Everyone is present.
The VIP room's door was closed by the waiter.
The room became quiet. Li Xiao, who had just arrived, did not know what was going on. He sat down and did not dare to ask anything.
Xu Zhuang and Sun Lihan were in disbelief. Is this person really Director Li? Did he really come here? Could he be that Director Li who was in charge of removing the County and establishing the City?
"Old Zhang." Sun Lihan looked at him with a questioning look in her eyes.
Zhang Dongfang nodded. "It's him." Zhang Dongfang was the only one who had spoken to Director Li over the phone. Although he had not met Director Li before, he could recognize his voice. It was Li Xiao, whom they had tried to meet two times in the past two days.
Xu Zhuang took a deep breath.
Seeing this, Sun Lihan also looked at Fang Shuiling who was sitting there innocently.
They had tried to meet Director Li many times, but he refused to meet them. But what about Fang Shuiling? Dong Xuebing had found this girl to call Li Xiao over, and she did not call him personally. She had asked someone to pass the message to Li Xiao. In the end, Director Li came over alone and even put aside his work at the General Office. He did not even wait to knock off from work and drove over to Dong Xuebing's office. He even addressed Feng Yu politely as "Miss Sun." Why did he look so uneasy? Damn! From what they knew, Li Xiao was a high-ranking official in the General Office. Even if he was not in the government, he still had a lot of authority. Why would he be so polite to a young girl in her twenties? What was the background of this young lady?
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Huh? Come in. "Fang Shuiling looked up.
It was a middle-aged man who opened the door. He smiled. "I heard Miss Fang is here and came over to have a look. Are you here for dinner with your friend?"
Fang Shuiling laughed. "Yes, Boss Chen."
The middle-aged man said. "Have a good meal. I had added a few more dishes for you all. Consider it my treat. Alright. I will not disturb you all."
Fang Shuiling said, "Don't, Boss Chen. You're like this every time I come."
The middle-aged man chuckled. "It's our honor to have Miss Fang patronize us, so of course we'll treat you well. Then, I won't disturb your conversation any longer. If there's anything, you can ask the waiter to call me." After saying that, he closed the door and left. He didn't stay for long.
Not long after, the dishes were served.
The dishes looked, smelled, and tasted great. Just by looking at them, one would feel that they were very beautiful. Coupled with the golden plates and cutlery, they added a bit of nobility to the atmosphere.
Fang Shuiling suddenly remembered. "Aiyo, I forgot to introduce. Look at my brain." She immediately said, "This is Director Li Xiao."
Zhang Dongfang and Sun Lihan hurriedly stood up.
Fang Shuiling continued, "This is Jiaolin County's Mayor, Zhang Dongfang, and this is …"
Jiaolin County? Zhang Dongfang? Li Xiaocai was enlightened and went up to shake hands with them. "Oh, it's Mayor Zhang. We have spoken on the phone."
Zhang Dongfang said, "Yes, Director Li. I was really presumptuous two days ago."
"Look at what you're saying." Li Xiao's tone was no longer as stiff as when he was on the phone with Zhang Dongfang. He smiled and said, "I'm the one who's embarrassed. You asked me out for a meal, and I was also anxious, but there were too many things on my hands. I couldn't leave at all. If I had the time, I would have gone. I'm really sorry for making you wait for so long."
Zhang Dongfang immediately said, "You're too kind. No, no."
Li Xiao then said to Fang Shuiling, "Miss Fang, it's all my fault. If I had known that these were your friends, I would have put aside all the important matters to attend to. How about this …" The wine had arrived. Li Xiao opened the bottle and poured himself a glass. "I'll punish myself with three glasses. I'll punish myself with three glasses."
Xu Zhuang hurriedly said, "You can't, you can't."
Fang Shuiling also said, "It's alright, Director Li. Why are you being so polite? We haven't even eaten yet. Why are you drinking wine? Come, sit down. Let's talk while we eat. "
Zhang Dongfang also quickly persuaded them.
Only then did Li Xiao put down his wine glass and sit down with them. Regardless of whether he was being punished with wine or not, Li Xiao felt that he had to maintain his attitude just now. This was because he did not know what Fang Shuiling was thinking. Was it because he did not see Zhang Dongfang and the others and was reported to her, causing Fang Shuiling to have a bad opinion of him? That was why Li Xiao had to humble himself the moment he arrived. But now, it seemed that Miss Fang was not angry over this matter. Li Xiao heaved a sigh of relief. In fact, he was also puzzled. Jiaolin County? Wasn't that a small county in an economically backward province in the west? If not for the discovery of the Han Dynasty Emperor's tomb, no one would have even heard of this county. How did it become related to Miss Fang? How did they know Fang Shuiling? They even brought Miss Fang out to invite him over for a meal? What was going on here? What was the relationship? Li Xiao thought of many things in an instant. He was very cautious and considered many problems. Otherwise, he would not have reached his current position.
"Come, come, let's eat."
"Yes, Miss Fang."
"Try the hairy crab here. It's especially delicious."
"Let me try it. Aiyo, it's really delicious. It's too delicious."
"Hur hur, right? This is their signature dish. We order it every time we come. "
Zhang Dongfang and Li Xiao's group were a little reserved and restrained. They did not dare to eat and drink to their heart's content. They were more concerned about other things than eating.
Fang Shuiling, on the other hand, was much simpler. She didn't have much of a bureaucratic air about her. She was just a pure and honest little girl. As soon as she picked up her chopsticks, she called out to the others and began to eat the hairy crabs and other dishes. She ate very happily and quietly. Her mind was focused on the food and she didn't care about anything else. This time, she was just a matchmaker. She did not know the specifics of the matter and did not know how to talk about it. Hence, she did not care about it. She just looked like she was saying, "You guys talk, I'm just going to eat."
Zhang Dongfang understood. Actually, at this point, there was no need for Fang Shuiling to say anything. She just needed to sit there.
After a pause, Zhang Dongfang raised his glass. "Director Li, let me give you a toast."
Li Xiao raised his hand to stop him. "That won't do. I should be the one toasting you. We should have met earlier, but I was too busy and delayed it. I let you stay in Beijing for two days for nothing. This is my fault."
Zhang Dongfang hurriedly said, "No, no, it's our fault. We knew you were busy, but we still bothered you. We should be the ones toasting you."
Both sides pushed back and forth. In the end, no one toasted and they just clinked glasses.
After drinking a glass of wine, Zhang Dongfang went straight to the point. "Director Li, we are here this time to discuss our county's removal from the county into a city. Our application has been submitted, and I heard that your department will be in charge of the review. So, we would like to find out …"
Li Xiao said conservatively, "I have seen your application materials. It should not be a big problem."
Zhang Dongfang blinked and asked, "Then how long do you think it will take to get the approval?"
Li Xiao said, "We are in charge of the approval, but we still have to go through the general office's procedures. We have to submit it to the higher-ups and get their signature. Whether the application is approved or not, we will definitely get the results within two months. The fastest would be a month. After all, the approval of removing the county to form a city is more stringent. It's not that easy, so there will be more procedures."
"I see." Zhang Dongfang was deep in thought. Actually, Zhang Dongfang felt much more at ease now that Director Li had said that the problem was not a big deal. However, because he was too anxious and cared too much, Old Zhang was still a little worried if he could not get a 100% answer from Director Li.
Xu Zhuang also probed with a few words.
Li Xiao still replied with "it's not a big problem". At their position, some words couldn't be said casually. Even if things were 200% certain, they still had to leave some leeway in their words. This was Li Xiao's habit, and also their way of speaking. Actually, by saying this, even if they had already told Zhang Dongfang and the rest, Jiaolin County's establishment was already set in stone.
After listening to Dong Xuebing, Fang Shuiling put down her chopsticks.
It should be fine? Not a big problem? These answers were a little too ambiguous.
Fang Shuiling is helping Dong Xuebing to complete this task, and she wants a definite answer. If not, she will be too embarrassed to meet Dong Xuebing in the future if she messes up Dong Xuebing's request. So, Fang Shuiling looks at Li Xiao and asked. "Why are there so many procedures? Why is it taking so long? "
Li Xiao nodded. "The General Office has always been like this. We will approve everything step by step."
Fang Shuiling replied. "This must be settled, and I had promised Brother Dong. If it's not easy, I will call my grandfather and ask him."
Ah?
Call your grandfather?
Zhang Dongfang and Sun Lihan were puzzled.
But how could Li Xiao not know who Fang Shuiling's grandfather was? When he heard this, he was so shocked that he almost fell off the table. He hurriedly raised his hand, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Please don't, Miss Fang. You don't have to trouble Premier Fang for such a small matter. Premier Fang is very busy, so there's really no need to trouble him. Don't worry, our department will handle this matter, and I'll supervise and follow up the whole process. I guarantee that Jiaolin County's approval of the removal of the county into a city will be carried out. There will not be any problems. If not, I will be the one questioning you! " Li Xiao was so scared by Fang Shuiling that he broke out in a cold sweat. He couldn't care less about what he said. He patted his chest and guaranteed.
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