Chapter Five: Adapting to the Winds

When Liao Yuan arrived at the company, he saw Xiao Peng standing anxiously in front of Jiang Heshun, the director of Program Department Two, saying something with a worried expression. Spotting Liao Yuan, Xiao Peng quickly waved, "Yuan, over here!"

His call caught the attention of many employees in the office hall.

Liao Yuan walked over and heard Xiao Peng eagerly say, "Yuan, 'Ghost Blows Out the Light' is your original work, right?"

Liao Yuan paused, then answered ambiguously, "It’s mine."

Xiao Peng’s face lit up with delight, and he turned to Jiang Heshun, "Boss, you heard that? That 'Ghost Blows Out the Light' was written by Yuan!"

Then he hurriedly said to Liao Yuan, "Yuan, last night the ratings for 'Strange Tales of the Living World' went up! They’ve multiplied several times over the usual, almost broke the 1% mark!"

"Nonsense!" Jiang Heshun replied impatiently, "Almost? You’re way off."

"What were the ratings last night?" Liao Yuan asked.

Xiao Peng hurriedly handed over the report in his hand, "0.43%, sixth place on our frequency!"

Department Two had a total of nine programs. Starting at seven in the morning and running until two the next morning, with ad times excluded, each program took up about an hour and a half. After two, the time belonged to reruns.

Historically, "Strange Tales of the Living World" held steady at 0.05% to 0.1%, always ranking at the bottom of the frequency. But last night’s ratings were over four times higher than usual, jumping up three slots and surpassing all the non-prime-time programs.

Clearly, this new story, "Ghost Blows Out the Light," had caught the attention of many listeners both old and new.

"What are you so happy about? Is this your doing?" Jiang Heshun rebuked sternly, "That’s the impact of the famous anchor Mi Maodian joining our frequency! Xiao Peng, do I need to remind you what your program is like? Besides, do you think ratings can soar in just a day or two? Naive! Move, I’m leaving for the day!"

Xiao Peng froze, his face flushing with frustration, but in the end, he stepped aside.

Jiang Heshun took a few steps, then seemed to remember something, looked back at Liao Yuan, and softened his tone, "Xiao Liao, work overtime tonight and record tomorrow’s program in advance. The HR department will talk to you tomorrow."

"About what?" Liao Yuan asked.

Jiang Heshun hesitated, "You’ve worked hard, but you know the station’s rules. If Director Xi from Department One hadn’t spoken up for you several times, with your repeated bottom rankings, you wouldn’t have lasted even through your internship. The decision on your case is in, and HR will give you the result tomorrow. Don’t lose heart—outside of our station, you’ll find a place to shine."

Xiao Peng pleaded, "Boss, give Yuan another chance! You didn’t hear his broadcast last night—it was every bit as good as Mi Maodian’s. Why not listen tonight?"

Jiang Heshun glared at him, then looked at Liao Yuan again and sighed, patting him on the shoulder, "Take care of yourself."

After Jiang Heshun left, nearly everyone in the office gathered around.

"Liao Yuan, I listened last night—your program was great! My wife loved it!"

"How many episodes does this novel have?"

"Tomb raiding! How did you come up with this? It’s brilliant!"

"I was about to sleep last night, but your show had me hooked. Listened all the way till two. Didn’t expect you had such creative talent!"

"When Hu Bayi and his companions ran into the avalanche in the Kunlun Mountains, I was on edge!"

"Something big must happen after they enter the tomb! Will there be zombies? Give us a hint, Liao Yuan!"

The crowd buzzed excitedly around Liao Yuan.

Xiao Peng, watching the scene, suddenly said angrily, "You people! If you all love 'Ghost Blows Out the Light' so much, why didn’t you say anything when Jiang Heshun was here?"

Everyone fell silent; some looked ashamed. Soon after, the crowd dispersed.

Xiao Peng spat, "Cowards, all of them! Fair-weather friends!"

Liao Yuan stood in silence for a moment, then turned to Xiao Peng and said, "Thanks, brother."

"Yuan, you..." Xiao Peng asked with concern.

Liao Yuan smiled and patted his briefcase, "Let’s go record the program!"

Xiao Peng’s eyes lit up with joy, "You’re finally getting proactive today!"

After the two left, Xu Jingkai, who was sitting in the corner of the office, stood up suspiciously and found a colleague. "Is Xiao Liao’s program really that good?"

The man glanced up and, seeing Xu’s shiny bald head and huge, bulbous nose, sighed, "Xu, don’t kick him while he’s down. Xiao Liao’s had a hard enough time."

Xu Jingkai snorted, "If he had real skills, would I kick him when he’s down? Isn’t it just because Director Xi helped him get this job? I can’t stand people who coast along."

"That’s true, but..." The colleague lowered his voice, "This time he really showed talent. If my wife hadn’t stumbled onto our frequency last night, I wouldn’t have known how much he’s changed. If he keeps recording 'Ghost Blows Out the Light,' it’ll be a hit sooner or later!"

"It’s just a pity the station won’t give him a chance. Of course, that’s partly Liao Yuan’s fault. If he’d done this earlier, he’d be the midnight king of radio across the region by now!"

Hearing this, Xu Jingkai’s beady eyes darted around, and he left his seat, heading to the broadcast studio for "Strange Tales of the Living World." He wanted to see for himself whether Liao Yuan was truly talented or just riding on Mi Maodian’s fame.

Studio Three.

Liao Yuan took out his prepared script, sat in the studio, and began recording "Ghost Blows Out the Light."

A truly good audio novel can be carried by the host’s vocal skills and narration ability, but with the addition of sound effects to enhance the atmosphere, the broadcast becomes even more vivid and engaging.

But Liao Yuan hadn’t always been like this...

Watching Liao Yuan recording, Xiao Peng’s eyes were full of regret. In the past, Liao Yuan never wanted to come to work until the very last minute. Because of poor performance, the atmosphere at the company was terrible for him, with sarcasm and ridicule being daily fare. The show’s ratings were dismal, and no amount of effort seemed to help, which left Liao Yuan deeply discouraged.

Gradually, he began to give up. For a long time, he stopped recording in advance, always procrastinating until the live broadcast. When it was time, he’d pick up a publicly available folk story and deliver it live.

Naturally, live broadcasting meant more mistakes than pre-recording. At first, slip-ups made Liao Yuan nervous, but there was never any negative feedback—because clearly, no one was listening.

This realization only deepened his discouragement, and his attitude became increasingly apathetic. Later, even repeated mistakes during live shows didn’t bother him.

Life became too comfortable.

It wasn’t until the station was about to cancel "Strange Tales of the Living World" and lay him off that the sudden pressure of survival made Liao Yuan realize what being dismissed would mean.

But by then, it seemed, it was already too late.