In a small café near the DOD building, Colonel Lai De, now out of uniform, kept glancing at the watch on his wrist.
It had been fifteen minutes past the agreed-upon time.
But Fei Er still hadn't arrived.
As a professional responsible for external news releases, he almost guessed how Fei Er would later explain his tardiness.
After all, it was impolite behavior.
The reason he did this was to keep himself on tenterhooks.
After all, he was the anxious one now.
There would be a routine press conference in two days, and if this matter wasn't resolved within those two days, allowing public opinion to ferment, then that press conference would be a disaster.
And news release and external communication were precisely the duties of a press officer; if not handled well, it would be his responsibility, inescapable.
Now, Colonel Lai De also had a card up his sleeve.
In this contest, he was not without cards to play.
As for the outcome, it depended on how Fei Er played his cards.
"SORRY!"
Sure enough, at the twenty-minute mark, Fei Er entered the cafe, looking hurried and apologetic, and sat down opposite Colonel Lai De.
"Traffic jam, such a terrible jam. I left early, but I didn't expect traffic to be this bad. Stuck on the road for a full hour. Damn government, they never spend money where it's needed, just look at the state of the city's construction!"
Fei Er seemed to be explaining, but to Colonel Lai De, it sounded like an insinuation against the military.
"It's alright, this is my job. I can wait."
Lai De pretended not to be angry and snapped his fingers.
The waiter came over and asked Fei Er, "What would you like to drink?"
Fei Er shrugged, "Coffee, and a beef burger."
After the waiter left, Colonel Lai De got straight to the point.
"Fei Er, we have known each other for quite a few years now."
He started to play the friendship card.
"How many years exactly?"
Fei Er smiled, "I don't remember, who can keep track of all that?"
Both were age-old foxes; despite the simple exchange, each word was loaded with hidden meanings.
Lai De understood that Fei Er's deliberate tardiness was to make clear who was the dealer and who was the player, who was beholden to whom.
This was psychological warfare.
Then, Lai De tried to rely on their friendship, but Fei Er stated he couldn't remember.
Lai De believed the man was not telling the truth.
In fact, he was hinting that Lai De shouldn't rely on their relationship, as this matter couldn't be resolved through personal connections.
Lai De wanted very much to understand a few things, first of which was where Fei Er's information came from, and second, what Fei Er intended to accomplish by leaking this news.
And the ultimate goal was to squash the whole affair.
At that moment, the waiter brought the coffee and the burger. Fei Er started wolfing down the burger as if he was really hungry.
"Too busy, didn't even have time for breakfast. Several TV stations have been inviting me on their programs."
He deliberately glanced at his watch.
"We only have 30 minutes."
Colonel Lai De was inwardly annoyed but dared not show it on the surface.
As the DOD spokesperson, how many in the media were eager to please him?
Without getting into details, if anyone crossed him, reporters covering military news would have nothing good coming to them.
On the surface, it was all about freedom of the press; they could ask anything.
But offend him, and you wouldn't make it inside the press hall.
If you did get in, you wouldn't be called upon to ask questions.
Even if you asked a question, for the next DOD movements and various activities, no media coverage spots would be allocated for you.
Take Afghan, for instance. Reporters embedded with the troops could enjoy the military's patronage and be granted permission to film with a certain unit.
Reporters on bad terms shouldn't even dream of it. They'd have to buy their own plane tickets to the war zone and be responsible for their own safety.
That was the difference.
Talk about dema-lous insistence. They had plenty of ways to manipulate you!
Fei Er's attitude left him perplexed.
What exactly emboldened this man to be so defiant and disregard him entirely?