Dai Shiya said to the person on the other end of the phone in a calm, almost icy tone: "Help me find the source of these rumors." The neon lights outside the window flickered, reflecting on her face, but could not illuminate the frost condensed in her eyes.
Wei Qing hurried to Dai Shiya's apartment and saw her friend's pale face and dark eyes. She held her hand distressedly and said, "Shiya, don't worry, we will solve it."
Dai Shiya smiled bitterly and said, "I'm fine, I just didn't expect them to use such despicable means." She swiped the screen of her mobile phone, which was full of slander and abuse, like a huge net that tightly wrapped around her and made her feel suffocated.
"I have contacted several PR companies," Wei Qing tried to comfort her, "to see if they can help us turn the situation around."
However, the situation was more serious than they had imagined. After hearing the name "Dai Shiya", one public relations company after another politely refused to cooperate. Some even hung up the phone directly, as if she was a plague and they could not avoid her.
"What's going on?" Dai Shiya noticed something was wrong. "Why are these PR companies unwilling to take over?"
Wei Qing's face also became solemn. After much inquiry, she finally learned the truth from a familiar industry insider: Mr. Wu, Dai Shiya's business rival, not only spread rumors in secret in order to swallow up the Dai Group, but also put pressure on major public relations companies, threatening them not to cooperate with Dai Shiya.
"This Mr. Wu is so despicable and shameless!" Wei Qing was so angry that she was shaking all over and slammed the table with her clenched fists.
Dai Shiya was surprisingly calm. She took a deep breath, her eyes burning with anger: "He thinks he can defeat me like this? Too naive!" She stood up and walked to the computer, her slender fingers tapping quickly on the keyboard.
Wei Qing looked at Dai Shiya's back, feeling mixed emotions. She knew that Dai Shiya's calm appearance was just to cover up the turbulent waves in her heart. This seemingly weak woman actually had a will as strong as steel.
Dai Shiya spent a whole night writing a detailed article, refuting the online rumors one by one, and published relevant evidence, striving to make the truth public. She believed that as long as the truth was revealed, the rumors would naturally fall apart.
The next morning, Dai Shiya sent the article to several influential media outlets, hoping to get their help. However, there was no response. She personally contacted several editors-in-chief of the media, but was turned down by all of them. Among them, Editor-in-Chief Zhang was particularly determined. He refused to publish Dai Shiya's article on the grounds of "insufficient evidence" and "unable to verify", and even hinted that she should stop struggling in vain.
Dai Shiya put down the phone, her face livid. She realized that she was not only facing malicious attacks from online trolls and business rivals, but also a more powerful force behind the scenes controlling everything.
"It seems that we have underestimated the strength of our opponent..." Wei Qing looked at Dai Shiya and said worriedly.
Dai Shiya didn't say anything, but walked to the window and looked at the gray sky outside. A trace of determination flashed in her eyes. She dialed a number, "Hello, help me contact..."
"Shiya, are we really going to do this?" Wei Qing looked at Dai Shiya, frowning, with a hint of hesitation in her tone, "Isn't this too risky?"
"There is no way out now." Dai Shiya's eyes were firm, and her tone was full of determination. "Instead of sitting and waiting for death, it is better to take the initiative. We must make the truth public to completely crush their conspiracy."
The person Dai Shiya called was the head of a new media company. Although the company was small, it was well-known for its in-depth reporting and courage to reveal the truth. Dai Shiya believed that they would be interested in her story.
As Dai Shiya expected, the new media company was moved by her experience and the evidence she provided and decided to take the case. They sent their best reporters and editors to conduct an in-depth investigation of the incident and promised to present the most truthful report to the public.
However, the development of the matter was far more complicated than they had imagined. When Mr. Wu learned that Dai Shiya was seeking help from the media, he flew into a rage and immediately instructed Sun Shuijun to intensify the smear campaign.
"Make up a story for me! Make up the most brutal one!" Mr. Wu roared at the other end of the phone, his tone filled with viciousness, "I will make Dai Shiya lose her reputation and never be able to turn things around!"
Soon, rumors about Dai Shiya on the Internet intensified. In addition to the previous fabricated rumors, Sun Shuijun began to fabricate more outrageous rumors to attack Dai Shiya's family business, claiming that the Dai Group had serious financial problems and was on the verge of bankruptcy. In order to save the family business, Dai Shiya was willing to sell herself out...
These rumors were well-founded, accompanied by some seemingly plausible "evidence" and the deliberate guidance of the Internet troll army. They quickly fermented on the Internet, and many netizens who did not know the truth were misled and joined the ranks of denouncing Dai Shiya.
Dai Shiya looked at the comments online and found them ridiculous. She never thought that she would become a victim of cyberbullying one day, and that the comments attacking her were so absurd and vicious.
"Don't worry, Shiya, these are all fake, and the innocent will be innocent." Wei Qing comforted her, but she couldn't hide a hint of worry in her tone.
Dai Shiya took a deep breath and tried to keep herself calm. She knew that now was not the time to be discouraged, and she had to stay rational in order to find a way to deal with it.
However, when she turned on her phone to check the latest news, she found that her social media account had also been attacked by a large number of trolls. All kinds of disgusting insults and curses filled the comment area. Even some relatives and friends began to doubt her and sent her messages to ask about the truth of the matter...
Dai Shiya's hand holding the phone trembled slightly, and a deep sense of powerlessness surged into her heart. She suddenly realized that this war of public opinion was more difficult than she had imagined...
Dai Shiya's phone screen seemed to have turned into an abyss full of malice. Every comment was like a sharp knife, stabbing her heart. The once familiar name was now full of doubts and accusations, making her feel extremely cold and lonely.
"How could they do this? How could they believe these ridiculous lies?" Dai Shiya murmured to herself, her voice full of disbelief and deep grievance.
Wei Qing looked at her friend distressedly and gently held her hand, trying to give her some strength. "Shiya, don't read these comments. They are all manipulated by others and don't know the truth at all."
"But even my friends have begun to doubt me..." Dai Shiya's eyes were red and tears were welling up in her eyes.
"Don't lose heart, Shiya, we will find evidence to expose Mr. Wu's true face!" Wei Qing said firmly, "I have asked my friends to help collect information about the water army accounts. As long as we find their behind-the-scenes manipulators, we can prove that all this is Mr. Wu's conspiracy!"
However, the process of collecting evidence is much more difficult than they imagined. These water army accounts are like cunning ghosts, floating in the ocean of the Internet and difficult to catch.
"These accounts are registered with false information, and they use proxy IP addresses, making it difficult to track their real identities." Wei Qing frowned as she watched the codes constantly jumping on the computer screen.
Dai Shiya's heart sank little by little with every word Wei Qing said. Could it be that she really wanted to let Mr. Wu slander her like this without any ability to fight back?
At this moment, Wei Qing's cell phone suddenly rang. She answered the call and her face instantly became solemn.
"What did you say? The new media company refused to report this?" Wei Qing's voice rose eight degrees, her tone full of disbelief. "Why? Didn't they agree to it before?"
A helpless voice came from the other end of the phone: "Editor-in-Chief Zhang said that this incident has too much impact and they don't want to get involved in this mess. And..."
"And what?" Dai Shiya's heart rose to her throat, and an ominous premonition came to her mind.
Wei Qing took a deep breath and said in a heavy tone: "Besides, Mr. Wu has already said that anyone who dares to report this matter will be against him..."
Dai Shiya's face turned pale instantly, and the phone in her hand slipped weakly and fell to the ground... The dim light of the phone screen reflected Dai Shiya's pale face. She felt dizzy, as if she was hit by a huge wave and almost suffocated. Mr. Wu's power was far beyond her imagination. He not only controlled the voices on the Internet, but also could cover the eyes of the media with one hand.
"Am I really going to let him slander me like this?" Dai Shiya's voice trembled, revealing a deep sense of powerlessness.
Wei Qing quickly supported the shaky Dai Shiya and said firmly, "No, Shiya, we must have other ways!" She helped Dai Shiya sit down on the sofa and handed her a glass of warm water. "Calm down first, we will think about it."
Dai Shiya tightly grasped the water cup, the cold touch made her a little more sober. She knew that now was not the time to despair, she had to cheer up and find a way to deal with it. But what else could she do?
As if to mock her helplessness, Dai Shiya's phone screen lit up again, and a series of message alerts sounded like a death warrant. She opened the screen with trembling hands, and new smears came like a tide. This time, the spearhead was directed at her family and past, the words were more vicious, and the fabricated stories were more outrageous.
"This is too much! How can they do this?" Wei Qing clenched her fists in anger as she looked at the disgusting comments.
Dai Shiya seemed to have lost all her strength, leaning weakly on the sofa, letting her tears fall silently. She knew that these comments were just the beginning, and as long as Mr. Wu did not stop, such attacks would not stop.
"No, I can't just sit there and wait for death!" Dai Shiya stood up suddenly, a glimmer of hope rekindled in her eyes, "I want to fight back! I want everyone to know the truth!"
"But how do we fight back?" Wei Qing looked at the maliciousness on the screen and felt confused. "Now the media is controlled by Mr. Wu. We have no way to speak out."
Dai Shiya took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and thought quickly about countermeasures. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw, and she said to Wei Qing anxiously: "Qing'er, didn't you say before that you had asked your friends to help track down the information of the water army account? How is it, is there any result?"
Wei Qing understood what she meant and immediately turned on the computer. Her fingers quickly tapped the keyboard to retrieve the information she had collected before. However, when she saw the content on the screen clearly, her face gradually became solemn...