Chapter 347 - 340: Release Plan

Chapter 347: Chapter 340: Release Plan

"Sirs, how can I help you?"

In Yuan City, the receptionist at a budget hotel politely greeted the You father and son.

"Do you have any vacancies?"

Even though it was the May Day holiday, hotels weren’t as booked up as in previous years. Thanks to recent government-issued travel restrictions, fewer people were visiting Yuan City and the rest of Xisheng Province.

"Hello, sir. We have standard twin rooms and king rooms available. They’re both 142 yuan per night. How many rooms will you be needing?"

You Ye handed over his and his father’s IDs.

"We’ll take two standard twin rooms, thanks."

After paying the deposit, getting the receipt, and collecting the breakfast vouchers, they were all settled. It was only three in the afternoon.

They called Elder Mo to give him the hotel’s address, then went to their rooms to rest for a bit.

You Ye also went online on his phone to check the Xisheng TV Station’s holiday schedule. He confirmed that even during the May Day holiday, many people would still be working, and some shows would be even busier than usual.

But since it was already late in the day, You Ye decided to just make a phone call to inquire.

The person at the station told him it was hard to say if a videotape from nearly thirty years ago would still be around. Their only option was to come and try their luck in the archives. However, they were more than happy to share the recording with the family of the person filmed and would allow them to take a copy.

With that sorted out, You Ye decided to call Elder Mo again. When they had spoken earlier, Elder Mo said he had finished his business and was about to catch a ride. You Ye wondered if he had found one yet.

The call connected after just two rings, but the line was filled with a loud, rushing "WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH."

"Hello, Grandpa Mo? Did you manage to get a ride?"

"Ah, Xiaoye. Yes, I’ve got a ride."

You Ye felt much more relieved.

"Grandpa Mo, why is it so loud on your end? Is that wind?"

Atop a moving freight truck, Elder Mo sat cross-legged, his rear seemingly rooted to the spot. He remained perfectly still, whether the truck was turning or accelerating.

"It is. I’m in a ’convertible’ right now. I’ll be in Yuan City soon, an hour at most."

"Okay, sounds good. Give me a call when you arrive. By the way, I’ve already contacted the TV station. We’ll head over there tomorrow morning."

"Fine by me. As long as it’s all arranged."

After their chat, they both hung up.

’This Secret Realm technology from the association is really convenient,’ Elder Mo thought to himself. ’Otherwise, a guy sitting on top of a truck would have ended up on some short-video app by now.’

Elder Mo reunited with the You father and son around dinnertime. When the two younger men asked what he had been doing, the old man simply smiled and said nothing.

...

On May 3rd, the You father and son rose bright and early. After finishing the hotel’s buffet breakfast with Elder Mo, they headed straight for the TV station.

And when they "finished," they meant it—there was hardly anything left of the spread. It made You Ye feel like the restaurant staff were giving them strange looks.

The Xisheng TV Station building was located at 200 Hu Ze Street.

Upon arrival, they went straight to a staff member for assistance.

It has to be said, making a good impression goes a long way. Elder Mo’s distinguished air was a huge bonus. Just as beautiful people often receive better treatment, the same principle applied here.

They were led directly to a reception room, where a manager named Zhao came in to speak with them briefly.

Of course, any written records from that interview were long gone. But after some polite discussion, the station was willing to be accommodating. After all, You Ye’s group could describe the content and details of the interview. For the manager, a trivial matter like this was no trouble at all.

The manager felt the request was simple enough. The person in question was a decorated Vietnam War veteran who had been featured by their station for a promotional piece thirty years ago.

You Ye’s father was a respectable figure in his own right. That, combined with Elder Mo’s impressive bearing and You Ye’s smooth-talking, was enough for the manager to write them an authorization slip. Whether they’d actually find anything, however, was uncertain.

The tape they were looking for should be relatively easy to locate. Unlike today’s TV networks with their numerous channels, thirty years ago there was basically just Xisheng TV Station. A recording of uncertain ownership and little apparent value could only be in one place: the old tape storage and management room.

Of course, while it was a small favor for the manager, it was another matter entirely for the archive administrator.

The administrator was a man in his fifties. Managing such an unfrequented department was basically a job for someone just coasting toward retirement. He was supposed to be on holiday for May Day, but because of the manager’s note, he’d had to rush in from home.

However, this Uncle Tian, whom You Ye was so enthusiastically addressing, was very meticulous about managing the archives. The tapes were perfectly categorized and neatly arranged by year.

As a regional station, its early volume of productions couldn’t compare to the national network, of course, but the archives they had amassed over the years were still considerable.

Most of the several-hundred-square-meter storage room was stuffed to the brim. Under the "Folk Art" subcategory of "Artistic Performances," they found the old videotape.

The archive not only stored the tapes but also kept various playback devices, including, of course, a VCR.

"Uncle Li, will this tape still work?"

You Ye asked for the nth time, even more anxious than Elder Mo.

Old Li, his long sleeves rolled up, glanced at him.

"This tape is spotless. What could possibly be wrong with it? If this doesn’t play, I’ll eat my hat!"

The group gathered around the television and VCR as the tape was pushed inside.

The image quality wasn’t great, but the footage played smoothly, and smiles broke out on everyone’s faces.

An elderly man holding a wooden staff stood in the center of the screen. In reality, Old You had only been in his early fifties at the time, but he looked exceptionally old for his age.