“Hey, you see this?” His friend was pointing to the TV.
“What?”
“The government is looking for new employees. It will help you get training in technology and pay for college. Good pay and benefits while you serve your country. I think it’s some military job.”
“What, as a soldier?”
“I don’t think so. Why would they talk about training you in technology if they wanted you to be a soldier?”
Lin Yu cocked his head, looking at the TV advertisement. He searched for more information on his phone. “I found it online. They say you can start work immediately. Oh, wow. They pay twice as much as I’m making in the phone parts shop.”
His friend said, “Are you really interested?”
“For that much money? Maybe. I’ll check it out on the way to work today.”
An hour later, Lin Yu was walking into the Guangzhou recruiting office of the People’s Liberation Army.
A pretty woman in a green uniform greeted him at the door. “Hello! Are you interested in signing up for our new program?”
Lin Yu pretended to be disinterested. He shrugged. “Maybe. I just wanted to hear about it.”
The woman gently grabbed him by the shoulder, bringing him further into the small office. There were a line of young men and women signing up at a table on the other side of the room. Two other uniformed men sat behind the table, smiling and helping the new recruits to fill out their paperwork.
The woman looked Lin Yu up and down. “You have graduated from school?”
“Yes, last year.”
“You speak any other languages?”
“Just Mandarin and Cantonese.”
“Are you good with computers? Do you know how to do any programming?”
“Not really.”
“Why don’t we have you take a short test, and we can tell you what type of work you would qualify for? It’s fun, try it!”
Lin Yu frowned and checked the time on his phone. “I don’t know. I need to get to work in an hour.”
The woman pulled out a chair at one of several empty desks and grabbed a laptop that was already set up. “Here. It will only take a few minutes. We’ll get your results and have you on your way. You might be eligible for a big bonus if you score well. Trust me, you will want to know. Here, type in your name to start, and your birthday. Yes. There you go.”
Lin Yu shrugged and began the test. The first question was easy. Simple math. The woman was still standing over his shoulder. She said, “There’s a timer in the corner. See that? That tells you how long you have to answer each question. Okay, I’ll be back. Let me know if you finish and I’m not here.”
She walked back to the entrance, greeting more kids as they came in. Lin Yu was annoyed. He didn’t want to be taking a test right now. But if there really was a better-paying job that could help him pay for university fees, he wanted to know about it. And lately, he’d felt a sense of patriotism that he’d never really felt before — ever since President Wu had been killed by the Americans. And he was very tired of sitting behind an empty store counter all day, hoping to hawk leftover cell phone parts to American suppliers in for the weekend.
The recruiter was right; the test went by quickly. Ten minutes and he was done. He turned around and she was leaning over him again, looking at the results screen. He could smell her perfume.
“Oh, yes, this is very good. You have done quite well.” She smiled and tapped him on the arm. “You should be very proud of this score. Ninety-five percent. You are very smart.”
“So, what does that mean? Ninety-five percent?”
She took out a booklet and thumbed through the pages. “Hmm. Hmm. Okay, yes. I think we would most likely place you in our mobility program.”
Lin Yu said, “What’s that?”
“It is for most of our best-qualified candidates. Are you physically fit?”
“Sure.”
“Okay. You will need a physical examination before we can give you any guarantees. But…” She turned to check who was listening, then whispered, “I’m pretty sure that this score will get you into our exceptional candidate program.”
“Really? Do you have anything that I can read about what I would be doing?”
“Of course.” She reached over to her desk and handed him a brochure, opening it to pictures of good-looking young men and women in uniform.
“You would do a few weeks of accelerated training here in Guangzhou. Then, depending on what you select after that, you might be able to travel. Many of our recruits are promoted right away out of training if they’re smart like you. You would probably be promoted right away. Maybe you will be my boss someday?” She smiled.
“What’s the pay?”
“Oh, the pay is very good. Very competitive. You can find all that in the brochure. And after you’re in your job for two years, you become eligible for college tuition financial aid. This will help your career if you decide to leave the military.”
Lin Yu checked the time again. “I think I need to go.”
“Sure, no problem. Just sign this form first, please. You can come back to this address tomorrow and we can get your physical examination done. Once you do that, we’ll know for sure about your signing bonus and how much that will be.”
Lin Yu liked the sound of that. The only bonus he had seen in the past few years was when his uncle had given him extra hours of work during the busy season.
He signed the form and they said goodbye.
Lin Yu walked out the door and headed down the street.
The woman recruiter waited until he was gone and then headed over to someone else who had just finished their test. She leaned over and looked at their screen. She said, “Oh… this is a very good score! Ninety-five percent!”
Lin Yu had to hurry to work. He didn’t want to be late. But he had an added spring in his step after acing the military aptitude test. He hadn’t failed to notice that the woman who was recruiting him was somewhat attractive. Perhaps after he joined the military — if he decided to do so — he could ask her out on a date?
The wide road sloped down and curved around near a park, large green willow trees providing shade from overhead. It was warm and humid, even this time of year.
There were a lot more of the volunteers walking around, wearing those red armbands. The armbands had Chinese characters in yellow that said “Security Patrol.” They were just normal people. But they acted like they were police. Stopping foreigners to check their passports. Telling people not to take their pictures. And standing outside the churches…
There were boisterous crowds gathered ahead. At first, Lin Yu thought he was just hearing the usual city noise. But as he passed the food carts and outdoor markets, filled with people hawking street food and trinkets, he noticed something else.
A temple. No, a church. There was a construction crane pulling and tugging at the top of the church. And the crowd was chanting below. Dozens of police were there, holding the crowd back. Even more of the volunteers in red armbands stood behind the police. Onlookers had clustered around the activity.
A snap from overhead, and a large wooden beam fell down to the ground. The crane had tugged the cross down from the top of the church. It landed with a smack and splintered into multiple pieces.
A woman thrust a pamphlet towards him. She said, “End the persecution of Christians. They say that we are free to worship, but we are not. End the persecution of Christians. Stop the…”
A police officer with a black club came over, grabbing the pamphlet. “What is this? Stop what you’re doing. You are not allowed to give this out. You do not have permission. Who are you?” He pointed the club at Lin Yu.