How do we leverage this?
At the Party Committee meeting, everyone began discussing it.
Dong Xuebing seemed to have a fantastical idea and was full of confidence, saying: "This is what I think. Nowadays, everyone is focusing on the 'celebrity effect.' I think we can do that too. We can invite some celebrities to perform and host a cultural evening gala as part of the investment promotion festival. This is the most direct and fastest way to attract attention and showcase the overall strength of Jiao Lin County. If this gala succeeds, the impact will be undeniable, and it will certainly boost our investment work greatly."
"Invite celebrities?"
Everyone seemed a little skeptical, feeling that this might not be very feasible.
Wei Zhi Xuan was the first to oppose, "This won't work. If we invite unknown actors and artists, it won't achieve the desired effect. But if we invite celebrities from the first or second tier, we can't afford their appearance fees. And for a small county like ours, no top-tier celebrities will come even if we manage to pay. No matter how much we pay, it won't work. I'm not trying to lower our county’s image, but the reality is such." Wei Zhi Xuan was right. When it comes to second or third-tier stars, many of them don't just care about money. What matters to them is their fame. If they perform in a tiny event in a remote county, it's essentially a blow to their reputation—it's called "losing face" in capital cities, which would hurt their public image. Therefore, top-tier stars rarely take such gigs; even if they do, the county can’t afford them. A single person might demand millions of yuan, and they’d need to hire more people for a full gala. When you add it, the revenue from investment promotion taxes won’t cover the costs. One investment event might drain all of Jiao Lin County’s resources, making it worse than not hosting any event.
But two million was already the maximum budget they could allocate.
The renovations of the new county office and the old county office were already straining the county’s finances. They had exhausted their financial resources.
What could two million do?
Not even a simple cultural evening gala.
Even a regular investment conference would barely last four or five days.
The more everyone thought about it, the more unfeasible it seemed, but when they looked at Dong Xuebing’s expression, it was clear he had already made plans.
Dong Xuebing said calmly, "Two million should be enough. I can’t guarantee we won’t exceed the budget, but even if we do, it won’t be by much. I understand the concerns you’ve mentioned, and I’ve already considered them. This investment promotion cultural festival will last just two days, so we can try to save on the budget. County Mayor Zhang Dongfang and the county government will handle the contact work for other investors. You will be a bit busy these days—please prioritize contacting them and expediting the project work by the Investment Promotion Bureau. The cultural festival is tentatively set to start early next month, so the timeline is tight. However, the previous investment work has been done well, and we have good connections. This shouldn’t be too difficult."
Zhang Dongfang was taken aback. "Next month, early in the month, you say?"
Dong Xuebing responded, "Contacting investors, formulating projects, and arranging the venue won’t take much time." Dong Xuebing had more experience in this field than many others. The fastest investment conference he had ever organized took just a week, so he wasn’t speaking out of turn. He had a clear sense of timing. "As for the cultural evening gala, inviting celebrities and performance groups to , I’ll take care of that."
Wei Zhi Xuan was a little surprised. "But about the money..."
Dong Xuebing calmly replied, "Don’t worry about the money. We don’t need any. We’ll take care of their food and lodging."
Everyone was confused. To them, it seemed impossible for Dong Xuebing to invite celebrities and performance groups without spending any money. If they were to invite even moderately well-known stars, it would cost tens of millions, if not more. Yet Dong Xuebing was saying that no money was required. If it were like that, all the problems would be solved, and everyone would fully support the plan. After all, money was the biggest obstacle for their county.
But how could it be possible to invite so many people without spending a single penny?
They weren’t charity organizations. To have celebrities travel to Jiao Lin County to perform for free—wouldn’t that make them living saints?
"Secretary Xuebing ..." Zhang Dongfang also seemed doubtful.
"Let’s settle on this for now," Dong Xuebing said without further explanation. "Everyone can take responsibility for their parts. We’ll prepare for the investment promotion cultural festival early next month. Like I said, I’ll handle the gala and all the contact work. You don’t need to worry about that. We’ll proceed with the plan as it is for now. If there are any changes later, we’ll discuss them. Is that okay?"
No one opposed the decision.
Since Dong Xuebing had said he would handle the gala personally, there was no need for others to worry, so they had no reason to argue. So, it was settled. However, everyone was still left with great doubt. They didn’t understand how Dong Xuebing planned to bring people in or whether this plan was really feasible.
"Alright, then. Everyone, please notify your teams quickly. For the next half month, all work must prioritize the investment promotion cultural festival," Dong Xuebing instructed.
The meeting was adjourned.
Everyone went off to handle the tasks for the investment conference.
Dong Xuebing returned to his temporary office, closed the door, and thought momentarily. Inviting performance groups and celebrities was a key part of his plan. He didn’t know whether to pull it off or manage it without spending money, but he was pretty confident. Over the years, he had built many connections in the system, and with help from family members, he believed the cultural gala had a strong chance of success. Since it was decided, Dong Xuebing stopped hesitating. He knew that achieving political results quickly was rarely possible without taking risks.
Dong Xuebing also put aside his pride and personally asked for help.