Reborn as a Noble's Son

Chapter 580: Chapter 536 Conflict (Fifth Explosion, Request for Monthly Ticket)_1
 

The next morning, for the first time, Nie Zhenbang had a big lie-in. It was approaching eight o’clock when he finally got up.

Seeing Nie Zhenbang in such an over-indulged state, Yang Anna stifled a giggle. The room was empty as Li Lixue and Dong Wan had already gone out. This woman, although already 26 years old, was still like a little kid. She laughed and said, “Serves you right. Now, you know that being an emperor is not easy.”

Hearing this, Nie Zhenbang bitter-smiled. Last night, this woman was insatiable. It seemed she had planned this and had been waiting for him here.

At this moment, Li Lixue also came in from outside. Although Li Lixue was a few years older than Nie Zhenbang, at the moment, her light blue professional suit made her incredibly striking. Her fair skin, without any wrinkles, made her look like a young girl in her twenties when she went out.

“Zhenbang, I left your breakfast on the table. I’m going out now. There are still a lot of things to do at the Dynasty Club,” Li Lixue said with a smile.

The initial idea for the Dynasty Club was to make it a large alliance within the system, with all officials who could enter the Dynasty becoming part of this system. However, Nie Zhenbang found during the actual operation that this idea was just a notion and impossible to achieve.

Firstly, despite being a private club, the Dynasty Club operates on a membership fee system. Anyone who pays the membership fee and meets the membership criteria can become a member, which render the club’s membership incredibly diverse. This diversity precludes the possibility of a large alliance.

Secondly, the formation of the club is something that the central administration would never allow. If such a situation were to occur, the national regime would be affected. No one in power would permit this. Thus, the current Dynasty Club is more like a loose private club, although the level of prestige has remained the same.

Dong Wan had gone home. Her father’s health was much worse than Elder Yang’s. It seemed that he might not have much time left.

Just after breakfast, Nie Zhenbang’s phone rang. It was a call from An Guoyu. As soon as he answered, An Guoyu’s voice came through, “Mayor, it’s all set. 7 pm at Capital Restaurant’s Tan Jia Hall No.2 box. Director Guo and Minister Yin from the Ministry of Transportation will be attending.”

Upon hearing this, Nie Zhenbang was a bit stunned. As expected, Xiong Feng had held something back, primarily dealing with middle ranking officials to appease him. Yesterday, after evasive comments by Xiong Feng, Nie Zhenbang became suspicious. He was well aware of the central government’s support for Wanghai City, largely due to the efforts of Shi Yiwu and Lin Zhengxing. However, if Xiong Feng, as the Director of the Beijing Office, did not have proper connections, it would not be usual. Now it seemed his suspicions were confirmed.

The meeting was set within just one morning, and this indicated that those people must have known each other before. A chief deputy official from the Ministry of Transportation, a crucial department like that, would not easily accept an invitation.

With this thought in mind, Nie Zhenbang responded, “Okay, let’s meet at the entrance of Capital Restaurant at 7 pm.”

Nie spent his day at home with Li Lixue and Yang Anna, accompanied by their nearly ten-month-old baby, Yah, who could now stand steadily. She would babble on, seemingly trying to talk and occasionally uttering ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’. The child brought joy to the household.

At six in the afternoon, Nie Zhenbang dressed in a formal outfit and drove Dong Wan’s Range Rover Sport to Capital Restaurant.

By about half-past six, after parking the car, Liu Gaohua, An Guoyu, and Xiong Feng were already waiting at the west entrance of Capital Restaurant.

Walking over, it was obvious Xiong Feng was relieved to see him, worried that if the leaders from the Ministry of Transportation arrived first, it would leave a poor impression. As Xiong Feng saw it, many local officials, accustomed to having the final say at home, couldn’t adapt to the way things worked in Jingcheng, leading to many embarrassments and losses.

When Nie Zhenbang had not yet arrived, Xiong Feng was genuinely concerned. Now, at last, he could breathe easy.

“Director Xiong, thank you for your hard work. The Beijing Office is doing well, being able to contact the leaders of the Ministry of Transportation within such a short time. If we achieve something this time, you’ll surely deserve the most credit,” Nie Zhenbang walked up, smiled, and said.

At this moment, Xiong Feng, listening to Nie Zhenbang’s words, also smiled somewhat unnaturally and said, “Mayor, you’re too kind. In the future, we will rely on you for more guidance in our work here at the Jingcheng Office.”

Xiong Feng’s words hinted at some allegiance, which Nie Zhenbang clearly understood. But he just gave a slight smile and didn’t bite, saying, “We’re all here to serve the work. As for guidance, I think Director Xiong is doing an excellent job right now. Is Minister Yin from the Ministry of Transportation and his group arriving at seven?”

This question left Xiong Feng slightly embarrassed. She laughed and said, “Mayor, the agreement was to start at seven. As you know, leaders in Beijing have their habits and some airs. They should be coming soon.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

This was something Nie Zhenbang knew very well. As the saying goes, there are a lot of officials in Jingcheng, and you might step on one unknowingly. It is indeed a bit cynical, but it is a reality. Jingcheng is not just about the local officials; there are officials from various departments, central offices, the People’s Congress, and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, etc. Jingcheng is teeming with bureau-level officials. Moreover, these people have high status and are top provincial and ministerial officials in their respective locations. These proud officials, who are mostly seen serving and guiding the work, are basically seen every day in Jingcheng. This is not only the case with the Ministry of Transport but other ministries as well.

Time slowly moved on. It was already seven, but there was still no sign of them. After half an hour of waiting, people became a little impatient.

Around ten past seven, a black Mercedes slowly drove up. Xiong Feng finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, “Mayor, Minister Yin and his group have arrived.”

The car stopped in front of the main door and two middle-aged men in their fifties got out. The leading man, with no attempt to hide it, fixed his gaze on Xiong Feng, a clear desire in his eyes. He then laughed and said, “Director Xiong, I apologize for the long wait. We were delayed by a meeting at the department in the afternoon. Director Xiong, have all the officials from Wanghai City arrived? Let’s go in together.”

The arrogance and self-importance in his words were unmistakable, exuding disdain. Nie Zhenbang kept a cool face and didn’t get angry about it. He had seen many such people who considered themselves Jingcheng officials and behaved high and mighty. As long as work could be accomplished, he could tolerate this one.

Meanwhile, Xiong Feng seemed a bit awkward as well. She laughed and said, “Minister Yin, let me introduce you to…”

Before she could finish her sentence, Minister Yin cut her off and said, “No need for any introduction, let’s go in. This time, I came here for Director Xiong. I don’t have the time to handle this or that introduction. Do you remember the Vice Provincial Governor Lin from Minan Province last time? Jingcheng isn’t like other places. There are officials of higher ranks in the Forbidden City.”

At this point, Nie Zhenbang calmly said: “Director Xiong, let’s follow Minister Yin’s suggestion, let’s go in. It’s inappropriate to stand here at the door.”

After everyone had entered the private room, Xiong Feng smiled and said, “Minister Yin, let me introduce you to Mayor Nie of our WangHai City.”

At this point, Minister Yin had no reasonable excuse to refuse. He would be outrightly disrespecting if he deferred again. Upon hearing this, Minister Yin looked at Nie Zhenbang and said, “Mayor Nie is really young. It’s a cause for envy. Director Xiong, you didn’t call me here for a symposium, did you?”

The successive disdain raised Nie Zhenbang’s hackles. He sneered and muttered, that man has really got some nerve. Enough is enough; such behavior was clearly a slap in the face, you might say. It’s normal for a Jingcheng official to act high and haughty, but persistently behaving like this was sheer disrespect.

So, Nie Zhenbang said, “Director Xiong, let’s serve the dishes. Let’s first ensure that Minister Yin eats and drinks well. We can discuss other matters later. All I hope is that Minister Yin won’t get drunk tonight.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Director Guo got up abruptly and said to Nie Zhenbang, “What do you mean, Mayor Nie? Do you think we have never eaten or had a drink before?”

If other officials encountered this kind of situation, they might be scared. But Nie Zhenbang was not afraid at all. He immediately replied, “Director Guo, if you think that way, I can’t help it. Also, Director Guo, please call me Mayor Nie or Comrade Nie Zhenbang in the future.”

The situation was about to turn sour. Xiong Feng froze. She didn’t expect Nie to flare up at this point.

Suddenly, the door to the private room was kicked open from the outside.(