Immediately following, a wave of "legal" suppression against investigative journalists and witnesses began. Several former Xingyao employees and industry insiders who had spoken out earlier received lawyer's letters from unknown forces, accusing them of "infringing on trade secrets" and "defaming business reputation," demanding huge sums of money and public apologies. Although these accusations might not be legally sound, the resulting litigation pressure and lengthy process were enough to deter ordinary people.
Even more unsettling was the invisible pressure from the administrative level. Su Yuqing's newspaper received multiple "work guidance" calls from higher authorities, requiring them to "control the reporting scale" and "maintain social stability." Some official institutions that had previously expressed support for the industry rectification had their related notices and articles quietly removed from their official websites, replaced with bland, routine content.
Meanwhile, a new narrative began to quietly spread among influential circles. It defined the Xingyao incident as "a management problem of an individual company," attributed the behavior of Lu Tianyu and others to "personal moral depravity," and emphasized that "the achievements of the entire entertainment industry should not be negated because of individual cases." This rhetoric attempts to narrow the systemic industry malpractices into isolated cases, thereby obstructing genuine structural reforms.
Even Lin Chen, lying in the ICU, couldn't completely escape it. Carefully disguised "medical analysis" posts began appearing online, published by several seemingly authoritative "medical bloggers," citing numerous sources and suggesting that Lin Chen's injuries "may have other causes" or that "the chances of recovery are extremely low," attempting to fundamentally diminish public attention and sympathy for the case.
These methods of power retaliation are no longer as brutal and direct as before, but rather focus more on "legality" and "technicality." They use rules, procedures, and laws as weapons, engaging in more complex behind-the-scenes maneuvering. Their aim is no longer to completely deny the facts, but to delay, confuse, and narrow the scope, dragging a pursuit of justice and life into lengthy legal proceedings and ambiguous controversies until public attention is diverted to new hot topics.
Su Yuqing felt this silent yet heavy pressure from all sides. She knew the other side was changing tactics, shifting from direct confrontation to appeasement, from suppression to attrition. This was a war that would test endurance and willpower even more.
While the public outcry was immense, could it be sustained? The wheels of justice had begun to turn, but where would they lead? The shadow of power still loomed over the path to ultimate justice, attempting to pull the newly broken sky back into a gray dawn.
Just as the domestic public opinion grappled with a tug-of-war between the power backlash and the public outcry, the shockwaves of the Xingyao incident began to cross borders, creating ripples on the international stage that could not be ignored.
First, in overseas Chinese communities and among those interested in Chinese culture. Excerpts from Lin Chen's "Mountain Questions," along with his tragic story, were translated and disseminated. The pure power contained in his music, in stark contrast to the harsh reality, touched many overseas listeners. Internationally influential Asian media outlets such as the South China Morning Post and Lianhe Zaobao published extensive in-depth reports on the event, focusing on analyzing the capital chaos and legal blind spots hidden behind the rapid development of China's entertainment industry.