Power and Wealth

The banquet hall.

One by one, with Ma Yanfen and others from Yangli County getting drunk, thirty out of fifty people in the room were already down.

Among those thirty people, some lay on the ground unattended, some slumped on the table in deep sleep, some lay on the sofa in the corner talking nonsense to themselves, and some just sat on the floor right after returning from the restroom. In short, they were all falling over, leaving twenty people who hadn't fallen yet. However, they weren't in good shape either. The most precarious of them all was Dong Xuebing. After finishing this glass of wine, he felt even more unsteady on his feet. Constantly swaying, Dong Xuebing was being held by Chang Juan and Gong Na on either side. He had already stumbled several times, and it seemed like he could fall down at any moment. Lu Weiguo and the remaining conscious people were slightly better, but the aftereffects of the alcohol were gradually kicking in. These people looked like they couldn't handle much more. After all, each person had drunk at least a couple of pounds of alcohol. Dong Xuebing alone had consumed more than three pounds of liquor. The floor was littered with white wine bottles, and the room was filled with the smell of alcohol.

"Dong Xuebing."

"Mayor Dong."

"How are you feeling?"

Chang Juan and the others were in a hurry.

Dong Xuebing, supporting himself on a chair, said, "I'm fine, I'm fine. Let's keep drinking."

Gong Na anxiously said, "Mayor Dong, don't drink anymore. If you keep drinking, something bad might happen."

Dong Xuebing, still not listening, said, "Pour me another drink."

Gong Na, desperate, said, "You've already had more than three pounds of alcohol."

"Pour it!" Dong Xuebing looked at Chen Yunsong, not blinking.

Chen Yunsong was helpless, and Gong Na grabbed the cup to take it away, saying, "What are you doing, Xiao Chen? Do you want it to be even more chaotic?"

Chen Yunsong smiled bitterly. With Dong Xuebing speaking, did he dare not pour the wine?

Dong Xuebing, quicker than Chang Juan, snatched the white wine glass and swayed a few steps forward. He looked at Lu Weiguo and the remaining twenty people. "Come, I'll toast everyone again. Director Lu is right. We must drink heartily today!"

The remaining people looked at each other.

"Still drinking?"

"I can't drink anymore."

"Neither can I. Drinking another sip will make me vomit."

"This Mayor Dong has quite a capacity. Why hasn't he fallen yet?"

"You're right. He drank more than 1.5 liters. It looks like he can't drink anymore."

"He does have a good alcohol tolerance, but looking at him, he should be done now."

Everyone muttered in low voices. No one raised their cups. Only two drunk individuals were loudly yelling, demanding to drink alone with Dong Xuebing.

Dong Xuebing ignored the two of them. "Let's drink together!"

Lu Weiguo said, "Mayor Dong, I'm also quite intoxicated. Heh, let's drink one by one. Don't touch glasses together."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's drink individually."

"Together clinking glasses together is not fun."

"Mayor Dong, Mr. Liu, and the others will drink with you first."

Everyone echoed the sentiment, with many wanting to give Dong Xuebing a knockout blow. If they could knock him down, that would be considered a success, and their colleagues who had already fallen wouldn't have sacrificed in vain. Of course, at this point, the situation had developed to a point where many were no longer purely thinking about sabotaging the negotiation between Zhen Shui County and foreign investors. Instead, they wanted to "avenge" their colleagues and leaders because this guy named Dong was too irritating. Every time, he seemed about to fall, but he never did. They were getting more and more irritated.

Dong Xuebing provocatively said, "What, all scared now?".

A person from some county's investment promotion bureau grumbled, "Who's backing down?"

Dong Xuebing, with a drunken smile, said, "Just a moment ago, everyone was shouting to toast. Now, individually drinking is fine too. I'll drink with each of you, but there's one condition: I've made it clear that if my glass falls, none of you should have any liquor left."

No one responded.

Dong Xuebing continued, "If you're scared, forget it. Let's go, Chang Juan, let's go back."

"Wait a moment," Lu Weiguo looked at him, thought for a moment, and then smiled, " Mayor Dong wants to drink with all of us. Alright, let's listen to Mayor Dong and drink one by one." After that, Lu Weiguo looked at the remaining twenty people still standing, "Fill up the glasses for everyone. Xiao Liu, you drink with County Mayor Dong first." Lu Weiguo did leave some room for maneuver. He let the people who hadn't drunk with Dong Xuebing go first. Lu Weiguo knew that he definitely couldn't drink anymore, but with Dong Xuebing toasting one by one, there were still twenty people in between. Lu Weiguo had probably fallen down countless times already, and it definitely wouldn't be his turn for this round.

Dong Xuebing's provocative words and challenges had angered the remaining twenty people. With just one person facing so many of us, who is afraid of whom? We still haven't drunk more than him. It's a joke! Everyone began pouring more wine; after all, they had to make sure Dong Xuebing got knocked down today.

"No more alcohol."

"Call the waiter for more."

"How about another crate, no, two crates?"

They were irritated by Dong Xuebing and fueled by the alcohol. The remaining twenty people were full of anger, immediately calling the waiters.

After a few waiters brought in the wine, they were greeted with a messy banquet hall. The waiters were surprised but didn't say much. They understood these were officials and leaders, so they didn't want to create any trouble. After putting down the wine, they closed the door and left, probably getting ready to contact someone. After all, all the people from the investment promotion department were in the banquet hall tonight, and they themselves had no more staff left. For those who had fallen, they could only be carried back to their rooms by hotel staff. Tonight's workload was bound to be huge.

In the hall.

Several people came to open the wine.

On the other side, people had prepared empty glasses. Glass after glass was filled, and dozens of glasses were filled, each containing more than three ounces, looking daunting.

Gong Na was anxious, "Director Chang, this… this…"Thɪs chapter is updated by novelenglish.net . ꜰirᴇ.nᴇt

Chen Yunsong also looked at Chang Juan, "You decide what to do. This is a mess."

Chang Juan, frustrated, grabbed Dong Xuebing, "Xuebing, listen to me and go back."

Dong Xuebing continued to ignore Chang Juan and the others' dissuasion, pulling away from Chang Juan, "Let's drink a bit more before leaving. It's still early."

Chang Juan pulled him forcefully, "Why drink more? You'll die if you drink any more with so much alcohol already. You've already had more than 1.5 liters of alcohol, what else do you want to drink?"

Gong Na whispered, "They are trying to get you drunk."

Chen Yunsong said, "That's right, Mayor Dong. Don't fall for their trap."

On the other side, the wine was already prepared, and someone called out to him, " Mayor Dong, all set, come over."

Ignoring the persuasion from Chang Juan and the others, Dong Xuebing stumbled and pulled open a few people from Zhen Shui County, sitting down on a chair, "Come."

A clerk with the best alcohol tolerance among them stood up, "I'll drink with you first."

Everyone gathered around the table, and the atmosphere was getting lively.

"Come on, old Liu."

"Finish it in one gulp."

"Let's see who has better alcohol tolerance, you or Mayor Dong."

Chang Juan and Gong Na, seeing the situation, had no choice but to join in.

The clerk, referred to as Old Liu, rolled up his sleeves. "I'll go first." After saying that, he picked up the cup and forcefully poured three or two ounces of liquor into his stomach. After finishing, he slammed the cup heavily onto the table, making a loud noise. "It's your turn, Mayor Dong. Why haven't you drunk?" With the influence of the alcohol, he became more arrogant, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Without saying anything, Dong Xuebing slowly picked up the wine glass and poured it into his mouth. This time, he drank quickly, and within a few seconds, the liquor entered his stomach.

"Good!"

"He's a heavy drinker!"

"Impressive!"

Everyone clapped and encouraged, eagerly awaiting Dong Xuebing to fall.

Dong Xuebing fell, lying on the table after finishing the drink. Just when many people showed a slight smile, Dong Xuebing staggered and climbed up from the table again, looking at Old Liu with drunken eyes. "Great capacity. Let's have another cup, shall we?"

He spoke with a thicker tongue.

Old Liu was taken aback and also felt a bit uneasy. He couldn't drink anymore.

Dong Xuebing mocked, "Scared now? What happened to your momentum just now?"

Provoked by Dong Xuebing, Old Liu's face suddenly turned stern. He grabbed a cup of wine, lifted it, and said, "Let's do it."

Dong Xuebing also picked up a full cup, and the two of them clinked glasses again, downing the cup in large gulps. Chang Juan and the others watched anxiously.

The cups were emptied.

Well, the chair across was also empty.

After finishing the drink, Old Liu stared at Dong Xuebing with wide eyes. After a second, his neck tilted, and he fell off the chair with a thump, even shattering the empty cup.

People quickly carried Old Liu away, placing him on a nearby chair to let him sleep.

Dong Xuebing slapped the table, "Next one."

"I'll go." A young staff came over, but he clearly forced himself to do so. Probably wanting to leave a good impression on Lu Weiguo, he knowingly faced danger, without hesitation. However, he could also see that Dong Xuebing was no longer able to continue. If he could knock down the County Mayor of Zhen Shui, it would undoubtedly leave a good impression on the leaders. By then, a promotion might be just around the corner.

Dreams are beautiful.

Reality is cruel.

Dong Xuebing didn't even catch his breath. Without stopping, he directly picked up the next cup and clinked it with the young man. Both started to gulp down the drink.

However, the young man puked after just two sips. The liquor splattered, and he fell. He drank too quickly, choked, and the alcohol rushed to his head, making him unable to continue.

Another one fell.

People quickly carried him away.

Dong Xuebing, seeing that he also didn't finish, said, "He didn't finish, so I'll stop here. It's fair, right? Ha, next one." Dong Xuebing's neck was getting more and more tilted. He seemed even worse than before, unable to take another sip, as if just smelling the alcohol would make him collapse.