CHAPTER 458: CHAPTER 458: RAISING AN ARMY TO DEMAND JUSTICE

After some thought, Chen Bin decided on a compromise.

"My schedule is still quite tight. If there’s no result on her end before the end of the month, then I’ll ask Mr. Niu to help me find another singer."

"No problem!"

Mr. Niu nodded in agreement, feeling quite satisfied with this outcome.

For the rest of the day, Liao Ruoji and her sister shadowed Chen Bin closely.

By evening, to avoid disputes between the two women, Chen Bin directly bought a ticket and flew back to Tianhai.

The next day, the production team arrived as a group.

With everything prepared, Chen Bin’s mood was no longer as tense as before.

After organizing all the programs, he once again sought out Lan Hui.

"Lan Tai, this is the program list. Apart from one singer that hasn’t been confirmed, the lineup for our station’s Spring Festival Gala is essentially finalized."

Upon hearing this, Lan Hui’s brows immediately furrowed.

The program content was rich, and several big-name celebrities were headlining. Could Chen Bin really have pulled this off all by himself?

"This must have cost a lot of money, right?"

"Yes, just the talent fees for the performers have cost nearly 20 million."

"Where did you get the money?"

"This is our station’s first Spring Festival Gala. Many companies wanted to advertise their products, so I sold some ad space."

As he spoke, Chen Bin handed Lan Hui a receipt.

He had specifically set up a bank account for the Gala, and all the advertising revenue was deposited there.

Upon seeing the balance on the receipt, Lan Hui was utterly shocked.

She would never have imagined that Chen Bin would find a way to raise money like this.

Faced with this, she could only respond insincerely.

"Not bad. You’ve certainly lived up to my expectations."

Chen Bin remained silent, watching her performance quietly.

Lan Hui then asked, "Have you decided on the Spring Festival Gala hosts?"

"Not yet. Once I finish preparing the scripts, I’ll select them."

"The hosts may not perform programs, but they are critical. I think Tao Qian would be suitable."

Hearing this, Chen Bin couldn’t help but sneer inwardly.

But he responded, "Rest assured, Lan Tai. I’ll definitely choose the most suitable people to be the hosts."

Near the end of the workday, Chen Bin requested promotional materials from the Public Relations Department containing dossiers on all the station’s hosts.

After carefully reviewing them one by one, he ultimately settled on Lu Cailian.

Lu Cailian was not yet thirty and had graduated from Imperial Capital Broadcasting College.

She hosted programs on CCTV Channel 1 and achieved solid ratings.

Moreover, Lu Cailian was beautiful, spoke with poise, and was highly regarded by the public in the region.

Such an outstanding host—it’d be a waste not to include her in the Spring Festival Gala.

Traditionally, the Spring Festival Gala is hosted by two men and two women.

Now, other than Lu Cailian, the other candidates seemed to be on roughly the same level, leaving Chen Bin unsure of whom to choose.

The following morning, Chen Bin built a ballot box and initiated an anonymous voting campaign across the province’s TV station to select hosts.

Each person could only write one name, and the two men and two women with the most votes would host the Gala.

When they saw Chen Bin carrying a ballot box and visiting department after department along with the other three deputy station directors, everyone participated enthusiastically.

The voting atmosphere was highly energetic.

When this news reached Lan Hui’s ears, she was quite surprised.

At the same time, she couldn’t help fretting over Tao Qian’s odds of securing a host position.

After the voting ended, Chen Bin and the other three deputy station directors went to Lan Hui’s office together.

After counting the votes, the highest-voted female hosts were Lu Cailian and Ji Yue.

The highest-voted male hosts were Yu Ou and Zhang Chi.

Having gotten the desired results, Chen Bin then asked, "Does anyone have any objections?"

Fan Sheng was the first to respond.

"No issues here. This is the result of everyone’s votes—it’s the will of the collective."

Lan Hui, however, remained silent.

Seizing the opportunity, Chen Bin added, "Since there are no objections, we’ll have these four host the Spring Festival Gala!"

After leaving Lan Hui’s office, Fan Sheng couldn’t help but look at Chen Bin with admiration the whole way.

"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant! I’ve been annoyed with that chicken for a while now, and your approach is so satisfying!"

Chen Bin firmly shook his head and replied solemnly.

"Fan Tai, you just said it yourself—the selection of these four hosts is a collective choice. I didn’t target anyone specifically."

"Fine, fine—I was being petty. Anyway, seeing that chicken frustrated makes me happy. How about dinner tonight? My treat!"

Sighing lightly, Chen Bin shook his head slightly.

"Dinner’s out of the question. The Gala arrangements are still incomplete—frankly, I just don’t have the time right now."

Watching Chen Bin’s figure fade into the distance, Fan Sheng felt deeply moved.

This man actually managed to revitalize the Gala preparations—he truly was a talent.

Meanwhile, back in her office, Lan Hui erupted in a fit of rage.

"That little bastard! He’s driving me insane!"

Just then, Hong Ke knocked and entered from outside, asking, "Why are you so upset? What happened?"

"Chen Bin actually used an anonymous voting method to prevent Tao Qian from hosting the Gala. This is clearly a direct challenge to me!"

"But he wasn’t the one casting votes—is it fair to blame him for it?"

Glaring sharply at Hong Ke, Lan Hui’s face was filled with fury.

"Are you defending him?"

"Not at all. I just think that he’s been at the station for a short time and doesn’t know people well. If he knew Tao Qian was on your side, he surely wouldn’t have done this."

"You underestimate Chen Bin. I withheld funding from him and made him responsible for the Gala—clearly trying to sabotage him. What he did today was his way of demonstrating that he refuses to submit to me."

"So what’s your next move?"

"I need that brat to know that I’m the real authority in this station. If he dares challenge me, I’ll make sure he’s utterly disgraced!"

That afternoon, while Chen Bin was writing the Gala scripts, the phone on his desk suddenly rang.

Answering it, he found out that An Siwei, the director of the provincial broadcasting bureau, wanted him to come over and report his progress.

Time was tight, and Chen Bin didn’t want to deal with these figures at all.

But as they were his superiors, refusing wasn’t an option.

With a sigh, Chen Bin got up and left his office.

As he reached the parking lot, a red Ferrari blocked his way.

Its window lowered, revealing Lan Hui’s annoyed expression.

"I’m going to the broadcasting bureau as well. Let’s go together."

Without wasting words, Chen Bin opened the passenger door and got in.

On the way to the provincial broadcasting bureau, their gazes clashed several times.

From Lan Hui’s eyes, Chen Bin saw malice and venom.

Clearly, what awaited him wasn’t just a simple progress report.

Upon arrival, An Siwei cast a smile that didn’t reach his eyes and addressed Chen Bin.

"Tell me, how are the preparations for the Gala going?"

"All the programs are essentially finalized. The performers are working overtime to rehearse, and as soon as the stage construction is complete, we can begin dress rehearsals."

"As I recall, your station’s budget was only five million. How did you address this shortfall?"

"I reached out to some companies to run ads during the Gala broadcast..."

Before Chen Bin could finish, An Siwei slammed the table and shouted angrily, "Nonsense!"