Chapter 159: A forceful shutdown
The banquet was held at the Lakeside Hotel on Barrier Lake.
It was not until 2007 that the National Tourism Administration approved the establishment and assessment of domestic five-star scenic areas through the national committee for rating tourist attractions. It was only 2003 now, so naturally there was no such designation yet. But Barrier Lake had long been a national four-star scenic area, and the Lakeside Hotel had consequently always been known in Huangcheng as the "state guesthouse."
More than ten years earlier, the Lakeside Hotel on Barrier Lake had become a special symbol of the lake and even Huangcheng itself as the luxurious designated reception hotel for the Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government. Many older Huangcheng residents still remembered its glory. Back then, people from Huangcheng who had made money locally or elsewhere would generally choose it when they returned home in triumph to celebrate a relative's birthday or hold a wedding. It gave them considerable prestige, marking them as people of some standing in the city.
In those days, businesspeople looking to gain a foothold in Huangcheng only had to invite local officials to a few lavish meals at the Lakeside Hotel. Their names would naturally become known, and getting things done would become smooth sailing.
In 2000, its boss invested in renovating and upgrading the Lakeside Hotel,
immediately raising the somewhat dated hotel several notches. Lawns imported from New Zealand, a complex of lake-view villas and suites in a restrained European style, a convention center, hot-spring spas, tennis courts-it had every amenity. This secured its position as the state guesthouse in one stroke. Even some of the five-star hotels brought into Huangcheng might match its class, but they clearly lacked its heritage and could not become favored destinations for certain high-ranking