Chapter 1525: Interview
The scene fell silent.
Many people were dumbfounded.
Officials in the government were susceptible to the t.i.tle "Director Dong" because Dong Xuebing had caused too many incidents within the system. Even if they didn"t know about his specific deeds, just mentioning Dong Xuebing"s name made many people in Fenzhou City s.h.i.+ver. However, ordinary people were not very aware of this. They might have heard Dong Xuebing"s name but didn"t connect the dots. So, they all looked at Dong Xuebing and others, wondering who this young man was and why he dared to hit someone in front of so many traffic police officers, who were all treating him with great respect.
The young woman blinked her eyes repeatedly.
The truck driver"s heart sank at the sight.
Secretary Wan Fanglei and Mayor Zhong Zhengwei also saw Dong Xuebing"s face and were momentarily stunned. They hadn"t expected him to be present as well.
"Mayor Dong," Wan Fanglei thought, "No wonder that silhouette looked familiar. So it"s this guy.
Dong Xuebing walked past the traffic police officers and greeted them, "Secretary Wan, Mayor Zhong."
Zhong Zhengwei smiled, "When did you come back? Are you here to visit Mayor Xie?"
Dong Xuebing smiled, "Yes, my wife is about to give birth. I have to accompany her. But I didn"t specifically come back. I"ve been transferred. I"ll take up a new post in Beijing next month."
Zhong Zhengwei was taken aback.
Other officials were speechless as well.
Has he been transferred again? How fast is his promotion? He was just a Deputy Division Chief before and is now being transferred back to Beijing. Doesn"t that mean he"ll be a Division Chief? And he"s only twenty-six years old!
The officials were speechless, but they had gotten used to it. Dong Xuebing"s first position in Fenzhou City was as the Deputy Section Chief of the county’s Public Security Bureau. He was a Deputy Division Director in the Discipline Inspection Commission when he left. In just one or two years, he had been promoted from Deputy Section Chief to Deputy Division Chief. Now, another promotion didn"t surprise them anymore. There was nothing they could do. He had the ability.
After directing the scene clearance work, Xie Huilan walked back slowly with her protruding belly. She frowned and looked at Dong Xuebing, "Who told you to hit someone?"
Dong Xuebing replied, "He caused the traffic accident."
Xie Huilan said, "Even so, you shouldn"t resort to violence. What kind of example is that?"
The couple had some differences in opinion. Xie Huilan criticized Dong Xuebing first, so others didn"t say anything.
Indeed. Zhong Zhengwei immediately smoothed things over, "I"ve heard about the cause of the accident. That truck driver went too far, and his att.i.tude at the end was unacceptable. Understandably, Mayor Dong couldn"t control his emotions." Then he looked at Dong Xuebing. "When did you learn medicine?"
Dong Xuebing replied, "I learned it long ago, but it"s just basic knowledge. I"m not as professional as the doctors."
Zhong Zhengwei said, "I don"t think so. The hospital doctors said your first aid skills were even more professional than theirs. You always hide your talents and manage to surprise people."
"You"re too kind, Mayor Zhong."
"Well done. We"re lucky to have you this time."
With the topic s.h.i.+fted like this, the matter of Dong Xuebing hitting someone was glossed over.
This was the privilege of leaders. Dong Xuebing had been promoted, his wife was a deputy mayor, and Dong Xuebing had rescued all the injured people at the scene. Even though he had made a mistake by resorting to violence, no one would say anything. The focus was on the accident, and thanks to Dong Xuebing"s rescue efforts, the storm caused by the car accident had subsided. No lives were lost. This was the best outcome.
The leaders continued to command the scene.
Dong Xuebing walked over to Xie Huilan"s side, putting his arm around her and asking about her well-being.
"Is the baby okay?"
"Everything"s fine."
"I shouldn"t have let you come. Your belly is so big now."
"If the people have an accident, how can I not come?"
The nearby onlookers finally realized that the unremarkable young man who had just rescued people was Xie Mayor"s husband and the famous earthquake hero in Fenzhou City in recent years, Dong Xuebing. No wonder he hit someone, and n.o.body intervened. According to hearsay, Dong Xuebing had fought quite a few people during his tenure in Fenzhou City. Not just small-time hooligans, even colleagues and superiors had been involved, yet no one said anything. Although he had been transferred for half a year, Dong Xuebing was still Dong Xuebing. His influence in Fenzhou City remained profound, or perhaps notorious would be a more fitting term. Such reckless officials, even leaders with higher ranks than Dong Xuebing, were unwilling to offend him easily because no one knew what he might do.
If other officials publicly hit someone, people might be shocked momentarily. But if the G.o.d of Plagues got into a fight, those who knew him would know it was just business as usual. If the plague G.o.d stopped hitting people one day, then everyone would be amazed. That was how notorious he was.
The old officials in Fenzhou City were all aware of him.
The situation was almost handled, but the leaders didn"t leave. After all, it was a major traffic accident, and the aftermath still needed to be dealt with. Xie Huilan didn"t chat with Dong Xuebing anymore and continued to command. Wan Fanglei, Zhong Zhengwei, and other officials greeted the injured families and frightened crowds, answering a few questions from journalists. The scene entered the cleanup stage.
With nothing else to do, Dong Xuebing checked his Land Rover. Seeing that there were no problems, he prepared to drive away.
However, he couldn"t leave yet.
Because kind-hearted people surrounded him again, along with journalists.
One by one, many family members arrived at the scene. After showing their ID cards, they were brought in by the highway staff. When they saw their husbands, wives, fathers, and mothers were okay and heard about the situation at the scene, they all thanked Dong Xuebing. Finally, Zhong Zhengwei walked over. During the interviews with the cameras and TV station staff, on behalf of the munic.i.p.al government, he thanked Dong Xuebing for rus.h.i.+ng up to the scene to extinguish the fire and save people the first moment after the accident. He thanked him for maintaining order at the scene and stabilizing the emotions so that the miracle of no casualties could happen.
Suppose Dong Xuebing were still an official in Fenzhou City, Zhong Zhengwei and the city leaders certainly wouldn"t need to thank him, as it was his duty. But now that Dong Xuebing had been transferred away and his file was no longer in Fenzhou City, this thank you still needed to be said.
Dong Xuebing accepted it and spoke pa.s.sionately into the camera, "My wife, Xie Huilan, often tells me that we officials are here to serve the people, so there"s nothing to say. It"s our duty."