19: Diners' reactions

Unbeknownst to them, the comments started to go off-topic.

Seeing that everyone's focus was shifting, the Yellow-Haired Vendor and the leader of the internet trolls immediately grew anxious, quickly posted more comments, and once again steered the conversation back to the stinky tofu stall.

Among them, the keywords "public toilet," "sewage," and "extremely stinky" appeared with particularly high frequency, almost once every two comments.

Facts proved that positive discussions were never as eye-catching as negative comments.

Soon, the entire video's comment section began discussing whether the stinky tofu stall used sewage.

Even those who had initially commented, saying they wanted to try the taste, seeing the shift in public opinion, quickly deleted their comments and turned to condemn the food stall owner.

At this point, even if it wasn't actual feces, it was no different from it.

More and more people, unaware of the truth, were swept into the frenzy, even believing that the food stall in this gourmet video had a major problem.

Some enthusiastic netizens, who hated evil as much as they loved justice, also started attacking the video uploader, questioning why he would aid and abet evil.

Some even thought the video uploader was the stinky tofu stall owner, and the viciousness of their attacks and condemnations was enough to give anyone nightmares.

Li An forgot to turn off the notification sound for the short video before going to bed last night.

As more and more people commented and the video's popularity grew, the notification sound was almost incessant, like an annoying alarm clock.

Li An was startled awake from his sweet dream, then looked at his constantly vibrating phone in surprise.

"Who's looking for me? No, this sounds like a short video notification."

Li An's brows furrowed slightly, but then quickly relaxed.

It seemed the short video from last night was quite popular; the money spent on trending topics was well worth it.

"Hehehe, how will the Your Devilishness reward me? I'm so excited."

Grinning from ear to ear, Li An happily picked up his phone and started scrolling through the comments.

However, what met his eyes was not praise and flowers.

Instead, it was a screen full of curses and mockery.

The more comments Li An read, the paler his face became.

Sweat beads the size of beans poured down, unstoppable, even though the indoor air conditioning was set to 17 degrees Celsius for cooling.

Thud.

Li An no longer felt the pain of his phone hitting his face.

He was foaming at the mouth, his body twitching uncontrollably.

His last conscious thought lingered on the cruel image of him being repeatedly deep-fried in a wok by the Your Devilishness.

---

"Qi Yuan, Qi Yuan, look at this video, is that you three on it?"

A boy in the class suddenly secretly pulled out a phone from his pocket, opened a video, muted the sound, and slipped it to Qi Yuan under the desk.

Qi Yuan cautiously glanced at the 'Nun of Extinction' on the podium, then lowered his head to watch the video.

Suddenly, he shot straight up, his expression changing dramatically as he exclaimed, "Holy cow!"

This startled cry drew the attention of the entire class, who then looked at the phone in Qi Yuan's hand and silently gave him a thumbs-up.

---

Worker Meng, who was sitting in his office with his legs crossed, was suddenly called by his superior.

He quickly scurried over, greeting his superior with a fawning smile.

However, his superior, who was usually jovial, now had a sour expression.

Just as Worker Meng was surprised, his superior had already pulled out his phone, told him to watch the video that was playing, and started scolding him.

"You quickly contact the video uploader and tell him to delete the video. If this matter isn't handled well, it will seriously affect the positive image of our unit."

---

At the fire brigade, after an intense training session, a group of comrades were joking around, and some were scrolling through short videos.

Suddenly, one person let out a soft 'hmm,' then picked up his phone and walked over to Leng Hui.

"Captain Leng, is this the very delicious stinky tofu stall you mentioned?"

Leng Hui got down from the horizontal bar, wiped his sweat with a towel, then took the phone and started watching.

However, as he watched, his face suddenly turned very stern, and by the end, he almost couldn't help but shout, "They're spouting utter nonsense!"

This roar immediately attracted everyone's attention.

---

Qi Yuan, whose phone had been confiscated and who had been severely scolded, shrugged apologetically at the aggrieved boy beside him.

During the break, Qi Yuan found Li Qihong and Zeng Yucheng.

"What do you two think about this?"

Li Qihong and Zeng Yucheng had just learned the news and were also in a state of confusion.

Li Qihong looked troubled, scratched his head, and said, "Truly, one sits in school, and trouble comes from the sky. The three of us are going to be famous—no, we're already famous."

"But to be fair, that stinky tofu was indeed quite stinky. Is it really true, as they say, that something was added to it?"

As soon as he said this, Qi Yuan and Zeng Yucheng immediately looked at him with the eyes of a traitor.

Qi Yuan clutched his chest in anguish, glaring at Li Qihong.

"Others haven't eaten it, so it's fine for them to guess. But you ate four big bowls; don't you know if sewage was added?"

Zeng Yucheng was even more direct, poking Li Qihong's chest, looking as if he was about to denounce a rebellious son at any moment.

This action from the two immediately scared Li Qihong into clasping his hands together and apologizing repeatedly.

"Don't apologize to us, apologize to the young boss."

"Exactly, he doesn't look much older than us, and you're still badmouthing him."

After some commotion, Li Qihong returned to their camp, restoring their iron triangle relationship of 'godfather and godson.'

In the last moments of the break, the three gathered to seriously discuss a solution.

In the end, they still couldn't come up with a good method.

They could only agree to go back tonight, and if any netizens came looking, the three of them would stand up and testify for the boss.

---

Worker Meng found Old Chen and the other two, and they gathered to discuss.

"Oh, what a mess this is."

"Indeed, looking at the filming angle, it should be that Fat Man who took it. See, this person is indeed not serious; the video he took can cause such a big problem."

"I've already contacted him, but he said deleting it now wouldn't make much sense, as many people have probably already downloaded and saved it."

"Worker Meng, I see many people commenting on the video that they're going to overturn that stall tonight."

"Never mind, the four of us will go together tonight. We'll help clarify the truth on the spot, after all, the young boss is quite innocent."

"Yes, seeing the young boss reminds me of my youngest son. He's also quite pitiful; if we can help, we should."

"Oh, and the four of us are also famous in a way. Let's film a video together and post it online to explain. Whether it works or not, it's better to do something than nothing."

"That's a good idea! What should I say? Oh, it's my first time on camera, I'm a little shy."

---

"Brothers, this young boss is my benefactor."

Leng Hui stood on the stage, speaking earnestly to his comrades below.

"Brothers not on duty tonight, come with me to support the young boss."

After speaking, a cold light flashed in his eyes, and he waved his hand fiercely.

"Although I don't know why things suddenly turned out this way, let's see who dares to overturn the young boss's stall tonight."

As soon as Leng Hui finished speaking, his comrades, who could no longer hold back, were already rubbing their fists and palms, their blood boiling.

"Being kind to Captain Leng is being kind to us. I'm not on duty tonight, I'll go with you, Captain Leng."

"I'll go too, and I'll get to taste the young boss's cooking. Last night, Captain Leng's description made me so hungry I almost died."

"Hahahaha, count me in, count me in."

...