I’m at their mercy; I’m like fish on the chopping board!

Thread Content

We have graduated, and in the blink of an eye we have entered society. Yet just a few days have passed, and already I understand what real society is like: it is cruel, a place where the strong prevail over the weak. College students who lack skills are constantly looked down upon. Some choose to avoid this reality; they aren’t weak – they simply can’t adapt to these sudden changes. People are no longer innocent; they always act with a purpose in mind. How sad! One must always have a clear idea of one’s position, and one should be extra careful when looking for a job. I signed a contract with Fuqing Kuncai Refining Co., Ltd. during the first semester of my senior year. I thought that working in the production workshop would be better, as it wouldn’t be as polluted as at the Sanming Chemical Plant, where ammonia filled the air. Full of ambition, I left school and Fuzhou, and arrived at the company’s premises. Everything ahead seemed so wonderful; the beautiful administrative building of Kuncai Refining Co., Ltd. caught my eye right away. It was built in a perfect manner. When I got downstairs, a girl from the HR department came and said we could go out to eat, with food to be delivered to our dormitories in the afternoon. So, we happily went to a restaurant outside. There were very few people around the factory area; hardly any houses were in sight. It was good that there was a restaurant there, and the food was tasty and inexpensive. After eating, we returned to the factory area and waited in the meeting room for two hours – it was extremely boring. A woman with heavy makeup came over; later I heard she was the general manager’s assistant. She asked us to follow her outside, where she gave us tableware. When I took it, I saw green hair all over the plates – wasn’t that ridiculous? These are still plates meant for human use. One set was missing; that woman went back to the cafeteria and got another set, which she gave to me. They were covered in grease—completely unsightly. But I figured I should just tolerate it. So, I followed her to see the dormitories. The dorms were actually located in the administrative building—such a beautiful building; surely the rooms inside would be nice. With that thought in mind, we went up to the 5th floor. She pointed to one room and said, “This is Wu Jinchuan’s room.” Then she showed me another room, saying, “This belongs to Yongxiang and Kunbin.” Finally, we reached my room. When I opened the door, I was hit by an awful stench. There were four people living there; all of them were vocational school students. There were smelly socks all over their bedsides. There was no air conditioning, no Internet connection, not even a desk. Just iron bunk beds. I simply couldn’t stay there any longer. Sigh… that night I suffered from insomnia. I went to bed at 11 PM, but someone on the night shift woke me up. I finally fell asleep around 2 AM, only to be disturbed again when another night-shift worker came back. He even took the only electric fan for himself. At around 4 AM, I could bear it no longer. I rushed to Jinchuan’s room and told him I wanted to quit and leave. He said to get some more sleep first. So, I lay there until about 8 AM. The company quickly assigned us jobs—how fast! I was assigned to work in calcination, while others handled post-treatment processes. I stood firm and directly announced my intention to resign. Others also decided to go home. Back at the dorm, I packed my things; to lighten my load, I gave some of my belongings to those vocational school students. Soon after, I returned to Fuzhou—feeling incredibly relaxed, more so than ever before. Upon arriving in Fuzhou, I had neither a place to stay nor a job, yet I still felt so at ease and carefree. I began redefining myself. I truly couldn’t adapt to the factory environment, so I resolved to find an office-based job. Just when I felt utterly helpless, Senior Dai Qiang came to my aid—he helped me apply for an interview at a design institute. I bravely attended the interview. The boss said he admired my drive and ambition, but kept emphasizing that they didn’t need inexperienced fresh graduates. I started to feel hopeless, yet still held onto a glimmer of hope. After waiting two days, the boss asked me to bring my transcripts. I hurried back from the university district to deliver them. He then told me to wait another two days. Though I was extremely anxious, I couldn’t rush him or be impatient—that would be impolite. All I could do was wait. A friend also introduced me to another job—in the automotive parts industry. I’d be working directly in the control room; the working conditions and pay seemed great. But since I was still waiting for news from the design institute, I couldn’t possibly accept this other offer. Playing both sides like that would be highly unethical; moreover, it would be unfair to my friend who recommended me. So, I continued waiting for word from the design institute—a clear yes or no. Today, however, is the very last day the boss mentioned, and there’s still no news. I’m quite disappointed. Although I’m just an undergraduate, I understand certain principles. I’ve always adhered to the principle of being proactive in my work while staying humble as a person. I also know what it means to keep one’s promises. Perhaps he’s too busy, but once a promise is made, it must be fulfilled. Otherwise, there’s no point in making any promises at all. Just because I’m an ordinary undergraduate doesn’t give anyone the right to ignore me like this—it’s unbearable. People deserve to live with dignity; we’re not at the mercy of others, nor are we helpless victims. You may look down on me now, but you can’t afford to ignore me in the future. Remember: I’m no weakling. One day, I’ll make you all bow down before me!