Commentary: A Kind of Online Traffic as Sweet as Watermelon

Henan watermelons have carved out a path for themselves on this summer's trending-topic charts. How exactly did all this happen? And what traffic secrets and patterns of communication lie behind it?

Recently, news that watermelons were going unsold in parts of Henan Province drew widespread attention. First, scattered short videos of Henan watermelons selling for "a few cents per jin" and "rotting in the fields" circulated online; then more people, media outlets, and institutions stepped in, pushing the story of Henan's unsold watermelons onto the trending lists. In the latest related development, Henan-born singer Lu Hu invited singer Kenji Wu to jointly purchase 250 tonnes of watermelons and set up charity stalls to give them away for free.

Facing accusations of "putting on a show," Kenji Wu offered a reply that not only firmly rebutted this minority prejudice but also explained how one Henan watermelon after another has been strung together into this summer's most moving wave of online traffic: "Whether I am a good person doesn't matter. What matters is that you don't have to stir up disputes, controversy, or confrontation to get traffic."

Kenji Wu and Lu Hu help farmers with a warm-hearted campaign, giving away 250 tonnes of watermelons for free.

Indeed, in this spontaneous, geographically dispersed "farm-aid relay" made up of all kinds of initiatives, many kind-hearted people have gained traffic. Henan retailer Pang Donglai "bargained in reverse," offering farmers more than they asked; some scenic areas bought watermelons and handed them out free to visitors; e-commerce platforms launched special charity group-buying sessions; local governments set up production-and-sales task forces; and tourists traveling in Henan made special trips to the countryside to buy melons. Everyone joined the relay to "boost the melons."

Kindness is contagious, and the melon-boosting wave has even blown beyond Henan. In Shanghai, a thousand kilometers away, starting July 23, Jiubo Plaza in the Jing'an Temple commercial district is hosting a charity campaign under the banner "Henan and Shanghai United, Helping Farmers and Benefiting the People," bringing one hundred tonnes of Henan watermelons directly to Jing'an — sold at the affordable price of 9.9 yuan each, with targeted free distribution as well.

"Traffic for good" has never been an empty slogan; it flows through every concrete, tangible act of kindness. The watermelons are sweet; the sales boosted by goodwill are sweet; the traffic earned by helping melon farmers and winning netizens' praise is sweet too. And for the many tourists and netizens who kept buying, watching a farmer's furrowed brow relax into a simple, honest smile brings a sense of fulfillment that is just as sweet.

The people and events gathered around the keyword "Henan watermelon" this summer are enough to remind every social platform and every content creator: if there is any shortcut to traffic, it is "following goodness like a stream." Rather than scheming to stoke emotional confrontation, stage scripted stunts, or push boundaries, it is far better to ride a trending topic like "boosting melons to help farmers."

Trending topics differ in beauty and ugliness, and there are better and worse ways to ride them. Ride the wrong topic badly and you can scrape your skin or break a bone — even leave lasting internal injuries on your own credibility and future. But with a topic like melon-boosting farm aid, as long as the direction is right, the method is proper, and the heart is sincere, ride it as hard as you like — and trust that the traffic you earn will be clear and clean.

Of course, another important factor behind the low-priced, unsold Henan watermelons going viral is that many consumers in big cities suddenly exclaimed: watermelons can really be this cheap?

Accordingly, industry insiders and experts have begun analyzing the market issues involved — logistics, information gaps, timing of market entry, planting ratios, and more. These voices matter just as much. If they can be put into practice to open up logistics channels and new markets for Henan watermelons and improve the province's production-and-sales model, so much the better: that would solve the problem at its root and help farmers develop over the long term.

There is a kind of online traffic as sweet as watermelon. This summer, even if you never tasted a Henan watermelon yourself, we have all had a taste of the giant "melon of love" circulating online. How could you not love traffic like this?

Translated from Chinese. Original article published by The Paper (澎湃新闻), July 24, 2026.