Free Web NovelChapter 75: Chapter 71: The Evidence is in the Show
Zhao Yi continued ’leisurely’ for nearly two hours, finishing three packages of algorithms in one sitting, feeling exhilarated all over.
He was not a workaholic.
In some ten years’ time, when he’d be idle, he wouldn’t even want to look at the code, but after returning to his high school days, he put down his familiar abilities and was always focusing on studying. freeweɓnøvel.com
Now, coding really brought him joy, on the one hand, it reminded him of the feeling of work.
On the other hand, he was always enjoying the feeling of success!
When he was working before, an algorithm package could make him headache all day long. No matter how much extra time he put in, he might not necessarily finish it. Now, he was just typing on the computer, easily solving one problem after another in the process. Every difficult step could be written down in one go.
It was truly exhilarating!
He even procrastinated on his ’biological textbook recitation plan’ for this. As time didn’t allow him to continue reading, he simply lay down on his bed and fell asleep.
...
The next day, as soon as Zhao Yi arrived at the school, various condolences came rushing at him.
"Zhao Yi, it’s not worth being upset over that kind of person!"
"I went home and watched the news. That guy surnamed Jia is really a jerk, suspecting you of cheating in the finals?"
"For fame, this kind of people can do anything!"
"We’re just students, let him say whatever he wants, it doesn’t affect us anyway!"
All Zhao Yi could do was nod politely, "Thank you, I’m fine!"
"I didn’t take it to heart!"
"I really didn’t get upset about it..."
Once they were inside the classroom, it became quieter. The classmates around him also put in a word or two, and then it was over.
Lin Xiaoqing’s consolation was somewhat unique, "Are you really okay?"
"I’m fine!"
"Not an option!"
Lin Xiaoqing firmly said, "It’s very unfair of you to bear such resentment. The cube player is in Jiangzhou, right? Why don’t we go to Jiangzhou together, put a sack on him and beat him up to vent our anger!"
Zhao Yi was stunned.
Lin Xiaoqing took a look around, seemed to have realized something, and quickly explained in a low voice, "That’s how they portray it on TV!"
"What kind of TV are you watching!"
Zhao Yi rolled his eyes in exasperation.
He Ronghua suddenly proposed an idea that made others’ eyes shine, "Zhao Yi, I think you’re better at playing Rubik’s cube than Jia Hongning. Why don’t you go on ’Brain Power Burst’, challenge Jia Hongning, defeat him head on, and see if he can still act so arrogant!"
Others quickly followed, "Yeah! Zhao Yi is really good at the cube, I remember last time it only took him less than ten seconds!"
"I watched the show, and Jia Hongning only averages ten seconds!"
"Definitely Zhao Yi is better!"
"If Jia Hongning is defeated by a challenger in the area he’s good at, according to the rules of ’Brain Power Burst’, he would have to step down..."
Zhao Yi shook his head.
He had no interest in appearing on ’Brain Power Burst’.
He didn’t want to become a celebrity, and he didn’t have the face of a celebrity. Even if he occasionally became popular due to a show, it surely wouldn’t last.
In addition, as a regular participant in ’Brain Power Burst’, he would have to sign a series of contracts and would have to comply with the rules of the show.
For example, if he won against Jia Hongning, he would replace him and become one of the principal participants. Because he’d have signed the contract, it wouldn’t be easy for him to quit.
Moreover...
Participants only get five thousand dollars per episode.
Currently, working part-time coding in the evening could earn him thousands of dollars per hour. So why should he go through the hassle of traveling to Jiangzhou to film a show?
The return is just too small!
And the cost is too high!
Studying diligently in high school is most important. His primary goal is to get into Shuimu University.
...
The biggest enemy of public opinion and news is time.
Any news or public opinion will fade with time. Even popular celebrities can’t escape the law of time. If they don’t appear in the public eye for a long time, they’ll be gradually forgotten by the audience.
But the ’Jia Hongning questions Youth Cup’ incident didn’t fade with time along with public opinion. Instead, it became more prominent and the focus of attention also changed.
Three days later.
The Provincial Department of Education issued a serious statement, asserting that the ’Youth Cup’ was absolutely fair and impartial and criticized Jia Hongning, the cube solver from ’Brain Power Burst’.
In a word—
"Public figures should choose their words wisely!"
Jia Hongning immediately issued a public apology, but his apology was directed at ’Youth Cup’, in other words, at the Provincial Department of Education. His words towards Zhao Yi were openly pointed.
There was a reason for the Nanjiang News Network’s report.
Nanjiang News Network is a subsidiary of the Nanjiang News Channel, a website established in response to the development of the internet. Its scale and influence are not large, and its traffic could be described as ’pitiful’, but it represents the Nanjiang News Channel.
"Brain Power Burst" and the news website are both owned by Nanjiang TV Station, despite being seemingly closely related, they have no connection at all.
Nanjiang TV Station is massive.
There are over a dozen branches underneath it. The news website was established by the news channel, and its relation to the entertainment program group can be described as distant, like dividing three generations up.
Liu Huimin interviewed Zhao Yi, as well as staff from the Education Bureau. The interview record wasn’t aired on TV; instead, it was posted on the news website.
In it was a line, "Zhao Yi believes that Jia Hongning’s process of defeating Zhou Junkai might have been suspicious, at the very least it was a dishonorable victory."
This piece of news did not draw significant attention.
Most of those who saw the news, like Liu Huimin, thought that Zhao Yi was just ’retaliating’.
"You said I cheated?"
"Well, I’m saying you cheated too!"
Jia Hongning seized on this statement, "Without any evidence, he’s openly questioning the fairness of the competition in ’Brain Power Burst’."
"And fairness is the program’s reputation, its foundation!"
"His words damaged the image of ’Brain Power Burst’ and mine as well. Many people have been influenced by him and developed a negative view of the program and me."
"Because of this, the program team has consulted with legal affairs and plans to use legal means to defend our lawful rights!"
"..."
A lawyer’s letter of warning?
Zhao Yi wasn’t just taking a bullet while lying down; he was being bombarded with cannonballs.
Jia Hongning’s statement quickly exploded in public opinion, on the widely used UG browser, the trending topic ranked fourth was ’Jia Hongning’s lawyer’s letter’.
On the U-Degree Search Top Trends, ’cube player accusing genius hacker’ also made it into the top ten, with over a hundred thousand searches within one hour.
With such a hot topic, coverage was naturally extensive.
This time, Zhao Yi was truly affected.
There were always journalists at school requesting to interview him, he was stopped twice while riding his bike home, and several journalists even staked out under his apartment complex.
Zhao Yi almost felt as if he was rushing home.
He entered his room.
Turned on his computer. ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
He carefully read the news reports and visited several related forums. He discovered that the online public opinion was, oddly enough, largely in his favor.
Maybe because, he really didn’t do anything.
Also, he was the weaker party.
Jia Hongning’s ’lawyer’s letter warning’ sounded righteous, but what most people thought of was how he previously accused Zhao Yi without any evidence, and only apologized publicly when the Provincial Department of Education stepped in.
Did Zhao Yi’s counteraccusation suddenly turn into a defamation that needed the law to settle?
This was bullying!
There was a lot of support for Zhao Yi online, but there was nothing they could do about Jia Hongning. One report pointed out, "Jia Hongning accused Zhao Yi without evidence, and Zhao Yi accused Jia Hongning in the same way."
"Jia Hongning can use legal weapons to defend his lawful rights."
"The problem with this incident lies more in the moral realm..."
Zhao Yi saw more than that.
Jia Hongning dared to publicly say he would resort to legal weapons, speaking as if he was representing the program team. But in reality, he was just a contestant.
Why would the "Brain Power Burst" program team bother doing this?
The answer is simple.
Publicity stunt!
The program team was exploiting the news event for publicity to garner more public attention, thus attracting higher viewership.
"Kind people just get taken advantage of!"
Zhao Yi sighed.
Their argument was ’defamation and lack of evidence’?
Quite the opposite!
The evidence is right there for everyone to see!
A grin appeared on his face. Calm and composed, he logged onto the Cape forum and wrote a post titled: "I am Zhao Yi: The evidence for Jia Hongning’s dishonorable victory is in the broadcasted program itself."
