Chen Yang glanced at Lu Mingjun with slight surprise. It seemed Lu Mingjun was a shrewd cadre; his timing and tact were impeccable. Given Chen Yang's successful persuasion of Zhou Wen, his words were perfectly timed.
Lu Mingjun had played the role of a perfect matchmaker.
Later, Chen Yang planned to open a company in the Cultural Industry Creative Park. Lu Mingjun was the director of the management committee and bore the clear imprint of the Fang faction. It seemed he could cultivate closer ties with him.
Chen Yang smiled knowingly and said meaningfully,
"Director Lu, I personally am quite willing to make some appropriate investments in the broadcasting sector, but I don't know if Director Zhou trusts us."
Zhou Wen, a seasoned veteran of officialdom, immediately understood the implication of Chen Yang's words. He fully grasped the true purpose of tonight's banquet.
Before coming, Lu Mingjun had already briefed him, and he vaguely knew about Chen Yang's background. More importantly, Chen Yang's earlier words had successfully persuaded him. If someone with such a powerful background as Chen Yang were to operate Channel 89.6, it would naturally be safer and more reliable.
Therefore, Zhou Wen didn't hesitate much before showing a warm smile and saying,
"Xiao Fang, if you're willing to take over 89.6, what is there to doubt? I think we can find a time to discuss this properly!"
Today was only the first meeting, and it was impossible to finalize anything. This was an unprecedented attempt, and Zhou Wen himself couldn't make decisions on many issues. He needed to consult with higher-level leaders, and even if a cooperation was decided, many details still needed to be discussed; it couldn't be settled in a short time.
However, Zhou Wen's attitude was clear: he would definitely fully support and vigorously promote this matter.
This already achieved Chen Yang's expected goal.
Lu Mingjun, knowing his mission was complete, happily raised his glass and said with a smile, "That's wonderful! Come, let's have a drink together and wish Xiao Fang and Lao Zhou a successful collaboration!"
"Good! Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
Everyone present stood up, clinked glasses, and drank a glass of baijiu. After sitting down, Xie Fangzhi smiled and said,
"Young Fang, you're truly a force to be reckoned with! You're so young and already have your own career. When I was your age, I was still wasting my time in university! I had no idea what the future held!"
"Director Xie, please don't tease me. This is just a small-scale operation, accumulating some entrepreneurial experience," Chen Yang said with a smile. "And even this is relying on the support of the leaders! Director Xie, if Channel 89.6 is really handed over to us, we'll be asking for your help quite often! You can't refuse then!"
Xie Fangzhi laughed heartily and said,
"That's hard to say, it depends on your sincerity…"
After saying that, Xie Fangzhi meaningfully rubbed his wine glass, revealing a playful smile.
"Director Xie, that's not very fair… I really can't hold my liquor…" Chen Yang said with a wry face. Just as Xie Fangzhi was about to speak, Song Xiaoyun stood up, picked up a glass of baijiu (Chinese liquor), and walked to Xie Fangzhi's side, smiling brightly, saying:
"Director Xie, our General Manager Fang can't drink, so I'll toast you on his behalf with a large glass. Please continue to support our company in the future! I'll finish this large glass; please feel free to drink as you like!"
Chen Yang gave Song Xiaoyun an approving look. In terms of social skills, Song Xiaoyun was indeed quite talented; of course, this was perhaps honed during her years as a civil servant.
Chen Yang said with a grin:
"Director Xie, you can't refuse a beautiful lady's toast! This is our company's future program director! The young lady is already holding a large glass; how can you use a small one?"
Chen Yang and Xie Fangzhi had already established a good relationship, so he spoke relatively casually.
Seeing this, Lu Mingjun laughed and egged him on:
"Xiao Fang is right, Director Xie, you may not give us face, but you must give this beautiful lady face! Waiter, bring a large glass and fill Director Xie's glass!"
Xie Fangzhi had originally intended to target Chen Yang, hoping to get him to drink more, but he hadn't expected the baby-faced girl Chen Yang brought to be so bold, and he'd ended up getting himself involved instead.
In this situation, he really couldn't refuse, so he could only force a smile and down a large glass of baijiu with Song Xiaoyun.
After finishing the drink, Song Xiaoyun elegantly showed Xie Fangzhi the bottom of her glass, revealing a sweet smile, and said:
"Thank you for gracing me with your presence, Director Xie!"
But Xie Fangzhi, being of a certain age, felt a little dizzy after drinking nearly three ounces of baijiu. He quickly sat down and gulped down half a bowl of hot soup before he felt a little better.
Before Xie Fangzhi could catch his breath, Song Yi followed suit, pouring a large glass of baijiu (Chinese liquor) and presenting it to Xie Fangzhi, saying:
"Director Xie, I'd like to toast you too!"
Chen Yang immediately said with a smile:
"Director Xie, this is my company's future general manager. You and the program director have both had a large glass; you can't refuse the general manager's offer!"
Upon hearing this, Xie Fangzhi was immediately at his wit's end, raising his hands in pleading:
"Xiao Fang, please let me off the hook! I'm too old to compare with you young people, I can't drink anymore, I can't drink anymore..."
Xie Fangzhi had truly shot himself in the foot. He had intended to provoke Chen Yang into drinking more, but the people he brought were all incredibly heavy drinkers. Chen Yang hadn't even started drinking yet, and he was already practically giving a live broadcast of his own drinking. "Director Xie, please feel free to drink as you please! I'll drink this first as a sign of respect!" Song Yi, quick-witted as ever, downed his drink in one gulp, then took Xie Fangzhi's glass, poured him a small amount of baijiu (Chinese liquor), and handed it to him with a beaming smile.
This made Xie Fangzhi a little embarrassed. He chuckled awkwardly and said,
"Little Song, I'm really not trying to be presumptuous, I just really can't drink anymore... How about this, I'll drink half a glass! Consider it me taking advantage!"
With that, Xie Fangzhi took the bottle, filled his glass halfway, and drank it. After sitting down, Xie Fangzhi saw Chen Yang about to get up and offer another toast, so he quickly said,
"Little Fang, this is all I'll drink tonight, not a drop more!"
"How can that be? Director Xie, I haven't even expressed my sincerity yet!" Chen Yang said, smiling at Xie Fangzhi.
Xie Fangzhi glanced helplessly at Chen Yang and said,
"Little Fang, I'm really scared of you... If your company ever needs my help, I'll do my best, okay?"
"Hahaha..."
Seeing Xie Fangzhi so thoroughly humiliated by Chen Yang and the other two young men, Lu Mingjun, Zhou Wen, and the others couldn't help but burst into laughter.
However, Zhou Wen could also tell that Xie Fangzhi and Chen Yang had a very close relationship. He knew Xie Fangzhi was the deputy director of the Housing Management Bureau, and he understood what Xie Fangzhi's vast network of developers meant to a radio channel whose main revenue came from advertising.
Zhou Wen couldn't help but look at Chen Yang thoughtfully a few more times. Chen Yang had clearly planned this collaboration thoroughly before proposing it, even preparing the subsequent advertising sources in advance. He was shrewd and methodical; this young man was no ordinary person! Song Xiaoyun and Song Yi's large toasts immediately sparked a high-spirited atmosphere. They then frequently toasted others, primarily targeting the guest of honor, Zhou Wen, with Song Xiaoyun also using a large glass without hesitation.
Her bold drinking style impressed Lu Mingjun and the others, who exclaimed that she was a woman who could rival any man.
The banquet ended happily.
After seeing Lu Mingjun and Zhou Wen off, Chen Yang didn't leave immediately. Instead, he took Song Yi and Song Xiaoyun to a tea room on the third floor of the club. Everyone had drunk quite a bit that night, and some tea would help them sober up. Chen Yang also had something to say to the two of them.
The Qingxinzhai private room was decorated in an antique style, with understated luxury in its Chinese-style decor. A graceful waitress in a cheongsam led the three in, served two pots of fragrant tea, and then bowed slightly before leaving.
After the three were seated, Song Xiaoyun poured tea for both Chen Yang and Song Yi, then asked with a puzzled look:
"President Fang, I see you're very confident about the future development of Channel 89.6, but from what I've learned these past few days, there are many FM frequencies within Rongcheng city. CCTV's frequencies cover the entire country, that goes without saying. Several provincial stations have also established brand recognition, and even the city radio stations' other frequencies have far greater brand recognition than 89.6. How can we catch up with these established channels after we acquire this one?"
Since deciding to work for Chen Yang, Song Xiaoyun insisted on addressing him as "President Fang," and Chen Yang, after several attempts to change her mind, had given up and let her continue. Chen Yang took a sip of tea and smiled, saying,
"Xiaoyun, let me ask you a question first. In your opinion, who are the main audience members for FM radio these days?"
Song Xiaoyun replied without hesitation,
"Of course, it's car radio! In daily life, radio has gradually been replaced by television and the internet. Apart from a small number of middle-aged and elderly listeners, the vast majority of listeners are car owners. The limitations of in-car resources mean that they can only choose radio to pass the time while driving."
Chen Yang gave Song Xiaoyun an approving look; it seemed she had put in a lot of effort these past few days.
"That's a matter of brand positioning. Since the vast majority of listening locations are in cars, all our channel's programs must be designed around this—traffic updates, weather forecasts, car maintenance, and so on are all essential!" Chen Yang said. Song Xiaoyun nodded, agreeing with Chen Yang's point of view. However, she was clearly a strong-willed person and not easily persuaded. She said, "President Fang, I agree with your program positioning. But now the provincial and municipal TV stations both have dedicated automotive channels. They've been in this industry for many years, and due to their official status, they have very close ties with the traffic police department. We still don't have any advantage in terms of programming!"
Chen Yang smiled confidently and said, "The advantages they have, we will have too, and even stronger."
With Kan Xufeng's connections, Chen Yang wasn't worried about not being able to get through to the traffic police department. Sending a reporter to be stationed in the monitoring room wouldn't be a problem at all! Chen Yang paused, then continued:
"And there's a crucial point, I don't know if you've noticed. Currently, all the car radio stations in Rongcheng target a broad audience of car owners, without any strong specific focus. What we need to do is to refine our channel positioning, dedicating the majority of our efforts to serving a specific demographic. Our listenership will definitely skyrocket!"
Song Xiaoyun listened to Chen Yang's words with a thoughtful expression, while Song Yi, standing beside her, remained completely bewildered. He was a complete novice when it came to media operations and could only watch the two discuss.
After a while, Song Xiaoyun's eyes lit up, and she excitedly exclaimed:
"Taxi!"