After three years in Hong Kong, here's the real talk: some things in this world are just off-limits.
Recently, WeChat video influencer @MiduYang21 jumped into X, and they're trading hard.
Web3, NBA, White House reporters, six languages, over sixty countries... the persona is built up strong, every photo tells a story. Within just a few days, followers skyrocketed, but so did the haters. The pic with @elonmusk was flagged by AI as fake, making Musk look like a total noob; news from 2013 was dragged up, and Anta and the basketball community came out saying they don't know this guy.
This is straight-up a live textbook.
Having been in Hong Kong for three years, I've finally seen the light.
There are some things in this world you'd better not touch. If you do, you're just digging your own grave, and fast.
The three major no-go areas of our time:
The interests of A9—the money and networks of those at the top.
You really dare to make a move? They won’t waste words, resources will just roll over you, silencing you without a sound.
The facade of A7—middle-class pretentiousness.
You tear off their civilized facade? They immediately climax collectively, nailing you to the pillar of shame with the most elegant and moral tones, all while sipping coffee.
The A5 mindset—those bottom-tier folks banding together.
You touch it? The whole country rushes out like mad dogs, biting and not letting go.
The most frustrating part is, these three groups usually look down on each other—A9 mocks A7 for being sour, A7 thinks A5 is dirty, and A5 sees the other two as fools. But at critical moments, they unite like they’re wearing the same pair of pants, working together to take you down.
I've seen too many KOLs rise just by flapping their mouths, including myself.
A couple of years ago, it was all about bravado, daring to speak, to sell the information edge, to poke through the façade, fans were skyrocketing, thinking I was some badass.
And what’s the outcome? When you really hit something you shouldn’t, you immediately get weak-kneed.
This wave from Midu could be called a classic case—daring to be loud, to charge in, to stomp on the gas of information disparity.
Some praise her for her big ambitions, others criticize her for fake packaging. But she truly dances on the tightrope harder than many.
I’m the same way.
As I write, my hands get itchy, wanting to step into the minefield a bit for some thrill. But just thinking about losing followers, being attacked, getting banned, and the iron fist of this hellish microcosm makes me pull back my feet.
Every day swaying on the tightrope, rocking left and right, looking as awkward as a eunuch playing Wu Song.
Living off the information edge means you’ll be dancing for life. The deeper you dig, the easier it is to step on a landmine.
Many KOLs have seen through it now: continue being the good kid, turning yourself into a soulless traffic machine, safety first.
Really charge in like Midu? But scared of dying too quickly and looking bad, becoming a joke online.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, living a life that’s particularly damn frustrating.
Hong Kong is interesting because the flashier the surface, the more brutal the rules underneath. No matter how bright the lights of Victoria Harbour, they can't hide the jungle vibes.
Now when I drink, I often scold myself:
"You idiot, knowing you shouldn't touch this, yet you keep testing it daily. With this little bit of ambition, you still think you can be a KOL who speaks the truth? Think you can be a hero? Wake up, you’re just a clown shaking your butt on a tightrope."
With this kind of attitude, still wanting to be a hero?
What about you?
Still tiptoeing around the mines, being a careful good kid.
Or like me, already starting to self-destruct, pushing through like Midu, even if I get trashed for it, just wanting to see if I can carve out a bloody path?