Chapter 332: Now, This is Called Professionalism
After a while, the Third Prince finally calmed down from his earlier fury.
Still fuming, he took a deep breath and grabbed Chancellor Cao’s Communication Device: “Let me see what absurd things these guys can come up with next.”
Chancellor Cao hesitated, glancing at him.
Third Prince: “… Don’t worry. This time I absolutely won’t easily lose my temper and smash your Communication Device.”
Only then did Chancellor Cao pass his device over.
After a quick scan, the Third Prince discovered that the earlier post was just the tip of the iceberg.
A casual search on the trending topics revealed countless bizarre rumors, all of which were aimed at tarnishing his image.
What was this? “Why Did General Xu Assist the Third Prince? The Deep and Tormented Love Between the General and the Prince,” “Royal Scandal! The Third Prince Actually Gave Birth to a Deformed Child from Incest!?,” “Worse Than Beasts! Aunty, Sweeper, Publicly Accuses Third Prince of Assault.”
Initially, the Third Prince could persuade himself to remain calm, telling himself not to get angry; getting angry would only play into their hands.
However, upon reading that last post — from a middle-aged lady who claimed to be the sweeper by his side, weeping and snotting, saying how he assaulted her while grinning and shouting, “It’s very big, hold on a bit” — he snapped.
“You bastards!”
He smashed the Communication Device to the ground, rage swirling in his voice: “I don’t care who wrote this crap, I swear I won’t let them off the hook!”
Chancellor Cao looked hopelessly at his shattered device on the ground.
“Go find out who wrote this! I want them in pieces!”
“This…” Cao Sima explained, “The things published on the Communication Device cannot be traced back to the publisher by ordinary folks. If you want to know, we can only check at the Divine Mechanism Pavilion where these devices are made.”
“Then let’s go!”
“But, but the Divine Mechanism Pavilion is owned by the Floating Splendor Commerce, which has the backing of the Demon Cult…”
The Third Prince instantly understood.
“So it’s that pest from the Demon Cult,” he sneered.
“Afraid to confront me directly, and resorting to such despicable means. Truly detestable!”
But right now, cursing wasn’t helping.
If things continued like this, the public opinion he’d worked so hard to build inside the city would soon be washed away by the bad reviews.
“What does the Third Prince plan to do?” General Xu asked leisurely, “How about issuing an order to destroy all Communication Devices in the city?”
The Third Prince frowned.
He knew that if he really did that, it would mean he was tacitly admitting that all the rumors were true.
Plus, nearly every household in the Holy Kingdom had a Communication Device; forcing destruction meant he’d already lost the public sentiment and media battle.
So unless absolutely necessary, the Third Prince didn’t want to resort to that.
“… Chancellor Cao, do you know how this ‘trending topic’ is defined?”
“This…” Chancellor Cao hesitated briefly before saying, “What I know isn’t much. But literally, it should be that the more people look at it, the easier it is to make it trend.”
“Is that so?” The Third Prince sneered.
“If that’s the case, then let’s use their tactics against them!”
He waved his hand dramatically: “General Xu, I will crank out several articles tonight accusing the Demon Cult and Huo Ningxue. You have the Tianlang Wei non-stop boost these articles, and let’s see who trends higher.”
General Xu: “Uh, but most of my soldiers haven’t even bought Communication Devices…”
“Then go buy some! I’ll cover all expenses afterward!”
The Third Prince gritted his teeth: “I refuse to believe that these uneducated folk can outdo me who’s well-versed in strategies and scholarly in wealth!”
Chancellor Cao and Cao Sima exchanged glances, slamming the table in agreement: “Brilliant! Third Prince, you’re truly a genius!”
“Hmph.”
Listening to their flattery, the Third Prince basked in pride, coolly nonchalant: “Such trivial skills dare to show off in front of me?”
“However, I have an idea. The number of Tianlang Wei isn’t abundant; one device per person might not cut it. How about each of them gets two more? Three or four devices to boost the heat. Then we can’t possibly be short on popularity, can we?”
“Good! As expected of the Chancellor, truly wise! Let’s follow your advice!”
Chancellor Cao was naturally grinning ear to ear; it was free money falling from the sky.
Once the Cao brothers left, General Xu curiously asked, “Where is all this money coming from for the Third Prince?”
“Hmph.”
The Third Prince confidently replied: “Once I ascend the throne, the entire Holy Kingdom will be mine. A mere bit of cash is no issue!”
“I’ll milk the officials, squeeze the people dry, wipe out those annoying sects outside the Holy Kingdom; there are countless ways to make money.”
“… Especially that Demon Cult and Floating Splendor Commerce.” The Third Prince raged: “Once I am crowned, they’ll be the first to be destroyed!”
General Xu shot the Third Prince a sideways glance but didn’t say much.
——
——
“You’re telling me.”
Sang Zhe looked at Young Master Cao in disbelief: “That the Third Prince actually told the Tianlang Wei to all go buy Communication Devices?”
“Did your dad really recommend to him to buy more? And he actually listened?”
Young Master Cao nodded vigorously.
Sang Zhe mumbled to himself: “So, turns out your Huo family has a bit of that talent hidden away.”
On the side, Huo Ningxue glared at him unhappily: “Nonsense!”
“Uh, I didn’t imply anything about your majesty.”
“I mean, my brother isn’t stupid at all,” she asserted confidently.
“?”
Alright, it seems this girl had already accepted the fact that she wasn’t the brightest bulb in the box.
“Let me see what the Third Prince has written all night to smear us.”
With that, Sang Zhe opened the Communication Device, locating a few articles that were continuously trending up.
To be honest, the Third Prince’s writing was quite good. A few articles filled with allusions, lavish language, vigorously denouncing the current emperor’s incompetence, his closeness to treacherous ministers, and the chaotic state of the court.
The rhetoric was stirring and made one indignant. At this moment, there were already quite a few clicks and views.
Sang Zhe also noticed that under the articles, numerous fake accounts from Tianlang Wei were vigorously supporting and cursing the emperor in agreement.
“Nice, they’re certainly quick to adapt,” Sang Zhe chuckled, sharing with Young Master Cao.
“Brother Sang, are we really just going to let them brush through like this?” Young Master Cao asked curiously.
“Of course not.”
“Then I should also have my brothers brush against him?”
Sang Zhe suddenly looked at Young Master Cao as if he was an idiot.
“With the Third Prince busy in hospital, you can join him there too.”
“Don’t forget, the Floating Splendor Commerce is filled with my people. Why would I go to such lengths to compete with him?”
Young Master Cao looked puzzled as Sang Zhe picked up the Communication Device and made a call.
Then calmly said to the other side:
“Delete the trending topic, control the reviews, unleash the water army.”
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