Chapter 19: The Trap Backfires
Now that Ma Yuan had put forward the proposal and received the support of Chen Xu and the others, Song Guangyuan had no choice but to go along with it.
Seeing that his plan had succeeded, Ma Yuan showed a smug smile. He then opened a draft of an engineering design plan for profile control measures on his laptop and projected it onto the screen. He was slated to be the presenter for the technical discussion later, so his computer and the projector were already set up in front of him, making it convenient to operate.
Then, before everyone's eyes, a series of geological data points and the basic conditions of a well were presented one by one.
"Liu Shang, this is a water injection well where we will be implementing profile control measures. Its basic data and conditions are all here."
"You can first look at this information as carefully as possible, and then calculate the approximate injection volume of the plugging agent we'll need for this operation."
"Hehe, Liu Shang, don't panic. Take your time. If there's anything you don't understand, just ask. As your senior, I'll help you."
As always, his words were hypocritical and disgusting.
Despite what he said, the test he had set for Liu Shang contained a huge trap. It could be said that Ma Yuan's question was unconventional and insidious, which was extremely unfair to Liu Shang.
This test was no longer an assessment of Liu Shang's technical ability. To put it bluntly, it was simply making things difficult for him on purpose.
At this moment, the owner, Song Guangyuan, frowned slightly, feeling very displeased with Ma Yuan's petty cleverness.
Professor Xu Tiande sighed softly, feeling a sense of pity for Ma Yuan. Even if Liu Shang couldn't answer his test question, it would have no real impact. The only thing impacted would be everyone's opinion of Ma Yuan as a person.
Mr. Zhong, with his engineering background, had always been short-tempered. By now, his face had turned cold, and he made no effort to hide his anger.
As for the others, they were naturally delighted, waiting for the show to begin.
At that moment, once again exceeding everyone's expectations, Liu Shang gave his answer without even looking at the data on the screen.
"I don't need to look at the data. Just give me the designed injection volumes of several wells you've worked on before, and I will randomly design a volume within the same range."
"And the amount I design will be well-founded, and Party A, the oil field client, won't be able to find any faults with it."
Upon hearing Liu Shang's words, Ma Yuan, who was still hunched over his computer with a complacent look on his face, froze as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Ah? Junior brother, I don't quite understand what you mean."
"The test question I gave you is to ask you to calculate the total designed volume for this well based on its specific data and the theoretical formula for profile control measures."
Obviously, Ma Yuan was not giving up. He was still emphasizing his own verbal trap, deliberately trying to mislead Liu Shang.
For these little tricks, Liu Shang really didn't give them a second thought. He didn't even bother to look at Ma Yuan when he questioned him.
But at this time, Xu Tiande and Mr. Zhong looked at each other ecstatically, then suddenly raised their heads to stare at Liu Shang. *Could this kid really be so amazing?* they thought. *Does he even understand matters that go beyond pure technology?*
"Liu Shang, tell me first, why did you say that?" Mr. Zhong boomed.
"Don't be afraid. With me, Zhong Gaokuang, and Professor Xu here, no one dares to do anything to you. Just speak your mind!"
Hearing Mr. Zhong's words, Liu Shang smiled. "Mr. Zhong, Huahai is a private enterprise mainly engaged in petroleum technical services."
"We are equivalent to Party B in the oil field. The most essential purpose of our operations is revenue and profit."
"So, how much to design and what costs to incur—these are all directly linked to cost and profit."
"If I'm not mistaken, the total injection volume won't differ too much for most of the wells we've worked on."
"As for the so-called injection volume design formula, Professor Xu is the expert, so he should know best."
"Currently, there are various formulas and methods in China and around the world, but they all share a common feature: they are limited to theory and have not yet achieved real guiding significance for technical operations."
"For us, at present, the only significance of this formula is to justify the cost to Party A."
"So, as far as this test question is concerned, it's based on a false premise."
Hearing Liu Shang's perfect answer, both Xu Tiande and Mr. Zhong were overjoyed. Even the owner, Song Guangyuan, shook his head in disbelief.
Who would have thought that a freshman student would have such a deep and thorough understanding of the oil industry and the dynamic between Party A and Party B?
It was simply unbelievable.
At this time, the fiery Mr. Zhong slapped the table and glared at Chen Xu and the others, especially Ma Yuan.
"This time, I don't think you have anything left to say, do you?"
Seeing everyone either lower their heads or avoid his gaze, Mr. Zhong snorted. "Then this is settled. Liu Shang will be a member of Huahai from now on, and will serve as an assistant to myself and Professor Xu."
On the other side, Song Guangyuan also nodded. "At Huahai, our core values are unity and fairness."
"Before, you questioned Liu Shang and then gave him a test that was, shall we say, not so easy to answer."
"If he couldn't answer well, his salary would be reduced from 4000 yuan to 2500 yuan. That was the 'punishment' mechanism for the test."
"Well, he has now answered the question. For the sake of fairness, I now announce that Liu Shang will officially join Huahai."
"His position will be Engineer, with a salary of 4000 yuan, and he can start immediately, exempt from the two-month probationary period. This will be the 'reward' mechanism for this test."
"If there are no further objections, let's get to the topic of our meeting today."
"Liu Shang, you can just sit in and listen. After the meeting, go directly to Manager Sun to complete the relevant procedures."
Obviously, by directly assigning Liu Shang a position and salary equal to Ma Yuan's, Song Guangyuan was taking the opportunity to put Ma Yuan in his place and express his dissatisfaction.
Undoubtedly, at this moment, Ma Yuan's heart was already burning with anger and resentment. His hatred and hostility towards Liu Shang rose sharply.
However, he didn't dare to show it, though his complexion had already turned ugly.
After hearing the final decision, Song Jia, who had been standing at the door, was jolted back to reality.
Just moments before, she had been excited and delighted that Liu Shang had defeated the shameless Ma Yuan. Now, she was suddenly dumbfounded.
Her father had already made the decision. Liu Shang was officially hired, with a monthly salary of 4000 yuan, and even the probationary period was waived. For a student, an income of 4000 yuan a month was a huge amount.
And there was no doubt that the money Liu Shang earned would be spent on his daily life with his girlfriend, Jiang Ruolin. If Tan Feng and the others found out about this, wouldn't this be seen as a form of betrayal? An act of hostility?
*My God, what am I going to do now?*
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