Marry a female star at a bargain price

Chapter 273, Section 274: Two Pieces of News
Lin Xiao's paternity leave ended, and the first month of the lunar calendar was almost over.

This was definitely the least vacation-like holiday he had ever taken; it was even more tiring than going to work.

His own daughter demonstrated a truth to him through her actions: it is wrong for boys to be noisy and girls to be quiet!
At the very least, Ms. Lin Xiaoxi is definitely not someone who can be easily fooled.

This baby is not even a month old yet, but it has already shown a fiery temper that is completely different from its parents. It cries as soon as it opens its eyes every day, and its voice is incredibly loud and energetic.

Whenever she cries, there's no place in the three-story villa plus two basement levels, totaling over 500 square meters, that her voice can't reach.

Ms. Lin initially threw a tantrum because she didn't like drinking formula and would cry every time she drank it.

When she cried, Xixi softened and decided to continue trying to breastfeed.

It was Lin Xiao, the father, who was firm in his stance and told the nanny to feed the baby formula, whether the baby wanted to drink it or not.

As the head of the family, Lin Xiao's words still carried weight, and his wife, mother-in-law, and mother-in-law dared not say anything.

But not saying it doesn't mean you agree.

The whole family knew that he insisted on this because he felt sorry for his wife.

However, the older generation's mindset is to put children first, believing that once a woman becomes a mother, everything must be for the sake of her child.

No one would stop breastfeeding and switch to formula just because it hurts a little.

Especially since this child is so resistant to formula!
As a result, the women in the room looked at Lin Xiao with a hint of resentment, thinking that even tigers don't eat their cubs, and this father was even more heartless than a stepfather!
Lin Xiao knew he was being vilified, but he could only accept it silently.

My wife had just given birth when a major family crisis occurred, leaving her in a bad mood. On top of that, she suffered from the stress of caring for the baby. It was no wonder she became depressed.

Now, his wife is secretly heartbroken, and his daughter is crying and wailing.

Lin Xiao, who is both a husband and a father, is caught in a dilemma and can only take care of one side. In the end, of course, he firmly chooses his wife.

Perhaps she sensed her father's "favoritism"!
Lin Xiaoxi had no choice but to endure the humiliation and accept the milk powder, but her fiery temper remained unchecked in other areas.

I peed, and then I burst into tears!
I had diarrhea, and I burst into tears!
Trying to put her to sleep, she burst into tears!
Nothing's wrong, I just burst into tears...

Anyway, there's always the possibility of Ms. Lin's earth-shattering, heart-wrenching cries erupting from the house at any time of day.

Lin Xiao felt guilty for weaning his daughter, so even though there were women in the room lining up to take care of her, he volunteered to take on the task of soothing his daughter for a portion of the time.

Then, it got out of control.

At first, Lin Xiaoxi was fascinated by the taste of breast milk, and only her mother's embrace could stop her crying.

Because of their professional skills, postpartum nannies can manage to soothe the patient, albeit reluctantly.

After Ms. Lin was able to accept formula, she immediately lost all interest in her biological mother and refused to let Han Xixi hold her no matter what.

In the entire family, Ms. Lin only recognizes her biological father, and even the postpartum nanny can't coax her.

Then Lin Xiao was completely "captured".

He fed his daughter three times a night, with the nanny only assisting; he held her the entire time and couldn't let go.

Otherwise, the noise will travel directly through the building, disturbing the peace of the entire room.

During the day, she wants her dad to hold her when she wets herself, to hold her when she's being put to sleep, and even when she's sunbathing.

If Lin Xiao hadn't seen that the baby was less than a month old, he would have suspected that she was petty and deliberately harboring resentment for her father cutting off her breast milk.

At this time, Lin Xiaoxi had grown up completely compared to when she was born.

Her head is rounder, she's gained weight, her hair is thicker, her skin is as white as a peeled egg, her big eyes are bright and her long eyelashes are curled. She has completely inherited all the good qualities of her parents, and in a way, she has taken the best and discarded the worst.

Even though she was just born, you could already tell she was going to be a little beauty; she's incredibly cute.

There's this beautiful little girl who snuggles in my arms every day.

Even though Lin Xiao was exhausted both physically and mentally, and developed dark circles under his eyes, he was still happy to endure it, holding his daughter in his arms every day and not wanting to put her down.

The family watched this scene with joy and relief, and each of them had many feelings.

Han Xixi's mood has been fluctuating lately.

Watching her husband comfort and hold their daughter, every cell in her body radiated happiness, and her lips never left her lips.

Before meeting Lin Xiao, she had never imagined married life.

After all, you are still young.

But even if she were to imagine it now, she couldn't possibly come up with a scene that she longed for more than this one.

She's been smiling a lot lately.

But as she laughed, she would think of what her father had done recently, and then of how her father rarely hugged her when she was little... and she would lose her smile, and inexplicably begin to feel sad, hiding away to secretly shed tears.

Liu Liyun is similar.

However, she is resolute and used to being a strong woman, so she rarely shows her emotions.

But now, seeing how much the son-in-law cares for his own daughter, almost to the point of doing everything himself.

Liu Liyun seemed to realize something.

Comparing how Han Haijun treated Xixi when she was little... she finally realized that her husband's dissatisfaction with their daughter had been evident for some time, but she hadn't noticed it.

Compared to Liu Liyun and her daughter, Zhou Xiuping was the happiest person in the family.

She naturally wanted to help lighten her son's burden, but she couldn't help at all, so she could only work hard while secretly enjoying herself.

After all, as previously agreed, the first child, regardless of gender, would be surnamed Han.

She couldn't make the decision herself, but deep down she was definitely unwilling, because it clashed violently with the values ​​she had held for nearly fifty years.

But they could only accept their fate.

Who knew that after the child was born, a series of strange and unexpected events occurred, and then the granddaughter's surname was changed back to "Lin".

How could Zhou Xiuping not be happy? But she could only force herself to hold it in, since her daughter-in-law and in-laws were still secretly heartbroken.

The whole family was in a good mood.

Even the postpartum nannies, while receiving high salaries without having to work hard, silently admire the husband's competence and feel that their job was well worth it.

Lin Xiao suffered the most, being tormented beyond recognition by his own daughter in just a few days.

My daughter finally fell asleep.

He also had to go to the bedroom to comfort his wife, who was still in postpartum confinement, and to cheer her up and relieve her boredom.

And so it went, day after day.

Lin Xiao felt like he was living in a trance, often unable to distinguish between morning and afternoon, let alone the month, day, or weekday.

This time, he deeply understood the difficulties faced by housewives.

His biggest wish right now is to lie down and get a good night's sleep, without anyone or any sound waking him up.

However, it seems that Ms. Lin is determined not to approve it.

However, Lin Xiao was also reluctant to part with it.

After all, as much as his daughter was demanding, her delicate, beautiful face, combined with the solid feeling of holding her in his arms, made Lin Xiao's "dad experience" a perfect score.

When my daughter falls asleep again.

Lin Xiao could have gone to catch up on his sleep, but he couldn't help but lie on the headboard and stare at her without moving.

Without realizing it, a maternal smile appeared on her face.

Han Xixi felt helpless every time she saw her husband like this, and then she couldn't help but tease him.

"Isn't your daughter adorable?" she asked, suppressing a mischievous smile.

"Of course, it doesn't matter who gave birth to them!" Lin Xiao said with a proud expression.

"..."

Xi Xi was speechless, thinking to herself, "I carried her for ten months and went through excruciating pain to give birth, and now you're the one who gave birth to her?"

Thinking about the wicked humor that might arise later, I didn't argue for the time being.

"Aren't you happy to have a daughter?" Xixi asked.

"Of course, a daughter is her father's little angel!"

"Oh...then you'd better hurry up and hug me more!"

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"Because your little darling will only keep you warm until you're eighteen, then she'll run off with someone else!"

"???"

Lin Xiao glanced at his wife on the bed, who seemed to enjoy watching the drama unfold, then at his daughter sleeping soundly in the sun in the crib. A picture immediately flashed through his mind: a young woman sneaking out of the house, getting on a blond-haired man's motorcycle, and the man giving her a defiant glare before leaving…

"what!"

Lin Xiao was completely distraught, feeling like he was about to have a heart attack!
……

The seven-day Spring Festival and two-week paternity leave have passed in a flash.

Lin Xiao returned to his workplace and distributed wedding candies to the entire staff, returning all the monetary gifts that had been sent.

The Spring Festival event of the Chaoshuihe Cultural Festival concluded successfully a week ago.

Because Lin Xiao was on paternity leave, Fang Danian did not contact him.

Now that he's at work, Fang Danian can't hold back any longer. He goes to his office and launches into a long, enthusiastic speech, vividly describing the grand occasion of the cultural festival during the Spring Festival, beaming with delight.

In short, the number of visitors, cultural and tourism revenue, and industrial development all far exceeded expectations, setting a record for the cultural and tourism industry in Anyang County during the Spring Festival holiday. Moreover, all the data surpassed and crushed the previous record in every aspect, more than doubling the figures.

Of course, the overall data for this cultural and tourism festival still falls short of the grand scale of last year's National Day celebrations.

However, the Spring Festival is primarily about family reunion, and traveling does not align with the lifestyle of Chinese people, so it is understandable that it cannot compare to the grand scale of last year's National Day.

Without making comparisons.

The holding of this cultural festival has set a good precedent for the overall development of Anyang County's cultural tourism industry this year.

Lin Xiao deserves the most credit for this achievement—even though he was on vacation the whole time and never showed his face.

"Lin Xiao, Lin Xiao, you are truly my lucky star! I made the right decision to bring you here!"

Fang Danian was beaming, and his gaze toward Lin Xiao was almost drool-worthy.

Lin Xiao looked exhausted and had no energy to respond.

Now that they're sitting together, you can't tell who's 29 and who's 51 just by looking at their complexion!
"Director Fang, you flatter me..."

Lin Xiao just wanted to be modest, but Fang Danian didn't give him the chance at all.

"You flatter me? Not at all!"

Fang Danian looked very serious. “If you could say that the fire in Chaobai Town last National Day was just good luck, then the success of the Chaoshui River Cultural Festival this time definitely proves your ability. After all, no one can be lucky again and again, right?”

Lin Xiao, sporting panda eyes, gave a tired smile and simply remained silent.

Fang Danian suddenly sighed: "But then again, it's not just me who recognizes your abilities, the higher-ups do too. Otherwise, why would they have awarded you the provincial outstanding individual medal last year instead of someone else? You were the youngest awardee last year, which means you're highly regarded by your superiors and will definitely be entrusted with important responsibilities in the future..."

Fang Danian kept rambling on, but Lin Xiao had no energy to agree with him.

The commendation ceremony for outstanding individuals across the province that he mentioned was a large-scale event held at the provincial level before the Gregorian calendar year and before the Lunar calendar year.

Ten outstanding individuals were recognized across the province, including Lin Xiao, who was the only one from Yizhou City to receive the award and was also the youngest of the ten.

This award is held annually, similar to the annual advanced unit awards, but it is much, much higher in status than the unit advanced unit awards.

Because this award has always favored grassroots individuals, it was not inappropriate for Lin Xiao, as the deputy mayor and deputy bureau chief, to be nominated as an advanced individual.

But no one in the entire Yizhou municipal government leadership team thought he could win the medal.

He's still very young, not even thirty, and has only been working in the countryside for a year. Compared to other veteran comrades who have been working at the grassroots level for decades.

Even though his achievements that year were outstanding, even to the point of attracting attention throughout the province and becoming famous nationwide.

However, when the organization selects outstanding individuals, it never considers these empty titles.

The awards should be performance-oriented, but also take into account all factors, so that they can play a role in recognizing the advanced, motivating the laggards, and reassuring the grassroots.

Therefore, those selected in the past were mostly cadres who were about to retire, or who had made outstanding contributions in their work, or who had been injured or sacrificed their lives.

Compared to this standard, Lin Xiao is still far from meeting it.

Lin Xiao had no hope at all.

After all, during the flood season, he didn't even receive the title of "Advanced Individual in Flood Control" at the county level.

Provincial-level outstanding individual? Don't be ridiculous!

As it turned out, he was indeed among the final winners!
When the list of award recipients was released, his wife was about to give birth, and he was so focused on the unborn child that he didn't think much about it.

When his workplace called to tell him about it, he thought it was a prank.

I didn’t expect it to be true!

Lin Xiao was stunned. His first thought was that his father-in-law had "used his influence" on him.

After all, without his father-in-law's connection, he felt that no matter what, it would never have been him.

Before he could even ask, Han Haijun called to congratulate him.

After hesitating for a long time, Lin Xiao finally asked his father-in-law the question that had been bothering him.

The South Korean Navy was not surprised by this.

After hesitating for a moment, he said meaningfully, "Lin Xiao, if you ask me whether my involvement is related to you getting this outstanding achievement, my answer is—definitely!"

This answer caught Lin Xiao completely off guard.

He thought his father-in-law would deny it.

"After all, when you report to the provincial authorities as a member of the selection committee, I need to review and sign off on it first!"

Han Haijun truthfully stated, "If I were considering the need for recusal for relatives, I should have removed you directly, which would have saved me from being suspected of nepotism. But I still signed the papers and submitted your application. Do you know why?"

Lin Xiao remained silent, too embarrassed to admit that he was too outstanding.

"Because your achievements are truly remarkable, if I were to remove you from my position simply because you are my father-in-law, to avoid any appearance of impropriety, that would be a sign of my true insecurity."

Han Haijun said seriously, "So I nominated you, but at the same time, I nominated two other outstanding officers as well. But I can't and shouldn't interfere with the selection process... Do you understand what I mean?"

Lin Xiao nodded.

"I understand, thank you, Dad!"

"Yes! This honor is both an affirmation and an encouragement! Keep up the good work, because the future of the country will depend on young people like you!"

The South Korean Navy suddenly expressed their gratitude and encouragement.

Lin Xiao felt that there was something strange about that sentence, but he didn't have time to think about it and quickly put it out of his mind.

Going back to reality.

The impact of the provincial commendation is long gone from his mind. Now his mind is full of his wife and daughter. Even though he has returned to the office, he is having trouble getting back into work mode.

Then Fang Danian suddenly said, "This Zhong Jiawen is really great! She's been a huge supporter of our cultural festival, participating in four consecutive days of activities, and each time she sang and danced at least three songs... I heard from some of the younger cadres that with Zhong Jiawen's fame, her performance fee for these few days should be at least a million. But she didn't ask for a single penny, and she was very polite, saying that we can call on her anytime for future cultural festival activities, and she will definitely do her best to help!"

Lin Xiao frowned as he listened.

Fang Danian, however, became increasingly impressed as he spoke: "This girl has truly impressed me. At first glance, judging from her appearance, I thought she was the type who was difficult to get along with, the kind of person you hear about online who acts like a diva. But I never expected her to be so amiable. Now, she has replaced Cao Yuanzhi as a living advertisement for our Chaoshui River Cultural Festival. On the closing ceremony of the Lantern Festival, many tourists came specifically for her... You deserve the most credit for the success of our event, but the second most important credit definitely goes to this star, Ms. Zhong!"

Lin Xiao was lost in thought for a moment, then suddenly realized.

At first, after listening to Lao Fang's explanation, he was still wondering what evil this venomous woman was up to by suddenly cooperating and working so hard!

But as he listened, Fang Danian realized he had hit the nail on the head – Zhong Jiawen had now become a living advertisement for the Anyang County Chaoshuihe Cultural Festival!
Although not a brand ambassador, her status is comparable to that of a brand ambassador!
Now, throughout the entire Nanzhou Province, anyone who has heard of this cultural festival immediately thinks of Zhong Jiawen.

Because she appeared on the four days with the highest visitor traffic, and even though her popularity has declined recently, she was once a huge star.

For people in small towns, they are still unattainable superstars!

Before Cao Yuanzhi's house collapsed.

His fame, the depth of his works, and his singing ability are all much higher than Chung Chia-wen's.

More importantly, he was the original singer of "Love Like a Tide," which was the precursor to the concept of the "Tide River Cultural Festival."

Cao Yuanzhi is the chosen spokesperson for the cultural festival.

But unexpectedly, his career collapsed, and he was unable to participate in the performance, which allowed Chung Ka-man to take the spot.

Of course, saying "finding a bargain" isn't quite the right word.

Given Chung Chia-wen's status, it would be more accurate to say that she lowered her standards and tried to salvage the situation by participating in such a county-level cultural festival.

After several days of performances, Chung Chia-wen also gained a lot.

Although she didn't earn any money, her online reputation has visibly improved a lot.

In the early stages, netizens realized the truth and overturned the case of her gaining popularity by associating with Han Xixi, directly labeling her as a "scheming woman".

This is also the main reason for her declining popularity.

But now, she participates in the Anyang County Chaoshuihe Cultural Festival and behaves very confidently throughout.

This changed many netizens' opinions of her.

After all, these government-organized cultural festivals inherently possess a positive energy orientation and attributes.

Celebrity participation can greatly enhance their personal image.

Most celebrities wouldn't refuse to participate in such events, provided that the event's level is high enough.

If it's a cultural festival organized by Nanzhou Province, then basically all the celebrities below the second tier will be eager to participate.

Even a first-tier city can be negotiated.

However, Anyang County is, after all, just a small county town.

This level of official event is at most equivalent to a fourth-tier celebrity.

Even if it could improve an artist's personal image, the effect would be very limited, and Chung Chia-wen would never even consider it.

But she came anyway, and stayed for four days.

This attitude changed many netizens' and tourists' opinions of her. Even though there were many voices saying that she had fallen so low that she had to work in such a small, third-tier county, the vast majority of people still praised her for promoting rural tourism and revitalizing the industry.

Chung Chia-wen's popularity has actually increased.

This was something that even Chung Chia-wen's team hadn't anticipated, and they considered it an unexpected surprise.

Now, after listening to Fang Danian's explanation of the whole story, Lin Xiao had mixed feelings.

He clearly saw through the woman's scheme—it wasn't to clear her name, nor was it out of kindness; rather, it was to continue as before, to cling to Ma Yao, that is, him.

But this time, Lin Xiao found himself in a predicament.

He could easily defuse both Zhong Jiawen's threats and inducements.

But now, this woman has changed her mind and is using a strategy of retreat to advance.

Lin Xiao was at a loss for what to do!

Now, the name Zhong Jiawen is inextricably linked to the cultural festival, a fact that Lin Xiao cannot easily change.

The Chaoshuihe Cultural Festival is a key cultural tourism brand that Anyang County is focusing on developing.

We have already achieved initial success, and we will definitely continue to do so for one, two, three, five, or even ten years, which is quite possible.

From this temporal perspective, Chung Ka-man can even be considered a "pioneer" and a "hero".

Currently, as the "behind-the-scenes force" of the cultural festival, Lin Xiao inevitably has to deal with Zhong Jiawen whenever he plans future events.

That's fine, we can just handle it officially.

But the trouble is.

If he continues to write songs to support the cultural festival, it will be difficult to bypass Chung Chia-wen, who is already a ready-made spokesperson.

Back in Chaobai Town, he could write a song called "Love Like a Tide" and have it sung by anyone!

But now, Lin Xiao, as the lyricist and composer, has even lost the right to choose the singer—if Zhong Jiawen isn't chosen, netizens will be the first to object!

Lin Xiao then realized what was happening.

No wonder Chung Ka-man kept quiet after that phone call and hasn't shown up since.

Lin Xiao thought that by bringing up the femme fatale's sugar daddy, he had truly intimidated her. He even mentally mocked her, thinking that this woman was nothing special and that she had thought she was so powerful.

Looking back now, he realizes he misjudged the situation.

This woman is really something. When force doesn't work, she tries a softer approach. When a direct assault fails, she switches to a more lenient strategy.

The crucial point is that Lin Xiao discovered he still had no way to break through.

That's pretty tricky.

However... it's not difficult at all.

"Fame and fortune can't tempt me anymore, so you're trying to blackmail me with morality? Sorry, I have no morality!"

Lin Xiao smiled calmly, though he was actually quite helpless.

He left Chaobai Town and joined the Bureau of Culture and Tourism with the intention of "taking a break for a while".

Now, his life revolves around his wife and children, not his work.

Especially after these three weeks of accompanying his wife during childbirth and raising his child, he not only subjectively wanted to return to his family, but also had no choice but to do so objectively.

After all, my wife is emo, and my daughter just starts wailing as soon as she opens her eyes!

Lin Xiao is the true pillar of his family.

In this state, he simply couldn't spare any extra energy to pursue more goals at work.

As for this cultural festival...

Lin Xiao's idea was to avoid innovation and stick to the established procedures. A theme song was out of the question, since there was already a song called "Love Like a Tide."

It's not a problem for him at all!

With this plan in mind, Lin Xiao felt completely at ease and put all the irrelevant people out of his mind.

Time flies when you have children.

Lin Xiao's daily routine consists of working during the day and taking care of the baby at night. It feels like only a few days have passed, but in reality, three months have flown by.

Soon it will be the baby's 100th day, coinciding with the May Day holiday.

At this time, two seemingly unrelated but actually closely connected rumors began to circulate within the Bureau of Culture and Tourism.

One reason is that Lin Xiao is about to be promoted and will soon leave the Bureau of Culture and Tourism.

The other one is that the top official in Yizhou is going to be replaced!

Upon hearing these two pieces of news, Lin Xiao's reaction was exactly the same as that of an elderly person on the subway.

"what?"

"what?!"

(End of this chapter)