Chapter 81: Leng Zhimo Appears on National Television

In later years, when Pony Ma looked back on the events of this day, he could only sigh in resignation. If he had possessed the maturity he had now, he would never have refused the JDFT interview; instead, he would have taken the opportunity to vindicate the entire Tengda Group on national television. After all, this was not a crisis at all, but rather a golden opportunity.

But at the time, Pony Ma did refuse. He simply didn’t understand then that, regardless of whether the publicity was positive or negative, as long as there was attention and headlines, it surpassed any advertisement. He was simply instinctively terrified of JDFT.

Anyone familiar with JDFT knew that, throughout history, nothing good ever came from being featured on their show. Especially before 2008, the destructive power of JDFT was virtually limitless.

So, Pony Ma rejected the interview by reflex, hoping everything would quietly fade away with time.

This became Tengda’s final strategy: Pony Ma personally refused the interview. However, if no one from Tengda dared to face the cameras, it would spell disaster. The JDFT team would only need to announce that “Tengda Group refused to be interviewed,” and the blame would be pinned squarely on the company.

In the end, Tengda decided that Li Dan would represent the group and accept the JDFT interview.

As a former government official, Li Dan was indeed the perfect choice for handling such interviews—his responses were impeccably official, leaving no room for criticism, and deftly distancing Tengda from responsibility.

In summary, Li Dan expressed deep sympathy for the two victims during the interview, attributing the entire incident to a rare accident, completely unrelated to Tengda.

Three days after Li Dan’s interview, CCTV began airing trailers: the program would be broadcast the following day. This made everyone at Tengda extremely anxious.

Thus, when the day arrived, Tengda’s executives gathered in the conference room to watch JDFT together.

At 8:30 p.m., JDFT aired on schedule. As per the program’s usual format, it first reviewed the facts of the story.

True to its reputation, CCTV didn’t just bring in the two main characters—they also visited their schools, interviewed their friends, and even conducted research at various internet cafes. They obtained detailed statistics from the relevant departments to present a comprehensive overview of the instant messaging industry’s development.

In the end, their conclusion was clear: the instant messaging software industry was in a state of unchecked, wild growth—lacking supervision, industry self-regulation, and effective rights protections—which had led to the absurd drama of two men falling in love online.

Throughout the first half of the episode, everyone at Tengda watched with grim faces, feeling as if a dark cloud hung over the city, threatening to crush them.

The latter half focused on the interviews, beginning with Li Dan representing Tengda Group.

To be fair, CCTV handled this segment conscientiously—they didn’t employ any of the manipulative editing tricks seen on the BBC, but rather presented Li Dan’s interview objectively. His flawless performance left everyone at Tengda quite satisfied.

Although the interview didn’t offer any solutions, it did help the audience understand Tengda’s position and grievances. All in all, it was an exemplary case of crisis management.

“Everyone, stay positive—Li Dan’s interview was excellent. With time, all of this will blow over,” Pony Ma encouraged his team, noticing their flagging spirits. “Besides, this time the program isn’t just targeting us at QQ. It covers us, MSN, OICQ, and even that damned OO, all receiving equal scrutiny. We’re all in the same boat, so we just need to weather this storm.”

Just then, the reporter on the program said, “So, how does another major domestic instant messaging software operator, OO, view and handle this incident? How does their response differ from QQ’s? For this, we have an exclusive interview with Ms. Leng Zhimeng, CEO of Jiangnan Computer Technology Services Ltd., the company behind OO!”

“What? JDFT interviewed someone from OO? And it’s that mysterious CEO, Leng Zhimeng?” The air in the conference room shifted instantly; everyone’s attention snapped to the screen, more focused than ever. After all, they were intensely curious about their chief competitor.

This Leng Zhimeng had never appeared in public. Their attempts to plant spies within OO had all failed, leaving them in the dark about her.

Naturally, their curiosity was piqued.

Then, Leng Zhimeng appeared on screen.

The conference room at Tengda fell into stunned silence.

All the employees watching the broadcast froze in disbelief.

Across the entire country, viewers stared at their screens, mouths agape, exclaiming, “That’s the CEO? She’s so young! She’s still wearing a school uniform—she’s just a high school girl!”

Indeed, the CEO of Jiangnan Computer Technology Services Ltd., now facing the entire nation, was a young girl in a school uniform, her hair in twin ponytails, radiating youthful energy, liveliness, and a bright smile—a high school girl, through and through.

———

“I really never intended to get involved with JDFT!” Five days earlier, upon learning that JDFT wanted to conduct an interview, Huang He swore to the heavens in his office, assuring Leng Zhimeng that he hadn’t set her up—JDFT had approached them of their own accord.

Huang He was telling the truth. JDFT had indeed made the first move. Originally, Huang He had planned to feature on Happy Camp, a popular Hunan TV show, to execute his strategy. But then the call from JDFT came, requesting an interview with their company.

Huang He didn’t hesitate for a moment. Having returned from 2021, he was well-versed in all manner of modern marketing strategies and knew perfectly well how invaluable a JDFT interview was in 2001. For OO, it was as if a ten-billion-dollar variety show sponsorship had fallen from the sky—the effect rivaled that of Pinduoduo sponsoring “Go Fighting” in its day.

So, Huang He agreed on the spot. Leng Zhimeng, however, was far more reluctant. If even Pony Ma had refused, how could a young girl like Leng Zhimeng be expected to accept so readily?

Fortunately, Huang He was persuasive, and Leng Zhimeng, who was fearless at heart, only needed a little encouragement. Once she recovered from the initial shock of JDFT’s reputation, she agreed.

Huang He and Leng Zhimeng then spent an entire day and night preparing.

Let there be no misunderstanding—at this point, Mr. Huang had no ulterior motives. He was simply helping Leng Zhimeng rehearse lines and speeches, discussing how to phrase things to achieve their goals.

Unlike Li Dan, who could handle interviews with ease, Huang He prepared dozens of cue cards for Leng Zhimeng to memorize. They even hired a stylist to craft a vibrant and entrepreneurial high school girl persona for her, complete with a school uniform.

At a time when the concept of personal branding didn’t even exist, Huang He was truly ahead of his time.