Super Soldier in the City-Chapter 2120 - 2183: Online Outburst
The young girl Su Xiaoxiao beside him woke up but didn’t open her eyes. She waited for Li Yifei to finish his call before she opened her eyes. She was a smart and understanding girl, already thirteen years old, but she had dropped out of school because her mother passed away.
Li Yifei promised her that once they got home and she adjusted for a few days, he would let her go to school. He had asked her several questions before, and she answered them very well.
"I was on the phone with your Aunt Su. When we get home, don’t be too surprised," Li Yifei said.
"Is it because I have many aunties?" Su Xiaoxiao blinked and asked.
"Yes, you’re right. You’ll learn slowly. In short, my home is a bit big; you might not be used to it. But I hope you won’t forget your roots, remember where you come from, and strive for your dreams," Li Yifei said, looking into Su Xiaoxiao’s eyes.
Su Xiaoxiao thought seriously for a moment, nodded forcefully, and said, "Uncle Li, I understand. I’m already very grateful that you brought me out of that place. I won’t forget who I am, nor will I fly too high without knowing how to land."
"Haha, it’s not that serious!" Li Yifei laughed as he rubbed Su Xiaoxiao’s head. He said, "The aunties are all very nice, and my own children, the eldest is only a few years younger than you. There are many kids around your age at home; you can make friends with them."
"Okay, thank you, Uncle." Su Xiaoxiao said, "Uncle, I know you have things to do, so you can go ahead without worrying about me."
"Mm, then sleep a little more. It’ll be a while before we get home," Li Yifei said.
Taking out his phone, Li Yifei also found that Twitter post. The original post had been deleted, just recently, but many trolls and angry crowds were still reposting it, so deleting the original post was useless. Moreover, this post had successfully stirred up the anger of countless uninformed people; their power was truly terrifying.
Su Mengxin and others were already dealing with these matters quickly; otherwise, the original post wouldn’t have been deleted.
In fact, by this stage of development, the opponent’s goals had been more than halfway achieved. If the Li family didn’t respond, Li Yifei’s reputation would be ruined, as some have already dug out some of the Li family’s industries and brands, and many netizens are even beginning to boycott all of the Li family’s products.
Likewise, if someone hadn’t bribed Twitter’s management, such posts, with their strong sensationalism, would lead to an uncontrollable direction under the influence of those with intentions. At least it seems so, with everyone pointing fingers, leading to nothing. Many people learned about Li Yifei through this post and then developed great resentment towards him, wishing he would die immediately.
Such a wealthy and unfair person, harming the region, still hasn’t been dealt with. Some old public intellectuals even want to go to the Capital City to plead for justice, among other comments.
Initially, Li Yifei had frowned, but after reading some comments and messages, he wasn’t that angry anymore. Why? Because most people didn’t know the truth.
In this era when public opinion is enough to crush a person, with millions, even tens of millions of people talking about it, and even more knowing about this matter, Li Yifei naturally feels pressure. But he’s also not afraid of conflict; getting worked up at the first sign of trouble won’t do. One should solve the issues rather than fret with a sour face. Moreover, the greater the danger, the greater the opportunity. Li Yifei believes he can handle this crisis well.
This belief also passes onto his family, so when Li Yifei gets home, Su Mengxin and others’ mood improves, while Ning Xin’er and others are taking people and resources, preparing for crisis management. Since the opponents can find internet celebrities who take money to act, the Li family can certainly find them too.
Seeing Su Xiaoxiao brought home by Li Yifei, the women of the Li family still welcomed her warmly, knowing about her situation and feeling sympathetic and caring towards her. The women walk over, and Su Xiaoxiao calls out "Aunt" one by one, finally understanding how many aunties Uncle Li was talking about. She is deeply shocked by the Li family’s house or rather, its infrastructure.
This exceeds what is considered the realm of the wealthy, surpassing even her imagination. No time for much reflection, Li Yifei hands her over to Na Yi, asking her to take Su Xiaoxiao around the house and explain some things to her. Li Yifei has things to do, and the young girl understands, waving to Li Yifei.
Li Yifei goes to Su Mengxin, where several women are continuously making phone calls, answering calls, and working on computers. Initially, everyone could relax at New Year’s Eve, but this situation arose, leaving everyone with a sense of grievance. If they knew who was behind it, they would go to battle.
Li Yifei takes some ice cream, hands it out to the women, and comforts them, "Don’t worry, it’s already like this. How much worse can it get?"
"Honey, you handle contacting some leaders and see what they think." Xu Yingying is at the computer, typing away, speaking at the same time.
"Alright." Li Yifei eats the ice cream quickly and takes out his phone, going to another room. He calls Song Zhentao first. Among the officials in Mile City, Li Yifei’s relationship with Song Zhentao is close, though he has connections with others too, albeit not very frequent.
The phone connects, and Song Zhentao’s breathing is already rapid, indicating that he knows about the situation. However, Song Zhentao is not too worried. The matter targets the Li family; as long as the Li family does not fall and stays unaffected, neither does he. He waited for Li Yifei to call first.
"Brother Song, sorry, I’m troubling you." Li Yifei starts.
Song Zhentao chuckles, "This is no trouble at all, it’s nothing. I’ve already called the publicity office, and all provincial news media are ordered not to repost or comment. This has provincial leadership approval. You are a star entrepreneur and tax contributor in our province, stand firm, fear no shadows. Just let them send people from the Central Government if needed, we won’t fear!"
These words reveal much info to Li Yifei, like Song Zhentao aligning with the Li family. In fact, it’s crucial for him now. After the New Year, he might advance a step within the vice-provincial sequence. The matter bubbling up almost seemed to target him. When he realized the Li family was the true target, he was initially alarmed. Yet it affects him, so he must act, even without Li Yifei’s prompt.
Reporting the matter to provincial authorities angered the leadership, issuing orders downwards. At least in Ning Province, no newspapers or media dare address this matter. Frankly, without these orders, some might risk violating them, curious if the Li family might retaliate.
Also reminding Li Yifei that mishandling could indeed bring the Capital City personnel down to investigate. Since it’s known nationwide now, not giving an explanation to the public wouldn’t be excusable.
The two messages conveyed reassure Li Yifei, making him laugh, "Brother Song, I’ll handle it. I called wanting to fix a visit date after the New Year when free, I’ll visit you."
"That sounds great. Indeed busy before the New Year, how about after? Bring the sister-in-law...uh, sister-in-laws too, come over, we two brothers have a drink." Song Zhentao said with a laugh.
"Alright, it’s settled then, I’ll call after it’s over." Li Yifei said.
Afterwards, he calls Qin Yuanjiang and Song Ranmin, the main involved leaders. Qin Yuanjiang’s tone mirrors Song Zhentao’s, while Song Ranmin is slightly more frazzled. After Li Yifei reassures him, he feels relieved.
Different status leads to different perspectives. Li Yifei hangs up, reflecting on the different attitudes. The two seasoned leaders standing firm as chatter doesn’t faze them. Meanwhile, Song Ranmin isn’t the same, at a crucial spot, with Lin Qiong as deputy, exposed multiple times for helping Li Yifei prior.
But reassured by Li Yifei, he stops worrying, knowing Li Yifei’s handling the matter, why should he fret?
Emerging, Chu Xiaoyao approaches with a laptop, gathering everyone, pointing at the screen, "I’ve locked onto some original poster accounts, finding they use the same IP, traced it to Ning Province."
"Oh?" Li Yifei goes over, seeing the provincial capital marked. After looking with a few, Li Yifei says, "I’ll call someone to investigate."
"Okay, but I have several IPs from out-of-province, even south, making it hard to track." Chu Xiaoyao continues to scroll, revealing more addresses, "These use botnets, proxied multiple times, very cautious, reinforcing it’s the masterminds. I’ve run reverse tracking, expecting leads soon."
"My wife is amazing!" Li Yifei exclaims, kissing her, as Chu Xiaoyao proudly shakes her head, "They dared target us, I’ll make it ugly for them!"
"Good, haha!" Li Yifei shares the recent calls with the women as Su Yiyi points at the computer, "Honey, I’ve found some posts, people aren’t like the others, not attacking, some Internet Celebrities with millions following show objectivity and drive skepticism among fans."
Li Yifei and others looking see an Internet Celebrity reposting while commenting, "It’s so obvious it’s a clickbait post, yet many fell for it. I don’t know Li Yifei personally, but this is Huaxia, now, having such characters, is it not a joke? Of course, villains exist, but such blasphemous ones, absolutely not."
