Chapter 32

The second day.

As soon as Zhang Ye got up in the morning, he didn't even have time to eat breakfast and immediately turned on the computer at home. His parents' desktop computer was a domestic "Donghua" brand, which was also a brand he had never heard of in this world. It was cheap and had a good price-to-performance ratio, but it often crashed.

When he checked online, Tian Bin's Weibo post had already been deleted. Zhang Ye had also deleted some of his own Weibo posts last night. There was no choice; Director Zhao had personally called him last night to vent his anger. Everything seemed calm, but only those who had experienced yesterday's verbal battle knew how intense the scene had been.

Huh?

This year's internet buzzwords?

Through a Weibo link, Zhang Ye clicked into a voting website, which turned out to be a selection for the top ten internet buzzwords of the year. This setting was different from what Zhang Ye was used to in his world, where the buzzwords were almost universally recognized and then adopted. In this world, it seemed that many buzzwords were generated by netizens' votes. The results were shocking!

No. 1: I bought a watch last year — from Zhang Ye.

No. 2: Please (QU) you (NI) self (MA) respect (DE) — from Zhang Ye.

No. 3: Your front door is all planted with phoenix trees — from netizen "I am your aunt."

No. 4: Teacher Tian, why did you give up on treatment? — from Zhang Ye.

Among the top ten internet buzzwords, Zhang Ye's insults had been pushed to the top few positions by tens of thousands of votes in just one day. The first, second, and fourth were all his. Looking further down, his other insults were also hovering around the 20th and 30th positions, with the number of votes continuously rising. Zhang Ye couldn't help but laugh, especially when he saw that "Teacher Tian" was the subject of the phrase "why did you give up on treatment"!

The verbal battle incident seemed to have ended, and the newspapers didn't report anything because neither Zhang Ye nor Tian Bin were famous, so it wasn't considered news. However, some self-media outlets on the internet did make evaluations of yesterday's verbal battle.

"The Quality and Cultivation of Radio Hosts."

"Shocking Verbal Battle Incident: A Poet's Counterattack."

"Weibo Miracle: A Verbal Battle Draws Tens of Thousands of Spectators."

After a quick scan, Zhang Ye finished eating the breakfast his parents had made and went to work.

...

At the office.

As soon as he arrived at the entrance of the radio building, many staff members he didn't know kept looking at him, and some were even pointing and whispering.

"That's Zhang Ye!"

"That's him? Haha."

"Did you see Weibo yesterday? Amazing!"

A young man from the human resources department smiled and waved at Zhang Ye, "Teacher Zhang, you're here? Good morning."

Zhang Ye blinked, clearly not recognizing him, but still politely greeted him, "Hello, good morning." Well, he must have become famous again, but Zhang Ye, who had always dreamed of making a name for himself, wasn't particularly happy today. Instead, he felt a bit bitter because he knew this time he had gained a bad reputation. The closer he got to his office area, the more nervous he became. He didn't know how his superiors would punish him.

As soon as he entered the office area, everyone was there.

"Ah, Teacher Zhang!" Xiao Fang was the first to see him.

The nearly retired Teacher Feng said with a mix of frustration and disappointment, "You, you, why are you so impulsive?"

Others laughed, glanced, and looked at Zhang Ye with complex expressions.

Zhang Ye said, "Teacher Feng, it wasn't me being impulsive. Someone was really overstepping their bounds, cursing me on Weibo for no reason and even getting their fans to join in. How could I not fight back?" Despite his reputation for writing poetry and novels, this wasn't his true nature. He was actually a hot-headed person who would curse at injustice.

"By the way, where's Tian Bin?" Zhang Ye asked.

Teacher Feng's expression turned strange, and he paused, "He's in the hospital, on leave today."

"In the hospital?" Zhang Ye was taken aback. Could it be because of me? That's a bit much, right?

A small head from the editorial department said, "Little Zhang, you've really caused trouble this time. Director Zhao said to find him as soon as you got here."

Zhang Ye said innocently, "I didn't start it. Everyone saw that Teacher Tian was the one who insulted me first. It's not my fault he's in the hospital. Sigh, there's a saying that's really true: NO-ZUO, NO-DIE."

Xiao Fang was puzzled, "What does that mean?"

Others were also confused, "Is this English? No? Die? What is it?"

Zhang Ye explained, "When you put it together, it means... if you don't make trouble, you won't die."

Teacher Feng, who was drinking water from a white porcelain cup, spat out most of it, coughing, "You little rascal, your mouth is too wicked!"

Everyone: "Your family says English like that?"

NO-ZUO? NO-DIE? Even the usually quiet Wang Xiaomei was amused, cleared her throat, and continued working.

Turning around, Zhang Ye went to the leader's office door and knocked twice.

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Zhang Ye."

"…Come in!"

Hearing his name, the tone inside immediately turned bad.

Zhang Ye carefully entered the room and saw that Zhao Guozhou was watering the flowers by the window. He closed the door and said, "Leader, Editor Zhou said you wanted to see me?"

Zhao Guozhou's voice was harsh, "Do you know why I called you?"

"I don't know?" Zhang Ye pretended to be clueless, "Is it about the recording of 'Ghost Blows Out the Light'? Don't worry, I'll finish it today. The recorded program can last for over a month."

Zhao Guozhou was speechless, "Are you trying to act dumb with me?"

Zhang Ye had to admit his mistake, "Leader, I know I was wrong yesterday, but Teacher Tian started it by insulting me on Weibo and inciting his fans to attack me. What could I do? I couldn't just pretend I didn't see it, right?"

Zhao Guozhou was angry, "He has his problems, and you have yours! Did Tian Bin use any foul language? What about you? Look at what you posted! The station leaders called me at home last night to ask what was going on! Do you know how much trouble you've caused for the station?!"

Zhao Guozhou put down the watering can and said, "You don't need to explain. This time, you will receive a reprimand. You also need to write a self-criticism. I'll see how you write it. If your attitude isn't sincere, there will be additional punishment. You decide for yourself!"

Zhang Ye refused, "Director Zhao, I accept the reprimand, but I won't write a self-criticism. I don't think I did anything wrong!"

Zhao Guozhou was furious, "You think you have a reason for cursing people?"

"But Weibo is my personal space, and I stated that it only represents my personal views, not the station's!" Zhang Ye argued. How could he, a grown man, write a self-criticism? This wasn't elementary school. Zhang Ye wouldn't agree to it; it was a matter of principle and dignity!

"Are you still arguing?" Zhao Guozhou glared at him.

"You can give me any punishment, but I won't write a self-criticism!" Zhang Ye said firmly.

Zhao Guozhou nodded, "Alright, then your bonus for next month will be withheld. You'll get it when you bring me the self-criticism!"

Withholding the bonus?

Ridiculous! What's a bonus compared to this?

Zhang Ye didn't hesitate, "I'll write the self-criticism right away! I'll give it to you in a bit!"

Zhao Guozhou: "..."