Power and Wealth - C.1580: Meeting classmate at the airport

Three days later.

Noon.

Jiangnan Province, the provincial capital.

A taxi stopped outside the airport. Dong Xuebing paid and got out. He had no luggage, just a tiny bag, and he strolled into the airport. Checking the time, the boarding time wasn't far off. Dong Xuebing regretfully glanced at the beautiful scenery outside the airport. There was no time to explore the provincial capital now. It would be better to go to Macau first, and if there was time after returning, he could tour the provincial capital.

Inside the terminal.

Dong Xuebing went to complete the check-in procedures.

Ring ring ring, his wife's number popped up on his phone.

Dong Xuebing checked his pocket and answered, "Have you arrived?"

"I just got off the plane. I'm here." Xie Huilan chuckled. "How about you?"

"I haven't boarded yet; I just got my boarding pass. You're quite fast," Dong Xuebing said.

Xie Huilan chuckled, "Morning flight, how could it not be fast? Take your time. We'll go to the hotel first."

Dong Xuebing nodded, "Send me the address later. I'll find you when I arrive."

"Do you want Sister Xie to arrange a car to pick you up and then come to the hotel to greet you?" Xie Huilan suggested.

Dong Xuebing shook his head. "Forget it. You're here for study and observation, and bringing family members is a perk. Let's not make it special; it might not look good to others. Deputy Governor Jia is leading the tour this time, so we need to be even more cautious. This trip is mainly for leisure. I don't want to create unnecessary trouble."

"Heh, it was supposed to be him."

"What was supposed to be him?"

"I just got the news this morning: Deputy Governor Jia isn't feeling well and won't be coming."

"Oh, is he really unwell or just pretending?"

"I don't know. There shouldn't be any other officials leading the tour this time."

"Well, that's not bad. Anyway, you don't have any activities in the afternoon, right?"

"I'm not sure yet. It might be study tours or dinners. Quite a few local officials are receiving us, so there will definitely be some socializing, but it doesn't involve family members."

"We'll just have free time."

"More or less. Let's leave it at that. The car is waiting for me."

"Alright, go ahead, see you later."

After hanging up the phone, Dong Xuebing went through security. He didn't have a good impression of Deputy Governor Jia, so it was better that he didn't come.

Today was the day for the Macau study tour. Xiaxing City's small airport didn't have flights to Macau, so they had to fly to the provincial capital first. It was called a study tour, but it was a leisure trip, an annual benefit. High-ranking officials from various cities in Jiangnan Province participated, but the number of places was limited. At least the top leaders couldn't all leave. Otherwise, it would be troublesome if something happened in the city. The Secretary and Mayor could only choose one to go or neither. Each city had a few rotationally allocated places for deputy mayors or department heads. For example, Xiaxing City sent the Secretary, two deputy mayors, and the heads of three departments. Although the number of leadership positions was limited, it might not seem like a lot, but each leader brought one or two family members, making the group quite large. That was also why Huilan and the others couldn't get tickets for the morning flight. It was said that more than ten family members from the province couldn't get tickets, so they had to take later flights. Dong Xuebing was the same. He was also cautious after revealing his position in the Commission for Discipline Inspection in Xiaxing City. He didn't let Xie Huilan ask the staff of the City Committee Office to arrange tickets for him. Instead, he bought his ticket with his money and didn't intend to claim reimbursement. It was to prevent others from gossiping. Dong Xuebing's position could intimidate many people, but he also had to pay special attention to party discipline and regulations.

After a while.

In the airport lounge.

Dong Xuebing found a vacant spot to sit down, crossed his legs, and watched the planes take off and land outside the window while listening to music with his earphones.

One minute, three minutes, five minutes, and the boarding gate still hadn't opened.

Dong Xuebing was a little impatient, tapping his leg with his hand.

Suddenly, it seemed like someone was coming from the opposite direction. "Hey, isn't this Xuebing?"

The music playing in Dong Xuebing's ears wasn't deafening, and he heard it. He looked up in surprise, not expecting someone here to recognize him. After a moment, he was also stunned. "Hou Wen?"

"Haha, it's you."

"Why, it's you."

"I was wondering how come you're here."

"You've changed. I wouldn't recognize you if you didn't call me."

"You're terrible at talking. It's only been a few years, and I've gained a little weight, but not enough to be unrecognizable."

"Haha, it's like dozens of pounds."

"But you haven't changed. Still so skinny."

Coming up was a young man, about the same age as Dong Xuebing, with a round face and several pimples. He was a bit chubby but not too fat, just average. However, during their college years, he had the same skinny figure as Dong Xuebing, so Dong Xuebing hesitated to recognize him. This was Hou Wen, Dong Xuebing's college classmate and his roommate for four years. During his schooling years, Dong Xuebing was relatively low-key and didn't like to socialize much. He had few close friends, but Hou Wen counted as one. After all, they had lived together for four years, and those youthful years were always memorable. So, it was pretty exciting for Dong Xuebing and Hou Wen to meet here unexpectedly.

Dong Xuebing stood up to greet him. "What a coincidence."

Hou Wen lightly patted his chest. "You've disappeared for three years and didn't even contact me after graduating."

Dong Xuebing laughed. "How could I not contact you? You went to the south right after graduation, and I couldn't see you in person. Long-distance calls were expensive, and I didn't have that much money."

Hou Wen said, "I called your home several times, but no one answered."

Dong Xuebing coughed. "I haven't lived on Heping Street for two years."

"Anyway, you didn't contact me. I remember that. Let's exchange phone numbers soon. You must treat us to a meal." Hou Wen said confidently.

Dong Xuebing chuckled. "You changed your phone number without telling me. Why am I the one treating you to a meal? Bullshit. You should be the one treating me to a meal. No, it's two meals. You promised to treat us before graduation, but right after graduation, you went to the South without seeing us. You still have the nerve to ask me to treat you. I won't mention this matter anymore."

Roast donkey meat was their favorite dish in college. Whenever there was a celebration, everyone in the dormitory would eat roast donkey meat. Now it seemed like it wasn't expensive, just an ordinary dish. But back then, they were all poor students. Eating roast donkey meat was as enjoyable as dining at the Shangri-La Hotel. They were happy in those days.

Hou Wen coughed. "At that time, there were urgent matters. My dad arranged a job for me, and the reporting time was set. I couldn't delay."

"Admitting defeat?"

"Alright, it's my fault, it's my fault."

"What do you mean it's your fault? Haha, it's your fault."

"Okay, I'll treat. Stop embarrassing me. I miss our group of classmates."

"Then why didn't you come for the school anniversary?"

"What school anniversary? I had no idea."

"It was the anniversary of the university. I only found out when I ran into Teacher Jiang. I even saw Ruhua, Zhao Meng, and Le Haidong."

"How are they?"

"They're doing fine. Some married, some joined the system, and some joined state-owned enterprises. Anyway, they're all doing well. Come, let's sit down and talk slowly."

"Let's talk later. My mom is behind me. Have you met her?"

At this point, Dong Xuebing noticed a middle-aged woman walking towards them, not in a good mood. Hou Wen also looked a lot like his mother. Dong Xuebing had seen Hou's mother when they just entered freshman year, Hou's mother had brought him in. But the memory wasn't very clear, after all, it had been so many years, so seeing her now felt a bit unfamiliar, but he still went over to greet her.

"Auntie," Dong Xuebing said.

Hou's mother glanced at him. "Who is this?"

Hou Wen put his arm around Dong Xuebing's shoulder. "He's my college classmate, Dong Xuebing."

"Oh." Hou's mother nodded indifferently to Dong Xuebing and sat in the rest area.

In Dong Xuebing's memory, Hou's mother seemed like this, so nothing was unexpected. He had always heard during college that Hou Wen's father was a senior official in the south, but Hou Wen never mentioned what specific position his father held. He was usually low-key and easy-going, warm and friendly to everyone. From his appearance, you couldn't tell he was the son of an official. Probably only a few of their dorm mates knew some details.

Seeing Hou Wen, Dong Xuebing also sat down opposite him. "Which flight are you waiting for?"

"This one," Dong Xuebing pointed.

"Oh, you're going to Macau too?" Hou Wen exclaimed.

Dong Xuebing blinked. "You too on this flight? What a coincidence."

Hou Wen was thrilled. "Then we'll have a lot to talk about this time. It's over an hour on the plane. What's your seat number? Let me check." After checking, they weren't seated together, and the seats were quite far apart. Hou Wen said, "Boarding will start soon. It's okay. I'll switch seats later. We must have a good chat. There's so much to say. You have no idea how happy I am to see you. I've been reminiscing about our college days day and night, but you changed your phone number, and I couldn't reach you."

Dong Xuebing felt warm inside. "Me too, three years without seeing each other."

"Yeah, three years." Hou Wen sighed a bit. "After starting work, I realized how good the school was and how good our group of brothers were."

Dong Xuebing said, "The friends we make now always feel a bit shallow, not as genuine as ours."

Hou Wen slapped his thigh. "You're damn right."

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