Chapter 36: Sacrificing Oneself, Launching an Assault on Weibo!

Xu Qingfeng had been off the air for two days, and the voices on the internet grew increasingly arrogant.

"That scum is definitely finished!"
"With this clown's personality, if he had any dirt, he would have exposed it by now."

Xu Qingfeng’s silence was viewed by the entertainment industry as the stillness before death. To those who thought they had his character figured out, this silence meant everything. What kind of person was Xu Qingfeng? If you insulted him in the morning, he would expose you in the afternoon. Forget the old saying about a gentleman taking his revenge after ten years; he never let a grudge last overnight. It had been two days now, so he was surely dead in the water.

Consequently, many celebrities who had been hesitating stepped forward, eager to kick him while he was down to soak up some of the trending heat before it was too late. Yet, just as they were spewing their vitriol and enjoying themselves, the unexpected happened.

"Xu Qingfeng’s Weibo has been unbanned!"

This news made the hearts of the jumping, chattering crowd skip a beat. The celebrities stood there like quails with their necks being squeezed, dumbfounded. They wanted to jump up and grab Weibo by the throat, roaring, "Why the hell did you unban him?" They were being snide and vicious precisely because he had been muted on Weibo and restricted on Shanying, but now, they had suddenly unbanned him? Was this a joke?

The news of Xu Qingfeng’s unbanning left the entertainment industry in absolute silence for half an hour. Everyone claimed they weren't afraid and kept hurling insults, but when faced with an unbanned Xu Qingfeng, they were all quite cowardly. God knows what kind of dirt he was holding onto. Silence was the theme of the entertainment industry that day.

Finally, someone realized, "If Xu Qingfeng wants to talk, can't we just get him muted again?"
"That's right! Keep reporting him; he must not remain unbanned!"
"Exactly, everyone put in the effort."
"That mad dog probably hasn't noticed yet, move fast!"

Just as they began reporting him, Xu Qingfeng suddenly posted a message:
"@Weibo, let me ask, who exactly is your daddy? Is it Zhang Hongbo? Or Jiang Wei? Or Miao Qing? Quite a few, aren't there? You don't ban those animals, but you ban your own daddy? How truly 'paternal and filial' of you. Calling you a cesspool is an insult to cesspools, isn't it? Fine, ban me then. If you have the guts, keep me banned permanently. F*** your mother!!"

To him, Weibo was already meaningless. Without a corporate team behind him, Weibo banning his account was just a matter of convenience. Since he signed with Shanying, the conflict between the two had intensified. Anything he tried to say on Weibo in the future would be targeted to death, so he might as well use the remaining heat to sacrifice his account.

Entertainment Industry: ???!!!
"Holy crap, this guy is insane!"
"He’s asking for it. He’s really picking a fight with Weibo."
"Impressive. First time I've ever seen someone dare to curse out Weibo."
"Great, this scum is definitely dead this time!"
"He’s too wild."

Xu Qingfeng, constantly making poor strategic moves, was sentenced to death by the industry in advance. Sure enough, less than ten minutes after the post went live, Xu Qingfeng’s account was banned. This time, it was a one-year ban, setting a new record for the longest ban in domestic entertainment history. Usually, celebrities only get banned for a few days—just like Xu Qingfeng’s previous two times. Even for particularly egregious cases, the maximum is usually 30 days. Permanent bans are reserved for those who break the law. A one-year ban for someone who hadn't broken any laws was unprecedented.

There are no secrets in the entertainment industry, and the news of his one-year ban spread like wildfire.
"Hahaha, good riddance!"
"Well done!"
"He’s completely finished now."

A Weibo ban meant Xu Qingfeng couldn't post, and others couldn't follow him. A year without exposure and the inability to gain followers was fatal to a celebrity's commercial value. Once a celebrity loses commercial value and exposure, their influence quickly vanishes. By the time he tries to drop a bombshell, netizens will just say, "Who the hell are you?"

With Weibo banning him and Shanying off the air, everyone was ready to throw a victory banquet.

On the other side, Lin Chen was amused. "They’ve taken the bait."

Shanying wanted to seize Weibo’s market, and the key was to craft an image—an image of Weibo as unjust. When users feel that a platform is unfair and biased, they develop an aversion to it. Sacrificing himself to incite public outrage was exactly the goal of Xu Qingfeng’s reckless provocation. "Freedom of speech" sounds like an abstract concept, but it touches a nerve. With just a little bit of momentum, netizens would turn into crusaders for justice and start speaking up for Xu Qingfeng.

"Why the hell did you ban him?"
"Do you really think you're the Emperor? Banning whoever you want?"
"Screw Weibo, I’m not using it anymore."
"It really is scummy; he was banned without doing anything."
"What's the matter? Did 'Wind God' prick your fragile nerves?"
"Hilarious. He makes a complaint, and you immediately ban him. Zhang Hongbo was caught red-handed, yet we didn't see you being this proactive."

Public sentiment surged, and Weibo was cursed roundly. But they were stubborn; no matter how much the netizens cursed, they made no response and refused to unban Xu Qingfeng, instead banning several of the most vocal users. This only added fuel to the fire. Weibo’s most criticized trait was its arbitrary banning of accounts, and now, at the height of the controversy, they hadn't held back at all, becoming even more rampant.

"F*** you! Deleting my account, doing it right now."
"Idiotic Weibo!"
"Trashy thing."

Many indignant users deleted their Weibo accounts, escaping the cesspool. More and more people followed suit—not necessarily because they supported Xu Qingfeng, but because the world had long suffered under Weibo's tyranny.

On the third day, Xu Qingfeng popped up in the Shanying fan group.
"Brothers, I'm going live at eight tonight."

The fan group exploded.
"Holy crap, I thought you were dead."
"Finally, I've been waiting for you."
"Three days without you, life lost all its flavor."
"Reckoning! F*** them all, time for a reckoning!"

As the news spread, fans cheered, but for the celebrities, it was a bolt from the blue.
"What the...?!!!"
"What the hell is going on? Wasn't he banned?"
"Rumor has it, it was only for three days."
"Damn it, Shanying has doomed me!"
"What do we do? What do we do?"
"Report him!"
"Will reporting even work?"
"Don't panic! Does he really dare to go head-to-head with Weibo?"
"That makes sense!"

...

At 7:30 PM, Shanying Headquarters.
The live-streaming department was fully mobilized, the PR department was on high alert, and security was fully staffed.

"Brother Chen, once this step is taken, there’s no turning back for Shanying." Xu Qingfeng looked into Lin Chen’s eyes, trying to read his inner thoughts. If Lin Chen was hesitant, this would need careful consideration.

Lin Chen patted Xu Qingfeng on the shoulder. "If it were before, I wouldn't let Shanying compete head-on with Weibo. Social media and content platforms are different models; our user base isn't the same as Weibo's. But ever since you appeared, the competition has already escalated."

"Weibo has entered the short video field. Everyone wants the top creator resources, and Weibo holds the majority. No matter how you look at it, a battle between us is inevitable sooner or later."

Lin Chen looked out the window. "You might not know this, but Weibo has already started blocking us. Shanying video links are now banned on Weibo."

Xu Qingfeng was shocked. "Moving that fast?"

"Yes, the storm has already arrived. It just depends on whether we can hold our ground."

Xu Qingfeng’s face darkened. Weibo was moving too fast; with Shanying’s current user base, it would be difficult to hold out. Watching Xu Qingfeng’s expression, Lin Chen suddenly smiled. "Don't worry too much. We aren't the only ones who want to see Weibo taken down. Companies like Weiguang are also making moves. Sometimes, the enemy of an enemy can be a friend."