Chapter 58: Phoenix Press! Settling Scores! |
Nighttime.
It wasn''t peak hour for internet traffic, but it was certainly the most lively and active period.
Generally speaking, people had an excitement threshold; any given incident would quickly lose its ability to trigger a dopamine rush.
But this news was like a shot of adrenaline.
Injected straight into the veins, it made it impossible for the body to resist the surge of intense emotion!
There was no helping it. The news sounded completely absurd. If not for the backing of several authoritative media outlets, and even a public announcement from the court, anyone reading it would have cursed it as unscrupulous journalism.
Some were already feeling the backlash!
The next day.
November 17th.
"Bad news! This is bad!"
"President, the public feedback on the apps commonly used by the citizens of Greenwood City is still fine."
"But on the provincial news network, a bunch of people from other provinces are cursing us out!"
Greenwood City Phoenix Press.
Inside the president''s office.
Editor-in-Chief Qian stared at the backend data, completely dumbfounded. He looked up at President Zhou of Phoenix Press, who had stayed up all night with him keeping an eye on the news metrics.
Hearing this.
President Zhou, who had been struggling to stay awake and dozing off, suddenly jolted up, his drowsiness vanishing instantly.
Generally speaking, as top executives of the newspaper, the editor-in-chief and the president wouldn''t easily pull all-nighters unless there was breaking news.
But as it happened, the case announced by the court yesterday was exactly that—breaking news!
In an era where newspapers were gradually being replaced by the internet, every major piece of news tugged at the president''s nerves. So, President Zhou had stubbornly stayed up the entire night, only to be told that the backend was filled with people cursing him out!?
"What''s going on!?"
Shock filled President Zhou''s haggard face as he hurried over to the computer.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Editor-in-Chief Qian was forty years old. He took a deep breath and pointed at the various comments on the computer. The screen was densely packed with text.
[Ugly Chick: Unscrupulous media! If you''re going to fabricate news, at least try to make it believable!]
[Goji Berry Tea: Are you joking? I admit there are capable legal aid lawyers, but let alone a legal aid lawyer, even a golden lawyer getting a suspended sentence for this case would be something they could brag about for a lifetime. And you''re telling me a legal aid lawyer got an acquittal?]
[Goji Berry Tea: I suggest the reporter properly understand Dongguo''s judicial environment and the overall quality of legal aid lawyers before making things up!]
[Don''t Shoot Captain: Seriously, Dongguo''s public opinion environment has been ruined by disgusting reporters like you!]
[......]
Looking at this barrage of mud-slinging comments.
President Zhou was stunned. He collapsed into his chair, leaned close to the screen, and scrolled the mouse wheel with his index finger. He went through several pages, but there were very few positive comments.
A long time passed.
Bewilderment washed over President Zhou''s face. He snapped his head up and looked at Editor-in-Chief Qian.
"What do they mean, fabricating news!?"
He sounded anxious. "We didn''t make up a single word! In fact, to keep the news from sounding too fake, we even omitted a lot of details!"
President Zhou had anticipated that publishing this news would generate a lot of discussion, but he truly hadn''t expected to get cursed out over a filtered and reviewed article.
He hadn''t even dared to mention online that the defense lawyer had won the case fighting one against nine. He had only written about the case itself, the lawyer''s trial process, and the defendant''s acquittal!
How could it still be called fake news after he cut out so much!?
"If this is considered fabricated, then Greenwood News..."
President Zhou felt a lump form in his throat, not knowing what to do.
Greenwood News was the official television station of Greenwood City. During their prime-time broadcast last night, the host''s words had been much more exaggerated than his.
If his watered-down version was considered fake, then the other party...
"Wouldn''t they be the biggest rumor-mongers in Greenwood City!?" President Zhou blurted out.
Editor-in-Chief Qian also felt a lump in his throat.
The news they published in the past was generally nine parts truth and one part fiction. A little exaggeration was normal, considered the charm of media professionals, and almost no one ever doubted it.
But this time, they hadn''t added any filler at all!
Considering the reality was too exaggerated, they had even toned it down slightly. What they wrote was one hundred percent true... Yet, this was the exact time they were getting called out for faking it!
Seriously, where was the justice in that?!
"President, the main issue is that the truth of the news is still only circulating within Greenwood City. Other places don''t know about the case yet,"
Editor-in-Chief Qian consoled.
"Plus, that lawyer... well, he is indeed a bit exaggerated."
Let alone ordinary netizens, if Editor-in-Chief Qian hadn''t personally known about this case, he would have cursed out the heartless reporters upon seeing such an article himself.
"Should we... take the news down now?" Editor-in-Chief Qian asked.
President Zhou hesitated.
To be honest, Phoenix Press was officially established and part of the system, meaning he was a public servant.
For the operation of internet news websites, page views weren''t strictly considered a political achievement. Even if the daily views were only in the tens or hundreds, it was fine as long as the political direction was correct.
But then again...
While page views weren''t a direct political achievement, running a site well was a huge bonus—a soft achievement!
His news hadn''t misreported anything, and the page views were dozens of times higher than usual. It was a massive hit on the provincial network, and there was a real chance of winning an award. That was a huge political achievement!
But all the traffic was built on insults...
Just as President Zhou was hesitating.
Suddenly.
Loud knocks rang out against the office door.
Knock, knock, knock!
"President, something happened! Something happened!"
Inside the room, the two executives had their thoughts interrupted by the noise. They quickly looked toward the main door.
"Come in," President Zhou said.
The next second, the door was pushed open.
Creak.
A woman in her thirties walked in, sweating profusely. Seeing her like this, President Zhou''s heart skipped a beat.
"Director Zhao, what happened? Why are you in such a rush?" President Zhou asked hurriedly.
The new arrival was Director Zhao of Phoenix Press''s distribution department.
"The circulation... the circulation..." Director Zhao gasped for air, her voice trembling.
"What about the circulation?"
President Zhou frowned, his mind racing.
Their agency was considered medium-to-large in scale, with a daily morning paper circulation of 100,000 copies.
The day before yesterday, after they received the news, they had held a meeting and made a bold decision.
To print an extra 30,000 copies!
That meant today, for the morning paper alone, they had issued 130,000 copies!
It was a very bold decision because newspapers were hard to sell. They were mostly subscribed to by government agencies and companies. Without pre-orders, extra prints were a pure loss, and revenue was tied to their political performance evaluations. It was a massive risk...
But...
"It''s not cancellations!"
Director Zhao frantically blurted out everything at once.
"They''re sold out! The extra 30,000 copies are completely sold out!"
"Right now, the retail hawkers, newsstand owners, and bookstore managers are calling to order more!"
As those words fell.
The two men suddenly looked astonished and gasped in unison.
"Sold out!?"
"Are you sure?"
Editor-in-Chief Qian was in disbelief. "That was 30,000 copies! We printed a third more than usual!"
Circulation numbers for newspapers were hard to boost, especially for the morning paper. Every 10,000-copy increase brought tangible benefits that could pad out a resume.
In fact, their usual 100,000-copy circulation was somewhat inflated.
For example, agencies like the police department and courts might order 50,000 copies, but in reality, maybe only 10,000 or even a few thousand people actually read them. During rough patches, Phoenix Press could only survive on government subsidies.
So, biting the bullet and printing an extra 30,000 retail copies yesterday had been a decision made with sheer courage!
"They really sold out!"
Director Zhao said, "The news went out last night, and public opinion completely blew up this morning. People all over the streets and alleys are buying it!"
"An hour and a half after release, all 130,000 newspapers were bought up. Now the stall owners are frantically calling to order more stock!"
"We need to print at least another 40,000 copies!"
They needed to print another 40,000 copies!?
President Zhou''s eye twitched, and his heart skipped a beat.
That meant they would be printing an extra 70,000 copies just today. His usual daily circulation for the morning paper was only 100,000 copies. Today, it had suddenly skyrocketed by two-thirds!?
"But at this hour, we don''t have any stock to give them!"
Editor-in-Chief Qian was also anxious, shooting the president a look of exasperation for his earlier lack of faith.
Printing an extra 40,000 copies would probably take until noon. There just wasn''t enough time.
It was the president''s fault for lacking courage and being too conservative!
That was a sudden surge of 40,000 morning papers! The opportunity to increase the press''s circulation by two-thirds had just been wasted. He was so anxious he wanted to slap his thigh!
"The evening paper! There''s still the evening paper!"
Director Zhao hurriedly spoke up.
Hearing this, President Zhou and Editor-in-Chief Qian snapped back to reality.
Right, the evening paper was their main force. It sold even more than the morning paper!
It was just...
"How many extra should we print?" Director Zhao asked.
The usual daily circulation for the evening paper was 160,000 copies. As for today...
President Zhou remained silent for a long moment. Finally, he gritted his teeth and made a very bold decision.
"Print an extra 100,000 for the evening paper!"
If an extra 30,000 wasn''t enough to satisfy the demand, then... he refused to believe the market could swallow 100,000 copies!
President Zhou felt a jolt of alarm at his own daring decision.
"Also, don''t pull down the reports on the provincial network... Our report is completely true. On what grounds are they calling it fake news?!"
......
......
Meanwhile.
Seven-forty.
Greenwood City, at various street stalls.
"Professional ethics... Yes, this is what professional ethics means!"
"When others don''t dare, I dare; when others won''t step up, I step up; when others are too scared to act, I fight one against nine... This is a real lawyer!"
"Boss, give me two more baskets of steamed buns. I''m going to read and eat at the stall today..."
"This defendant really had some massive luck."
"..."
At this moment, Sun Hao was walking down the street, and every few hundred meters, he heard voices like these.
Sun Hao''s breathing gradually quickened. Cold sweat seeped from his forehead, and his palms grew clammy.
He braced himself and continued walking.
Ever since figuring out why Chen Wei had beaten him up, Sun Hao had been faking an illness for the past two days.
There was no alternative. He was terrified that Xu De would report what he had done, and when that happened, he would definitely be in deep trouble!
He originally thought that if he waited for the other party''s case to end, the outcome might be disastrous, allowing him to return safely, but...
He never in a million years expected that Xu De would win an acquittal for the case!
A criminal trial, a murder case, undeniable homicide, an acquittal...
Sun Hao racked his brain and still couldn''t figure out how all these elements could possibly combine together!
But the one thing he could figure out was...
"I''m dead. I''m so dead..."
Sun Hao swallowed hard. As he got closer to the law firm, his heart burned with increasing anxiety.
He had already received the news that Xu De had left the firm. And right at this critical juncture, Director Han had directly called him back to the office...
He didn''t even have to think to know what was waiting for him!
After all, Director Han had lost such a massive talent for nothing... Normally, Director Han would have been a mentor figure to Xu De, and their futures would have been one hundred percent tied together.
But after his string of maneuvers...
Forget about strategic partners.
If Xu De didn''t hold a grudge and stab Director Han in the back, it would already be considered incredibly magnanimous of him!
With such a massive drop in expectations, what would Director Han think, and what would he do...
Gulp.
Sun Hao''s eyes glazed over as he swallowed hard again. Unknowingly, he had arrived at the main entrance of the law firm.
He was trembling slightly, his body felt weak, and his breathing was rapid. This door, which he had pushed open countless times, now emanated an immense sense of oppression.
But what must be faced couldn''t be avoided.
He took a deep breath, steeled his resolve, and pushed the door open.
Creak.
The door opened.
Sun Hao stepped into Jinmao Law Firm, and the very moment he set foot inside...
Suddenly.
He noticed a mass of shadows looming over him in the main hall.
Sun Hao braced himself and looked up, only to see a dark crowd of figures silently standing in the lobby...
Civil Department Head Jin He, Criminal Department Head Zhang Youguo, Economic Department Head Wang Cai, Law Firm Deputy Director Sha Jian, Invited Lawyer Zhao Jiaqi...
Law Firm Shareholder Partners, golden lawyer Wang Guowei, golden lawyer Cui Yong, golden lawyer Tu Yan...
These were figures he couldn''t even catch a glimpse of on normal days. The absolute core and highest-ranking personnel of the law firm were currently gathered in the main hall!
Suddenly!
Everyone turned their heads in unison. Their cold gazes carried a bone-chilling pressure, stacking upon him layer by layer. The atmosphere instantly grew heavy and suffocating.
Every single gaze felt like a massive mountain pressing down on Sun Hao, making it impossible for him to breathe.
In the crowd.
Director Han wore a gloomy expression, staring dead at him.
"You''re here?"
The next second, the older man tossed the item in his hand at him.
Smack!
A notebook dropped right in front of him.
Sun Hao looked down and realized it was a ledger... a ledger showing that over three months, Xu De had taken on a "grand total" of three consultations and one case, amounting to three thousand seven hundred bucks!
Suppressing his rage, Director Han looked at him coldly and said:
"Explain yourself."
Instantly.
Sun Hao''s back was drenched in cold sweat, his face went deathly pale, and his hands and feet turned freezing cold, as if he had plunged into an icehouse.
It was over... he was finished.