Power and Wealth
Chapter 2000

Chapter 2000

Everyone had arrived.

The door to the private room was also considerately closed by the waiter.

The room instantly quieted. Li Xiao, who had just arrived, had no clue what was going on. After sitting down, he could only blink and didn’t dare to ask much.

Xu Zhuang and Sun Lihan, on the other hand, found it hard to believe.

Was this Li Xiao? Was this truly Director Li from the General Office who handles county-to-city administrative upgrades?

“Old Zhang,” Sun Lihan looked at him in astonishment, her eyes full of questions.

Zhang Dongfang nodded slightly without revealing much expression. “It’s him.”

Only he had spoken with Director Li on the phone before. They had never met in person, but he recognized the voice—it was indeed the Li Xiao they had tried and failed to meet twice over the past few days. Zhang Dongfang had enough judgment to be certain.

Sun Lihan, seeing this, turned to look at the innocent-looking Fang Shuiling sitting there.

They had tried to arrange meetings with Director Li many times but were always ignored—he didn’t have time for them at all. But this girl, Fang Shuiling, whom Dong Xuebing brought, made a single phone call—not even directly, just passed along a message—and Director Li not only came personally, but dropped everything at work, didn’t even wait to finish his shift, and drove over immediately. He looked uneasy and kept calling her “Miss Sun” so politely. This man, as far as they knew, was a high-ranking official in the General Office. Even without administrative power, he had substantial influence. So why was he treating a twenty-year-old girl with such respect? Who was she?

Knock knock knock.

There was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Fang Shuiling said.

A middle-aged man entered, smiling. “I heard Miss Fang is here, so I came to say hello. Brought some friends to eat?”

Fang Shuiling smiled. “Yes, Mr. Chen.”

The man said, “Enjoy your meal. I’ve added a few more dishes for you, on the house. All right, I won’t disturb you further.”

Fang Shuiling replied, “Come on, Mr. Chen, you do this every time.”

The man laughed, “It’s our honor to have you here, Miss Fang. Of course, we must treat you well. Anyway, I won’t interrupt your business call—call me if you need anything.”

Then he quietly closed the door and left, not lingering at all—very tactful.

Soon after, the food was served.

Each dish was a feast for the senses—colorful, fragrant, and mouthwatering. The shiny, golden plates and tableware only added to the elegance.

Only then did Fang Shuiling remember, “Oh dear, I forgot to introduce you. Look at me.”

Then she continued, “This is Director Li Xiao.”

Zhang Dongfang and Sun Lihan immediately stood up.

Fang Shuiling continued, “This is Zhang Dongfang, the county Mayor of Jiaolin County. This is—”

Before she finished, Li Xiao realized something, approached, and shook hands.

“Oh, so you’re Mayor Zhang. We’ve spoken over the phone.”

Zhang Dongfang said, “Yes, Director Li. Sorry for being so forward the other day.”

“Don’t say that,” Li Xiao replied warmly, now speaking far more gently than he had on the phone. “I should apologize. You invited me to dinner and I was eager to come, but I was swamped and couldn’t get away. If I’d had the time, I would’ve shown up. I’m sorry to have kept you waiting.”

Zhang Dongfang said quickly, “You’re too kind. Not at all.”

Li Xiao then turned to Fang Shuiling.

“Miss Fang, that was my mistake. If I had known these were your friends, no matter how busy I was, I would’ve dropped everything to help. Here—”

He picked up a wine bottle, poured himself a full glass, and said, “I’ll punish myself with three drinks.”

Xu Zhuang rushed to stop him. “Please, don’t.”

Fang Shuiling said as well, “No need, Director Li. You’re too polite. We haven’t even started eating yet—no need to drink now. Let’s all sit and talk.”

Zhang Dongfang also hurried to persuade him.

Only then did Li Xiao put down the glass and sit with them. Regardless of whether he drank or not, he felt it necessary to display such humility.

He wasn’t sure how Fang Shuiling viewed his earlier refusals to meet with Zhang Dongfang and the others—maybe she’d reported him, maybe she was unhappy. So he lowered his posture entirely.

Thankfully, from her attitude, it didn’t seem like Miss Fang was upset.

Li Xiao finally let out a small sigh of relief.

But he still found it baffling.

Jiaolin County was a small, underdeveloped region in the western provinces. Had it not been for the discovery of the ancient Han dynasty imperial tomb, no one would’ve even heard of it.

So, how on earth did they get connected with Miss Fang? How did they even know her well enough to call her in to summon him?

“Come on, everyone, start eating.”

“Okay, Miss Fang.”

“You must try the hairy crabs here—they’re delicious.”

“I’ll try one… Oh wow, this is good! So tasty.”

“Hehe, right? It’s their signature dish. I order it every time I come.”

Both Zhang Dongfang’s and Li Xiao’s teams were a bit stiff. They weren’t focused on food at all—they were more concerned about the matter at hand.

Fang Shuiling, however, was far simpler. She didn’t have the aura of a government official at all—just a straightforward, sincere girl.

After encouraging everyone to dig in, she focused entirely on enjoying the crabs and other dishes. She ate delicately but heartily, showing no concern for the ongoing political talk.

She was only there to make the introduction—she didn’t know the details of the issue or how to discuss them, so she let them handle it while she focused on her meal.

Zhang Dongfang understood clearly—at this point, Fang Shuiling didn’t need to say anything else. Her mere presence was enough.

After a pause, Zhang Dongfang raised his glass. “Director Li, a toast to you.”

Li Xiao quickly waved it off. “No, no, I should be the one toasting you. We should’ve met earlier. But I got too busy and made you wait around in the capital—my fault.”

Zhang Dongfang replied quickly, “No, no—it’s our fault. We should’ve known how busy you are and not disturbed you. This toast is ours.”

After some back-and-forth, they gave up and just clinked glasses.

Once the drink was done, Zhang Dongfang finally got to the point.

“Director Li, we came today to discuss the county-to-city upgrade for Jiaolin County. Our application has been submitted, and we heard that your department handles the review, so we’d like to ask—”

Li Xiao cautiously replied, “I’ve reviewed your materials. There shouldn’t be any major issues.”

Zhang Dongfang blinked. “Roughly how long do you think the approval will take?”

Li Xiao said, “We’re responsible for the initial review, but it still needs to go through the General Office and get leadership approval. Whether approved or not, a result will be available within two months, with a minimum of one month. The process is strict now and tightly controlled, so there are more steps.”

“I see.” Zhang Dongfang nodded thoughtfully.

Although Director Li’s answer already gave him great relief, it wasn’t 100% certain, and he still felt a bit anxious.

Xu Zhuang followed up with some probing questions as well.

Li Xiao kept answering, “Shouldn’t be a problem.”

At their level, certain things couldn’t be said outright, even if the outcome was almost guaranteed.

That was the norm. But based on what he’d said, it was clear—the upgrade was a done deal.

Just then, Fang Shuiling put down her chopsticks.

Words like “shouldn’t be a problem” were too vague for her.

She was doing this for Brother Dong, and she cared a lot about it.

She wanted a definite answer, not a “maybe.”

If she messed this up, the first thing Brother Dong asked her to handle, she’d be too ashamed to face him.

So she looked at Li Xiao and said, “It takes that many steps and that long?”

Li Xiao nodded slightly. “That’s how the General Office operates—step-by-step approval.”

Fang Shuiling said, “This needs to be done. I already promised my Brother Dong. If it’s too hard or uncertain, I’ll call my grandfather and ask him to check.”

What?

Call your grandfather?

Zhang Dongfang and Sun Lihan were still confused.

But Li Xiao knew exactly who her grandfather was.

The moment she said that, he almost fell out of his chair.

He quickly raised his hands, half-laughing, half-panicking: “No, no! Miss Fang, for such a small matter, there’s no need to trouble Premier Fang! The Premier is already overwhelmed with work. You don’t need to. I promise—our department can handle this. I’ll personally oversee and follow up on the entire process to ensure Jiaolin County’s upgrade is completed successfully. I guarantee—absolutely no problems! You have my word!”

Scared into a cold sweat by her words, Li Xiao could no longer afford to hedge—he gave a full and firm commitment.