Chapter 25: Criminal! Absolutely Criminal!

"I'll start investigating right now! Also, I'll have Weiwei put together a clarification video!" Officer Huahua said.

"Huahua, remember to explain the full sequence of events clearly, and be sure to include the original live-stream footage," Tan Ping reminded her.

In reality, there was another way to handle a situation where the program side held all the cards. One could let the public opinion on the internet ferment, ideally for a few days, getting it trending on social media until everyone knew about it. Then, just when all the netizens and media outlets were busy denouncing them, the program could release the key evidence in their favor, turning the tide in one fell swoop. If handled this way, the program "Tan Ping Traffic" would undoubtedly see a massive boost in popularity due to this smear campaign. Some influencers and celebrities used this tactic to stir up hype and maximize benefits, often saving tens or even hundreds of millions in marketing costs.

However, Tan Ping never forgot his identity. He was a police officer. Doing something like that would inevitably trigger endless online flame wars, occupy public resources, cause a series of negative effects, and even destroy his credibility.

Soon, Officer "Bunny" Li Yuwei finished the clarification video. She called Tan Ping and said in an adorably fierce tone, "Tan Ping, I've finished the video. I'm sending it to you now. Take a look first!"

"Alright!"

Tan Ping opened WeChat and clicked on the video Li Yuwei sent. He watched it carefully and found the video to be extremely detailed, perfectly restoring exactly what happened.

"Weiwei, this video is perfect. Let's post it just like this!" Tan Ping told her.

"Got it! Tan Ping, you need to get some good rest. Leave the program matters to us!" Li Yuwei urged.

A moment later, she posted the clarification video. Soon, comments from netizens began to appear: "I just saw that video framing Officer Tan for animal abuse, and it made me so angry! That video was edited to remove the beginning and end, completely twisting the truth! It’s ridiculous!"

"Me too! I tried explaining it in the comments, but as soon as I posted, the blogger deleted it!"

"My comment wasn't deleted, but the blogger's fans piled on and cursed me out, calling me a paid troll!"

"It makes me so mad! It’s completely upside down! They are the ones spreading rumors and slandering, yet they call us trolls!"

After reading the comments, Tan Ping immediately logged into his account and left a reply to comfort them: "Thank you all, and thank you for your hard work! Everyone, please don't bother arguing with them, and don't engage in cyberbullying. We will resolve everything through legal channels."

"Officer Tan? How are you doing now?" a fan asked immediately with concern.

"I'm doing okay. I'm still at the hospital getting my wounds treated," Tan Ping replied.

The netizens then followed up: "How are Yaoyao and her mother doing? Is it convenient for you to live-stream from the hospital, Officer Tan?"

"Yes! We want to see how Yaoyao and her mom are; it was truly terrifying at the time!"

"They are still having their wounds treated right now. If I have the chance later, I will start a live-stream to let you all see," Tan Ping replied immediately.

At this point, passersby who had seen the smear video started commenting: "So that’s the truth! That blogger is truly shameless! For the sake of traffic, she actually framed a two-year-old child and a heroic police officer!"

"I've never seen someone so thick-skinned! It was clearly her own fault for not using a leash and not keeping an eye on her dog, and after the incident, she actually incited her fans to cyberbully the victims!"

"That Mai Lingling is really scum!"

Only then did Tan Ping learn that the dog's owner was named Mai Lingling. He searched on Douyin and quickly found the blogger. In this short time, Mai Lingling's account had already reached 4.1 million followers. Through a series of hype-building tactics, she had gained over 600,000 followers from this incident alone!

At that moment, Mai Lingling looked at her dashboard, a triumphant smile on her plump face as she said to her husband, "Old Tang, look at this! Right now, the whole internet is supporting us!"

"Wife! You're brilliant!" Tang replied, giving her a thumbs-up.

"This is just the beginning! Later, we’ll start a live-stream, play the victim in front of the camera, and the tips will come pouring in!" Mai Lingling thought about her plan, her smile becoming even more smug.

Just then, her husband suddenly said, "Wife, this is bad! The official 'Tan Ping Traffic' account just posted the full video!"

"What 'Tan Ping Traffic'? What full video?" Mai Lingling asked, confused.

"That... wife, that traffic cop is some head of traffic law enforcement education. The video he posted is the original live-stream recording!" Tang stuttered.

"What?" Mai Lingling's expression changed instantly upon hearing this. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Wife, you didn't ask!" Tang said, feeling wronged.

"You're useless! You can't do anything right!"

Mai Lingling slapped her husband across the face. Then, her expression began to flicker. Her plan had succeeded primarily because the other side lacked evidence, but she never imagined it had been live-streamed in its entirety! She began searching for "Tan Ping Traffic" on Douyin.

Soon, Mai Lingling started laughing again. Her husband looked at her, puzzled: "Wife, things are like this now, what are you laughing at?"

"Look, you're panicking again!" Mai Lingling’s plump face relaxed. She pointed at the official "Tan Ping Traffic" account and said, "Look, they only have 30,000 followers! How many do we have now? 4.1 million! The advantage is with us!"

"But they have the live-stream recording!" Tang whispered.

"They only have 30,000 followers; how many people could have watched the live stream? I checked their comment section, there are only a dozen or so comments. Our comment section has 120,000!" Mai Lingling said contemptuously.

"But, but they have the live-stream recording..." Tang reminded her again.

"So what if they have the recording? Setting aside the facts, aren't they wrong in some way? Besides, as long as we don't admit it and insist that their video is fake, who will the fans believe? Us or him? Not only that, I'm going to lead our fans to report their account until it's banned!" Mai Lingling sneered.

"Can... can we really do that? Isn't that illegal?" Tang felt stunned by his wife's words.

"On the internet, the more followers you have, the more people support you, and the truth doesn't matter. Old Tang, look at those mega-influencers with tens of millions of followers; which one of them doesn't sell fake goods? Do they follow the law? They're all making a fortune right now! The bold eat their fill, and the timid starve! Since it's already like this, let's gamble—it might be our only chance!" Mai Lingling lectured her husband.

"Alright then!" Tang thought about it, and it seemed that was the only way forward.

Thus, the two of them began to busy themselves with their schemes.