Chapter 614

One day at the end of June 1986, all the students of the 82 World Economy major at Peking University gathered in a classroom.

When Li Ye entered the classroom, he discovered that he was actually the last one to arrive.

Today was the day the graduation assignment results were announced, and even the laziest people in the past had arrived half an hour early.

Just as Li Ye found a seat and sat down, a classmate came over and asked in a low voice: "Li Ye, do you have any inside information? Where will everyone be assigned?"

Li Ye shook his head blankly and said: "How would I have inside information? When Sun Xianjin was still here, he was the one who gave me inside information. I never pay attention to those groundless things."

Li Ye was telling the truth. Ever since Sun Xianjin went to Moscow, Li Ye's understanding of the various rumors within the school had almost completely vanished.

He spent his days arranging various important matters according to his own plans; where would he have the mood to inquire about inside information?

"Hi, I thought you were Mr. Zhang's favorite student and could know everyone's fate in advance!"

Li Ye was the favorite student of the economics bigwig Professor Zhang, so everyone felt he might have some privileges.

Li Ye hurriedly denied it: "No, no, the teacher never has the habit of leaking questions in advance. Besides, knowing this kind of thing a day early or a day late makes no difference, right?"

"Sigh, aren't we worried? It's too uncomfortable."

Dozens of classmates were gathered in the classroom. Although it wasn't yet the dog days of summer, more than half of the students had already started wiping their sweat.

Getting into university was an important turning point that changed one's destiny, and the unit assignment might be the last turning point in many people's lives.

At this time, He Dazhuang, who was the most experienced in officialdom, leaned over again and whispered to Li Ye: "Li Ye, we've all been classmates for four years. Tell me the truth, are you going to be assigned to the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade?"

Li Ye asked in surprise: "Where did you get that information? How come I don't know about it myself?"

He Dazhuang smiled crookedly and said: "I read your graduation thesis about 'Applying for the Restoration of Contracting Party Status in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade'."

"We've known each other for so long, I know you're not someone who shoots without a target, so... you want to go to the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade, not the automobile manufacturing plant in your provincial capital, right?"

"."

Li Ye pursed his lips, looked at He Dazhuang, who had an "I see through you" look, and shook his head with a laugh, truly unable to answer.

His graduation thesis was indeed related to "restoring status." After all, the country had been preparing to apply for "restoration" since 1983, and by this year, the preparations were complete. In just over ten days, it would formally submit the "restoration" application to the WTO.

So Li Ye's thesis was in line with the timing.

However, Li Ye wasn't being opportunistic; he had Pei Wencong help him collect a lot of economic data from the Nanyang region, and then concluded that the "hard power" conditions possessed by the Four Asian Tigers were also possessed by mainlanders; the only difference was the trade environment.

Therefore, the mainland should spare no cost to take back what belonged to it.

The reason it was what belonged to it was that when the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was founded in Switzerland in 1947, we were one of the founding contracting parties.

It was only in 1950 that the other side of the strait unilaterally announced its withdrawal from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which led to our long fifteen-year road to "restoration." Only those on the inside knew the hardships involved.

Li Ye had heard a rumor in his previous life that when we were applying for restoration, the negotiating representatives of the two sides were completely unequal.

On our side, it was led by the Iron-Blooded Prime Minister, while on the other side, they were just small fry, but even so, the negotiations were very difficult. In the end, it was because of strength that the restoration was successful, not because of what some people later said about being "rewarded with a meal."

Would those gluttons in the West reward you with a meal? If you had no value, they would lick the last grain of rice from your bowl, okay?

And after Professor Zhang read Li Ye's graduation thesis, he didn't say anything, but Li Ye knew that two of his former seniors were members of the negotiating team.

So Li Ye did his best and left the rest to fate, hoping that he could make everyone's belief in restoration firmer.

But Li Ye really hadn't thought about going to the ministries.

At least not now.

"The teacher is here~"

Someone shouted, and the classroom was suddenly in chaos. Everyone returned to their seats, looking at the serious-faced instructor who walked in, as if they were seeing the judge who would pronounce their fate.

Instructor Zhang Zhiqiang put down the list in his hand, sighed first, and then said in a deep voice: "I have many feelings about the four years I've spent with everyone."

"But there is no banquet that doesn't end. I won't say any more superfluous nonsense. After today's assignment results are announced, everyone will go their separate ways. I only hope that when you look back in the future, you will think more about happy things, don't hold grudges, and don't have regrets..."

"Chen Xiaoling, Organization Department."

"Xiang Weiguo, State Planning Commission."

"Pu Xianghe, Industrial and Commercial Bank."

"Fu Lianbing, Capital Steel Plant."

"."

When Zhang Zhiqiang read the list, he didn't read from back to front like most people, but from the best units to the worst.

And everyone had only heard a few names, and their already tight hearts tightened even more.

In other words, if you hadn't heard your name yet, it was destined to be worse than the people before you.

Sweat poured down He Dazhuang's face like a waterfall.

His internship unit was the Ministry of Finance. Although everyone said that work didn't have high or low status and people didn't have noble or lowly status, the Ministry of Finance couldn't be worse than a steel plant, right?

【Stay calm, stay calm. Now the benefits of the steel plant are better, so it's possible for it to be ranked in front.】

In the eighties and nineties, many people actually didn't want to go to government agencies, but preferred to go to large state-owned enterprises because the benefits of large state-owned enterprises were better.

It wasn't just that they distributed more things during holidays; the main thing was that they had liquid funds, so the bonuses were high and there was more housing.

Even in later generations, life in the ministries wasn't as good as in many state-owned enterprises.

But after more than a dozen names were read and "He Dazhuang" still hadn't been heard, He Dazhuang's face turned pale.

He Dazhuang was at least a class committee member, his grades were stably in the top ten, he never missed any activities, and he was a Party member. This assignment result... it couldn't be wrong, right?

【It can't be wrong. It must not be in order. Didn't you see that Li Ye's name hadn't been read either?】

He Dazhuang wiped his sweat and turned his head to look at Li Ye.

And at this very moment, it definitely wasn't just He Dazhuang looking at Li Ye.

Chen Xiaoling, Pu Xianghe, Fu Lianbing, and the other dozen or so people whose names had been read earlier all turned back to look at Li Ye.

【Could he really be going back to the Dongshan provincial capital? But his partner is from the capital, how is that possible?】

Most university student assignments at this time were in two situations: either staying in the school's location or returning to their original place of origin.

In addition, some would be randomly assigned to all parts of the country, and this randomness might not be as good as returning to their original place of origin—for example, a Shanghai person being assigned to Datieling.

Watching Wen Leyu had a capital household registration, so she had a ninety-nine percent chance of staying in the capital. If Li Ye returned to the Dongshan provincial capital, wouldn't that be breaking up a couple?

Besides, Li Ye was a prominent figure in the class! Why wasn't he the first on the list?

Over these years, the Lone Army Literature Society founded by Li Ye and others had brought quite a bit of foreign exchange to the school. Even if there was no merit, there was hard work, right? They couldn't be so heartless.

"Li Ye..."

The instructor suddenly read Li Ye's name, and even paused, looking up at Li Ye.

Then he repeated: "Li Ye, you have been assigned to the Beijing Light Automobile Company."

"."

There was dead silence.

Everyone in the classroom was stunned, and it wasn't until a long time later that they suddenly became noisy.

"Beijing Light Automobile Company? What kind of unit is that?"

"Right! We've never heard of it! This wouldn't be a small factory, would it?"

"."

"Stop arguing, everyone."

After hearing the noise of the crowd, Instructor Zhao Zhiqiang comforted them: "I've inquired for Li Ye. This company is over in Haidian. It's a new unit split off from the original Haidian Automobile Manufacturing Plant. It has a very promising future."

"."

"Is that the Beijing Second Automobile Plant that produces the Beijing 130? I passed by it when I went to Haidian to find a classmate!"

"..., at least he stayed in the capital. That's not bad."

"."

Although many people comforted Li Ye, saying that at least he stayed in the capital, Chen Xiaoling and Pu Xianghe, who were close to him, still felt it was unbelievable.

"I remember now, it's the article Li Ye published in the newspaper. He said to develop heavy-duty trucks and light vehicles."

Only then did everyone remember that in Li Ye's article, more than half of the space was dedicated to advocating for the development of light vehicles.

Chen Xiaoling couldn't help but complain to Li Ye anxiously: "Why did you write that article? It's all He Dazhuang's crow's mouth..."

Seeing Chen Xiaoling's anxious look, Li Ye shook his head and smiled instead.

How could they know Li Ye's plan?

The Beijing Light Automobile Manufacturing Company had three shareholders: the Haidian Automobile Plant, the Hong Kong Ceres Company, and the COFCO company where Wen Qingsheng was located.

So you tell me, which one would Li Ye's connection eventually fall into?

If Watching Wen Leyu going to the Zhongxin Company was playing an immortal game, then Li Ye going to the Light Automobile Company was playing a fishpond game.

The upper limit of the fishpond game was very low; it was just a deputy-bureau-level unit, but the clearance speed was also faster!

You are all carp, crucian carp, and little loaches, but I am a koi with both money and the background of the Dragon King. And this fishpond is connected to the ocean!

"He Dazhuang, Finance Bureau of Golmud City, Qinghai Province."

"."

"As for the rest, everyone returns to their original place of origin."

"."

He Dazhuang sat there coldly, his head buzzing for several minutes.

He couldn't accept the current result at all. Clearly, the teacher who brought him for his internship thought very highly of him.

But now, how could they send him off to Qinghai with one blow? You could have let me return to my original place of origin!

Everyone's gaze shifted from Li Ye back to He Dazhuang.

Over these past few days, he was the one who jumped the most in the class, but in the end, he took a not-so-small tumble.

Facing everyone's gaze, He Dazhuang wiped the sweat from his face, forced a smile at Li Ye, and began to change the subject.

"Li Ye, I said it, didn't I? You shouldn't have submitted so many articles; it's too easy to cause complications. If it weren't for that article, you might have been assigned to a ministry."

Li Ye glanced at He Dazhuang and smiled faintly: "In this world, how can there be so many things that go as one wishes? It's more about being content with one's lot and finding happiness in it."

"Content with one's lot? Finding happiness in it."

He Dazhuang smacked his lips and swallowed his saliva, as if he had tasted full bitterness.

If one could be proud and successful, who would be willing to be content with their lot?