The younger generation, starting from where the wind blows...

Chapter 303: Money and manpower provided, come quick if you're rich and stupid?

He Huan was extremely shocked.

It's not just because of the program's creative concept.

More importantly, it was because when she first joined Shanghai TV, the station held a program idea competition.

The purpose is to encourage competitive job selection and to incubate more high-quality and innovative programs.

He Huan was a newcomer at the time. She believed the nonsense of the station leaders and submitted a tens of thousands of words proposal for a book program that she had been longing for since college.

result--

It was like a stone sinking into the sea.

For this, He Huan was ridiculed by Bai Yang.

Other colleagues knew that this was just a formality; the programs the station really wanted to support had already been decided, so everyone was just going through the motions.

He Huan was the only one who foolishly took it seriously.

From that time on, this book-reading program became He Huan's biggest regret.

Who would have thought that Jingyan Group would sponsor a book-related program on the TV station this time?

Furthermore, he specifically requested that I be the host.

This gave He Huan a dreamlike feeling, as if a pie had fallen from the sky and hit her on the head.

But as pleasantly surprised as it was, He Huan was no longer the novice she once was, easily swayed by rumors.

He Huan was immediately thinking about a question.

What's the purpose of Jingyan Group sponsoring such a program?

If the goal is to increase brand awareness and build a reputation, then sponsoring programs with high viewership is the appropriate approach.

It's impossible that Jingyan Group decided to sponsor a program for me just because I've gained a little fame online, right?

He Huan knew very well that she didn't have that much influence.

So why is that?

He Huan would definitely not agree to anything without first understanding the problem.

Yang Muye explained, "President Ye invested in a library project in my hometown, Yunmiao Village, Dali, called Shaohua Bookstore. Miss He can see the program 'Reading on the Island' as a preview of this library project."

"The Shaohua Bookstore in Yunmiao Village is expected to be completed in the next year or the year after, so we plan to find a scenic island suitable for a slow-paced vacation and convert a suitable house into a branch of the Shaohua Bookstore. The filming location is currently tentatively set on Gulangyu Island."

As Yang Muye spoke, he stood up from his seat, walked to the wall of books, took two books, and handed one to He Huan when he returned.

He Huan took it and looked at it; the book title was...
——Lost in Gulangyu

It is a collection of travel essays with pictures and text, written by a foreign couple who have lived on Gulangyu Island for many years.

Just as she was about to open the book, Yang Muye told He Huan not to rush, that she could take the book home and read it at her leisure.

Just remember to return it after you're done watching.

As he spoke, Yang Muye handed another book to Ye Jinyan.

The book is called
—Old Villas on Gulangyu Island

"Mr. Ye, this book looks brand new to me. You probably haven't even flipped through it much since you bought it, have you?"

Ye Jinyan took the book and glanced at the cover.

"The title of this book looks familiar. I don't remember whether I bought it myself or it was a gift from a friend."

Of the several thousand books here, half were gifts from friends, and the other half were purchased by Ye Jinyan herself.

Ye Jinyan loves buying books, but she never has time to read them after buying them. They sit on the bookshelf and are forgotten about after a while.

"I just flipped through it and found that this book details the old villas on Gulangyu Island. Why don't you pick one, Mr. Ye, and see if you can rent it and convert it into a branch of Shaohua Bookstore?"

Yang Muye said, half-jokingly and half-seriously.

The tone was as if he were telling Ye Jinyan to just pick any cabbage from a roadside stall.

Ye Jinyan opened the book, read two pages, and then looked up.

Yang Muye was surprised—

Finished reading it so quickly?
“I remember now, I’ve read this book before, at a friend’s house. After reading it, I wrote down the title and asked Fan Jingang to buy me a new copy to keep as a collection.”

Yang Muye nodded after hearing this.

"So, Mr. Ye has already decided which old villa he wants to rent?"

“I asked Fan Jingang to contact the relevant departments in Gulangyu. It just so happens that I have my eye on that old villa that is going to be rented out for preservation purposes. I have decided to send someone over to negotiate.”

"is it?"

Yang Muye was not at all surprised by Ye Jinyan's efficiency.

After all, Shaohua Bookstore is Ye Jinyan's lifelong hobby and pursuit, so it is only natural that he enjoys such "favorite son treatment".

"Which building has Mr. Ye taken a fancy to?"

Ye Jinyan reopened the book in her hand, searched the table of contents, and quickly found the content she was looking for.

"it!"

Yang Muyi took the book and found that the part Ye Jinyan had turned to was about Haitang Villa, one of the ten oldest villas on Gulangyu Island.

Haitang Villa is an architectural complex consisting of five villas with distinct styles, blending Chinese and Western elements in a harmonious and unified way.

What a coincidence.

In his past life, Yang Muye once visited Haitang Villa when he accompanied a girlfriend on a vacation to Gulangyu Island.

At that time, Haitang Gou had been transformed from a coffee shop into a distinctive bookstore.

It's actually a hybrid business that combines a bookstore and a coffee shop.

Ye Jinyan truly lives up to his reputation as an industry veteran who has been immersed in the construction industry for over a decade. He saw ten years in advance that this place was suitable for being transformed into a cultural venue like a bookstore. His vision is truly remarkable.

Most importantly, Ye Jinyan not only has the vision, but he also has the real ability to rent this place.

Ye Jinyan adjusted her glasses and looked up at Yang Muye.

What do you think of this place?

Yang Muye handed the book to He Huan, who was standing to the side.

"Ms. He, do you think this place is suitable for filming the program I just mentioned?"

He Huan took the book and was stunned after just one glance.

Haitang Pavilion?

Ye Jinyan wants to rent this old villa, which ranks among the top five on Gulangyu Island, and transform it into a library.
He Huan wasn't doubting Ye Jinyan's ability, but she felt that doing so was... a bit too extravagant.
He Huan cautiously began, "President Ye, transforming this place into a branch of Shaohua Bookstore would certainly be suitable, but wouldn't that make the program's production costs too high?"

Ye Jinyan looked at Yang Muye again.

"Is it high?"

Yang Muye shook his head decisively.

"Not at all! For someone like you, Mr. Ye, money is just a string of numbers in an account, but sentiment is priceless!" Ye Jinyan smiled.

"Since you don't have to pay anything, you can flatter me all you want, right?"

With his thoughts exposed, Yang Muye shrugged indifferently.

"President Ye, we had a good agreement back then: I would provide the program ideas, and you would provide the funding. Besides, this funding isn't just for nothing; isn't this helping Shaohua Bookstore and Jingyan Group advertise together?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than He Huan suddenly interrupted:
"Mr. Ye, speaking of advertising, I feel it's necessary to remind you that even if you invite Professor Yu Hua as a guest and include me as the host, it won't change the fact that this is a very niche book program. No matter how much you promote it, the program's ratings won't be very high."

Before Ye Jinyan could respond, Yang Muye's voice rang out first.

"Miss He, you've forgotten one person."

"Mr. Yang, of course I know that relying on Ms. Yu Hua alone is definitely not enough to support this program. If I'm not mistaken, you are planning to invite other well-known writers as guests and eventually turn it into a 'book club for old friends' format, right?"

Yang Muye nodded, waiting silently for He Huan to continue.

"To be frank, I once wanted to make a similar program, but it was rejected by the station. I was unwilling to accept it and asked my colleagues and leaders for the reason. In the end, their evaluation was surprisingly consistent - everyone thought that my program was presumptuous."

"The reason is simple: if two writers appear on this kind of talk show together, and their statuses are too far apart, it is easy to create an awkward situation where there is nothing to talk about. If their statuses are equal, it is easy for writers to belittle each other. If the two have disagreements and start arguing on the show, the situation will become difficult to control."

He Huan had just finished speaking when Yang Muye's voice rang out.

"Does Ms. He mean that the show is missing a heavyweight guest, someone who can command respect and control the atmosphere?"

He Huan nodded, agreeing with Yang Muye's statement.

To solve this problem, another way is for the program production company to be prestigious enough to intimidate the guests.

For example, the central bank.

However, if CCTV were to produce this program, there would be many restrictions during the filming process, preventing guests from speaking freely and thus losing the program's greatest value and appeal.

"Ms. He, what do you think of Mr. Ye being the guest to preside over this event?" Yang Muye suddenly asked.

What? Ye Jinyan is going to be on this show too?
While He Huan was stunned, she secretly glanced at Ye Jinyan across from her.

Ye Jinyan did not show any surprise on her face.

He Huan then realized that Yang Muye had said she had missed someone, referring to Ye Jinyan.

It was just that I misunderstood; I thought Yang Muyi was talking about other guests.

Objectively speaking, having Ye Jinyan as a guest on the show was truly a stroke of genius.

Regardless of Ye Jinyan's own literary talent, his status as a business tycoon and his passion for building the library project alone are enough to make the writers on the show restrain their arrogant tempers.

Not to mention, Ye Jinyan is also the show's sponsor, so everyone who comes has to give him some face, right?
The only thing He Huan couldn't understand was what kind of "bewitching potion" Yang Muye had given Ye Jinyan, that he could persuade Ye Jinyan to support the program so wholeheartedly, both financially and personally.

Yang Muyi did not explain the reason to He Huan, but simply explained the concept of filming the program in more detail.

Ye Jinyan and Yu Hua serve as the managers of Shaohua Bookstore, while He Huan serves as a shop assistant.

Each episode invites a literary friend of Yu Hua to visit the bookstore. They eat and live together, reading when they have time and chatting when they don't.

It does not adhere to formalities or common sayings, nor does it set fixed topics.

It is more free and spontaneous than the old friends' book club format that He Huan had previously envisioned.

This also solves the problem of the boring nature of traditional book-reading programs where several people sit together and chat.

Guests can present their authentic selves in natural environments, evoking a sense of immersion in the audience through daily interactions and emotional resonance.

This concept of recording outdoor slow-paced variety shows is nothing short of a game-changer for He Huan at this point.

It took He Huan several minutes to come to her senses.

I was just about to ask Yang Muye for further advice.

"Boom boom boom!"

Fan Jingang stood at the office door and knocked.

"Mr. Ye, everyone in the conference room is here, just waiting for you to come over."

Ye Jinyan stood up and apologized to Yang Muyi and He Huan, explaining:

"I have a meeting. If you're free at noon, could we grab lunch and continue our conversation?"

He Huan immediately stood up.

"Mr. Ye, there's no need for dinner. I need to rush back to the station. I have an interview article due by this afternoon."

Ye Jinyan nodded and then instructed Fan Jingang to arrange a car to take He Huan back to the TV station.

"Miss He, don't forget your book."

Yang Muye picked up the copy of "Lost in Gulangyu" that He Huan had left behind and handed it to him.

He Huan smiled and shook his head:
“Mr. Yang, I actually read this book when I was in college... Besides, my hometown is in Xiamen, and I have been to Gulangyu Island many times. I should be more familiar with that place than you are.”

what?
Yang Muye was somewhat surprised.

Ye Jinyan rarely saw Yang Muyi make a mistake, so she turned to Fan Jingang and said, "Don't just stand there, quickly arrange a car to take Miss He back to the TV station, don't delay her work."

"Arrange another car to take Mr. Yang back to school."

Just as Fan Jingang was about to agree, Yang Muye's voice rang out first.

"No need for that trouble. Miss He and I can just take the same car back. I'm not in a hurry anyway."

Ye Jinyan nodded, turned and left the office.

Fan Jingang personally escorted Yang Muyi and He Huan to the underground parking lot and watched them get into their car before leaving.

On the way, He Huan wanted to ask Yang Muye how he persuaded Ye Jinyan to be a guest on the show, but because the driver was present, she didn't find a suitable opportunity to speak.

Back at the TV station, He Huan immediately arranged to meet Bai Yang at their "usual spot".

After enthusiastically explaining the concept of filming the program "I Read on an Island" to Bai Yang, He Huan originally wanted to ask Bai Yang for his opinion on the program.

But as the words were about to come out, I suddenly realized that asking such a question would inevitably give people the impression that I was deliberately showing off.

After much thought, He Huan decided to ask Bai Yang to help her analyze why Ye Jinyan agreed to be a guest on the show.

"Do you remember the news about Wang Shi summiting Mount Everest in 03?" Bai Yang asked, seemingly unrelated to the question.

"remember."

He Huan looked at Bai Yang with a puzzled expression, not understanding the connection between the two events.

Of course, if we have to say there is a connection, both Wang Shi and Ye Jinyan are big shots in the real estate industry.

"There have been rumors that Wang Shi plans to climb Mount Everest again before he turns sixty. What do you think he's after?"

Bai Yang asked again.

Without hesitation, He Huan replied, "Of course it's for fame! For someone like Wang Shi who is already completely financially independent, conquering the world's highest peak would be an unparalleled source of accomplishment."

"Wrong, this is an entrepreneur's persona! Have you noticed that as Wang Shi summited Mount Everest, Wanke Group's reputation and business have expanded further? Even if Wang Shi used all the money he spent on mountaineering to advertise Wanke, the effect would definitely not be better than him personally climbing Mount Everest."

At this point, Bai Yang gave He Huan a deep look.

"Now you know why Ye Jinyan agreed to be a guest on the show, right?"

(End of this chapter)