Seeing Wei Zijin calm down first, Wang Xiaoliang felt much of his anger subside too.
"Look at the numbers!" he said. "I refuse to believe someone copying homework can outscore the top student!"
It was reassurance, but also conviction.
Wei Zijin said nothing and opened her account dashboard on her phone. Wang Xiaoliang immediately leaned in.
On the screen, the numbers for the two videos formed a glaring contrast.
Wei Zijin's video had already shot up to 570,000 views.
Meanwhile, Xie Hui's plagiarized video had only just passed 12,000, trailing far behind like a tagalong eating dust.
They were worlds apart.
"Fuck!" Wang Xiaoliang shouted excitedly. "We won! My wife is fucking amazing! Crush that shameless thief!"
Wei Zijin leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Looking at her, Wang Xiaoliang felt a pang in his heart. He knew this small victory in numbers could not heal the hurt inside her.
She had been hurt again.
The first time, they had openly tried to take the fruits of her labor. The second time, they had openly plagiarized her work.
Wei Zijin turned her attention back to her phone and opened the comments.
Hundreds of new comments had already poured in.
"Huh? Two updates today? A special treat? Who's this Xie Hui? Someone new?"
"Holy shit, her style is exactly like our Little Wei's. She even copies the pauses when she talks. Has Little Wei taken on an apprentice?"
"Definitely an apprentice, but she's nowhere near as pretty as our Little Wei."
"Look closer, commenter above. Even the rhythm of her questions is identical, but it feels really stiff. She's copied the form, not the spirit."
The comments about Liang Yanni, meanwhile, were all alike, full of stock phrases such as "strong," "brave," and "a role model for women."
Her inbox had