Chen Yao sat carefully on the sofa, coming to Zhang Ruyi's home for the first time.
She actually wanted to go straight home, but couldn't withstand Zhang Ruyi's constant persuasion, so she planned to rest here for one night and leave tomorrow.
Zhang Ruyi went to change clothes, and sitting alone in the living room made her feel a bit uncomfortable.
Aunt Yun brought her a cup of hot water.
"It's a bit cold outside, come drink a cup of hot water to warm up your body."
Chen Yao hurriedly stood up, took the water cup, and said, "Thank you, Auntie."
Aunt Yun said with a chuckle, "You are Chen Ran's younger sister, and also Ruyi's roommate. Treat this place as your own home, don't be so polite."
Chen Yao smiled reservedly. Meeting for the first time, and showing up empty-handed, she felt very awkward.
Aunt Yun said, "I heard from Ruyi that you're recording a song. Are you preparing to become a singer?"
Chen Yao shook her head and said, "I just sing for fun as a hobby. I don't plan on becoming a singer."
Aunt Yun said, "That's good, that's good. Being a singer is too tiring, with no time to rest all year round. Look at Ruyi's older sister; seeing that it's almost the New Year, she still has no way to come back."
Chen Yao didn't know how to reply, but it was a fact that she hadn't thought about becoming a professional singer. After she gained more fans, some programs had sent her invitations online, but she had refused them all.
Just like she said, singing was only a hobby, and she could do it part-time on the side. As for signing with a company or the like, she believed she didn't have that talent and didn't want to make plans in that regard.
Aunt Yun chatted casually with Chen Yao. Most of the topics were about Zhang Ruyi. Chen Yao felt that Ruyi's mother was quite amiable, so she relaxed a bit.
Without knowing when, the topic shifted to Chen Ran.
They were chatting quite happily, and Chen Yao only snapped back to reality when Zhang Ruyi opened her door and came out.
She felt a little uneasy in her heart.
Her brother Chen Ran was currently dating Zhang Xiyun. The auntie in front of her wasn't just Ruyi's mother; she was also Chen Ran's future mother-in-law. Since she had said quite a bit just now, would it affect Chen Ran?
But thinking back carefully, she hadn't said much of anything just now; roughly, she had only talked about how hard Chen Ran worked when he was in school, as well as some family matters.
Besides, even if she wanted to, she couldn't find anything bad to say.
"What were you and my mom chatting about?" Zhang Ruyi sat down.
Chen Yao shook her head and said, "Nothing."
"Relax a bit, just treat it like your own home. When you bully me in the dorm normally, you aren't this shy," Zhang Ruyi grunted.
Chen Yao cast a glance at her, and Zhang Ruyi subconsciously shrank back. Then, remembering she was in her own home, she suddenly burst into unbridled laughter.
……
Because his sister was at the Zhang family home, Chen Ran followed Director Zhang back together after getting off work.
"Do you have any ideas for the metropolitan channel's program yet?" Director Zhang asked while driving.
"I have a few clues, but I need to consider it further," Chen Ran said.
The positioning of the Zhaonan Metropolitan Channel was a bit strange, falling somewhere between the entertainment channel and the public channel.
If it were during the daytime, Chen Ran wouldn't mind writing an obstacle course program for them.
For example, something like ‘Boys and Girls Rush Forward’. Facts have proven that these programs are quite entertaining to watch while eating; their viewership performance has always been pretty good, enduring over time.
But they requested the evening slot.
There were many program choices during this time slot; not only were there major productions from the satellite TV channels, but local stations also had programs broadcasting.
Airing an obstacle course show wouldn't attract people.
Director Zhang said, "It's fine, time is still quite ample. Take your time to consider."
Chen Ran nodded, but was still pondering.
Sometimes having too many choices was also troublesome. Wanting to pick a more suitable one from among numerous programs was even more conflicting.
Chen Ran had no way to guarantee that the program would become a hit once produced.
In reality, before every program came out, the program crew would have many discussions. The ideas that were proposed and then killed halfway through weren't just one or two.
Even so, there was still a possibility for programs to flop. Every program that managed to be broadcast came out this way, but how many actually had good results?
Chen Ran was quite cautious when making his choice; at the very least, he couldn't ruin his own reputation.
Arriving at the Zhang family home, it was Zhang Ruyi who opened the door. She wasn't surprised to see Chen Ran; she had been right next to Chen Yao when she made the call just now.
As for Chen Yao, the moment she saw Chen Ran, she visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
Although she had Zhang Ruyi keeping her company, it was her first time visiting, after all.
Going to a friend's house for the first time, one would always be a bit reserved.
Moreover, this was her brother's girlfriend's house. She didn't want to leave Aunt Yun with any bad impressions and affect Chen Ran.
"You're Chen Ran's younger sister? Hello, hello, I'm Ruyi's dad!" Seeing Chen Yao, Director Zhang greeted her amiably.
"Hello, Uncle," Chen Yao hurriedly stood up.
Director Zhang smiled and said, "Don't be polite. Just like Chen Ran, treat this place as your own home."
Chen Ran asked his sister, "Is the song production finished?"
"Mhm, it was just finished the night before last. The boss said it will be released online after the New Year on Valentine's Day." Chen Yao nodded.
"Why didn't you call me in advance when you came back?"
"I originally wanted to go straight back, but Naonao insisted on making me come over and stay the night. Otherwise, I was planning to tell you after I got home."
Chen Yao had always been like this. Feeling that she had grown up, she tried her best not to rely on others.
The brother and sister chatted for a while, and Aunt Yun brought out the cooked food.
During the meal, Aunt Yun was extremely enthusiastic toward Chen Yao, constantly putting food in her bowl.
In her eyes, this was her daughter's future sister-in-law. After Zhang Fanzhi married over in the future, they would have to get along anyway, so building a good relationship now definitely wasn't a mistake.
Seeing Chen Yao looking somewhat embarrassed, Zhang Ruyi secretly laughed from the side. However, thinking of her mother's underlying intentions, her laughter gradually died down until she couldn't laugh anymore.
During the meal, Chen Ran was constantly chatting with Director Zhang about TV station matters. Besides the metropolitan channel's program, there were also the satellite TV channel's programs.
Preparations would begin after the New Year. The late-night slot would start broadcasting relatively early, while the other one would take until April or May.
Director Zhang's meaning was for Chen Ran to finish the metropolitan channel's proposal and then, when he had free time, think more about the satellite TV channel's programs.
When producing a local program, the audience is limited to local people, so what needs to be done is to be down-to-earth and localized.
But the satellite TV channel was different; it faced a nationwide audience. If one used the mindset of producing a local program to do it, it naturally wouldn't work.
Director Zhang was also worried that Chen Ran wouldn't be able to shift his mindset, so he specifically reminded him.
While Chen Ran and Director Zhang were chatting, Chen Yao instead felt a bit bewildered.
In her memory, Chen Ran had only just entered the TV station a few months ago.
But listening to the two chat, it seemed her own brother had produced programs at the TV station, achieved considerable success, and was now even starting to plan on entering the satellite TV channel?
Could it be that entering the satellite TV channel to produce programs was this simple?
What made her feel even more awkward was that Zhang Ruyi's parents seemed to treat her brother entirely as part of the family. This could be easily felt from their speaking attitudes and some everyday details.
Seeing Zhang Ruyi still looking somewhat unhappy on the side, she couldn't help but wonder in her heart.
How was this like what Zhang Ruyi said about her sister becoming someone else's? It was clearly her parents gaining an extra son, right?
Taking advantage of a moment when no one was around, Chen Yao asked, "Brother, how are things between you and Ruyi's sister?"
Chen Ran asked, "Why do you ask?"
"I see you get along very well with her family, how come you don't want to tell Mom and Dad?" Chen Yao asked in confusion.
Chen Ran paused, then said, "Let's wait a bit longer. I'm mainly afraid of disappointing Mom and Dad."
Chen Yao didn't understand.
Based on their current interactions, Chen Ran and the Zhang family were as close as one family.
Why would he still be afraid of disappointing their parents?