Traveling through the Tokyo bubble era

Chapter 990 Getting Closer, Yet Further Away

In a courtyard not far from the Forbidden City, a gentle autumn breeze blew and the shade of the trees was cool. Hideki Yuzuru reached out and politely shook hands with the person in charge of the reception.

The person in charge said politely, "Mr. Yuzuru, it's been more than two months since we last met."

"Yes, but compared to before, I've been meeting with the station director quite frequently lately."

Hideki Hanyu replied with a smile.

In July, he came to China for an inspection tour and even went to CCTV to discuss with CCTV the possibility of having singers from Hong Kong and Taiwan perform in China.

They met again after only two months, which is indeed quite frequent for a busy person like Hideki Hanyu.

After exchanging a few polite words, the person in charge of the station brought up the interview.

Logically speaking, it's not his place to personally concern himself with such trivial matters as interviewing someone.

But because Hideki Hanyu has a special status and is extremely important to the country, and because someone was being unreasonable yesterday, which made Hideki Hanyu very angry, he had no choice but to make the trip in person.

After all, Hideki Yuzuru was considerate of CCTV yesterday, coming directly to him instead of complaining to higher authorities. Otherwise, more than just one or two people would have been in trouble.

At the end of his speech, the person in charge called a woman in her early twenties over and introduced her to Hideki Yuzuru.

"Mr. Yuzuru, this is Yang Lan, a host we are currently focusing on developing. She is currently hosting a variety show, and she will be in charge of today's interview with you."

Upon hearing this, Hideki Yuzuru looked at the girl in front of him, who was wearing a white shirt, women's suit pants, and had long hair. She looked quite young and innocent. He thought to himself, "It's true what they say, you can run into an acquaintance without even realizing it."

If I remember correctly, the other person should have just graduated this year and started working at CCTV. After that, they became the host of "Zhengda Variety Show" and then embarked on a fast track of career development.

The other person and another big-headed person both claimed to be the domestic version of Oprah.

Regarding the future development of the two, Hideki Hanyu has nothing to say. Whether it's for fame or fortune, that's their choice.

Looking at her now, Yang Lan, fresh out of school, is enthusiastic, pure and beautiful. Both her temperament and appearance are far removed from the image of the elite woman that the public will later have of her.

After the person in charge finished their introduction, Yang Lan took the initiative to greet Hideki Yuzuru.

"Mr. Yuzuru, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hello, Ms. Yang."

Even though he was another future celebrity, Hideki Hanyu, who was already used to such things, simply greeted him politely and didn't show any further reaction.

After the two greeted each other, the person in charge of the station said, "Mr. Yuzuru, do you have any requests for today's interview?"

Hideki Hanyu glanced at the time and said, "It's nine o'clock in the morning. Because I have to go to the airport to pick someone up, I can only give you an hour and a half."

"I apologize for bothering you during your busy schedule, sir. How about we let Xiao Yang and Mr. Yuzuru discuss the interview content first, and then we can officially begin recording in twenty minutes?"

The person in charge asked politely.

Hideki Hanyu replied, "No problem, let's begin."

Next, under the shade of the trees in the courtyard, at an old wooden table that the designer had found for Hideki Hanyu, Hideki Hanyu and Yang Lan sat down and began to discuss the content of the interview.

Basically, it's similar to other interview programs. They determine what are sensitive questions that can't be asked, and what questions can be asked, but shouldn't go too deep.

Through a brief conversation, Hideki Yuzuru realized that the young Yang Lan lacked experience and qualifications, and that the interview content was basically selected and prepared by CCTV, leaving him with little say.

Furthermore, his personal abilities are quite raw, and in many communication situations, he often fails to grasp Hideki Hanyu's brief reminders and requires specific explanations to understand.

And just like that, twenty minutes passed quickly.

With the communication concluded, the surrounding filming crew also set up the equipment needed for filming.

Seeing that everything was going smoothly, the head of the station, who was busy with the Asian Games, said goodbye and left.

After consulting with Hideki Hanyu, the person in charge of the on-site recording gave the order, and the interview recording began immediately.

However, at the very beginning, Yang Lan saw Hideki Yuzuru suddenly freeze up, failing to immediately recite his opening lines according to the script.

"Xiao Yang, what's wrong with you?"

After the person in charge at the scene called for a halt, he immediately questioned Yang Lan, his tone and attitude far from pleasant.

After all, Hideki Hanyu had limited time, and it was wasted by the host right from the start.

In fact, before filming even began, the person in charge of the on-site recording strongly objected when they learned that their superiors were going to send Yang Lan to interview Hideki Hanyu.

As for the reason, on the surface, it is that the person in charge on site said that such an important interview should not be conducted by a young person who has just graduated and has no experience.

The explanation given by the leaders of CCTV was as follows.

First of all, Yang Lan is a key talent being cultivated by the station, and interviewing Hideki Hanyu can greatly enhance her resume and help young people grow faster.

Furthermore, although Hideki Hanyu has a special status, he is only a 28-year-old young man this year. Interviewing someone of similar age would allow for more common topics and make communication easier.

The person in charge on site did not accept the leader's explanation.

Of course, this is only the superficial reason. The real reason is that the person in charge of the on-site recording had just been transferred to work at the headquarters with his wife from another unit.

He was originally in charge of the interview, and he wanted to give his wife the role of host, since interviewing Hideki Hanyu was an important resume that could be directly written into her file.

As a result, when the leader spoke up, Yang Lan directly took his wife's place. It would be strange if he could accept Yang Lan.

Now look what happened. Yang Lan made a mistake right from the start, which immediately convinced the person in charge that choosing Yang Lan was a mistake.

This also gave the person in charge at the scene an opportunity to make things difficult for Yang Lan.

Therefore, when the person in charge at the scene kept questioning her, Yang Lan apologized repeatedly, explaining that it was just a momentary mistake and assuring that she would definitely not make any mistakes in the future.

The person in charge at the scene, however, no longer needed to consider the leader's opinions after the leader's departure, and began to vent his dissatisfaction with the arrangement of the interview host, constantly nitpicking Yang Lan's issues and criticizing her incessantly.

However, the person in charge at the scene did not notice that as he wasted more and more time, Hideki Hanyu's expression became increasingly impatient.

At this moment, Hideki Hanyu really didn't know how to describe his feelings.

In the past, our cooperation with CCTV has always gone smoothly. Even if there were problems, they were limited to work-related issues, and we solved them professionally.

But who would have thought that this time, while watching the opening ceremony of the Asian Games, I would encounter a series of bizarre people.

First, there was yesterday's interview. Without his consent, they arranged his schedule without his permission, and the person in charge inexplicably acted as if he had to follow their orders.

Today, out of respect for the person in charge of the station, I agreed to the interview, but I encountered a bizarre person in charge who, because of a small mistake at the beginning, wouldn't let go of the new host, completely disregarding the interview time and only thinking about venting his own emotions.

Hideki Hanyu couldn't even be bothered to get angry at this kind of person.

He said calmly, "This is my home, not a place for you to vent your emotions. If you don't want to record the interview properly, then leave." Upon hearing this, the person in charge at the scene realized that he had been so caught up in his emotions that he had neglected the important matter at hand.

"Mr. Yuzuru, I'm so sorry..."

The person in charge at the scene, realizing what had happened, hurriedly apologized, but it was too late.

Hideki Yuzuru, however, would never give such a person any face, and leisurely sipped his tea from the teacup on the table.

As for the person in charge of the scene who came up to apologize, even Hideki Hanyu couldn't get close to him because he was stopped by bodyguards.

But stopping them was just the beginning. While the person in charge was apologizing, he was picked up by bodyguards and thrown outside the yard.

With a bang, the heavy wooden door slammed shut, the noisy sounds vanished instantly, and the courtyard returned to tranquility.

Hideki Yuzuru then put down his teacup and looked at Yang Lan again. "Ms. Yang, you don't have much time left for the interview. Do you want to continue?"

"what?"

Yang Lan was stunned and bewildered, seemingly still unable to process what had just happened.

After all, this was the first time in her life she had ever seen someone being interviewed throw the person in charge of the interview out.

Even though she has only been working for a short time, she doesn't think she will encounter this kind of thing again in her future career.

Seeing that Yang Lan didn't react, Hideki Yuzuru knew that his actions were too shocking for a newcomer.

However, considering that I had promised the person in charge of the station, I had to complete today's interview, even if it was just for show.

Otherwise, the head of the central station, who had already reported the matter, would likely face criticism from higher-ups if his interview was not broadcast.

After all, for China right now, the successful hosting and promotion of the Asian Games is more important than anything else.

So he jokingly reminded her, "Miss Yang, do you not know how to ask questions now that there's one less person to call 'start'?"

Reminded by Hideki Yuzuru's seemingly joking remark, Yang Lan immediately calmed down and apologized to him.

"I'm sorry, I lost my temper."

"It's alright. Since I promised Director *, I will naturally complete today's interview. Just ignore those unimportant people."

Hideki Yuzuru's words were light and casual, but when they reached Yang Lan's ears, they warmed her heart, a girl who had just graduated and had been working for a short time.

Looking back now, the reason she was stunned at the beginning of the show was entirely because when the recording lights shone on Hideki Hanyu, his gentle and elegant demeanor, and his handsome appearance that was so perfect that it was unlike anyone else's, instantly amazed her.

Even with all the rational reminders, Hideki Hanyu's actions were directed at the person in charge at the scene.

Objectively, they were biased towards her and helped her, throwing the person in charge of the scene out, as if it was an act to vent her anger.

This inevitably gave Yang Lan the illusion that Hideki Yuzuru was "rescuing her like a hero."

"Ms. Yang, let's be casual from now on. Just chat like friends or classmates."

Yang Lan, whose mind was racing with a thousand thoughts, quickly put aside her wild ideas and calmed herself down after hearing Hideki Yuzuru's words. After confirming with the other members of the recording team, the recording of the program officially began with fifty minutes left in the interview.

"Mr. Yuzuru, I am Yang Lan, a host from CCTV. It is a great honor to interview you."

"Hello, host."

"Mr. Yuzuru, I was actually very happy to learn that I would be interviewing you, because I have been a reader of your works for a long time, and I especially like them..."

As expected of a future celebrity who would stand out among her peers, Yang Lan's opening was still the same old routine.

However, by using the identity of a reader of Hideki Hanyu to bridge the gap and introduce his identity as a writer, it also provided a good starting point for the interview.

For the next fifty minutes, Yang Lan did not rush to answer every question on the script. Instead, she seemed to instinctively use the questions to guide the interview, completing the recording as if it were a casual chat, and she did not forget the theme of the Asian Games.

In response, Hideki Hanyu could only say that many people's success relies not only on hard work, but also, and perhaps more importantly, on talent.

After the recording ended, Yang Lan stepped forward to express her gratitude, saying, "Thank you very much for Mr. Yuzuru's help."

"You're welcome."

What was important to Yang Lan was insignificant to Hideki Yuzuru.

Yang Lan then handed over her business card, saying, "If there's anything you might need from me, please feel free to contact me."

"If I have the opportunity, I will definitely contact Ms. Yang."

Hideki Yuzuru took the business card and handed it to Kaoru Chiba, who then gave Yang Lan his business card.

Although Yang Lan is of no value to him now, there's no guarantee that she might be useful to him in the future.

"I have to go to the airport, please excuse me."

After exchanging a few polite words, Hideki Hanyu took his leave.

However, just as he got into the car on his way to the airport, he received a call from the head of the front desk.

On the phone, this old acquaintance, who had known Hideki Hanyu for many years and had collaborated with him countless times, took full responsibility for the mistake.

"It was my fault for misjudging people and using them poorly. I will remember Mr. Yuzuru's kindness in continuing the recording."

"It's alright, this isn't your problem, Director."

However, I have a question: why are the staff at headquarters so unprofessional? This has never happened before.

When Hideki Yuzuru voiced his question, a helpless sigh came through the phone.

"Alas... times have changed, and people's hearts have changed too."

"The more you think, the more you want, the less pure the motives of many people who come to the front desk. I'll be retiring in a few years; I'll just be doing mending and patching things up anyway."

Finally, the person on the other end of the phone said something that Hideki Hanyu should think about deeply.

"Perhaps in the future, it will be more convenient for Mr. Yuzuru to cooperate with CCTV."

Hideki Hanyu, who understood the meaning behind the other person's words, then expressed his opinion with profound implications.

"Perhaps that kind of convenience is not what I want."

After hanging up the phone, Hideki Hanyu looked at the modern airport that was getting closer and closer.

But in my heart, I feel that a pure era seems to be getting further and further away.

(End of this chapter)