Chapter 154: New Year's Greetings

The first day of the lunar new year marked the very beginning of the new year.

Since early morning, Lin Chuan and Yuan Ye had not had a moment to rest. A steady stream of visitors came to pay their New Year respects, arriving in wave after wave.

First came the department heads of the television station. It was as if they had coordinated their schedules, appearing at Yuan Ye's home all at once.

These individuals were veterans of the station. A few had even worked there for as many years as the old master, and none of them were young anymore. In their forties and early fifties, they had reached retirement age.

Lin Chuan and Yuan Ye always maintained an attitude of respect toward them.

"Old Station Director, please rest assured. As long as we old brothers are still at the station for even a single day, we will escort you all the way and protect this place." The speaker was quite elderly, looking somewhat older than the old master himself.

He was the newly appointed director of the news department, a smooth-talking man who tailored his words to whoever he was addressing and enjoyed a fairly good reputation throughout the station.

As for his work, it was mediocre—without any spectacular achievements, but also without any major missteps.

Neither Lin Chuan nor Yuan Ye had any intention of replacing him. In fact, there was no need to go to such redundant lengths; given his current age, he would be retiring very soon anyway.

"Indeed, Old Station Director, with us old fellows around, what else is there for you to worry about? Leaving everything else aside, if anyone in the station dares to make trouble, I will be the first one to object..." Another person chimed in.

He appeared relatively young, though that was only in comparison; visually, he had to be at least in his early fifties.

Hearing this, the old master burst into a hearty laugh and nodded repeatedly. "Very well, with your words, what is there for me to worry about... But I would like to give you a heads-up in advance. Xiao Ye and Xiao Chuan are both young, and young people naturally have their moments of youthful vigor. If they do anything inappropriate, I hope you gentlemen will be understanding..."

"Old Station Director, you can set your mind completely at ease. I'll say it again: as long as we are at the television station for a single day, such a thing will never be allowed to happen..."

The veteran heads of various departments patted their chests and made solemn guarantees.

Since this was a gathering of older comrades, it was inconvenient for Lin Chuan and Yuan Ye to show themselves, so the old master took charge of the hosting duties entirely by himself.

At that moment, standing at the doorway of the bedroom, Lin Chuan and Yuan Ye heard every single word of the conversation outside without missing a thing.

Finally, Yuan Ye shook his head helplessly. "Xiao Chuan, these old foxes really are full of schemes, coming all this way to ask the old master for a guarantee of safety?"

"Heh, it's quite normal. Now that the station's prospects are looking better and better and it's gradually getting back on track, who would want to retire at a crucial juncture like this?" Lin Chuan smiled as well.

Retire? Exactly. Just as Lin Chuan had said, the station's future was looking brighter, and everything needed to be re-planned and reorganized.

When it came to reorganization, it naturally had to start from within.

Take these veteran figures, for instance. They were no longer young, found their work increasingly taxing, and most importantly, their mindset could no longer keep pace with the modern rhythm.

Beyond them, there were certain existing staff members at the station whose working capabilities, to be frank, left much to be desired.

Although Lin Chuan had purged a portion of them when he first assumed the role of chairman, that was only a fraction. There were still others who had originally entered the station through various connections and backdoor dealings, and their actual competence was quite limited.

Prior to this, because the station was performing poorly and even facing the crisis of bankruptcy, what professional personnel would ever come to work here? To put it bluntly, doing so would be no different from ruining one's own future.

Things were different now. Although the Quancheng Television Station could not compare to state-owned giants like CCTV or private stations backed by massive financial conglomerates, its reputation was no longer insignificant.

Especially after the broadcast of *If You Are the One*, its popularity soared continuously, refusing to slow down no matter what.

Rumor had it that after the New Year, *If You Are the One* might even be broadcast on satellite channels.

Uh... as for what a satellite channel was, that would be explained later. Regardless, based on this point alone, Quancheng Television was no longer what it used to be.

With such a radiant future ahead, the station naturally had to undergo a massive overhaul. Older veterans could step down in advance, ceding their positions to the younger generation and giving youth a chance.

As for those ordinary staff members with mediocre capabilities and no notable achievements, they would also face a rigorous performance review, with failing grades resulting in the crisis of unemployment.

Once these tasks were accomplished, the station would recruit a large number of highly professional personnel, giving both its hardware and software a completely refreshed look.

Only in this way could the television station go further and achieve a more glorious development.

The former group was easier to handle. Regardless of their work capability, they had after all served at the station for decades; even if they hadn't achieved notable merits, they had endured plenty of hardship. Upon retirement, the station would grant them considerable care, and their benefits would remain intact.

As for the latter group, since they had entered through connections in the first place, at worst they could just rely on connections to leave as well. Perhaps moving to a new place would even expand their room for development.

Yet Yuan Ye had never imagined that when this decision was initially made, almost everyone in the station had remained silent, seemingly accepting it by default.

At the time, he had breathed a massive sigh of relief, fearing that these people—especially the old veterans—would kick up a huge fuss. He had assumed the matter had simply passed.

As it turned out, that was not the case at all. Taking advantage of the New Year, they had come under the guise of festive greetings, but their true intent was to secure a guarantee to protect their positions.

They certainly knew how to pick their timing—staging this performance on the very first day of the New Year?

Lin Chuan was no fool, nor was Yuan Ye. From the moment these old brothers stepped through the door and uttered their very first sentences, they had already guessed their true intentions.

If the old master really stepped forward to protect them, even Lin Chuan as the chairman would find it impossible to use hardline tactics anymore.

Sigh after sigh filled both men's faces with wry smiles.

"Hahaha, Old Chen, to be honest, at our age, it's time to let go of work and rest a bit. After working hard our entire lives, what are we striving for? Isn't it just to enjoy our later years? Now that the station is developing better and better, it's time to let go and let the young people fight it out themselves." Judging by the voice, this was spoken by the old master.

Hearing this from inside the bedroom, Lin Chuan and Yuan Ye could not help nodding in succession, silently giving the old master twenty-four thumbs-up. Exactly, that was precisely the reasoning. How wonderful retirement was! Drawing a pension every month without having to fret over work matters, and when free, finding old companions downstairs to play chess or cards—what a joy!

At the very worst, once their sons or daughters had children, if they couldn't stay idle, they could help take care of them—that too was the joy of domestic harmony.

However, before they could revel in their joy for much longer, a loud and resonant voice rang out.