Ch 42: Those who wronged me are now begging me for mercy

The Grown Goslings

Rong Ziyin’s words, though light and breezy, struck everyone like a heavy hammer.

“Entertainment to death”—such a profound summary.

The massive influx of online traffic has made entertainment one of the main drivers of public opinion. Anyone with a smartphone can speak their mind, and “a lie repeated often enough becomes the truth” has become not only the most baffling but also the most commonplace reality, one that dulls the mind.

Petty arguments, malicious speculation, mindless idol worship—wave after wave of netizens are drawn into the fray, becoming the crops ripe for harvesting by capitalists who manipulate them to charge into battle, wasting endless hours on long-winded debates on Weibo. Only when they are laid to rest do they realize that the “kingdoms” they fought to build with such fervor were nothing more than fleeting victories in online spats—insignificant and forgettable. Pathetic, pitiable, and laughable.

And now, this crowd was attempting to extend their reach into the academic world. Such shortsightedness, such self-destruction—what difference is there?

Technological advancement is one of the foundations of a nation’s future. Culture and humanities represent a nation’s cultural heritage.

If these are also tainted by restlessness and noise, manipulated at will by capitalists through public opinion, then what is the point of human existence if it becomes so shallow?

As for the first wave of pawns to be manipulated—those within the academic world—they would be remembered as the true sinners of history.

“What do we do next?” The leader of the contestant group was the first to react, asking Rong Ziyin.

Soon after, everyone else chimed in, ready to take action.

“Calm down,” Rong Ziyin said, gesturing for everyone to move aside so that Xu Chuanzhi could focus on assembling his device. He then began giving everyone specific instructions.

Half an hour later, Xu Chuanzhi finally completed the signal connector, and the computer science genius finished testing the anti-blocking program.

Rong Ziyin registered a new account and opened a livestream.

It was a new account and a new room—there was no one else watching except for themselves.

“This won’t work. There’s no audience. It won’t make a difference,” someone pointed out.

Rong Ziyin shook his phone. “That’s why we need to call in reinforcements.”

“Who?” The group of scholars was confused. Combined, they might have less than a thousand followers across all their social media accounts, so they were at a loss on how to attract attention.

“Call your brothers, of course! Don’t your schools have forums?” Rong Ziyin responded as he logged into his Weibo account and posted his first message.

“Going live to expose the real script behind this trash show. Share this Weibo post and join the livestream for a chance to win a box of refreshing summer salted duck eggs—three winners will be chosen.”

The post included an image of two cartoon characters, one bald with “Scholar” written on its chest, choking another sleazy-looking green-haired character labeled “Production Team,” with the caption: “Nothing better to do today, so I’ll strangle you for fun.”

After posting on Weibo, Rong Ziyin also logged into the Agriculture University forum and made a real-name post with two links—one to his Weibo post and the other to the livestream.

“Will this work?” The students from other universities were skeptical of Rong Ziyin’s method.

But Rong Ziyin was confident. “Don’t worry. It’ll work. My salted duck eggs are delicious—worth every penny.”

The scholars were bewildered.

What does the taste of salted duck eggs have to do with this? How could anyone share a post just for salted duck eggs? And what’s with that weird cartoon image? Honestly, 90% of us here still have full heads of hair!

Rong Ziyin: Don’t worry, in five or six years, you’ll all be bald.

The scholars: Damn, I want to punch him so bad.

Annoyance level: 2900

But it was a time for unity, and they needed Rong Ziyin to help take down the production team, so they held back their frustration.

Back at Agriculture University, when students saw Rong Ziyin’s post, they exploded with excitement.

In fact, the forum had already been in an uproar the moment the livestream was cut. Countless students had been frantically calling and messaging their instructors, department heads, and school leaders, asking them to ensure Rong Ziyin and the others’ safety.

After all, that despicable production team didn’t seem like the type to play fair, and with Rong Ziyin going head-to-head with them, there was real concern that he might actually get hurt.

But since the filming location wasn’t in Yanjing, the university’s reach was limited. All they could do was try to make contact. The head of the Veterinary Department was even considering calling the police out of desperation.

So when Rong Ziyin posted on the forum, the students went wild.

“Holy crap, Rong Ziyin might have been threatened by the production team to do PR for them!”

“Could be! And didn’t Rong Ziyin say he doesn’t do livestreams?”

“Ahhh! Rong Ziyin, if you’ve been kidnapped, blink twice!”

At first, the students were worried about Rong Ziyin’s safety, but when they saw the familiar salted duck eggs and the cheeky cartoon image, they instantly understood that Rong Ziyin was still his usual self.

“Haha, share, share! I told you, no one outdogs Rong Ziyin!”

“This is killing me! Who gave him that cartoon image?”

“Say no more—just for those salted duck eggs, I’m sharing this!”

In no time, the once-empty livestream room was filled with over 3,000 people.

Rong Ziyin wasn’t in a rush to start. Instead, he told the viewers, “Brothers and sisters from Agriculture University, hold on a bit. We’re waiting for the others.”

“No problem!” came the unanimous reply.

The other scholars quickly caught on to Rong Ziyin’s strategy, and they began sharing the livestream on their own social media and forums.

They initially thought that their own schools might not be as enthusiastic as Agriculture University, but to their surprise, their classmates were just as concerned about their safety.

Even if they didn’t normally keep in touch or even know each other, the emblem on their chests created an unbreakable bond.

“Trash production team, send our scholars back now.”

“That’s right! A century-old university will not tolerate such humiliation!”

“Those bastards are deleting trending topics and suppressing news—are they afraid we won’t report them for illegal detention?”

“Let’s get them trending! There’s no place for this kind of trash in academia!”

10,000 viewers… 25,000… 30,000… 50,000!

Who would have thought that within just half an hour, over 50,000 people would flood into the livestream?

These 50,000 viewers came from different universities, but their purpose was strikingly similar. They were here to demand that the production team apologize for their outrageous actions and face the consequences.

The production team was in a state of panic, with the director shouting, “Where’s the PR response I asked for?”

“It’s already out. We stated that the sudden cut in communication was to record hidden camera footage, and we released the revised script, showing it was all part of the production plan.”

“Yes, Director, we’ve already reassured the audience in the livestream chat. Plus, we’ve cut off the internet in the dormitory, so they can’t make any emergency calls.”

“Then how are they connecting to the internet? How did they get those Weibo shares!?”

“I—I don’t know.”

Not just the director, but everyone on the team was completely baffled.

In fact, the only reason they had dared to cut off the livestream and issue an apology was that they had a backup plan. They were even somewhat relieved that it was Rong Ziyin causing the stir, not one of the other scholars.

They had done their research on Rong Ziyin when selecting him, knowing he was burdened with a debt of 200,000 yuan in high-interest loans. He also had a history of losing a guaranteed spot in a program due to character issues.

The director had already planned to place all the blame on Rong Ziyin, accusing him of extorting money from the production team and claiming that his demands had led to the broadcast incident. This way, even if the show lost some fans due to the script controversy, they could continue airing future episodes as planned.

As for whether the remaining scholars would drop out, the director was certain they wouldn’t. The penalty for breach of contract was exorbitant, and unless they were among the top scholars, most of them lived in relative poverty. They couldn’t afford to pay the penalties, even if they sold everything they owned.

Whether or not Rong Ziyin came forward to refute the accusations didn’t matter. Public opinion relies on speed and precision. Rong Ziyin’s past was real, and with the production team controlling external communication, as long as he couldn’t immediately clear his name, he would be trapped under the weight of those accusations.

However, the production team forgot that the same logic applied to them. And most importantly, Rong Ziyin was not only faster but also had the support of all the scholars. Even if the production team later tried to spin the story, claiming that Rong Ziyin had incited the situation, the credibility of the scholars—compared to the production team, known for pandering and manipulation—made their words far more believable.

“What do we do? Should we release the dirt on Rong Ziyin now?”

“Release what?” The director slumped into his chair, realizing it was too late.

Meanwhile, in the livestream, Rong Ziyin was leading the scholars in something that shocked the public to its core.

He was conducting a full review of the entire six episodes of the show.

Not only did he go through every battle, the source of every question, but he even analyzed the host’s words and the subtle changes in pacing when reading the questions.

The overlooked details were thoroughly exposed.

Two neighboring prestigious schools, whose students usually teased each other but actually had a good relationship, were deliberately pitted against each other by the production team over a one-point difference.

The youth class winning so easily wasn’t because they were excessively brilliant but because the production team intentionally crushed the other team, giving them three consecutive defeats and turning them into a stepping stone.

But who would have thought that those three consecutive defeats were orchestrated by the production team?

Not everyone can overcome immense pressure to rise above. Especially those three who had always been top students—they gradually lost their confidence, continually doubting themselves, and eventually became demoralized, losing the youthful spirit they once had.

“Isn’t that terrifying?” Rong Ziyin didn’t force the three affected scholars to come forward, but everyone watching the livestream remembered their last appearances on camera, where they avoided the spotlight.

“For the sake of ‘entertainment value,’ they casually destroyed someone’s future. An outstanding scholar’s research cycle is long. In Huaguo today, scholars still working on the front lines at over eighty years old are true national treasures.”

“But this show cut short the future of someone who might have become such a treasure—permanently, at the age of twenty-one!”

“This is the entertainment you’re witnessing. This is the ‘unscripted’ reality the production team claims.”

The livestream exploded.

Everyone watching was stunned by the truth that Rong Ziyin revealed. Even those who usually watched shows without thinking were left speechless.

The production team had effectively shot themselves in the foot. Initially, they used students’ loyalty to their schools to play up the drama of underdog victories and hype up college rankings for viewership.

But now that everything was exposed, the first to push back were the students themselves!

This generation of youth has energy, courage, and a willingness to fight, and their backlash was just the beginning. The even more significant repercussions were yet to come.

When they recruited scholars, the production team was attracted to the aura of excellence around them. But they underestimated the fact that, while the so-called lower levels of academia might appear financially humble, they are rich in connections.

These scholars had mentors behind them, who, even if they were mid-level in the academic world, were still renowned teachers with countless students across universities.

And when these mentors spoke out, the production team’s downfall began.

These mentors might not seek public help like Rong Ziyin did, but they had the means to take down the entire production team through more severe methods.

In the information age, technology is the primary productive force, and the country places a high value on its researchers.

The backlash for trying to destroy the seedlings of the academic world would far exceed what the production team had anticipated.

Just as Rong Ziyin was spreading the word through the livestream, higher-ups were already calling the local television station.

Even though it was an online show, the backlash would still impact the local station.

“They’re just ordinary students, a bit better at studying, that’s all. I checked; not one of them has published in an SCI journal,” the station director tried to explain, but the person on the other end snapped back.

“Do you think it’s just about individual publications? You should know SCI, but did you know that the leader, Rong Ziyin, has been the third author on all the SCI papers his mentor has published in the last two years?”

“These students might not be top-tier, but do you think their mentors are insignificant?”

“So, what now…?”

“Find a reason to resign. None of you can escape this.”

The station director gasped, suddenly realizing that he had been far too naive when he approved this show’s concept.

Entertainment is entertainment, but science is a separate, untouchable domain. He had crossed the line first, and now he had to face the consequences.

As for the production team, the police had already arrived at the recording site, taking full control of the situation. They rescued the fifteen scholars still being held by the directors and also headed to the dormitory to release Rong Ziyin and his group.

Since everyone had already planned to quit the competition, their luggage was packed and ready to go—they could leave as soon as they got into the car.

But Rong Ziyin, despite having packed his bags, headed toward the garden.

“Brother Rong, what else is there?” Xu Chuanzhi called after him.

Rong Ziyin pointed towards the garden. “The geese.”

“!?” Xu Chuanzhi suddenly remembered that Rong Ziyin had brought along a dozen goslings when he came.

Recalling the adorable goslings from when the production team filmed the pre-show segment at the school—their soft yellow feathers, round bodies, bright beady eyes, and tufts of down on their heads—Xu Chuanzhi was suddenly filled with anticipation, imagining how much more beautiful and charming the geese must have become.

Yao Lele was clearly thinking the same and was eager to finally get a chance to pet them, as she hadn’t had the opportunity to do so before.

The system was equally excited; Rong Ziyin had been so busy over the past week that the production team had been taking care of feeding the goslings. It, too, was looking forward to seeing how they had grown.

So, under the eager gazes of all, the goslings finally made their grand entrance.

But what they saw was far from what they had imagined.

There were no cute, chubby little fluffballs as they had envisioned. Instead, a group of “ugly” and fierce creatures with squinty, knife-like eyes and patchy, molting wings came rushing toward them, stretching their necks and noisily honking in rough, grating “gagaga” sounds.

🍉🫐🍇🍒🥝