AGN -Chapter 385 Xu Nuo (Part 5)

Xu Nuo quickly led Wang Gensheng on a tour around the factory compound. He wasn’t lying—he really was a well-known figure in the textile factory, to the point where everyone knew him. Everyone who saw Xu Nuo could accurately call out his name, and then ask who the young man beside him was.

It would have been even better if, when they asked that question, their eyes didn’t clearly say: Another poor guy who got tricked by Xu Nuo. This kid’s done for.

Xu Nuo was very familiar with everyone in the factory, and along the way he barely stopped talking. He kept introducing Wang Gensheng to the various departments, relevant leaders, and the interpersonal relationships he needed to understand as a new accountant in the finance department.

If this counted as onboarding training, Qin Huai would have given Xu Nuo a perfect score.

Wang Gensheng was just a somewhat shy newcomer to the workplace. Compared to ordinary people, he was a bit reserved and not very socially sharp, but that didn’t mean he was stupid.

In this era, anyone who could get into university was smart—and hardworking too. Wang Gensheng nodded the whole time, listening carefully and memorizing everything in his mind. It was obvious he understood that Xu Nuo was helping him by talking so much.

After touring the factory, Xu Nuo took Wang Gensheng to the logistics department to collect all his unclaimed items. Wang Gensheng happily received a basin, an enamel cup, two towels, three bars of soap, and some scattered cash and vouchers.

Xu Nuo casually asked how much money Wang Gensheng had on him. He learned that Wang’s family wasn’t well-off—he had several siblings, and his university education had been paid for by his family through strict frugality. This time coming to Suzhou for onboarding, he only had 5 yuan in his pocket besides his luggage—truly very poor.

Hearing this, Xu Nuo immediately took Wang Gensheng—who had already collected his items—back to the logistics office to “cry poor.” Under Wang Gensheng’s stunned gaze, he managed to get him two extra bars of soap and even an advance of one month’s salary.

Xu Nuo handed one of the soaps to Wang Gensheng and pocketed the other himself.

“New employees, if you don’t have money for essentials, you can apply to advance one month’s salary.”

“Of course, if before you become a full employee you’re still too poor to eat, you can also apply for another half-month advance. Just go through the finance department—you’ll know the process once you officially start.”

“Normally, this money and vouchers should be issued by your finance department,” Xu Nuo said with a look of disdain, shaking his head. “But your finance department… tsk.”

“There are quite a lot of people there, but not many who actually work. A lot of tasks they can’t finish get thrown to other departments. Even the logistics office is sick of your finance department.”

“Otherwise, my dad wouldn’t have gone all the way to Jinling to recruit people just to bring a finance graduate like you back.”

“Luckily, I brought you here today. If it had been your section chief Li or anyone else… they wouldn’t just have given you extra soap or an advance salary. They might’ve even cut a corner off your soap and shorted you a quarter, if the logistics Auntie was in a good mood.”

Wang Gensheng carefully folded the cash and vouchers into a cloth bundle, then placed it into his trouser pocket. After stuffing it in, he felt it wasn’t secure enough, so he moved it into the inner pocket of his shirt instead, keeping it close to his body.

The inner pocket was clearly hand-sewn as an addition, and the stitching was neat.

Xu Nuo was already used to Wang Gensheng not talking much—after all, he also had another rather strange friend, Shi Dadan, who barely spoke either.

When Wang Gensheng finished putting away his money, Xu Nuo spoke again.

“Now take me to your dorm so you can put your things down. After that, I’ll take you around the department store?”

“Okay,” Wang Gensheng nodded and led the way to his dorm.

Wang Gensheng’s dorm was similar to the one Qin Huai had seen Shi Dadan live in before. However, Shi Dadan, being a special case personally arranged by Xu Nuo, had a single room to himself. Wang Gensheng, on the other hand, lived in a double room with two single beds.

For Wang Gensheng, unpacking wasn’t just unpacking—it was careful organization. He sorted everything neatly and even swept the floor.

Xu Nuo made no move to help. He leaned against the door watching him work, chatting nonstop.

“You’re from Shanshi Province and went to university in Jinling. Why did you choose to come work at our Suzhou textile factory?”

“Money. The textile factory gives an extra 3 yuan per month as a subsidy.”

“You had such high exam scores. Why did you choose accounting? If it were my dad, he’d probably make me study physics, math, or chemistry.”

Wang Gensheng answered almost every question.

“I like working with numbers. My mom said I was born to be an accountant. When I was a kid, my older brother once stole money from home. My mom noticed some was missing but couldn’t figure out where it went no matter how she balanced the accounts.”

“At the time I was in third grade. I stood beside them while my parents spent the whole night checking the account book. In the end, they realized the money had gone missing the day before and, after careful checking, found out it must have been my brother.”

“Everyone said I was destined to be an accountant, so I studied finance in university too.”

Xu Nuo sighed with emotion.

“So you knew what you wanted to do from a young age. That’s nice.”

Wang Gensheng paused slightly while organizing his things.

“You don’t know?”

“I don’t,” Xu Nuo shook his head. “My dad wanted me to go to university. My mom wanted me to join the army. My grandma just wanted me to stay near her—even if I became a useless rich kid, she wouldn’t mind.”

“My brother thinks I’m clever, good with words, and good at reading people, so I should go into sales. My sister-in-law thinks my pastries are really good, so I should become a chef at a state-owned restaurant—but she never dares say it because she’s afraid my parents will scold her.”

“But I don’t want to do any of those things.”

“On one hand, I feel like I shouldn’t just stay in Suzhou—I should go out and travel more. But I don’t have a proper job, and wandering around could get me arrested as a drifter.”

“On the other hand, I feel like staying in Suzhou is important too, because my family and friends are here—there are people who matter to me.”

“I always feel like there’s something I’m supposed to do, but I don’t know what it is.”

“My dad says I’m just idle, living too comfortably. Eating and drinking all day, hanging out with friends, not working—that’s why I feel lost. He says I’ll be fine once I get into university.”

Wang Gensheng didn’t know what to say for a moment. On one hand, he felt Xu Nuo was a decent person—already opening up and taking care of him so much despite just meeting him. On the other hand, he felt that as a normal employee, he shouldn’t be gossiping about Xu Nuo’s father, especially since his father was the factory director.

So he only said:

“Policies are always changing. Maybe one day, even without a formal job, you’ll be able to travel freely across the country.”

Xu Nuo smiled.

“Sounds like something a university student would say. When I told this to another friend of mine, he just nodded and asked what we were having for dinner.”

Wang Gensheng also smiled, then pulled out a cloth-wrapped jar from his luggage and opened it—it was chili paste.

He glanced at Xu Nuo hesitantly, a bit unsure. After thinking for a moment, he stood up and handed it over.

“This is chili paste my mom made,” Wang Gensheng said. “I know people here don’t usually eat spicy food. If you don’t like it… I didn’t really bring anything else. If you don’t like it, I can write home and ask if we still have cured meat.”

Xu Nuo took it without hesitation, his eyes lighting up.

“Chili paste? I love it.”

Wang Gensheng finally relaxed.

“As long as you like it.”