Transmigrating As a Poor Fake Heiress with Trillions in Family Asset - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Dr. Zhao’s Support

Although Kou Yan’s response clarified the Kou Group’s attitude toward Jing-Selection—letting everyone know that the conglomerate would not attack the app just because of its rapid growth—the public was far more fixated on the “Baby, Dad, and Mom” topic.

Even Zuo Wei looked at Sang Jing with a face full of doubt. “Little President Sang… is the ‘Baby’ President Kou mentioned really just that puppy in the photo?”

Sang Jing nodded. “Yes. I went with him to pick out that puppy, so he’s forced the title of ‘Mom’ on me.”

Zuo Wei took a deep breath, trying her best to maintain her professional composure. She thought about her Vice President, who seemed to live only for her career, and reaffirmed her belief: Little President Sang only wants to build her empire!

“Little President Sang, we should probably explain this to the netizens,” Zuo Wei suggested. “Otherwise, they’ll misunderstand your relationship with President Kou.”

While President Kou was incredibly wealthy, his reputation was fearsome; rumors said he had a volatile temper and a penchant for ruining companies on a whim. In Zuo Wei’s heart, her Little President Sang—beautiful, sweet-voiced, and capable—was too good for someone like him.

Sang Jing didn’t think quite that far, but she agreed on one thing: she didn’t want the world thinking she was with Kou Yan. She promptly forwarded Kou Yan’s post.

@SangJing: That dog baby is really too silly; I have no desire to be his mother. President Kou, you should stick to being a single parent.

With that, the public finally understood—the “baby” was a dog. People marveled at the fact that even the “Madman” Kou Yan treated a dog like a son. But then again, it made sense: only President Kou would raise a Husky, the “madman” of the dog world.

When Kou Yan saw her reply, he thought he would be angry, but instead, he let out a soft chuckle. He flipped the Husky over and rubbed its belly, teasing, “She doesn’t want you anymore.”

The sleeping puppy kicked its legs, let out two sharp barks, glared at Kou Yan with its fierce blue eyes, and then rolled over to go back to sleep.

…

On the internet, however, the storm wasn’t over. While Kou Yan had shown he wasn’t hostile, many people—influenced by the earlier smear campaign—still believed that a low-priced app like Jing-Selection would eventually be shut down for harming the interests of others.

A famous economic blogger posted a long critique:

“The rise of Jing-Selection is undoubtedly a sign of economic decline. By dealing directly with manufacturers, they crush middle-men and distributors. How many people will lose their jobs? Physical stores can never compete with these prices. If everyone chooses online shopping, countless shopkeepers will face an economic crisis. The Kou Group doesn’t care because malls are only a small part of their business, but the authorities will eventually step in to restore balance. Every time you use this app, you are harming the physical industry. It’s only a matter of time before it’s banned.”

This “mini-essay” sparked a new wave of panic. Netizens who were already on the fence began to retreat.

“I was going to download it because my colleagues got their stuff, but now it feels like a gamble. I’m backing out.”

“I heard they’re suppressing reviews! All those bloggers deleted their negative posts! They’re probably using the money they made to buy off users. I don’t dare use it!”

“As a physical store owner, I agree. Customers already come in, look at my clothes, and say how cheap it is on the app. I can’t wait for it to go bankrupt.”

Even though the paid shills had been withdrawn, the seeds of doubt had sprouted into a full-blown “doom-posting” trend.

…

The rhetoric eventually reached the ears of Dr. Zhao, a renowned economics professor at a top-tier university.

Dr. Zhao had already heard his students discussing the app. During the launch week, he had downloaded it himself and was impressed by the founder’s vision. He had even told his class that Jing-Selection was the “fresh blood” of the future economy.

When his students told him that people online were calling for the app’s demise, Dr. Zhao was incensed. “Foolish!” he barked. “Who is saying this? Let me see their ‘analysis’.”

After reading the blogger’s post, Dr. Zhao decided he couldn’t stay silent. He was a “natural influencer” for the platform. He logged into his Weibo and posted a scathing rebuttal, tagging the blogger multiple times.

“The development of technology provides a more convenient life, and the emergence of Jing-Selection is an inevitable result of that progress. Yes, physical stores will face an impact, but it provides more opportunities for more people and the national economy!

Jing-Selection’s first event saved manufacturers with backlogged inventory—something physical stores couldn’t do. Their upcoming ‘Support Agriculture’ event helps farmers who can’t sell their crops—again, something physical retail has failed at.

The authorities have far more vision than a ‘so-called’ economic blogger. They see the opportunities online shopping brings. They won’t suppress it; they will guide it.”

The blogger immediately fired back: “Who are you to call me ‘so-called’? I have millions of followers. You have barely two hundred. Are your followers all bots?”

Just as the blogger was about to rally his fans to attack the professor, the university’s official Weibo account forwarded Dr. Zhao’s post with a simple stamp of approval: “Dr. Zhao is right.”

Suddenly, Dr. Zhao’s profile gained a verified checkmark: Professor of Economics, XX University.

The blogger was stunned. He hadn’t expected his “analysis” to be publicly dismantled by a top-tier academic. For most people, a professor’s word carried far more weight than a blogger’s.

…

Inside a meeting room at Jing-Selection, Gong Fang looked worriedly at Sang Jing. But Sang Jing remained calm.

“Even if some people don’t trust us yet, it doesn’t stop our popularity from rising,” Sang Jing said. “Black-red is still red. We can use this heat to push our ‘Support Agriculture’ event to even more people.”

Just then, her phone chimed. She looked down to see a message from Kou Yan. It contained a set of screenshots and files.

As Sang Jing read through them, her eyes darkened.

Mrs. An and Zeng Pan… they really are persistent. She hadn’t expected those two to be the ones behind the professional water army.