In Lan Hui’s view, Chen Bin resorting to borrowing people was a sign of desperation.
She immediately said, "Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Chen Bin has offended someone. I hope you can see the situation clearly."
Ni Bo and Lan Hui didn’t have any direct subordinate relationship, nor did they have any conflicting interests.
However, the city station often relied on the provincial station in many aspects, which made Ni Bo unwilling to offend Lan Hui.
After hanging up the phone, Ni Bo directly told Yan Liang that he couldn’t borrow the people.
When Yan Liang relayed the news to Chen Bin, the latter seemed quite upset.
"How about you give me Ni Bo’s phone number, and I’ll try to talk to him directly?"
"Alright, I’ll send it to you via WeChat right away."
After receiving the number from Yan Liang, Chen Bin directly dialed Ni Bo’s number.
"Hello, Mr. Ni, this is Chen Bin from the provincial station."
"Oh, it’s Mr. Chen. Hello, hello."
Ni Bo was somewhat surprised to receive Chen Bin’s call.
But he still pretended not to know and asked, "May I know what’s the matter, Mr. Chen?"
"It’s nothing much, just wanted to invite you for a meal. When would you be free?"
"I’m really sorry, but I don’t have time in the next couple of days."
"What about Friday evening after work? Does that work for you?"
"I’ve been pretty busy for the past two months. Let’s save it for another time."
With that said, Ni Bo decisively hung up the phone.
After some thought, Chen Bin guessed that his phone call must have lacked sincerity.
He then decided to personally visit the city TV station to see Ni Bo.
After asking around, staff informed him that Ni Bo wasn’t at the station and they didn’t know when he’d be back.
Chen Bin naturally didn’t buy into such cheap tricks.
Pretending to go to the restroom, he managed to locate Ni Bo’s office.
He knocked on the door, and a steady voice quickly responded from inside.
As Chen Bin pushed the door open and entered, Ni Bo immediately frowned.
Though he hadn’t directly interacted with Chen Bin before, the latter had been in the news often enough for Ni Bo to recognize him at a glance.
Despite his inner frustration, Chen Bin forced a smile, as he still had something to ask of him.
"The staff downstairs told me you were out. You must have just returned, right?"
Without giving Chen Bin any friendly greeting, Ni Bo spoke candidly.
"No, I’ve been at the station all along. They said that earlier because I didn’t want to meet you. You’re wasting your time here—I’m not lending you anyone, no matter what!"
Frowning deeply, Chen Bin appeared puzzled.
"We belong to the same system. When the provincial station encounters difficulties and the city station is capable, why not offer a helping hand? If the city station ever needs help in the future, the provincial station will certainly do its utmost to assist."
"Enough, you’re just wasting your time here. Go quickly!"
"Mr. Ni, how about this—I can hire people at my own expense to help you out. That should be acceptable, right?"
Clearly uninterested in continuing the discussion, Ni Bo directly raised his voice in rebuke.
"Are you leaving or not? If not, I’ll call security!"
Upon hearing this, anger surged within Chen Bin.
However, he didn’t retaliate and instead let out a cold chuckle.
"Very well. Let’s hope Mr. Ni never finds himself needing help from others!"
Watching Chen Bin leave, Ni Bo couldn’t care less.
In his eyes, Chen Bin was just a low-ranking deputy station director, someone utterly inconsequential.
As he descended the stairs, Chen Bin’s mood grew even gloomier.
With Lan Hui blocking him at the provincial station and the city station unwilling to help, the staffing issue for the production crew had become even more troubling.
Just then, Chen Bin’s phone rang.
It turned out that the invited units had finalized their program arrangements, and they were ready for review.
Without giving it much thought, Chen Bin headed directly to the Tianhai City Song and Dance Troupe.
Unexpectedly, he ran into Kong Shiyu as soon as he stepped inside.
The young girl’s belly was noticeably rounded, and her figure had started to fill out.
Seeing Chen Bin, Kong Shiyu looked quite surprised.
"What are you doing here?"
Chen Bin replied, "The provincial station is hosting the Spring Gala, and I’m the person in charge. By the way, why aren’t you in school? What are you doing here?"
Rolling her eyes, Kong Shiyu retorted in exasperation.
"I’m pregnant. Is it appropriate for me to go to school?"
"Fair enough. So, what’s the reason you’re here?"
"I’m just hanging out. Someone my grandpa knows works here, so I come over when I have free time."
Noticing how familiar she seemed with the place, Chen Bin brought her along to meet the troupe leader.
The troupe leader hadn’t expected Kong Shiyu to know Chen Bin and said with a smile.
"Mr. Chen, you’ve got to do us a favor and assign more programs for us, for Kong Shiyu’s sake."
Smiling and nodding, Chen Bin replied.
"No problem. As long as the performances are good, I’ll arrange for all of them to be included if needed."
Soon, the rehearsals began.
Chen Bin was fairly satisfied with the first few performances. However, the last solo by a female singer made him furrow his brows.
The performer, Yan Hanlu, had an excellent figure and looks.
But her singing skills left much to be desired.
By the end of her performance, Chen Bin thought her singing was worse than his own.
How could someone with this level of skill even make it into the troupe as a soloist?
Perplexed, Chen Bin heard Kong Shiyu whisper.
"She used to work as a nightclub hostess, specializing in exotic dance routines. Her singing might not be great, but she knows how to let loose."
Chen Bin was taken aback by this revelation, completely stunned that such a beautiful woman had such a past.
Although the gossip intrigued him, discussing it here wasn’t appropriate, so he refrained from prying further.
After Yan Hanlu finished singing, Chen Bin announced the results directly.
"I’ll take the first and fourth programs. The other programs were quite impressive, but unfortunately, they don’t quite fit the needs of the gala."
Upon hearing this, the troupe leader couldn’t help but protest.
"Yan Hanlu is the best solo performer in our troupe. I think she’d be extremely suitable for the Spring Gala stage—could you reconsider?"
Nodding reluctantly, Chen Bin replied.
"Alright, I’ll give it more thought."
With that, he left the troupe building with Kong Shiyu.
On the way out, he couldn’t help but ask, "Is it true that Yan Hanlu used to perform exotic dances?"
"Of course. Do you think I’d lie to you?"
"But her singing skills aren’t great. How did she get into the troupe?"
"I heard it was arranged by someone at the provincial bureau of broadcasting, film, and television, and that person has some sort of financial dealings with the troupe leader."
"How do you know so much?"
Seeing Chen Bin’s puzzled expression, Kong Shiyu snorted proudly, looking smug.
"Let me tell you this—aside from not being good at studying, I’m excellent at everything else. Gathering intel is child’s play for me."
Nodding, Chen Bin reminded her as they were about to part ways.
"I’m really busy lately, so I might not have the time to take care of you. If anything comes up, just call me, alright?"
Kong Shiyu obediently nodded.
"Don’t worry about it. I’m going to be a mom soon—I can take care of myself and our child..."