I'm back in 1990

Chapter 283: Rationalization Suggestions

At 2 PM, the three of them packed their things and went to class together. They were juniors and had a lot of major courses.

The three of them encountered the energetic Sang Weihong on the road again.

She was a slated person to stay at the university, so her internship was spent working in the university's academic affairs office. There wasn't much to do; it was mostly just running errands and doing odd jobs. After all, she was a newcomer and an intern.

Upon seeing Huang Xiaochuan and his group, Sang Weihong took the initiative to greet the three of them.

Huang Xiaochuan teased, "Hello, Teacher Sang!" Sang Weihong pretended to glare at Huang Xiaochuan fiercely.

"I'm busy right now and don't have time to talk to you. Don't leave after your afternoon classes. Go to the academic affairs office; I need to talk to you about something."

Huang Xiaochuan was immediately displeased: "I've already made plans with someone!"

"I don't care. If you dare to run away, I'll find fault with you every day. Don't forget where I work now."

Huang Xiaochuan rolled his eyes. Damn it! You're making a big deal out of nothing. I'll tolerate you for now because you're currently holding the title of Academic Affairs Office.

After Sang Weihong left, Chen Zhe and Ding Yi looked at Huang Xiaochuan with admiration.

Ding Yi sidled up to Huang Xiaochuan, watching Sang Weihong walk away, and said, "Hey big shot, why don't you do a good deed and take Senior Sang as your girlfriend? I think she's got a soft spot for you."

"Get lost, you can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth."

"Oh, look at you, you're getting impatient. Didn't I tell you?" Ding Yi rarely got a chance, so he stomped on it as hard as he could!

"Tch!" Huang Xiaochuan gave Ding Yi the middle finger as a response.

Huang Xiaochuan really did make an appointment tonight; Huang Boyi is coming.

So Huang Xiaochuan was going to have dinner with Huang Boyi that evening, and Nan Hui was going too.

The purpose of these two men was self-evident, but Huang Xiaochuan couldn't refuse. After all, Huang Boyi was his business partner, and since he had come to Shanghai, Huang Xiaochuan had to treat him to a meal.

There were three classes in the afternoon, plus the break time between classes. The last class ended at 5:30 pm.

After hastily parting ways with Ding Yi and Chen Zhe, Huang Xiaochuan went to the Political Education Office alone. On the way, he called Zhou Wei and asked him to drive to the school gate a little later.

The school administration is still following the winter schedule, and at this time, most of the people in the Political Education Office have left, leaving only Sang Weihong in the large office, copying something.

Huang Xiaochuan stood at the office door and knocked.

Sang Weihong looked up and said, "Come in! We know each other so well, why are you pretending to knock?"

After Huang Xiaochuan went in, he plopped down next to Sang Weihong.

"Senior, what's wrong? Tell me quickly, I really have an appointment with someone."

Sang Weihong glanced at Huang Xiaochuan with displeasure: "It won't take you long."

"Miao Ling and Shen Hong wanted to invite you to dinner, mainly to thank you for your help. They were too embarrassed to ask you directly, so they asked me to tell you."

Huang Xiaochuan was both amused and exasperated. He knew these two people; they were the ones Sang Weihong had asked him to arrange for them to intern at Times Supermarket. After their internships ended and they received their diplomas, they would officially join the company. The company originally had a plan to recruit highly educated talent, and Huang Xiaochuan was simply keeping the benefits within the company. At least he felt more at ease using alumni.

Whether or not to eat is completely unnecessary, and it's just a phone call, yet she made such a fuss and made him come all the way there. Sometimes, this woman really can't be judged by common sense.

"Senior, couldn't you have just given me a call about this? I thought it was something serious!"

Sang Weihong gave Huang Xiaochuan a disapproving look: "There's something else I'd like you to help me decide."

"What do you say, senior?"

"With prices soaring outside, teachers' salaries are really too low, and housing allocation is based on seniority. By the time I get a house, I might be middle-aged."

A senior from my university now works for an American company. I ran into him recently and we chatted. He said that foreign companies pay well, and after a few years, you could buy a house with your salary alone. He encouraged me to join his company. I'm undecided, so I wanted to talk to you and get your opinion.

To be honest, this phenomenon was common in this era. The saying that those who make missiles are not as well off as those who sell tea eggs originated from this period.

University teachers were not as wealthy and glamorous as they are in later generations, because the country invested most of its funds in economic development, and each university only received enough funding to make ends meet, so most teachers lived in poverty.

These predicaments can be seen in some movies and television shows from the 1980s and 90s.

However, Sang Weihong finally asked the right person. No one knows the development trends of the next thirty years better than Huang Xiaochuan, especially the universities in China. With the improvement of the national economy, all universities have received sufficient funding. In addition, with the expansion of university enrollment, teachers' salaries and benefits have skyrocketed, a world of difference compared to the meager early 1990s.

Moreover, Huang Xiaochuan met Sang Weihong on the first day of school, and she helped him a lot. The two had a good relationship. The fact that Sang Weihong consulted Huang Xiaochuan about such an important matter shows that she trusts him a lot.

"Senior, Liangyuan is a nice place, but it's not a place to stay for long! It's true that foreign companies offer higher salaries and benefits, that's undeniable, but it also varies from person to person. With your personality, I think you're better suited to the ivory tower."

"Besides, the phenomenon of low wages is bound to be temporary. You are an economics major, so you must be able to see the general trend of the country's economic development. Staying at the university and working is stable, the pressure is not high, and you can rest when you need to. You also have two paid long vacations a year. Isn't that great? It's just right for you."

"You can't handle the workload at foreign companies. They pay high salaries, but they also expect you to do a lot of work."

Sang Weihong retorted, "No, that's not true. Miao Ling told Shen Hong that the Hong Kong-funded supermarket you introduced them to for their internship is really good! It's an eight-hour workday, and they even get eight days off a month! (The two-day weekend system was implemented on May 1, 1995.) The salary is high, the benefits are good, and they don't allow overtime work. Even if you have to work overtime, you get overtime pay. I'd want to work for a company like that too!"

Huang Xiaochuan wanted to cover his face. This was different, wasn't it? Times Supermarket was just nominally a Hong Kong-funded enterprise; in reality, it was a domestic company!

Moreover, it was established by Huang Xiaochuan to put his own ideas into practice, which was to create as many high-income jobs as possible for grassroots workers. Naturally, he would treat his employees very well, while the management team would be the ones who needed strict management.

Huang Xiaochuan has very strict requirements for the management team. After all, running a business requires a compassionate heart but ruthless methods; otherwise, people would really think Huang Xiaochuan runs a charity.

Huang Xiaochuan racked his brains for a long time before saying, "Senior, Miao Ling and Shen Hong's situations are different from yours, okay? They stayed because they didn't want to be assigned back to their hometowns to live a predictable life. Coincidentally, that company needed professional financial staff, so it's a win-win situation."

"You've already been offered a position at the university, and your income will only increase with your years of service. Forget about working for foreign companies. I also suggest you take a part-time master's degree at our university to improve your qualifications. I think that with the development of society in the future, a bachelor's degree will not be enough."

Since Huang Xiaochuan said that, Sang Weihong felt more confident and knew how to choose. Having known Huang Xiaochuan for so long, she greatly admired his broad vision and unique ideas.

We wholeheartedly recommend this book to you: "1990, I'm Back". You can read it here.