Power and Wealth

After dinner.

It was already seven o'clock, and the sky outside had darkened.

The stars scattered across the sky, and tonight’s sky looked beautiful.

After giving some final instructions, Dong Xuebing left the restaurant alone, dialing a number for his driver, Xiao Wang. His car quickly arrived at the entrance, and Dong Xuebing got in.

"Secretary," Xiao Wang greeted him.

Dong Xuebing nodded and said, "Take me to the staff compound."

Although the staff compound still had some reception tasks, Xiao Wang, as a driver, understood his role well. He knew when to ask questions and remain silent, so he didn't express any confusion and just started driving.

Arriving at home.

Dong Xuebing didn't have any work to do. He brewed a cup of tea and took it upstairs. He walked to a small outdoor platform and sat down, enjoying his tea and the moon. There was a sense of tranquility, though it was also a way for him to calm down after the anger he had been feeling earlier. He had been furious today with the city officials and the foreigners. One after another, they had shown blatant disrespect, acting as if they were doing him a favor.

At the restaurant entrance.

People were gradually leaving.

The investors had departed, and most county officials had left, leaving only a few leaders and some staff members. The place was almost deserted.

A person from the County Party Office looked around, wiped his sweat, and said with a wry smile to Meng Hanmei, "Director Meng, do you think this welcoming party looks a bit... inadequate?" He didn’t think a large-scale reception was necessary for the foreigners, especially after everything that had happened. No one in Jiao Lin County had a good impression of them. But the reason he brought it up was the city’s attitude. When Bao Hong City welcomed foreign guests, the mayor and the Party Secretary both attended, showing how important the event was to them. Although Zhang Dongfang was also present now, the county's top leader was Secretary Dong, and with him absent, the reception seemed too small-scale and insufficient, especially compared to the city’s grand approach. It seemed like they hadn’t kept pace with the higher-ups.

Meng Hanmei looked at him and replied, "What can we do?"

The man scratched his head, "Should I call a few more people from the County Party Office to come over?"

He thought that having more people around might help liven up the scene.

Meng Hanmei shook her head, "Don’t be so clever. Didn’t you see that Secretary Dong was angry today? The hotel bookings were all canceled. That’s already showing our attitude."

The man paused, realizing she was right. If they had continued making a big show of welcoming the foreigners after Dong Xuebing’s outburst, it would have been disrespectful to him. It was clear that such a thing wouldn’t happen. He sighed, seeing how this situation had turned out.

8:00 PM.

On the outskirts of Jiao Lin County.

Several Audi A8s were driving on the road, followed by a few government vehicles clearing the way. A convoy of about ten cars was a magnificent sight.

In one of the cars.

Deputy Director Niu was still frowning. The phone call with Dong Xuebing had ruined his entire meal, and he was seething with anger. His mood was awful. He had been assigned this task by the city and had been instructed to prioritize the needs of the foreigners, ensuring everything went smoothly during their visit. He had followed all the instructions, managing the details of their accommodations and meals to the highest standards. While this wasn’t exactly a political mission, it was close enough so Deputy Director Niu, a person of some importance, didn’t pay much attention to Dong Xuebing . He knew that the city wasn’t particularly fond of the new county party secretary from Jiao Lin, which further soured his attitude. When their itinerary changed, he forgot to inform the county officials. It wasn’t intentional, but what shocked him was that the county party secretary had dared to curse at him.

This damn bastard.

What kind of county party secretary is this?

"Director Niu, maybe we should notify the city," a staff member from the city government office suggested. They had heard about the earlier phone call.

Deputy Director Niu frowned, his face darkening. "Let's go there first."

"We're almost at Jiao Lin County now," someone reported.

"Alright," Deputy Director Niu replied. "Get the foreign guests settled first. We'll deal with the other matters later." He was holding back his anger, but for now, he was trying to prioritize the bigger picture.

Sometime later, at the restaurant, which was the designated location.

Deputy Director Niu told the Jiao Lin County officials on the phone that they were supposed to arrive before 8:00 PM. However, they had once again broken their promise. The foreign guests' cars arrived at almost 8:30 PM, so Zhang Dongfang and the Jiao Lin County people had to wait outside in the cold for half an hour.

Once is acceptable.

Twice is tolerable.

But everything has a limit.

By this time, Zhang Dongfang was beginning to get upset. Initially, he had reservations about Secretary Dong's outburst, believing that no matter what, they had to put on a good face and properly host the foreign guests. But now, his opinion was changing. The foreigners had not arrived at the agreed time, the dinner plans had been changed multiple times, and they were again reneging on their commitment to arrive before 8:00 PM. Even Zhang Dongfang, who usually puts the bigger picture first, felt like quitting.

This was too much.

Where was their sense of punctuality?

The convoy pulled up, and the cars came to a stop one by one. The guests, sparse as they were, began to disembark.

Quite a few people from the UK exchange group, a mix of blonde and red-haired individuals, all dressed in suits. After getting out of the cars, they exchanged a few words and then looked at the reception arranged by Jiao Lin County. Several of them furrowed their brows, clearly displeased with the scene as if they had some complaints.

Deputy Director Niu, seeing this, was not just upset but angry. He felt his dignity had been insulted. He walked up and said, "Is this how you’re going to receive them?"

Meng Hanmei’s face darkened. You’re late twice, canceling once, and now you’re complaining to us? This is the pot calling the kettle black.

No one from Jiao Lin County responded to him.

Deputy Director Niu continued, scanning the scattered group of about ten people, his face growing more grim. "Where’s your county’s Secretary Dong? Why isn’t he here?" As the person in charge of receiving foreign guests in Bao Hong City, Niu spoke with authority. After being cursed at by Dong Xuebing, his tone became even more aggressive. "What’s going on here? Didn’t the city tell you you should provide the highest reception level? Is this how you’re doing it? No county party secretary showing up, and this is what you call a reception? Do you not take the city’s instructions seriously?"

The Jiao Lin County officials were deeply uncomfortable with his words, agreeing silently with Dong Xuebing ’s earlier insult of Niu. This guy was acting like he had the authority to boss them around. After all, he was only a deputy director, a mid-level official. Who did he think he was, speaking to them like this? Did he think he represented Bao Hong City?

In their hearts, they were all cursing him.

This Deputy Director Niu had the worst attitude.

But Deputy Director Niu didn't stop there. He continued to lash out at them, taking out his anger over Dong Xuebing on the Jiao Lin County officials.

"Director Niu!" Zhang Dongfang stepped forward from behind and interrupted him.

Deputy Director Niu only then noticed Zhang Dongfang in the crowd. Naturally, he recognized him. Although they hadn’t had many dealings before, he slightly softened his tone when criticizing Jiao Lin County, as he knew Zhang Dongfang had a good relationship with the city and had to show him some respect. “County Mayor Zhang.”

Zhang Dongfang said, "Shouldn’t we receive the foreign guests first?"

Although Dong Xuebing dared to criticize Deputy Director Niu, Zhang Dongfang, while not someone who would swear, was not afraid of Deputy Director Niu. Ultimately, it came down to their rank, and since Old Zhang was also quite upset, he decided to take a direct jab at him.

Deputy Director Niu and the city government office staff were displeased by this.

Before anyone could respond, the British exchange group members started chattering, and the translator spoke a few words before approaching them and saying, "Where are your investors? It’s still early. The exchange group would like to talk to the entrepreneurs first."

Deputy Director Niu replied, "Okay, I’ll arrange it immediately."

The translator nodded and went back.

"Where are the people? Gather the investors and set up a quick meeting. It’s getting late, so let’s just have a simple one," Deputy Director Niu ordered.

Meng Hanmei replied indifferently, "They’ve all left."

Deputy Director Niu glared at her. "What do you mean?"

Meng Hanmei wasn’t showing him any courtesy. She had been planning to let it slide and get through the day, hoping that everything would smooth over once the guests left. But this Deputy Director Niu was utterly incompetent and tactless, behaving just like the foreigners, acting like they were high and mighty. Now, she had no patience left. She responded, "Our invited entrepreneurs arrived before 6:00 PM, waiting for you and the foreign guests. But we didn't even get a notice when the guests didn’t show up. Director Niu, are you saying we should have let our entrepreneurs wait here for more than two hours, just waiting for the foreign guests to meet with them? If I remember correctly, the foreign guests were the ones who wanted to attract our investors to their country. But now it feels like our entrepreneurs are waiting eagerly for them, hoping to get a chance to invest in them."

Old Meng didn’t curse, but anyone who knew her could tell she was also furious.

Indeed, these people's attitudes were completely out of line. If the foreign guests were coming to Jiao Lin County to invest, it would be one thing to wait a little while, to be modest, but this was a situation where the foreigners had traveled thousands of miles, hoping to get Jiao Lin County’s investors to invest in their country. Yet, their attitude made it feel like it was the other way around as if Jiao Lin County owed them something.

You can do whatever you want.

You can cancel meetings or have our entrepreneurs wait as if it’s nothing.