Chapter 539: Monitoring

The old man said, "Young man, don't worry, I'll do exactly as you instructed!"

Zhong Dexing had given the old man 500 yuan yesterday.

It was a simple favor, yet Zhong Dexing had given so much money. Naturally, the old man was more than willing to help and do a good job.

Zhong Dexing then called Hu Lizhi to inquire about the preparations on her end.

Hu Lizhi replied, "Dexing, rest assured, the preparations were completed long ago! To ensure there are no issues, I just double-checked everything. There won't be any problems!"

Although the preparations were going smoothly so far, Zhong Dexing was still very nervous, his nerves taut, as this was his first time preparing for such an important event.

At 8:30 AM, County Party Secretary Yu Xinran arrived with Director Sun Kaifu of the County Party Committee Office and a group of other leaders.

Yu Xinran was wearing a dark blue formal suit today. Her short hair framed her delicate, rosy face, making her look charming and graceful.

Accompanied by Zhong Dexing, Yu Xinran inspected the preparations in Luoshan Town for welcoming the Provincial Party Secretary. Seeing that the work was well done, she nodded with satisfaction and praised Zhong Dexing.

Among the cadres Yu Xinran brought with her, Director Sun Kaifu of the County Party Committee Office was the most meticulous.

Sun Kaifu's ability to serve as Director of the County Party Committee Office naturally spoke volumes about his work capabilities.

After Yu Xinran took office, she did not replace Sun Kaifu, whom some considered an "old guard" from the previous administration. It wasn't that she lacked the ability to replace him; rather, she chose not to.

Although the County Party Committee Office Director's Mandarin wasn't perfectly standard, his abilities were undeniable. Yu Xinran had secretly observed that she couldn't find anyone in the entire office who could replace Sun Kaifu.

Unfortunately, Sun Kaifu did not openly align himself with her. However, Yu Xinran could tell that he also didn't side with Deputy County Party Secretary and County Governor Chi Yuming. He was the type of person who followed the organization, not individual leaders.

Nevertheless, until she could find a suitable replacement, Yu Xinran had no choice but to continue employing Sun Kaifu.

Fortunately, Sun Kaifu was diligent and performed his work exceptionally well. Many major tasks, once in his hands, were handled with ease and excellent results.

For this very reason, Yu Xinran never dared to let Sun Kaifu be absent whenever there was an important matter.

"Director Sun, do you have any opinions or suggestions regarding the preparations for welcoming Secretary Zhao?" Yu Xinran asked Sun Kaifu for his input on the way back to the Luoshan Town Party Committee and Government building after inspecting the work.

Sun Kaifu, of course, had long known that Zhong Dexing was Yu Xinran's protégé.

After a tour, Sun Kaifu genuinely felt that Luoshan Town's preparations to welcome Provincial Party Secretary Zhao Hongbo were excellent. He secretly admired Zhong Dexing, thinking it was no wonder Yu Xinran appreciated him; the young man indeed had capabilities.

Despite his admiration, Sun Kaifu still had his own considerations regarding the preparations for welcoming Provincial Party Secretary Zhao Hongbo.

"Secretary Yu, the preparations are very well done!" With Zhong Dexing standing nearby, Sun Kaifu first complimented Zhong Dexing, giving him face, then continued, "Regarding the preparations for welcoming Secretary Zhao, I have two suggestions, though I'm not sure if they're feasible. First, could we place some fresh flowers along the main road leading into Luoshan Town? The streets of Luoshan Town are very clean, but without flowers, it feels like something is missing from the atmosphere. Second, could we arrange for students to line up and welcome Secretary Zhao? This would make the atmosphere much more enthusiastic!"

Yu Xinran's eyes lit up upon hearing this. Sun Kaifu's two suggestions were excellent; why hadn't she thought of them?

It seemed bringing Sun Kaifu along this time was the right decision.

"County Governor Cen, Secretary Zhong, what do you two think of Director Sun's suggestions?" Yu Xinran sought the opinions of Cen Xiuqing and Zhong Dexing.

Although she found Sun Kaifu's suggestions excellent, time was running short. Provincial Party Secretary Zhao Hongbo would arrive soon, and preparing now would clearly be too rushed.

She also blamed herself.

She should have brought Sun Kaifu with her when she last inspected the work.

Cen Xiuqing and Zhong Dexing also thought Sun Kaifu's suggestions were good, but they worried about the tight schedule and whether there would be enough time.

Zhong Dexing and Cen Xiuqing exchanged glances. Zhong Dexing then said, "Secretary Yu, I think Director Sun's suggestions are excellent!"

"I think they're excellent too! The question is, is there still enough time to prepare now?" Yu Xinran looked at Zhong Dexing with anticipation.

Zhong Dexing wasn't entirely confident himself, but hearing Yu Xinran's words, he found it difficult to refuse. Moreover, he also wanted to make the preparations as perfect as possible. So, he gritted his teeth and said, "I'll make the arrangements immediately!"

Zhong Dexing immediately called Wang Caihua, Director of the Town Party and Government Office.

"Secretary Zhong," Wang Caihua said, "getting students to line up and welcome them is no problem! However, for the flowers, time is too short. I really don't know where to find flowers at this moment!"

"Just do your best," Zhong Dexing replied. "Find them if you can; if not, there's nothing we can do. If you need me to coordinate anything, don't hesitate to call!"

After hanging up, Wang Caihua, Director of the Town Party and Government Office, immediately called the principal of the Town Central Primary School, instructing him to bring students from their self-study classes to the town's main road to line up and await the Provincial Party Secretary's arrival.

Previously, to attract merchants to Luoshan Town, the town had arranged for primary school students to welcome important guests. So, the principal of the Town Central Primary School was familiar with such tasks. After hanging up with Wang Caihua, he immediately contacted several homeroom teachers and had the students from their self-study classes gather on both sides of the town's main road, lining up to await the Provincial Party Secretary's arrival.

After calling the principal, Wang Caihua then called several merchants he knew. They were all unable to help, explaining that time was too tight and fresh flowers were hard to find this season.

Wang Caihua was about to report to Zhong Dexing that he couldn't solve the flower problem.

Suddenly, Wang Caihua remembered a shop in town that sold artificial flowers. If fresh flowers couldn't be obtained, plastic ones would work!

Anyway, the high-ranking leader wouldn't get out of the car to check if the flowers on the roadside were real or fake! Furthermore, buying fresh flowers would incur a large expense.

Having made up his mind, Wang Caihua rushed to the shop selling artificial flowers.

As luck would have it for Wang Caihua, the shop owner had just received a large shipment of artificial peonies, intending to stock them for a year. The owner had ordered such a large quantity because buying in bulk was cheaper.

"How many do you need?" the shop owner asked.

Wang Caihua replied, "I can't say the exact number, but enough to line both sides of Luoshan Town's main road. And we won't be buying them; we only want to rent."

Although Wang Caihua wasn't buying them, being able to rent out the artificial flowers for a substantial profit was undoubtedly a windfall, and the shop owner was naturally delighted.