The hundreds of accountants, guests and media types waiting for Premier Zhu Rongji to give his keynote speech at the opening of the 16th World Congress of Accountants got all worked up about nothing yesterday morning.
The master of ceremonies, a Phoenix television personality, asked everyone to stand and welcome Mr Zhu, but a few moments later she called for a halt to the VIP music.
The people walking up the red carpet looked reasonably important, but Mr Zhu was not among them.
Our correspondents among the audience, who had arrived an hour early to pass through the rigorous security checks, stirred restlessly at this false alarm.
Or was it? With all the careful planning that went into this event, was it possible Mr Zhu's entry went exactly as planned?
We are convinced it was a kind of soft entry, a primer for the audience to be ready for the real Mr Zhu, who arrived a few minutes later.