Chapter 163 Misguided

These viewpoints were the result of Pei Qian racking his brains.

If he wanted to save effort, he could have let the online trolls run wild and improvise, but he didn't trust their professionalism at all.

What if they made it too obvious and got caught? Wouldn't that be counterproductive?

Fortunately, after so much systematic learning, Pei Qian had also gained some professional knowledge in the gaming field. That was why he could write these guidelines for the trolls.

This should create a realistic illusion, making it impossible for most people to detect any troll activity.

Hu Xiao didn't ask any further questions. With this document, it would be even easier for the trolls to do their jobs, and he couldn't be happier.

"Okay, that's settled then. I'll assign them tasks and get them to work!"

Just as Hu Xiao was about to arrange the work, he saw another message from the other side.

"Wait a minute, we've cooperated so many times, can you give me a discount?"

Hu Xiao was stunned.

A discount?

That didn't seem like this big shot's style.

Before, this big shot always gave the impression of being rich and generous, never haggling over prices. But why was he asking for a discount this time?

Could it be that the person behind the account had changed?

It wasn't impossible. An official account like this might be managed by several people at the same time. Maybe the previous person in charge had resigned, and the new person was more frugal. That was understandable.

Hu Xiao didn't think too much about it. "Sure, you're a regular customer, so I'll give you a 20% discount this time!"

Pei Qian: "Okay, thanks a lot."

Hu Xiao was stunned again. Why was this big shot being so polite today? Had he really been replaced?

He quickly replied, "You're welcome, it's my pleasure!"

Seeing the words "20% discount," Pei Qian felt much better.

There was no way to get this troll activity reimbursed by the system, so he had to pay out of his own pocket. Saving a penny was saving a penny.

Living life required careful calculation, didn't it?

This time, the battlefield was focused on Qiao Laoshi's video comments, so the trolls' effects should be seen relatively quickly.

Pei Qian waited patiently.

...

During dinner time, Qiao Liang woke up.

He had stayed up too late to crunch out the video, and he was a little sleep-deprived. After catching up on sleep, he finally regained his energy.

Moyuyu Delivery had arrived on time. Qiao Liang opened the exquisite food box, took out the various dishes, and then opened his video on his phone to check the audience's reaction.

Eating while watching the video made the food taste even better.

However, after casually browsing the comments below the video, Qiao Liang couldn't help but be stunned. The hand holding the chopsticks stopped in mid-air.

"What's going on?"

Qiao Liang was completely confused.

He had briefly looked at some of the comments in the first ten minutes after the video was released, and the audience seemed quite satisfied with this episode.

How could the tone of the comments have changed so drastically after a few hours?

The entire comment section was filled with various voices of doubt, and two groups of people were arguing fiercely.

Some viewers were on Qiao Liang's side, basically defending the views in the video, while others seemed to be going out of their way to disagree.

Many people were saying in the comments that *Mission and Choice* was by no means a "milestone," and that it had nothing to do with the "heavy industrialization model." These were all concepts that Qiao Liang had invented to exaggerate the significance of *Mission and Choice*. They were not based on facts and were very undesirable.

These comments had a lot of likes, and had become a force to be reckoned with.

In fact, these remarks were not only the work of trolls. There were also some real viewers and players mixed in, who had been influenced by the trolls' opinions and swept up by their arguments.

This was normal, because people are very easily influenced. Comments and danmu (bullet comments) are often like "amplifiers," which greatly affect individual judgment.

For example, someone might originally think that a movie was pretty good, but when everyone around them said it was a terrible movie, they would unconsciously lower their evaluation of the movie, or even change their mind and agree that it was a terrible movie, and continue to spread this concept to those around them.

Problems that didn't exist in many people's minds would slowly become real problems if the people around them emphasized them enough.

The same thing was happening in this video. Many viewers didn't think there was anything wrong with Qiao Laoshi's statements, but many trolls were fueling the flames in the comments section and刷点赞 (shuā diǎnzàn - rapidly liking each other's comments). When the number of likes went up, it became a "majority opinion" that influenced those who didn't originally see any problem.

Of course, there were still many people who insisted on their own views, so the two sides had a heated argument, arguing fiercely.

Neither side could convince the other, because the topic of their debate was inherently difficult to prove.

Whether it was a "milestone" or a "heavy industrialization model" was actually a matter of opinion. You could find many arguments to support either side, but in the process of online debate, it often turned into people talking past each other and attacking each other. As a result, the comment section was filled with smoke and miasma, and no one could convince anyone.

For the trolls, of course, this was welcome news, because their job was to muddy the waters and mislead more viewers.

Therefore, the more this happened, the more it showed that they were doing a good job, and they would naturally try to increase their efforts.

Qiao Liang couldn't help but frown.

"These people actually doubt my professionalism?"

"This is outrageous!"

"I studied the history of domestic game development, and I understood so many game design concepts. This interpretation of *Mission and Choice* is very objective and responsible."

"Why do these people make it sound like I'm just trying to attract attention?"

Qiao Liang took two bites and lost his appetite. He was full of anger!

He wasn't angry for himself, he was angry for President Pei!

As an ordinary video creator, Qiao Liang was concerned about the number of views and coins. Although the argument between the two groups meant that his video was controversial, it would also increase its popularity.

Therefore, from the standpoint of a video creator, Qiao Liang didn't need to be angry.

But from President Pei's standpoint, this was completely unacceptable!

President Pei had invested heavily in the remake of *Mission and Choice*. How much pressure did he have to withstand, and how ambitious was he!

As a successful game producer, President Pei didn't lack money or fame. He could have chosen easier games to make money more steadily.

But President Pei still went ahead and invested heavily in washing away this former "national game shame." What a heroic spirit of fearlessness!

As domestic game players, even if they didn't like Tengda's games, they should at least maintain basic respect, right?

However, President Pei's actions were not understood by these people. How sad was that!

Qiao Liang felt that as a video creator, he didn't have to speak out for himself, but he had to speak out for President Pei!

He absolutely couldn't let a hero bleed, sweat, and shed tears!

So… what should he do?

Qiao Liang was very clear that it was pointless to clarify or argue now. It would be like repeating what he had already said.

He needed more convincing evidence, such as… the views of some industry insiders, or even the views of people within Tengda!

"It would be best if President Pei could come out and express his views in person, but…"

"President Pei definitely won't agree."

"Because President Pei has always had the attitude of 'I laugh off all praise and slander from the world.' He doesn't care about external attacks and slanders at all, and he definitely wouldn't speak out for something like this."

"Then I can only settle for second best and find the person in charge of this project."

"Yeah, I'll make some inquiries."

Qiao Liang wasn't sure who was specifically responsible for the development of *Mission and Choice*. In theory, it should be Hu Xianbin from the game department, but for such a large investment project, there might be some other people involved.

It didn't matter if he wasn't sure. Qiao Liang was good friends with many Tengda employees, and he could find out with a little inquiry.

…

…

April 17th, Tuesday.

As soon as Pei Qian got out of bed, he picked up his phone and checked the comments section of the new episode of *Deified Work*.

Then, a smile appeared on his face.

"Well, that's good. The money wasn't wasted!"

Although he got a 20% discount, he was still buying high-quality trolls. Pei Qian's small treasury bled heavily, spending tens of thousands of yuan, but the effect was indeed immediate.

The direction of the video's comments had already taken a clear turn!

The voices questioning whether *Mission and Choice* deserved the titles of "milestone" and "heavy industrialization model" gradually grew louder. Although it wasn't yet the mainstream, it could at least compete with the voices of praise.

It was impossible to completely control the narrative. After all, Qiao Liang had many fans, and there was strength in numbers. It would be a pipe dream to suppress all these voices with just a few tens of thousands of yuan worth of trolls.

But Pei Qian was satisfied with what he had achieved so far.

The key was to mislead the ignorant onlookers.

Many people didn't have a particularly clear opinion when watching videos. They thought that what Qiao Liang said was very reasonable, and then they thought that the different opinions in the comments below were also very reasonable.

As long as he could make the onlookers waver between the two viewpoints and have some reservations, then this video would not be able to become popular, and Pei Qian could minimize his losses.

Pei Qian was scrolling through the video's comments when he suddenly received a call from Huang Sibo.

"Hmm?"

"Why is Huang Sibo calling?"

"Could it be that there's more good news from the movie?"

"That's not right. It hasn't even been a week since it was released. I saw the box office numbers from the past two days. They're not very high, so there's no need to announce good news, right?"

Pei Qian had been paying attention to the box office of *Mission and Choice* these past few days. Although the box office data was good, it was far from "making a lot of money."

Because the movie had little publicity before its release, and the screening rate was not high, although the occupancy rate was very high, a massive box office growth was not possible in just two or three days.

With some doubts, Pei Qian answered the phone.

"President Pei, I have something to ask you about."

"Qiao Liang said that he wants to ask me a few questions about *Mission and Choice*, saying that it's related to his new video."

"This shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Pei Qian couldn't help but be stunned.

Hmm?

Qiao Liang wants to interview Huang Sibo?

Pei Qian was very shrewd and immediately understood Qiao Liang's intention.

Obviously, Qiao Liang wanted to pull Huang Sibo into endorsing his video! He wanted to use Huang Sibo's mouth to find a basis for the so-called "heavy industrialization model" and prove that he was right!

Pei Qian subconsciously wanted to refuse, but then he changed his mind and the corners of his mouth suddenly turned up slightly.

Qiao Liang, ah, Qiao Liang, aren't you walking right into my trap?

You should never have imagined that from the initial project to the development to the sales of *Mission and Choice*, no one had ever mentioned the so-called "heavy industrialization model," right?

This interview was obviously an official slap in the face!

Pei Qian immediately said, "No problem, just accept it."

"But…"

"When answering the questions, be sure to be objective and truthful. Say whatever you want, understand?"

As long as he spoke truthfully, Qiao Liang should understand that *Mission and Choice* had nothing to do with the so-called "heavy industrialization model," and that Tengda's game development process had never changed.

Ask for a hammer and get a hammer, wouldn't that be great?

Huang Sibo: "Okay, President Pei, I understand!"