Chinese streets are deserted and quiet due to the corona virus epidemic, but online, anger and grief for Li Wenliang are boiling.

After Dr. Li, 34, died on February 7, Chinese social networking users made the most critical criticism for censoring information in the government for nearly a decade. Dr. Li's grief and public outrage overwhelmed China's censorship system.

Over the past few weeks, Chinese state-run media have emphasized positive stories about the country's resilience to pneumonia and Li is a case of "heroism," playing a similar role. Tuong Ngan, a retired army doctor, once exposed the SARS epidemic. Perhaps Lee will be honored as one who opposes the "bureaucracy" that has been attacked by state media throughout the week.

However, his failure to survive the battle with the corona virus caused the opportunity to be "thrown out the window," wrote commentator James Griffiths of CNN. The public sees him as a reminder of the initial government's concealment of the outbreak.

When Li warned about the virus in an online chat group on December 30, 2019, Wuhan police summoned him and asked him to sign a memorandum saying he was spreading unfounded and illegal rumors. It was not until January 20 that China recognized the virus transmitted from person to person and that local governments had begun to take drastic measures to combat the epidemic.

"Countless young people will grow older after just one day. They realize the world is not as beautiful as we thought," an online writer on the night of Dr. Li's death was announced. "Are you angry? If any of us here are lucky enough to be able to speak out to the public in the future, make sure you remember your anger tonight."

The keyword "Wuhan government owes Dr. Li an apology" and "freedom of speech" became the most prominent discussion topic on Weibo a few hours before being deleted - evidence that sometimes indignation network users can overwhelm the Chinese "information" censorship wall.

The Chinese censorship apparatus, commonly known as the Great Wall of China, has never been so overwhelmed since 2011, when the public was furious over a high-speed rail accident in Wenzhou that left 40 people dead. The Wenzhou accident has prompted authorities to issue new policies to control Internet more closely.

"The death of Li Wenliang has become an emotional turning point," said Wang Yu, a young man in Wuhan.

In Hong Kong Special Zone, a night memorial service was held in the city center to express the grief of Dr. Li. In mainland China, social media users across the country send flowers to Wuhan Central Hospital, where Li used to work and take his last breath. At night, the people of Wuhan simultaneously turned off the lights and whistled from the window at 9pm to commemorate Li.

"He was an ordinary person, but has now become a symbol," said Zhang Lifan, an independent historian in Beijing. "If it weren't for the pneumonia epidemic that kept people indoors, they would probably have marched on the streets. Officials are very concerned."

The death of a doctor poses a new challenge for Chinese President Xi Jinping, who faced many challenges such as a trade war with the US, Taiwan and Hong Kong before the outbreak of pneumonia caused by the strain. new corona virus (nCoV) outbreaks. The epidemic has killed 724 people and more than 34,000 cases.

Many social media users praised Dr. Li for being "a martyr" and "a hero." Not only ordinary people, government officials, celebrities and business leaders also expressed his sadness at his departure.

Chinese state-run media are trying to exploit Li's story in a polar way. The National Health Commission does not describe him as an early warning of the virus, but instead a doctor at the front line against the epidemic. In fact, Li is an ophthalmologist who got the virus from a patient treated for glaucoma.

Chinese state-run broadcaster seeks to connect Dr. Li's story with Xi's statement about the fight against the epidemic. "Defeating this 'evil' virus is the best consolation for the deceased," a CCTV commentary wrote, echoing the way Xi described the plague.

To appease the public, the Chinese regime on February 7 opened an investigation into Dr. Li's death. NYTimes journalists Chris Buckley and Paul Mozur commented that "it is rare for the Chinese Communist Party to respond so quickly to public outrage." The National Health Committee and the Wuhan government also extended their condolences to Dr. Li's family.

NYTimes talked to Dr. Li a week before his death. "If officials disclose information about the disease earlier, the situation will be much better now. It needs to be more open and transparent," he said. "I am very sad to see so many people lost loved ones.