Su Xiaotian chuckled, pretending not to see her grandmother's reproachful gaze.
"Stop spoiling this girl. How could you possibly be short of translators on your end?" Grandma Su said to Fan Shufang.
Did she think Grandma didn't know Fan Shifang worked at the Translation Bureau? Finding a translator was just a matter of convenience.
It was all because they doted on the little girl, never refusing any of her requests.
"Sister-in-law, while we're not short of translators, some of them are truly unspeakable," Fan Shufang said, still looking disdainful and angry.
Grandma Su didn't understand.
Fan Shufang continued, "You have no idea how some of these young people behave when they meet foreigners. It makes me so angry."
In recent years, the country had placed great importance on this aspect, showing extra respect to foreign friends.
Some young people who had a slight grasp of translation only focused on flattering foreigners, completely forgetting they were Chinese.
Fan Shufang would never associate with such people.
Setting aside the fact that their skills weren't even as good as Xiaotian's, the mere sight of translators with no backbone when facing foreigners was embarrassing to bring out.
Fan Shufang's words also made Minister Chang quite emotional.
"Speaking of which, a few days ago, I met a translator who was so obsequious and fawning towards a foreigner, it was as if they wanted to worship them as an ancestor."
"When they saw our own people, they put on such a condescending air. If this were decades ago, they would have been a definite traitor!"
Minister Chang spoke with righteous indignation.
His work often involved dealing with foreigners, and he encountered this phenomenon frequently.
Especially in the last year or two, the situation had become increasingly serious.
However, due to the current scarcity of translation talent in the country, he could only tolerate it.
He could only hope that in a few years, the situation would improve slightly, not remaining as dire as it was now.
"My Xiaotian isn't like that," Dong Yuanzhong seized the opportunity to praise her again.
After speaking, Dong Yuanzhong seemed to remember something and added, "Shouwen is also good. At least he has backbone.
Actually, Su Shouwen truly has a great talent for languages and masters foreign languages very quickly.
In just a few years, he can already fluently translate two foreign languages.
It's only because his family has the outstanding Su Xiaotian that he's been overshadowed.
But if you look at him from an outside perspective, Su Shouwen is still exceptional.
He hasn't even graduated from postgraduate studies yet, but he's already gained the approval of a senior leader in the Translation Bureau.
Next year, after the New Year, he will be accompanying a delegation on an official visit and serving as an important translator.
This is not something ordinary people can achieve.
Li Jianhong and the others clearly hadn't expected to hear this.
For these girls who had grown up in the countryside and, after attending university, had remained confined to campus, it seemed like a new world had opened up.
They had previously felt that learning foreign languages had little significance, as they were studying Chinese Language and Literature.
This major had no requirement for foreign languages.
Now, they realized that learning foreign languages could indeed be very promising.
Perhaps they could also make an extra effort.
The three girls exchanged glances, their intentions clear.
Later, they would start learning foreign languages. Even if they couldn't become professional translators, it would still be a skill.
Finding a teacher would be easy; Su Xiaotian was a ready-made one.
Conversation topics always shifted quickly.
In the blink of an eye, the topic changed again.
It turned to how to help more people become prosperous.
How to utilize existing resources to create more value, and so on.
Speaking of this, Minister Chang felt that Su Xiaotian's food processing plant was a good example.
"Xiaotian, have you considered building a food processing plant in Sangyu County?" Minister Chang asked, for reasons unknown.
Su Xiaotian hadn't dismissed the idea. She had always felt that her grandparents would eventually return to their roots.
She had also thought about whether, as someone from Sangyu County, she should contribute to the development of her hometown.
However, at present, she was still a student, and what she could do was indeed limited.
After all, she had never given up on her studies.
For Su Xiaotian, graduating from university, and even postgraduate studies in the future, was a must.
"To be honest, I, this old man, have also thought about doing something for my hometown,"
This time, it was Grandpa Su, who was usually quiet, who spoke first.
Grandpa Su's face was solemn.
"Our family left the mountains, and our lives improved. But I know that the lives of those people back home, although better than a few years ago and they can eat their fill, they haven't truly become prosperous."
Minister Chang looked at Grandpa Su with surprise.
An old man had thought so much.
No wonder Dong Yuanzhong always said his elder brother was a man of great integrity.
Even these few short sentences were enough to illustrate the point.
"Old brother, it's commendable that you think so much," Minister Chang said with emotion. "Many people leave and, once their lives improve, they never think of going back."
The other members of the Su family clearly hadn't realized that Grandpa Su harbored so many thoughts.
For a moment, everyone present felt that they themselves were failures.
They lacked ideological depth and were not as insightful as the old man, Grandpa Su.
"But I can't persuade the villagers to all come out and find work. There are so many unemployed people in the city, and we farmers at least have land, so we won't starve. We can't always come to the city to snatch jobs, can we?"
Grandpa Su's next few words left Minister Chang speechless.
This was the most simple and pure sentiment of a farmer.
Not wanting to take jobs away from city dwellers.
"Old brother, that's not the case. A job that can be snatched away isn't truly a city dweller's job," Minister Wu said.
"Really?"
"Of course. Look at you now, opening restaurants and even factories in the city. Aren't you providing jobs for more people?" Minister Wu directly used the Su family as an example.
The Su family's restaurants and factories had indeed solved some employment problems, which was commendable.
"Farmers don't necessarily have to farm exclusively to be considered true farmers. As long as they have a heart that deeply loves the land, they are true farmers."
Minister Wu was in charge of agriculture and hoped that farmers would remain rooted in the land, contributing to the country's grain output.
But at the same time, he also knew that with the development of the times, urbanization was inevitable, a situation that would naturally arise at a certain stage of historical progress.
In the future, many rural people would move to cities to participate in national construction.
Many machines would also go to the countryside to participate in large-scale rural production.
Only when this happened, achieving rural-to-urban transformation, would it prove that the country had truly become rich and strong.