticed her expression shift, but thought it was perfectly understandable—no one’s thrilled when a rival shows up. But if Secretary Yang dared to mess with her, she wouldn’t hold back.
She smiled politely and exchanged a few pleasantries with Secretary Yang.
Once Yang left, Su He said to Director Hu, “Director, the instant noodle line and hair accessory projects aren’t too sensitive. But the small agricultural machinery project needs to stay confidential. At least until we reach mass production—no samples, no blueprints should leak out.”
Director Hu nodded: “Don’t worry, I’ve got it under control.
The meeting this afternoon is mainly to talk about the hair accessories, and I’ll formally announce your appointment so everyone’s informed.”
Su He felt genuinely reassured—this is what separated the good leaders from the average ones!
Director Tian was always on guard, afraid she’d try to seize power.
Director Feng had limited vision, only concerned about the textile factory’s small turf.
Only Director Hu had the mindset for real achievements.
After leaving his office, Su He didn’t head to the secretary’s office since her official appointment hadn’t been posted yet. Instead, she went to the union office to see Qian Huifang.
Qian Huifang was sorting files, and when she saw Su He, she smiled and said, “Little Su, what brings you here? Oh right, you’re one of our business reps now—you should be stopping by often.”
Su He smiled, lips pressed together: “Not just a business rep anymore. Director Hu just made me his secretary.”
Crash.
All the files in Qian Huifang’s hands dropped to the floor.
