Fang Zhicheng thought to himself that Chang Mengyuan was deliberately acting very close to him, so he couldn't refuse her. He smiled faintly and said, "Everyone is here. If I don't come, I'm afraid you will feel disappointed."
Chang Mengyuan said: "There are opportunities for everyone to eat together, but it is rare for all the Standing Committee members to gather together for a meal."
As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Guoyue and Qu Kang walked into the hotel side by side, and Secretary-General Chen Zhen quickly arranged the table. The same was true for the Standing Committee members when they had dinner, sitting according to their corresponding levels. Fang Zhicheng's ranking was relatively low, and he was a little further away from Wang Guoyue.
Sitting in this occasion, it is impossible not to drink. Fang Zhicheng knows that he is not the protagonist, so he keeps a low profile, so no one actively forces him to drink. Wang Guoyue showed an extraordinary alcohol tolerance. The Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission Mai Zhaolong is known as the wine god of Cao Yao's officialdom, but when the two of them fought hard, Wang Guoyue did not lose the rain at all, which surprised others.
Wang Guoyue not only showed his ability in drinking, but also had a way to mobilize the atmosphere. He kept throwing out various jokes, which made everyone laugh from time to time.
Fang Zhicheng secretly observed Qu Kang, and his attitude towards Wang Guoyue also changed greatly. He would interrupt and talk from time to time. Fang Zhicheng also judged the purpose of the Standing Committee dinner tonight. Qu Kang had officially handed over his power, and Wang Guoyue had obtained the absolute support of Cao Yao local officials.
There was Qu Kang between Wang Guoyue and Sui Qi, and the three of them were whispering to each other. Wang Guoyue would occasionally cross Qu Kang and talk to Sui Qi with a smile, making Sui Qi laugh constantly, which made Fang Zhicheng feel unhappy.
After three rounds of drinks, everyone threw away their disguises. Several standing committee members who loved drinking started to fight each other. Fang Zhicheng found an opportunity to leave the box and went to the lounge area in the lobby on the first floor and sat for a while.
Not long after, a beautiful figure appeared on the opposite side. Sui Qi asked with a smile: "Why did you come out?"
Fang Zhicheng shrugged and said, "As a supporting role, I am dispensable. I am here today to show my respect to Wang Guoyue. He should not mind me leaving early."
Sui Qi was slightly startled and said, "I feel like there is resentment in your heart."
Fang Zhicheng shrugged and said, "I'm not that naive!"
Sui Qi thought for a moment and said, "According to what he said, Qu Kang will probably have to leave soon."
"So he means that you continue to stay in Caoyao and serve as mayor?" Fang Zhicheng speculated.
Sui Qi nodded and said, "But I think I don't have enough experience. After all, Chang Mengyuan is the first choice."
Fang Zhicheng sighed and said, "Wang Guoyue is the municipal party secretary. If he insists, it is not difficult and reasonable to choose you over Chang Mengyuan."
Sui Qi shook her head and said, "I refuse!"
Fang Zhicheng was slightly startled and asked, "Why?"
Sui Qi smiled and said, "Because I know you won't stay in Caoyao. This is not your stage. And I don't want to be too far away from you."
After Sui Qi said this, Fang Zhicheng's depression instantly disappeared. He stood up and said in a relaxed tone, "I feel much better after relaxing for a while. Let's go to the box quickly, otherwise it will be bad if we reveal our true identity!"
When Sui Qi heard this, her face flushed and she laughed softly, "No one is that boring."
The two of them walked back to the box. Fang Zhicheng entered first. Lu Baojuan came over and asked with a smile, "Mayor Fang, Mayor Sui went out to look for you. When you came back, she was gone."
Fang Zhicheng pretended to be surprised and shrugged, "What does Mayor Sui want to see me for? Minister Lu, are you joking?"
Lu Baojuan waved her hand and said, "I'll make a prediction. Mayor Sui will definitely follow you in within two minutes."
Before Lu Baojuan finished speaking, Sui Qi pushed the door open and walked out. The others burst into laughter. Fang Zhicheng did not feel embarrassed and sighed, "Minister Lu, you are really smart."
Lu Baojuan blinked her eyes, revealing an expression that said everything, and said, "My guess is so accurate, does Mayor Fang want to express his opinion?"
Fang Zhicheng smiled helplessly and said, "Well, since the beauty invited me, how can I not give her face?"
After he finished speaking, he drank the wine in the glass. Lu Baojuan showed a satisfied look, took a sip of the wine, and said in a low voice: "Secretary Guoyue, I'm afraid you feel bad." Then she laughed softly and sat in her seat.
Fang Zhicheng could roughly see what Lu Baojuan meant. She deliberately provoked this matter, mostly out of jealousy. From the scene on the table, it can be seen that Wang Guoyue was very gentle to Sui Qi, but after Fang Zhicheng left, Sui Qi followed closely, which shows that Sui Qi was interested in Fang Zhicheng.
As both of them are women, Lu Baojuan felt unbalanced when two men showed such affection to Sui Qi, so she deliberately found Fang Zhicheng and made the matter clear.
Fang Zhicheng subconsciously glanced at Wang Guoyue, only to see him smiling and talking to Qu Kang beside him, as if he didn't care at all about what was happening here. The more he thought so, the more obvious it seemed. He sighed inwardly, thinking that Wang Guoyue might be deliberately suppressing his anger.
However, seeing Wang Guoyue in a bad mood, Fang Zhicheng's originally suppressed emotions were balanced a lot. In Cao Yao today, Wang Guoyue is the number one figure, the absolute soul figure, and Fang Zhicheng can only be called a supporting role, but at least in Sui Qi's heart, Fang Zhicheng's status exceeds that of Wang Guoyue, which is enough to make up for his inner loss.
After the drinking, Fang Zhicheng received a text message from Wang Guoyue.
— "Let's talk."
Chapter 1019: Enough Tempting Chips
Wang Guoyue likes to drink coffee. People in Caoyao officialdom know that apart from work and rest, he spends most of his time in a well-known coffee shop in Caoyao. The owner of this coffee shop is very mysterious and rarely shows up. In addition, the time when the shop opened in Caoyao coincided with the time when Wang Guoyue took office, so many people believe that this is an industry purchased by the Wang family in Caoyao.
Although it is open to the public, the cafe has certain requirements for the identity of its guests. If someone with a bad image comes to dine, they will be politely declined on the grounds that they want to maintain the high-end and upscale image of the cafe. Therefore, at the beginning of its operation, the cafe caused a lot of trouble because of this high-profile principle, but after just one month, no one was willing to come and cause trouble, because the owner of the cafe gave a signal that they are not easy to mess with.
As soon as the car stopped, a beautiful waitress came out, holding an umbrella in her hand, and helped Fang Zhicheng and Wang Guoyue hold the umbrella. Just as they went out, the weather changed and a thunderstorm started with heavy rain.
Coming to the corner, Fang Zhicheng put his phone on the table, picked up the lemonade that had been prepared, took a sip, and said, "Compared to coffee, I prefer tea."
Wang Guoyue smiled faintly and said, "People don't have a natural preference for something. Most of the time, they are influenced by the people around them. My mother likes to drink coffee, so I opened a coffee shop. There are not many stores in the country, mainly to serve some of her friends."
Fang Zhicheng smiled and said nothing more. The coffee was served. He took a sip of it, which was stronger than the previous coffee. Such a coffee shop is actually a disguised club. Whether it makes money or not is secondary. The key is to open up various relationships and maintain the core network of relationships for the family.
From this, it can be seen that the Wang family has designated Cao Yao as an important strategic fortress. In addition to the coffee shop, other industries have been invested here as a solid backing for Wang Guoyue.
Fang Zhicheng stretched his arms, stretched his body, leaned his back against the sofa, looked up at the crystal wall lamp on the opposite wall, and said, "What do you want to talk about?"
Wang Guoyue's eyes flashed across Fang Zhicheng's face and asked, "When are you leaving?"
Fang Zhicheng laughed loudly, tapped his fingers on the table a few times, and said, "It seems that you really hate me and can't wait for me to leave from under your nose immediately."