Chapter 1665
Morning.
A little past nine.
Formal work hours have begun.
Dong Xuebing washed the tea set, brewed a few cups, and busied himself in his office for a while. Director Yin wasn"t around, so the work here could only be managed by him. Dong Xuebing made a few phone calls to the Provincial Discipline Inspection Departments in Jiangnan Province and the provinces responsible for the Second Division, instructing them to track and learn from the open day at the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. He also instructed them to convey relevant directives in the internal party newspaper. It was just about discussing some details; the general direction had already been decided, and personnel from various departments would attend meetings at the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection this Sat.u.r.day.
Five minutes... ten minutes pa.s.sed, and there was a knock on the door.
Dong Xuebing looked up. "Please come in."
"Director Dong," Zhang Dongliang entered. "The people have arrived."
"Where have they reached our side?" Dong Xuebing asked.
Zhang Dongliang replied, "Not yet. They"ve just arrived at the press conference hall and are inspecting. They"ll probably come to our side around eleven o"clock."
Dong Xuebing nodded. "Okay, let everyone be alert."
"Got it." Zhang Dongliang excused himself and left.
After a while, Dong Xuebing received a call from Yin Cheng"an about this matter. Yin Cheng"an repeatedly reminded Dong Xuebing not to let any problems occur. Dong Xuebing naturally understood. He wasn"t new to working in government offices. He had more experience dealing with leaders.h.i.+p inspections and media personnel than others. After all, Dong Xuebing didn"t climb up through internal promotions within the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection or other ministries. He had worked in many gra.s.sroots counties and cities, where work was much more complicated than here. Dong Xuebing was probably the only one with so much gra.s.sroots experience in the Second office. People like Han Fei and He Zhou probably hadn"t worked at the gra.s.sroots level. Inspections there were real inspections. Even if there were problems during inspections at the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, there probably wouldn"t be any media coverage. The tasks and missions here only required reporting good news without mentioning any problems, which were political tasks. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection represented the country"s image, so their pressure wouldn"t be as complex as at the gra.s.sroots level even with such an important inspection.
It was almost noon.
The inspection team arrived a bit late, almost at lunchtime.
They couldn"t wait for them, so they still had to eat. The cafeteria was already open. So when it hit noon, Dong Xuebing walked out of his office. "Let"s go, it"s time for lunch."
They all put down what they were doing, took their meal cards, and went downstairs with Dong Xuebing.
The inspection team members didn"t know which office building they went to. Anyway, they didn"t see anyone outside, just journalists scattered around, and some foreigners with cameras busy taking photos everywhere. Some blonde female journalists also caught Dong Xuebing"s attention, and he couldn"t help but take a second look. This exotic atmosphere had its charm for him.
"There are a lot of people here," He Zhou said.
Han Fei, unusually serious, said, "Let"s walk properly, stand tall. Don"t let them take any photos that would affect our image. That would be embarra.s.sing, especially if it spread overseas."
Dong Xuebing chuckled, not as tense as they were.
Second cafeteria.
They entered one after another.
Since Zhang Dongliang had the lowest rank, he immediately told Dong Xuebing, "Director Dong, you go ahead and sit. Let me know what you want, and I"ll get it for you."
Dong Xuebing waved his hand. "No need, I"ll do it myself. Thanks anyway."
Zhang Dongliang continued, "Don"t be polite with me about these small matters."
Dong Xuebing still didn"t let him go. Firstly, he didn"t like to trouble others; if he could do something himself, he preferred to. He liked to be hands-on. Secondly, Dong Xuebing saw many unfamiliar faces in the cafeteria, some wearing press badges around their necks, some foreigners, and some with cameras hanging around them. They were probably all here for the open day. Dong Xuebing didn"t feel comfortable letting others help him get food, as it might not look good if someone saw it.
In line.
Everyone started serving themselves.
But suddenly, Dong Xuebing saw a familiar figure on the side, causing his pupils to contract, and his expression didn"t look too good.
It was Fang Wenping.
That old woman from the Fang family.
Fang Wenping, who was also queuing up on the other side, seemed to have noticed. She turned her head slightly and saw Dong Xuebing. Her expression also turned sour, and her gaze turned cold.
Old enemies meet.
They both disliked each other.
Fang Wenping was not as gorgeously dressed as on Sat.u.r.day, but wore plain professional attire today. Dong Xuebing didn"t expect to run into her in the cafeteria. He wanted to kick her. For some reason, Dong Xuebing usually had manners, especially towards women, especially towards beautiful women, but Fang Wenping was an exception. Dong Xuebing felt irritated whenever he saw her; he couldn"t stand her.
Neither of them acknowledged each other.
After serving their food, Dong Xuebing carried his tray to find a place. Today, there were many people, including many outsiders, and the cafeteria was crowded, with people rubbing shoulders with each other.
Suddenly, Han Fei found a seat and called, "Director Dong, He Zhou, Zhao Bang, come over here quickly." After speaking, she sat down and occupied the s.p.a.ce.
Dong Xuebing looked over and walked towards them.
But at this moment, Fang Wenping also walked up from the opposite direction, seeming to want to go in the opposite direction. Many people were around, so they had to walk with their bodies turned sideways. As a result, Fang Wenping and Dong Xuebing ended up facing each other again. Enemies meeting was particularly awkward. However, neither of them gave way to let the other pa.s.s. The result was that they ended up shoulder-to-shoulder, and in their collision, both their trays flew out of their hands and fell to the ground.
Clang!
Clatter!
The trays they were holding fell to the ground.
People around them turned their heads one after another, making way for the spilled food, avoiding the two of them.
Originally, no one paid much attention. Such collisions were inevitable, especially with so many people here today for the open day. But they didn"t know that Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping had just fought a couple of days ago. The Fang family and the Xie family were arch-enemies among arch-enemies.
At that moment, Fang Wenping got angry. "Are you blind?" she cursed.
Dong Xuebing wasn"t one to hold back, either. Hearing her, he narrowed his eyes. "Are you blind? Are you deliberately walking like that?"
They started arguing again.
Obscenities and dirty words flew everywhere.
The people from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection around them were all dumbfounded. They looked at Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping in shock and bewilderment.
What"s going on?
This can"t be happening!