"Oh! Yes! Yes! Thank you so much, Mr. Xie!"

The moment he heard Xie Changning would let his son interview, the driver was instantly overjoyed.

He had been extremely anxious when he first asked. He was well aware of the suspicious circumstances surrounding his son’s dismissal—anyone with a bit of sense would be able to figure out what had really happened.

Even though he personally felt his son was not at fault.

But offending people tended to rub leaders the wrong way.

Fortunately, Mr. Xie didn’t mind!

The driver looked at Xie Changning with far more respect. Terrified of offending her and ruining his son’s job opportunity, he chose his words with extreme care for the rest of the journey.

Xie Changning chuckled. "Don’t worry, sir. I’m aware of your son’s situation. Since I’ve already decided to let him interview, I’m certainly not going to take back that opportunity because of something you said."

It wasn’t his driving skills she was interested in, but his mechanical skills.

At this thought, Xie Changning curiously asked the driver, "Your son knows how to repair cars. Did he ever have any formal training?"

At the mention of this, the driver puffed out his chest with pride and shook his head.

"My son has a real gift for this. He’s never had any training, but he has an intuitive feel for all the different parts of a car. He can tell what’s wrong with a vehicle just by listening to it."

Hearing the driver’s words, a spark of interest lit up in Xie Changning’s eyes.

’If he’s really that talented, I can’t let him slip away.’

"Alright. Have him come to the Anong County Machinery Factory for an interview tomorrow at eight in the morning."

"You got it!"

As they spoke, they were already more than halfway there.

The thought of having secured an interview for his son energized the driver. He drove with renewed vigor, pumped up as if he’d had a shot of adrenaline and brimming with spirit!

He didn’t let up one bit, all the way until Xie Changning and her group arrived at Chuncheng First Auto.

Xie Changning thanked the driver with a broad smile, then led the children into the Chuncheng First Auto campus.

Upon arriving at Chuncheng First Auto, she saw Fang Heng walking toward them in the distance, clearly there to welcome her. "Secretary Fang!" she called out.

"Mr. Xie!"

The two shook hands, and Fang Heng spoke. "Come on, I’ll take you there."

Fang Heng couldn’t help but glance at the children behind Xie Changning. They were dressed in simple, military-green jackets, caps, military-style trousers, and green rubber-soled shoes.

Everything was brand new; you could tell at a glance it had all been recently made.

Fang Heng knew that children liked to start a new school with a fresh look. Still, the sudden sight of a row of children all in green was startling. Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought Xie Changning had brought a small troop of soldiers with her.

"Ever since word got out that the children of the Anong County Machinery Factory employees outscored many of our own on the exams, our factory’s kids have been completely fired up! They’re improving by leaps and bounds!"

Fang Heng couldn’t help but express his admiration to Xie Changning.

"If it weren’t for the Anong County Machinery Factory kids lighting a fire under them, who knows how long our own kids would have kept slacking off!"

"If we’d known it would have this kind of effect, our factory would have opened up spots for visiting students ages ago!"

"Mr. Xie, there’s something I should mention to you beforehand." Fang Heng glanced at the children following them and said to Xie Changning, "Our director has decided to open up a path for visiting students to become officially enrolled students."

"After each major exam, any visiting student who places in the top three will be eligible to take an official enrollment test. If they pass, they can become a fully enrolled student."

Xie Changning’s eyes narrowed slightly at Fang Heng’s words.

’Is Chuncheng First Auto really that generous?’

’Back when we asked them to open spots for visiting students, we had to negotiate quite a few conditions with Director Zhao. Now they’re offering a chance for them to become fully enrolled? Aren’t they just trying to poach my talent?’

"What are the benefits of becoming an enrolled student?" Xie Changning asked, her expression unreadable.

Fang Heng glanced at Xie Changning, then explained, "There are quite a few perks. The biggest one is that upon graduation, they can get a job directly at First Automobile Works."

As soon as he said this, the children, who had been chattering away just moments before, suddenly fell silent.

Fang Heng knew this move was a bit underhanded, but these kids were real talents!

’And you have to fight for talent!’

So, he began listing the second benefit. "Enrolled students get free housing—all dormitory fees are covered by the factory. There are also annual scholarships..."

Fang Heng continued to list the various benefits.

Xie Changning broke into a smile. "The terms do sound pretty good." She turned to the children behind her. "What do you all think? Do these conditions motivate you?"

The children exchanged glances, then shook their heads in unison.

"We study hard because we know what a precious opportunity this is, and we’re grateful to your director for his support, but—"

’The benefits Secretary Fang is talking about... their own director already provides them!’ they thought.

’And she’s even more generous about it.’

But as the group’s spokesperson, the child phrased it eloquently. "It was our director who nurtured us and brought us here. So, no matter how tempted we might be, we could never bypass our director to join First Automobile Works."

They were grateful children!

When he finished, the other children all nodded in agreement.

Xie Changning’s eyes curved with satisfaction. ’See? The children from our factory are so clever!’

’They didn’t say they looked down on the rewards, only that they were grateful.’

’This way, the opportunity to become enrolled students is still on the table, while also putting both her and Fang Heng at ease.’

"You have a point." Fang Heng didn’t press the issue. Instead, he thought, ’These children are so loyal. That makes them even more worth recruiting!’

Xie Changning saw his reaction and turned to give the children a subtle wink.

The children covered their mouths, trying to stifle their giggles.

When they reached the entrance of the First Automobile Works’ technical school, Xie Changning turned to the children. "I’ll come back to get you when you’re on vacation. Remember to study hard and don’t waste this precious opportunity, understand?"

"And I’m not just bringing you all here this one time. I’ll fight to bring any other children who meet the standards next semester, too."

"If you can’t keep up, I’ll be taking you right back home."

Xie Changning said, feigning a threat.

After spending so much time with her, the children knew what kind of person Xie Changning was and weren’t the least bit intimidated by her bluff.

They proudly puffed out their small chests. "Mr. Xie, just you watch! You won’t get the chance!"

With that, they strutted like victorious little roosters as they followed Fang Heng into the technical school.

It wasn’t that Xie Changning couldn’t go inside, but she felt that this was, after all, someone else’s territory. Seeing them to the gate was enough.

’Don’t most parents just drop their kids off at the gate when they go to college?’

’This was their chance to learn how to handle things on their own. Now it was up to them to prove they could take care of themselves.’

Fang Heng wasn’t gone for long. After handing the children over to their respective teachers, he hurried back out to meet Xie Changning.

"Mr. Xie, let me take you to the cafeteria..."