Rebirth 09: Starting from taking charge of Running Man on CCTV

The man in the black polo shirt paused for a moment.

"The boss?"

He tilted his head and looked Chen Yang up and down twice.

Wearing a dark gray casual jacket and sneakers, a young man in his mid-twenties stands in the stairwell of a dilapidated house in an urban village, claiming to be the boss.

"Dude, are you kidding me?"

The man in the black polo shirt scoffed and shoved Chen Yang in the chest.

"Go cool off somewhere else, it's none of your business..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

Chen Yang raised his right hand.

Unhappy.

You could even say it's unhurried and leisurely.

But his five fingers precisely gripped the wrist of the black polo shirt.

Then, I pinched it.

The expression on the man in the black polo shirt jumped three levels in 0.3 seconds.

From disdain to astonishment to ferocity.

"hiss......!"

His knees bent instinctively, making him appear half his height.

Sweat beads on his forehead appeared as if a tap had been turned on, gushing out in a flash.

Chen Yang didn't use much force.

It wasn't a big deal for him, at least.

But the burly man opposite him, weighing 180 pounds, had his wrists squeezed so hard they cracked, and his face contorted in pain.

The person next to him in the camouflage short-sleeved shirt narrowed their eyes and subconsciously took half a step forward.

Chen Yang's gaze swept across.

Just one glance.

The camouflage-clad man's feet remained rooted to the spot, not moving again.

"Relax...let go!"

The man in the black polo shirt gritted his teeth, forcing out the words from his throat.

"What the hell do you want?! You think I won't call the police?!"

Report it!

Chen Yang's tone was flat and indifferent.

"Perfect timing, let me read you Article 11 of the 'Administrative Measures for the Leasing of Commercial Housing'."

"In the lease agreement signed between the lessee and the lessor, the rent standard should be consistent with the actual agreement. If the other party is misled into entering into a contract against their true will, the injured party has the right to request the court or arbitration institution to modify or rescind the contract."

He looked down at the black polo shirt.

"The contract states 1,500, but you charged 2,000. There's no corresponding clause for the extra 500."

"That's fraud."

"In addition to this partitioned room, the contract states it is 15 square meters, but it is actually less than 9 square meters, a reduction of 40% in area."

"That's called false advertising."

"If you combine these two conditions, the contract is voidable, the deposit will be fully refunded, and you will have to pay a penalty for breach of contract."

Chen Yang slightly increased the pressure on his hand.

The black polo shirt let out a loud "whoosh".

"If you think I'm wrong, we'll just stand here and wait for the police to arrive."

Chen Yang released his grip.

The man in the black polo shirt staggered back two steps, clutching his left wrist with his right hand, his face deathly pale.

He glanced at Chen Yang's eyes, then at the silent man in camouflage short sleeves beside him.

"Return the 3,000 yuan deposit to her now."

Chen Yang took a step forward.

Not a penny less.

The man in the black polo shirt trembled slightly.

He pulled a wad of messy banknotes from his pocket, counted out three thousand, and slapped it against the doorframe.

"Walk!"

He tugged at his camouflage short-sleeved shirt and scrambled downstairs.

The footsteps in the hallway were hurried and hurried, like two dogs whose tails had been stepped on.

The young face peeking through the crack in the door stared blankly at everything.

Chen Xi's knuckles were still white as she gripped the doorknob.

She slowly opened the door only after the hallway had become completely quiet.

"you……"

She looked at Chen Yang, opened her mouth twice, but the words got stuck in her throat.

"Take the money first."

Chen Yang pointed to the stack of banknotes on the door frame.

Chen Xi hesitated for a second, then reached out and took the money, subconsciously counting it once.

Three thousand, not a single one missing.

"Thanks."

Her voice was still trembling.

"Thank you so much."

Chen Yang took out a business card from the inside pocket of his jacket and handed it over.

White background with black text, simple printing.

"Chen Yang, Chief Director of the CCTV Variety Channel's 'Run, China' program."

Chen Xi took the business card and looked at it for three seconds.

Then she looked up and scrutinized him with the eyes of someone looking at a conman.

"CCTV?"

"right."

"Director-in-chief?"

"right."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-four."

Chen Xi flipped the business card over and looked at the front again.

"Brother, I may have just graduated, but I'm not stupid."

Her tone regained its stubbornness.

"The chief director of CCTV came to an urban village to find a recent college graduate?"

"If you're selling insurance, just say so. You don't need to put on such a big show."

Chen Yang wasn't angry.

He looked around, dragged a plastic chair with half a leg missing from the doorway, steadied himself with one hand, and sat down.

"Chen Xi, a graduate of the Communication University of China majoring in New Media, will be graduating this year."

Chen Xi's expression changed.

"An active moderator of the Tianya Entertainment Gossip section, pen name [Gossip Xiao Chen], whose latest post, 'Exposing how shady the agents of popular young actresses are,' has received over 8,300 replies as of this afternoon."

Chen Xi closed her mouth.

"How did you know?"

"That's why I came to find you."

Chen Yang placed his hands on his knees and looked at her.

"My show needs a public relations director. Not the kind of PR person who just puts a small ad in the newspaper, but someone who truly understands the internet, young people, and viral marketing."

"There is no such position in the entire CCTV system."

"So I have to find it myself."

Chen Xi leaned against the door frame, arms crossed, her guard slightly lowered, but her suspicions were still clearly visible.

"Even if what you said is true, when has CCTV ever needed online promotion for its variety shows?"

"It wasn't necessary before."

Chen Yang held up one finger.

"But starting this year, it's necessary."

Do you know how much traffic a single featured post on Tianya can generate?

"I know, good posts get millions of views."

"Have you ever thought about how many views a memorable scene from a variety show would get if it were edited into a three- to five-minute short video, uploaded to Youku or Tudou, and given a sensational title?"

Chen Xi's brow twitched slightly.

"Think about it again."

Chen Yang leaned forward.

"On Baidu Tieba, if you create an official forum for the show, post behind-the-scenes photos before each episode's recording and behind-the-scenes footage afterward, and fans spontaneously create threads to discuss it, the daily active users of just one forum can exceed 10,000."

"Each celebrity has their own Baidu Tieba (online forum), and fans browse each other's posts, spontaneously creating secondary content. What's that called?"

Chen Xi's lips moved slightly.

"Fan base...expansion?"

"right."

Chen Yang drew a circle in the air with his finger.

"Take it one step further. Sina is preparing a new product, similar to a blog but lighter, with 140 characters per post and a forwarding function."

"The internal beta test will be launched as early as the second half of this year."

Chen Xi's eyes widened suddenly.

How did you know?

"Never mind how I know."

Chen Yang leaned back in his chair.

"Just think about one thing. If this product launches, and our show is the first to join, with celebrities opening accounts simultaneously, and behind-the-scenes footage and interactive topics released after each episode, what level of success will the first variety shows to reap this wave of traffic benefits have?"

Chen Xi didn't say anything.

But she had already lowered her arms, which she had been holding in front of her chest.

She is a senior moderator on Tianya, spending every day in the forefront of online public opinion, and understands better than anyone else what traffic means.

She understood every single thing Chen Yang said.

But when combined, they form a complete publicity and distribution system...

She never thought of it.

Even the entire industry hadn't considered it.

"What you've said..."

Chen Xi's voice softened.

"No one in China has ever done this before."

"That's why I need you."

Chen Yang took out a thin contract from his bag.

"Project-based employment, one-year term, monthly salary of 4,000 yuan, full payment of social insurance and housing fund."

"I'll cover the travel expenses and the rent deposit first."

He left the contract on the shoe rack by the door.

"You are the first dedicated new media marketing manager for variety shows in all of China."

"Is this title worth the gamble?"

Chen Xi stared at the contract and remained silent for a full ten seconds.

Then she bent down, picked it up, and turned to the last page.

Do you have a pen?

Chen Yang handed him a ballpoint pen.

Chen Xi wrote his name in the signature column.

The sound of the pen tip touching the paper was subtle yet clear.

"Alright."

Chen Yang stood up and pushed the plastic chair back to its original position.

"The day after tomorrow morning, report to the 12th floor of the CCTV main building and find Manager Ma to handle the onboarding process."

He took out ten red bills from his wallet and put them on the shoe rack.

"Take this for travel expenses and temporary accommodation."

After saying that, he turned and went downstairs.

Chen Xi's voice came from behind.

"Director Chen."

Chen Yang turned around.

"Are you really from CCTV?"

"certainly."