(Early to mid-July 1998)
After leaving my friend Jun's shop, I need to find a new place to work in the provincial capital. This time, I set a few conditions: Find a large company with a middle to high-level management position, with a salary of more than 1,000 yuan, and no familiar faces. At that time (1998), although the mainland had not yet formed a decent labor market, there were some employment agencies run by individuals. Most of these employment agencies were in front of the houses on the walls near the streets of the labor bureau. In order to attract people's attention, there was a big advertisement sign at the door that read "Talent Center of a certain province, a certain office". In fact, the space inside was only a few square meters, barely enough to fit a table. Usually, there would be a man and a woman. The man was in his thirties or forties, and the woman was in her twenties. It looked like the boss was bringing along a small secretary.
It was a Sunday, and my wife accompanied me as we walked along the road that was filled with job advertisements. There were shop assistants, drivers, and typing staff, all of which were paid 300 to 500 yuan. He had seen all the small advertisements posted outside, but he did not see any one that was for a manager. It was no wonder. At that time, state-owned enterprises in the mainland were not doing well, but it was still too early for private enterprises to take shape. The so-called private economy had only developed to the point where all state-owned workers had entered the circulation field to engage in peddlers and reselling. Not many people could even understand the specific meaning of the new term " real estate ", let alone the successful private real estate developers. The service industries such as hotels, supermarkets, and transportation were just state-owned enterprises that were about to close down and transformed into private contracting operations. In fact, the nature of assets and even management were still the same as state-owned enterprises. It was impossible to hire people because of the large number of people who were laid off and caused trouble, let alone hire senior executives. Only then did he realize that it was very difficult to find something to do according to his pre-set conditions.
I didn't get any valuable information from the many small advertisements on the street walls. I was a little disheartened. My wife was afraid that I would lose confidence, so she kept comforting me. We entered the door of an agency and were blocked by a wall after taking a step inside. There was a small window on the wall with iron bars, like the small window in a train station. The space inside the window was as narrow as a pigeon cage. A girl (let's call her secretary) was sitting in front of a small table in the cage, playing with her fingernails. She did not look up when we entered. At this moment, we saw a small advertisement by the window. It said that a certain group company was hiring a deputy general manager. The minimum monthly salary was 1,200 yuan, and there were bonuses and business commissions. I was attracted by this recruitment notice. Isn't this the kind of job I'm looking for? I suppressed the excitement in my heart and asked the secretary sitting inside,"Can I apply for the position of deputy general manager in the advertisement?”The secretary looked up at me and replied,"You have to pay 300 yuan as an intermediary fee for this position.”"Can I apply for this position after paying?”I asked again. "We only provide information. It's the company's business whether you're hired or not.”the secretary replied. The agency fees on the small advertisements outside range from 20 to 50 yuan. This deputy general manager position agency fee is 300 yuan. I'm worried that they might be making a fake high-level job recruitment information to cheat money. 300 yuan was nothing today, but in the mainland at that time, it was almost the monthly salary of an ordinary laborer. I didn't want to be tempted by this recruitment notice, but I was really unwilling to accept it. I tried to ask the secretary if I could give her a discount on the agency fee. Hearing my question, the girl didn't get up. She turned her butt on the chair and knocked on the wall behind her. There was a small door on the wall (it couldn't be seen because of the wall-like paper). The small door was pushed open from the inside and a man in his forties came out. The man came to the window and asked,""Who wants to apply for the position of deputy general manager?" "I want to ask about this situation." "Have you ever been a deputy general manager?" "Ten years ago, I was a factory manager.”"Which factory?" "Junshan Woolen Mill." "Really? That factory is famous in the province.”"That factory didn't work out either." "What do you do now?" "Resigned from his position as the head of the Sacred Field.”"Oh, you're the head of that farm. I went there a few years ago. Why did he resign on the spot?" "It's a long story. Let's not talk about that. I need a job now. I want to try for the position of deputy general manager. I wonder if there's still a chance?”"Yes, yes, not many people dare to ask about this position.”"Is it because of the 300 yuan introduction fee?" "No, no, the people who come here to look for work are all ordinary workers who have been laid off. They have never been in management, so they don't dare to think so high.”"Do you think I can give it a try?”"Yes, yes, only you are suitable.”"300 yuan is too high. If they say no, my 300 yuan will be gone.”"I'm also from the government. Since we're in the same boat, I'll charge you 150 yuan.”"If I can't hire him, can I get my money back?”"Brother, I won't refund the money. I want to eat here too. However, I can provide you with other recruitment information. I'll definitely help you find a job.”After listening to him say so much and looking at him, she really felt that he did not look like a liar. I only paid 150 yuan. His secretary even wrote me a receipt. He took out a small notebook from his pocket and read out the phone number and contact name of the group company that was recruiting (he personally controlled this information) for me to write down. Perhaps 150 yuan was not a small amount for his agency's business income that day, or maybe it was as he said, he met me, a fellow who resigned, or maybe he was afraid that I wouldn't believe him. In short, he was particularly enthusiastic and talkative. When I asked what the company was doing, he kept talking. He said that the company I was going to was a large group company in Hong Kong. It had real estate, commercial circulation, transportation and tourism, factory manufacturing, and many other industries. The biggest business was real estate. They had acquired many state-owned enterprises that were about to close down in the mainland. Their economic strength was huge. I would know all of this when I went there. I was naturally very happy to hear that. I didn't expect to encounter such good luck on my first time looking for a job in an intermediary. Before I left the agency, the manager came out of his "cage" to shake my hand and send me off. He said a bunch of good luck to me, which actually made me feel touched like I hadn't in a long time.
That night, my wife and I looked forward to the position of deputy general manager of the group. We were as happy as if we had already received a salary of more than 1,000 yuan. The next morning, he got up early and prepared the necessary documents for the interview. He then printed out the resume from the computer. He was prepared to take the bus into the city for the interview. I wasn't unfamiliar with the provincial capital, but I didn't know where to find a specific unit or place. I wished my wife could accompany me to the city, but she had to go to work on Monday, so I had to go to the city alone. The bus I took stopped at the city center square. I didn't know which direction the company I was looking for was in, so I took the bus all the way to the terminal and got off. I had a stupid way to locate it. Every time I found an unfamiliar place in the city, I would first go to the city center square, then ask for directions from here while walking to that place. After I was done, I would walk back to the square and take a bus home.
I got out of the car from the square and asked the policeman for directions according to the address I wrote down. The policeman pointed to the west and said that I had to follow this road to the riverside. If I walked west, I would go back in the direction where I took the bus. After walking for an hour and ten minutes, I arrived at the riverside. Then I asked the policeman which building it was. The policeman waved his hand and pointed. It turned out that this building was often passed by me, but I had never paid attention to it. Besides, the bus that I took into the city had a stop at a street corner near the building. I didn't have to sit in the square and walk so far back. I looked up at the top of the building (seven or eight stories high) and saw four huge words erected on the roof. It was the "Chong Li Group" I was looking for. I've walked by this place no less than ten times, but I've never noticed the words on the roof. This building is a standalone building. It looked quite grand at the time. According to my experience, this building must be an old high-end building in the provincial capital. With the name of the company on the roof, I immediately felt that this company really had financial strength.
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