On the very day the exposé was dropped.
A slew of people suddenly appeared on Little Broken Station, claiming to be Lin Xiaoman’s former haters-turned-fans. They posted videos from the day of the stream.
Thanks to its massive user base and years of support from the anime/comics/games community, Little Broken Station had become an incredibly widespread platform.
These exposés and videos created by haters, fueled by reposts and comments from a troll army and Little Broken Station users...
...quickly shot to the top of Little Broken Station’s trending list, so entrenched that they couldn’t be pushed down.
For a time, the internet was flooded with criticism.
Those who believed in Lin Xiaoman angrily refuted them, only to be swarmed by a horde of haters who seemed to appear out of nowhere.
But there were simply too many haters to fend off, not to mention the numerous onlookers who didn’t know the truth and were easily swayed into becoming haters themselves after a few persuasive words.
In the words of some clear-headed bystanders and fans...
...a lot of people on the internet don’t use their brains.
They just parrot what others say, flock to any controversy, and are quicker to curse someone out than anything else.
These people will never be capable of thinking for themselves.
The moment the incident occurred, the president of the fan club had already issued a statement in the fan group chat:
First, since we like Xiaoman, we should have 100% faith in her character. The Xiaoman we all admire would never do something like this. These are all just malicious rumors spread by people with ulterior motives.
Second, don’t keep arguing with the haters online. They want you to get riled up and create more drama. Let’s wait for Douhu to give an explanation. Don’t pressure the company; these things take time to resolve.
Third, if anyone decides Xiaoman is a bad person because of this and wants to un-fan her, they were never true fans in the first place. If you’re one of those people and want to leave the group, I won’t stop you. Just don’t come crying back on the day the truth comes out.
Fourth, and most importantly, from now on, we must be vigilant and not allow anyone with malicious intent into the group. If anyone is discovered, they will be dealt with severely and without hesitation!
The fan club president’s statement served as a reminder to the fans to watch their words and actions and not tarnish Lin Xiaoman’s reputation.
On the other hand, it also prevented a good number of online flame wars. When fans encountered trolls just trying to pick a fight, they held their tongues if they could. If they really couldn’t stand it, they’d just tell themselves, ’The person on the other side is an idiot, don’t stoop to their level.’
But there were always exceptions. A few hot-tempered fans couldn’t hold back when some of the comments became too outrageous, and they went on the attack, clearly identifying as fans.
The incident was sparked by a certain content creator on Little Broken Station who made a highly insulting video that severely damaged Lin Xiaoman’s reputation. Moreover, this creator’s video had an exceptionally high view count.
And so, one particular fan couldn’t take it anymore.
"Seriously, don’t you guys know that this kind of video is illegal?"
"I don’t get it. A whole mob of you are gathered around an illegal video, chiming in and cursing someone out. Is there something wrong with your heads?"
"Also, how did Little Broken Station even let this through? Why did it pass the content review?"
A single stone stirs a thousand waves. This fan had only spoken up because they couldn’t stand to watch anymore, but a swarm of haters emerged in the replies to their comment and started laying into them.
"Ooh, look here everyone. A living, breathing, textbook-definition stan."
"What do you call this? It’s flying into a rage out of shame. Don’t even try to whitewash what your precious streamer did. It’s a lost cause."
"We all know who’s really got a screw loose. A manipulative woman like her only knows how to use people like you as human shields."
"You’re the type who’d count the money for the person who just sold you out. That’s you."
"Illegal? Content review? What a joke. If you don’t know what you’re talking about, don’t pretend you do. What Lin Xiaoman did is utterly unforgivable. Who cares about ’illegal’? Heh..."
CLICK!
The laptop in front of her was snapped shut.
Lin Xiaoman lifted her head, her expression blank, and gave her brother a helpless look.
’I was just getting into it. What’s this all about?’
Lin Feng ruffled her hair and took the laptop away. "Stop looking. What’s there to see in this garbage?"
’It’s obviously a behind-the-scenes manipulation, using both fans and haters as pawns. This baseless nonsense won’t last long.’
Watching her laptop being taken, Lin Xiaoman blinked her eyes, which were a bit sore from staring at the screen for so long. Then, right under Lin Feng’s nose, she pulled out her phone.
’If he won’t let me use the computer, fine. It’s the same on my phone.’
Lin Feng frowned and tried to take her phone as well, but Lin Xiaoman was prepared, dodging neatly and causing him to grab at empty air.
Lin Feng was just trying to protect her. No one likes being insulted, let alone by so many people at once. It was a testament to Lin Xiaoman’s resilient personality; anyone else would have broken down by now.
Being maliciously slandered for no reason, Lin Feng was also worried she might fall apart.
"Why can’t I look?"
Lin Xiaoman insisted on opening Little Broken Station. She didn’t even have to search; videos about her were right on the recommended home page. She could click on any of them and see countless people cursing her out.
"Brother, in a way, I’m the center of the world right now. It’s rare to see so many people so united."
"How could I not take a good look at something so interesting?"
Lin Feng was speechless.
’So I was just overthinking things?’
He rubbed the bridge of his nose, at a complete loss for words.
Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Huizi walked in holding a file.
Lin Feng looked at her. "Did you find them?"
"See for yourself."
She said, handing the file to Lin Feng.
This sudden turn of events had caught everyone off guard. Lin Feng refused to believe that someone would dare to target Lin Xiaoman as an individual.
After all, everyone knew Lin Xiaoman was the top streamer of the Douhu Streamer Alliance, and the current Douhu belonged to him, Lin Feng.
Therefore, someone had to be pulling the strings from behind the scenes.
That person had found a so-called "whistleblower," used a video and a few screenshots, and coordinated with a pre-hired troll army to furiously manipulate online opinion, smearing Lin Xiaoman while also dragging Douhu through the mud.
Who told Douhu to brand itself as squeaky clean and to have zero tolerance for misbehaving streamers?
Now look. The nasty business of a Douhu streamer was exposed directly online, with the supposed victim even coming forward as a witness.
Furthermore, someone in the exposé video did some analysis and discovered that the other party in the "sugar daddy" incident was none other than the current behind-the-scenes boss of Douhu.
This revelation left everyone even more shocked.
And to think Douhu was in the middle of cleaning up its streamers’ conduct. It turned out the real source of the toxic culture was the company itself.
Now, who would dare claim Douhu was innocent?
In the public’s conventional view, no businessman was a good person, and no one in the entertainment industry could possibly be innocent.
These warped perceptions of entertainment companies and celebrities were ingrained in people’s minds. Even if they outwardly liked a certain idol, they still believed this deep down.
This was especially true for someone like Lin Xiaoman who had shot to fame so suddenly. Everyone had a tacit understanding that her popularity must be backed by someone, which was why so many people were quick to turn into haters.
After the incident erupted in Lin Xiaoman’s stream, Lin Feng had acted decisively, telling her to end the stream immediately.
But Lin Xiaoman insisted on seeing things through to the end. She completely ignored the rapidly multiplying haters and finished her broadcast.
She was streaming for her fans, and she couldn’t let them down.
As for everyone else, she didn’t care.
The more viciously these people cursed her now, the more they would have to eat their words when the truth came out. That scene would surely be a sight to behold.
She scrolled through the comments for a while on her own, then turned to look at Lin Feng, who was reading the file.
"This whole thing... can you let me handle it myself?"

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