Chapter 263: Chapter 257: Brother Ling Smiled Again! The Fruit Group’s Counterattack?

Kurda’s eyes flickered.

Analyzing the sequence of events, the Xia Wei Group seemed like the most probable culprit. After all, the timing was extremely sensitive!

The Xia Wei Group and the Fruit Group had released their new phones at the same time, and it was no secret that the two companies were bitter rivals.

It wasn’t just the senior executives at the Fruit Group who thought so; netizens were also speculating that the Xia Wei Group was behind it. Regardless of the truth, the Xia Wei Group was undeniably the biggest beneficiary!

"I also think it’s ninety percent likely the Xia Wei Group is behind this," Hurst chimed in, his voice grave.

"Then what do you think we should do now?"

Kurda asked, taking a deep breath.

Although he didn’t state it outright, his question implied that he thought so, too!

"I think our top priority right now is to quell the outrage online. The iFone 7X just launched; our company’s reputation absolutely cannot be damaged at a time like this!"

Hurst continued his rational analysis, adding:

"I suggest we issue a public announcement stating that a certain batch of phones experienced performance issues. We’ll say we’re investigating and that once the results are in, we will compensate all affected consumers."

"I think that’s a viable idea."

Ula and the other senior executives all nodded in agreement.

In truth, this approach wasn’t Hurst’s original idea; it was a tactic many companies had used before.

What’s the most important thing for a massive corporation like this?

Profit!

To maximize profits, you inevitably had to resort to some of the shady tactics the Fruit Group was now being accused of.

But as the saying goes, if you don’t want anyone to know, don’t do it.

Walk by the river long enough, and your shoes are bound to get wet.

Many companies had been condemned in the past when their dirty laundry was aired, but most of them just apologized, offered some compensation, and the whole affair would be over.

So, the Fruit Group intended to follow the same playbook this time.

"Then do as you say."

Kurda said, nodding.

About fifteen minutes later, the Fruit Group published a notice explaining the online scandal.

Furthermore, at the end of the text, it stated their suspicion that this was a targeted, malicious incident, implicitly pointing the finger at the Xia Wei Group.

Ye Ling, who was keeping an eye on the news online, naturally saw this notice the moment it appeared and couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

That’s right.

Brother Ling had laughed again.

In truth...

He thought the Fruit Group was right; it really was a malicious incident targeting the Fruit Group.

Except the mastermind behind this malicious incident wasn’t the Xia Wei Group. It was Ye Ling!

So, was the Xia Wei Group taking the fall for Ye Ling this time?

Ye Ling didn’t think there was anything wrong with that. Now that this matter was exposed, the Xia Wei Group would be the biggest beneficiary.

If that was the case, wasn’t it only right for them to take some of the heat for Ye Ling?

"Stinker, do you think the Fruit Group can get through this?"

Ning Ruoxi asked, looking at Ye Ling and blinking her eyes.

"How could they possibly get through this..."

Ye Ling shook his head.

’Are you kidding me? Do they really think those netizens are idiots?’

’Every single one of them is as sharp as a tack!’

’If there was nothing wrong with the Fruit Group’s products, would something like this have even happened?’

In reality, the Fruit Group had just shot itself in the foot. Releasing that kind of announcement was tantamount to confirming their products really had issues.

’Otherwise, wouldn’t it have been much easier to just issue a warning with a lawyer’s letter?’

’Did they really need to stoop to such veiled insinuations?’

Sure enough, just as Ye Ling had predicted, as soon as the announcement was published, the entire internet exploded with another round of vitriol aimed at the Fruit Group.

This time, it was an assault from consumers around the globe.

"Enough said, I’m going to buy a Glory P40!"

"Heh! An explanation? Shouldn’t it be an apology? Not an ounce of sincerity. Goodbye!"

"It’s just a phone from the Fruit Group, isn’t it? You really think I can’t live without you?"

...

The vast majority of consumers were very unhappy with the Fruit Group’s attitude.

You’ve got a problem, and you don’t issue an apology, you issue an explanatory statement first?

Seeing this, the Fruit Group executives felt cold sweat trickle down their backs. They scrambled to issue a follow-up apology, stating that their wording had been inappropriate due to the urgency of the situation.

To this, the consumers had only one response, summed up in two words: Too late!

A belated apology is no apology at all.

"What do we do now?" Seeing the situation online, Kurda’s expression turned incredibly grim as he solicited opinions from everyone present.

He never expected the situation to become so thorny!

He had initially thought that simply issuing a statement would be enough to calm the storm, but... the current situation was the complete opposite of what he had anticipated.

Not only had it failed to quell the controversy, it had ignited an even greater one!

"I have an idea!"

Hurst spoke up again.

"Oh? Then let’s hear your idea," Kudar said, looking toward Hurst.

"There’s an old saying in the Xia Country: ’Give them a taste of their own medicine.’ Since they’re using public opinion to target us, we should use public opinion to fight back!"

Hurst elaborated confidently:

"We just have to spread the idea online that this whole incident is a conspiracy orchestrated by the Xia Wei Group. We’ll tell the public that the people of Xia Country cooked up this despicable scheme because their Glory P40’s sales couldn’t match the iFone 7X! I’m sure we’ll get a lot of supporters! At that point, all the blame will be deflected onto the Xia Wei Group!"

"That... makes sense!"

The Fruit Group executives present all nodded, feeling that Hurst’s suggestion was quite feasible.

Just as the people of Xia Country get angry when United States companies suppress Chinese businesses, Americans will surely be enraged by this kind of ’smear campaign’!

"Do as you say!"

Kurda made the final call, accepting his suggestion.

...

Around 1:00 PM, Xia Country time, major social media platforms were flooded with inflammatory comments targeting the Xia Wei Group.

"I bet it’s that company from Xia Country trying to smear the Fruit Company!"

"That’s right, it has to be. The Fruit Group’s sales were already higher than the Xia Wei Group’s, so the people of Xia Country are playing dirty just to win!"

"Boycott businesses from Xia Country, and support our own nation’s companies!"

"Despicable people from Xia Country. Your phones aren’t as good as ours, so you resort to dirty tricks?"

...

In truth, if one thought about it for a moment, these comments felt a bit unusual. They were a bit too...

Coordinated!

It was obvious that someone was trying to stir the pot.

They were deliberately trying to start a flame war against the Xia Wei Group!

But, ironically enough, this kind of narrative manipulation was surprisingly effective.

Before long.

On Facebook, many people began to discuss the Xia Wei Group’s "smear campaign" against the Fruit Group. Many of them spoke with such authority, it was as if they had truly uncovered some great conspiracy.

In truth, this wasn’t surprising.

Companies from the Xia Country weren’t viewed favorably on the world stage to begin with, and most that expanded globally were met with various forms of suppression and unequal treatment.

Therefore, these people were more inclined to believe that this was a conspiracy hatched by the Xia Wei Group!

In just half an hour, the tide of international online opinion had turned, and its spear was now pointed squarely at the Xia Wei Group.

"Hurst, that was an excellent suggestion!"

In the meeting room, Kurda said with admiration as he looked at the online comments.

"I just learned from our rival’s playbook. The Xia Wei Group used public opinion to smear us, so we’re just doing the same!"

Hurst replied with a modest smile.

"Good, very good!"

Kurda nodded in satisfaction. "After this is over, I’m promoting you!"

"Thank you for your mentorship," Hurst said at once, a flicker of delight in his eyes.

At this point, the tense atmosphere in the conference room finally began to dissipate.

Online public opinion had completely flipped, putting the Xia Wei Group at a disadvantage!

Most of the people present felt that the incident was now over.

But...

Was that really the case?

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