Three hours before the start of the cultural evening.
There were significantly fewer people by the lakeside in a somewhat secluded area without food stalls, shops selling things, or near the stars or the main stage. This is why Dong Xuebing chose this area to gather everyone.
"Three hours left, and we're about to hit the peak of visitor traffic. As you've seen today, there are many people. Up until now, the park's preliminary count shows a visitor count of around seventy thousand. It's expected that the park will have up to fifteen thousand visitors before the evening starts, possibly even more." Dong Xuebing stood on a high ground and addressed everyone.
"Fifteen thousand...!"
"How can fifteen thousand fit?"
Dong Xuebing nodded. "Yes, it certainly can't fit that many people. I just spoke with the park's officials and relevant officers. They've agreed that twelve thousand is the park's maximum capacity. If it exceeds that, it will bring many negative impacts and incidents to the park. So, twelve thousand. Beyond this number, we must close the ticket sales window and the park gates. No one else can enter."
Meng Hanmei blinked. "But the fans..."
Zhang Changlin added, "Yes, some people flew in from far away to our county. Coming such a long distance just to be turned away would make them very upset."
Wei Zhixuan furrowed his brows. "The key is, we don't have enough manpower. If an emergency occurs, we can't handle it with our current numbers." They've already mobilized all available personnel, but facing tens of thousands of visitors, the shortage is still too great. If something does happen, they can't rely on the city for help. The relationship between their county and the city is strained, and this cultural festival and evening are organized solely by their county. There's no obligation or willingness on the part of the city to assist.
Dong Xuebing nodded. "Everyone's right. There are no solutions at the moment; we have to rely on ourselves. This is a test for us. I hope everyone can do their work well. If there aren't enough hands, make them up. We must ensure the smooth running of the cultural evening. If something does happen, contact me immediately, and I'll deal with it. Okay. That's all I have to say. Everyone's been working hard."
Everyone went back to their respective tasks.
Dong Xuebing took a deep breath, looking at the increasingly anxious crowd still lined up at the park entrance. More people are a good thing; bringing so many stars is to attract people. But having too many people is troublesome.
Let’s hope nothing happens.
Dong Xuebing could only pray.
But what's bound to come will come, and problems that need to arise will inevitably appear. There’s no avoiding it.
Just before five o’clock, the visitor count finally hit the twelve thousand mark. The staff immediately stopped ticket sales and let no one else in, angering the crowd, which was shouting and yelling outside.
"Why aren’t you selling us tickets?"
"Open the door! We want to watch the evening!"
The park staff explained to the crowd, "The park can't accommodate more people. Please understand and go back."
"Do you know how far I’ve come?"
"If you don't open the door, we’ll crash through!"
When a few people shouted, the crowd became even more agitated. Over a thousand people were still outside who hadn't entered, and the shouting was deafening.
The situation quickly got out of control.
Soon, someone called Dong Xuebing.
Hearing the news, Dong Xuebing hurried to the scene. When he arrived, he gasped at the sight. The crowd was almost blocked entirely, not just at the ticket counter but now concentrated at the park's entrance. To control the flow of visitors, they did not open the largest iron gate but instead used iron chains to lock it shut, leaving only a small door beside the ticket counter open. But now, with everyone pushing, even the locked gate was swaying precariously.
"Secretary!" Zhang Changlin yelled. "It's out of control!"
A policeman next to him pulled Zhang Changlin back. "Director Zhang, move back quickly!"
"What are you doing pulling me? I'm fine!" Zhang Changlin shouted. "Hurry up and get the leaders and staff out!"
The Minister of Propaganda, Sun Changzhi, and the TV station personnel were also there. Seeing Dong Xuebing arrive, Sun Changzhi quickly said, "Secretary, you need to go back; it's dangerous here."
The TV reporters also fled.
The big iron gate was swaying more violently.
Many people from Jiaolin County were frightened, retreating far back.
Over a thousand people—if they all rushed in, they could easily crush someone. If a stampede occurred, the injuries and deaths would be terrifying to behold.
Hearing the news, Zhang Dongfang hurriedly left the investors behind and rushed over. "What's going on? Hurry up and stabilize the situation! No one can rush in!"
Dong Xuebing bellowed, "Old Zhang, leave it to you!"
Zhang Changlin immediately ordered, and dozens of police officers stood up behind the iron gate, quickly pushing against it with their hands.
"What are you doing?"
"Everyone, move back!"
"Anyone pushing forward will be disturbing public order!"
The police shouted, trying to intimidate them with their presence.
The police, wearing their uniforms, were a natural deterrent. The people pushing against the big iron gate hesitated momentarily and stopped.
Seeing this, Zhang Dongfang and the people from Jiaolin County breathed a sigh of relief—it was perilous.
A good situation could quickly devolve into a tragic event. If it did, forget the evening—there would be no cultural festival.
Dong Xuebing walked up to the crowd. "Everyone, listen to me!"
Zhang Dongfang was startled and quickly pulled him back. "Don't go, Xuebing!"
Su Yan and Meng Hanmei exclaimed, "Secretary, don't go forward. It's not safe there!"
Dong Xuebing didn’t listen, walking straight up to stand behind the dozens of police officers, speaking through the iron gate. "I understand everyone's feelings, but the park's capacity is limited and already full. No one else can enter. Let's all understand each other. Please go home for now. The cultural festival continues tomorrow. There will be other opportunities."
"There won't be an evening tomorrow!"
"We came here just to see the evening!"
"Everyone, don't listen to him! Just rush in! Numbers don’t get punished!"
"Yeah, don’t be afraid! They don’t have guns, and even if they did, they wouldn’t dare to shoot!"
"Rush in! If we rush in, we can get a good spot for the evening! Whoever gets in first will grab the best position!"
Someone led the way with these words. The crowd immediately erupted into chaos again, their anger rekindled. Just seconds ago, everyone had stopped, but they started pushing against the gate again.
Dong Xuebing continued loudly, "Everyone, please calm down. We don’t want things to get out of hand, either, but we truly cannot accommodate this crowd."
"Who the hell are you?"
A few people glared at Dong Xuebing.
Zhang Changlin was furious. "This is our Jiaolin County's county committee secretary!"
"What does a county committee secretary count for? We don’t care who you are; we want to see the show!" Some people began to curse. The atmosphere was hostile.
Wei Zhixuan, who had arrived, was also anxious. "What are you looking at? Quickly get Secretary Dong away from there before things get worse!"
Only then did some people realize and go to pull Dong Xuebing back. "Secretary, you must leave; the gate is about to be pushed open!"
Behind, many investors had followed Zhang Dongfang's earlier direction and arrived. Seeing this scene, the investors were also shocked.
Zhang Dongfang hurried back, calling out to the investors to move away. "Quickly, everyone, don’t stay here." He brought several staff members over to protect the investors and backed them away from the front entrance.
But inside, one person hadn’t left—Zhang Longjuan, who had arrived in the afternoon.
"Ms. Zhang!" Zhang Dongfang anxiously called.
Zhang Longjuan, smiling lazily while puffing on a cigarette, watched the scene with a grin. "I’m fine. Just looking, haha."
"This isn’t safe, Ms. Zhang! Get out of the front; if people rush in, it’ll be over!" a member from the Investment Bureau urgently said.
But Zhang Longjuan remained indifferent, smoking leisurely, looking at the situation. "Don’t worry, there won’t be any problems. Secretary Dong is here, after all."
Secretary Dong was there, but what could he do against over a thousand people?
Outside was chaos, and inside was even more chaotic. Just as the Investment Bureau official was about to forcibly remove Zhang Longjuan, an unexpected event occurred.
The iron chains holding the gate were pushed open by the crowd outside.
The chains snapped, and the locks fell. It was clear how much force the crowd outside was exerting—hundreds or thousands of people were pushing against the gate. With so many people forgetting about an iron gate, even a solid metal door wouldn’t hold up.
"Get out of the way!"
The gate swung open slightly.
Dozens of police couldn’t hold back over a thousand people. Several of them were pushed aside, falling to the ground. Danger loomed.
Dong Xuebing's face darkened instantly—dammit, you sons of bitches!
"Rush in!" someone yelled.
"The gate’s going to open!"
"Haha, everyone, quick, go in!"
"They can’t stop us now!"
The crowd surged forward, becoming frantic.
"Secretary Dong, run!" someone yelled.
However, just then, Dong Xuebing’s face turned cold. Instead of retreating, he walked straight towards the gate.
Zhang Dongfang, Wei Zhixuan, and Zhang Changlin were frightened and called out urgently, "Secretary Dong, come back! It’s dangerous!"
Dong Xuebing didn’t even acknowledge them. The only response they received was Dong Xuebing's actions. He stood in front of the partially open iron gate, calmly extending a hand to push lightly against the edge of the gate. To everyone’s shock and disbelief, the iron gate, watched by hundreds of stunned eyes, closed again.
Everyone was stunned and scared silly.