After the divorce, I started to transfer

Li Meiqing has only been a full-time employee for less than a month, and she naturally cherishes this hard-won job as a reporter for the provincial TV station.

Three years ago, when she graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism and media, she harbored a dream of becoming an outstanding journalist and even a well-known host. After graduation, through relatives' connections and her own abilities, she was successfully recruited by the local television station in her hometown and immediately received a permanent position.

However, less than a month into her job, she deeply felt the unique "closed-off" and "dull" atmosphere of the small county TV station. The routine, lifeless, and complacent work environment felt like an invisible net, making it almost impossible for her to breathe and leaving her feeling extremely oppressed.

If she were already in her forties or fifties, she might be content with this "leisurely" retirement job of "going through the motions every day".

But she was only twenty-three years old, the prime of her life, and the flame in her heart that wanted to become a famous reporter and host was still burning brightly. How could she be willing to just fade into obscurity and retire?
Therefore, when the provincial TV station publicly recruited female reporters last year, she seized the opportunity without hesitation and immediately applied. Ultimately, thanks to her solid written test skills and outstanding interview performance, she stood out from many competitors and became one of the few lucky ones.

After a full year of hard work, and having successfully passed both the probationary and internship periods, she finally achieved her goal last month and became a full-time employee of the provincial television station.

When her parents, who lived far away in her hometown, heard the good news, they were incredibly proud of her and held a grand banquet at home to solemnly announce the happy event to their neighbors and relatives.

Before this, Li Meiqing mostly worked as an outbound reporter, occasionally making brief appearances in some local news programs, reporting nothing more than trivial matters of daily life; her presence was negligible.

This time, the station planned to shoot a documentary reflecting the lives of urban couples. The producer and director was a senior production manager at the station, who specifically asked her to be the street interview reporter.

She readily agreed and participated in the filming and interviewing work with 100% enthusiasm.

If this documentary is well-produced and airs during prime time on the provincial TV station, it might become an instant hit and achieve remarkable success. At that point, as a reporter who frequently appears in the documentary, she will naturally gain recognition and benefit from the success.

Therefore, Li Meiqing was exceptionally dedicated during the filming of this documentary, especially in the part of collecting random street interview videos, where she exceeded her daily quota.

A few days later, she unexpectedly ran into Chen Feng and Zhang Jingwen at work.

At that time, the two were sitting side by side on a bench in the lakeside park, their bodies close together, creating a heartwarming scene whether viewed from behind or from the side.

She immediately signaled to the cameraman to capture this beautiful moment, and then smiled as she stepped forward to prepare for the interview.

Normally, a typical couple wouldn't resist a TV interview; in fact, they would be quite cooperative. This was true for all the dozen or so couples she had interviewed before.

However, when it came to Chen Feng and Zhang Jingwen, Chen Feng clearly refused from the beginning and showed a strong aversion to their cameras and questions.

Actually, it's normal for passersby to refuse interviews, but the experienced accompanying cameraman Luo Liang keenly sensed something unusual. He suspected that the slender woman wearing sunglasses and a mask might be a celebrity.

After work, Luo Liang actually dragged her along to carefully watch the video they had filmed during the day, frame by frame, and then compared it with photos of popular female celebrities online.

Zhang Jingwen recently starred in the hit drama "The Moon Shines Brightly," and not long ago, she was frequently trending on social media due to a sexual harassment incident in Singapore, making her one of the most talked-about female celebrities in China.

Li Meiqing had previously watched "The Moon Shines Brightly" and was already quite familiar with Zhang Jingwen, the actress who played the female lead. Later, the sexual harassment incident occurred, and as a woman, she naturally felt more attention and sympathy for Zhang Jingwen's experience, making her impression on her even more profound.

Therefore, after comparing the video footage briefly, Li Meiqing immediately felt that the woman in the video had a figure and temperament that were highly similar to Zhang Jingwen, and it was most likely her.

Next, they followed the clues and tried to find out the identity of the male lead, Chen Feng, and they found out without much effort. He turned out to be the boss of Fengmang Film and Television Company, and Zhang Jingwen happened to be a contracted artist of this entertainment company.

Without a doubt, the woman wearing sunglasses and a mask is none other than the famous actress Zhang Jingwen.

This amazing discovery made cameraman Luo Liang's eyes light up with excitement, as if he had won the lottery jackpot.

Luo Liang made no attempt to conceal his true intentions, immediately stating that he would use the coincidentally captured video to demand a "hush money" payment from Zhang Jingwen.

Luo Liang confidently declared that if things went smoothly, they could make a large sum of money, and promised that everyone who saw it would get a share, including hers.

Li Meiqing was initially firmly opposed, but Luo Liang repeatedly assured her that she didn't need to be involved or do anything. She only needed to keep quiet, and he would handle all the specific "operations." Once the money was in hand, he would give her 100,000 yuan.

After a sleepless night of tossing and turning and inner struggle, Li Meiqing finally gave Luo Liang a vague acquiescence the next morning.

Ultimately, it's because her family background is too ordinary, and establishing herself in this big city is "extremely difficult." Her salary for her first month after becoming a full-time employee wasn't much, and a large portion of it had to be handed over to the landlord without fail.

However, she also kept it in mind, making it clear that she knew nothing about what he was going to do next and had no interest in it whatsoever.

But she made a condition: a few days later, she would "borrow" 100,000 yuan from him in her own name, and a written IOU would be signed at that time. However, she would not be able to repay the money to him for ten years, and it would be interest-free.

Luo Liang smiled knowingly and readily agreed on the spot.

She knew nothing about what happened next, and deliberately didn't inquire about it.

This afternoon, when the two went out again to look for couples to photograph and interview, Luo Liang received a text message and suddenly came over to her and said that things were almost settled.

Li Meiqing seemed not to hear, and continued to organize her interview outline with her head down.

So the two of them worked on the street for another half hour when suddenly a phone call came in. It was their production manager and director, who told them to come back to the office immediately, saying he wanted to see the footage they had shot and check on their progress.

The two men, without suspecting anything, rushed back to the provincial television station and went straight to the production manager's office.

Instead, the production manager led them to a nearby conference room. Pushing open the door, they saw a deputy director of their station sitting inside, along with another bespectacled, dignified middle-aged man, around fifty years old, who exuded an air of authority. Li Meiqing glanced at the middle-aged man, who was seated firmly in the main seat, and knew that his status was probably even higher than the deputy director's.

The production manager quickly introduced the two men: "This is Director Zhang from the Radio and Television Bureau, and this is Director Li from our station. You should both know him, right? Now, the two leaders have a few questions for you. Please answer them honestly." After the introductions, the production manager nodded respectfully to the two leaders, then discreetly and quietly left the meeting room, considerately closing the door behind him.

Upon seeing this scene, Li Meiqing and Luo Liang's hearts skipped a beat, and they immediately became tense, their hearts pounding with anxiety. They strongly suspected that the extortion of Zhang Jingwen had been exposed, but deep down they couldn't help but hold onto a sliver of hope that perhaps the two leaders were simply inquiring about the filming of the documentary.

But then I thought, this is just an ordinary documentary reflecting the emotional lives of urban couples today. Moreover, the filming is not yet complete and it has not been broadcast yet. Is it really worth bothering these two big leaders to come and oversee this trivial matter?
"Please sit down," Deputy Director Li said first, gesturing to the two of them.

The two then sat down awkwardly on the side of the conference table, a little closer to them.

"Your name is Li Meiqing, right? You're a top student who graduated from our provincial media university. You just became a full-time employee last month, and I personally approved your application," the deputy director, who was in charge of the station's personnel affairs, asked.

Li Meiqing's heart tightened, and she hurriedly replied somewhat nervously, "Yes...yes, Director Li, I just became a full-fledged employee last month."

The deputy director nodded slightly and said, "I still think highly of you. I was the one who conducted the recruitment interview, so I have a deep impression of you. I think you ranked sixth in the written test and third in the interview, making you one of the top five overall. I was the one who strongly advocated for your hiring."

Upon hearing this, Li Meiqing immediately expressed her gratitude again: "Thank you for your guidance, Director."

The deputy director then turned his gaze to Luo Liang: "Luo Liang, how long have you been with the station?"

Luo Liang swallowed hard and replied nervously, "It's been almost eight years, Director."

Although he was a seasoned veteran in the company, he couldn't help feeling nervous when facing his direct supervisor in charge of personnel and his supervisor's supervisor.

"Yes, it's been almost eight years. Time flies. I've only been here for seven years. You've been here longer than me. You're a long-time employee, and I have high hopes for your professional skills."

"Thank you for your recognition, I will continue to work hard."

"Yes, I value both of you. As long as you can work diligently and without resorting to any underhanded tactics, I have high hopes for your future. Especially Li Meiqing, you have excellent looks and temperament. With another two or three years of experience on the front lines, you can definitely stand on your own and become a live-action host. Luo Liang, although you are in a technical position, your qualifications are there, and you have room for advancement in your professional title evaluation. As long as you have goals and are willing to work hard, it is possible for you to switch to directing or producing in the future."

After drinking that bowl of rich chicken blood, both of them felt a surge of excitement and were quite thrilled.

No employee in the workplace doesn't want to improve, especially in a public institution where seniority is highly valued.

"It's all thanks to the leadership's guidance!" Luo Liang was the first to respond.

Li Meiqing quickly added, "I will definitely work harder and live up to the expectations of my superiors."

"Very good." The deputy director nodded with a satisfied expression, but then changed the subject and asked, "When you went to interview people on the street yesterday, didn't you film a couple near Donghu Park? They explicitly refused your interview and filming, but you still filmed a short clip, right?"

Upon hearing this, Li Meiqing and Luo Liang both felt a jolt in their hearts. They subconsciously exchanged a glance, then quickly looked away as if they had been electrocuted.

"It seems... there was such a couple." Luo Liang answered vaguely, pretending to have just remembered.

"Yes...yes, there was indeed a couple who refused my interview." Li Meiqing also spoke up, nervously digging her nails into her palms.

At this moment, Director Zhang, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke, his voice steady and powerful: "The man in the video is an old friend of mine. He is always low-key and values ​​his privacy very much, so he specifically asked me to come forward and destroy the video footage you took at the time. This is his reasonable and legal personal request, don't you think?"

The deputy director immediately smiled and echoed, "Of course, of course, this is a reasonable and legal right of individual citizens. As media workers, our primary responsibility is to respect others' portrait rights and privacy rights."

At this point, the deputy director's face immediately darkened slightly, his sharp gaze fixed on Luo Liang, and he said in a slightly stern tone, "Luo Liang, you should know what I'm talking about. Besides the original video you filmed yesterday, do you have any other backups? If so, I hope you will hand them over honestly now, and we will destroy them completely on the spot to prevent future troubles."

At this moment, Luo Liang's forehead was already covered in a fine layer of cold sweat, and his voice trembled slightly as he hurriedly said, "There is no backup, absolutely no backup, I promise, there really isn't one."

Li Meiqing remained silent, but her face turned uncontrollably pale.

At this point, how could she not understand the true purpose of being summoned today?

Director Zhang suddenly stood up and slowly walked towards the two of them.

As he approached, Luo Liang instinctively tried to stand up as a sign of politeness, but he gently pressed down on Luo Liang's shoulder.

“As I just said, my friend values ​​his privacy and doesn’t want any footage from yesterday to be leaked. If any footage is leaked, he will definitely call the police, and then you will be held legally responsible.”

The deputy director also stood up and added, "Director Wang handed over the original video footage you shot yesterday to us, and it has been physically destroyed under our joint supervision. So, Luo Liang, I hope you are telling the truth and that there really are no backups. Otherwise, if any related videos are leaked to the outside world in the future, you two will have to bear the responsibility."

"I guarantee it one hundred percent, absolutely not!" Luo Liang said firmly, his voice hoarse from the effort.

"Very good." The deputy director nodded. "I hope you will keep your word."

Director Zhang gently patted Luo Liang on the shoulder, a kind smile on his face, and said slowly, "You two are now formal employees of the station, with pretty good benefits. I believe that as long as you work hard and diligently, your future work will become smoother and your positions will be promoted. You two should take care of yourselves."

After saying this, Director Zhang stopped looking at them, turned around and walked towards the door, leaving the conference room decisively.

After the meeting room door closed again, the deputy director spoke again, but this time his tone was stern and his words were very direct.

"You two should both know what's going on now. I don't care who's in charge or who's in charge, but you must stop this completely and destroy that video clip entirely. Otherwise, neither of you will get away with it, and you might even face jail time. I'm not bluffing; this is a very serious warning." (End of Chapter)