Meanwhile, in a small conference room in the Red Star Zoo administration building. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

SLAP!

Guo Xiaoyun slammed his hand on the table and questioned the head of the Public Relations Department standing across from him.

"Didn’t you say the tourist who filmed the video on-site had already deleted it from his phone? Then what’s this that’s spreading like wildfire online?!"

"Well..."

The head of Public Relations was sweating bullets, rushing to explain, "Director, I personally watched him open his photo album, completely delete that video, and even empty his ’Recently Deleted’ folder."

"Xiaoli and Xiaowang from the security team were standing right there watching, too. For... for this video to pop up now, I think that tourist must have pulled a fast one. He probably secretly uploaded it to the cloud or somewhere else beforehand. People are so devious these days!"

"Now is not the time to figure out how the tourist hid the video."

Tong Xiaoyue’s calm voice cut in. She looked at the trending topic on the computer screen, its popularity still climbing, and at the mix of awe, doubt, and admiration in the comments below. "Since the video is already out there, the die is cast," she said. "Our focus now should be on how to respond to this sudden PR crisis correctly and effectively."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over everyone present, and continued in a steady tone, "Most importantly, we must respect Yang Qi’s own wishes. He made it clear this afternoon that he doesn’t want to step into the limelight or accept any media interviews. That is his personal choice, and we must respect it. We cannot force him."

"If you look, the viral video was mostly shot from the side and from behind. There are very few clear shots of his face. Unless you know him very well, it’s hard to recognize him at a glance. To a certain extent, this protects his privacy."

"Therefore, in our upcoming public relations efforts, we must be very careful. We can emphasize that our zoo’s staff are well-trained, remained calm under pressure, and successfully handled the crisis. But we must not deliberately ’deify’ or excessively focus on one specific person. Above all, we cannot leak Yang Qi’s personal information without his permission."

After hearing Tong Xiaoyue’s words, Guo Xiaoyun’s grim expression finally softened a little.

He watched the video carefully and saw that it was just as Tong Xiaoyue had said. There were few frontal shots of Yang Qi, the scene was chaotic, the filmer was far away, and the video quality wasn’t particularly good.

"Fortunately, the video shows the entire incident. It hasn’t been edited to cut out the beginning or the end."

The head of the Animal Management Department chimed in, his voice tinged with relief. "The footage shows the brown bear losing control first. Our... er, Comrade Yang Qi bravely stepped forward to handle it and successfully led the bear away. There were no casualties."

"The entire event reflects positively on us. At the very least, it proves that our zoo’s crisis response was ultimately successful and that we avoided the worst-case scenario."

"That may be true, but if Yang Qi himself were willing to cooperate—to give an on-the-record interview with one or two authoritative media outlets, explain the situation in detail, and clear up any potential misunderstandings—it would certainly be more helpful for calming public opinion and repairing our zoo’s image."

The head of the Operations Department couldn’t help but chime in, "Why don’t we go talk to Yang Qi? We’re all part of the zoo system. I’m sure he’ll understand."

Upon hearing this,

Tong Xiaoyue’s brow furrowed. Her gaze sharpened as she looked at the Operations head, her calm tone laced with a hint of ice. "Minister Xu, did you not hear a single word I just said, or is there something wrong with your ears?"

The Operations head’s expression changed, and his tone grew stiff. "Vice Director Tong, what is that supposed to mean?"

"What is it supposed to mean?"

Tong Xiaoyue didn’t back down an inch, retorting without a change in expression, "I just stated clearly that Yang Qi does not want to be in the public eye and that we should respect his wishes. The next second, you’re suggesting we ’go talk to him’ about cooperating with an interview. If it’s not a problem with your ears that’s keeping you from hearing clearly, then what is it?"

"You..." The Operations head was so choked with anger his face turned beet red.

"Alright, that’s enough from both of you!"

Guo Xiaoyun waved a hand to interrupt, his brow tightly furrowed. "The key issue right now is how to handle this mess online. Since Yang Qi has clearly stated he doesn’t want the exposure, then we..."

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

A series of urgent knocks suddenly rang out.

"Come in," said the office manager sitting by the door.

The door was pushed open, and a young staff member hurried in. His face was flushed with excitement, and he paid no mind to the fact that everyone present was a high-level leader as he reported in a high-pitched voice.

"Director, Ministers, good news! Huge news! Lin Qingyu’s career just imploded!!"

"What?"

Inside the office, several of the executives spoke at once—some in shock, others with looks of utter confusion.

"Who is Lin Qingyu?"

The head of Logistics, who was older and didn’t pay much attention to the entertainment world, asked instinctively.

The Public Relations head was the quickest to react, immediately explaining, "Lin Qingyu is a female celebrity who’s gotten really popular in the entertainment industry over the past couple of years. She’s been in a few hit TV series, has a massive online following, and tons of fans."

He then turned to the staff member and pressed eagerly, "Xiaozhao, be more specific. What happened to Lin Qingyu? How did her career implode?"

"It just broke! It’s explosive!"

The staff member recounted the story with animated delight. "Lin Qingyu was publicly called out by someone using their real name, and they had solid proof! It says she’s been the mistress of a married film production company boss for years."

"That’s not even the worst of it! She’s also suspected of massive tax evasion. And there are revelations that Lin Qingyu took part in group drug use and held these ’concubine selection’ parties. There are photos, videos, and chat logs for everything!"

"Right now, the top trending spots on several platforms are all completely dominated by ’Lin Qingyu’ and her scandals! The internet is going absolutely wild!!"