Chapter 1666
Cafeteria.
The sound of arguing continued.
Dong Xuebing shouted, "Why did you b.u.mp into me?"
"Who the h.e.l.l b.u.mped into who?" Fang Wenping cursed rudely.
"I was walking normally, and you just b.u.mped into me. What"s your intention?" Dong Xuebing said coldly. "Are you looking for trouble? I, Dong Xuebing, am not afraid of trouble."
Fang Wenping pointed to the ground. "You little brat, pick up the tray for me."
"I am telling you too," Dong Xuebing pointed to the dropped tray and food on the ground, "Make me another serving. You b.u.mped into someone and didn"t even apologize. Who do you think you are?"
Fang Wenping retorted coldly, "I should be saying that to you. How dare you speak to me like that?"
Dong Xuebing didn"t back down. "Sorry, it"s just my habit of speaking. Unlike some female comrade who opens her mouth is full of foul language."
Fang Wenping replied matter-of-factly, "I"m cursing at you. What about it?"
"Hey, you"re challenging me, huh?" Dong Xuebing pointed at her. "Say it again."
Fang Wenping took a big step forward, almost pressing her face against Dong Xuebing"s. "I"m cursing at you, you little brat. Watch your impudent att.i.tude."
Originally, the cafeteria was bustling with people serving food, with hundreds of people making quite a bit of noise even without speaking. But at this moment, the second cafeteria strangely fell silent. Everyone around was speechless, staring at Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping arguing. Some were sweating, some were terrified, and some were almost spitting blood. No one could have imagined that Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping, leaders of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, would suddenly start cursing each other over a trivial matter in the cafeteria.
You two are leaders!
Today is the open day of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection!
There are foreign journalists and domestic media workers inside!
At this time, in this situation, in this environment, anyone with a bit of common sense wouldn"t do such a thing. Two leaders of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection cursing each other in the cafeteria over a trivial matter without any grace—this is the overall quality of the officials of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Thinking that this might appear in the news and that foreign media might report it, many people in the cafeteria felt dizzy. They slapped their foreheads and covered their eyes.
What kind of behavior is this?
What kind of behavior is this?
If this incident were to be exposed, they would lose face nationally—no, internationally. It"s too conspicuous.
Not to mention the people from the Discipline Inspection Commission, some journalists present at the scene were also dumbfounded.
Journalists from several domestic newspapers and TV stations stared blankly at the two of them, their minds almost unable to keep up. Several foreign journalists with blonde hair were also stunned. Some of them understood Mandarin. Listening to the unbearable curses, some female journalists even blushed.
What"s going on here?
At this moment, they felt like they were not at the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection for inspection and interviews but in the cafeteria of a construction site in the suburbs.
Things happened too quickly.
Many people had just barely reacted.
As a result, Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping had already exchanged more than a dozen curses.
There were also many leading cadres in the second cafeteria. If it had been a normal day, they might not have been so nervous, but today was different. If something happened on the open day, no one could escape responsibility. So, several cadres hurriedly rushed up and tried to intervene.
"Oh my."
"Stop fighting."
"Director Fang, Director Dong, calm down."
Over there, Han Fei and He Zhou stood dumbfoundedly, bewildered, holding their food. As they regained their senses, everyone from the Second Division rushed over in a panic. Zhang Dongliang was the most anxious and worried, stumbling in haste and falling flat on his face. However, he knew the situation was urgent and didn"t bother to dust himself off. He staggered to his feet and ran to Dong Xuebing"s side.
Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping were still yelling at each other, and they were so close that flecks of spit flew onto each other"s faces. But for the sake of their dignity, neither backed down, and they kept moving closer. If they were lovers, this scene would have looked like they were about to kiss, but with the addition of their expressions and voices, it was more like a scene where they could start fighting at any moment.
He Zhou was the first to arrive and grabbed Dong Xuebing"s arm. "Director Dong, calm down, let"s go back first."
Dong Xuebing glared. "Why should I calm down? She b.u.mped into me, and she"s still trying to justify herself."
He Zhou was sweating. "Come on, calm down."
Han Fei also grabbed Dong Xuebing"s other arm. "Director Dong, what are you doing? Stop fighting. Today is the open day, and the journalists are all here. You told us this morning to be mindful of our image. Give me some face."
On the other side, several officials also tried to restrain Fang Wenping. An older comrade hurriedly said, "Xiao Fang, what are you doing?"
"Calm down, both of you," a middle-aged woman also came up, fearing that Fang Wenping would do something impulsive, and grabbed her hand.
"Old Chen, OldZhang, this is none of your business. Step aside," Fang Wenping didn"t give anyone any face. "I must settle scores with this little brat today."
Dong Xuebing sneered. "Settle scores? Let me see how you settle them."
"Director Dong," Han Fei was anxious, "What are you doing? Everyone is watching. Let"s calm down and stop fighting."
Zhang Dongliang hurriedly said, "Harmony is precious, harmony is precious."
A nearby cadre advised, "It"s not a big deal. Calm down."
But Dong Xuebing and Fang Wenping still didn"t listen and were at each other"s throats.
At this moment, everyone could roughly tell that the deep-seated enmity between the two was not caused by today"s incident of the lunchbox being knocked over. Director Fang and the newly arrived Director Dong must have had irreconcilable conflicts long before today. It was a matter of combining old scores and new grievances, leading to the current situation.
Finally, this commotion attracted a slightly heavyweight figure, Secretary Wu, the Deputy Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
"Secretary Wu."
"Secretary Wu, you"re here."
"Please, Secretary Wu, try to persuade them. They won"t listen to anyone."
Secretary Wu came in upon hearing the shouting from outside. He was also extremely angry when he saw Fang Wenping and Dong Xuebing inside and heard the foul language from their mouths. His mustache bristled with anger, and he pointed at them without saying a word. After a moment, he calmed down and shouted, "Stop it!" Then he strode over. The old man didn"t know what else to say.
Fang Wenping glanced over there.
Dong Xuebing also looked in the direction of Secretary Wu.
The scene suddenly quieted down a bit. Both of them had finished cursing each other; their throats were almost hoa.r.s.e, and they were both panting heavily.
Secretary Wu pointed at the two of them and said only one sentence, "Come to my office now," then turned and walked away.
During this blank period, He Zhou signaled to Sun Zhaobang and Zhang Dongliang, who understood. They quickly pulled Dong Xuebing away.
Outside.
Han Fei was anxious. "Director Dong, what"s wrong?"
Dong Xuebing was still angry. "This woman doesn"t even know her own surname and thinks I"m a pushover. She"s blind."
He Zhou sighed. "Lower your voice, don"t let people hear."
"What if they hear?" Dong Xuebing retorted. "I"m cursing her."
Sun Zhaobang, afraid that Director Dong didn"t understand the situation, kindly reminded him, "Director Fang is the head of the First Supervision Office and had personally sent her husband to prison. She"s known for being ruthless in the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. And Director Fang"s father is in the State Council."
"I know who her father is," Dong Xuebing said.
Sun Zhaobang replied, "Knowing that, you still curse at her?"
Seeing Director Dong"s att.i.tude, He Zhou, Han Fei, and the others didn"t bother to advise him anymore. They knew that Director Dong wouldn"t listen. That"s just his temper.
At this moment, someone hurried over from a distance. It was the head of the Second Office, Yin Cheng"an.
Yin Cheng"an"s face was anxious. Someone had called him and told him what had happened. "What are you guys doing? How come you"re still fighting?"
Han Fei coughed. "This matter..."
But Dong Xuebing interrupted, "Director Yin, this is my personal conduct. If something happens, I will take full responsibility. It has nothing to do with everyone else."
Yin Cheng"an was angry. "Can you bear the consequences? This is the open day. Those journalists are here. If someone reports this, you"ll be out of a job."
Han Fei"s face changed. She had helped Dong Xuebing before and naturally didn"t want him to get into trouble. "It shouldn"t be that bad. This interview is a political task. There should still be room for discussion. The higher-ups don"t want things to escalate."
"But what if?" Yin Cheng"an said, "What if it gets out? And with so many people here, how can you keep it under wraps?"
Dong Xuebing, however, had an indifferent expression. "If it gets out, it gets out. If I have to leave, I"ll leave. That woman deserves to be cursed."
No grace.
No leaders.h.i.+p demeanor.
The current Dong Xuebing was just a complete scoundrel. It hadn"t been long since he changed his ways, but now he had reverted to his old working style.
Those who knew Dong Xuebing understood that this was the real him.
After hearing Dong Xuebing"s words, Yin Cheng"an, Han Fei, He Zhou, and the others were speechless for a while.