Chapter 90: Crisis on the Trending News

“Oh? Are you sure there’s no problem?”

After a brief pause, a slightly hesitant voice came through the phone.

“I’m certain there’s no issue. I was in Mingsha County just recently, so I can vouch for it!”

Dong Liping said hurriedly.

“Alright, if you’re so sure, then let Mingsha County handle this on its own! Rumors eventually collapse on their own!”

A long silence followed.

Then another voice broke through the phone.

“Okay, boss!”

Dong Liping hung up and rubbed his temples.

“Some of these media really know how to stir up trouble—spreading a rumor with one picture while the debunking effort exhausts everyone!”

When Li Jue left Su Province, he had given his firm word that there’d be no issues in Mingsha County. So when it trended, he immediately called his superior to report the details.

Ding-dong-ding. Just as Dong Liping was about to call Feng Wancheng, the phone unexpectedly rang.

The caller ID showed it was Peng Yuan, a high-ranking official from the Tourism Bureau.

“Peng, what’s going on?”

After connecting the call, Dong Liping asked.

“Old Dong, have you heard about the trending issue in Mingsha County? My phone’s practically blowing up from reporters. Even though everything seems fine, this won’t stand! By the way, how are things on your end? Since our departments seem intertwined in this matter.”

Peng Yuan replied with a bitter smile.

“I already called the higher-ups!”

Dong Liping chuckled bitterly in response.

He hadn’t returned to the office yet, and it seemed the office phones were as busy as those at the Tourism Bureau.

“What did the boss say?”

Hearing that Dong Liping had called, Peng Yuan quickly pressed on.

“I assured the superior that Mingsha County was fine, and he said to let them handle it on their own!”

“Let Mingsha County handle it on their own?”

Peng Yuan was taken aback.

Handling a trending issue at the county level could be tricky—many ‘well-meaning’ media outlets don’t trust any official documents.

“At first, I was surprised, but then I realized this matter is completely above board. Let Mingsha County handle it; if we get involved, the media will have nothing but criticisms for us,”

Dong Liping explained.

“Makes sense. So, should we tell the media that all further updates will come from Mingsha County?”

Peng Yuan considered for a moment.

“Mm!”

“Alright!”

When trouble strikes, each region has its way of handling it. But for a remote western county that has never trended online, everyone is in a state of panic.

Before long, an hour had passed. In the County Government Conference Room…

Wang Xun and several county leaders were present, all rubbing their temples in worry.

This afternoon, after the news trended, the county’s Publicity Department phone never stopped ringing. Major domestic media outlets—especially those with branches in Su Province—were calling in, likely en route.

“Two, what do we do now? Thankfully, we haven’t publicized the temporary poverty-relief official’s name; otherwise, nothing we say would suffice!”

Qin Xuan felt a deep sense of unease.

Just yesterday, they had received an official notice from higher authorities about Xu Hao serving as the temporary poverty-relief leader. They planned to announce it today, but then this incident occurred.

If Xu Hao’s name were publicized, the media would seize on the fact he’s a temporary official and claim the county is using poverty-relief projects for show.

“Let’s hold off on releasing Xu County’s name for now!”

Wang Xun took a deep breath and waved his hand dismissively.

He had already changed Xu Hao’s title. Although the temporary poverty-relief official in charge of desert construction isn’t involved in other matters in Mingsha County, his rank is similar, so a title change was necessary.

“Boss, how should we respond to the media? The higher-ups have called and told us to handle it entirely, but we’ve never dealt with a trending incident before—what if we say the wrong thing?”

Qin Xuan quickly added,

“That’s exactly what worries me. Even if we do everything right, we’ve never faced these media before. One misstep could ignite endless debates.”

Wang Xun ran his fingers through his hair, clearly anxious.

Although it appeared the higher-ups had handed the matter to Mingsha County, in reality, it felt more like a hot potato being thrown our way.

How do we handle this?

Sometimes, being overly cautious only leads to mistakes.

“By the way, have we identified which media outlet first broke the story?”

After a brief silence, Wang Xun asked.

“So far, our team hasn’t been able to track down the individuals who shared or commented on the post since it trended. There are just too many re-shares by various media outlets! I even suspect that once the initial traffic and clicks came in, the original post was quietly deleted.”

Qin Xuan shook his head in resignation.

The county staff is so few, and many of the re-shared posts are from top domestic media that simply ignore our requests.

“We still haven’t found them.”

Silence fell again in the conference room.

After a long pause…

Wang Xun looked around and said, “Let’s call Xu County—he’s the main person in charge there. Let’s see what he thinks!”

“Mm!”

“I’ll make the call!”

Wang Xun immediately grabbed his phone, switched to speaker mode, and dialed Xu Hao’s number.

A month ago, when Li Jue from the Ancient Architecture Institute visited Mingsha County, he had left Xu Hao’s contact number.

Beep… beep… beep. After a few rings, the call connected.

“Xu County, hello! This is Wang Xun from Mingsha County!”

“Oh, Secretary Wang, hello!”

Soon, Xu Hao’s voice came through on speaker, audible to everyone in the room.

“Xu County, regarding this trending issue…”

Wang Xun hesitated for a moment.

“I know about it. General Zhu from Mingsha Tourism already called me! But I’m still in Haishi; I won’t be back in the county until tomorrow.”

“So, what do you think we should tell the media? Or do you have any suggestions? The county phone is practically on fire!”

“We’re supposed to respond?”

Xu Hao was momentarily stunned.

“Yes. The higher-ups have informed us that this trending incident is to be handled entirely by our county. But since none of us have dealt with a situation like this before, everyone’s a bit hesitant.”

Wang Xun looked at him with anticipation.

Ever since he accompanied some provincial leaders during a guesthouse inspection, he had felt that Xu Hao was quite close with them—his opinion carried significant weight.

“Handled by our county? That makes it so much simpler!”

Without much deliberation, Xu Hao replied.

“Simpler? How can it be simple?”

The people in the room exchanged anxious looks—they were nearly in a panic that Xu Hao would actually call it simple.

“Secretary, we could hold a small press conference to tell the media to come to Mingsha County for a firsthand investigation. If any issues are found, we’ll address them accordingly. If nothing is wrong, then those spreading the story must bear the responsibility for their re-shares!”

Xu Hao outlined his proposed approach.

“Going head-on with the media?”

Wang Xun and the other leaders exchanged uncertain glances; this was something they had never dared to consider before.

“Xu County, don’t you think this might just fuel the media’s competitive spirit, prompting them to actually show up?”

After a brief silence, Wang Xun spoke.

After another moment of silence, Wang Xun added.