Chapter 156: Interview
Lou Cheng could tell exactly what Ye Weiyu meant, and she didn’t bother arguing with him.
In one word, Ye Weiyu was currently a petty person riding on luck.
Instead of wasting time with him, it was better to focus on her own tasks.
She nodded at Leyi:
“I have other things to do today, so I’ll head off first.”
With that, she walked away.
Seeing Ye Weiyu’s frustrated expression, Leyi didn’t want it to affect his own team, so he quickly waved goodbye to Gu Qinghuan and the others, letting them leave.
Gu Qinghuan hurried along. Looking at Ye Weiyu now, he was like a locust after the harvest—he wouldn’t last long.
That night, the program was uneventful. After all, it was the last day of recording; everyone was just wrapping up, and there wasn’t much content to broadcast.
Meanwhile, Jin Ding (Golden Peak) once again hit trending topics.
In recent days, the authorities had been investigating both paid online manipulation and illegal partnerships. Some parts even involved safety and fire inspections, causing several companies significant trouble.
Of course, Jin Ding had the most issues. The authorities issued a notice requiring the company to rectify the problems within a deadline, which again put them on trending lists.
Fans tried to defend the company online, saying Jin Ding had only attracted attention because rivals were targeting them.
In the general manager’s office, Yan Guanglei rubbed his temples, listening to reports from the legal and management departments, feeling a rare headache.
“Lou Cheng requested to terminate her contract?” Yan Guanglei asked.
“Her partnership was also investigated. Rectifying it is troublesome, including past payments and work assignments. She said if they terminate the contract, she wouldn’t pursue further claims,” the head of the legal department explained.
The manager of the talent department hesitated:
“Besides Lou Cheng, many other artists are in similar situations, so… it’s quite chaotic right now.”
Yan Guanglei pressed his temples again. Normally, such issues would be quietly resolved one by one.
But now, they were overwhelmed.
During the past few days of the online manipulation investigation, many Jin Ding managers and assistants were busy cooperating with the authorities.
Although Ji Sheng was Lou Cheng’s manager, he had just taken on Ye Weiyu. There was plenty of coordination work with the Walking with Light program team—just yesterday he was running non-stop.
Many were also busy handling inspections of all kinds. Even on New Year’s Day, they had to work overtime since the authorities would check compliance on the first working day after the holiday.
Why had things gotten so busy? The thought flashed through Yan Guanglei’s mind.
He didn’t dwell on it. Most of these issues, though seemingly overwhelming, were trivial matters—not worth stressing over.
He adjusted his tie and casually gave instructions:
“Don’t worry about the rectification. I’ll have a meal with Director Wang later and see if there’s extra time. Prepare some gifts.”
“If minor tasks pile up and we can’t handle them, pull people from other departments to help. Just get through these few days first.”
“Try not to disturb me during the day tomorrow. There’s an official event, a forum with entrepreneurs. I heard the Xia family will attend.”
Yan Guanglei planned to rest tonight, get ready in the morning, and attend the venue to discuss possible cooperation with the Xia family.
If it didn’t work out, he’d return to the office to manage operations. If successful, he’d likely need to negotiate further with the Xia family and attend the Mingde evening show directly.
With two Jin Ding artists performing in Walking with Light, Yan Guanglei naturally needed to attend, not to mention Jiang Youwei’s daughter participating—Jiang Youwei would surely be there as well.
Yan Guanglei’s plans were thorough, and his subordinates executed accordingly.
He walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing down at the neon-lit city below, tugging slightly at the corner of his mouth.
Another chapter ended, another began—he would stand even taller.
“Careful! Don’t fall!”
On New Year’s Day, Gu Qinghuan had just gotten off the shuttle when she heard someone shouting at the school gate.
Since the event was a variety show for the New Year’s gala, Mingde had naturally spruced up the campus for the occasion.
Gu Qinghuan watched people unloading pots of flowers from trucks and couldn’t help but comment:
“Mingde really has money.”
“Thank the principal,” Lian Fenghe popped up beside her, his tone sincere.
“Good morning, Lian Fenghe. Why are you thanking the principal?” Gu Qinghuan greeted him.
Lian Fenghe chuckled twice:
“Good morning, class president. I’ll tell you—yesterday, all the greenery used on campus came from our family’s order.”
Gu Qinghuan glanced around and whispered:
“Profit?”
“Quite a bit, and it spread our name too.” Lian Fenghe bobbed his head.
“A previous client ordered a batch of flowers but disappeared after receiving them. Our family was worried, and then the school came by and took everything for the campus.”
He grinned:
“Apparently Director Zhang suggested it. He said he always noticed flowers on our classroom podium and got curious. After asking the teacher and learning our family runs a flower business, he recommended us.”
Gu Qinghuan gave a thumbs-up:
“Amazing! That’s the reward for your persistence every day!”
Lian Fenghe scratched his cheek sheepishly:
“Exaggerating a bit. But my dad knows the reason and was quite moved. He even said if I’m truly interested, he won’t stop me from applying for horticulture.”
At that moment, he noticed Leyi arriving with a cameraman and hurriedly said to Gu Qinghuan:
“Good luck with your performance! We’ll cheer for you too! Bye!”
By the time Leyi arrived, Lian Fenghe had vanished. He regretted:
“I was going to interview your classmates too.”
“Don’t force anyone to do an interview! Besides, if you say that, the audience will blame you!” Gu Qinghuan widened her eyes.
The livestream’s chat was ready to explode with comments. The audience was about to experience the “professional line-stealer” phenomenon.
“Then you greet them,” Leyi suggested, signaling Gu Qinghuan to the camera.
Gu Qinghuan thought for a moment and waved at the camera with a bright smile:
“Happy New Year, everyone! By the way, I had a ham and fried egg sandwich for breakfast!”
Caught off guard by her New Year greeting, viewers paused, then laughed, enthusiastically posting about their breakfasts in the chat.
[Got it! Eggs are for New Year. I’m going to buy tea eggs.]
[Already had some—just boiled eggs.]
[Ah! My sister and I ate the same!]
Backstage, staff from the program were confused—how had Leyi’s livestream suddenly gotten so lively?
Leyi couldn’t help laughing:
“Alright, greeting done. Time to get styled. Let’s go to the makeup room.”
As an artist, Leyi had finished his styling early in the morning, but Gu Qinghuan and the others had to wait for the school’s makeup setup, which might require repeated adjustments.
When Gu Qinghuan arrived at the makeup room, Yu Yuan was already there.
Yu Yuan was in the middle of foundation application, so she couldn’t speak much—just winked at Gu Qinghuan.
“Good morning!” Gu Qinghuan greeted.
Each group could only have one makeup artist, so last night Leyi said it wasn’t necessary to come too early. If the previous person hadn’t finished, the following would have to wait anyway.
Lu Jian decided to come later. She had been nervous about performing yesterday and needed extra rest.
Gu Qinghuan, simply thinking of the sandwich in her fridge, got up on time for breakfast, then came early out of boredom.
The livestream camera couldn’t show Yu Yuan mid-makeup, so it focused on Gu Qinghuan.
Leyi, looking for conversation to boost the livestream’s energy, asked:
“Tomorrow is the official performance. Nervous?”
“Not really,” Gu Qinghuan thought. She believed Yu Xin and Jiang Chuchu’s teams were more nervous.
“I’m more excited than nervous.”
If the camera wasn’t on her, she really wanted to ask Bao Rujian whether the Jin Ding’s surveillance setup was complete.
Leyi assumed she had a good mindset and was feeling impressed, when Gu Qinghuan shifted her gaze from Yu Yuan to him.
“Mr. Leyi, please answer a few interview questions,” Gu Qinghuan began officially:
“Tomorrow, in the program, what rank do you think you can achieve?”
“Compared to the other three groups, where do you think your program’s advantages lie?”
“Regarding tomorrow’s gala, what would you like to say to yourself, and what would you like to say to the audience?”
The livestream chat instantly filled with “hahaha” messages.
Leyi thought: Where did this wild host come from? Why did I provoke her?
