The next day.

Gu Bai was awakened by the sound of a ringing phone.

Although still in Ai Shengnan's boudoir, only Gu Bai was left on the large bed in its simple and elegant tones.

Even though she hadn't had intimate contact with a man for more than 30 years, there's truth to the saying, "At thirty like a wolf, at forty like a tiger," even for the first time, Ai Shengnan's demands were still wild.

The alcohol content of the red wine wasn't high, but it was still quite heady, especially if it was an aromatic type like Ai Shengnan's.

But Ai Shengnan was still very disciplined, even though she had been wild all night, early the next morning she forced her tired body to return to the company; her private life was just a seasoning, her essence as a strong woman would never change.

Rubbing his still drowsy eyes, Gu Bai answered the call.

"Chairman Gu, something has happened."

The call was from Yi Jiahui, the assistant to the chairman.

Gu Bai was a bit puzzled by Yi Jiahui's tense and brainless tone, sat up, and asked, "What's going on?"

Knowing Gu Bai's character, Yi Jiahui didn't beat around the bush and directly explained the whole situation.

"Starting from midnight last night, there was an influx of criticism against you and our group online. It has escalated throughout the night, and now the public opinion has spread not only on Weibo, but even on Zhihu, Tieba, and various short video platforms to different extents. Even though our public relations department worked through the night to control the situation, the effect is minimal. As soon as we make platforms take down some comments, a new wave of internet trolls expands the public opinion situation."

"And now, regardless of how much money we are willing to pay, major social media platforms don't dare to massively delete these comments because the public opinion has reached too wide an audience, and they don't want to face backlash."

"Opinion? What opinion?"

"It started with a staff member named Li Gang from Shanghai Theatre Academy, saying you used your wealth to act arrogantly there... and that the school was angry but afraid to speak up. It eventually developed into your private life issues... You should see for yourself. The current public opinion is not favorable towards you."

Gu Bai nodded through the phone.

"Alright, I got it."

He hung up the phone, got up, and found a set of new toiletries at Ai Shengnan's home and leisurely freshened up.

As for the public opinion storm that Yi Jiahui spoke about so seriously, it seemed as if it had nothing to do with him.

A few minutes later, after washing up, Gu Bai leaned on the large sofa in Ai Shengnan's house and opened Weibo.

The top trending topic on Weibo had over a billion views.

#Does having money really let you do whatever you want?#

#Black Swan Group President Gu Bai oppresses grassroots education staff#

Six out of the top ten trending searches were about him.

Gu Bai casually clicked on one of the topics.

A video of Li Gang being interviewed was directly put on the homepage, with likes reaching millions.

In the video, Li Gang no longer appeared as spirited as he once was in the reception office. His face was pale, like a construction worker oppressed by a foreman, tearfully accusing Gu Bai of his "crimes."

"I am the deputy director of the reception office at Shanghai Theatre Academy. Recently, several foreign students came to the academy for an exchange. Gu Bai asked me to find the best accommodation for them and threatened me several times verbally, saying I would pay the price if I didn't meet his demands.

Though I am just an ordinary teaching staff member, I deeply understand the principle of equality within the campus and refused his request, only arranging the same accommodation for those foreign students as for the majority of Shanghai Theatre Academy students. But because of this, I lost my job."

"I don't blame the school; I know the school was also in a difficult position. Gu Bai is the president of Black Swan Group, a billionaire. I understand the school was under pressure from him and had to fire me, even if the subsequent cleansing by the school was within my expectations. Yet I stand here today to speak out about what Gu Bai has done, just to fight for fairness for the ordinary students!"

"Having money does not mean being able to do whatever you want! The identity of foreign students is no reason for them to feel superior!"

"I know my revelations won't have much impact on him. He will continue being the billionaire and enjoying the privileges his wealth brings him."

"I might face Gu Bai's retaliation afterward, but I am ready for it; losing my job is not scary. What's scary is losing the backbone of our nation. Here, I promise to be responsible for all my statements."

His words sounded righteous and dignified.

If not for originally seeing Li Gang behave meekly in front of Jin Yuanhao, just watching this video might make Gu Bai believe that Li Gang was truly a hero of the lower classes, unafraid of power and defending national dignity.

The comments below were even more varied.

"Angry and shaking, I can't believe such things are happening; see, this is the man you girls keep calling your idol husband!"

"I knew it ever since Gu Bai became popular online; anyone mingling with Principal Wang, what good can they be? Birds of a feather."

"My aunt's daughter's best friend's boyfriend's grandpa's brother's granddaughter is at Shanghai Theatre Academy. I heard last time that Gu Bai bullies at the academy, often hinting at female students to sleep their way to the top. Otherwise, why would Gu Bai invest so much in the entertainment industry? Not to satisfy his desires!"

"Firmly boycott any film or TV drama produced by Black Swan Group!"

"I am a fan of Mao Buyi, and recently I felt relieved that Mao Juxing has such a wealthy boss, allowing him to focus on music. Now, I just want Mao Buyi to immediately leave this company, not to be affected by this!"

Seeing these popular comments, the smile on Gu Bai's face gradually turned grim.

As the Internet continuously expands, whether it's the elderly or children, their usual pastime is surfing online. The influence of Internet public opinion is indeed enormous now.

Although Gu Bai was somewhat known online, he hadn't created any particular persona for himself.

Everyone learned only two things about Gu Bai: he was wealthy and handsome.

Beyond those two points, there was nothing else.

Li Gang was quite adept during his interview, effortlessly positioning himself as part of a disadvantaged group, and in just a few words, he painted Gu Bai as a wealthy person wielding capital and granting privileges to foreign students.

The online discourse these days never focuses on the truth of the matter.

It's always about siding with the weaker party.

Pretending to be weak to bully the strong is basic operation online.

If it were just personal rumors, Gu Bai wouldn't bother to care; after all, he was still a man with a reputation to maintain, as the system specifically instructed that both positive and negative reputation would be counted.

Even negative fame is still fame, right?

But now the impact of the rumors was not just on him alone.

It had risen to the level of the entire corporation.

He had invested billions in several film projects that were about to be released, and a boycott at this time would have a huge impact.

Even though Gu Bai assured Cui Hong that the investment focus in 2018, or this year, would shift to tangible assets, the focus of Black Swan Group's industries was still entirely on the entertainment sector. If this issue wasn't handled well, it would be a major blow to the group.

Luckily, his company wasn't publicly listed; otherwise, this one piece of public opinion could have sent the stock price plummeting.

Thinking of this, Gu Bai immediately dialed Xiao Qiang's number.

On the other end, Xiao Qiang seemed to have been waiting for Gu Bai's call, answering almost immediately after the phone rang.

"Chairman Gu."

Gu Bai got straight to the point, saying, "Issue a statement to all companies that have cooperative projects with our group, stating this matter will be resolved within three days."

"I understand."

"There's no need to control the public opinion; let the topic continue to ferment."

"Why?"

Xiao Qiang was somewhat puzzled.

"No need to ask too much, just do as instructed."

"Understood."

After arranging these matters, Gu Bai wanted to continue setting up additional plans, but the phone rang again.

"Is this Chairman Gu? This is Secretary Li."

Of course, he had Secretary Li's number saved, so Gu Bai smiled and asked, "Hello, Secretary Li, what can I do for you?"

"He asked me to convey to you that he hopes you can handle these matters well, and to ensure they are properly managed."

"Then please convey my thanks to him, and I will definitely handle it well."

"You're too kind, Chairman Gu. Regarding this public opinion issue, your Dean Wu has already explained to the public on your behalf, stating we won't condone the internet's persecution of a promising young philanthropist."

............

After the call ended, Gu Bai leaned back on the sofa, his eyes slightly narrowed.

This so-called public opinion definitely wasn't orchestrated by Li Gang alone.

According to Black Swan Group's crisis PR strategy, once such topics gain any heat, they should be swiftly quashed, instead of fermenting as they are now.

There was definitely someone behind Li Gang pushing this public opinion forward.

Although Li Gang's words had many flaws, at this moment, adhering to the principle of siding with the weak, the onlookers did not care anymore; they simply followed along to condemn.

If you aim to gain attention by provoking the ordinary people's hatred for the rich, then you've succeeded halfway.

What these people didn't anticipate was that Gu Bai would not tolerate a single error at this point.

Wang Rengang also immediately ordered a thorough investigation.

It's estimated that by tonight, the hidden hands behind the scenes will be revealed.

Gu Bai just needed to wait patiently.

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(PS: There's another chapter, later.)

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