0048 53 A timely snowfall promises a bumper harvest
Two days later, Ling Xingzhi finally woke up from his coma. After a full physical examination, the doctor said that he was driving while fatigued and needed to rest, but there were no serious problems with his basic bodily functions.
Ling Xingzhi smiled bitterly, his head wrapped in a white cloth, his face bearing unhealed wounds; he himself found his appearance laughable.
Upon hearing that Secretary Ling had woken up, many people came to visit him. Ling Xingzhi only met with a few people; Li Qingshan and Chen Ran stopped the others. Wei Luochen also specially set up his office at the 303 Hospital so that he could take care of Ling Xingzhi at any time; his office was in the room next to Ling Xingzhi's ward.
The vice mayor had just left when Ling Xingzhi leaned lazily against the headboard, looking at the snow scene outside the window.
"The snow is really heavy."
Li Qingshan remarked from the side, "A timely snowfall promises a bumper harvest."
Ling Xingzhi forced a smile but didn't say anything.
"Secretary, we did not accept any of the gifts they brought. Several people from the wives' group came to visit, but Madam did not accept any gifts either."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, twirling the sandalwood bead in his hand, his gaze fixed on the snowy scene outside the window, lost in thought. "...By the way, have any other people come to see me these past few days? Some important people...did I miss them?"
Li Qingshan thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "There's no one else... You've met everyone you need to meet."
Ling Xingzhi sighed softly, half-closing his eyes, and slowly asked, "Have the year-end reports from the Beijing offices been submitted? Have they completed their work plans for this year?"
Li Qingshan was taken aback for a moment, then realized what was going on, but gave an irrelevant answer, "Director Zhou didn't come; she went to Tibet."
Ling Xingzhi raised an eyebrow. "Tibet? What is she going to Tibet for?" He felt that his words were a bit abrupt, but fortunately, Li Qingshan did not notice.
He thought Zhou Xiye would come to "inspect" her victory, but he didn't expect her to be in Tibet.
"I heard that... Director Zhou's brother had an accident, and she took leave to go to Tibet to see him."
Ling Xingzhi nodded as if he understood, and the bracelet spun a little faster. Seeing that Ling Xingzhi was thinking about his own things, Li Qingshan stood up and was about to leave, but halfway there, he was stopped by Ling Xingzhi.
"What is Wei Luochen doing next door?"
"The lady is having a meeting with the editors next door."
Ling Xingzhi nodded and beckoned him over, "Give me a cigarette while they're all gone."
Li Qingshan smiled, took out a cigarette from his pocket, handed it to Ling Xingzhi, and then bent down to light it for him. After taking a puff, Ling Xingzhi felt much better. He squinted at the cigarette butt and said, "Actually, it's not that important... Go and find out what's going on with Zhou Xiye."
Li Qingshan nodded, "Chen Ran will be here in a bit; he'll bring you the Party School schedule."
There was no one else in the room except Ling Xingzhi, making it much quieter for him. He stood up, a cigarette dangling from his lips, and walked to the window, looking at the snow scene below. People in the courtyard were having a snowball fight, and others were building snowmen. The snow clung to the willow branches, and when the wind blew, it looked quite beautiful.
Ling Xingzhi sighed, took another drag of his cigarette, and recalled the past few days as if it were a dream.
After the funeral of Old Mrs. Kong was completed, Kong Lingqi left City A, and everything was settled.
Ling Xingzhi leaned against the windowsill, watching the ordinary lives of people downstairs. He felt as if those experiences were from a distant past. Only the rumors about Kong Lingqi and Ling Xingzhi were rampant. The Kong and Ling families still chose to protect Ling Xingzhi, portraying Kong Lingqi as an outsider, killing two birds with one stone: first, not to divide the property, and second, to protect Ling Xingzhi's reputation.
This is the result of their game.
It was filthy, like mud left after snow has fallen and been crushed by wheels, lingering in Ling Xingzhi's heart for a long time.
"Smoking again? Didn't the doctor say you can't smoke?"
Ling Xingzhi turned her head and saw Wei Luochen. She pushed the door open and came in, wearing a black bodysuit, a leather jacket, and carrying an exquisite crocodile skin bag.
"Put it out quickly!" Wei Luochen put down his bag and took out an ashtray from the drawer.
Ling Xingzhi smiled slightly, looking a little guilty, and straightened up to stub out his cigarette in the ashtray. Wei Luochen put down the ashtray, walked to his side, and leaned against the windowsill. From the side, she looked as thin as a sheet of paper. "Li Maohe, the wife of the city construction director, told me about the construction of the World Cup stadiums..."
She looked at Ling Xingzhi, "Is it serious?"
Ling Xingzhi pursed his lips and shook his head. "At first, I thought hosting the World Cup was a good thing. It would boost economic development and promote the rapid development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration. Domestically, we need to stimulate economic consumption and investment. But now it seems that hosting it is a waste of money and resources." He turned to look at Wei Luochen. "The economic losses and social unrest brought about by the 2008 Olympics have not been resolved; they have simply been ignored."
Wei Luochen didn't understand. "This demonstrates the nation's strength. What's wrong with that?"
Ling Xingzhi smiled. “This is a miracle of governance…” He straightened up. “The construction project of the sports stadium will definitely be subject to bidding. Moreover, a special task force will be set up to be in charge of the World Cup. For such an international event, the head of the task force is likely to be someone from the cabinet. I don’t have much say.”
“Then…” Wei Luochen hesitated for a moment, “then I won’t respond to this matter.”
Ling Xingzhi nodded, walked to the bedside, sat down, and after a few seconds said, "How about this, you help me arrange a meal with the director of urban construction."
Soon after, on January 1st, new traffic regulations were promulgated in City A and went live on various platforms. Ling Xingzhi and several leaders from the Traffic Management Bureau held a meeting to provide a detailed explanation of the regulations. In the afternoon, after the meeting ended and they left the conference room, several people were waiting outside Ling Xingzhi's office.
"Secretary Ling, I am the mayor of Xiong'an New Area..."
Chen Ran couldn't stop him, and Ling Xingzhi also stopped and turned to look at her. "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
The head of Xiong'an New Area is Wen Yuanying, who was transferred from Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province to City A to oversee the development of Xiong'an New Area. Xiong'an New Area was originally a national-level new area under the jurisdiction of Hebei Province. Although its function was to relieve the pressure on City A as the capital, its development has been remarkably slow.
Wen Yuanying smiled at the young municipal party secretary. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I've come to discuss the relocation of universities in City A with you."
"Oh?" Ling Xingzhi suddenly didn't understand, and turned to look at Li Qingshan and Chen Ran. "How come I didn't know about the relocation of universities in City A?"
This matter should be discussed with the Ministry of Education, so why did a district head come directly to him to discuss it?
Clearly, neither Li Qingshan nor Chen Ran knew about this matter.
Wen Yuanying gave an awkward smile. "Secretary Ling, this matter may be a bit abrupt, but it is very necessary for the development of Xiong'an New Area. As you know, the country is very optimistic about the development of this area."
Ling Xingzhi raised his hand and glanced at his watch. "Since it was abrupt, let's postpone it today." He lowered his hand and looked at Wen Yuanying. "I have other matters to attend to today. If you want to talk to me, you should first arrange a time with my secretary."
After saying that, he started walking downstairs.
I had just come downstairs and hadn't even gotten into the car when the head of urban construction called.
Ling Xingzhi took the phone from his secretary, and after exchanging a few pleasantries, they hung up without saying anything substantial.
In fact, the director of urban construction called to test whether the dinner party could continue tonight, to see if Ling Xingzhi had any regrets.
After several rounds of drinks, Ling Xingzhi showed no signs of drunkenness.
“Secretary Ling, let me tell you, when it comes to contracting stadium construction domestically, it’s China Railway Construction Corporation… You know that one in Qatar, right? Those bearded men in the Middle East are thrilled. Domestically, it’ll definitely be China Railway Construction Corporation again, but you… you can’t…”
Ling Xingzhi picked up a white towel to wipe his hands, turned to look at Li Qingshan, and said, "The director is drunk, let's call it a day..."
The gist is clear: stadium construction is a lucrative business, and China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) made a splash at the Qatar World Cup, showcasing China's strength. However, CRCC isn't the only company in China; everyone shares the spoils, and even if there aren't any, there's still something to go around.
"Secretary Ling! Let's talk another day..."
Ling Xingzhi smiled, got into the car, and let out a breath. Only after the partition was raised and the car started moving did he relax.
What a pipe dream! Do you think they'd let Wang Cai, the president of China Railway Construction Corporation, snatch this piece of meat from them? It's obvious—the meat, bones, and broth—it's all his. Just look at his resume and background; no one can compete with him. Knowing this, why still try to take it? Ling Xingzhi's purpose in having this meal was to find out who was trying to take this piece of meat.
Back home, Wei Luochen was still awake. She was wearing a face mask and flipping through a fashion magazine. Hearing the door open, she put down the magazine and looked towards the door. Ling Xingzhi put down his briefcase and unbuttoned his suit jacket. "Why aren't you asleep yet?"
Wei Luochen noticed the mixed smell of smoke and alcohol on him and frowned imperceptibly. "Going out for business dinners again?"
"Okay," Ling Xingzhi said as he walked inside. "I've been busy lately, so you don't need to wait for me."
What are you busy with? The Two Sessions, the Two Sessions are right after the New Year. But Wei Luochen was thinking about how to talk to him about the New Year, and Ling Xingzhi's tired look made her unable to speak. Only when Ling Xingzhi had taken a shower and changed into a dark blue striped pajama and was sitting on the bed did Wei Luochen enter the bedroom.
They hadn't made love in a long time.
Ling Xingzhi's hair wasn't completely dry; the ends of her hair hanging down her forehead were still wet. Her hair wasn't as neat and tidy as it was during the day, but now it looked much fresher and younger.
"What's the matter?"
Ling Xingzhi put down his phone, looked up at her, and the light outlined his profile, making him appear much gentler. Wei Luochen's heart softened, and she walked to the bedside, where the bed dipped slightly. "I was thinking, since you're off work during the New Year, we could go on a trip. Aren't all the cadres given vacations? I've heard Fiji is nice; I've never been there before. How about we go?"
As he spoke, Wei Luochen placed his hand on the back of Ling Xingzhi's hand, his eyes pleading.
"Sure, I have time."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, subtly withdrawing his hand. "Go to sleep, you're a little tired."
With a flicker of emotion in his eyes, Wei Luochen hesitated, seemingly wanting to speak but holding back. Ling Xingzhi's gunshot wound must have left him with little desire. He closed the headboard on his side of the bed, and Wei Luochen stayed there for a few more seconds before getting up and climbing onto the other side of the bed, turning off the light as well.
They sleep in the same bed but dream different dreams; some barriers are invisible and intangible, yet they simply stand there.
There is no solution, and opening up won't erase the hurt; that thorn is like a fishbone.
In the end, all we could do was "forget it".
Forget it, life goes on.
The undercurrents beneath the surface of seemingly peaceful days cannot be ignored, especially with the upcoming conference in November, another period of leadership transition, which is sure to be filled with turmoil and intrigue.
"It is certain that some people will leave the cabinet, and others will go in."
Ling Qingyun put down his teacup, letting the tea swirl fully in his mouth before saying, "That's the problem: who stays and who leaves?"
“If he’s one of his people, he’ll definitely come to the central government from Shanghai or Zhejiang…” Ling Xingzhi paused, then suddenly remembered that the person who was talking to Zhou Xiye at the state banquet that night was Lu Daiyuan, the secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee. She couldn’t do anything reckless, and she already had some plans in mind.
“The position of prime minister will definitely depend on the number of cabinet members,” Ling Qingyun said. “It’s the old rule: seven in, eight out. We can remove some people who are over the age limit first.”
"If the crown prince is among them, we should be wary of those with red bloodlines; if not..."
Ling Xingzhi stopped talking and looked at Ling Qingyun.
Ling Qingyun, on the other hand, didn't react much. "He's not planning to step down this term; you can tell from the cabinet members," he paused, looked around, and after dismissing the idlers, Ling Qingyun said, "I've spoken with the person above me. Do you want to be in this position?"
Ling Xingzhi was stunned, his blood seemed to freeze for a moment, then surged even more violently. "Dad...you mean...?"
Ling Qingyun smiled, patted his thigh, and said, "I will never have that chance in my life." He reached out and pointed at Ling Xingzhi, "But you can."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
