The next day.
Sunday morning.
A crisp phone ringtone sounded in Fang Wenping's bedroom. Ring-ring-ring, ring-ring-ring. It woke Dong Xuebin from beneath the covers. Hearing that it was his own phone, he groggily opened his eyes and searched for it. It was already light outside, but the curtains were drawn, keeping most of the light out and leaving the room dim. Only a few warm rays of morning sun squeezed through the gaps in the curtains, casting narrow beams across the floor and the blanket.
He found his phone.
Dong Xuebin yawned and answered it. "Hello."
"Secretary, it's me." It was Su Yan's voice.
Dong Xuebin gave an "oh" and said with his eyes closed, "What is it?"
Su Yan immediately said, "Sorry to disturb your rest, but we just received a temporary notice from higher up. An English delegation will be visiting our province on Monday. Their itinerary includes Baohong City, and Jiaolin County is on the list as well. The city takes this seriously and has told us to make the necessary preparations for the Welcoming Task."
After a pause, Su Yan continued, "I asked around. It isn't exactly a political inspection, and most of the visitors aren't from England's political circles. It may simply be an exchange, perhaps to attract some investment from us. But since the people coming for the exchange are traveling with English political figures, the issues involved are rather complicated, which is why higher up is placing special importance on it."
"County Chief Zhang is at the office today. The county government wants to begin preparations today. Secretary, do you think you could... come back to the office? Without your instructions, no one here can make a decision." Su Yan knew Dong Xuebin was sleeping. He could tell from the drowsiness in his