Power and Wealth
Chapter 1367 – Xie Huilan is coming?
Noon.
County Government building.
Deputy County Mayor Office.
After the commendation ceremony, Dong Xuebing reviewed the documents that had piled up during his hospitalization in his office. Many of the documents were planning reports for the family quarters’ renovation and rebuilding, prepared by the County Government Office at his request. After flipping through it, he felt somewhat dissatisfied. Their funds were limited, only thirty million RMB, and the estimated cost for this plan was thirty million RMB. If there were any unforeseen expenses, there would be no way to cover the shortfall. Moreover, such a large project was not just about building and repairing buildings. It also involved personnel placement and the emotions of the families. Construction couldn’t start all at once. There had to be a certain order, deciding which unit’s family quarter building to construct first and which unit’s building to repair. This required careful planning and was not easy to handle.
Knock, knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.” Dong Xuebing looked up.
Yao Cui entered, holding a meal that she placed on Dong Xuebing’s desk. “I knew you’d be too busy to eat, so I brought this up.”
Dong Xuebing smiled. “Thank you.”
Yao Cui sat down. “Eat while it’s hot, don’t let it get cold.”
Dong Xuebing asked, “Sure, have you eaten? Let’s eat together.”
Yao Cui smiled, “I’ve already eaten at the cafeteria.”
Dong Xuebing nodded, put down the files without looking at them, and began to eat. The cafeteria’s food was average, and one could only fill their stomach.
After the meal, Dong Xuebing remembered something and pointed to the planning document on the table. “I’ve looked at the plan made by the office. It’s not ideal. Ask them to revise it.”
Yao Cui blinked, “What’s the issue?”
Dong Xuebin said, “We need to lower the budget a bit more.”
Yao Cui noted it down with a pen. “Alright, I’ll talk to them.”
“And there’s a problem with the order of construction. The aging conditions of the family quarters are not the same, and everyone wants to start with their own. It will create many problems, and this plan won’t work.”
“Okay, I’ll have them revise it later.”
“Prepare a few more proposals. We’ll discuss them together later.”
Yao Cui asked about Dong Xuebing’s injuries before leaving.
Dong Xuebing attached great importance to this project. It was his first significant task since taking office. He valued the achievements and wanted outstanding results. However, he was adept at political maneuvering and unconventional methods. When it came to formal and straightforward work, he was somewhat clueless. It was amusing to think about it. He had been in the system for many years but hadn’t done any serious work. So, when real work came along, he was at a loss.
Ring, ring, ring.
The phone on the desk rang.
Dong Xuebing answered, “Hello, who is this?”
“It’s Jiang Fangfang,” came Mayor Jiang’s voice.
Dong Xuebing’s expression brightened, “Mayor Jiang, how can I help you?”
“Just checking in, how are you handling the work on hand? I gave you half a month off. Don’t rush with work. You should focus on recovering your health first.”
“My health is fine now. It’s just that the planning for the family quarters project hasn’t been finalized.”
“No need to rush on that. Provide a rough plan within this month, and we can work on the details later.”
“But the rough plan hasn’t been determined yet. I had my subordinates outline it. However, there are significant issues. If you have a moment, can you take a look?”
“I don’t have time right now. You go ahead and finalize it. Report to me when it’s ready. I have to go to the city this afternoon. I just finished handling county matters and must report the collapsed family quarters situation to the city. It’ll take me until tomorrow to return. You decide on the plan.”
“Alright,” Dong Xuebing rubbed his temples, realizing this achievement was not as easy to obtain as he thought.
Jiang Fangfang suddenly said, “I called you for something else.”
“Yes, what is it?” Dong Xuebing asked.
“Are you sure you’re completely recovered?”
“I’m fine now. The wounds have healed.”
“Okay, this afternoon or evening, according to the schedule we set yesterday, I’ll be visiting the families of the injured and those relocated from the Public Security Bureau. We might also need to survey the aging conditions of other family quarters and residential areas. It’s a politically significant visit that TV and newspaper reporters will record. Secretary Meng and other relevant leaders will attend. However, I have to go to the city. If you’re physically well, represent the County government at the event.”
“Sure,” Dong Xuebing thought for a moment. It was just a formality, explaining to the public. He understood.
Jiang Fangfang continued, “Secretary Meng and others will be accompanied by their spouses to enhance the sense of warmth. What about your side? Can your spouse make it?”
Bringing his Wife
He did want to, but how was he going to bring her?
Dong Xuebing sighed, “She’s busier than me and won’t be able to make it this afternoon. It takes three to four hours for her to fly over.”
“No problem, you can go alone.”
“Alright, I’ll change my clothes in a bit.”
Shortly after hanging up, Secretary Meng’s secretary, Zhang Feng, called. He mentioned the same matter, and Dong Xuebing naturally agreed. He would not have been too keen on going if it weren’t for Jiang Fangfang’s call. He didn’t like this kind of political show, finding it somewhat fake. However, since Mayor Jiang had to go to the city for something, the County Government had to send someone, and Dong Xuebing, the Deputy County Mayor, had to go.
He checked the time. It was almost time.
Dong Xuebing didn’t hurry back to change his clothes. Instead, he opened his computer and read the news, reviewing the events during his hospital stay.
One page…
Five pages…
Ten pages…
Suddenly, a piece of news caught Dong Xuebing’s eye.
It was about a city conducting educational research in their city. The news had just been posted a few minutes ago. Although Mei He City was economically and infrastructurally underdeveloped, its education sector was doing well. Every year, many students from Mei He City enter top national universities. Perhaps it was due to poverty that the students were more diligent. Because of this, the Central Government allocated a considerable amount of special funds for education to Mei He City. This was the only aspect that Mei He City could be proud of.
It wasn’t surprising for another city to come for educational research.
However, what stunned Dong Xuebing was that the visiting city was Fen Zhou City.
Due to the unimportance of the news, there wasn’t much detail, but Dong Xuebing knew that Huilan was in charge of the education in Fenzhou City.
Damn!
Could it be that his wife was leading the delegation?
Thinking of the surprise mentioned by Huilan in the phone call, Dong Xuebing couldn’t help but smile.