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Has any evidence surfaced that it was in fact a sponsored ad?

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None that I know of! But she has playfully responded to the controversy by saying “I’m now gonna ask every film crew for money and I’d compliment the film if they refuse to pay”. So it’s a soft denial, but the ongoing narrative stays the same that it was sponsored. 🤷

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Right, got it. Tough place for anyone to be in. Even if she genuinely enjoyed the movie, in the current environment, anything one says and anything one does can be misinterpreted in light of some ongoing social struggle one finds oneself sucked into. Self-censorship often ensues.

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Very very true. This is exactly why all the celebrities tend to be mute on Weibo nowadays. And by reading the nuances of hate-comments towards Yang, I can tell that the amount of hate she got for possibly doing a paid ad is skewed by her gender. Women doing sponsored ads and hence *wanting profit* is much more tabooed/socially unacceptable...

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Right. Movements of change can be ruthless against elements who don't fit the orthodoxy.

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