Chapter 1916

Chapter 1916

Outside the park:

The sky was still bright, and the setting sun was not yet fully darkened.

Seeing this star-studded lineup, the ordinary citizens outside the park were not as composed as the local officials inside. Many people gasped in amazement.

“Aaron!”

“Liu Han!”

“Ah, Chen Ying!”

“Even Professor Zhou is here!”

“I must be seeing things; there are so many celebrities!”

The celebrities were used to it, continuing their casual conversations without showing any discomfort.

In contrast, Secretary Dong was very alert. He had brought some staff from Jiaolin County in case they encountered a fan crowding situation. Thankfully, once they entered the hotel, nothing like that happened. The ordinary citizens were still quite restrained, which reassured Secretary Dong.

Then, there were the cries from the hotel staff.

Secretary Dong automatically ignored them and led his group to a large private room. There were about forty people, enough to fill four tables. Most were from the song and dance troupe.

Dinner began.

Secretary Dong filled his glass and offered a toast. Suddenly, Zhang Dongfang also entered. He also socialized with investors in this area, with the hotel conveniently nearby for activities.

“Old Zhang, just in time,” Secretary Dong smiled.

Zhang Dongfang also had a glass in hand. “Haha, better late than never. I just heard from the waiter that you were here, so I rushed over.”

Secretary Dong continued, “Then I’ll toast everyone on behalf of Old Zhang and me.”

Zhang Dongfang added, “Thank you all for visiting Jiaolin County. We’re truly honored.”

“Secretary Dong, County Mayor Zhang, you’re too polite. It’s just a small favor on our part, a mere gesture.” Everyone raised their glasses and stood up. Some drank soft drinks, some beer, some wine—everyone toasted with Secretary Dong and his group, all very cheerfully, no one holding back.

The atmosphere was vivacious, and there was some light conversation.

Toward the end, Zhang Dongfang looked at Secretary Dong. “Xuebing.”

Secretary Dong saw he had something to say. He nodded to Meng Hanmei, “Old Meng, you accompany everyone here. I’ll step outside for a moment.”

“Okay,” Meng Hanmei replied.

Secretary Dong and Zhang Dongfang then left the large private room.

Once outside, Secretary Dong asked, “What’s up, Old Zhang?”

Zhang Dongfang took a deep breath, “That Ms Zhang, who came with a few foreign celebrities, could she be Zhang Longjuan, the head of that American investment group?”

Secretary Dong nodded, “Yes, that’s her. You know her?”

Zhang Dongfang said, “More than just know her. That investment group is very well-known overseas. I didn’t realize it at first. Just now, while eating next to them, someone recognized Zhang and started talking. I overheard a few things, and I couldn’t quite believe it. That investment group is a major player. You’ve known Zhang Longjuan for a long time—if their company invests in our county, well…”

Secretary Dong gave a wry smile, “It’s a long shot. It’s better not to have high hopes. Let’s see how things play out. If we can negotiate, we’ll try our best.” Secretary Dong didn’t want to bother Zhang Longjuan with their investment this time. Last time, he had persuaded Sister Zhang to help them in a poor county, investing over a billion. This time, it was already a big ask to have Sister Zhang bring so many foreign celebrities. Secretary Dong didn’t feel comfortable asking for more. Although he did have shares in that company, he didn’t like acknowledging them. Helping Sister Zhang out was purely due to personal friendship, and he didn’t intend to take any of the profits. “By the way, I still haven’t greeted the investors. Let’s go; I’ll offer them a toast.”

The private room of the investors was just next door.

Secretary Dong and Zhang Dongfang entered.

“Hey, Secretary Dong’s here.”

“Haha, Brother Dong, we’ve been waiting for you for ages.”

“Come on, let’s have a good drink. I’ll toast you, Secretary Dong.”

Secretary Dong hurriedly said, “No, this drink should be for all of you.”

The investors exchanged pleasantries when Zhang Dongfang was present, and the atmosphere wasn’t vivacious. But as soon as Secretary Dong entered, Wei Zhixuan and a few other county leaders and cadres present couldn’t help but notice— the atmosphere immediately changed. Everyone seemed to feel like they had known Secretary Dong for many years. This was the effect of Secretary Dong building relationships at the airport; he had a way with people.

One cup.

Three cups.

Five cups.

Secretary Dong didn’t hold back at all, one after another, drinking away, and everyone loved it. Seeing the county party secretary drinking like that with them, they had even better impressions of him. That was strong liquor, Moutai no less.

“Good!”

“Bring it on!”

“Secretary Dong has great drinking capacity.”

Dong Xuebing smiled, “My drinking capacity isn’t great, but I’m just happy everyone is here today, so I must accompany you all. I’ll drink whatever you pour me.”

Zhang Longjuan laughed and said, “Haha, then I’ll toast you too.”

By this point, Zhang Dongfang and many other leaders had to admit that despite Secretary Dong’s short temper, his work capacity was unmatched. With just a few words, he could quickly build rapport with investors and could handle so many cups of alcohol without batting an eye. Even the head of a prominent investment group Zhang Longjuan, personally showed up, as did domestic celebrities like Liu Han, who came to support, and even Chen Ying, who hadn’t been invited, also voluntarily showed up, bringing a group from the Central Performance Troupe. How much influence did Secretary Dong have?

After enjoying himself with drinks, Secretary Dong found an excuse to leave.

Outside:

A clerk from the county government office was talking to the hotel owner about something.

“Boss, can you give us a discount? We’ve been having our meals here for the past few days, so there should be a little discount, right?” the clerk asked.

“We’ve already given you an internal rate, as we agreed earlier. We didn’t dare to overcharge our county at all; it’s all cost price,” the owner explained honestly. He wanted to show some face to the county, but he couldn’t afford to make a loss either.

Dong Xuebing overheard as he passed by and saw that the clerk seemed to be haggling. He looked over and asked, “What’s going on?”

The clerk immediately stiffened his expression upon seeing it was Secretary Dong, and then his face turned a little troubled. “Secretary, um, I just thought the hotel could give us a discount. We’re a bit tight on funds now, and now we have almost nothing left. We only have about 200,000 RMB left, most of which went into the stage setup. Plus, the costs for the investors and the celebrities’ travel and accommodation are quite high, so we’re quite stretched. If we can save a bit, it’s a bit.”

Secretary Dong nodded, also aware that funds were very tight this time. “Boss.”

“Secretary Dong.” The hotel owner also recognized him, silently calling for trouble. If the county party secretary asked for credit, he had no choice but to agree. He had heard of this happening before—a leader dining out on credit was not uncommon. He was used to it, but the amount was no small sum this time. The boss could handle a few people dining a few times, but he was in trouble with so many people eating for so many days.

But Secretary Dong had no intention of running a tab. He wasn’t that kind of person. Since he entered the system, Secretary Dong has never reported an outside meal to his unit—not once. He paid for everything himself. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the money. He didn’t have that habit. “The dishes are good, and the flavors are excellent. Our county’s meals have been taken care of for the past couple of days at your restaurant. Hmm, how about giving us a freebie?”

The restaurant owner was dumbfounded, “Free?”

A few people from the county government office around them almost fainted.

Secretary Dong said, “I won’t let you do it for free without getting anything in return. You see, we’ve brought some stars here, right?”

The owner blinked, “Saw them all. They’re all big names.”

He had awkwardly gone over to ask for autographs, especially liking the TV dramas starring Chen Ying.

Secretary Dong nodded, which made things easier, “Later when the stars leave the restaurant, I’ll have someone take photos with your restaurant’s name included. We'll include this scene tomorrow in the morning and evening newspapers, and I’m sure it’ll be re-shared online soon.”

No need to say much.

The owner instantly understood, his eyes lighting up. Without a second thought, he said, “Alright, for these next few days, we’ve taken care of all the food for you and the leaders and guest stars.”

Secretary Dong said, “Including the drinks.”

“All the drinks, too, are completely free.” The owner readily agreed.

Later, Zhang Dongfang and Chen Ying, who was going to the restroom, also overheard.

The county government officials and a few investment bureau members were dumbfounded. They thought Secretary Dong was being too miserly—they just wanted a little discount, and here he was offering everything for free, using the star power as soft advertising. It didn’t seem like something a county party secretary should do. But looking at Secretary Dong’s expression, he didn’t care. Everyone was impressed. Well, you brought all these stars, didn’t even charge a penny for their appearance fee, and now you’re saving on their meals and squeezing out the investment costs for the staff from Jiaoling County.

So miserly!

Never seen anyone so miserly!

And it sounded a bit mean, honestly.

After everything was settled, Secretary Dong turned to leave. Just as he turned around, he saw Chen Ying, his face slightly embarrassed. “Cough, Chen Ying is here too.”

Chen Ying couldn’t help but smile, “Old classmate, you’re something else.”

Zhang Dongfang quickly said, “We’re limited in conditions, it can’t be helped.”

The stars had heard, making everyone from Jiaoling County feel embarrassed and red-faced. Embarrassing.

Secretary Dong didn’t feel too awkward about it. After all, Chen Ying wasn’t an ordinary person to him—she was a classmate. The two of them walked together towards the restroom. Secretary Dong said, “Old classmate, not envying me now, huh? Being a county party secretary isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. I have to take care of eating and drinking, this and that. When I don’t have money, I have to ask; when I don’t have enough, I have to save. Cough, pretend you didn’t hear that earlier, okay? Don’t mention it to anyone else.”

Chen Ying laughed, “Alright, I get it. Haha, it’s just funny. Being a county party secretary isn’t easy.”

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