#zhang sanjian debunks

[bluebirdmuppet]

Reposted from Instagram. Trying to figure out what works on Tumblr. 😅

The entire Zhang Sanjian in Xinyu bar “meet up” is fake.

This set of posts relate to his fake travel schedule put out by Zhang Sanjian fans.

[bizarrequazar]

12-17 Space Notes -- Candy and Some Review

This was a Twitter space reviewing various debunks ("gaslight-breakers") about the scam and chatting about some recent candy. These notes aren't super comprehensive since a lot of it was just review of old stuff, [recording here].

Recent candy:

Some of the photos for Gong Jun's recent Conde Nast shoot were taken in an independent restaurant in Chengdu. Some JZPs went and had dinner there, and discovered that things like the tableware are have remarkable similarities to things from Word of Honor and LLD. People also learned that the restaurant has some financial difficulties recently, and got through it because of a "benefactor". These more CP-ish elements were only introduced after that. [Tweets with more details]

Part of the video from the same shoot has a moment very reminiscent of the "There's a light on you" scene.

There was a recent photo of Gong Jun with what seems to be a distinct ring mark on his fourth finger.

Review of the shoe tag candy: In June(?) 2021, Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan wore different pairs of Off White sneakers that had the tags switched (ie. shoe A with tag B). You can only buy them with the matching tags, and to take them off without breaking them you have to completely undo the laces.

Apparently yesterday when Gong Jun was going to the airport, someone yelled something like "babi, your nut [the hexagon ring] fell out!" and he looked at the ground.

The photoshoot with the Crazy Jun sign. (Context: Zhang Zhehan's Weibo was Crazy Zhang Zhehan, and Gong Jun even made a comment in one of the woh interviews that he had found it weird before he met Zhehan.)

In Gong Jun's recent single, the only musician not credited was the pianist. Make of this what you will.

Serious stuff:

There was a video going around the fandom on Twitter the other day of Zhang Sanjian talking with very Taiwanese speech patterns. This is far from the first time this has been noticed.

At the Singapore fanmeet, the audio for the singers before Zhang Sanjian was very clear. When Zhang Sanjian came out there was suddenly very heavy reverb, to the point where people who went said they couldn't tell what the song was actually supposed to sound like.

Some haizhe who went to the fanmeet also said that Zhang Sanjian smelled terrible, like to the point where you could smell it from the front rows.

It was recently learned that Nada (the woh screenwriter) and AvenueX know each other. AveX used to say she had insider info, so that explains that.

Tons of the photos that have been posted to the Instagram and such of Zhang Sanjian have noise filters over them, sometimes to the point where you can see it if you zoom in. Noise filters are often used to mask evidence of photoshopping (and a lot of the zsj photos still don't hide it well enough lol.)

Umbrella (Sophie's husband) at one point admitted to being the one running Zhang Mama's Weibo account. It has also been previously confirmed that the phone number the account was registered under belongs to Chen Ahyi.

A reminder that press, views, charts, etc. can be bought (and are more often than you would hope.)

[Masterlist of my posts about the situation with Zhang Zhehan]

[jeriafterdark]

May 3, 2022 - 813 - the Reprise Part 8.1/? KEEP CALM and "ZZH"'s new video

Masterpost here

F*ck I have so much work to do but I feel it's necessary to make a post on this.

New video posted on his hacked instagram, check it for yourself.

Zhehanzi has posted an ENG subbed version here.

All right, I will activate my research scientist brain for this. Although I'm out of the field now, I was an NSF Graduate Fellow (National Science Foundation) in the US and was lucky to receive valuable and advanced training in research science (biochemistry/structural biology) in undergrad and during my PhD in a few research universities, I think it's time to use this skill, my one logical brain cell left is for this moment >:(

As background, when looking at a problem, I will lead you through the steps that researchers will ask and take in order to solve a problem. I think in these times of emergency, it's important to force yourself out of your own shoes and look at the big picture, then zoom in on the details, separate yourself from the facts at hand, ONLY then can we actually start finding out what's happening.

For example, if we want to create a new vaccine for a disease, we ask, what is the problem at hand? An example answer, there is a new infectious disease and it's causing deaths in the population. Then we ask, what is the new virus? What is it made of, what is the outer envelope or shell made of? What do we ALREADY know? We compare it to similar viruses. We try to completely understand the virus inside and outside. Then when we have full knowledge of it, can we develop a strategy to combat it, i.e. creating a vaccine (its own long steps).

Let's try it with what happened with this video today.

What is the problem?

How did it happen? Why is it important?

Why did this information come out now? Is it believable? What is the method we should use to break this down? Do we need repeat trials in duplicate, triplicate and what are the statistically significant facts?

What can we conclude and how do we move forward in future directions? Why would someone fake this?

Follow the money.

Let's begin:

1 - What is the problem?

Facts: A video was posted on ZZH's instagram featuring his likeness and vocal affectations. An english subbed video is linked above. He discusses these issues ONLY: the cp fandom, his merchandise, his journey to learning poetry and guitar, and blaming/flaming people for his current state.

2 - How did it happen? Why is it important?

There were three sources of "ZZH" - the WeChat profile of ZSJ (now gone), Li XueZheng Uncle Li (his weibo is now deleted), and this hacked instagram account.

The video was uploaded to his known-to be hacked instagram. We can glean that this instagram is hacked because of QuelleVous2 and various videos debunking each and every new post on his instagram. I, myself, have also made a post debunking the ZSJ (Zhang Sanjian) video that accidentally showed a portion of the guitarist's face/chin - this was posted on the ZSJ WeChat profile that is now deleted.

We know that ZZH's instagram was hacked because Xie Yihua, his ex music manager in 2021's son, Abner, liked to talk up his connections to famous people back then. He made a post saying that many people have access to ZZH's account, and the phone number linked to it isn't even ZZH's phone number. He didn't realize that people would be going through all his comments and posts to find out what he's said.

This is important because he has an ongoing legal case against CAPA. Anything that affects his image will affect public perception, will affect government perception, will thus AFFECT HIS CASE.

3 - Why did this information come out now? Is it believable?

Timing: Today is the fandom's happiest day, the anniversary of the Word of Honor / Shan He Ling concerts. It's also CPF's happiest days. The timing of this video is in itself, suspicious. Why post it today of all days? I have two answers: 1) To have maximum impact against ZZH/GJ's fandom and break CPF's hearts. 2) In having this maximum impact, it was either HIS OWN intention to do so, OR whoever orchestrated this video's intention to use their strongest weapon against us, and therefore, HIM.

Is it believable?

Deep Fakes exist. It uses computational AI to calculate and map out a person's facial features, and in doing so can manipulate those features into different expressions. AI is trained to do this by just going through large databases of human faces and expressions and slowly forms an algorithm that the user can manipulate. One can also do this with voices. Look at this famous deep fake of Tom cruise. I'm NOT saying it's a deep fake, because with sufficient technology, it's hard to actually TELL that it's a deep fake, it's just ONE possibility.

2. Another example of someone using deep fake technology to play around with ZZH's face on a woman's body lol

3i - What method should we use to break this down?

So the next question is, is the video authentic?

First, it could be a deep fake (like above).

Second, since sometimes we can't even believe our own eyes and ears in today's world of advanced technology, I have to rely on what I KNOW from previous years. Compare the data to known data sets, known circumstances.

Facts we know: From LXZ's audio interview, ZZH is very focused on gaining back his name and reputation and his fight against CAPA. This instagram video, however, mentions NOTHING about his case against CAPA. Which we know, for a FACT, that he's filing with the Beijing Police Department against CAPA. Uncle Li showed this. Who could possibly benefit from distracting us, the public, and fandom from CAPA SO MUCH? HM? WHO.

3ii - ZZH's vocal affectations are free-style, but not in this new video.

Also in this audio interview, and previous interviews if you've watched his, ZZH tends to make very deep statements in REAL time. So he's often just freethinking and word vomitting and sometimes it doesn't make sense. lol. He says "uh", "um", "and," a lot. Compared to the instagram video, that insta video is definitely scripted. He's very smooth here and it's like practiced lines, which is against his character to do so.

Just listen to his birthday live stream and compare it to the new insta video, it sounds noticeably different, you don't even need to know mandarin??

Compare ZZH's audio interview with LXZ vs this new video, notice the difference? This is also AFTER the trauma of 813. Why would there be such a marked difference between when Uncle Li posted the video and now?

ZZH himself said in interviews for SHL/WOH that he rarely read his lines before the day of filming, he liked to read them right before or the morning of so he could really get the feeling of what he's saying and not wear it out.

Conclusion so far: This "ZZH" is different from what we know. He's distracting from his own legal case. His speaking cadence is different. He's reading off of a script. It DOESN'T mean that it isn't him, but it casts a lot of doubt on the circumstances of this video, doesn't it?

What else do we know about ZZH? He hates making fans spend money on shit that's out of their comfort zones. He's apologized to fans for his albums costing them money. THIS IS ZZH. In this video, this "ZZH" is peddling his new merch, which is notoriously overpriced and costs a few bucks to make, but is charging like 10x the cost. It's also PROVEN TO BE REUSED DESIGNS from other idols that Xie Yihua has managed.

3iii - Xie Yihua's history: She's been known to have many failed/de-registered trademarks. She's been involved in a company with CAPA's president, and she's lost a lot of money and may be in bigtime debt $$$.

Why would a person who is in massive debt want to suddenly start shilling merch for a cancelled idol? And that idol couldn't speak up or else it would jeopardize his legal case? And the fans are so desperate for his safety and well-being that they'd be fooled into purchasing these outlandishly priced items? Is this not too convenient a case for her to pass up? Free money to pay back her debts? It's certainly a possibility.

In most scandals, most cases, as you would know if you've lived in this world long enough, all you have to do is follow the money.

Follow the money: Let's not FORGET that Xie Yihua and her sister own 100% shares of the company that sells this "ZZH" / "ZSJ" merchandise. THIS IS A FACT. It's public information and listed, check QV's tweets for it. I don't have time to go find it rn. SO, if Xie Yihua is so indebt and attached to CAPA, is it not in her interest to distract us SO BADLY that ppl stop caring about CAPA? That ZZH truly loses his fans for good? That she can use him to make a quick buck to pay off her loan sharks and debtors? IT absolutely is. Always follow the money.

IF IT WERE TRULY HIM, why wouldn't this company be registered under ZZH or his mom? He's said so in interviews that he doesn't even look at his own bank account bc his mom handles all of that. He owes his mom so much, she gave up their house, her job, her life to make sure he succeeded as an actor. Of course he would give her and trust her with his money. It's not even illogical to make this leap, it's just fact?

Other items from this instagram have been debunked:

The handwritten letter was already debunked bc the handwriting style is different, the signature is TOTALLY different, the thumb is photoshopped, the shadows are unnatural. And this video mentions the fake letter as being real, so does it not cast doubt on the authenticity of the video itself? That it tries to make a fake letter real? Then what does it mean? The video itself seems fake, then. Just by the transitive property. A=B, B=C, therefore A=C. The letter is fake, so the account is fake. If the account is fake, the video is fake.

The guitar and phone-drop video was debunked by a sound engineer, and several other people lol.

The photoshoots were probably older and already been debunked. His necklace seemed to be photoshopped on because you could see the reflections in it that didn't reflect the buildings of the Forbidden City. His earrings were probably for promoting Ambush, could've been an endorsement that didn't go through. Also on Bluebirdmuppet's twitter or QV's, go check it.

3 iv - ZZH's character as we know it is different from what this video shows

In an unofficially published set of interviews, ZZH talked about his motivations as an actor and career goals. It was pre-813, last year. He talks about having responsibility to criticism, to shaking off the bad feedback, to focus on moving forward.

This ZZH is consistent with the LXZ Zhang Zhehan. He takes all the hits on the chin, he picks himself back up, he believes in procedural justice, he takes things slowly, and life slowly. He doesn't jeopardize his own case even when his whole world was shutting down in 813. SO why speak up now? He wouldn't. The timing is for MAXIMUM hurt for us, the CPF's. The fandom that Xie Yihua has been trying to break up. The fandom who loves Gong Jun, who Xie Yihua hates, and has been actively goading her ZSJ stans to attack. The Gong Jun who has had to endure cyberviolence the past couple of weeks, who had his private information leaked.

ZZH's character isn't one to point and blame, if he doesn't like you, he just won't listen to you, but he won't call you out on it. He's said so, if the fans want him to do something, he won't listen, he just does whatever and if you like it, you like it, he's not gonna go after you for it. He's a grown man who has real shit to deal with? Not fandom disputes all the time.

3v - Do we need repeated trials of his character? How do we compare this version with previous? How many instances do we need?

If you can't trust your eyes and ears, and you need more information, rely on information that's already been confirmed. On facts that are already out there. In science, if a new virus emerges, we immediately compare it to what we know, what DNA/RNA sequences does it have in common with other viruses? What protein structures? What infection mechanism is it using that's similar? This will guide us on how to analyze the new virus. It's the same here.

We know ZZH wouldn't goad his fans into fighting, wouldn't sell his merchandise vs getting on with his own legal case, wouldn't speak from a script instead of from the heart. These are valid conclusions based on his previous actions, interviews, interactions, and observations of personality. There are HUNDREDS if not thousands of instances that we can compare this ONE video from a DEBUNKED instagram account to. That's how many trials we have, how many repeated observations we've made.

This video is statistically insignificant compared to the literally boundless endless piles of evidence we have that this isn't "ZZH" as we know him.

4 - So then what? What can we conclude? How do we move forward?

So now that we've established the facts:

Follow the money: Xie Yihua is involved in many failed companies and trademarks, and may be in debt enough to manipulate an easy target (ZZH) and milking him and his fans out of their $$$. Why wouldn't his ZSJ merchandise be registered under him and his mother? And why do all proceeds go towards Xie Yihua and her sister?

ZZH's voice and vocal affectations are different from this instagram video, which may mean the video is scripted

ZZH's personality is calm and chill, even after 813 as shown during LXZ's audio interview with him about his case against CAPA

This new ZZH's personality is markedly different: cold, and harsh, and pointed. Especially at CP fans.

Deep fakes exist. It can mimic both faces and voices and bodies.

So the answer to, "Is this video authentic?" can be

1) No, it's not because of all the previous evidence listed above.

OR 2) Yes, it is, and he's being coerced into saying these things as we know how shadowy and corrupt c-ent actually is. His face does not look okay. He doesn't look healthy and happy.

OR 3) Yes, it is real, and he's a changed person, which is a conclusion that is easy to make at first glance, but does not benefit him AT ALL. It only serves to break up his fandoms, drain him of his support in the public eye, and distracts from his case against CAPA.

Point 1 is what I believe. Point 2 is possible. Point 3 is what I believe Xie Yihua and the minions behind the instagram account want us to believe. Point 3 easily knocks out all of her problems, doesn't it?

No one would be around to debunk her shit bc mostly CPF's do it or people who like both GJ and ZZH as individuals like QV/Blue. This shitshow will take over weibo and cause public opinion to turn back, after the leader of the justice for the people movement - Uncle Li - was deleted. It will cause a distraction against the real ZZH's legal case against CAPA. AND CAPA will be let off the hook because no one will be around to care anymore. See? In what way would point 3 make sense? He's actively advocating for his own social and legal suicide? No.

So how to move forward? The journey is the same. I still support him and his case to clear his name. I still support THEM and their love, which after hundreds if not thousands of interactions and so-called "candies" have already proven. This one video is NOT enough evidence to debunk thousands of things, although it may be the MOST emotionally provocative - as it is its intention to be.

Now I have to go do actual work now, I thank you for reading this far and hanging in there. Wait for the next days. I will update as I see fit.

Hold onto your rational brain cells, everyone

[bluebirdmuppet]

Silver Knight 隐光战士 - The 32 Frames Problem related to AI Analysis of May 3, 2022 super3 Instagram Video - from Weibo Post dated June 25, 2022

Translator’s notes:

This post was written in response to a question from another person who ran the video through a model and got low scores (suggesting that the video is real).  This is Silver Knight’s response on June 25, 2022. Weibo link: https://m.weibo.cn/status/4784252216149062

Because of the style in which this was written, I have added some context.  Silver Knight has reviewed this post and confirms the accuracy of the contents. 

_____________________________________________________________

I’m crying. Finally…finally…finally there is a serious question. It is not a soul-torturing question about why they bought the brand, why they couldn’t access the website link, why I don’t know how to do computer modelling….

The question is: someone ran the video through a model according to the tutorial I posted. Why are the results inconsistent? Why is the average different each time?

First, it may be that the model is not the same. Some models return a high false positive rate and some return a low false positive rate, it is recommended that you run each model and then choose. The two [three] criteria I use are as follows: After running a video I recorded myself, it must be flat. After running other people’s Instagram videos, the reading can fluctuate. After running fake videos (other known deepfakes), the reading is high.

Second: There is a sampling problem. For example, take a video which has approximately two hundred frames, and then from those 200 frames, 32 frames are selected. This sampling size ratio is not a problem, because it is almost 15% of the total number of frames. However, the Instagram video has 10,000 frames, if you only select 32 that is worthless. If for simplicity, you only use a portion of the video, then depending on where you have cut the video, you will get different results. The green circle in Figure 2 can give you readings of approximately less than 0.05, but the red circle in Figure 1 can give you readings of over 0.9. So if this Instagram video is not taken apart and is casually run on a random online program, it can give you a wrong reading. That is why at first, I wrote a script to take 1000 frames, and then I later found that I could modify the parameters of this script to run the analysis on the entire video [all frames].

Figure 1

Figure 2

Third: Average. In order to have a standard, usually classification algorithms will collapse the data. The concept of “average” is a good standard, however it is limited by the distribution of data. Let’s use an analogy, if an apartment only houses people from one social class, using average salary to calculate the average is an appropriate practice. However, if you add an Elon Musk to a group of blue-collared workers, can we say that this is a group of multimillionaires? That is why looking at the distribution is more convincing than using the mean.

[bluebirdmuppet]

Silver Knight 隐光战士 - Comments to Weibo Post dated July 3, 2022

I translated several comments to Silver Knight's July 3, 2022 Weibo Post because they are help explain the crux of the AI analysis.

Comment 1:

By Silver Knight 隐光战士:

Now you understand. Determining whether something is a deepfake is difficult, particularly if the camera has a filter or if it is processed by a social media platform. If Super3 had even one graph that had a high level of green, I would not make the conclusion that it is fake.

Comment 2:

By LT的探戈:

I understand it this way, can you tell me if it is right: Use one model to run all the frames of two videos, the real videos and fake videos will have results that are far apart, so the thing that is opposite of the real video is fake.

Reply by Silver Knight 隐光战士:

The important part is, using each model, Super3 is fake. If you take a real video, you can see that some models are sensitive to the filters on Instagram. However, using the video on Super3, each model says it is fake, and the ratings are between 0.8 to 1.0

Comment 3:

By 浪钉春日出逃:

It is as if I finally understand it a little… you ran all the frames of the super3 video on 10 models, the model data from each was very high. But when you use other people’s Instagram videos, only one model yielded a similar result, the other models are virtually flat. Plus the other side only ran 32 frames, so it is like having over 10,000 frames in a video but only a very small part was sampled, so the average values are lower, is this right?

Reply by Silver Knight 隐光战士:

I want to cry… I finally wrote something that someone understands.

[bizarrequazar]

GJ and ZZH Updates — June 25-July 01

<<< previous week || all posts || following week >>>

This is part of a weekly series collecting updates from and relating to Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan.

This post is not wholly comprehensive and is intended as an overview, links provided lead to further details. Dates are in accordance with China Standard Time, the organization is chronological. My own biases on some things are reflected here. Anything I include that is not concretely known is indicated as such, and you’re welcome to do your own research and draw your own conclusions as you see fit. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or additions. :)

[Glossary of names and terms] [Masterlist of my posts about the situation with Zhang Zhehan]

06-25 → Nothing of note.

06-26 → #ZhangSanjian, #GongJun, and #JunZhe trended on Twitter.

→ More airport Zhang Sanjian photos, supposedly flying to South Korea.

06-27 → #JunZhe and #ZhangSanjian continued to trend on Twitter, with the top tweets in the latter all debunks.

→ The Instagram posted five photos of “Zhang Zhehan”, the last two of which were taken on a street in Seoul. 

06-28 → Nothing of note.

06-29  → The Instagram posted nine photos of three distinctly different people posing as Zhang Zhehan. 

06-30 → Gong Jun posted four selfies to Weibo. Caption: “It would be great the concert had a morning show 🥲”​​​ Context is that Jay Chou was holding concerts in Haikou over the weekend. Fan Observation: His phone has a green Apple case on it. During an interview in 2021, Gong Jun said that you should use red phone cases for good luck, specifically saying not to use green cases. Zhang Zhehan (an Apple user) previously had a green case in the same shade.

07-01 → Gong Jun’s studio posted twelve behind the scenes photos from the Zhenguoli ads. Caption: “The second half of the year, full of energy, begins with a little sweetness sent by @ Gong Jun Simon!”

Additional Reading: → It’s rumored that Legend of AnLe will start airing this month, with promotional activities to start soon.

<<< previous week || all posts || following week >>>

[bizarrequazar]

Collected information and sources about the 05-04 Instagram video

As I’m sure many are aware by now, a six minute video of Zhang Zhehan speaking was posted on the Instagram a little after midnight on May 4th (CST). [subbed video] 

Below is a collection of information discussing it, why people find its contents questionable, and why there is reason to believe it was faked.

Video Summary

He says that “the letter” (presumably the one on 04-30, discussed below) was by him.

He implies that Gong Jun “was the one who poured oil on [him]” and pushed the CP (ship) for profit. Gong Jun’s name is not said, but a specific incident from September of one of Zhang Zhehan’s baby photos being used in a show appearance Gong Jun did is mentioned, clearing any doubt that he is the one being implied.

He talks about how much money and effort was put into destroying his name.

He talks about a number of new hobbies and pursuits that relate to the merch and things from Zhang Sanjian’s essays (an online persona claiming to be Zhang Zhehan.) 

He directly says he wants to cut ties with “those [fans] who don’t want to wake up,” the implication being CP fans.

Unsurprisingly, this caused quite an upset for many fans, with solo fans directing more hate than usual at CPFs and making claims that anyone questioning the video doesn’t care about him. 

Many tabloid reporters have picked up on the topic of the video—far more than is natural.

Context of the Instagram Account

Prior to this video being posted, there has been a huge amount of reason to doubt that Zhang Zhehan is the one behind the account, and to believe that his former music manager Xie Yihua is using it for personal gain and/or because of ties she has with CAPA, the association heavily suspected of being behind 813.

The account has been used to push an exorbitantly priced merch brand supposedly for Zhang Zhehan, but public records show that all profits go to her and her sister.

There is currently unverified mention of Xie Yihua trying to convince Li Xuezheng to not sue CAPA. Xie Yihua herself has professional connections to CAPA.

Xie Yihua’s son made a comment on Bilibili on August 17th saying that Zhang Zhehan does not have sole access to his Instagram account and that it is not registered to his own phone number.

Xie Yihua and people working for her have been specifically and intentionally directing hate towards Gong Jun since at least late January 

Every single action from the Instagram account since its pfp changed on March 31st has been suspicious, and every post prior to this video has had solid evidence indicating that they are either fake or being presented in a false context. A full timeline and breakdown of the account can be found [here]; below are the key points leading up to this video:

03-31 and 04-01: pfp change + a fan who was previously in Xie Yihua’s circle publicly denounced her.

04-03: The first photos of Zhang Zhehan were posted. Every single photo posted since has been from the same photoshoot, which is believed to have been taken around last June.

04-11 and 04-13: Videos were posted of a figure playing guitar from the neck down; in the second video the camera “falls” and Zhang Zhehan’s face is briefly visible. These videos have been thoroughly debunked and shown to be edited. 

04-30: The letter (presumably) referred to in this most recent video was posted. Many of the issues with the content are similar to the video, discussed below. The photo shows signs of being photoshopped, and the handwriting and signature do not match Zhang Zhehan’s.

The Timing

The video was released on a very specific date: the anniversary of the Word of Honor concert, and what is Youth Day in China.  ↳ The concert—the promise—was one of the happiest times for fans, especially CPFs. The anniversary was therefore an emotionally heightened date to begin with, making it easier to be emotionally affected.  ↳ Youth Day means that people’s minds would more easily draw connections from the contents of the video to meaning that Gong Jun is misleading youths (ie. his fans), especially with the specific mention made of pushing an m/m CP. A reminder that 813 was timed to be right before a patriotic holiday in order to have maximum effect.

A few days before this, Sophie (one of the people working for Xie Yihua, who has encouraged online slander against Gong Jun, and who took part in last July’s girlfriend rumors against Zhang Zhehan) posted a list of “CP-breaking tactics” that would be employed soon, listed among which was videos. 

The Contents

[Here] and [here] are discussions about the content of what is said in the video. The primary concern is that none of it is beneficial to him. The main points:

What is said in the video is very obviously designed to destroy a portion of his own fanbase.

If there is a real issue with Gong Jun, there are much more professional ways to handle the situation. Denouncing a former coworker makes him undesirable to work with in the future, and it pointedly directs fans to attack both Gong Jun and each other. Prior to 813, Zhang Zhehan said multiple times that he dislikes fans fighting, and that fans do not determine his actions.

At no point in the video is his legal case or CAPA ever so much as alluded to. This is a huge red flag, in case it wasn’t obvious.

[Here] is the baby picture mentioned in the video, which was on a program filmed in May 2021 that aired in September. It was selected by the program Gong Jun appeared on, he did not see it during the filming itself, the interview included zero mention of Zhang Zhehan, and the mistake was edited after it was pointed out. Honestly I don’t think anyone made nearly as big a deal out of it as the video implies; I’ve seen it mentioned maybe twice prior to this and only as an amusing mistake to laugh about.

Some Taiwanese phrasing snuck into the video. Use of Taiwanese in the previous Instagram posts and Zhang Sanjian’s essays is one of the factors that have made people believe Xie Yihua is involved in their writing, due to herself and her family being from Taiwan. Zhang Zhehan himself always used mainland phrasing in what can be verified as things said and written by him.

Deepfake Information and Evidence

“deepfake n. — A video of a person in which their face or body has been digitally altered so that they appear to be someone else, typically used maliciously or to spread false information.”

The possibility of a deepfake being used is something that has been considered since the Instagram was unprivated. Some have actually been surprised it didn’t happen before this.

[Here] and [here] are examples of deepfakes. A quick search will find you many more. [Here] is an example showing how easy it is for even a layperson to make one nowadays.

The requirements to make a deepfake, quoted from here, are as follows:

Takes 300-500 images to make a good deepfake 

About 4-5 hours for a decent video 

Cost is $500-1000 to hire semi-professional 

Deepfake training can be up to 12-48 hrs 

There are dozens of deepfake apps

CCTV also ~coincidentally~ put out a news story explaining deepfakes on May 6th; the cost of them in China specifically is a little over 1k RBM.

[Here] is a list of things to look for to identify a deepfake.

[Here] and [here] are videos about audio deepfakes.

[Here] are notes from an audio discussion with a computer engineer where he was asked questions that concern this video.

[Here] is a video about technical oddities in the video. [Here] is a followup highlighting a few more.

[Here] is the video sped up to highlight the lack of body movement. [Here] is a sped up interview from last spring for comparison.

[Here] is a thread highlighting what appears to be a glitch with one eye.

[Here] is a thread comparing his teeth, [here] is a frame where his lower teeth seem to clip into his upper.

Many have commented that his ears look wrong, comparison photo below.

[Here] is a video using AI to test the likelihood of the face in the video being fake, presented in comparison to the same AI being used on past interviews as well as known deepfake videos. The creator includes graphs displaying the results and an explanation for how the AI was trained. [Here] are the sources needed to recreate the test.

[Here] is a deepfake a fan made of Zhang Zhehan.

As much as any of the technical aspects, however, what many people have been trusting as evidence that the video is fake is the simple fact that none of this fits who he always showed himself to be prior to 813. I’m not going to link evidence here, because honestly all you need to do is pull up any interview he did. 

Does trauma change people? Yes. But this is a signficant change from what we saw even from the interview with Li Xuezheng recorded at the end of December. If he didn’t change that much in the four months when his life was destroyed and his mother was considering suicide, then it seems hard to imagine that something so major as to effect this supposed change could have happened since that interview without us hearing anything about it.

Miscellaneous Additional Info

Some have reported that their comments on the video asking about his wellbeing and about his case were deleted. As a reminder, when 813 happened, the only comments he deleted from his apology letter’s post were those supporting him—presumably because he didn’t want his fans to be targetted—while the ones vilifying him were left.

With regard to Zhang Zhehan’s attitude toward CPFs and homosexuality prior to this, see [this video] [this video] and [this tweet], or simply watch the concert and the Word of Honor bts.

[Here] is another post discussing the video and its circumstances as a whole.

To the question of “If it’s an imposter why hasn’t the real Zhang Zhehan said anything?” see [this thread].

[Here] is a statement put out by a Chinese actress who also had her Instagram stolen and hasn’t been able to get it shut down. 

[Here] is a thread talking about the tactic of emotionally overwhelming those following the account. (Remember, the real fight is against CAPA, not this.)

[Here] is a video explaining how deepfakes can even be used in livestreams nowadays. [Here] is an example of one being used in real time in front of a live audience.

If you have any questions, comments, concerns, corrections, or additions to what is written here, please let me know.

This post was last edited 2023-01-05.

[bizarrequazar]

GJ and ZZH Updates — November 27-December 3

<<< previous week || all posts || following week >>>

This is part of a weekly series collecting updates from and relating to Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan.

This post is not wholly comprehensive and is intended as an overview, links provided lead to further details. Dates are in accordance with China Standard Time, the organization is chronological. My own biases on some things are reflected here. Anything I include that is not concretely known is indicated as such, and you’re welcome to do your own research and draw your own conclusions as you see fit. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or additions. :)

[Glossary of names and terms] [Masterlist of my posts about the situation with Zhang Zhehan]

11-27 → Gong Jun’s studio posted a photo of him from the filming of Rising with the Wind. (1129 kadian) Caption: “Dear passengers, the #Gong Jun’s very wonderful November# time train has arrived at the 27th station, 「The train conductor @ Gong Jun Simon is running against the wind and going to Tengyue」, Passengers, please sit tight and hold on. The station ahead is _______.”

→ LockNLock posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun. (1129 kadian)

→ The Instagram posted a collection of photos from attending a grad performance at the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Around the same time, a video and photo of “Zhang Zhehan” were spread claiming that his former professors had invited him to attend the performance as an alumni. Antis flocked to this, digging up an old rumor from 2021 (which has been thoroughly debunked) that Zhang Zhehan paid his way into the school rather than being admitted legitimately. Fan Observations:   -  Someone in the audience posted photos of the performance, one of which caught part of the body double’s real face.   -  [Here] is a translation of what is said in the video, disproving claims that the speaker is talking about Zhang Zhehan. There is nothing in the video to indicate the speaker even knows who the man standing behind him is.   -  In Zhang Zhehan’s own words, he did not have a close relationship with any of his teachers from the school and no longer has any contact with them.   -  Anyone who knows anyone at the school is able to get a free ticket to their grad shows, it is not a special invitation reserved only for people closely associated. The email that was going around claiming this originated from a Zhang Sanjian fan who works in the school’s international students office (and was therefore abusing her position.) The Weibo account of this fan was deleted less than an hour after QuelleVous revealed her, before anyone had shared it on Weibo, indicating that she (the fan) was tipped off by an international whaler.  -  The final line of the Instagram caption is a quote from Les Miserables. This is highly worrisome, as people affiliated with the account seem to be trying to take advantage of the current tense political situation in China.

→ BEAST posted another teaser video featuring Gong Jun. (23:29, 1129 kadian) Caption: “The road ahead is long, the night is vast  Poo-Poo is sleepy, home is near”

11-28 → The exclusive audio recording for Gong Jun’s supertopic that was announced the previous week was made available. Translation: “Hello everyone, I'm Gong Jun and also the ‘Gong Jun’s very wonderful November’ train conductor. Here I would like to thank everyone for travelling onboard. I'm overjoyed to be able to enjoy this journey with all of you. I sincerely hope that everyone can attentively admire and record the scenery along the way. No matter where your destination is, I will always be with you.”

→ #ZhangZhehan trended on Twitter.

→ Wonderland magazine posted a teaser photo for the photoshoot of Gong Jun they would release an hour later. Caption: “Among the neon lights, phantoms overlap, the avant-garde wave pervades, awakens the tide of futurism, crosses the boundary of inherent order, and reality and dreams are connected at this moment. Entering the initial source code, a new chapter is being written, are you ready to lead to the unknown world of freedom with @ Gong Jun Simon?” 

→ Gong Jun posted the full commercial for BEAST. Caption: “I once made a promise with Poo-Poo that we wanted to go home together. After more than a year, we are finally on our way home, and our story is still going on” This was reposted by BEAST with the added caption: “1129 See you there or be square” Fan Observation: The final line of Gong Jun’s caption (我们的故事还在继续) is similar to the line “Bravely let this story go on (勇敢让这个 这个故事继续)” from Zhang Zhehan’s song 不说.

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a photo of him from the filming of Fox Spirit Matchmaker. (1129 kadian) Caption: “Dear passengers, the #Gong Jun’s very wonderful November# time train has arrived at the 28th station. 「The train conductor @ Gong Jun Simon went shopping in the market and bought the last two sticks of candied haw」, Passengers, please sit tight and hold on, the station ahead is _______.”

→ Wonderland posted their photoshoot with Gong Jun, announcing the magazine’s release. (1129 kadian) Caption: “Seek breakthroughs in balance, outline in changes, walk freely between light and dark, and the illusory realm opens here. ... @ Gong Jun Simon breaks the boundary between virtual and real, and talks to a new self in the future world, looking for his own unique expression.” This was reposted by Gong Jun’s studio (11:32, 511 kadian) with the added caption: “The Realm of False Reality, Wonderful Phantom! Boss @ Gong Jun Simon 's journey to explore the unknown metaverse world is about to start!” It was also reposted by Hogan. [translated interview]

This was shortly followed by a video of footage from the shoot. The BGM is Orbit by Rezz. (flashing lights cw for both links) Caption: “When light and darkness collide, under the lens, his outline is both real and illusory; The angular frame is clear. This time, ‘New Vision Wonderland.’ joins hands with @ Gong Jun Simon to jointly explore the unknown dimensional universe, travel through time and space tunnels, welcome the arrival of hyper-real virtual avatars in the next multidimensional dimension, and open a new chapter of the metaverse world together. Stay tuned!”

→ Hogan posted five of the Wonderland photos, highlighting their shoes.

→ Gong Jun posted six of the Wonderland photos to his Weibo, caption: “Travel to the metaverse!”, six to his Instagram, caption: “Astro Boy 🤖”, and seven to his Xiao Hong Shu, caption: “This..... Too cool!” His Weibo post was reposted by Colgate.

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a video of behind the scenes footage from the photoshoot. The BGM is So Thankful by Dylan Sitts. Caption: “There are many illusions, and the virtual and the real jump. Boss @ Gong Jun Simon travels through dimensions and explores himself in the virtual and the real.”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a douyin of more behind the scenes footage. Caption: “Are you ready to be ‘killed’ by boss @ Gong Jun Simon‘s eyes?”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted nine more photos from the Wonderland photoshoot. Caption: “One-click access to the metaverse, freeze the working moment of boss @ Gong Jun Simon, and explore different definitions.”

→ (Unconfirmed) Someone reported the brand to the Shanghai Bureau of Supervision for unauthorized use of Zhang Zhehan’s name. Chen Liying and her sister Chen Qunying were required to submit documentation saying that Zhang Zhehan is not a shareholder, that they have never claimed a connection with him, and that this is purely a fan-led belief that they were not aware of. Bullshit.

→ Gong Jun posted a photo of a handwritten note in his supertopic: “Leave Application: Still on holiday, will be taking leave for tomorrow, hope you’ll approve it! Card has been sent out, please sign it personally~” Caption: “Requesting to take a leave of absence, please approve!” Fan Observations:  -  There appears to be a hexagon ring behind the glass. Quite a few people attempted to replicate it, with some pretty accurate results.  -  Him not doing a livestream means that his birthday outfit (at least in the minds of fans) is still his one from last year that matched Zhang Zhehan’s birthday outfit. 🥺

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a promotional video for Honor spoken by Gong Jun. This was also later posted by Honor. 

11-29 → Gong Jun’s 30th birthday! 🥳 Here’s a collection of fan events and creations from throughout the week, feel free to send me any more I’ve missed! Art: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22.1 22.2] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33]  Charity Drives: [1] [2] [3] Fanfiction: [1] [2] [3] [4] Offline Meetups: [1] [2] [3] [4] PFPs: [1] [2] [3] [4] Public Displays: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] Videos: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Misc: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] @sssilkworms​ also did the amazing work this month of subbing Gong Jun’s 2018-2020 birthday livestreams!

→ At midnight, Gong Jun’s studio posted a letter to him for his birthday, and Gong Jun posted a gif to his own Weibo. Fans coordinated to line up matching pfps in the top comments under Gong Jun’s post.

→ Also at midnight, many of his endorsements posted photos and videos wishing him a happy birthday. Below are the captions from each.

361°: “We have met each other because of love, and have grown up with each other to this day. Happy birthday to @ Gong Jun Simon 🎂, may you continue to be brave and enthusiastic as always, and go to every journey calmly. Love track, to be continued.”

BEAST: BEAST and Panda Poo-Poo wish @ Gong Jun Simon a happy birthday.  All the roses are open for you, and they are cute and will not wait any longer”

Charlotte Tilbury: “Intensive research, the ultimate breakthrough! Let's explore the infinite possibilities of the future together with the power of bright magic~ I wish Charlotte Tilbury's global make-up spokesperson @ Gong Jun Simon a happy birthday!”

Colgate: “Day and night, it is all bright and white.  You focus on your original intention, work hard, and continue to transmit positive energy with a healing smile, making companionship more lucky and precious.  Happy birthday, Gong Jun!  New year, more beautiful, will come as promised!”

fresh: “When the years change, I see your bravery and responsibility, but also your tenacity and resound. May every transformation of yours be accompanied by fresh. Happy birthday to our handsome spokesperson @ Gong Jun Simon.”

(Hsu Fu Chi did post something but it was primarily advertising themselves and didn’t even include a photo of him, so fuck ‘em.)

LockNLock: “Across autumn and winter, across spring and summer 🎉 This is [LockNLock]'s second birthday with @ Gong Jun Simon! 🥳  We have heard insects chirping in midsummer outdoors together, and touched the falling snow in winter together. Every bit of fun is giving beauty to life! 👏  LockNLock wishes a happy birthday to the LockNLock global spokesperson @ Gong Jun Simon 1129 🎂  May we all continue to paint freely in the youthful world, and have fun with more beauty and comfort 🤗”

L’Oreal: “Greet the future with high fives, without changing the youthful background. Happy birthday to @ Gong Jun Simon!” 

Mengniu: “Growth meets unexpectedly, and the birthday comes as scheduled. Happy birthday to @ Gong Jun Simon 🎂  The two years that have passed side by side accompanying each other and growing up together for a new year. I hope you live up to your original intentions and don’t fear the future✨”

MUJOSH: “He is a young actor with changing roles, confident and shining, and also a gentle boy who maintains his original intention, humility and self-discipline. Happy birthday to MUJOSH brand spokesperson @ Gong Jun Simon 🎂 May the future days be full of non-stop progress and high spirits!”

→ #GongJun, Junjun, and #龚俊1129生日快乐 trended on Twitter.

→ Gong Jun posted a photo of a hotel table and window in his supertopic. Caption: “Good morning” Fan Observations:   -  People figured out (frighteningly quickly) where the photo was taken. The place has a suite option called Moon and Stars.  -  There’s a smudge on the window that is possibly a partial handprint. Fantasizing abounds.

→ The Legend of AnLe Weibo posted a photo of Gong Jun. Caption: “One eyebrow and one glance are handsome, and every move reflects calmness. I wish Han Ye @ Gong Jun Simon a happy birthday, every year now.”

→ The Rising with the Wind Weibo posted two photos of Gong Jun. Caption: “Leading the new national trend and helping the national brand rise. @ Gong Jun Simon Xu Si, happy birthday!”

→ The Fox Spirit Matchmaker Weibo posted four photos of Gong Jun. Caption: “Wishing the truly sincere boy Dongfang Yuechu @ Gong Jun Simon a happy birthday, and dreams coming true 🎂🎂” 

→ The producer of Rising with the Wind posted a short behind the scenes video of Gong Jun.

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a childhood photo of him. (1129 kadian) Caption: “Dear passengers, the #Gong Jun’s very wonderful November# time train has arrived at the destination of this trip. 「The train conductor @ Gong Jun Simon opened the old photo album and met a seven-year-old self」. Thank you for your company all the way, and I hope that the future will be long, and I will accompany you at every stop.”

→ 361°, Colgate, Hogan, Hsu Fu Chi, LockNLock, MUJOSH, and Tangle Teezer posted more photos and videos at for Gong Jun’s birthday. (1129 kadian) LockNLock’s included “Bye bye trouble 👋 Hi hi happiness!”, paraphrasing the song Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan danced to on Happy Camp.

→ MARRSGREEN posted a silly video of Gong Jun. (1129 kadian) They posted a birthday photo for him shortly after, caption: “From the first acquaintance to companionship, we walked through every moment of the trend together.  One year one gift, I wish you happiness, not just on your birthday @ Gong Jun Simon  A new year, a tide to a farther future!” 

→ Jifeng, a virtual personality created in Gong Jun’s image, was revealed. (1129 kadian) Gong Jun’s studio reposted this with the added caption: “The edge of the universe is the infinite future. Friends come from afar to explore the answer with you.” 

This was also reposted by Wonderland with the added caption: “Happy birthday to @ Gong Jun Simon, new adventures are coming soon, let us embark on a journey together and explore a more exciting new world together!” A few minutes later they also posted an additional video of Jifeng with white hair, shortly followed by a teaser image for something to be revealed in December. (Thanks I hate it.)

→ Kangshifu posted a photo of Gong Jun wishing him a happy birthday. Caption: “The time train has arrived at the most important station! 「Today is the birthday of the train conductor @ Gong Jun Simon~」 Kangshifu Jasmine Tea wishes Junjunzi a happy birthday, let’s walk the road of flowers together in the future!”

→ Honor posted a douyin of Gong Jun being gifted a cake during the filming of his recent commercials with them. (For those trying to keep track: Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co. were his only endorsements that didn’t post anything.)

→ Vogue posted nine previously released photos of “Hello, Hello”. Caption: “Today is @ Gong Jun Simon's 30th birthday. On the road of an actor, he is not slow, and left a deep impression on us with his bright and funny characters. In the shooting for #VOGUEfilm# this year, we once again saw his bold performance and expression. Let's wish him a happy birthday 🎂.”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a video of various behind the scenes footage from the last couple months. [subbed video] Caption: “From the train conductor @ Gong Jun Simon’s #Gong Jun’s very wonderful November# Travel Notes 🎬 Let time flow, record every moment of the boss’s sincerity, enthusiasm, and joy.” BGM is Another Day of Sun from La La Land, Young Coconut by Mac De Marco, and Taking Off by LAKEY INSPIRED. Fan Observation: The video is 04:16 long, 1640 kadian.

→ The Jifeng account posted a photo of it and Gong Jun side by side.

→ Gong Jun posted a collection of travel photos. Caption: “Return home and look” He also posted them to his Xiao Hong Shu (13:18, 511 and 1129 kadian), caption: “Let’s just say~ today  In a good mood 📸😙”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted eight more photos from the same photoshoot. Caption: “Boss @ Gong Jun Simon standing in the bustling city streets, wandering the old alleys of Chengdu, feeling the unique fireworks of this city!” An hour later they studio posted another eight photos from the it. Caption: “Boss @ Gong Jun Simon breaks into the gorgeous corner of the old street, salvaging the brilliance of early winter.”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted a video of him going to see pandas. [subbed video] Caption: “Boss @ Gong Jun Simon took the promise to go home, embarked on a journey home, and had a cordial ‘meet and greet’ with the giant panda. Let's go back to Chengdu together!” BGM is waking up on a picnic blanket by Lullatone, Prologue from I Want to Eat Your Pancreas, a piano cover of Snowdin Town from Undertale, and Stardust by Christoffer Frazen.

→ The producer of Rising with the Wind and Legend of AnLe posted a photo of a cake with little figures of Gong Jun’s roles from the two dramas. After Gong Jun’s studio later posted photos of the larger cake, he also left a comment on his own post with a photo of Gong Jun with this smaller cake.  Fan Observation: Gong Jun possibly has a hickey in the photo.

→ MUJOSH posted photos [here] and [here] and a video from a (presumably staff-)event they held for Gong Jun’s birthday. BGM is 热爱105°C的你 by A Si. 

→ Gong Jun held an impromptu AMA in his supertopic. [translation thread] Fan Observation: His replies seem to be in two distinctly different writing styles.

→ Colgate posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.

→ BEAST posted a commercial featuring Gong Jun. (23:29, 1129 kadian) Caption: “20221129 is about to pass, BEAST and Panda Poo-Poo once again wish @ Gong Jun Simon a happy birthday. There are always some regrets, and it will become the next agreement”

→ Gong Jun’s studio posted photos of him with a giant cake with little figures of most of his past roles (including Wen Kexing!!!) (23:29, 1129 kadian) Caption: “Happy birthday to boss @ Gong Jun Simon, keep on playing!”

11-30 → The cake maker posted additional photos of the cake, explaining how they flew it to Yunnan for him. [summary translation]

→ #龚俊Simon trended on Twitter.

→ 361° announced the end of the charity program they ran in partnership with Gong Jun during the previous weeks, with a total of 150k RMB raised for the China Small Animal Protection Association. 

→ Colgate posted a collection of photo ads featuring Gong Jun. (flashing images cw)

→ Jiang Zemin, the former leader of China, passed away, bringing a mourning period into effect.

12-01 → Nothing of note.

12-02 → Nothing of note.

12-03 → 不想匿名 changed their pfp to clouds and a sunset.

→ The Instagram posted two photos of “Zhang Zhehan” and some other aesthetic-y photos of plants and a book.

Additional Reading → The Zhang Zhehan wiki created by Flora et al. was made public last weekend! It’s a great resource for up to date information about his case, and is where Flora’s daily fan news thread has moved to. → Sheena’s charity drive for Gong Jun’s birthday ended with a total of 102,911 HKD (92,827.54 RMB / 13,216.67 USD) in donations! Thank you to everyone who participated, winners of the various giveaways can be found [here]!

<<< previous week || all posts || following week >>>

[bizarrequazar]

I’m going to repeat what I just said on Twitter:

I believe in Zhang Zhehan’s character. I believe in Gong Jun’s character. I do not believe the Instagram video is legitimate, and I do not believe Gong Jun has intentionally done anything to harm Zhang Zhehan.

Am I being naive? I don’t think so. I've looked at and considered all the evidence as objectively as I can as an individual. 

Yes, I am biased. Yes, there is an answer that I want to see. But I have seriously considered the explanations that don't align with my biases. I’ve read them. I understand the thinking behind them. 

I will fully admit that I have had doubts about both of them. I had doubts about this. I had doubts when the “face reveal” video happened. I had doubts when the Instagram pfp changed. I had doubts about the Zhang Sanjian account. I had doubts as far back as 813. I have had many more doubts about many more things than I have ever stated publicly.

I have never believed any of this blindly, and I do not do so now. 

I fully recognize that I may be wrong, and if I am, then I'll accept that. But one piece of “proof” that could very realisitically have been faked does not negate the fact that every other thing about that account has been sketchy. Every single other thing has been debunked. 

I am looking at the whole picture, and I am deciding that I believe in them. Not because it’s what I want, but because it’s what makes sense to me.

What you believe is up to you. I only ask that you think about why.

[bizarrequazar]

Whalers reponding to my blocklist lying outright and talking about “proof” for Zhang Sanjian that we debunked ad nauseum literally months ago... I have a headache.

Also Chen Liying has no familial relation to Zhang Zhehan, how many times do we have to say this?