16 January 2017
Lanhuatingzi | Rongzhuo, Lanhuagang Prefecture
9:30 am Rongzhuo Time
Xi Yao-tong checked his watch sipped his tea. He felt elated after his party's election "win" the day before, and was looking forward now finally to lead a stable government once again. More importantly, Xi could also once again grace the world stage without the stigma of being a "lame duck" leader - it had been demoralising to be scorned and ignored by world leaders who saw him as simply an interim leader, and thus not worth dealing with.
9:30. The leaders should be here in the next half hour. Xi sat back in his white chair. He was sitting in one of the smaller private rooms within the Lanhuatingzi, the official residence of the First Minister and the rest of the Council of Ministers. The room was lit by traditional Monic lanterns, with a portrait of Lu Keqian hanging above the doorway. The window looked out into a small courtyard, surrounded by high walls made in a traditional Xiaodongese style. He was sitting opposite the Chairman of his party, Yuan Xiannian, a stocky man with tousled hair and a dull monotone, and beside him sat his private secretary, a young woman named Han Meimei with wire rimmed glasses and a dark business suit. Yuan spoke as Xi took another sip of his tea,
"This whole common market debacle. You realise they won't allow us, especially now?"
Xi put his cup of tea down. "There's no worries Xiannian. We'll make sure to get assurances in the summit today that any economic fallout will be cushioned. Tuthina and Tinzhan haven't let us down in 20 years." He turned to Han, "I assume Ki Fong and Anteko are attending again?".
Han nodded, with Xi sitting back. He'd met Ki when he was still foreign minister, and Anteko at the Xiangmin Summit back last Autumn. They weren't anti-Xiaodongese ideologues, meaning he could hope to strike out some deal with them.
I've arranged for security to be keep all protesters from entering near the Lanhuatingzi. The Alliance mob have sworn to protest today over the election, we don't particularly want our Tuthianian and Tinzi counterparts to be assaulted by them". Yuan said. "I've allowed the police to use full force if they come near the General Secretary and the Regent."
"Good." Xi said, as he stood up. He turned to Han. "Is my car ready? Xi said, "They should be arriving soon." Han nodded as Yuan got up as well.
"Remember this meeting is crucial. If we don't secure investment from Tuthina and Tinzhan, Xiaodong is in for difficult times." Yuan said.
"I know." Xi replied as he walked out the door. He looked through his schedule again - he would greet the leaders at the airport, then go back to the Lanhuatingzi to launch the summit. Xi hoped it would go to plan.