September 18th, Sunday.
Jingzhou Airport.
Huang Sibo and Bao Xu each dragged their suitcases, finally managing to hail a taxi.
The two sun-darkened, gleaming men sat in the car playing with their phones, almost overcome with tears.
Finally back to human society!
Thinking about this past month, in the Sahara Desert, on Mount Kilimanjaro, at the Great Rift Valley of East Africa…
It truly was a life isolated from the world!
Bao Xu had originally planned the itinerary to perish together with Huang Sibo, but during this long month, those emotions had gradually changed.
Thinking about being in distant Africa, two people lonely and helpless, only able to support each other, rely on each other, encourage each other…
He inexplicably felt that the friendship between them had become even more solid.
So, after returning from Africa, Bao Xu was no longer angry. He just felt that life in Jingzhou was wonderful, and began scrolling through his phone with a heart full of joy.
Huang Sibo had the same attitude.
The two scrolled through their phones for a while before realizing that during their month of isolation from the world, such enormous changes had taken place in Jingzhou!
“The GOG Global Invitational is already on the last day of group matches today. After the games finish this afternoon, they’ll announce the top eight.”
“Qiao Laoshi made another video interpreting ‘Struggle’ again? Hmm, why did I say ‘again’?”
“It seems like many people are rushing to Jingzhou on weekends now.”
“Indeed, a single Thrilling Hostel isn’t enough to make people plan a trip to Jingzhou, but when so many fun things are combined, a trip to Jingzhou becomes extremely worthwhile!”
“This is the cluster effect!”
The two absorbed all this information on their phones, finally understanding the cause and effect.
Originally, a key reason why the Thrilling Hostel wasn’t popular enough was that most people weren’t willing to come to Jingzhou purely for a haunted house.
No matter how fun it was, it couldn’t change the fact that it was just a haunted house.
But now, coming to Jingzhou offers many entertainment activities!
People could go watch the GOG Global Invitational. Of course, it was too late to buy tickets now, but Jingzhou had plenty of Slackin’ Internet Cafés 3.0, which were e-sports lifestyle centers. Slackin’ Internet Cafés 1.0 and 2.0 also had projectors, providing a good viewing experience for competitions.
At the same time, Jingzhou had the Thrilling Hostel, Nameless Restaurant, Slackin’ Takeout, Shared Phone Booths, and a series of other businesses. Just the Tenda-related experiences alone could fill an entire weekend schedule.
Under these circumstances, a weekend trip to Jingzhou became a high-value choice.
Since they had already come to Jingzhou, taking the opportunity to try the highly praised “Desperate Escape” at the Thrilling Hostel or challenging the “Ultimate Terror” became a natural thing to do.
For young locals in Jingzhou, all the industries on the Tenda Life APP, whether internet cafés, takeout, housing rentals, or gyms, were all worth experiencing.
As for the game “Struggle,” although it still couldn’t recoup its costs, it had created an excellent driving effect for other industries. For the Tenda Group, it was still hugely profitable.
Huang Sibo and Bao Xu couldn’t help but marvel at Mr. Pei’s techniques, which were becoming increasingly sophisticated!
Who could have imagined that just going to Africa for a month, they would return to find such huge changes in Jingzhou?
They had nothing but admiration for Mr. Pei.
As Huang Sibo kept scrolling, his expression suddenly became solemn.
“Hmm… Old Bao, it seems like many people online are very curious about Mr. Pei’s identity!”
Bao Xu was startled: “Really? Where?”
Huang Sibo handed over his phone. Searching with “Mr. Pei” as the keyword revealed a large number of posts discussing him.
Mr. Pei had become an internet celebrity!
As for why he had become an internet celebrity?
Looking at Mr. Pei’s various identities online made it obvious.
A top game developer, the behind-the-scenes boss of Tenda Group, a philanthropist who donated fifteen million to his alma mater and gave a speech about wealth, a conscientious boss, an unusual entrepreneur…
More importantly, Mr. Pei’s identity had always been mysterious and hadn’t been widely disclosed.
But those three “world-famous paintings” had completely captured the public’s attention.
No matter how low-profile Mr. Pei tried to be, the netizens’ curiosity about him could no longer be suppressed!
Bao Xu, his sun-darkened face also revealing a serious expression.
This was a severe situation that couldn’t be taken lightly!
Everyone who knew Mr. Pei was aware that he was a low-profile person who didn’t want to be in the public eye, much less become an internet celebrity.
This was partly because of Mr. Pei’s personality, and partly because Mr. Pei didn’t want netizens to bind him personally with Tenda, worshipping him as an idol.
Because that way, it would easily breed extreme fans, and consumers would find it difficult to view Tenda objectively. While this might seem beneficial in the short term, in the long run, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.
So, the entire Tenda Group, from top to bottom, had reached a consensus: absolutely prevent Mr. Pei’s identity from being exposed, and everyone must closely cooperate to keep Mr. Pei’s true identity hidden!
Previously, Mr. Pei’s identity could be concealed partly because everyone who had seen him reached an unspoken agreement, and partly because netizens weren’t that interested in Mr. Pei’s true identity.
Who would dig deeply to investigate who the boss of a company was?
But looking at the current situation, it seemed too difficult to keep it hidden anymore.
Some netizens were already discussing and believing that the young man in “Mr. Pei’s Daily Life” was Mr. Pei himself. They even compared the clothing and silhouette, further confirming this possibility.
The series of short dramas “Mr. Pei’s Daily Life,” which hardly anyone had paid attention to before, was being dug up again!
However, many people thought that given Mr. Pei’s busy work schedule, there was no reason for him to play himself, so for now, these were just speculations without concrete evidence.
Currently, there isn’t much image material related to the real Mr. Pei available online, so those netizens unfamiliar with the inside story could only guess.
But if this guessing continued, the truth would eventually come to light.
Huang Sibo was extremely anxious.
“What should we do? At this rate, someone will eventually uncover Mr. Pei’s true identity.”
“It’s not that there would be any serious consequences, but mainly that Mr. Pei might not be able to think quietly anymore!”
“As the helmsman of the Tenda Group, Mr. Pei must not be disturbed!”
“Old Bao, do you have any ideas?”
Bao Xu fell into silence.
In the current situation, it seemed somewhat impossible to remedy. With so many people now interested in Mr. Pei, how could they silence all the speculation?
This seemed like an impossible task!
After pondering for a moment, Bao Xu said, “Old Huang, do you remember a movie that was released last year? There was a trick in it called ‘swapping the beams and pillars’?”
Huang Sibo was startled.
“A movie about ‘swapping the beams and pillars’? From last year?”
“I should have seen it, but I don’t know which specific one you’re referring to.”
Bao Xu reminded him: “There was a line in it, ‘Oh no, I’ve become a body double! ‘”
Huang Sibo’s eyes widened slightly, seemingly realizing something, but not knowing how to proceed.
Bao Xu explained: “It’s simple. You use the official Fei Huang Studio account to tell everyone that Mr. Pei doesn’t want to be noticed, nor does he want people to disturb his life.”
“If everyone cares so much about Mr. Pei’s image, then they can consider the actor in ‘Mr. Pei’s Daily Life’ as Mr. Pei himself.”
Huang Sibo was dumbfounded: “What? But that IS Mr. Pei himself!”
Bao Xu smiled slightly: “Who knows?”
“All of Tenda’s people, including Mr. Li, Qiao Laoshi, and these friends, will certainly be willing to help keep Mr. Pei’s secret. If we all agree, saying that’s not Mr. Pei but a character actor who looks like Mr. Pei, even if some individuals jump out to say the actor and Mr. Pei are the same person, do you think netizens would believe them?”
“Why did the movie say, ‘I’ve become a body double’? When three people repeat a lie, it becomes the truth. When everyone says you’re a body double, then you’re a body double, even if you’re the real person.”
“Similarly, as long as we consistently say that he’s just an actor, not the real Mr. Pei, how can netizens tell the difference?”
“Moreover, this way, netizens’ curiosity about Mr. Pei will be channeled, creating a very strange situation: everyone treats Mr. Pei as Mr. Pei, but in their minds, they all believe he’s just an actor, not the real Mr. Pei.”
“By muddying the waters, can’t Mr. Pei’s true identity continue to be concealed?”
Huang Sibo suddenly understood: “So that’s it! Old Bao, you’re a fucking genius! I’ll discuss this with the other managers right away, unify our story, and prepare to record a video!”
“Helping hide Mr. Pei’s identity is urgent!”
…
Meanwhile, Pei Qian was also huddled in his room, playing games with great frustration.
He had originally wanted to go sit at the Slackin’ Internet Café, then go watch the competition, but now, he didn’t dare go!
Today was Sunday, and many players and Tenda fans had come to Jingzhou. Whether at the Slackin’ Internet Café or the GOG Global Invitational venue, it would be easy to run into acquaintances.
At that point, wouldn’t his identity be completely exposed?
That was too terrifying!
Pei Qian felt like a celebrity, trembling in fear, with crazy fans and paparazzi with cameras outside.
He couldn’t go out disguised, wearing sunglasses, wrapped in a scarf all the time, could he? That would be too ridiculous.
Pei Qian’s attitude was the same as before: he didn’t want to expose his identity because there would be too many hassles!
Just imagine, walking around campus, drinking coffee at the Slackin’ Internet Café, or even walking down the street, there would be fans coming over asking for photos, seniors hoping for job opportunities, and some investors trying to find him to invest in projects…
Could he even have a private life anymore?
He still wanted to be an ordinary college student until graduation!
Pei Qian was very frustrated, at a loss about his current predicament.
Just then, the phone on the table rang.
Pei Qian picked it up and saw a message from Huang Sibo.
He had already discussed with the managers of other departments, and everyone agreed with this plan, so he sent it to Mr. Pei for the final decision.
After reading the plan, Pei Qian was also shocked.
Does this work?
I become my own body double? Using this method to confuse netizens?
It seemed… truly feasible!
Pei Qian considered it for a moment, then replied: “Release the video immediately! Let’s do it this way!”
He couldn’t help but marvel that Huang Sibo, for once, didn’t come back just to backstab him, but returned to help him.
Great!
Pei Qian was very clear that trying to hide from all netizens now was impossible.
Netizens were already suspecting that “Mr. Pei’s Daily Life” featured Mr. Pei playing himself, and if any person who knew Mr. Pei’s identity openly stood up to support this view, the situation would spiral out of control.
By that point, playing this hand of swapping beams and pillars wouldn’t work anymore.
So, they had to strike first!
Through an official statement, Pei Qian could preemptively wrap himself in a layer of disguise.
First emphasize that Mr. Pei doesn’t want to be disturbed, nor does he want to reveal his true identity in public, asking most fans not to excessively dig into Mr. Pei’s personal information.
But at the same time, provide them with a symbol for emotional attachment, letting them consider the actor’s image from “Mr. Pei’s Daily Life” as Mr. Pei’s true image.
This way, netizens coming to Jingzhou would only see Pei Qian as an actor, not the real Mr. Pei.
This approach was truly a thousand-layer masquerade!
For Pei Qian, although he would still be noticed, in others’ eyes, his true identity was “Mr. Pei’s actor.” At most, he’d just take photos with fans, minimizing this unavoidable trouble to the lowest degree.
Pei Qian himself was a bit confused by it all, but thinking carefully, this seemed to be the best solution at present.
Have everyone who knows his true identity help cover it up, so even if some people reveal the truth, netizens wouldn’t believe it.
In warfare, deception is key.
True and false, real and unreal, how could netizens truly tell the difference?