mousepad-d2 Chapter 48 Profound Enlightenment
Chapter 48 Profound Enlightenment
Just as the internet was following the insider leaks and people were beginning to sympathize with the "frustrated and innocent" state of XunTeng's senior management, Yang Yi directly posted a message with her real name and without any concealment, confronting them head-on with every word sharp and incisive.
The entire long article was concise and to the point, presenting only the facts and asking four fundamental questions, directly shattering the victim persona that XunTeng was trying to cultivate.
[A Letter to XunTeng]
XunTeng's actions are laughable.
I only asked XunTeng four questions, no tricks, just direct answers.
First, when Carter was at the height of her popularity, did you use her persona and topics to create hype across the internet, deliberately criticize the Swarm, and try to take advantage of Overwatch?
Second, before the Carter incident was exposed, did you reap huge benefits from the popularity and real commercial gains by leveraging this wave of traffic and topic marketing?
Third, are the ambiguous entanglements, private dealings, and media rumors between Ji Feng and Carter facts that are common knowledge across the internet? Did they actually happen?
Fourth, in your official announcement, did you deliberately downplay the seriousness of the matter and try to shift all the blame to the overwatch character designs being too sexy, attempting to attribute your own decision-making errors to the game's manipulation?
Since you've all enjoyed the benefits of being in the spotlight, the traffic, and the publicity advantages without a second thought.
Now that the scandal has backfired and its reputation has collapsed, why should it turn around and put on a pitiful posture of being wronged and innocently victimized?
From beginning to end, this was just a perfectly normal business game and a gamble on traffic.
There's no logic in this world: winning means reaping all the benefits, while losing means crying foul and playing the victim.
As the old saying goes: If you do something, you have to admit it; if you get punished, you have to stand up straight.
Don't gamble big and then feast, or pretend to be a minor and ask for a full refund when you lose. There's no such thing as a free lunch.
The so-called frustration, helplessness, innocence, and being schemed against that you high-ups talk about are all the result of your own actions from beginning to end.
It was your own greed, recklessness, poor judgment of people, flawed decision-making, and reckless extortion that led you to do this.
All of these consequences have nothing to do with the bee colony, ordinary players, or bystanders.
Finally, let me tell you the truth:
You see everyone as plotting something, as if everyone wants to trick you. Ultimately, there are only two reasons for this.
Either you, the entire senior management, suffer from paranoia, seeing everyone as having ulterior motives.
Alternatively, scheming, manipulating behind the scenes, and smearing others are your daily routine.
You've long been accustomed to dirty tricks, and you've never done anything honest or upright in your lives, so you see the whole world as nothing but tricks.
The post went viral instantly.
Clean and concise, reasoned and well-founded, without any sarcasm or irony, yet every word was piercing and completely shattered XunTeng's newly established "victim" persona.
The netizens who were initially wavering and somewhat sympathetic towards Tencent instantly sobered up, and the comments section was completely reversed once again.
Netizens left comments taking sides, and public opinion completely stabilized.
"As expected of President Yang, a few words from him completely shut down any possible avenues for XunTeng to defend itself."
Every word hits the nail on the head; this is the clear-headed stance one should have when looking at things.
Many netizens have also come to their senses and are no longer swayed by the victimized image portrayed by the other party.
"I almost empathized with their explanation. Putting everything else aside, they should have done a proper qualification check before signing the contract; this was an oversight on XunTeng's part. Moreover, the Carter-related controversies genuinely made those who took photos with them at the booth feel quite uncomfortable."
Even if the whole thing was purely accidental and coincidental, they have no right to complain; reviewing and verifying information is simply their responsibility.
Sharp metaphors also began to appear one after another, accurately exposing the opponent's sophistry and logic.
"To put it bluntly, it's like someone intentionally wielding a knife to injure another person, who simply tries to dodge, only to be struck in a vital spot. Afterwards, they feel that their intention wasn't like that at all, and they feel completely innocent?"
A more accurate way to put it is that when you try to scheme against others, you end up hurting yourself instead.
Instead of looking for the problem within himself, he blamed the victim for not holding the knife with both hands when stabbing him, thus causing his own injury.
She believes she is innocent because she was injured, and even wants everyone to blame the victim.
"Thanks for clarifying the logic. Looking at it this way, XunTeng's actions are purely unethical."
"Yang Yi is right. The root of the problem lies with XunTeng itself, without a doubt."
"Mistakes should be punished; XunTeng is trying to absolve itself of responsibility!"
Humorous and witty comments flooded the comment section, and the popularity of these memes remained high.
"I suggest we include this matter in the XunTeng Bible!"
I second that!
XunTeng, the god of double standards!
……
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Li Xiaoguang stared intently at Yang Yi's phenomenal rebuttal on the screen, gritting his teeth, every word dripping with extreme hatred, and he hissed in a low voice:
"Yang Yi, you scoundrel, you deserve to die! I wish I could eat your flesh and drink your blood!"
He had managed to salvage a sliver of public opinion by relying on insider leaks, and finally managed to get some netizens to empathize with XunTeng's frustration and helplessness, leaving himself and the company with a last bit of room to maneuver.
But Yang Yi, with just a few words, with meticulous logic and every sentence hitting the nail on the head, directly and completely sealed the conclusion of the whole matter, blocking all avenues for Xun Teng to whitewash, feign weakness, or shift blame.
All the carefully laid plans, all the public relations maneuvers, all the feigned grievances, vanished in an instant.
The shock of watching all his efforts be destroyed and feeling utterly powerless to reverse the situation made Li Xiaoguang feel even more frustrated than before. It was as if a huge rock was stuck in his chest, making it hard for him to breathe.
Unable to vent his anger, he abruptly turned his head, glaring at the trembling head of the public opinion department standing to the side, and shouted angrily, his voice violent and hoarse:
"And you all!"
"Is the Public Opinion Department full of useless idiots?! Are they all moles?!"
"Was the person who wrote that self-reproach proclamation out of their mind? Is that something a human could write?!"
"Are there even any humans left in our company?!"
"Who designed this copy? Bring him here!!!"
At this point, it's not something that can be solved by finding someone to take the blame; the fire will inevitably burn him. Therefore, the head of the public opinion department decided to tell the truth this time.
He really can't take the blame for this.
Faced with Li Xiaoguang's furious questioning, the person in charge of public opinion remained calm and prepared, pulling out a densely filled notebook of meeting minutes from his briefcase.
"This announcement was designed entirely according to your instructions."
He opened his notebook, pointed to the clear handwriting, and read it aloud line by line, his voice not loud, but every word struck Li Xiaoguang's heart:
"You requested that Ji Feng be reinstated and that a mental health certificate be obtained;"
"You explicitly demanded that Ji Feng be sacrificed, that a mental health diagnosis be issued for him, and that all responsibility be placed on him personally;"
"You requested that a unified narrative be maintained externally, characterizing Ji Feng's dereliction of duty as stemming from excessive addiction to Black Lily and his mental state being influenced by the game, leading to impaired professional judgment."
"You specifically instructed me to use the most subtle language to direct the conflict to the swarm and blame the female character design in Overwatch."
After reading the last item, he closed his notebook, his gaze calm: "Our public opinion department has executed all your instructions precisely, and the wording perfectly matches your requirements without any deviation."
These words left Li Xiaoguang speechless. He snatched the notebook and hurriedly found the final official announcement, comparing it word by word—not a single word was different!
The mole was myself?!
"Shut up! I never said I wanted to involve pig farms. That sentence was something you added on your own, completely unnecessary..."
The person in charge of public opinion had anticipated Li Xiaoguang's remarks, and remained calm and composed in his tone.
"Mr. Li, we have reviewed the entire trajectory of the public opinion's development."
"Only this part of the entire announcement did not trigger any new criticism or generate any negative public opinion."
"Therefore, the responsibility for this complete public relations collapse and being completely nailed by Yang Yi does not lie entirely with the public opinion department, and we are not any moles."
The person in charge of public opinion spoke with a composed expression and a calm tone, yet with an unyielding and assertive confidence.
"I will compile the entire story of this incident, including the source of the instructions, the details of its execution, and the complete process of the collapse of public opinion, and report it truthfully to the board of directors."
"Although we are in a superior-subordinate relationship, the public opinion department serves the entire XunTeng company. I have the authority to report directly to the board of directors and to truthfully review the responsibility for the incident."
His words were frank and straightforward, without a single threat, yet every word precisely pierced through Li Xiaoguang's last vestige of authority.
After speaking, he bowed slightly, not giving Li Xiaoguang, whose face was pale, another glance, and turned to walk out of the office with his head held high.
The office door closed gently, shutting out all outside noise, and the huge space instantly fell into a deathly silence.
Li Xiaoguang slumped heavily into the boss's chair, all his strength completely drained. His vision blurred, his scalp tingled, and his heart felt ice-cold.
The last two sentences of Yang Yi's scathing retort kept echoing uncontrollably in my mind.
Could it be... could it really be my own problem?
Could it be that, having spent so many days and years battling in the industry, I've become accustomed to scheming, planning, and anticipating my opponents' underhanded tactics?
Over time, scheming and plotting have truly become ingrained in their very being.
Li Xiaoguang felt a dryness in his throat and a suffocating tightness in his chest. For the first time, he was completely shaken by his long-standing principles of conduct.
In the deathly silent office, just as Li Xiaoguang was lost in self-doubt and in a daze, his cell phone suddenly rang, instantly breaking the silence of the room.
He snapped back to reality, hurriedly glancing at the caller ID. Seeing the name on the caller ID, his heart sank. He quickly composed himself, answered the phone with a mixture of trepidation and respect: "Mr. Ma!"
On the other end of the phone came Mr. Ma's calm and composed voice, devoid of any anger, almost indifferent.
The public opinion crisis that swept across the entire internet and caused XunTeng to lose face was just a trivial matter.
"Li Xiaoguang, you handled this matter very poorly."
A simple sentence, without any reprimand or scolding, yet it carried the imposing authority of a high-ranking official, instantly making Li Xiaoguang's back tense.
He stammered, filled with guilt and panic, unable to form a coherent explanation: "Mr. Ma, I...I'm sorry, it's all my fault, I...I take full responsibility."
Mr. Ma on the other end of the phone interrupted his flustered apologies, his tone calm and insightful, pinpointing the core issue incisively:
"You did make a mistake, but the mistake wasn't in the process of handling the incident. The mistake was that you let your personal emotions dominate your reason and let your mindset limit your perspective."
"I can tell you definitively that Yang Yi knew Carter's true gender from beginning to end."
"The reason he ignored our provocations and didn't respond at all wasn't because he was helpless or stunned by our attack; it was because he deliberately held back and avoided the situation."
He knew better than anyone how dangerous this time bomb was, yet he remained inactive from beginning to end.
He understood perfectly well that if he deliberately detonated the bomb, the swarm would inevitably be affected and damaged. Therefore, he would never intentionally trigger the bomb, choosing instead to defend and wait for us to play with fire and get burned.
Ma's voice calmly dissects the underlying logic of this business game, so insightful it sends chills down your spine.
"So from beginning to end, our initial business decisions and our strategy of creating a stir through controversy were not problematic at all."
There are only two places where things really went wrong.
"First, Ji Feng misjudged people and was blinded by lust, which led to his own downfall and created a huge mess."
"Secondly, your subsequent announcements were immature, frustrating, and narrow-minded. You turned a normal business failure into a shameless farce that was ridiculed by the entire internet, giving people ammunition to criticize you."
At this point, Brother Ma on the other end of the phone paused slightly.
He knew that Li Xiaoguang was mentally broken and in a state of chaos at the moment. Rather than glossing over the matter, he would rather explain all the intricacies of the game thoroughly so that Li Xiaoguang could finally come to his senses.
"Think about it carefully."
"From beginning to end, if your subsequent public relations efforts hadn't been superfluous, and instead hadn't forced the blame onto the Swarm and tried to shift the blame onto Overwatch, Yang Yi wouldn't have even needed to get involved."
"They certainly wouldn't post a special thread, using those four ironclad pieces of evidence to drive four nails firmly into the coffin of Xunteng."
His voice was calm and objective, stripped of all emotion, revealing only the most authentic business situation.
"Yang Yi kept Carter's bomb firmly under control from beginning to end. He didn't want the swarm to be tainted by even the slightest bit of negativity."
"Don't forget, his new work is about to be released, which is the most crucial sprint period for the bee's reputation, popularity and sales."
"The turmoil and chaotic public opinion battles on the internet benefit no one."
No one in the entire industry wants this matter to be quietly resolved and end peacefully more than Yang Yi.
It was precisely because he saw through this that he remained silent and patient throughout, allowing XunTeng to take advantage of Carter's popularity to launch a frenzied attack and denigration campaign, but he remained unmoved.
It's not fear, it's not admitting defeat, it's just that it's not worth it.
They didn't want their upcoming game to be tainted and have its reputation damaged by this vulgar farce.
Brother Ma spoke eloquently, each sentence revealing the essence of the matter.
His tone softened slightly, carrying a hint of appreciation for talent.
These words were blunt and ruthless, completely shattering Li Xiaoguang's long-held paranoia and conspiracy theories.
But he knew in his heart that Li Xiaoguang was by no means mediocre and his abilities had always been top-notch. It was just that this time, his mentality was unbalanced and his emotions were out of control, which led to small mistakes turning into a huge disaster.
That's why he was willing to patiently enlighten Li Xiaoguang, sincerely hoping that Li Xiaoguang could learn from his mistakes.
Completely change the bad habit of being overly sensitive and letting emotions dictate decision-making, and truly calm down to understand the overall landscape of top-level business competition.
"This incident needs to be resolved. You'll be demoted by half a level and have two years' worth of year-end bonuses deducted."
"Ji Feng, just send him in!"
"In addition, I have instructed the public relations department to promote Overwatch extensively."
"Yang Yi is a smart man; he'll understand what I mean."
After giving his advice, Brother Ma didn't waste any more words and hung up the phone.
The busy tone came through the receiver, and the huge office fell completely silent. But on the other end, Brother Ma felt helpless and disappointed.
He couldn't help but feel a deep sense of regret: he truly wished that every one of his generals had the mind and vision of Yang Yi.
Only three years after being given power, two major incidents have already occurred.
Ironically, both major setbacks were caused by the same person—Yang Yi.
Upon closer examination, the swarm didn't actually have a significant impact on XunTeng's gaming business; the games that were profitable were still making money.
Aside from normal competition in a small number of game categories, the two companies have almost no overlap in other business areas, and there is no life-or-death confrontation between them.
Why provoke him? Are you trying to tell the Chinese people that XunTeng is petty and can't tolerate domestic game companies?
With this thought in mind, Little Ma made up his mind that the pointless internal strife must be completely ended.
Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately dialed the phone number of the group's head and issued a new strategic constraint order to completely correct the game division's previous aggressive and extreme external strategy.
Starting today, XunTeng will no longer target bee swarms without any bottom line, and will no longer actively provoke unnecessary public opinion disputes or industry conflicts.
Normal business competition can be retained, but all malicious attempts to provoke, deliberately undermine, or engage in internal strife and paranoia must be stopped.