Kong Ming’s Weibo hadn’t been up long before most of the comments leaned in his favor.
Just as Fan Qing predicted.
Kong Ming’s strategy of “retreat to advance” only further fueled his fans’ sympathy.
Some of the more analytical fans even read a lot into Kong Ming’s words, performing a full-on reading comprehension exercise.
“Ladies, ladies, I noticed so many hidden feelings in Kong Ming’s post. Let’s see if you agree with me.
First, the endorsement issue was already over. Most of us probably already heard about it. I had already received the news earlier and was ready to support him once the endorsement was official—but suddenly the brand switched to Jian Feiyang. That was the trigger.
Second, the issue is ‘resolved,’ but how exactly? There were some communication errors? What does that mean? Let’s think about it carefully. Anyway, everyone knew the endorsement was already confirmed for Kong Ming.
Finally, it mentions ‘on site, resolved peacefully with Jian Feiyang and Jian.’ On site? When would the three of them even meet? My bold guess: Kong Ming had already gone to shoot, and then… they resolved it peacefully? Maybe it was nuclear-peace level?
And Kong Ming still worries about our sleep. I really feel for him. He just complained a little, and he had to publicly clarify things. Imagine the pressure behind that! Sigh… Kong Ming has it so hard, without any backing, moving forward in the industry is really tough.”
The more this fan analyzed, the more unbearable their sympathy for Kong Ming became.
“So reasonable! This analysis perfectly captures all of Kong Ming’s grievances.”
“See? Still the work of capital! Capital forced Kong Ming to clarify and defend them. Classic capital manipulation.”
“Guys, I finally found the official result from the brand. The outcome: that person in charge was fired, but someone tracked him down for an interview.”
A short video was suddenly posted.
The man in the video wasn’t exactly unknown—the fired person himself. He looked exhausted, stubbled, and gave the camera only a weary smile:
“Well… it’s a misunderstanding, I guess. We had multiple meetings agreeing Kong Ming was more suitable, but a single word from higher up decided it went to someone else. No formal document, I didn’t take it seriously—who knew they would actually give the endorsement away just like that?”
Once this interview video went live, Kong Ming’s fans swarmed the brand’s official account, furiously attacking them:
“Is this how your company operates? Results from multiple meetings ignored, and one word from above changes everything? Don’t you care about the fit between the endorser and the product? Ridiculous. I can’t believe your company can survive like this.”
“So baffling. Seriously baffling. Is this a family-run business? Otherwise, I’ve only seen this in illogical novels.”
“Marking this. I’ll avoid this company’s products from now on.”
The brand’s PR team was panicking.
They quietly contacted Mr. Wu.
Mr. Wu, after hearing everything, instead chuckled.
“Don’t worry, let them rant. This isn’t that simple. Just sit back and watch the show.”
The PR team exchanged glances.
If the boss says so…
They all quietly got up—after being busy for so long, they hadn’t even poured a single cup of water.
Online sentiment had nearly entirely shifted toward Kong Ming.
Jian Feishuo, watching for a while, finally couldn’t help but call Fan Qing:
“Why does this feel off? Where did this person in charge even come from?”
“I asked Big Brother Jin to help look into it.”
Fan Qing took a sip of hot tea, his tone calm and even.
Jian Feishuo froze for a moment.
Then he dug at his ear.
“What did you just say?”
He felt like he hadn’t quite heard that clearly.
Fan Qing smiled faintly.
“President Jian, just sit back and watch the show. If we need you to step in later, I’ll contact you.”
It was nothing more than a few minor industry tricks.
With that, he hung up.
And, incidentally, added another tally mark next to Jin Si’s name.
To be fair, this wasn’t even something Fan Qing had asked for—Jin Si had found it himself and brought it to him.
Fan Qing took another sip of tea.
…Honestly, recognizing this Big Brother Jin had been well worth it.
Jin Si’s methods and efficiency were, frankly, enough to make one a little uneasy.
What Fan Qing called “minor tricks” really were minor tricks.
After the video was exposed, a different kind of voice gradually began to surface online.
“Ummm, doesn’t what this guy says sound kind of weird? If upper management had already made a decision, why wouldn’t he take it seriously? Speaking as a fellow wage slave, if my boss says east, I absolutely wouldn’t dare go west. Even if the decision is stupid, they’re still the boss—you’re just an employee collecting a paycheck. There’s no way you’d openly defy them. I really don’t get this.”
“Finally, someone who feels the same way I do. This whole thing actually sounds pretty simple to me. Everyone knows Jian Feiyang is the youngest son of the Jian family now. Jian Feishuo is huge in real estate—what’s wrong with him throwing a few resources at his own little brother? I’m more curious about this: if we’re talking about ‘capital’ all the time, then why does capital supposedly investing in him have anything to do with Kong Ming at all? If it were really capital, wouldn’t it have been directly reserved for the young master from the very start?”
“LOL, looks like everyone’s finally waking up. I’ll add one more point. From beginning to end, it was Kong Ming who kept making noise. On Jian Feiyang’s side, it was just President Jian stating the facts—and suddenly it turned into this overwhelming ‘capital conspiracy.’ Then what did Kong Ming do? First, he played the victim, got everyone feeling sorry for him, and then came out to ‘forgive’ everyone. Emmm… this whole thing really feels like one big performance.”
As these dissenting voices emerged, Jian Feiyang’s fans finally dared to speak up.
They were aggrieved.
They were scared.
Before this, they’d had no direction at all—they simply couldn’t argue against Kong Ming’s fans.
But Fan Qing didn’t give them much time to rally.
Because he was already so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open.
Just as exhausted was a female fan in another country.
She stared blankly at Weibo.
Why did it feel like things were heading in a direction she never could have imagined?
Her boyfriend got off work and came home. When he saw her still sitting in front of the computer, he paused.
“Still not resolved?”
The fan turned her head toward him, dazed.
“Seems like… it’s almost resolved?”
But also, maybe not yet?
“Let me take a look.”
Her boyfriend leaned over.
Huh?
“Isn’t this basically getting wrapped up already? Come look.”
Jian Feiyang’s fans really were caught off guard.
Because the situation suddenly took a dramatic turn.
A new post appeared on Fan Qing’s Weibo account.
**“Regarding certain false statements circulating online, we are issuing a comprehensive clarification here. First, after contacting the brand, we obtained several records of private transactions between the dismissed employee and Mr. Kong Ming. Coincidentally, the timing aligns closely with the endorsement negotiations. We hope Mr. Kong Ming can provide a reasonable explanation.
Second, here is footage from the day Jian Feiyang arrived at the shoot according to the agreed schedule. Those who need it may view it freely.
Finally, this matter has nothing to do with capital. The only thing involved is a President Jian who cares deeply about his younger brother’s career and works hard to secure opportunities for him.
PS: Thank you to President Jian for giving Jian Feiyang these development opportunities—and also for giving me the opportunity to be dragged out of bed at five in the morning to work overtime.
PPS: If this really were capital at work, I sincerely hope President Jian could go one step further—”**
The information density in this post was overwhelming.
Many onlookers hadn’t even clicked into the attached evidence yet; they were already laughing at Fan Qing’s joke at the end.
“WHAT happened?! Manager Fan—are you okay?! I’m coming to rescue y—”
“I’m dying. But seriously, Manager Fan’s words really woke me up. I watched the video—Jian Feiyang’s tired little face, that confused expression. You can tell he had no idea President Jian and President Wu had already finalized the endorsement. And you call this capital? This ‘capital’ is way too pitiful, I’m laughing my head off. All I see is a good older brother who knows nothing about the industry but is still desperately stacking resources for his little brother. He’s kind of… innocent? Can I even say that? I won’t g—”
“So this means Kong Ming actually slipped benefits to the person in charge behind the scenes? That’s why the guy insisted, even under pressure from above, that Kong Ming was more suitable? That’s some thick skin. And honestly, I love this boss—employees who make unilateral decisions like that really should be fired. If only my boss could be this sharp-eyed. I wish my boss wo—”
“LOL, did you all get arrested or something? Is the world suddenly left with only me al—”
The netizens were in peak meme mode.
Even under Kong Ming’s own Weibo post, the comments were full of sarcastic, yin-yang remarks.
Kong Ming, however, didn’t even have time to look at the comments.
After the exposure of his private dealings with the employee, his manager received a phone call and hurried back to the company.
That look his manager gave him before leaving…
Fan Qing glanced at Weibo, then sent a message to Jian Feishuo.
“President Jian, you can come out and speak now.”
Jian Feishuo glanced at Weibo and fell silent.
…Was there really still a need for this?
He could already see one of his own topics steadily climbing up the trending list.
#PresidentJianTheInnocentCapitalist
Sigh.
Jian Feishuo slowly tapped out the Weibo post he had previously discussed with Fan Qing.
Raising a younger brother really wasn’t easy after all.
Maybe another day, he really should find an opportunity to properly collaborate with Jin Si.
And, while he was at it, have a deep discussion about this issue together.