The Internet's "Justice" Carnival

As soon as the trial ended, Sun Tingting followed her family out of the courthouse on unsteady legs, barely holding back the wild joy threatening to overflow. The moment she got into the car home, she eagerly pulled out her phone, her fingers trembling slightly with excitement.

First, she sent a string of exclamation marks and crying stickers to a small WeChat group containing only Zhang Qian and a few of her most "diehard" supporters, along with the words:

"Girls! We won! Three years! Thank you, Sister Zhang! Thank you, everyone! Justice was delayed, but it wasn't denied! [crying][crying][heart]"

The group immediately erupted, a flood of congratulations, celebrations, and praise filling the screen. Zhang Qian even sent a rare "smile" emoji. Being surrounded by support and affirmation gave Sun Tingting's vanity enormous satisfaction.

But that wasn't enough. She needed a bigger stage. She needed everyone to see her "victory," to see how she had utterly crushed Lin Feng, the man who had dared to offend her, beneath her feet!

As soon as she got home, she rushed into her bedroom and locked the door. She needed to carefully concoct a new video to announce the final victory in this "battle."

She sat at her dressing table and carefully touched up her makeup, deliberately reddening the skin around her eyes so she looked as though she had just wept bitterly. But she couldn't look too haggard overall; she needed to project the strength of someone who had "survived a catastrophe." She changed into a simple white T-shirt, with her home's plain, tasteful curtains as the backdrop.

Once she was ready, she opened the recording screens on Quick Sound and Little Red Sweet Potato.

Quick Sound video title: "The Dust Has Settled! Thank You to the Law for Giving Me Justice! Three Years, One Lesson!"

Little Red Sweet Potato post title: "My Fight for My Rights (Final Chapter): Justice Will Not Let Down a Single Brave Girl!"

In the video, Sun Tingting first bowed deeply to the camera. When she raised her face, her eyes were already brimming with tears (this time, even she probably couldn't tell how much was real and how much was fake).

"Everyone... friends who have been following this all along..." Her voice caught with a sob, but she tried to speak clearly. "The court's verdict just came out... the person who hurt me, Lin Feng, was sentenced to three years in prison according to the law."

She paused, as though it took tremendous courage to say the result aloud, and tears rolled down her cheeks at just the right moment.

"At this moment, my feelings are really complicated... I feel wronged and heartbroken, but more than anything... I'm grateful!" She looked into the camera, trying to put a resolute look in her eyes. "I'm grateful to the law for giving me a fair resolution! I'm grateful to the police officers handling the case, especially Officer Zhang, for their persistence! I'm grateful to the judge for seeing every detail clearly! And I'm grateful to every netizen who has supported and encouraged me all this time! You gave me the courage to keep going!"

She bowed again.

"These three years aren't just a punishment for him personally. They're also a deterrent to all potential lawbreakers! I want to tell every girl who has been through something like I have: don't be afraid! Be brave and stand up! The law will protect us! Justice may be delayed, but it will never be denied!"

Her tone gradually shifted from choked sobs to the declaration of a "victor," with a barely perceptible hint of smugness.

"Finally, I also hope these three years will make him truly reflect on his mistakes... This matter ends here. I'll do my best to start a new life. Thank you, everyone!"

The video ended with her giving a brave smile, tears glistening in her eyes.

Once the video and post were published, they were like a ladle of cold water poured into a pot of boiling oil, instantly setting off the emotions that had long been brewing across the internet!

The Quick Sound comment section:

"Set off firecrackers to celebrate! Cheers, girls! [beer]"

"Three years! How satisfying! A creep like him deserves to rot in prison!"

"Way to go, Tingting! You're our hero!"

"Thank you, Officer Zhang! Thank you, judge! You've rid the people of a menace!"

"@Municipal Normal University Look at the kind of student you've produced! If you're not expelling him, are you saving him for New Year?"

"Three years is letting him off easy! I say he should be chemically castrated!"

"Congratulations, Tingting! Start your new life! Things will definitely get better and better from now on!"

"Justice will prevail! Girls helping girls!"

Likes, reposts, and comments skyrocketed exponentially. The hashtag #LinFengTheMolesterSentencedToThreeYears rapidly climbed to the top ranks of the platform's trending list.

Countless self-media accounts and big influencers swarmed in like sharks smelling blood. They took the verdict and clips from Sun Tingting's video and turned them into short videos or articles about "justice being served" and "victory for women defending their rights," frantically harvesting traffic. It was as though the internet were holding a grand online denunciation celebration aimed at Lin Feng, the air filled with joy and "justice."

It was the same on Little Red Sweet Potato. The comments were flooded with messages like "Hugs, sister," "Congratulations," and "That's so satisfying." Someone even started a "send Tingting gifts to soothe her nerves" campaign.

Yet amid this almost entirely one-sided wave of revelry, a few discordant notes emerged here and there, like jarring noises in the middle of a carnival dance tune.

On an online forum known for rational discussion, an anonymous post quietly appeared:

"Rational discussion: based solely on the woman's one-sided account and a disputed confession, with no substantial physical evidence (such as surveillance footage directly capturing an act of molestation), and no resulting injury at the minor-injury level or above, a three-year maximum sentence straight off for forcible molestation? Is that consistent with judicial practice? Could someone with legal expertise explain?"

A few scattered replies agreed:

"Agreed. The sentence is ridiculously heavy."

"I watched the trial livestream recap (though it was edited), and the presiding judge seemed a little... too rushed."

"Could public pressure have influenced the verdict?"

"Let the bullets fly a little longer. I just feel this isn't over."

But those faint voices seemed utterly powerless amid the overwhelming celebrations. They were quickly drowned out, reported, and even deleted amid a flood of hostile comments like "Get lost, fake centrists," "If you sympathize with a creep, may your future son turn out the same," and "You think you know better than the judge?" The people who made those remarks were also labeled "paid shills," "male-rights activists," and "Lin Feng's friends and family," and subjected to wave after wave of online abuse. Rational doubts could not withstand a single blow before the frenzied tide of collective emotion.

Sun Tingting lay in bed, refreshing her platform stats over and over, watching her follower count soar and her private messages fill with support and comfort. Quite a few male netizens had even sent her suggestive messages asking to "get to know her."

She reveled in being the center of everyone's attention and being hailed as a "hero." Her earlier unease and fear had long since been swept away by overwhelming vanity and the joy of victory. She felt she had made an incomparably correct decision. Sister Zhang Qian really was her benefactor!

She even began to fantasize: could she ride this wave of popularity to become an internet celebrity? An inspirational idol representing "female empowerment"?

Meanwhile, within the high walls, in that special cell.

Lin Feng remained calm. Through Zhou Wenyuan, he had already learned about the "carnival" outside. He felt no anger; the icy curve at the corner of his mouth merely deepened.

He looked at the screenshots of online comments Zhou Wenyuan had sent into his mind, full of vicious curses and blind celebration, as though watching a farce that had nothing to do with him.

Go on, revel. Celebrate.

He thought silently.

The higher you jump now, the harder you'll fall when the time comes.

This false victory, this manipulated public opinion, this absurd verdict... he had remembered it all.

Every last bit would be repaid in the future, principal and interest alike.

The internet's memory was short, but his was eternal.