CHAPTER 468: CHAPTER 468: STEALING THE SPOTLIGHT

The hotel Chen Bin arranged was near the TV station, and after wrapping up their work, everyone headed over in small groups.

However, when Chen Bin saw Wu Jie walking in with a man, chatting and laughing, a pang of jealousy struck his heart.

So, he stood at the entrance of the hotel, silently watching the two of them.

Not long after, Wu Jie walked over.

"Chen Tai."

Like the others, she greeted Chen Bin casually and was about to head into the hotel.

Chen Bin suddenly asked, "Is this man your boyfriend?"

Wu Jie felt her face flush slightly and nodded.

"This is a celebration banquet. Who told you to bring someone else? If you want to go on a date, then don’t bother coming to tonight’s event!"

Watching Chen Bin’s retreating back, Wu Jie felt an overwhelming sense of grievance.

Tears began welling up in her eyes.

Despite her boyfriend’s attempts to comfort her, it amounted to nothing in the end.

The largest hall in the hotel had all the dishes served.

Chen Bin didn’t waste words and directly signaled everyone to start eating.

On usual occasions, he would control his alcohol intake.

After all, trouble often stems from what’s said after drinking, and he didn’t want to give anyone leverage against him while drunk.

But tonight, with so many toasts coming his way and feeling happy inside, Chen Bin kept drinking more and more.

The others were no different, all drinking merrily.

After all, they had pioneered the Yanxi Province Spring Festival Gala, something worthy of making history.

Halfway through the banquet, Chen Bin suddenly felt the need to use the restroom, and as he stepped out after finishing, he heard soft sobbing nearby.

It was coming from a woman leaning against the sink, her appearance unclear.

However, her hairstyle bore some resemblance to Lu Cailian’s.

Chen Bin walked over and tentatively asked, "Lu Cailian?"

Lu Cailian looked up, noticed Chen Bin, and hurriedly wiped away her tears.

"Chen Tai."

"What’s wrong?"

Faced with Chen Bin’s concern, she forced a strained smile.

"I’m just happy. After all, our long effort has finally paid off."

Despite already being tipsy, Chen Bin felt that her demeanor didn’t quite match someone crying tears of joy.

However, with Lu Cailian claiming this, he didn’t press further.

After all, they were merely colleagues at the moment and not familiar with each other.

Asking too much might make things uncomfortable.

"If you’re happy, then let’s go back and keep drinking!"

"Alright."

Lu Cailian was about to leave but stumbled, almost collapsing to the ground.

Fortunately, Chen Bin swiftly caught her in his arms.

His hand pressed against her flat stomach, feeling no excess weight—it was quite pleasant to the touch.

"Are you okay?"

"I’m... I’m fine."

Lu Cailian’s face was already flushed from drinking, and with Chen Bin’s warm hands, she turned even redder.

Soon, the two returned to the banquet table and continued drinking together.

By the time the event was over, Chen Bin was feeling dizzy.

After bidding farewell to the others with a wave, he stumbled off to find a cab home.

At that moment, he noticed Lu Cailian in the distance again.

Her face still bore traces of tears—it was clear she had been crying not long ago.

"Why are you crying again? Did something happen?"

"No, I didn’t cry."

Lu Cailian instinctively wiped her tears and hurriedly changed the subject.

"Chen Tai, where do you live? Should I walk you home?"

"Forget it; you’re so drunk. I’ll take you instead."

"No need, I can walk on my own—it’ll be fine."

Chen Bin grabbed Lu Cailian’s arm, swaying as he spoke.

"That’s not safe. It’s too late for you to walk alone."

The two ended up supporting each other as they walked forward.

They chatted about whatever came to mind, too drunk to remember anything they said later.

Halfway there, Chen Bin suddenly felt the urge to relieve himself.

But with Lu Cailian present, he couldn’t discreetly resolve it, so he just held it in.

Luckily, Lu Cailian’s home was quite close to the restaurant, about eight or nine minutes away.

When they arrived downstairs, Chen Bin, unable to bear it any longer, asked, "Um... can I use your bathroom for a moment?"

Lu Cailian didn’t think much of it and nodded in agreement.

Upon entering her apartment, Chen Bin used the restroom and prepared to leave, but she handed him a cup of water.

After drinking it, his intoxication deepened further, and he couldn’t recall what happened afterward.

The next morning, he woke up suddenly.

Thinking about how the Spring Gala had already been recorded, he lay back down in relief.

Seeing the woman lying next to him, he reflexively slid his dragon-like hands onto her soft curves, moving against her supple and rounded hips.

The sensation was intoxicating.

When his hand pressed onto her soft chest, however, Chen Bin immediately furrowed his brow.

This wasn’t Zhao Xinmei’s texture!

He quickly opened his eyes and was dumbfounded upon seeing the woman’s face.

It was Lu Cailian!

Seeing that she was still asleep, Chen Bin panicked, hastily pulling on his clothes and slipping out quietly.

As the sound of the door closing echoed, Lu Cailian furrowed her brows.

After leaving Lu Cailian’s apartment, Chen Bin tried to recall the events of the previous night but found his memory blank.

He couldn’t even remember if anything had happened between them.

Still, he couldn’t deny Lu Cailian’s incredible figure.

With the Spring Gala recording complete, Chen Bin finally relaxed upon returning to the station.

However, this didn’t mean his work related to the gala was entirely done.

To ensure its broadcast quality, the recorded footage needed post-production editing and some advertisements inserted.

After all this work, the Spring Gala was aired as planned on Minor New Year’s Eve.

Even though Zeng Pengchao had expressed approval, Chen Bin still wasn’t sure about public opinion.

After all, the gala was for the masses, and if the audience didn’t find it appealing, it would still be considered a failure.

The day after the broadcast, Yanxi Daily conducted a survey.

The results revealed that viewers’ favorite program was Wen Wan’s final song performance.

Additionally, many suggested inviting more top-tier celebrities in the future.

When it came to audience satisfaction, Chen Bin estimated that achieving 70% would already be a decent passing mark.

After all, it’s impossible to please everyone.

However, the survey results revealed a whopping 91.34% satisfaction rate!

This thrilled him immensely.

The provincial newspaper saw great potential in Chen Bin as a public figure.

They planned a special column detailing the behind-the-scenes stories of the Yanxi Spring Gala.

They also conducted an exclusive interview with Chen Bin.

Chen Bin avoided mentioning Lan Hui’s attempts to sabotage him, keeping things mild during the interview.

Once the interview was published, everyone learned that the young secretary of the County Committee had directed the gala.

The story spread quickly, causing a major sensation.

Netizens had mixed opinions about Chen Bin, but the majority were positive.

Soon, some major media outlets in the Imperial Capital picked up the story and re-shared it.

From that point, Chen Bin’s popularity began to grow nationally.

Of course, where there’s joy, there’s envy. Chen Bin’s rise to fame stirred resentment in certain circles.

People started scheming to bring him down...