The sugar had been hauled away, payment settled, and the invitation letter confirmed, but Section Chief Hu still hadn't let Li Long leave. Only after carefully questioning him about what to watch out for when visiting the Kazakh Union Republic did he let him go.
It wasn't really that Section Chief Hu was especially cautious. Mainly, he had never been abroad either. The itinerary on the invitation letter was clear, it had official backing from the other side, and arrangements had already been made for them to provide interpreters. In fact, it was detailed enough.
Of course, Section Chief Hu hadn't placed his complete trust in a single invitation letter. While waiting for it, the sugar factory had made inquiries through other channels, even contacting Director Qian directly to learn the details of their previous visit.
Otherwise, how would they dare rush into the trip?
In fact, Section Chief Hu had mentally prepared himself for Li Long to take one of the places on the invitation. After all, Li Long had arranged everything. If he really wanted to go abroad, taking one place would be no big deal.
It would be perfectly reasonable.
But Li Long hadn't mentioned it, and naturally, Section Chief Hu was happy to have one more place for his own side. Even if the Soviet Union's Kazakh Union Republic wasn't a developed country like those in Europe and the United States, it was still abroad—and it was the Soviet Union!
Even a dead tiger retained its imposing presence. Although there hadn't been much good news about the Soviet Union in domestic reports over the past few years, it had once been their big brother. Surely its foundations were still there?
With the sugar factory's business settled, Li Long drove back to Ma County. Only halfway there