The incident involving the richest man caused an uproar in the outside world. In less than a day, dozens of different versions of the story had sprung up.
Liu Yutong paid no attention to these increasingly outrageous rumors. At this moment, she was looking at Weibo, which had already begun its closed beta testing.
Weibo didn't have any prefixes; it was simply called Weibo. In her past life, Xinliang only changed its name to Weibo a few years later, but now she had preemptively claimed the name.
Liu Yutong entered the closed beta address into the browser's address bar, and the page quickly loaded. The interface was very minimalist, which perfectly matched Zhang Dalong's style of creating products.
The website's background colors were mainly blue and white, and the functional areas were clearly divided. In particular, the core functions of posting, following, forwarding, and commenting had all been implemented.
After testing it for more than ten minutes, Liu Yutong finally looked up at Zhang Dalong.
"I've taken a rough look at the closed beta version. The basic framework is built quite well, and the core functions are running smoothly. How long until the open beta?"
"It should be open for public beta testing within about half a month," Zhang Dalong replied.
"Well, content moderation needs to be prepared in advance. The characteristics we've set for Weibo are real-time, public, and fast-spreading. This means that any inappropriate information—whether it's rumors, defamation, pornography, or violent content—once published, will spread much faster and have a wider impact than traditional media. If we aren't careful and fail to act as good gatekeepers, things could easily go wrong. You need to pay special attention to this."
"Yes, Miss! It's just that recruiting moderation staff takes quite a long time, and they'll also need time for training," Zhang Dalong said with some hesitation.
Hearing this, Liu Yutong smiled. "Actually, this part should be the easiest for us."
Zhang Dalong was taken aback. "The easiest?"
Liu Yutong reminded him, "Have you forgotten your other identity?"
Zhang Dalong thought seriously for a moment and suddenly realized what she meant. "I understand. I'll go find Brother Ma later and have him transfer a group of people to do content moderation."
Although he had been fully leading the team to develop Weibo during this time, as a core member of the Wanlong Society, he also needed to study at the law firm in his spare time like everyone else.
Although the teaching method at Tianyi Law Firm was a bit... well... special, it had to be said that everyone's enthusiasm for learning was indeed very high. Generally, core members who could pass the assessment would at least have a relatively thorough understanding of criminal law.
The main responsibility of Weibo moderation is to screen information that may be suspected of violating laws and regulations. If someone who knows nothing about the law were to do this job, they would indeed need training and adaptation. But it was a different story for the core members of the Wanlong Society. They could tell at a glance if there was a problem. If they couldn't tell, wouldn't their law classes have been for nothing?
After solving the problem of moderation staff, the two talked about the promotion and operation of the website.
Liu Yutong's idea was very simple: in the early stages, they needed to pull in more celebrities, media outlets, experts, and scholars to join, using their influence to drive Weibo's initial ecosystem.
However, in the starting phase, if the money wasn't right, those celebrities and stars might not be willing to join. They needed to find a suitable opportunity.
Instead, Zhang Dalong brought up the gift Liu Yutong had promised him earlier. "Miss, you said before that you'd give me a gift once Weibo was made. Can I know what it is now?"
Liu Yutong thought for a moment and asked, "Do you know about light apps?"
Zhang Dalong: "Light apps?"
Liu Yutong nodded. "You can understand it as an interactive program module that can be used with a click, without needing to be downloaded or installed, and can be seamlessly embedded into Weibo's web pages. It doesn't pursue complex functions; its main focus is on fun, interactivity, and social attributes. The goal is to enhance user stickiness and activity on the platform."
"The gift I said I'd give you is related to this. If you don't understand, go find Yu Xin. She will take you to see that gift, and you'll understand then."
"Okay, then I'll go find President Yu right now."
"Mhm, go ahead."
Not long after Zhang Dalong left, Liu Yutong's phone rang. The caller ID showed it was President Zhang of Suning.
"Hello, President Zhang!"
On the other end of the phone, President Zhang coughed a few times, and then chatted with her about President Huang being arrested. After all, as his old rival, President Huang's sudden arrest made him sigh with emotion.
He hadn't expected this battle for industry leadership to end in such a dramatic way.
Huang Yu getting into trouble was definitely good news for him. It was also a great opportunity for Suning to surpass Gome in one fell swoop and become the industry leader.
"President Zhang, what happened to President Huang has absolutely nothing to do with me. I was completely unaware of it," Liu Yutong explained.
However, President Zhang on the other end said in an understanding tone, "I understand. It was the police acting according to the law; it has nothing to do with you."
Liu Yutong: "..."
"It really has nothing to do with me, President Zhang. You can't spread rumors," she emphasized again.
The more she emphasized it, the more President Zhang on the other end was convinced that she had done it.
"Chairman Liu, you don't need to explain. I definitely believe you. Moreover, I want to reach a strategic partnership with your side. I know you're going to build several more Wanlong Plazas. You must save a spot for my Suning. I won't haggle with you over the rent; whatever it is, I'll pay it, even if it's extra."
Liu Yutong: "..."
Hearing the dial tone from the phone, she felt a wave of speechlessness.
What on earth was all this?
She was clearly telling the truth, so how did it sound to the other party like a guilty conscience trying to cover up?
Forget it! Let them think whatever they want.
Later, Liu Yutong successively received calls from investor Ji Zhe and some business friends she had met during the school anniversary. They all seemed to have heard some rumors and wanted to verify them with her, the person involved.
She basically used the same explanation with them as she did with President Zhang, but the replies she received were invariably "I understand!" and "I believe you!"—words that sounded extremely perfunctory.
And as soon as these guys hung up the phone, they turned around and told their friends nearby.
"I called to verify it with her personally. She did it."
"Offend Miss Liu, and even the richest man can't expect a good ending!"
"But didn't Miss Liu say she didn't do it? She wouldn't lie, would she?"
"Flies don't bite seamless eggs. Do you think her words can be trusted? She has a track record."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been to Pearl City and heard some incredible things. This person might really be a bit shady..."
"..."
After an unknown amount of time, Liu Yutong's phone rang again. It was from a stranger.
Perhaps the rumors were too convincing; the other party immediately asked her what it would take to let President Huang go, even offering to give her shares in Qiming Electrical Appliances, begging her to be magnanimous.
She was so angry she laughed. She said, "It has nothing to do with me," and hung up the phone.
Moreover, she couldn't shake the feeling that her reputation in the business world was about to be ruined!
