Chapter 342: The Times Have Changed: The Spring Festival Gala Goes Viral, Dong Xuan Freezes Over

When Yan Li returned, the atmosphere was somewhat tense, but not overly oppressive.

The three of them automatically divided tasks, each busy with their own, or chatting with Zhang Hong and Yan Nainai.

Frictions had their limits; turning into the target of everyone's criticism during the New Year would benefit no one.

Everything that needed preparation had already been mostly done; the hustle was just for show, with only Old Yan handling the actual cooking.

He had been monitoring the kitchen alone for long enough that once everything was prepped, he rarely needed help during actual cooking.

Yan Li occasionally ran errands to assist, then returned to the main room to listen to the women chat.

Fan Xiaopang was boasting about her experience on the Spring Festival Gala.

Honestly, if it came to discussing ratings, box office, or income rankings, Zhang Hong and Yan Nainai didn't understand much, nor the inner workings.

But the Spring Festival Gala, as a household name, carried immense prestige—at least in the north—and with today being New Year's Eve, it was especially topical.

Dong Xuan couldn't stand it; it was just the Spring Festival Gala, as if she'd never been on it.

Fan Xiaopang sensed Dong Xuan's mood and began emphasizing her second Spring Festival Gala appearance.

She had appeared twice: once as one of the Seven Fairies alongside Dong Xuan, and once solo singing "Invisible Wings"—in both number and program significance, she was far ahead.

Qin Lan focused intently on shelling nuts; since she'd never been on the Spring Festival Gala, she chose not to join the topic and risk humiliation.

"Actually, this year's Gala team also approached me—my song 'Painted Heart' was pretty popular, but I thought the song didn't fit, and appearing on the Gala is exhausting, so I turned it down."

Seeing Qin Dong's mood sour, Fan Xiaopang delivered another blow.

She wasn't lying—this year's Gala team really did approach her, but in the end, it wasn't her refusal; the talks fell through over some issues.

At Fan Xiaopang's current status, she had reached the pinnacle of female stars in the domestic entertainment industry.

Those who knew her didn't need the Gala to recognize her; those who didn't know her wouldn't gain much from appearing on it.

If she hadn't been on it, she might still have yearned for this grand stage, but having appeared twice, she'd already achieved the relevant credentials and reaped all the benefits—the Gala's appeal to her had greatly diminished.

If conditions were favorable or necessary, she might consider appearing once, but otherwise, she'd skip it in ordinary years.

Ultimately, she wasn't a singer but an actress, and now she was even preparing to step behind the scenes—she didn't care about earning the title "Spring Festival Gala Regular."

Yan Nainai and Zhang Hong felt a bit regretful—watching their daughter-in-law or granddaughter-in-law appear on the Gala, then returning home to share the New Year's Eve dinner, would have been utterly delightful.

But then again, with three daughters-in-law, one on the Gala and two busy at home, it would've been awkward; upon reflection, this arrangement was safer.

Qin Lan truly couldn't stand Fan Xiaopang's bragging and shifted the topic to others.

"This year's Gala has Zhou Jie, Cheng Long, Chen Yixun—there must be plenty of good acts."

Dong Xuan chimed in tactfully: "Too bad Fan Wei and Song Dandan aren't appearing this year; Zhao Ben Shan is carrying the whole show alone—I wonder if he can handle it."

"Even if he carries the whole show alone, he's still Zhao Ben Shan."

Yan Li interjected: "Besides, this time he's bringing his own Zhao Family Troupe apprentices—these Errenzhuan performers are all skilled; if they perform well, they might steal the show."

Other acts were uncertain, but Zhao Ben Shan's sketch directly triggered one of Yan Li's monthly intelligence reports.

Because of this, Yan Li had learned in advance that this year's Gala would produce a red-hot sensation—so popular even Old Mo would be forced to cast him as the male lead.

Unfortunately, this person's style didn't align well with Yi'an's usual projects, and Zhao Ben Shan might not entrust his cash cow to Yi'an's management—Yan Li guessed he could only watch from afar.

Fan Xiaopang popped a pistachio: "You're so busy—how do you have time to care about Spring Festival Gala news?"

"I can ignore everything else, but not the Spring Festival Gala."

For the past two years, Yan Li hadn't paid much attention to the Gala's behind-the-scenes unless one of their own artists appeared—just watching the show was enough.

This year, he was paying close attention because Weibo planned to harvest the Spring Festival traffic surge from this stage watched by hundreds of millions.

In the past, when people watched the Gala, the dominant voices came from traditional media; although internet voices were growing more important, they remained scattered and disorganized.

Now, Weibo has risen as the hottest, most explosive real-time social platform, leading the front of information and trends.

It can not only consolidate the previously scattered internet voices, but also directly enable countless netizens to engage in face-to-face discussions via Weibo and trending topics.

As soon as the Spring Festival program ends—or even while it's still airing—the netizens' evaluations and discussions have already begun.

Weibo even gave this Spring Festival strategy a bold codename: "Everyone Watches the Spring Festival Gala," continuing the legacy of last summer's "Everyone Watches the Olympics."

Under these circumstances, Yan Li naturally had to pay attention to the Gala.

By afternoon, it was finally time for the three of them to contribute—the family began making dumplings, but Zhang Hong and Yan Nainai still did the actual work.

These three women weren't skilled cooks; they could make dumplings, but they were far behind Zhang Hong and other experts.

Seeing them mangle the dough and filling, Zhang Hong started shooing them away.

"Go out for a walk—stroll around the alleyway, then come back for dinner."

"It's so cold—what's there to see?"

Yan Li didn't want to go, but Fan Xiaopang and the others were eager—they'd been sitting with the elders long enough, and stepping outside for some fresh air sounded good.

One reason was the cold; another was fear of being photographed—they were bundled up tightly, barely revealing a single eye.

Their relationships were public knowledge, so they weren't worried about being caught together—but two people together was one thing; four people celebrating New Year's together was still sensitive.

Yan Li didn't want to compete with the Spring Festival Gala for trending topics during the holiday—he preferred to keep a low profile and have a quiet, peaceful New Year.

It was the Spring Festival, and the neighborhood was still lively.

A group of kids ran around playing; as they walked, every household was busy preparing the New Year's Eve feast—the smells of meat, frying, and sweets lingered thickly in the air.

Yan Li watched this scene before him, feeling unusually cheerful—perhaps because this year more family had come, and everyone was together, the Spring Festival felt more festive than ever before.

Fan Xiaopang, usually swamped with work, hadn't had such a leisurely rest or stroll in a long time—she was also in high spirits.

Too bad if only those two light bulbs were gone, and it was just her and Yan Li.

Coincidentally, Qin Lan and Dong Xuan thought the same thing—the faint tension from the festive atmosphere flared up again.

At the entrance, an old man still had his stall open, selling candied chestnuts and candied haws.

Qin Lan bought a portion of candied chestnuts and three skewers of candied haws—one for Yan Li, one for Dong Xuan, one for herself—and none for Fan Xiaopang.

"Who cares."

Fan Xiaopang pulled out her wallet and withdrew several bills: "Old man, let me help you pack up early."

Saying this, she bought the straw target with the candied haws too, and had Yan Li hold it while she gripped two large handfuls, smugly staring at Qin Lan.

"Can you even eat that?"

"If I can't eat it, I'll give it away—I've got money, and I like spending it."

So Fan Xiaopang approached a passerby and gave them a skewer of candied haws; at first some refused or dared not take it, making the giving awkward, until a group of children spotted it and snatched them all up.

Fan Xiaopang didn't give them away for free—after handing out the candied haws, she made a demand.

"Compliment your sister's beauty."

The children, holding the candied haws, happily complied, and Fan Xiaopang laughed heartily, then pointed at Qin Dong and asked:

"Who's prettier—me, or those two aunts?"

The children couldn't see faces, of course—they praised whoever gave them candied haws. Dong Xuan put this to clever use: "Anyone want candied chestnuts? I'll treat you."

"Yes!"

What's unattainable is always best—soon many children defected. Dong Xuan bought up the remaining candied chestnuts and returned Fan Xiaopang's own tactic.

Yan Li didn't interfere, arms crossed, watching the three women engage in childish warfare—and handing out treats to the kids.

Fight on!

Right now the kids are benefiting; soon it'll be my turn.

After wandering outside for half an hour, Yan Li "bled money" again, buying them all sorts of strange toys and snacks.

During this time, Fan Xiaopang subtly gained the upper hand, delighting herself, while Qin Dong reacted in complete opposition.

Back home, after a brief rest, dusk fell, and the New Year's Eve dinner was nearly ready.

Let's eat first!

At this time, Old Yan always became most present—he got carried away, drank a few extra cups with his son, and before the Spring Festival Gala even started, he was dazed and shut down, lying face-down in the bedroom.

Fan Xiaopang and the others had also drunk quite a bit, but all knew their limits—lightly tipsy, not drunk. After dinner, they watched the Spring Festival Gala while setting up the mahjong table.

Yan's grandmother didn't understand mahjong, so Zhang Hong played with her three daughters-in-law; after one round, Fan Xiaopang refused to continue.

Qin Dong had no shame—they teamed up against her, willing to stall their own progress just to ruin her game, making it utterly unfun.

Under her protest, Yan Li took Qin Lan's place and played with the others.

Qin Lan sat beside him, but didn't offer advice—instead, she peeked at his tiles and quietly told Zhang Hong.

Yan Li himself didn't care much, so he became little more than a cash machine, losing every round.

The luckiest, of course, was Zhang Hong—thanks to Qin Lan's cheating, plus Fan Xiaopang and Dong Xuan feeding her tiles, Madame Zhang was slaughtering everyone.

Then came Fan Xiaopang—her luck today was genuinely good, often drawing strong hands.

Though she won fewer rounds than Zhang Hong, because her hands were better, she actually earned more.

Yan Li didn't care about any of this—he treated it as amusing his mother and the wives, losing all his cash and even borrowing "usury" from Fan Xiaopang.