His junior, Hou Liangping, was merely a spice in the flavor of his life—a distraction to be indulged in when he felt like it, or pushed aside when he didn't. He was hardly worth any significant expenditure of mental energy.
At present, the ringleader Deng Shengli and his cohorts were still being held by the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection, awaiting final sentencing. Dongshan County was in a relatively stable period of transition. In this power vacuum, the most important task was to establish authority and public image, and the arrival of the newly selected graduates—the "selected cadres"—provided the perfect opportunity.
On December 23, 1987, a military-green truck drove through the welcoming banner and pulled up in front of the County Government building. Eighteen fresh-faced youths, wearing large red rosettes on their chests, stood as straight as javelins in the back of the truck, radiating high spirits.
Chapter 339