Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 120

Lin Chen had never met Xu Ran. He’d only seen her in a photo on Wang Chao’s laptop. However, compared to a prostitute or a wandering warbler, her identity was first and foremost a girl.

No matter how society changed, since she was a girl, she should be loved, and not mercilessly trampled on again and again.

Lin Chen was worried as he looked at Xing Conglian. He didn’t know what to say. He felt powerless thinking about how he could intervene in Li Jingtian’s machinations towards the girl.

However, Xing Conglian was tenacious and different from ordinary people. He looked back at him and then shouted to the teenager next to him without hesitation, “Wang Chao?”

“Checking records.” The teenager began tapping the keyboard again as he replied anxiously. “Captain, I can’t shoulder the burden of the police force alone. What did Deputy Captain Chen say?”

Earlier, on their way to the hospital, Xing Conglian had asked his men to check on Xu Ran’s whereabouts. Perhaps there was news now.

As Wang Chao was speaking, Xing Conglian was already on the phone. It connected quickly. When the person on the other end heard him inquire about “Xu Ran”, they seemed surprised.

“Didn’t Wang Chao tell you to investigate?” Xing Conglian raised his voice. After he finished speaking, he put the phone on speaker.

“Captain, you asked me to check too many things. I didn’t know if it was that urgent. We really haven’t found where Xu Ran is, but she did take a train this morning at 6. The train arrived at Hongjing Station at 7:03. The train number is G137. We haven’t found any other news yet. Do you want to send someone to the train station to check the network?”

“Okay, I see. Continue.” Xing Conglian hung up.

“Oh god, I’m really starting to doubt myself, Captain. Why is she in Hongjing? How could she be in Hongjing?” Wang Chao was becoming more anxious as he talked. He even started to doubt his previous deduction. “If she arrived at 7:03, she had plenty of time to commit the crime at Ansheng International Mall. There’s no issue with the timeline.”

Indeed, they had just deduced that the throat-slitting case had been arranged and manipulated by Li Jingtian from the start. He did all this to gain social attention and then pin all the blame on Xu Ran. But then another incredible thing happened. Xu Ran had come to Hongjing from Fengchun. She had arrived early enough that she had plenty of time to commit the crime.

“Alright, think less and work more.” Xing Conglian knocked on the teenager’s forehead, waking the young man out of his stupor. “Do you think a woman who has the ability to plan all this is an idiot? If she was going to kill someone, why would she take the high-speed train? Isn’t she afraid the police will find out?”

Xing Conglian was right. For a murderer to commit such a crime across cities, it was extremely stupid to take a high-speed train that made it easy to leave evidence of travel. Whether it was a long-distance bus or a small taxi, it was far easier to hide their whereabouts than a high-speed train. However, if Li Jingtian wanted to turn Xu Ran into the assailant, he could naturally arrange for her to come to Hongjing. But it was abnormal that she did come.

Lin Chen’s bad premonition in his heart became stronger. Although they believed Xu Ran was innocent, all the clues indicated she was in Hongjing. The photograph of the assailant during the assault looked similar to her, and she had sufficient motives to commit the crime, so how could they prove that it wasn’t her?

Lin Chen suddenly realized why Li Jingtian was so confident in his smile.

“Captain, you have a point. I think this must all be Li Jingtian’s conspiracy.” Wang Chao became energetic again. “But A’Chen’s right. We have to quickly find Xu Ran.”

“Do you have any thoughts?” Xing Conglian asked.

“I found her cell phone number.” Wang Chao pressed the enter key, and a Fengchun number appeared on the screen. Xing Conglian glanced at the number and quickly dialed it.

After a long time of waiting, the phone didn’t connect.

The “no answer” tone was mechanical and cold, and the blank time after the phone hung up was hopelessly long.

Xu Ran didn’t answer her phone, which gave them a bad feeling.

“Maybe she didn’t hear it, or it could be on silent. By the way…” The teenager suddenly thought of something. “If someone comes to a city that they’re unfamiliar with, they very likely will turn on the GPS navigation. I’ll try it.”

After speaking, he began to get busy in front of the laptop again; the clacking sounds of the keyboard seemed to bring some hope.

But the more Wang Chao searched, the more his brows furrowed. He kept operating the touchpad with one hand while checking records with the other. However, his series of searches didn’t help. “Xu Ran didn’t turn on the GPS. I’ll try her bank card or something. Maybe she bought something using her card…”

The teenager’s voice was becoming weaker. They all knew that it was unlikely that Xu Ran would leave any traces.

At this moment, another scream erupted on Wang Chao’s laptop. It was the alarm tone he had set before. The system would automatically alert if any information about Li Jingtian went viral.

Wang Chao switched back to the previous information statistics page as if he had seen a ghost, and looked at the new cloud clusters emerging on the data map, then he quickly clicked on the root directory.

The same thing happened a second time.

It was still a Weibo post made by Li Jingtian’s fans. The main content of the post was still a photo, and the protagonist of the photo happened to be Xu Ran again.

Through coincidence, or rather, because all this had been so coincidental, there were traces full of artificial arrangements.

Xu Ran was dressed in red and was standing on a sidewalk at the fork in the road as a vehicle passed by her. Her face was blank, as if she was unaware of what was going on.

“This intersection is too familiar, right, Captain? We seem to have passed by it just now?” Wang Chao asked as he looked at the photograph.

Before his voice fell, Xing Conglian had already turned around and opened the door of the ward. “Let’s go.”

They quickly went out and followed Xing Conglian through the white aisles and into the quiet elevator. When they were about to reach the parking space, Xing Conglian quickened his pace.

There were reporters who hadn’t left yet, squatting around. Seeing the trio, twice as many people swarmed them as before.

Microphones and recorders flood their vision.

“Captain Xing, I heard that there were traces of the suspect found near the hospital. Did you go to arrest the suspect?”

“Captain Xing, Captain Xing… The internet is now saying that the Hongjing police are relying on netizens to solve the case. Do you have any comments on this?”

Xing Conglian opened the car door with a cold face. He first protected them as they entered the back seat; then, he sat in the front seat and slammed the door without saying a single word to the reporters.

He quickly started the engine and, for the first time, took out the police light from the glove box and installed it.

As the siren sounded, the reporters were all left in shock.

Xing Conglian lowered the window of the car and shouted, “Hurry up and get out of the way.”

His aura was too impressive, and his arrogant words and tough posture were directly captured by the reporters’ cameras.

After the flash of light, the reporters backed away with joyful smiles on their faces, as if they had received their headlines for the day. Looking at those excited smiles, Lin Chen seemed to be able to guess what they were: “The captain of the Hongjing police force was unable to investigate the case and angrily scolded reporters”.

But now they had no time to care about this.

The Jeep drove out of the gate of the hospital. After Wang Chao got in the car, before he could put down his backpack, he was searching frantically for those Weibo posts.

Human flesh was one of the most reliable and terrifying ways of transmitting information in the world.

Many of Li Jingtian’s fans were originally near the hospital. Now that they had learned the news, many started providing various information based on the location of the photo, and some even took the initiative to look for Xu Ran.

What Xing Conglian had said earlier had come true again. Vigilantes were the most troublesome type for the police.

@EatDrinkSleep: [I was just on Dongzheng Road and saw that woman! Come on, everyone!]

The location of the Weibo post was at the intersection of Dongzheng Road and 4^th West Road.

Wang Chao turned on the navigation, glanced at the real-time road condition, and said, “Captain, she turned on West Fourth Road. If you continue forward, there’s going to be a traffic jam. Go around North Heping Road.”

Xing Conglian turned the car and drove sharply away in the direction Wang Chao pointed out.

“Adjust the real-time surveillance camera and find her.”

“It’s already adjusted, but, Captain, you have to hurry. There are some fans of Li Jingtian nearby, and they already went over.” Looking at the frantically lit dots on the array, Wang Chao was simply overwhelmed. “A’Chen, take the tablet out of my backpack and monitor the real-time progress on Weibo,” the teenager quickly urged.

Lin Chen nodded and took out the tablet. He kept refreshing the latest posts, and all kinds of dirty words were refreshed before his eyes.

@EatDrinkSleep: [Fuck, hurry up and catch that idiot.]

@TomatoRiceNoodlesIsTiansFavoite: [Forwarding this post. 1,000 yuan from Alipay for each person. Whoever catches that chicken and takes a photo for me will get it!]

@BeefWithEggplantSauce: [I was at the entrance to a shop on West Fourth Road and saw the chicken. Please help me!!!]

“West Fourth Road, McDonald’s.” Lin Chen patted the teenager on the shoulder and reminded him.

Wang Chao nodded and began to pull up the surveillance. He dragged and dropped the timeline. Several teenage girls appeared on the dark-toned surveillance screen. They were wearing red clothes with the rose logo of the Li Jingtian fan club on their chests. They were stretching their fingers and necks, as if they were pointing at someone across the road.

“Across the street,” Lin Chen said.

Wang Chao quickly turned the screen around. Finally, they saw a figure in a red dress.

The woman across the road seemed to realize that someone was shouting at her. She looked around in panic, and after being momentarily stunned, she began to run.

At this time, they had already driven onto West Fourth Road. Wang Chao hurriedly said, “Captain, there’s a red light at the intersection and a parking space 30 meters in front of you. Stop the car. It’ll be faster if we run on foot.”

Lin Chen nodded. Xing Conglian glanced at him and then slammed on the brakes.

Lin Chen opened the car door and quickly rushed out. West Fourth Road was a commercial district in a prosperous area. With a few girls chasing, it caused some commotion.

Because Xu Ran was wearing a red dress and black high heels, she couldn’t run fast at all. Realizing that someone was chasing behind her, she stumbled forward in fear, and even pushed over two newsstands on the side of the road.

Lin Chen increased his speed and rushed forward. The wind was whistling past his ears, with sounds from people and traffic accompanying it. The violent movement was making his mind go blank.

“Stop!”

“The one in the red dress.”

“Everyone help catch the bad guy!”

The teenage girls’ cold voices poured into Lin Chen’s ears.

He suddenly looked up and saw the woman being chased at the front running faster. Her black hair was scattered, and her skirt was flying. Many pedestrians finally reacted. Some realized that she might be a bad person so they stopped in their tracks and surrounded Xu Ran.

When Xu Ran saw this, she became even more flustered. She looked around, but there was no place for her to escape.

Lin Chen ran with all his strength. He passed by Li Jingtian’s fans, who were still chasing, and the next moment, as soon as he caught up with Xu Ran, everything slowed down.

He saw that Xu Ran was looking at him with horrified despair before she rushed into the oncoming traffic without hesitation.

The woman was like a bird that generously went to her death. She first cut off a bus, then jumped over the guardrail. The traffic lights in front of her had just changed, causing a large number of vehicles to accelerate forward. The sharp sound of a horn echoed so loudly that it made his eardrum hurt.

As if frightened by it, Xu Ran looked at the oncoming truck in a daze, which then crashed straight into her.

It was like a scene from a poor-quality horror movie. On the dark background, a woman dressed in red floated into the sky, like a flower being blown up and down by the wind, before landing heavily. The truck had no time to brake and rolled over her body.

Crack.

Lin Chen seemed to hear the sound of something breaking. Although the scene in front of him was changing, all he could see was blackness. However, it wasn’t because he had fainted, but because a pair of hands had covered his eyes.

“Don’t look.” Xing Conglian’s solemn voice sounded in his ears.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 119

A disaster disappeared into thin air—or rather, there was no possibility of a disaster. Who would really fight with the local police in the territory of another country for the sake of a singer? The attitude of the military attaché was just to posture a little.

Unfortunately, Xing Conglian had seen through this act long ago. His response was also obvious. Regardless of what Shen Chenggong would or wouldn’t do, since he had said those words that rubbed Xing Conglian the wrong way, he would act on them.

In short, this was similar to the methods commonly used in diplomatic negotiations. When one retreated, the other advanced. The two sides would then mediate and negotiate. Apart from “enhancing friendship”, there would be no other consequences.

However, Liu Ying didn’t think so. Naturally, she thought the Xinni Embassy “bodyguards” were forced to back down because of Xing Conglian.

“I assure you, you will be reprimanded,” the woman said angrily.

It was almost like her last dying resistance.

However, before her voice fell, she received a very indifferent look from the deputy military attaché. His meaning was: “Shut up.”

“Let’s go.”

Shen Chenggong bent down, as if nothing had happened just now, picked up the broken sunglasses on the floor, and put them back into his pocket, looking nonchalant.

Liu Ying’s face was indignant. The little assistant in the room was confused, while Li Jingtian finally got up from the hospital bed.

Since the other party told him to go, naturally he would follow. He methodically picked up his leather shoes and put them on. He moved slowly, like a young man with a good family background; no matter what kind of battles were around him, such an atmosphere couldn’t affect his movements.

Seeing that Li Jingtian was getting up, the assistant, Xiao Ke, also began to frantically organize Li Jingtian’s remaining luggage. Since Li Jingtian was suddenly hospitalized, there weren’t many things to pack.

Li Jingtian didn’t seem to notice any abnormalities in the room. He was just doing his own thing at his own pace.

After he finished putting on his shoes, he walked to the bedside table, picked up a glass of cold water at the head of the bed, and took a sip. The sound of a luggage bag being pulled resounded in the ward when he finished this series of slow actions.

Hearing it, Li Jingtian put down the glass of water, walked back to his assistant, and personally picked up the bulging backpack. Under everyone’s gaze, he carried it on his own; there was no arrogant aura that came from being a big star.

Li Jingtian was still the low-key and humble Li Jingtian as rumored.

The four agents from the embassy also started to move and prepared to escort Li Jingtian out.

When he was about to walk to the door, Li Jingtian suddenly stopped and turned around. The blazing sun outside the window fell right on his face, making it white like light.

Lin Chen understood and walked towards the door.

“I may return to China for recuperation in the near future. This is my personal number.” Li Jingtian bowed slightly, took out a business card from his pocket, and handed it to Lin Chen with both hands.

When Lin Chen was about to reach for it, Li Jingtian suddenly grabbed his hand. Although it seemed to be just a polite handshake and farewell, the moment Li Jingtian raised his head, Lin Chen clearly saw the beast-like gaze from his eyes.

Although the gaze was fierce and cruel, it was also gentle and seductive. Lin Chen had seen the same gaze in the eyes of wild beasts that had bitten the necks of their prey and sucked on their blood. This kind of feeling was creepy because of how inhuman it felt.

Lin Chen met Li Jingtian’s gaze and lightly said, “Goodbye.”

……

……

After Li Jingtian left, there were only the three of them left in the room.

Wang Chao was the first to react. The teenager suddenly got up from the floor, laid down on the sofa, and groaned. He said in horror, “My god, Li Jingtian is crazy. He must be a big pervert. Now that he’s at the embassy, we can’t arrest him anymore. What should we do? What the hell is going on?”

“Consultant Lin?” Xing Conglian asked.

Lin Chen stood by the window and didn’t answer. From his view, he could clearly see the reporters and fans waiting anxiously at the gate of the hospital.

After a while, a black car slowly drove out of the underground garage.

The car had a yellow license plate with a special traffic sign on it, indicating that it was the car sent by the Xinni Embassy to pick up Li Jingtian.

Fans were screaming everywhere as reporters quickly reacted to what was going on. They wanted to come forward and get some exclusive news.

However, perhaps it was because the car drove too smoothly, or maybe because the glass windows were tinted on all sides, but it was impossible for anyone to see what was going on inside. The reporters who had previously chased and blocked them didn’t dare to do the same and instead maintained a distance from the car while they kept pressing their cameras at the embassy vehicle.

Li Jingtian’s fans, probably because they were still scarred from the previous stampede, only dared to quietly follow the car while they silently recited their idol’s name and sent him off.

This scene was quite comical. Li Jingtian seemed to be a hero who was about to return to his hometown. Under the farewell of flashing shutters and surrounded by fans, he disappeared at the end of the road.

Lin Chen finally retracted his gaze and finally answered Xing Conglian.

“Li Jingtian is sick.”

“Of course he’s sick,” Xing Conglian said solemnly.

“It’s a mental illness mixed with histrionic personality disorder*,” Lin Chen said.

*A personality disorder characterized by a pattern of excessive attention-seeking behaviors, usually beginning in early childhood, including inappropriate seduction and an excessive desire for approval. People diagnosed with the disorder are said to be lively, dramatic, vivacious, enthusiastic, extroverted and flirtatious.

“He was born with the natural love to act?” Wang Chao suddenly asked. “Eh, does that mean his modesty, politeness, gentleness, and actions are all a performance? Shit, doesn’t he get tired of it?”

Lin Chen slowly walked to the teenager and sat down on the sofa, then shook his head. “Normal people can’t understand or recognize people with personality disorders. You infer things about them using common sense. People like Li Jingtian have the primary characteristic of ‘highly self-centered’. They desperately need the attention of others. Therefore, they regard playing with others as a means to achieve their goals. They are warm, smart, and attractive on the surface, but in fact, they completely disregard their human needs and interests. That is, as long as they can get attention, they will do anything, such as coercion, lying, deceit, flattery, and even manipulative suicide threats. If you ask if they get tired of it, it’s like asking if a fish is tired of living in water. They rely on it to live.”

Xing Conglian asked, “So you asked us not to talk to Li Jingtian before was to judge whether Li Jingtian is really sick?”

“If Li Jingtian has a serious histrionic personality disorder, as I inferred, he desperately needs the attention of others. When we entered the ward, no one paid attention to him but instead talked to other people. It would inevitably make him extremely uncomfortable. He will keep trying to attract our attention. This was the case. He really couldn’t stand being neglected by others. As you found, Li Jingtian’s emotional reaction wasn’t sincere but more like being separated by a layer of cellophane, which is also a main feature of histrionic personality disorder. Just like a fish must live in water, patients with personality disorders also have obstacles they can’t cross. You can often get a glimpse of his true psychological state from his obstacles.”

“So he did all that in the mall just to make himself look like a victim and get the attention of society? What about the rape case? Is it legit? But A’Chen, how do you know Li Jingtian has histrionic personality disorder…”

“First, when I saw him on stage, I thought there was something wrong with him, but at that time, I didn’t understand what it was. I just thought he was a smooth talker. He was too humble and affectionate, which can give people a weird and indescribable feeling. Then, we saw the bouquet of roses and the dead nightingale. Regardless of who gave the bouquet, that person must have an antisocial personality disorder. There’s no doubt about this. Following this, you told me about the rape case.” Lin Chen continued, “Since the rape case has occurred, there are only two possibilities: true or false. Of course, either situation would be terrible. However, in theory, it’s impossible. Although it hasn’t been proven that the girl named Xu Ran’s accusation is true, if the rape was real, we can infer that Li Jingtian’s own mental state is extremely unstable to the point where his sexual behavior becomes too extreme. On the other hand, this shows that he will use sex to seduce the object he wants in order to win their attention. This means he has strong predatory tendencies in his sexual behavior and a strong desire to manipulate, showing that he has extreme sexual fetishes. Linked to what he said to his fans on stage, he actually enjoys the feeling of being a victim after hurting others. This gives him an intoxicated feeling.”

“I can’t relate to this,” Wang Chao said honestly.

“I’m telling you a little so you’ll understand that in the classification of personality disorder, antisocial, narcissism, histrionic, and borderline personality disorders are all closely related. Some studies have pointed out that two-thirds of those with histrionic personality disorder also meet the diagnostic criteria for antisocial personality disorder. There are even theories that point out that histrionic personality disorder and antisocial personality disorder may be different manifestations of the same internal cause in people of different genders. That is to say, women tend to have histrionic personality disorder while men are more inclined to show antisocial behavior.”

Lin Chen quieted down. Xing Conglian suddenly realized why Lin Chen was talking like this. If Lin Chen’s deduction was correct, then this case seemed too cruel, and there was a feeling of helplessness and suffocation.

He couldn’t help but say, “Consultant Lin, you actually have a deduction that integrates the entire case, don’t you?”

Lin Chen looked up at him with deep, bottomless eyes. “Yes.”

Cutting right to the chase, Lin Chen’s voice became calmer as he spoke slowly. “If Li Jingtian has a serious histrionic and antisocial personality disorder, then Xu Ran became his prey. After he wantonly trampled on her to satisfy his unspeakable dirty desires, he knew exactly what Xu Ran would do. After all, anyone who was forced to the extreme would resist, but how could the world believe that a dirty, stupid prostitute would accuse a big star, with a solid reputation, of raping her? No one would believe this kind of story. Although I haven’t read the file, my guess is that the rape case was designed by Li Jingtian from the start. He just played with her again and again. It’s impossible for a smart and cunning person like Li Jingtian to leave any evidence. Whether it’s the fake Photoshop photo or the wrong location of the crime, this was all done by Li Jingtian to weaken Xu Ran’s credibility. Under his arrangement, she would definitely lose, and at that time, he can enjoy the pleasure of being a victim. Unexpectedly, Li Jingtian didn’t think that this rape case would make Xu Ran the focus of everyone’s attention. The attention that should’ve belonged to him was taken away by a prostitute, which made him extremely angry. That’s why he planned this second incident. He needed to pull everyone’s attention away from Xu Ran and back to him. So the story looks like this: A whore designed a series of incidents in order to get her revenge on a big star. The big star had his throat slit and was accused of self-directing this whole thing to whitewash himself. Just when online public opinion had turned against him, his fans posted pictures of the culprit during the time of the assault and returned his innocence. Once again, he has replaced Xu Ran as the focus of everyone’s attention and sympathy. Just the thought of this probably will give him an orgasm.”

Xing Conglian was almost speechless.

A high-ranking individual repeatedly destroyed another individual who was crawling in the dust. This incident was already extremely cruel, but Xing Conglian thought there was a worse possibility. “So, Li Jingtian’s throat was slit, but the wound was extremely shallow. He didn’t pretend to be seriously injured, but walked out of the emergency room by himself because this was the best way to clear up suspicion around him. However, the police aren’t fools. As long as we find Xu Ran, which we definitely will, won’t all of Li Jingtian’s arrangements go wrong? But he seems pretty confident of himself, and I don’t think it’s because of his diplomatic protection. Why is he so sure?”

Before Xing Conglian could continue, he saw the obvious pale face of Lin Chen. He even found that Lin Chen’s knuckles were clasped on the armrest of the sofa and were trembling slightly.

“Because, he will kill her.” Lin Chen suddenly looked up at him. “Find Xu Ran right away. I’m afraid her life is in danger.”

“Didn’t Li Jingtian go to the embassy? How can he kill her?”

“How can he?” Lin Chen responded rhetorically. “Not all killing needs to be done with your own hands. Rumors can kill. Gossip can kill. Even the pain of despair can slowly kill.”

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Kinky Thoughts:

Breaking down the disorders mentioned in this chapter:

Personality disorder: Class of mental disorders characterized by enduring maladaptive patterns of behavior, cognition, and inner experience, exhibited across many contexts, and deviating from those accepted by the individual’s culture. These patterns develop early, are inflexible, and are associated with significant distress or disability. The definitions vary by source and remain a matter of controversy.

Antisocial personality disorder: Predominantly affects men (three times more common). A personality disorder characterized by a long-term pattern of disregard of, or violation of, the rights of others as well as a difficulty sustaining long-term relationships. Lack of empathy and a contemptuous attitude are often apparent, as well as a history of rule-breaking that can sometimes include law-breaking, a tendency towards chronic boredom and substance abuse, and impulsive and aggressive behavior.

Borderline personality disorder: Predominantly affects women (three times more common). also known as emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD), is a personality disorder characterized by a long-term pattern of unstable interpersonal relationships, distorted sense of self, and strong emotional reactions. Those affected often engage in self-harm and other dangerous behaviors, often due to their difficulty with returning their emotional level to a healthy or normal baseline. They may also struggle with a feeling of emptiness, fear of abandonment, and detachment from reality.

Histrionic personality disorder: Equally affects men and women (though diagnostic rates favors women). A personality disorder characterized by a pattern of excessive attention-seeking behaviors, usually beginning in early childhood, including inappropriate seduction and an excessive desire for approval. People diagnosed with the disorder are said to be lively, dramatic, vivacious, enthusiastic, extroverted and flirtatious.

Narcissistic personality disorder: Favors men. A personality disorder characterized by a life-long pattern of exaggerated feelings of self-importance, an excessive need for admiration, a diminished ability or unwillingness to empathize with others’ feelings, and interpersonally exploitative behavior. Narcissistic personality disorder is one of the subtypes of the broader category known as personality disorders. It is often comorbid with other mental disorders and associated with significant functional impairment and psychosocial disability.

These are just four personality disorders that were mentioned by Lin Chen, but there are still a few more.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 118

Women were probably good at changing their expressions.

Lin Chen could clearly see Liu Ying’s expression change from nervous to arrogant in an instant, as she seemed to know exactly who was behind that door.

Going by a guess, those who would knock on the door to Li Jingtian’s ward would be the staff of the embassy who were rumored to be coming to pick up Mr. Li Jingtian for his “transfer”.

Just as he had just finished humiliating Li Jingtian and the situation hadn’t subsided, the staff of the embassy appeared. The timing wasn’t very good. Lin Chen could only look at Xing Conglian apologetically.

Xing Conglian didn’t seem to care. He patted Lin Chen on the shoulder, indicating he didn’t need to worry.

However, since Xing Conglian was comforting him, most likely he also guessed who was behind that door.

Xing Conglian didn’t bother entangling with Liu Ying any longer. He looked down at the teenager, who had been sitting on the ground, and said, “Pack your things and get up.”

Hearing Xing Conglian intent of leaving, Liu Ying felt wronged. She arrogantly ordered the little assistant in the corner of the room. “Xiao Ke, go and open the door.”

The little girl shuddered, ran to the door tremblingly, and opened it.

There were four people standing outside.

It looked like a classic scene in a European or American spy war movie. The four at the door were all dressed in black uniforms; even their leather shoes were pure black. They wore sunglasses, and there was a headset cord that extended from behind the neckline of their suits. Their waists were bulging; it was obvious they were equipped with guns, which was covered by the hems of their suits.

Comrade Wang Chao looked at the four black-clothed men who were tightly blocking the door, stunned. The word “fuck” was almost written all over his face.

However, the four bodyguards or agents seemed to be accustomed to this sense of attention. They all walked into the ward and stood at the four corners of Li Jingtian’s hospital bed. One of them walked to the bedside table, turned around, and said respectfully to Li Jingtian, “Mr. Li, we were ordered by Ambassador Zhaohua to protect your personal safety in China.”

At least they didn’t address him with a weird term like young master, Lin Chen thought. Suddenly, he heard a sibilant sound coming from the room.

When he looked down, he discovered that the sound had been made by someone else. The teenager who was squatting on the ground was stuffing a power cord, laptop, and his Mentos candy into his backpack. Because he was moving so quickly, it created a lot of noise.

Wang Chao was naturally carrying out the arrangement of his boss, but as far as the situation was concerned, he didn’t seem to put those heavily armed agents from the embassy in his eyes at all.

With the cluttering noise in the background, the originally frozen atmosphere that was brought on when the black-clothed agents entered was slowly melting.

Upon seeing this, Liu Ying’s face turned ugly again, as if all the momentum she had gained had been lightly pressed back.

“You’re finally here. If you hadn’t come, Jingtian would’ve been forced to death by these Chinese police.” Seeing this, she walked up to the four embassy agents and reached out and pointed at Xing Conglian.

Lin Chen was a little surprised. He thought Liu Ying would accuse him, but now it seemed that Xing Conglian would have to shoulder the blame.

Xing Conglian just stood there indifferently. Suddenly the weak singer on the hospital bed spoke.

“It’s okay. It’s just a simple inquiry. Although the police officer’s words were a bit excessive, it’s not a big deal.”

Li Jingtian seemed to have recovered from his humiliation. He gathered his mood and seemed to excuse Lin Chen, but such an excuse was obviously provocative.

Naturally, those who could work in the embassy were people who could understand subtext. Hearing this, a man in black standing beside the hospital bed saluted Li Jingtian, then turned around and walked in front of Xing Conglian.

Looking at his aggressive attitude, it was obvious he wanted to warn Xing Conglian, but before he could speak, the teenager who had been packing things up interrupted.

“What’s your name?”

Wang Chao’s voice was clear and crisp.

The embassy agent didn’t expect that someone would dare ask such an arrogant question given the current circumstances, but the teenager sitting on the floor was even more arrogant than expected. After all, this was a young man who dared to scold an idiot in front of the ICPO, so just asking for his name was already quite polite.

The black-clothed man who was about to “settle accounts” with Xing Conglian seemed greatly offended. He took off his sunglasses and looked at the teenager who dared speak out. He thought his gaze was iron-blooded and cold, but the young man sitting on the floor that was packing his thing didn’t have any look of panic or fear.

“What’s your ID number?” The teenager on the floor asked; his tone was even elegant. “I’m asking you now as a Chinese police officer. This is to protect the safety of Mr. Li Jingtian. What if you’re fakes pretending to be from the embassy and wanted to kidnap Mr. Li Jingtian? My god, if this happens, we don’t know what kind of scolding we’ll get!”

“No need to act so hypocritical. As if you really cared about our personal safety,” Liu Ying interjected. “I know them. They are indeed from the Xinni Embassy.”

Wang Chao snickered and tugged at the corners of his mouth. “I’m not worried about that, but what if you’re also a bad person, Auntie~”

Hearing her referred to as an auntie poked Liu Ying’s spore spot. The manager finally removed her condescending look and angrily pointed at the teenager on the ground and scolded. “How dare you!”

Liu Ying was about to lose her temper, but Wang Chao took a page out of Xing Conglian’s book and ignored her. Instead, he looked up at the “all black” in front of him and continued to raise his chin. “I’m asking you.”

The face of the man in black darkened.

Although he really wanted to step on this noisy and annoying kid, it was clear that what that noisy and annoying kid was saying was reasonable. Since it was reasonable, he couldn’t be too excessive.

“Shen Chenggong, ID number: 30697012,” the agent spat out. Rather than feeling anger, Shen Chenggong could only feel that this was too unbelievable. China was always a state of etiquette, and their attitude towards them had always been courteous, but since when did a small technician from the local police force dare to provoke them like this?

“Did I ask you for your name? I just asked you for your ID number. Hey, I thought you would be called 007. Shen Chenggong doesn’t sound cool at all. Lao Zhao’s ability to name his agents is as bad as ever.”

Shen Chenggong was taken aback. If he understood correctly, this Lao Zhao that came out of this little policeman’s mouth was referring to his immediate boss, Mr. Zhaohua, the current ambassador of Xinni to China.

What kind of rank did this little policeman have to dare call the ambassador directly by his name and even refer to him as “lao*”. For those not in the know, they would really think this little policeman was quite familiar with the ambassador.

*Clarity: As a reminder, adding a Lao in front of someone’s name when addressing them is a sign of closeness.

Shen Chenggong narrowed his eyes but saw the little policeman below just smiling. The little policeman squinted his eyes into a slit, and then, in front of everyone, he took out a laptop that had been stuffed in his backpack and turned it on. He entered a series of numbers in the search box that Shen Chenggong was quite familiar with, as they were the ID number he had just given.

Shen Chenggong didn’t know what search system the teenager used, since it didn’t look like a system that belonged to the Chinese police and was even more unlikely to be the system used by the Xinni Embassy, but soon, all his personal information was retrieved.

He saw a photo at the top of the page at first glance. It was taken when he first joined the Xinni embassy. Although that was half a year ago, this was indeed his most recent official photo. It could be seen that the information update speed of this system in the hands of this little policeman was quite fast.

Shen Chenggong became vigilant.

However, as if threatening him, the little policeman dragged the scroll bar at an extremely slow pace. From what kindergarten he attended to what awards he received in high school, from what army he served in, to what operations he participated in, his most intimate personal details were revealed one after the other.

Even when the scroll bar was about to end, he saw that his most private family information was attached to the end of the profile.

Despite the fact that he had faced threats before, this little Chinese cop was quite daring to threaten him in broad daylight. After realizing this, Shen Chenggong became furious and wanted to say what that manager had just said: “Who are you and how dare you threaten me?”

Thus, with anger in his heart, he asked, “This police officer, I don’t think you have permission to read these records. I take it that you’re threatening me?”

“Eh, why do you think so? Oh, I’m really just doing some casual research. It’s all for Mr. Li Jingtian’s personal safety. Who knows who you are? What’s wrong with being a bit more careful?”

“I don’t think your boss and your boss’ boss will agree with what you’re saying to me now.”

The implication was that this kid’s status was too low, and if they were to log a dispute, who knew what would happen? So, it was better if he kept his mouth shut.

However, the little policeman, whether it was because he didn’t know, was really too stupid or pretending to be stupid to know, ignored his warning. “Yo, Mr. Shen Chenggong. Are you actually the deputy military attaché of the Xinni embassy?” The young man whistled as he gave a nonchalant look at the singer on the bed. “Your family is not bad. So powerful that a deputy military attaché came to get you.”

Shen Chenggong sneered. “Perhaps you look down on my status as a deputy military attaché, but since I have this status, I can do many things without having to bear any consequences, including killing you.”

When Shen Chenggong said this, he wanted the little police officer to understand the stakes, since it was impossible for a person like him to remain indifferent after witnessing his family’s information being exposed.

After he said this, Shen Chenggong turned to look at the boss of the little policeman—the one who had been standing at the end and witnessing his subordinate provoking him but remained unconcerned.

He glanced at Xing Conglian from head to toe and was surprised. The appearance of the other party showed he wasn’t pure Chinese. Despite that, this person was still able to hold a high position under the Chinese system. Most likely he had some background, but this had nothing to do with him. He had seen many Chinese policemen who looked like mighty men but were actually soft-legged shrimps. He raised his brow at Xing Conglian and took his sunglasses from his shirt’s front pocket, ready to put them on.

Just as Shen Chenggong moved, Xing Conglian also followed suit.

In the next second, he felt a pain in his wrist. The police officer was already in front of him. Before Shen Chenggong could react, severe pain hit his knees and elbows, and he was knocked to the ground by the other party.

He couldn’t even tell what skills Xing Conglian had used. Before he could consciously fight back, his face was already stuck to the tiles on the floor, and his waist and arms were being severely restrained by the other man.

Then, there was a crisp click in his ear. Shen Chenggong looked with difficulty towards the sound and found a black mess on the ground. It was his sunglasses that the other man had crushed.

The black lens shattered on the floor, and a leather boot stepped on it.

Despite his situation, Shen Chenggong wasn’t angry. He didn’t even need to look up to know that there were three black guns pointed at the man who dared press him to the ground at this moment.

No matter how good the other’s skill was, what was the use? After all, this was no longer the age of cold weapons.

Shen Chenggong was waiting for the moment when the other party stiffened due to the threat of the guns but was only met with severe pain on his wrist and waist; the other party had increased his strength. Then, Shen Chenggong felt the man approach his ear and say, in an extremely calm tone, “Mr. Deputy Military Attaché, you should also know that when your words have killing intent on our country’s administrative law enforcement officers, that allows me to act. After all, we have the right to self-defense.”

Shen Chenggong laughed dumbfounded. “Mr. Police Officer, I admire your courage and strength. You may be very skilled, but if I order them to shoot, do you think you have a chance?”

This was a threat and a retaliation, but Xing Conglian had no intention of letting go. His leather boots were still stepping on the sunglasses, and his knees were still pressed against the deputy military attaché’s waist. His face was still calm, and his tone remained relaxed. He lowered his head a little and leaned closer to the military attaché’s ear, as if he wanted to retaliate with something more severe, but then, everyone in the ward was shocked.

It was as if he had been hit by a bus, but Xing Conglian simply apologized. He dragged out his tone and then lazily said to the man on the ground, “Alright, stop talking and get out.”

After Xing Conglian finished speaking, he let go of the military attaché that was on the floor.

Mr. Deputy Military Attaché didn’t expect the matter to end so easily.

He got up from the ground and patted the nonexistent dust off his clothes. His men were still holding their guns, but Shen Chenggong thought he and the policeman knew each other well. It was impossible that there would be any gunshots.

He looked at the Hongjing policeman, who could subdue him in an instant. The policeman had a shallow smile on his face. However, what made Shen Chenggong wary wasn’t the policeman’s skills, but his attitude of treating a diplomatic dispute that could occur at any time as a joke. Ordinary police officers wouldn’t have such confidence.

“Who are you?” Shen Chenggong asked.

“Xing Conglian, captain of the Hongjing Police Criminal Division.”

The other man stretched out his hand generously. Shen Chenggong looked at the hands that had subdued him just now and gritted his teeth as he shook them.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 117

“I’m not trying to influence your investigation, nor am I accusing you of anything.”

Unexpectedly, Li Jingtian was still humble and kind. His eyes were a little red, as if it were because Lin Chen’s attitude was too aggressive, which hurt his feelings. He stabilized his breathing and continued, “I just think your attitude toward my assistant is a bit too much. After all, I know that you’re not that kind of person.”

“What kind of person I am seems to have nothing to do with you.” Lin Chen finally turned around and continued to look down at Li Jingtian.

“Theoretically, it’s true. In fact, I understand that you should have prejudices against me.” As Li Jingtian spoke, he lay back on the hospital bed again. He put the blanket on himself again and said weakly, “Just now, I’m really sorry for causing such a big riot in the shopping mall, but I’ll never forget that it was you who saved my life. I just want to say thank you to you.”

His words were extremely sincere; a stark contrast to Lin Chen’s appearance, which looked as if he was looking at someone who owed him 30 million.

No matter who encountered such soft words, they would weaken; at least they wouldn’t be so cold, but Lin Chen was still Lin Chen. Xing Conglian looked at his friend and colleague with interest, who was still looking at the singer on the bed as if he were looking at an ant. There was no sign of shaking in the other party’s hands. He heard Lin Chen say in a calm tone, “I didn’t save you, or rather, my intention wasn’t to save you. In that case, your life isn’t important.”

“But you’re still my savior,” Li Jingtian insisted.

The current situation was extremely strange. It looked like Li Jingtian was desperately trying to attract Lin Chen’s attention with his good words and actions, but Lin Chen was completely dismissive of it.

This situation was so obviously abnormal that even Wang Chao noticed the strange atmosphere in the air and froze all his movements.

Just as Lin Chen was about to turn his head and seem to ignore Li Jingtian again, Xing Conglian saw a strange, irritable look suddenly appear on Li Jingtian’s face. The expression was fleeting—it seemed the singer’s level of control over his expression was truly first-class.

Li Jingtian became downcast and said to Lin Chen in a hoarse and sad tone, “I think, no matter what I say, you won’t change your opinion of me, right?”

As if he had reached the appropriate point, Lin Chen finally turned his head after several seconds of silence, and after ten minutes of them walking into the ward, Lin Chen finally looked Li Jingtian right in the eyes.

“Do you really want me to talk to you?”

As Lin Chen spoke, he walked closer to Li Jingtian, step by step. When he was a few steps away from the hospital bed, Lin Chen stopped in his tracks.

Xing Conglian thought it was because there was a chair with a backrest to the left of Lin Chen. As expected, Lin Chen withdrew his gaze from Li Jingtian and looked at the chair. The next moment, he grabbed the back of the chair and casually dragged it to the bed.

The chair legs scraped against the tiles on the floor, creating a harsh sound. The sound reminded Xing Conglian of the screams of some young creatures when they were pierced by the tip of a needle, but Lin Chen didn’t seem to be aware of it. He dragged the chair smoothly with his hand and finally threw the chair in front of Li Jingtian’s hospital bed, then sat down calmly.

Li Jingtian looked grateful when Lin Chen sat in front of him. After taking a deep breath, he slowly spoke. “I just don’t want my savior to have any prejudice against me. If there’s a problem that I can explain, I’ll do my best to make it clear.”

“Why do you think I’m prejudiced against you?” Lin Chen’s hands naturally fell to his knees. In fact, according to normal customs, he should have placed them in a more comfortable position on Li Jingtian’s bed, but Lin Chen acted as if he was afraid of touching germs and deliberately kept his distance from Li Jingtian.

“Your attitude towards me, including your posture, is telling me that you regard me as a suspect,” Li Jingtian explained patiently.

“Then do you think you have committed a crime?” Lin Chen still maintained his straight sitting posture like an evergreen tree.

“The only mistake I made today was causing chaos in the Ansheng International Shopping Mall. I caused so much trouble, and many people were hurt because of it. I’m really, very sorry.” When he talked about the accident, Li Jingtian’s gaze turned sad.

“It’s not some people. The Ansheng International trampling accident had a total of 12 victims who suffered different degrees of injuries. Three of them were seriously injured, including a 6-year-old girl.”

Hearing this, Li Jingtian was shocked. He looked at Lin Chen with mournful eyes and said, with guilt, “I’m really sorry. If I can, I like to bear part of their medical expenses.”

Lin Chen leaned back on his chair. “Well, the problems that can be solved by money are trivial matters.” He interrupted Li Jingtian impatiently, “You desperately wanted me to question you just now, right?”

“Yes, I want to clear my name,” Li Jingtian insisted.

“My questions might be unbearable. Are you sure you want to answer it?” While speaking, Lin Chen suddenly leaned forward. He propped one hand on the bedside table and looked at Li Jingtian with a leisurely gaze, like a hunter watching his prey step into the encirclement.

“If my answer can reverse your prejudice against me, then I’m naturally happy to answer them.”

Li Jingtian continued to stare at Lin Chen with a gentle gaze. He almost burst into tears just now, so his eyes were still moist. Looking at the soft and wet eyes, Xing Conglian felt the singer was violating Lin Chen with those eyes.

This kind of perception made him feel strangely irritable in his heart, but at that moment, Xing Conglian suddenly understood Lin Chen’s intention. In fact, he had never seen the same gaze in the eyes of any mentally sound person.

“Well, let me ask you. Have you offended anyone recently?”

Lin Chen obviously noticed the singer’s issue, or rather, he knew what the problem was from the very start.

“Mr. Police Officer, you may not know much about it, but I really am a person who likes to be kind to others, so, no. I haven’t offended anyone.”

At this time, Lin Chen had no expression on his face. There was no ridicule or sneering. He just looked at Li Jingtian calmly, but this calmness was terrifying.

“What you said is almost, in fact, laying the groundwork for the next turning point. Let’s move on. I don’t have much time,” Lin Chen continued casually.

“No… I don’t want to make any turning points. There is only one thing that bothers me, and I don’t know why… Well, you’re right. I do have a point to make. The only person I have offended recently is a girl named Xu Ran.”

Li Jingtian was extremely polite. Although his noble agent was more crude, Li Jingtian still referred to the person who accused him as a girl, rather than a whore. This was simply being cultured on an indescribable level.

“Oh, you finally mentioned that girl.” Lin Chen’s face was hidden under the bunch of pink lilies, making him look even colder. “Actually, you enjoyed it quite a bit, didn’t you?”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.” Li Jingtian’s tone became weak again.

“Well, let me be clear about what I’m trying to say. What I mean is, you really enjoy the feeling of being exposed to the media as a rapist, right? Those flashes, those rebukes on the internet—in reality, these make you extremely excited. Am I right?” Before Li Jingtian could respond, Lin Chen cut him off. “Needless to say, you’re a poor, pitiful victim. You know very well that there are some people in this world who are born enjoying the feeling of being victimized. What’s more, you know better than anyone else that no one will believe that girl’s words because you’re a famous person from nobility, while she’s just a whore… That’s all.”

Lin Chen’s voice was as calm as ever, without any sharp cadence, but when he finished speaking, even the manager who was by the window was speechless. The ward was completely silent, truly like a ward.

After being so humiliated, ordinary people would resist, but Li Jingtian simply lowered his head strangely. In the next moment, a drop of crystal tears flowed down his face, which was quite unbearable to look at.

His lips were stained with traces of tears, moist as a rose covered with dew in the early hours of dawn. “I’m sorry. It’s all my fault, but I really didn’t do anything to her.”

Lin Chen seemed satisfied with the scene in front of him, and he even laughed.

One person was crying sadly, while the other was laughing faintly. The scene around the hospital bed was becoming so disconnected that even the sun rays that sprinkled in from the window felt as cold as snow.

“Do you have a special sexual fetish?” Lin Chen suddenly seemed to remember something as he slightly leaned forward and asked solemnly.

An embarrassed expression appeared on Li Jingtian’s face.

Seeing the singer on the bed didn’t answer, Lin Chen suddenly stood up. He leaned down, about an arm’s distance from Li Jingtian, and asked seriously, “Do you like bondage or anal sex? Things like wax dripping aren’t to your taste. You only pursue the sense of control that comes from being restrained. I think you like that kind of thing very much.” As Lin Chen spoke, his face got closer to Li Jingtian.

Suddenly, Li Jingtian raised his head. His expression was still gentle and downcast, but in the very short tenth of a second, there was a strange sense of excitement in his eyes, as if there were a monster growing in the most sinister swamp and finally revealing its ugly tail.

Lin Chen didn’t seem to notice this as he kept asking questions. “Does raping a dirty whore give you extra sexual pleasure? You smashed her head against the wall, and when you saw her crying and begging for mercy, you were so excited that you couldn’t control your desire and came right on the spot?”

“Captain Xing!” Liu Ying almost screamed. “Are your subordinates here to humiliate us? I’ll file a written complaint with the embassy and the Hongjing police. Just you wait!”

Xing Conglian noticed that while the woman was shouting, her hands couldn’t help trembling. It seemed as if Lin Chen’s words just now had left a shadow in her heart.

Xing Conglian didn’t respond because he was waiting for Lin Chen.

At this time, Lin Chen finally stood up. He ended the inquiry with a gesture that looked like he was throwing Li Jingtian away as if he were trash, then walked to Xing Conglian’s side and nodded to him.

This meant, “I’m done. You can cover for me”, which only made Xing Conglian feel helpless.

“How could this be humiliation?” Xing Conglian shook his head slightly at Lin Chen, turned to look at the manager, whose face was distorted by panic and anger, and gave her a smile. “What you said, about a written complaint, I suggest you don’t do it.”

“Then, please, Captain Xing, have your colleague immediately apologize to Mr. Li Jingtian. Now! Such a request isn’t too much, right?” The woman responded coldly.

“No, I think you misunderstood me.” He put his hand on Lin Chen’s shoulder and said with a smile, “I mean, if you dare write a complaint, you’ll bear the consequences.”

“Are you threatening me?” Liu Ying’s expression was cold. She once again looked like a hissing cat that just had its tail stepped on. She raised her volume and took out her phone.

At this moment, the door to the ward was suddenly knocked on.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 116

Wang Chao smiled brightly—or at least he felt himself do it as the corners of his mouth seemed to be grinning ear to ear.

After all, it had been a long time since his boss had taken such a strong stand to cover for him. It felt great to have someone cover for him so he could do whatever he wanted.

He was in a good mood as he raised his hand a little higher. Just when he was ready to grab a big job, he felt his hand sink, and something cold touched his palms. The sudden metallic texture made him shudder before he realized someone had put a phone in his hand.

After realizing this, he looked up sharply and saw Li Jingtian’s gentle and elegant face. Or rather, it was more appropriate to say “a gentle scummy face” to describe him. In short, Li Jingtian’s face was as white as a ghost. He didn’t believe in the excuse of excessive blood loss. At some point, Li Jingtian was already sitting at the edge of the bed, hanging his slender legs on the side. A large piece of gauze was wrapped around his neck. They didn’t know what kind of disinfectant the hospital used, but most of the gauze was still oozing with blood. The singer was staring at Wang Chao with an extremely gentle look. When Wang Chao looked at those bottomless eyes, despite searching through his guts, he couldn’t find a suitable adjective to describe them. The fact was, Li Jingtian’s eyes were too gentle, so gentle that they gave him goosebumps.

At that time, he wanted to say something to interrupt, but when he was about to speak, Lin Chen’s reminder echoed in his ears.

A’Chen had told them not to talk to Li Jingtian.

So he won’t say anything.

He didn’t plan to make any more eye contact with Li Jingtian, so he quickly looked away. He hurriedly looked at the phone he just got, turned it over, and looked at the phone jack.

Then he gave a soft snort.

Naturally, Lin Chen noticed Li Jingtian looking at Wang Chao with a strange gaze. But in the end, Mr. Singer wasn’t doing anything, so he couldn’t interject.

When he heard Wang Chao snort, Lin Chen saw an obviously weird smile on Liu Ying’s face.

“Hey, this phone model is pretty popular in Xinni…” Wang Chao quickly explained.

The teenager looked at the phone jack again and casually said, “Oh, let me look for the cable for this phone.”

As he spoke, he slammed his red backpack on the ground and began to rummage through it.

Wang Chao’s backpack was no different from a treasure chest. Lin Chen once saw him take out some surveillance cameras and signal blockers from it, so if he took out a special adapter for a phone made in Xinni from his backpack, it wouldn’t be a surprise.

However, Liu Ying didn’t have this knowledge. When Wang Chao pulled out the adapter and connected Li Jingtian’s phone to his laptop, Ms. Liu’s face darkened once again.

The teenager kept knocking on commands with his usual terrifying hand speed as data streams began to flow on the computer screen.

“Huh!”

 Not long after, Wang Chao’s hand stopped.

“Well?” Unknowingly, Liu Ying had squatted down and looked at Wang Chao’s laptop screen.

“This phone is indeed infected by a virus.” Wang Chao ignored the manager next to him and nodded to Xing Conglian. “A kind of network phone worm called Cabir. It’s not particularly high-tech, so you can buy it on those shady forums.”

“How did that virus get into our Jingitan’s phone?” Liu Ying asked.

“Have you guys connected to the wifi recently?” 

Wang Chao’s question was directed toward Liu Ying, but Li Jingtian took the initiative to answer. “No, because I know that the wireless network isn’t very secure, so I’ve been using my phone network.”

“Hey, you’re quite rich.” The teenager spoke suddenly, as if he had found something unusual, and rubbed his nose. “This virus is transmitted via Bluetooth. It’s a variant of Cabir and can scan the Bluetooth systems of nearby phones. If a vulnerability is found, the virus will automatically be transmitted.”

“In other words, anyone who has been in contact with Jingtian may have sent this virus?” Liu Ying asked.

“Hey, sister, are you interested in solving this case?” The teenager’s moe was usually effective against short-skirted beauties, not queenly sisters, so he spoke with a gentle tone towards Liu Ying. “Wait, I can find out how this virus got implanted.”

He curled his lips and took out a Mentos from his backpack and popped one in his mouth, but his eyes kept staring at the screen.

Soon, as if he had discovered something incredible, he glanced at Xing Conglian with a rare solemnity on his face. “This virus was implanted at 10:03 today.”

When Li Jingtian heard this, he suddenly said, “10:03 is… the time when my throat was slit?”

Wang Chao didn’t speak and just nodded, agreeing with that assessment.

“Could it be that the culprit used the opportunity when she was approaching me while giving me flowers?” Li Jingtian asked.

This time, Wang Chao had no self-doubt. At least the teenager didn’t have any hesitation on his face. He just stared at the computer screen solemnly and said, “I found that the Bluetooth on your phone is turned on. If it’s implanted through the Bluetooth system, then she really needs to be very close to you to do it, but in theory, the first row of spectators under the stage can also do it.”

“I remember. When she came on stage and hugged me, she seemed to want to get very close to me on purpose. Is it because she was implanting the virus? Why?” Li Jingtian’s tone became lower and more terrified, with the curiosity of finding out more. Unfortunately, his tone didn’t sway Wang Chao, who wasn’t interested in solving that case.

“I don’t know. Maybe you offended her somehow.”

“How terrible.” Liu Ying couldn’t help covering her mouth. “You must arrest that perverted prostitute and bring her to justice,” she said to Xing Conglian.

Xing Conglian raised his brows and took a noncommittal stance.

It seemed that the last suspicion about Li Jingtian had been cleared. He did have his throat slit, and his phone was indeed infected by a virus. It seemed that someone was setting him up. They now seemed to have no reason to doubt Li Jingitan, but obviously Xing Conglian and Lin Chen didn’t think so.

In fact, the moment they entered the ward, Lin Chen didn’t have any verbal communication with Xing Conglian, but based on his understanding of his friend’s consistent behavior, Xing Conglian knew well that Lin Chen hadn’t started yet.

So, at such a moment of no progress, he glanced at Lin Chen, who started to make his move.

“I have a question I want to ask you in private,” Lin Chen said.

The girl hurriedly shook her head and looked at Ms. Liu, who was standing by the window, as if asking for help.

Liu Ying smiled as she said, “What question do you have, Mr. Officer, that you can’t ask in front of us?”

“It’s really a bit inconvenient,” Lin Chen replied.

Liu Ying was speechless. Lin Chen’s reticent attitude was difficult to deal with. Xing Conglian couldn’t help but feel a little sympathetic for those who insisted on fighting against Consultant Lin.

“No, you must ask in front of us. We have to listen, in case you try to induce a confession or something!”

“Have you been reading too many detective novels?” Lin Chen turned his head and gave her a light, mysterious look.

However, he didn’t dwell on Liu Ying for long. Instead, he looked at Li Jingtian’s female assistant, gave up on the private conversation, and gently said, “This is just a routine inquiry. Please don’t think too much and answer truthfully.”

The assistant reluctantly nodded, but the girl still held her head down desperately, as if she didn’t dare look Lin Chen directly in the eyes.

“I want to ask, have you been following Mr. Li Jingtian today?”

“Yes… Yes.” The girl’s voice was soft like a mosquito, to the point where it was almost inaudible.

Lin Chen took another step closer and asked seriously, “But Ms. Liu Ying didn’t follow you. I know that she arrived at the hospital later. Basically, were you responsible for the meet and greet at Ansheng International Mall?”

“I… I just helped with the luggage. I’m not responsible for it…” The girl’s face flushed.

“I had to meet with an important guest in Hongjing today, so that’s why I wasn’t there with Jingtian. If you don’t believe me, you can…”

“I didn’t ask you.” Lin Chen turned his head and interrupted the manager.

Liu Ying stared wide-eyed and was speechless again.

Lin Chen refused to give Liu Ying a chance to question him. He turned his head and continued to look at the little assistant, who was almost lowering herself into dust in the room, and gently said, “Don’t be nervous. This is just a simple question. Who arranged for the female fan who came on stage to give flowers?” He paused. “A lot of evidence now shows that the fan who came on stage was the prostitute who accused Mr. Li Jingtian of raping her a few days ago, including you. Now you’re all confident about it, right? But, as Mr. Li Jingtian’s assistant, you should be very clear on the person’s appearance. You shouldn’t be unable to recognize her. So, who was it that arranged for her to bring flowers up?”

Lin Chen’s question was sharp. This was one of the biggest doubts in the entire case. The assistant who was staring at him bit her lip. “I don’t know. It was arranged by the mall, but it seems to be someone from the fan club. I really don’t know.”

“It can’t be the fan club. There’s no way the fan club members can’t recognize the person who framed their idol.”

The girl was so confused. She looked around the room, trying to find someone who could give her an idea, but there was no one in the ward who could help her.

The ward fell into silence.

Liu Ying wanted to save the scene, but Lin Chen seemed to possess eyes on the back of his head. The moment the manager was about to speak, he stretched out his hand and patted the girl’s head and softly said, “Don’t be nervous. If you can’t remember, you don’t have to think about it. It’s okay.” Despite being the target of his questioning, Lin Chen had shut it down uncharacteristically. His gaze still remained on the top of the girl’s head, never changing from beginning to end.

“Okay, then can you repeat Mr. Li Jingtian’s itinerary for today?” Lin Chen continued.

Just then, the singer, who had been silent on the hospital bed, finally couldn’t help but speak. “If you have any questions, you can ask me directly. There’s no need to hassle Xiao Ke.”

Lin Chen turned his head and said to the singer in a disdainful tone, “Why should I ask you?”

Lin Chen’s eyes were clear, revealing an unspeakable arrogance, as if the person sitting on the hospital bed wasn’t a superstar who could cause a stampede in a shopping mall, but just an ordinary suspect—or rather, not an ordinary suspect. His eyes were as if he were looking at scum or garbage on the ground.

Anyone who was looked at by Lin Chen with that kind of gaze would only have two reactions: either anger or fear.

But for Li Jingtian, who could enjoy Lin Chen’s special treatment, their reactions were always more special.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 115

Municipal hospital, intensive care ward.

Comrade Zhang Xiaolong, the undercover who was arranged by Xing Conglian, was waiting for them at the elevator entrance.

Seeing them, the policewoman said nervously, “Captain Xing, Captain Xing… You’re finally here…”

Zhang Xiaolong was extremely panicked. Xing Conglian patted her on the shoulder and asked, “What’s wrong, Xiaolong? What happened?”

Zhang Xiaolong didn’t even have time to greet them and just blurted out, “I found out in the doctor’s office that Li Jingtian is transferring to another hospital!”

“Where is he transferring to?” Xing Conglian asked calmly after he walked out of the elevator without revealing anything in his expression.

Zhang Xiaolong looked around. It seemed her “undercover” career had left a shadow, since she kept feeling as if someone was eavesdropping.

“It’s okay. There are no outsiders here,” Lin Chen comforted.

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaolong walked with them and lowered her voice. “It said that Li Jingtian is going to the Xinni Embassy.”

Hearing this, Xing Conglian was still calm. “I didn’t know that the medical facilities at the Xinni Embassy are better than the municipal hospital.”

“No, Captain Xing. It’s said that Li Jingtian is afraid of being attacked again, so he’s staying there for protection.” Zhang Xiaolong was confused. “Who the hell is Li Jingitan? I only know that he’s from Xinni, but I didn’t know he could actually stay inside the embassy.”

“He’s from a privileged class.” Wang Chao couldn’t help but sneer as his old and new hatred for Li Jingtian collided.

“What privileged class?” Sensing gossip, Zhang Xiaolong’s eyes lit up.

“His grandfather is the former Consul General of Xinni to our country. Don’t you think that’s a privilege class?” Wang Chao said angrily.

“Wow, Li Jingtian’s family is actually that good!” Most likely because girls were the same, once she heard Li Jingtian was the son of a diplomatic family, coupled with his status as a singer, Zhang Xiaolong’s mood immediately turned turbulent.

“That’s quite troublesome.” Xing Conglian rubbed his chin.

“What’s troublesome?” Zhang Xiaolong asked.

Wang Chao couldn’t help but interject. “Ah, are you dumb? According to international conventions, personnel of the resident country aren’t allowed to enter the embassy and take action or implement legal procedures. As long as Li Jingtian stays in it, the Xinni Embassy will shield him, and we can’t do anything about it.”

Zhang Xiaolong suddenly realized something, and her expression became more frightened. “What? Captain Xing, are we going to arrest Li Jingtian? Why?”

“Because the prince broke the law and committed a crime against the common people,” Wang Chao said sternly, although in fact, he couldn’t explain clearly what Li Jingtian had committed.

Xing Conglian didn’t seem to want to deal with his two little comrades anymore. “What ward is Li Jingtian in?”

“Room 907,” Zhang Xiaolong hurriedly replied.

Hearing this, Xing Conglian nodded to Comrade Zhang Xiaolong. He took two steps forward, then, as if remembering something, turned his head and made a silent gesture to Zhang Xiaolong.

Zhang Xiaolong understood and quickly zipped her mouth, indicating that she knew to keep them shut.

The intensive care ward, also meant, the high-end ward.

The floor tiles in the aisle here were whiter than those in other parts of the hospital. Lin Chen heard his footsteps echoing in the corridor as they walked. There were few people around, so this was a good place to come and rest.

Xing Conglian walked without hesitation. When he passed the nurse’s station, Lin Chen felt him look at him and suddenly asked him, “Is there any strategy, Consultant Lin?”

It was rare for Xing Conglian to be so cautious.

Lin Chen frowned.

In fact, they all knew very well that if Li Jingtian was truly an innocent victim, then all was fine. If not, he may be both the event planner and the culprit behind the scenes. He was protected by the diplomatic system, which meant his mind was much more treacherous and different from ordinary people. The most important thing was that they didn’t know what Li Jingtian wanted to do.

In this case, ordinary play by the ear actions may not be enough, which was why Xing Conglian had specially asked him if he had a strategy in mind.

Lin Chen shook his head gently. Many images appeared in his mind.

The singer whose throat was slit, the nightingale who died tragically, the boiling internet situation, a case that attracted worldwide attention…

While he was thinking, they had reached the door of room 907.

Seeing that he didn’t respond, Xing Conglian was about to knock on the door. Lin Chen suddenly held down his hand and raised his head. “I do have an idea.”

“What?”

“Please don’t talk to Li Jingtian.”

After three knocks on the door, the door opened in response, letting out the light from the bright sky. There were only three people in the room. Ignoring the other two women, the only man in the room was half leaning against the hospital bed and looking at them with a light and elegant smile, as if they were old friends who had learned of the news and came to visit him, not the police or anyone else.

After more than an hour, they finally met Mr. Li Jingtian face-to-face.

With only a glance at Li Jingtian, Lin Chen turned his gaze away from the famous singer.

The ward was clean, and there was a slight smell of disinfectant in the air, but the smell was faint—covered up by the scent of a bunch of pink lilies on the bedside table.

Although they did hear that Li Jingtian planned to leave the hospital, even so, there was no shortage of flowers at the head of the bed or fruit baskets on the dining table.

Lin Chen’s gaze fell on the two ladies in the room.

He had previously only felt the strong aura of Li Jingtian’s beautiful manager through photos and her voice on the phone. Now seeing the real person, Lin Chen only felt that she was more awe-inspiring than a flat image.

The woman was wearing a plain dress. Her long hair was lightly tied up, and she was leaning against the window. She stood with crossed arms and slightly raised brows, giving off a calm, majestic demeanor.

Seeing them, the elegant and beautiful lady raised her head slightly with an indifferent expression. “Mr. Police Officer, you’re finally here. We’ve been waiting for quite some time.”

Lin Chen glanced at Xing Conglian. Xing Conglian’s acting skills were better than his. As he had instructed, Xing Conglian never looked at the singer on the hospital bed from start to finish but instead walked a few steps quickly and stood in front of the beautiful woman and stretched out his hand with a gentlemanly demeanor to shake hands with her, then he quickly let go. “Sorry, sorry. We are indeed late. The main reason is that the chaos in Ansheng International Mall was so large that it was a lot of trouble cleaning up. Please forgive me.”

Xing Conglian was a smooth talker. Since he alluded to Li Jingtian’s trouble in Hongjing, making it troublesome for the police to clean up, it was hard to find fault with the police’s attitude towards the victim.

“Well, at least you’re here now. May I ask, when is the Hongjing police going to start their investigation?” Liu Ying asked.

Although it sounded like an ordinary inquiry, the tone behind Liu Ying’s words was more like a manager reviewing their subordinate’s work.

Xing Conglian wasn’t someone who would get angry because of this kind of attitude. Instead, he humbly replied, “The police now have certain clues…”

Before his voice fell, the beautiful lady interrupted. “Those are the clues provided by our Jingtian’s fans, aren’t they?”

“That’s only part of it. We’re here this time mainly to…” He paused. Lin Chen saw the obvious smile in his eyes. “Check Mr. Li Jingtian’s phone.”

At that moment, Liu Ying was taken aback for a second, as if she couldn’t believe what she had heard. Then, like an elegant long-haired cat with its tail stepped on, her haughty face finally showed cracks. “Captain Xing, I know that police procedures are different in various countries but respecting the victim should be the minimum of professional ethics of the police. Now that you have come to us, not only do you not express any sympathy for the victim, but your first reaction is to check Mr. Li Jingtian’s phone?”

“Sympathy…” Xing Conglian stared at the woman in front of him with calm eyes. “How can we not sympathize? Not only the police, but anyone with humanity will sympathize with the victim’s plight. However, I hope you understand that compassion doesn’t solve problems. Mr. Li Jingtian’s phone was hacked by someone, and they were able to steal his pictures and number and hack into his account. For us, this is probably no longer a simple case of assault.”

“I feel that you don’t respect us,” Liu Ying said. “Looking at your attitude, if it weren’t for the wound on Jingtian’s neck, I would think that we’re being treated like criminals…”

Liu Ying’s tone rose higher. At this moment, someone called to her softly.

“Liu Jie.”

The voice was hoarse and low, like kneaded velvet. Although it wasn’t loud, it was enough to interrupt the angry manager.

In this room, naturally, the only one who could interrupt Liu Ying was Li Jingtian.

Hearing this, Liu Ying hurriedly rushed to the edge of the hospital bed and said to Li Jingtian with concern, “Speak less!”

“It’s okay.” Li Jingtian slowly coughed. It was obvious that the wound on his neck made it difficult for him to speak. “Let them check. I also want to know what’s going on.”

After Li Jingitan finished speaking, he looked at Xing Conglian and nodded.

Li Jingtian’s persistence made Liu Ying unable to say anything. The female manager stood up and said, “It’s fine to check, but Jingtian’s phone can’t leave out sights.”

“Of course. After all, we have to protect the privacy of an artist.”

When Liu Ying said that, she was trying to give Xing Conglian a hard time. Unexpectedly, Xing Conglian relented submissively.

As if receiving some signal, the teenager that was nestled in the corner hurriedly jumped out. “No problem. Can I check it here?”

While speaking, he sat cross-legged directly on the floor in front of Liu Ying. He opened the laptop on his lap, then stretched out his hand with an expectant gaze to the lady next to the bed.

Liu Ying didn’t expect that Xing Conglian actually brought a technician with him. Her face suddenly turned ugly, but Wang Chao was different from ordinary police officers. He wasn’t timid despite facing a big star and their manager. To be precise, Wang Chao was quite good at maintaining his facial expression, except in the face of Xing Conglian.

Seeing Liu Ying stunned, the teenager thought she was worried about something, so he rubbed his hands together and said solemnly, “Don’t worry. I won’t scan the photos and videos on the phone. You can also rest assured that there won’t be any pornographic photos leaking out. I guarantee it on my honor and with my bank account number…”

Liu Ying’s face suddenly turned black like the bottom of a pot. “Captain Xing, what is the meaning of this?”

“Children are ignorant. Adults have to be more open-minded*. Forgive me.”

*Adults have a lot (大人有大量) Idiom derive from a folklore that refers to being open-minded and kind when dealing with people.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 114

At this time, Wang Chao finally remembered to get his laptop back.

Lin Chen leaned back, and the teenager moved the laptop back to his lap. He opened the photo, enlarged it, and searched it at an alarming speed, using some strange software that Lin Chen couldn’t name to filter out the photo on the stage.

Finally, Lin Chen saw the teenager look up and shake his head, indicating, “This is an original picture. There’s no trace of Photoshop.”

Like a punctured balloon, the teenager deflated and fell back to his seat in frustration. As if remembering something, he pulled out a black cap from his backpack that was thrown to the ground, put it on, and stopped talking.

“What’s the matter?” Xing Conglian asked in the front driver’s seat. The loud noise they made in the back seat obviously caught the attention of Mr. Driver.

“Captain, why don’t you scold me? Didn’t I just waste our investigation time?” Wang Chao rolled down the car window and pulled the brim of his cap down. He looked depressed, like a big dog actively facing a corner after getting into trouble.

“Why is this kid’s mood fluctuating so much in adolescence? Do you have some medicine we can give him, Consultant Lin?” Xing Conglian turned around and asked.

Lin Chen had no choice but to explain, “A photo of the time the assault appeared on Weibo just now. Someone took a photo of the fan who came on stage to attack Li Jingtian. The assailant looks very similar to the wandering warbler that accused Li Jingtian of rape.”

“Oh, someone finally posted the photo.” Xing Conglian wasn’t surprised. He glanced at them through the rearview mirror and asked with a smile, “I was waiting for these photos to be posted online. So is there a clue? Why is that brat so depressed?”

“Probably he feels that his reasoning was wrong, so he’s frustrated.”

“What do you think?” Xing Conglian asked again.

“I think it’s very interesting.”

With tacit understanding, Xing Conglian also laughed. In the rearview mirror, his eyes seemed like an emerald river shining in the sun—extremely cunning.

“Why is it interesting?” Wang Chao inserted himself into their conversation gloomily.

“This story is too bizarre with all its ups and downs. When we doubt something, evidence seems to appear to clarify our doubts.”

When they suspected that Li Jingtian was pretending to be seriously injured, he walked out of the emergency room by himself. When they suspected that he hired a water army to hype up the heat, the fans found the culprit who slit his throat. The rhythm was well controlled.

“Someone is thinking very thoroughly,” Xing Conglian replied with a smile.

Wang Chao was even more lost. “Captain, A’Chen, what do you mean? Did Li Jingtian do this? But wasn’t it the wandering warbler who slit his throat? Isn’t this her revenge against him?”

Hearing his questions, Lin Chen could only answer honestly. “I don’t know.”

“Conspiracy theories are just conspiracy theories. Isn’t it just a girl who looks like a wandering warbler? Li Jingtian deliberately arranged for her to slit his throat on stage, hype up the event, and then dump the blame on the poor prostitute, so when she tries to accuse him of rape, everyone will think she’s just a psychopath. This scheme is as deep as the sea. Is he really sick? Why would he want to do this?”

“Perhaps he is really sick?” Lin Chen said lightly.

“What’s going on?” Wang Chao asked.

Lin Chen couldn’t answer this question now. He could only rub the head of the questioning teenager through his cap and comfort him. “You know, you’re really smart, so you shouldn’t doubt yourself. Every analysis of yours is based on actual data, which is more reliable than inferences made out of thin air. You’ve already deduced from the massive amount of data that there’s a water army behind this event, promoting development in a specific direction. Then, haven’t you thought about it? She’s just a wandering warbler. How is she able to control a water army, let alone be able to steal Li Jingtian’s phone photos and post them on his Weibo account. Isn’t this too much for a prostitute who sells her body for a living to have so many high-end technologies? Regarding tech problems, this should be your strength, right?”

Wang Chao suddenly became spirited again. “So, I’m right?”

“There’s nothing wrong with investigating the case.” Xing Conglian kept honking the horn continuously as he spoke. “For us, there are only two kinds of mistakes. The first is sending an innocent person to prison, and the second is letting the real culprit go unpunished.”

“Oh,” Wang Chao replied with some understanding. “Captain, to be honest, you’re quite handsome when you suddenly speak a little bit of truth.”

“Consultant Lin, let’s prescribe him some medication,” Xing Conglian said half-jokingly, then ordered Wang Chao. “Kid, let’s use your strengths. First, monitor those Weibo posts that make key statements and provide key clues. See if those people’s position is consistent with their usual remarks. If there is a water army, I don’t need to teach you what to do, right?” Xing Conglian turned the steering wheel.

“Got it!” Wang Chao stroked the non-existent brim of the cap on his forehead. “But if we don’t catch the culprit and run to investigate enthusiastic citizens who provide important clues, won’t we be scolded to death, Captain?”

“If you don’t say it, who’s going to know what you’re doing, huh kid?” Xing Conglian stepped on the brakes and said, “Besides, who said we wouldn’t catch any suspects? Since the wandering warbler is currently our prime suspect, naturally we need to monitor her ID and bank card information.”

When Xing Conglian said this, he immediately called the deputy captain of the police force and assigned him the task of monitoring and searching for the suspect.

Seeing Xing Conglian hang up, Wang Chao suddenly came to his senses. “Captain, are you afraid that Li Jingtian and the others will do something to the wandering warbler?”

“I’m following procedure, Officer Xiao Wang. Please don’t question your superior.”

In the middle of the conversation, Xing Conglian had already turned the car onto a one-way street. The municipal hospital was within sight.

Being the largest hospital in Hongjing, the municipal hospital was usually crowded, but today, the flow of people going in and out was particularly dense.

Li Jingtian’s iconic, red-clothed fans were squatting on the side of the road, chatting in twos and threes. There were vehicles that were obviously from the news network parked on the side of the street, making the crowded street even more congested.

“Shit Captain, there are a lot of people. I’m afraid of reporters. A’Chen, can you help me check to see if my hair is messy?”

Wang Chao was a typical person who was born to see the world plunged into chaos. When he saw the reporters, he quickly forgot his previous conversation with Xing Conglian, and hurriedly sorted out the brim of his hat in the rearview mirror.

Lin Chen stared at the reporters in front of him. Most of them who came were the local Hongjing media, so remembering the license plate of the local police captain was naturally a necessary homework for these reporters.

When Xing Conglian drove the Jeep into the intersection, someone reacted. Many of them were ready to go and quickly swarmed around the gate of the hospital, waiting for them to hit the encirclement.

Looking at the numerous reporters who were about to surround them, Lin Chen asked, “Can we still get in?”

Xing Conglian took out his phone with a smile and made a call.

A reporter had already rushed to the front of their car. Lin Chen heard shouts of, “They’re here. The police are here!”

At the same time, Xing Conglian’s phone was connected. Lin Chen only heard him say to the person on the other end, “Lao Chen, the municipal hospital is very congested. There are a lot of cars blocking the way, so we can’t get in. It doesn’t matter since we’re here to investigate, but in case of an emergency, the ambulance can’t get through, so that’s quite troubling, isn’t it?”

More reporters started to encircle them, causing Xing Conglian to slow down his pace as a result. Under the guidance of the garage manager, Xing Conglian was finally able to park his car.

Upon seeing this, the reporters swarmed the vehicle. Lin Chen couldn’t help but feel like he was watching a scene from a zombie movie.

However, Xing Conglian didn’t seem worried about losing to such a siege. “Lao Chen, sorry to trouble you.” After he finished speaking, he hung up and looked back at them. “Don’t worry.”

Lin Chen raised his brows.

After speaking, Xing Conglian turned off the engine, pulled out the key, opened the car door, and walked out.

The moment the car door opened, the reporters’ questions bombarded him one after another. Their voices passed through the cracks in the Jeep, seeping inside.

“Captain Xing, how can the police explain the repeated attacks on Mr. Li Jingtian?”

“Captain Xing, was there an issue with on-site security?”

“Now there are rumors on the internet that the attack on Mr. Li Jingtian was from a so-called prostitute who falsely accused Mr. Li Jingtian of rape. Are the two cases related?”

Reporters’ questions were always sharp, but in fact, they were probably more concerned about what kind of story would get the most social attention than tracking down the truth of the case.

Lin Chen opened one side of the car door and was about to step out. Wang Chao was in full panic; he clutched his backpack and tightly pulled on his clothes.

The moment Lin Chen got out of the car, Xing Conglian even blocked some of the reporters for him. Lin Chen heard Xing Conglian reply to the reporters, “I’m sorry. The case is currently under investigation. No comment.”

Other than that, Xing Conglian refused to say anything else.

The media was annoyed by the police attitude. One bold reporter holding a microphone with the logo of Hongjing TV station stepped forward and yell. “Then we have to write that a police spokesperson said the police investigation is going nowhere.”

Xing Conglian smiled. “Ah, I’m afraid that’s not good.”

“Then you must tell us some information so we can also report on it.”

“Well, that’s…” Xing Conglian prolonged his tone. On the far side of the road, the siren of the traffic police sounded.

Someone among the crowd shouted, “Don’t ticket us. We’ll move right now.”

The reporters who were originally surrounding them recovered one after another and looked at the side of the road outside the courtyard. After all, businesses were all about increasing income and cutting costs. Most of the reporters present were responsible for their own vehicles. Seeing that they were going to get ticketed, they all hurried to their cars and shouted as loudly as they could, “Please wait a moment!”

“I’ll move my car. Don’t ticket! Don’t ticket!”

For a moment, the number of people besieging them decreased by more than half.

While the reporters were distracted, Xing Conglian deftly fended off the rest of the reporters, took them out of the encirclement, and entered the hospital building.

“Captain, I must remember Li Jingtian for this grudge!”

Even though Xing Conglian had already handled more than half of the reporters, Wang Chao’s black t-shirt was still caught in the mess. His beloved black cap would most likely not have survived if he hadn’t grabbed it ahead of time.

When they entered the inpatient building, it got much easier to handle. The security guard would block off the reporters on the grounds that they were disturbing the patients.

Standing in the elevator, Lin Chen felt a lingering fear.

Although they were only blocked by the local media, there were more people waiting for the progress of the case, both online and in real life. They were constantly discussing, debating, and expressing their views on the matter.

Thinking of this, Lin Chen once again felt those invisible external pressures would likely become a real obstacle to the progress of their investigation.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 113

Lin Chen stared at the clouds that were constantly lighting up and gradually expanding on the pure black background and asked, “So, who are the key spreaders?”

Wang Chao answered seriously, “The data show that in addition to ‘Liu Ying’ and ‘Li Jingtian’, the key spreaders are mainly Li Jingtian’s fans: those on Weibo, Baidu forums, his ground fans, ect…. The second conclusion can basically be drawn by looking at the picture. Li Jingtian’s fan community is closely united and is a very large group. Well, closer united than your average fan group. I suspect that this may be because of the rape incident. It has attracted a lot of attention from the fans, and the heat hasn’t died down yet, so after the throat-slitting incident, these fans quickly united as a result.”

“Very enlightening.”

Lin Chen continued to praise the teenager, which only made him happier. His ass swayed restlessly on the seat as he happily clicked on the key Weibo posts of those cloud centers. “A’Chen, let me show you the Weibo posts they are frantically retweeting!”

“Nn.”

Wang Chao turned the screen around.

Lin Chen glanced at it. Among those key posts were statements by Liu Ying and Li Jingtian.

The second was warm wishes from Weibo, and the rest were all refutations analysis that Li Jingtian schemed this throat-slitting incident. They had read similar contents earlier in the comments on Weibo.

What was surprising was that among those key “tipping points”, there were also posts questioning if Li Jingtian was self-hyping, but those posts—how to put it—were more like hot water being thrown into a frying pan. They only provoked more scolding and ridicule from Li Jingtian’s fans.

It could clearly be seen from the map that those doubts actually played a big role in driving the heat of the incident.

“There’s even more!” Wang Chao clicked on another chart. “These are the positive high-frequency words and negative high-frequency words in the comments and retweets of the event I pulled. Looking at the relative ratio of their appearance, you can instantly tell what’s going on.”

Lin Chen once again lamented that with Wang Chao around, their investigation was indeed too efficient.

“How do you define positive and negative words?” Lin Chen couldn’t help but ask.

“Uh…” Wang Chao was suddenly stunned. “I automatically classify it according to the lexical nature. Wait, since you asked, I feel like I did this wrong. Wait for me to change it!”

“No need. You’ve been a big help.”

Lin Chen stopped him, put the laptop on his lap, and started carefully reading the contents.

Positive high-frequency words for the incidents were: victim, praying, get well, sympathy, cheer.

Negative high-frequency words for the incident were: murderer, prostitute, wronged, revenge, throat slitting, hype.

From the analysis of the high-frequency words, it could clearly be seen that the negative words, such as murder and prostitute, account for a large proportion of them.

If Li Jingitan really hired a water army to guide public opinion, then the direction they wanted to guide, as Wang Chao stated, was indeed the direction of “the throat-slitting incident is a revenge act from the prostitute”.

Then the remaining inferences became simpler. In the case of Li Jingtian’s throat slitting, the party with the most motivation to guide public opinion and benefit from it couldn’t think of any other suspicious person except for Li Jingtian.

Looking at it that way, whether he walked out of the emergency room after the throat-slitting case or posted on Weibo and deleted it, saying his account had been hacked, this meant that Li Jingtian had predicted what they would suspect him, so he deliberately used these means to clear his suspicion. Since he wanted to hype up the incident, it didn’t matter whether it was positive or negative, as long as the positive comments that supported him overwhelmed the negative ones in the end. The question remained, why was Li Jingtian so confident?

Moreover, they had to return to the most critical issue regarding the motivation in this case. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that Li Jingtian was a superstar, so why did he need to hype such an incident just to create the illusion that a prostitute was retaliating against him? To whitewash himself of the rape case?

Lin Chen suddenly thought about the facts surrounding this case. In this war of public opinion, there was a third possibility. That was, someone wanted to kill Li Jingitan and the poor wandering warbler.

But did this possibility really exist?

Inadvertently, Lin Chen raised his head and looked in Xing Conglian’s direction. He found that Xing Conglian was also looking at him through the rearview mirror.

Just now, although Xing Conglian had been driving, he actually controlled the speed quite well, giving Lin Chen enough time to clarify some of the contents he had found.

“There are still five minutes until we reach the hospital, Consultant Lin. Have you figured out what to ask our victim?” Xing Conglian asked.

Lin Chen felt a bit incredulous. “Is Captain Xing sure he wants to send me for questioning?”

“Apart from Consultant Lin, who among us can judge Li Jingtian’s psychological condition with some short questions?” Xing Conglian replied rhetorically.

Although Xing Conglian expressed his trust in him in these words, Lin Chen thought for a bit before replying, “But my questions may be extreme.”

Xing Conglian laughed as if he were satisfied with this response.

“What are you afraid of? As long as you don’t stab him to death with a knife, I can still protect you from other things.”

Lin Chen couldn’t help but shake his head when he saw Xing Conglian’s expression of indifference.

Although he knew very well that Xing Conglian’s words were just to reassure him, at that moment, he felt Xing Conglian was quite manly. It was rare that Lin Chen didn’t feel embarrassed when he was mentioned as being protected and instead actually felt grateful to Xing Conglian, thinking he was extremely sweet.

However, this sweetness only lasted for less than a second.

The reason was, Wang Chao’s laptop suddenly made a strange scream. There seemed to be a woman on the laptop who was singing a high note at the top of her lungs. The cry was extremely miserable. This shocked him so much that he almost dropped the laptop. Wang Chao’s reaction was faster. The teenager quickly pounced on his knee, as if he noticed something strange, and cut the picture back to the information cloud map just now.

From the chart, it could be clearly seen that among all the clouds, a point was rapidly lighting up, as if a human neuron were being transmitted, and around the lit-up dot, countless more dots started lighting up. They quickly formed a cloud and spread out, like a virus.

This meant that a key tweet was spreading at an extremely terrifying speed and had detonated the entire information network. The singing just now was probably the tone set by the teenager to monitor abnormal information.

Lin Chen lowered his head and saw that Wang Chao had opened Weibo in shock.

Then, the young man, who was rarely frightened, quickly shouted, “Fuck, shit. How is this possible?!”

He pressed the trackpad a few times, and a large picture immediately appeared in front of them.

That was the scene before the throat-cutting incident, when Li Jingtian was singing on stage.

Despite the lack of on-site surveillance video, there were a large number of Li Jingtian’s fans shooting their idol in 360 degrees, ensuring that there were no blind spots in the audience.

Naturally, among the fans were those who possessed advanced professional photography equipment. That photo was a high-definition photo taken by one of the fans at the time of the assault.

“Since the police are useless, we have to do it ourselves,” the Weibo post said.

Lin Chen stabilized his breathing and looked intently. The female fan holding the bouquet of roses was about to arrive. Although she was wearing a mask, her eyebrows could still be clearly seen. Though her hair color was different, those eyebrows looked like those of the prostitute who falsely accused Li Jingtian of rape.

They didn’t even need to bring up the original picture for comparison. The Weibo poster had already made a comparison picture. She enlarged the eyes of the throat-slitting fan from the upper part of the bridge of the nose to the forehead and did the same to the prostitute who accused Li Jingtian of rape.

Though the color of the hair was different, at first glance, the two were almost exactly the same.

So, the question now was, could it be that Wang Chao’s inference was wrong? Was this indeed an act of revenge against Li Jingtian that the wandering warbler deliberately planned?

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 112

On the screen of Wang Chao’s laptop, some seemingly complicated data analysis diagrams were listed.

If he hadn’t gone to college, Lin Chen would find it difficult to understand what he summarized. He couldn’t help but feel that children nowadays are too powerful.

Among the charts listed above, the first picture was a light green line chart. The line chart had climbed to a very high position in a short period of time.

“See this influence index?”

Wang Chao excitedly pointed to the top left corner number that jumped from 61 to 63. “Look, the heat is rising fast!”

“What does this number mean? Is 63 popular?” Lin Chen asked earnestly, in the spirit of asking questions when he didn’t understand and in the principle of making children happy.

Sure enough, Wang Chao excitedly replied, “Of course it’s high. This number represents the event influence index, which is calculated through a complex formula. The full score is 100 points.”

“About what specifically?”

“Specifically… Do you know what the popularity of the Yongchuan University case that we dealt with before is?”

“How much?” Lin Chen still asked patiently.

“Hehe, don’t be sad when you hear it, A’Chen,” Wang Chao said while pulling up the public opinion monitoring data for the previous case.

Although Lin Chen wasn’t sure why Wang Chao was monitoring these things…

He glanced at Xing Conglian inadvertently. This was presumably under another strange order from his boss.

“23?” Looking at the number on the screen, Lin Chen couldn’t help but feel surprised.

Honestly speaking, although he never had the idea of boasting in mind, such a major regional criminal case like the one at Yongchuan University regarding mass suicide only rose to 23 in terms of popularity online, which seemed a bit low.

But he quickly realized the true significance of a normal, unhyped regional case on the web.

Regarding the Li Jingtian throat-slitting case, it was now close to the popularity value of 65, which obviously was related to the influence of him being a star, but was Li Jingtian really that popular?

Before he had time to ask anything more, Xing Conglian suddenly interrupted them.

“Given how high this index is, people will think it’s due to the police’s ‘inaction’.” Xing Conglian smiled and patted Wang Chao’s laptop.

As soon as the teenager was about to yell, Xing Conglian gave him a glare, which made him quickly shut up.

Lin Chen also stood up, looked back at the girl with ponytails who was stretching her neck behind the bar, and left the shop with them.

……

Naturally, Wang Chao didn’t finish what he was about to say precisely because Xing Conglian felt they had reached the most important point, so he interrupted him.

In the elevator, the teenager kept talking, filling the small elevator with his excited voice. “A’Chen, A’Chen, let me tell you. The value has now soared to 65!”

Xing Conglian had no excuse to buy more ice cream, so he played with his car keys in his hands and remained silent.

Since no one was giving him a response, Wang Chao’s long-winded nature was exposed again. He said, “The current index is already as high as the popularity index of our country’s internet when a new Xinni president was elected. Isn’t it amazing?”

“That’s really high.” Lin Chen paused and said helplessly, “Don’t put more pressure on us.” As he spoke, he glanced at Xing Conglian. “You know, we’re standing in the elevator right now discussing a case that is as influential as a major political event in another country. This image still seems not solemn enough.”

“Oh, solemnity can’t be eaten.” Wang Chao snickered as he walked out of the elevator first. Holding the laptop in his arms, he continued to walk into the underground parking lot. “Actually, A’Chen, you don’t need to be so stressed. If you think about it, it’s impossible. I have compared all the data similar to this kind of case where the heat has soared to 65 within an hour, and the only ones that are comparable are those of sudden major natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis, so…”

Lin Chen suddenly understood what the teenager was alluding to, so he asked, “So behind this, there must be a powerful water army* pushing it?”

*Group of users paid to post online comments with vested interests.

Wang Chao snapped his finger.

They had already reached the side of Xing Conglian’s Jeep.

Wang Chao didn’t react until they got into the car. He grabbed the front seat and asked his boss, “Captain, where are we going?”

Xing Conglian had just hung up a call about Li Jingtian’s current location. He threw the phone in the storage box and put on a Bluetooth headset. “Officer Xiao Wang, naturally, we’re going to visit the victim according to police procedures, yeah?”

“What victim? Do you mean Li Jingtian?” Wang Chao leaned in his chair and pulled on his seatbelt discontentedly. “He’s not a victim.”

The teenager opened his laptop on his lap and continued to talk about the topic he hadn’t been able to finish.

“Where did we leave off, A’Chen?” he asked.

Lin Chen replied, “We talked about the fact that behind Li Jingtian, there’s a powerful water army pushing it.”

“Yes, A’Chen, you have such a good memory.” Wang Chao always knew how to suck up in the strangest way.

Lin Chen looked at the time. It would take about 20 minutes from where they were to the municipal hospital. He hoped that within these 20 minutes, the teenager would be able to finish his entire inference.

“In fact, the line graph is just a rough estimate, and it’s not intuitive. A’Chen, you might as well look at this,” Wang Chao said as he opened another chart.

Lin Chen didn’t know how he sorted out so many charts in a short period of time. Most likely abnormal children had their own advantages.

He lowered his head and looked at Wang Chao’s knee. Sure enough, the chart was more intuitive than the previous line graph.

It was a pattern composed of countless dense dot matrices. The pattern was like a starry sky, or rather, more like a human neural network that was more vast than a starry sky. Of course, this wasn’t a human neural network but just a network of human society. A microcosm of propagation dynamics of an event.

Whenever a small dot lit up in the pattern, it meant another person on the network was spreading the “Li Jingtian” incident.

As could be seen from the map, although those flickering dot matrices seem to be irregular, most of the small dots were closely surrounded, as if they were a nebula, and formed several wonderful clouds that ranged from large to small.

Wang Chao said, “First of all, from this chart, you can see the progression of the event. The progression means how many times someone retweeted the Weibo post. The depth of spread regarding the Li Jingtian incident is now 6.”

Hearing this, Lin Chen frowned. Wang Chao seemed to see through his thoughts and added, “It’s very low, isn’t it? At least it doesn’t match its influence index of 65. This proves my first point. The heat of this incident is fueled by a water army, so there’s only breadth, not depth.”

Lin Chen nodded and motioned for Wang Chao to continue.

“A’Chen, look. In all the information clouds here, the larger each cloud group, the more retweets it has around it. Then the center of each big cloud group, of course, represents the root node of communication, which is the initial Weibo post.”

“The ‘tipping point’ of public opinion?”

“Hey, tipping point is a great way of putting it. A’Chen, you’re amazing!”

“I mean, I didn’t invent this word.” Lin Chen was slightly embarrassed by Wang Chao’s praise. “It comes from a famous book that explores the spread of popular culture. As the name suggests, the so-called tipping point refers to the sudden, nuclear explosion-style spread of information.”

“I’m letting you read more books, and you don’t even know this?” Xing Conglian unsympathetically poked the teenager.

“That’s because you understand, captain, so I don’t, okay?” Wang Chao shot back angrily.

“Isn’t that why I’m handing over the task of educating you to your brother, A’Chen?” Xing Conglian stepped on the gas as he replied lightly.

Hearing this, the teenager found himself unable to refute.

He turned back and looked at Lin Chen with cool eyes and said, “A’Chen, you’re right. In this matter of Li Jingtian’s throat-slitting case, there were indeed several tipping points. Uh, when the incident’s key spokesperson appeared and dominated public opinion, the rest were primarily responsible for forwarding.”

---

Kinky Thoughts:

The book Lin Chen is referring to is most likely The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell. The book seeks to explain and describe the “mysterious” sociological changes that mark everyday life.

It’s quite interesting. He proposes the theory of “the Law of the Few”, which according to him is the success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts. According to Gladwell, economists call this the 80/20 principle, which is the idea that roughly 80% of the “work” will be done by 20% of the participants.

Interestingly enough, the “few” that Gladwell describes are 3 types:

• Connectors: People in a community who know a large number of people and are in the habit of making introductions. You can probably think of them as social media influencers with a big following.
• Mavens: “Information specialists” or “people who we rely on to connect us with information”. They accumulate knowledge and know how to share it with others.
• Salesmen: “Persuaders” who are charismatic people with powerful negotiation skills that can make others agree with them.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 长洱 / Chang’er

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 111

It wasn’t so much an inference as a refutation of some previous things.

Previously, onlookers had analyzed the incident of Li Jingtian’s throat being slit as a farce directed and acted by him.

Then, Li Jingtian’s fans would inevitably refute this accordingly. In the debate between the attackers and defenders, it was easy for sparks of thinking to collide. They just need to sit down, eat ice cream, and watch as the fans quarrel.

@BirdsInTheSky: Refuting two points: (1) If this was a self-directed and act of throat-slitting farce, why did Jingtian walk out of the emergency room by himself? Why didn’t he pretend to be hanging on by a thread? Even if you suspect him of doing this, don’t you think that’s just too stupid? Why wouldn’t he complete his self-acting? (2) The real and fake posts on Weibo are even funnier. You say that Jingtian posted the photos of his wound in order to gain sympathy and then deleted the post because he was scolded. Won’t he know he would be scolded if he did this? (3) In summary: The person who planned the whole incident is behind the scenes, making everyone think Jingtian is hyping the incident of his throat being cut in order to frame him and ruin his reputation.

Lin Chen looked at it for a while. When he stretched out his hand again, he realized that he had finished eating the entire cup of ice cream.

“It tastes pretty good, right?” Xing Conglian asked him from the side.

“It does.”

Xing Conglian even looked at him with intriguing eyes, not because he had finished the ice cream, but because of the trend of the online comments.

The matter had come down to this. Although it seemed complicated, like a mess without any leads, in fact, Xing Conglian’s solution to the problem was quite enlightening. In such a complicated situation, they didn’t need to guess who was behind what, because the goal of the mastermind behind the scenes would be reflected in public opinion.

Now, the view of Li Jingtian’s throat-slitting incident had become clear.

First: There were some people who disliked Li Jingtian and believed that this was a farce and acted by him.

Second: Li Jingtian’s fans believed that there was “someone” who was scheming to frame Li Jingtian.

Next, Li Jingtian’s fans discussed this “someone”.

@TianFan: Don’t you get it? It’s too obvious that someone wants Jingtian’s reputation ruined. Since the police have done nothing, let’s list the people who have wronged him recently. It’s pretty clear who’s behind it, right?”

@GreenIsBrightGreen: Seeing Liu Jie protecting Jingtian so fiercely, it wouldn’t be his brokerage company, Maodun. Our Jingtian is so popular in the circle. It can’t be that whore, right?

@RedIsOnFire: Impossible. How can that chicken be so powerful?

@TianFan: Not true. That chicken can come up with a trick to slander our Jingtian and accuse him of rape. Who knows what else she can do!

@RedIsOnFire: Speaking of that, how can normal person think of slandering other people with QJ*? Has she hated Jingtian for a long time? If one plan didn’t work, come up with a different one?

*Slang for rape.

@TheSkyIsAFloatingCloud: That bitch is so disgusting. Is she even human?

As soon as this conspiracy came out, some onlookers began to criticize.

@CannedPeaches: Li fans talking about who’s framing your Jingtian and coming up with a crazy scheme created by a rape victim in order to retaliate against him, huh?

@LittleTomatoSlicedNoodles: Li fans are really dumping all the blame on the victim. Why aren’t you tired of this trick?

Lin Chen leaned back in his chair. The little girls’ verbal abuse was uncomfortable to read, but the discussion or quarrel between the two sides had indeed gradually merged with the evidence they had.

If the nightingale in that bunch of roses symbolized the prostitute herself, then it would be a symbol of her desire to retaliate against Li Jingtian at any cost and her deep-rooted resentment towards him. This seemed plausible.

Then, on the surface, it seemed that this was indeed revenge against Li Jingtian for some unknown reason. First, falsely accuse him of designing a fake throat-slitting incident, then expose him for being the director of the scheme. This possibility was far more likely than Li Jingtian trying to whitewash himself. However, Lin Chen couldn’t help but vaguely feel that something was off.

Not to mention the hacking of other people’s Weibo accounts and posting of the photo, the fake blood used at the throat-cutting scene was professional—something that you could normally only get on a set. Could a prostitute accomplish all this?

And more importantly, what kind of resentment could make a person do these things?

Lin Chen rarely hesitated like this. At this moment, he suddenly heard the person next to him say with emotion, “Hey, it seems that our image of ‘inaction’ has been deeply rooted in people’s hearts?”

Lin Chen was taken aback. Xing Conglian’s words seemed unfocused, but in fact, they were targeted.

“Yes, this incident may be more terrifying than we thought,” Lin Chen replied.

Wang Chao was drinking water from across the table. Hearing what they said, he scratched his head and asked, “What’s the matter? Is there any new progress?”

However, Xing Conglian didn’t seem ready to deal with him and instead asked, “Why is it more terrifying?”

This was simply a knowing question. Lin Chen looked at Xing Conglian and answered, “Because it’s weakening the credibility of the police.”

Now, he finally understood why Liu Ying said those words at the entrance of the emergency room.

Li Jingtian’s manager didn’t care if the police were at the scene or not. She said those things to make fans think that the police didn’t actually care about Li Jingtian’s case.

This was creating a trend in public opinion.

Then, once the results of the police investigation weren’t favorable towards the side supported by public opinion, it would be considered that the police’s position was biased. In Lin Chen’s opinion, at that time, it seemed the police in Fengchun also experienced the same pressure.

“It’s not too scary if the police have more or less credibility. At least not as bad as vigilantes.”

What Xing Conglian was referring to were those children who were eagerly discussing the mastermind behind all this on the internet.

Although those children now only suspect that someone was targeting Li Jingtian, if more people supported their arguments, they would subconsciously regard this suspicion as a conclusive fact.

“That’s right.”

Xing Conglian laughed noncommittally and asked him, “Consultant Lin, how are you feeling now?”

“Do you want me to tell you the truth?”

“Please.”

“It feels like we’re fighting a 1,000-year-old fox spirit,” he answered truthfully.

Hearing what he said, Xing Conglian laughed dumbfoundedly.

“What fox spirit?” Wang Chao shouted again. The teenager’s expression was so anxious that he almost climbed onto the table.

“Mr. Xiao Wang, why don’t I buy you an ice cream to settle you down for a while?” Xing Conglian knocked on the table and motioned for him to shut up.

Wang Chao became a little angry. “Have you finished reading it?” he asked.

Lin Chen nodded, indicating that he could take back his laptop.

Wang Chao quickly snatched it back, looking like a fish that had been out of water for a long time or a traveler that was dying of thirst in the desert.

As he snorted, his hands quickly flew all around as he tapped something on the keyboard, and finally, he slammed the back button three times. He suddenly raised his head. “I see!”

He slapped the table with a bang and glanced at the waitress behind the bar to make sure the other party couldn’t hear his voice. He leaned his face closer to the two of them and whispered, “Li Jingtian deliberately arranged his own throat-slitting case in order to completely turn his rape case into a revenge case against him by some mentally ill patient, right?’

During this time, there was about a second or two of silence.

At least Lin Chen and Xing Conglian were stunned.

In the end, it was Xing Conglian who pouted as if to say: “How did this kid suddenly become so enlightened? Is there any hope of salvation?”

Looking at the vibrant teenager in front of him, Lin Chen sighed slightly and asked, “Weren’t you supporting Li Jingtian just now?”

“Hey, A’Chen, don’t you know I’m sick?”

Lin Chen looked back at Xing Conglian, confused.

“It’s a disease caught in middle school. The symptom is self-righteousness,” Xing Conglian said.

As Wang Chao was speaking, he turned the laptop upside down.

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Kinky Thoughts:

Ah, yes. There’s nothing like internet detectives thinking they’re professionals. What could possibly go wrong there? See: Reddit accusing some innocent guy of being the Boston Marathon bomber.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>