21: Chapter 21 Social Planning

Star Alliance Nation Executive Residence, family dining room.

This was not the state banquet hall typically used to receive foreign heads of state, but a room where past executives would have lunch with their families or a very small number of close allies in informal settings.

The Grand Speaker of the Star Alliance Nation sat by the window, pondering the various requests Chen Mu might bring up next.

The door opened, and Chen Mu walked in: "Good afternoon, Grand Speaker!"

"Good afternoon, Ambassador."

At this moment, a waiter served the first course: thinly sliced smoked salmon, accompanied by a small pinch of capers, a small pinch of chopped red onion, and a small slice of lemon.

The Grand Speaker did not touch his cutlery; he watched as Chen Mu gently unfolded the smoked salmon with a fork, speared a small piece, and put it into his mouth, then asked: "Ambassador, my team tells me that you invited me to this lunch, perhaps to discuss things outside of your official capacity."

Chen Mu put down his fork: "Your think tank is very impressive, but not entirely accurate. I did invite you to this lunch to discuss something, which is both official business and, one could say, a private matter."

He picked up his fork again and speared a second piece of smoked salmon: "I would like to ask you a question."

The Grand Speaker put down his glass of ice water: "Please, go ahead."

Chen Mu pulled his phone from his inner suit pocket. The screen lit up, and he opened a social media app called "Star Language," tapping on the account he had just registered this morning.

Username: Ambassador of Guga Planet, zero following, zero followers, zero posts.

He placed the phone on the tablecloth, screen facing up, and pushed it toward the Grand Speaker.

"Grand Speaker, I saw the post you made. It made me suddenly realize one thing: perhaps I have been focusing too much on you leaders of the race."

His fingers tapped lightly on the tablecloth: "After all, you are a coalition-based nation, so I would also like to talk directly with your people."

The Grand Speaker moved his hand away from the water glass: "Ambassador, I personally do not oppose you doing this. But as you may know, there are all kinds of people on the internet."

He picked up the phone from the tablecloth, the deep blue interface on the screen glowing in his palm.

"You see, although I am the Grand Speaker, nominally the highest leader of this country."

His thumb swiped across the screen, pulling up his own homepage, which had tens of millions of followers. The profile picture was a photo of him wearing a deep blue suit, a red tie, and a solemn expression.

"Whenever I post an update, no matter what the content is, there are always all kinds of voices in the comment section."

He put the phone back on the tablecloth and pushed it toward Chen Mu: "I am worried..."

Chen Mu smiled: "I know, don't worry. I respect the freedom of speech here, and I won't get angry at those on the internet who insult me or Guga Planet."

His fingers picked up the phone from the tablecloth, and the screen lit up again.

"However, regarding how to quickly gain followers and attract more attention on social media, I do indeed want to ask for your advice, Grand Speaker."

The Grand Speaker looked at Chen Mu and raised his glass: "Ambassador, you have asked the right person. You should know that in the Star Alliance Nation, I have accumulated quite a bit of experience in this area."

Chen Mu clinked glasses with him: "Then, Grand Speaker, do you have any good suggestions?"

The Grand Speaker leaned back into his chair and pondered for a moment: "Tonight at eight, I can hold a press conference here to introduce your identity."

"By then, all major media will be present, and then a global live broadcast will begin."

"I will start with a few minutes of opening remarks, and then I will hand the time over to you. You can say whatever you want, such as your identity, your demands, or the views of Guga Planet toward the Blue Star Civilization; all of that is fine."

His finger tapped on the tablecloth: "I can guarantee that after this, your number of followers will definitely increase significantly. What do you think, Ambassador?"

Chen Mu cut the last piece of steak and put it into his mouth: "No problem, Grand Speaker."

He stood up: "If there is nothing else, I will take my leave. See you tonight!"

After Chen Mu left, the Grand Speaker immediately got up and went to a small meeting room nearby, quickly saying to his expert team: "He wants to communicate directly with the public through social media. Analyze the reasons!"

Professor Bloom was the first to speak: "Grand Speaker, I think the reason is perhaps exactly what he literally said. He wants to bypass the government and observe the public directly."

"We discussed before that their goal is the Blue Star Civilization itself. So who can represent the Blue Star Civilization? Is it us elites sitting here? Or the ordinary people who are currently locked in their homes?"

"My thought is: both. This Ambassador might truly want to fully engage with everyone in this civilization, starting from the homeless at the very bottom."

The Secretary of State put down his coffee cup: "If he truly succeeds in bypassing the government and establishes some form of 'interaction' with the public, and the public starts to trust him, accept his narrative, and treat him as an individual who can be engaged with or even trusted..."

Brigadier General Parrish continued: "Then the government will lose its foundation for existence. If the public turns directly toward Guga Planet, then those of us sitting behind the negotiating table will be nothing."

The meeting room was silent for a long time.

Advisor Cole took off his rimless glasses and wiped the lenses with the cuff of his charcoal gray suit jacket: "Two suggestions, Grand Speaker."

"First, before the press conference, give the public a preventive injection. It cannot be done by the government; instead, it should be done by the media, experts, and influential people on social networks to discuss the matter of 'the alien envoy may personally communicate with the public,' so that the public has a psychological buffer."

"Second, when he speaks tonight, our people must be online simultaneously. At critical moments, we must guide the direction of the discussion so that the public's emotions are not completely led by him."

The Grand Speaker tapped the table lightly: "Let's do that."

He stood up from the sofa, pulled his phone from his inner suit pocket, and posted a new update on "Star Language":

[Grand Speaker of the Star Alliance Nation: Tonight at 8 PM, I will hold a joint press conference with the Ambassador of Guga Planet in the press briefing room.]

[At that time, this alien envoy will personally introduce their civilization and mission to the people of the Star Alliance Nation and the whole world. I have said it before: no one understands aliens better than I do. Stay tuned!]