Chapter 370: Link’s Counterattack

After his tweet was posted, related news and public opinion online caused a new frenzy.

Looking at the trending topics on major news platforms, this story appeared everywhere, even overshadowing the news about the U.S. sending more troops to Afghanistan.

Before Link posted this tweet, the rumor that "Taylor is pregnant" was just speculation by netizens based on recent photos and news of Taylor—no one had confirmed it.

Now, with Link’s direct tweet calling it a surprise, thanking Taylor, and saying he’ll take responsibility, it confirmed the "Taylor is pregnant" rumor.

Immediately, many news websites scrambled to change their headlines.

They reported that country music queen Taylor Swift is pregnant, with Link announcing the news online and pledging to take responsibility. Some media outlets suggested that their relationship is facing a new twist due to Taylor's unexpected pregnancy, possibly leading to a reconciliation.

Meanwhile, in the comment section of Link’s Twitter, the criticism and condemnation from trolls reached a new peak. In just three hours, the tweet was retweeted 170,000 times, liked 1.02 million times, and received 430,000 comments, a staggering amount.

Previously, the trolls only called him a scumbag and the demon of the entertainment industry, but now many are personally attacking him, saying things like he’s unfit to be a father, that he should get out of the music industry, and calling for a boycott of him, with lots of vulgar language.

Because of this, Twitter’s backend set up a special sensitive word filtering system for his account, so all profanity and personal attacks were blocked from appearing in the comment section.

But the trolls didn’t stop there. They moved their attacks from Twitter to MySpace, Facebook, Yahoo community forums, and other sites, spreading rumors and trying to completely tarnish Link’s reputation.

“Haha, Link, look at this. Someone’s insult is pretty funny, calling you a…”

“Shut up!”

In the study, Link glanced at the round-faced person and continued flipping through his textbook. At this critical moment, the more overwhelming the public opinion seemed, the more he had to stay calm and unchanging.

“With so many people cursing you, are you planning to leave the entertainment industry?”

Selena blinked her big black eyes, her round face showing a mischievous smile.

“Have you finished the mock exam? If not, hurry up and do it.”

“Hmph, no way!”

Selena pouted, holding the latest iPad, and lay down in front of his desk, saying, “I’ve told you before to be a good man, but you didn’t listen. You insisted on messing around outside, and now look what happened—you’ve become the number one scumbag in the music industry.

I suggest you quickly film an apology video, sincerely admitting your mistakes to all the netizens and fans, promising never to make the same mistakes again. Hope the fans give you another chance. What do you think?”

“What did I do wrong?” Link asked while flipping through the book.

“You! You’ve done so many bad things—cheating, infidelity, being a playboy—each one is a mortal sin. How can you think you’ve done nothing wrong?”

Selena said in surprise.

Link shook his head and told her that all the girls he dated were willing, and each relationship was true love. His feelings for them were genuine, without deceit or manipulation, so he didn’t think he did anything wrong, nor did he need to apologize.

“True love? A scumbag like you dares to talk about true love? Your face is really thick.”

Selena pouted and said.

Link raised his hand and flicked her smooth forehead. Selena covered her forehead, stepped back two steps, and glared at him angrily. Then she took out her tablet, went online, and said she would rally all the fans to curse him, the scumbag.

Knock, knock, knock!

Mrs. Mandy knocked on the door and came in.

“Link, did you see Taylor’s response? Did you read it?”

“I’m reading it now.”

Selena, sitting on the floor, holding her tablet, shouted, “Three minutes ago, Taylor posted a tweet saying it was an unexpected gift and a difficult decision. In the end, she chose to calmly accept it and face everything alone. It has nothing to do with anyone else, and she hopes a certain gentleman won’t be self-centered and make random comments just to feel relevant.

Haha, Taylor nailed it. Link, you’re just being self-centered, seeking attention. I have to retweet this, with a caption supporting Taylor and bringing down scumbag Link.”

Link frowned as he listened. He looked at Mrs. Mandy and asked if Taylor really said that.

Mrs. Mandy shrugged and smiled, saying that was about the gist of it.

Link shook his head and asked Mrs. Mandy what Scooter planned to do about it.

Mrs. Mandy said there was too much negative news online, and whatever they did wouldn’t help much. Scooter suggested handling it quietly for now, keeping silent, and figuring out other ways later to gradually guide public opinion and reduce the negative impact.

Scooter also said that having the "scumbag" label isn’t entirely bad. Figures like Clinton, Tiger Woods, and Kobe Bryant, after many scandals, were seen as having "masculinity," "strong desire," and "aggressiveness," which earned them a lot of support from the male demographic.

And that’s how it is. Mrs. Mandy said that during his relationship with Taylor, the majority of people who bought his albums were young women, accounting for about 80%. But since April, the number of male fans buying his albums has increased significantly, now making up over 30%.

In the past three months, after several rumors linking him to various female celebrities from different countries, he’s been considered an enviable and very charming man.

Just like Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, no matter how often they change girlfriends or get divorced, their female fans still adore them, while male fans find them sexy, charismatic, and admire them as role models.

And now, after those big stars, Link is considered the new generation of male gods in the entertainment industry.

“How can that be?”

Hearing Mrs. Mandy’s words, Selena was the first to express her dissatisfaction. “How can men get away with this? He’s a scumbag, a playboy, a big bad guy. What’s there to admire? If this happened to us girls, would they see it the same way? This is sexism. It’s unfair.”

Link shook his head, “If I ignore this, I might lose some fans.”

“Yes, Scooter believes this is a process of refining your fan base because your label of ‘universal love’ is already established.”

“It’s ‘scumbag,’ not ‘universal love,’” Selena retorted.

“Shut up!”

Mrs. Mandy raised her hand as if to swat her, and Selena ducked to the side, clutching her head. Mrs. Mandy continued, “Because that label already exists, it’s an unchangeable fact. Unless you completely change your ways, it will be very difficult to win back those fans who supported you because they saw you as a good man.

Once those fans leave, the remaining ones will be your true fans. No matter if you’re a scumbag or not, as long as your music is good and your boxing matches are exciting, they’ll keep supporting you. Just like Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant, after going through their scandals, their annual income didn’t drop—in fact, it became even more stable.”

Kobe Bryant’s “Eagle County incident” happened in 2003, and it was reported that Kobe settled the matter by paying $5 million, which was almost half of his annual salary. Even after 2003, Kobe continued to be surrounded by rumors, but his stature in the NBA only grew.

He eventually surpassed Shaquille O’Neal to become the most famous NBA star of the new millennium.

And just last October in Florida, Tiger Woods was involved in a car accident near his home. The media later revealed that his wife found out about his long-term affairs with numerous mistresses. His wife, armed with a golf club, tried to hit him, forcing Tiger to quickly drive away, accidentally crashing into a tree near the entrance.

Since last October, the media has exposed that Tiger Woods had over a hundred mistresses, including models, reporters, waitresses, and even neighbors, along with more than twenty illegitimate children.

Tiger Woods also ranked second on Forbes’ list of “America’s Most Hated Sports Stars” in February, with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James right behind him.

But despite all that, Tiger Woods was still the highest-earning sports star last year, even earning more than Link.

This shows that male celebrities' personal lives have little impact on their careers.

“It’s so unfair! Why do male celebrities get more famous and richer the worse they behave, but female celebrities can’t?” Selena protested, puffing out her round cheeks.

Mrs. Mandy ignored her and continued, saying that Link, as a singer, should consider transitioning his image after releasing a few albums or reaching a certain age to match the growth of his fan base and to expand his audience.

Female singers often transition from being pure and sweet to a more mature and sexy image, like Madonna, Britney Spears, and Beyoncé. Male singers also go through style transitions, some shifting from country to rock, others from a clean-cut image to a mature and sexy one, and some good boys turning into bad boys.

After releasing three albums, Link could consider transitioning too, from being a good guy to a scumbag or mature man, which could attract a more mature fan base.

Link thought for a moment. This sounded good, but passively taking hits wasn’t his style.

“Waiting for the attacks to end before trying to clear my name would be too passive. During that time, I’d lose too many fans.

First, find out who is hiring these trolls to attack me. If we can identify the mastermind, great. If not, then track down the most active platforms and users, investigate whether their statements are excessive, and if any of them are defamatory, send them a lawyer’s letter to protect my legitimate interests.

Second, see if there are any entertainment rumors or political scandals in the industry recently. Stir them up to divert the public’s attention.

The third and most important point is that the current wave of public interest is very high, so it would be a waste not to use it.

We should actively guide public opinion, find a way to shift the focus from criticizing me personally to the competition between my album and Taylor’s on the charts. Turn this invisible controversy into a tangible battle over album sales, and call on all justice-minded netizens to unite, buy Taylor’s new album, and team up to defeat me, the scumbag, letting justice triumph over evil.”

Selena was wide-eyed with surprise at his words. “Would you really be that generous?”

“I told you before, I have true love for Taylor,” Link replied.

“Okay, I’ve got it. One more thing, Ivanka just called. She’ll be in Los Angeles later.”

Mrs. Mandy said.

“Ivanka? Why is she coming here?” Link asked, surprised.

“Link, you’re in trouble. Ivanka’s coming to break up with you. Getting dumped twice in one year—that would be hilarious,” Selena said with a laugh, her eyes squinting with glee.

Link glanced at her, then suddenly reached out and pinched both her cheeks, pulling them sideways, turning her round face into a flat pancake.

Selena froze for two seconds, then started yelling, waving her little fists and swinging them at him.

(End of this chapter)