Zhongxin Park.
In front of the stage.
After exchanging words and complaining, Director Sun didn’t get the hoped-for response and walked away in frustration. Without actors, he could only vent his frustration in other areas. He raised his voice even louder, reprimanding the crew setting up the stage. Despite his complaints, Director Sun was indeed one of the top stage directors in the industry, with proven ability. Under his command, the stage setup over the past few days was nearly flawless. Everyone could see why Dong Xuebing had brought Director Sun in to help; he was a professional, an expert in his field, sothing the others couldn’t compare. Originally, so leaders thought hiring a director was unnecessary, but after seeing Sun’s work, they no longer complained. That’s also why Sun could rant and rave, and the county leaders would turn a blind eye. The man truly had the goods—this was his domain. For outsiders like them, it was best not to ddle.
The stage setup was well-organized.
Now, all that was left were the actors and the audience.
“Old ng,” Dong Xuebing looked around for him.
Hearing his na, ng Han-i, who was still giving instructions to his subordinates, imdiately stepped forward with large strides. “Secretary, I’m here.”
Dong Xuebing asked, “How’s it going with the guests? How many have confird? We need to get a headcount and leave tickets accordingly. This needs to be prepared in advance. After all, we only have so many seats. The investors and guest leaders need reserved spots.” Since this evening was almost their first grand cultural event in Jiao Lin County, how could they not have an audience? It couldn’t just be for the investors to perform. Besides, many stalls in the park had already been rented out—selling crafts, local specialties, and food. Dong Xuebing’s original intention was to create a cultural atmosphere for the festival involving the locals. If the locals ca, they couldn’t just stand to watch the evening show, right? They needed so degree of ticket sales. Symbolic, to start with. So, how many tickets to release would depend on how many guests there were.
ng Han-i replied, “The county governnt is responsible for liaising with the investors. Since the numbers aren’t confird, I don’t have an exact figure.”
Nearby, a county governnt official said, “Secretary Dong, this can’t be confird yet. Many investors have accepted the invitation, but it is still uncertain whether they can make it. We need to wait until they arrive to know. However, based on past experiences, we estimate that about half of those who accepted the invitation will attend—around ninety to one hundred and twenty people.”
Around a hundred people.
No surprise, Jiao Lin County’s attractiveness still held sowhat, even within the province. Compared to the conditions in the counties Dong Xuebing had worked in before, it was worlds apart. Aside from Dong Xuebing’s connections and the investnt bureau begging everyone they could think of, they managed to attract only a dozen or so investors, which was pitiful. In comparison, Jiao Lin County’s overall strength was clear. Dong Xuebing believed there would be more than a hundred investors. He had absolute confidence in his proposed cultural evening. He believed that once the positive effect started, the number of investors visiting would double. If it weren’t for this effect, Dong Xuebing wouldn’t have gone all out to organize it like this. Last year, Jiao Lin County’s total investnt was around two billion, so for this cultural festival, Dong Xuebing figured he had to attract at least ten billion.
“What about the guests from the leaders?” Dong Xuebing asked.
ng Han-i gave a bitter smile upon hearing this, “Our investnt cultural festival was reported to the city for approval, but there hasn’t been any reaction. I went ahead and invited a few city leaders myself, but none of them had the ti or gave a clear response. The provincial side…”
Zhang Dongfang furrowed his brows. “Not even one leader?”
ng Han-i sighed. “No, not a single one.”
A city governnt official explained, “We also contacted the relevant city officials responsible for the sector, but just like Director ng, there was no progress. It’s not that they aren’t coming, but they just said they’re unsure of their schedules or haven’t given a definitive answer yet. The sentint is a bit…”
Upon hearing this, everyone’s faces turned sour.
They put so much effort into this festival, which was almost unprecedented in Jiao Lin County’s history. Surely, the city should offer so support, even if not aningful—having a few provincial or city officials attending would have provided a symbolic boost and given investors so confidence. But now, with no leaders willing to attend, it was a serious blow to their morale. At major investnt events like this, having leaders appear was almost a given, yet none showed face for Jiao Lin County. How could they maintain a positive attitude? Everyone knew that following the recent investigation of Secretary Dong by the Discipline Inspection Commission, the relationship between the city and Jiao Lin County had soured. Mayor Fang had suppressed the issue, but it was not the choice of the local city leaders. It was evident that many in the province and city had negative views of Jiao Lin County’s leadership. Otherwise, they wouldn’t withhold even minimal support and encouragent like this.
“Secretary Dong, County Mayor Zhang…” ng Han-i looked at the two of them.
Zhang Dongfang thought for a mont and said, “I’ll give it a try. Without leaders as guests, that definitely won’t work. The investors will notice, which will hinder our investnt efforts.” Zhang Dongfang took this investnt very seriously. Regardless of himself or Secretary Dong, successfully hosting this cultural festival was a win-win situation. He couldn’t afford to care.
But Dong Xuebing had a different stance. “Old Zhang, forget it. There's no need for you to go beg them personally. We don’t need to push too hard on this. If leaders co, we welco them; if they don’t, they don’t. Let’s focus on what we need to do.” Only soone like County Party Secretary Dong would dare to say such a sensitive and controversial thing. No one else would have the guts to speak like that.
The others glanced at each other but didn’t react much.
They didn’t agree with Dong Xuebing’s words; they were just used to his straightforward manner and outspoken style.
Dong Xuebing knew very well that not having leaders as guests would impact their investnt efforts, but he was confident.
If they don’t co, fine.
If they want to co, let them.
When the celebrity team we’re pulling in arrives, it will be their turn to beg us for tickets to the evening show in Jiao Lin County.
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