Beijing Panics and Rushes to Ban Him! Kevin Tsai Done For, Appeared at Shen Po-yang's Rally, Chinese Brands Cut Ties in Seconds? The US Strikes Back, Arresting a Pro-CCP Mainland Spouse Who Long Monitored Lai Ching-te's Whole Family

Taiwanese entertainer Kevin Tsai has faced intense backlash and been dropped by several Chinese brands after appearing at a campaign rally for Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen. The program explores the political fallout from this incident, the blind spots in public opinion on Chinese social media, and the response from Chiang Wan-an, while also mentioning the FBI's arrest of Zhang Wanying, a former Chinese citizen suspected of long-term surveillance of Lai Ching-te's family.

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Late last night, around 10 PM, a Taiwanese entertainer was effectively banned from discussion across the entire Chinese internet—or strictly speaking, semi-banned. The topic trended on Weibo multiple times, with cumulative discussions likely reaching hundreds of millions. The person in question attended the campaign headquarters rally for DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen yesterday, an event that consolidated all different factions of the DPP, including the Ocean faction, the Normal Country Promotion Association, the New Tide faction, and the Tsai Ing-wen faction. It was no surprise to see these political figures, but the Taiwanese entertainer who caused the CCP to blow up Weibo was someone who isn't even a DPP member. He sat in the audience wearing a hat and mask, barely said a word on stage, and quietly held a cheering stick. Kevin Tsai sat in the VIP section of the front row, holding the campaign cheering prop distributed at the entrance. Once the camera caught him, Weibo erupted with claims that Kevin Tsai had appeared at a "Taiwan independence" candidate's rally. They then began digging up things he said ten or twenty years ago, unearthed his remarks from the Golden Horse Awards, and even re-edited clips of him saying "I am Taiwanese" in the past. They even started naming names, calling out the Chinese brands he collaborates with and asking them, "Are you going to cut ties with this person at light speed?"

And here is the most absurd part of this whole thing: what is the reason for the meltdown among many Little Pinks? They did a little homework because they know that for the VIP section at Puma Shen's inaugural rally, tickets had to be snatched up in limited quantities, right? The popularity of people trying to grab tickets that day was comparable to the traffic for a major singer's concert. So how did Kevin Tsai manage to get one? Did he establish connections beforehand to get an invitation? I don't know how their headquarters operated, but usually, for PR tickets or VIP tickets, some singers or entertainers naturally have some reserved. So I don't know if that was the case, I really don't know. Some even claimed that Kevin Tsai must be so powerful that he rented hundreds of computers to snatch that VIP ticket? Who knows, that remains unknown. Others insisted that he must have used special privileges, therefore he is a "Taiwan independence" element. Regardless, this is something that the Little Pinks behind the Great Firewall will never be able to understand. Can you go watch Xi Jinping's Fifth Plenary Session, or next year's 21st National Congress, or the establishment of Xi Jinping's campaign headquarters? Is he going for a fourth term for his third tenure?

Starting from midnight today, more and more Chinese brands actively cut ties with Kevin Tsai. Just over a month ago in September, Kevin Tsai collaborated with the Chinese electric vehicle brand Leapmotor. Yet, late last night, Leapmotor issued this statement of severance, with its very first sentence openly declaring: "I firmly support the one-China principle." We all know very well that this China refers to the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party, right? Following that, all content related to Kevin Tsai was completely removed from the entire internet, emphasizing that Kevin Tsai is forever merely a past cooperating artist and does not represent any of the company's positions, absolutely no position. They even stated that in the future, they will strengthen the screening of the background and political stance of future collaborative partners. Additionally, cooperation content such as Harper's Bazaar was also successively deleted. Note, what on earth did Kevin Tsai actually do? Did he shout any slogans off stage? Looking at the live footage, no, he didn't. He did not say "Taiwan independence" on stage, nor did he announce joining the Democratic Progressive Party, and he didn't even give a speech for Puma Shen. He merely attended a legal and public campaign event in Taiwan, yet Chinese enterprises immediately started carrying out political severance overnight.

However, there is a very important distinction that I must tell you all. Based on the information I have checked so far, the ones who truly rushed out to fiercely denounce him at the very first moment were major influencers (Big Vs) on Chinese Weibo, as well as some well-known entrepreneurs who made statements online, along with brands cutting ties on their own. I have not yet seen official representatives—such as the Taiwan Affairs Office, Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, or CCTV—officially naming Kevin Tsai and listing him as a Taiwan independence lackey. I haven't seen that yet. The Taiwan Affairs Office press conference is held every Wednesday. If the CCP's official system really makes a public response regarding Kevin Tsai this Wednesday, and if this response carries a strong and heavy attitude of condemnation, then it means that for the Xi Jinping central leadership, this is extremely serious. What is actually worth discussing about this incident is: since Puma Shen was already listed by the Taiwan Affairs Office on their so-called list of stubborn Taiwan independence elements, meaning he is wanted just like me, everyone who understands the CCP's political red lines knows how this works. Another point worth noting for us is that before the official stance is announced, which private enterprises, Big V influencers, or Taiwan residents supporting the CCP dare to express their stance first? Beijing's central leadership is also watching. If you express your stance first compared to later, the resources that Beijing's central leadership can provide for your future development path will naturally be different. Therefore, these enterprises immediately knew what they should do and what they shouldn't do. Sometimes, this kind of situation is even more effective than an official ban itself.

Next, a second version of the story began circulating on the Chinese internet, claiming that after Kevin Tsai was caught, he was so terrified that he cleared his 36 million Weibo followers overnight and unfollowed everyone. A bunch of people are using this to say it is proof of his guilty conscience. But according to descriptions by other netizens, what did they say? Kevin Tsai's Weibo had already been cleared out earlier, so some Chinese netizens speculated that he had long made up his mind to attend this event, or perhaps he really just wanted to observe, but knowing the controversy it would subsequently trigger in the People's Republic of China, he cleared it out in advance. Whether that is true is unknown; perhaps there were other reasons we do not know. But anyway, forcibly connecting these two lines together makes no real sense. What is actually more worthy of concern is that under yesterday's and today's media inquiries, Kevin Tsai did not shrink back. The reporters he faced—though we can see he did not explicitly state who he supports—as a commentator or host, his words were extremely appropriate. He said, "As a citizen, I just came to listen to everyone's opinions and experience the atmosphere, to see if it is really like what is on the internet." After all, he can make commentaries or further aid his observations. I think this is completely normal for a media person and there is no problem. Because in any democratic country, if you sincerely want to understand both sides' policies, you can do so from the internet or even physically walk in to see both sides' policies and passionate atmospheres. In the end, whoever you choose to vote for, or whether you cast a blank ballot, is entirely under your own control.

Kevin Tsai also stated that if there is an opportunity later to interview every Taipei mayoral candidate, that would be great. Of course, there seem to be 4 to 6 candidates running this time, and the ones worth paying more attention to are Chiang Wan-an and Puma Shen. As a result, Chiang Wan-an immediately took up the ball today, publicly stating that everyone has the freedom to run for office or participate in political activities, right? That is democracy, and he also called on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—though of course he called it mainland China—to respect Taiwan's democratic lifestyle. Then, he simply went ahead and directly and publicly invited Kevin Tsai, welcoming him to his campaign headquarters establishment event, saying he would definitely arrange for him to be in the front row. Of course, Kevin Tsai also responded, using that very Kangyong-esque phrasing to say: 'Thanks to Mayor Chiang for his busy schedule, and for such-and-such invitations, but once I receive the formal invitation, I will gladly go,' and so on and so forth. So if Chiang Wan-an really formally issues this invitation, then it is very likely that the scene we have seen these past two weeks—yesterday, because you appeared at Puma Shen's event, Kevin Tsai was branded by Little Pinks and the CCP as an accomplice to Taiwan independence and a stubborn Taiwan independence element—the very next second, tomorrow, you immediately sit in Chiang Wan-an's front row, and then turn right back into a patriotic star. I have a question: how are those people who wrote tens of thousands of impassioned words yesterday saying he completely revealed his true colors supposed to justify this logically? Of course, they could also justify it by saying he is a two-faced person just like Guan Zhang, whatever you guys say, because mouths grow on your faces.

And I think where the Chinese government finds itself riding a tiger and hard to get off is this: look, first, the CCP said Taiwan is one of its provinces, part of the five-star red flag, and they have also said, including now and in the future, that they will respect the so-called elections and democratic lifestyle of the Taiwan authorities and region, right? That is to say, this set of election mechanisms is something you in the CCP have promised to respect, so whoever comes out to run is someone you also respect. Then what are you Little Pinks jumping up and objecting to? If you also agree with the CCP's narrative, and you also believe Taiwan should listen to the Beijing center, and that there are even police (Public Security) in Taipei, then let me ask you, would Puma Shen still establish his campaign headquarters today? Even Tsai Ing-wen and Lai Ching-te on stage would have already gone in, right? Moreover, you also said Taiwan is the China of the five-star flag, so why would the CCP Central Committee in Beijing and Xi Jinping let the Taiwan independence Democratic Progressive Party, which they hate so much, hold this election event, and thus allow the forces of Taiwan independence to grow even stronger in momentum? Therefore, what you Little Pinks should be cursing is not Puma Shen, and even less Kevin Tsai, but rather that person in Beijing, Xi Jinping.

Next, if the Chinese authorities want to strongly oppose such a response, it means Xi Jinping will once again become the best campaign assistant. How so? This is equivalent to military coercion and intimidation in the entertainment industry. Then another dilemma of riding a tiger and getting off comes up: if the CCP responds with silence, or successively censors and bans articles discussing the elections of Kevin Tsai and other Taiwanese artists, it will cause even more Chinese citizens to be willing to spend just a little more time jumping over the wall to understand what Taiwan's elections are actually about. Yesterday, I saw a Pink say, 'Why do Taiwan's elections look a bit joyful, and the politicians are all very approachable, unlike their Politburo Standing Committee members, whom you can't see even if you want to, and usually you can't even see county mayors, provincial governors, provincial party secretaries, or municipal party secretaries? You even find it slightly difficult just to see a neighborhood committee director, let alone these other things.' So even if these 1,000 Chinese citizens circumvent the Great Firewall and understand Taiwan's elections a bit more, as long as three, five, ten, or fifteen of them undergo a slight shift and think this is the way democracy should be, and that people in the Chinese-speaking world can similarly have the Taiwan model, then this is actually our reverse success, because as China and the US stage the old path of the US-Soviet Cold War, time is in our favor.

Now, we are certainly not saying that all Chinese people will have the chance to wake up when they see this. After all, on platforms with internet censorship, most of what you see are overt expressions from those willing to state their positions, while those who are unwilling to speak out, or whose comments have already been banned and deleted, are actually not in the minority. It is just that when you look at them, you might no longer be able to see them, unless you, like me, constantly keep an eye on their public opinion and sentiment, and can make such comparative observations at the very first moment. Why did that sarcastic comment disappear before I even had time to screenshot it, right? So I will ask a Pink a soul-searching question: suppose that from your Fifth Plenary Session at the end of October this year all the way to the 21st National Congress next year, if your country's presidential candidates include two people—one is Xi Jinping, and the other is someone as learned and multifaceted as Jiang Zemin, who is proficient in everything, and who also possesses the diplomatic capabilities of Qin Gang and Wang Yi, and whose economic policies might even compare to Zhu Rongji or Wen Jiabao—if there were such a person running together with Xi Jinping for your family's chairman and president, let me ask you, would you want to have such a choice available to vote for?

However, I am sorry, you do not have this opportunity because these two people will not establish campaign headquarters, as they are both members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Furthermore, although the Constitution of the People's Republic of China nominally includes eight democratic parties, those eight parties cannot run for the CCP Central Committee. The political consultation led by the CCP means that their legislative body, the National People's Congress, must meet under the leadership of the CCP. It is done to show Westerners that China has democracy. You also have no right to vote, because that is done by the National People's Congress. Of course, you might say that we vote for local people's congresses, which then vote for provincial people's congresses, which then vote for the central people's congress, and then for Xi Jinping. You can certainly say that, but who doesn't know that the votes for your local people's congresses are pre-arranged? Xiaowei, who was recently in a car accident and nearly died, also harshly criticized this matter last month. Of course, that video was taken down. The part that is truly worth our concern in Taiwan is that Kevin Tsai can go to Enoch Wu's event today and Chiang Wan-an's event tomorrow. He can listen to both sides, and in the end, he can even choose not to vote, and there is no problem at all. No government can threaten your job, brand partnerships, or your entertainment career to punish you, right?

But in that market, just sitting in the wrong seat can become a commercial risk. Even more absurdly, Chiang Wan-an and Enoch Wu are clearly the two most important competitors for Taipei mayor this year. As a result, this wave of attacks by netizens actually led Chiang Wan-an to speak up for Kevin Tsai, saying this is our democratic way. Enoch Wu doesn't even need to talk about democratic values 10,000 times himself; the online public opinion in Beijing has handed him a successful case: his opponent is speaking for him. There is another thing I find very strange: many people on the CCP's Weibo support the

The real danger of the current trend is not that the so-called pro-Taiwan or pan-Green supporters on the internet are getting excited, but rather that it might drag in people who usually don't pay attention to politics—Kevin Tsai is a classic example. Or perhaps he was watching, just not publicly. Ultimately, whether China can dictate who a Taiwanese person listens to will become a point of confusion for us in Taiwan. For Puma Shen, this is essentially free outreach to a broader audience. For Chiang Wan-an, it is not necessarily a bad thing either; he can conversely demonstrate that he is not the type to follow whatever Beijing says. As Chung Hsiao-ping recently said, the Kuomintang under the leadership of Cheng Li-wun is a bit 'red-unified.' He can even say, 'I am not the kind of pro-unification KMT politician you think Cheng Li-wun is; I will also uphold the bottom line that a Republic of China supporter should have. Please respect Taiwan's democracy.' I actually think the most awkward part of China's campaign against Kevin Tsai this time is that it inadvertently adds points to both the Blue and Green camps, and even to Taiwan's democracy and freedom.

But at the same time, something very regrettable yet also gratifying happened to Lai Ching-te's family in the United States. Why? Because the person was caught. The FBI released surveillance footage, and American news outlets discussed it extensively. A 34-year-old former Chinese citizen named Zhang Wanying—she is not a Chinese tourist, but a real estate agent living in Irvine, California, with U.S. citizenship, meaning she can vote and run for any public office in the U.S. Why was she arrested? She had been monitoring Lai Ching-te's eldest son, who was traveling between Los Angeles and Shanghai a few days ago, possibly to deliver some written documents. Since sending information online might be monitored, sometimes the most traditional methods are the safest. During this process, the FBI took her in for investigation, questioning how she gamed our system, alleging that she acted as an agent for the CCP, conducting long-term surveillance and even intending to harm Lai Ching-te's family in the U.S. So, this is currently in the process of accusation and clarification. Moreover, FBI agents specifically mentioned in the documents that if the CCP were to gain leverage over Taiwan's president during a future Taiwan Strait crisis—meaning using his family as a threat—this would be highly significant. This is not just about our Taiwanese president; the CCP has the capability to do this to every ethnic Chinese person. So, I am very grateful to the U.S. FBI for bringing these people to justice. While the U.S. is eliminating CCP spies who have obtained U.S. citizenship with specific missions, I have also been working tirelessly on the issue of Taiwanese people obtaining CCP ID cards. Therefore, what often determines the outcome may not be the most die-hard Blue or Green supporters, but people like Kevin Tsai who are willing to sit down and listen to both sides of the argument. That is all for today's video.

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I am Ba Jiong, see you next time. Bye.