Chapter 144
“??? What’s going on? Why did the screen suddenly go black???”
“All the live broadcast windows are closed? Seriously? The last time this happened was when CEO Mao fell the night before last, did my poor Maomao fall again?!”
“It can’t be, weren’t Yan Yan and CEO Mao just asking about clues to the treasure chests, talking to that staff member named Liu Ming? How could they fall? Did they just collapse on flat ground?”
“The other babies didn’t fall either, and the dads are all doing their makeup, it can’t be them either.”
“There’s a notification! ‘Live broadcast temporarily paused due to technical issues,’ thankfully it’s not because someone is injured. But what kind of technical issue?”
“Is the signal blocked in the air-raid shelter? But that wouldn’t affect the dads’ live broadcast. Is it a system-wide issue?”
“Ahhh, I just want to know when the live broadcast will resume! Yan Yan just got several clues to the treasure chests, I want to see Yan Yan and CEO Mao open them!!!”
…
Unlike the confused and eager viewers in the live broadcast room, Jin Youliang, who had promptly cut off the live feed in the villa’s monitoring room, almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
What the hell!
Was this Cheng Tingyan cursed today!
Couldn’t she run? Couldn’t she see that glowing treasure chest? She was walking even slower than a sixty-year-old grandma!
And that sentence, “There’s a rope on the ground, is it a trap from the program team? But ahead… it’s a slope, are they trying to make us roll down?”
If it weren’t for Wei Maomao’s fall in the bathroom the night before last, and Su Li accidentally shouting it out on Wei Chengli’s live stream, making Shi Dingshan change the live broadcast to a three-minute delay, Cheng Tingyan’s insightful words would have been broadcasted live!
Jin Youliang, his head buzzing, cut off the signal when Cheng Tingyan raised her water gun and shot outside the camera’s view, making the live broadcast freeze at the moment when Wei Maomao and Cheng Tingyan were talking to Liu Ming, minimizing the impact as much as possible. But Jin Youliang knew very well that this was just a temporary solution. The viewers outside were temporarily fooled, but the staff on site, Zeng Huanian in the air-raid shelter, the footage in those cameras that couldn’t be remotely deleted, and… Shi Dingshan, who would definitely investigate this matter thoroughly… they wouldn’t be so easily fooled.
It was just a six-year-old child, how could she be so sharp as to hit that person with her water gun? As long as that person was smart, dodged in time, and avoided those cameras that claimed to have no blind spots but actually did, they could escape and blend into the crowd. And that rope, the buckle on the other end could be easily removed with a bit of force, they couldn’t possibly not have enough time to retrieve it, right?
Because he cut off the signal from all the cameras, the villa couldn’t receive any more live footage. Jin Youliang could only rely on his imagination, hoping that person was as reliable as he thought.
Ahhh! He had worked so hard, whether it was taking down Shi Dingshan again, diverting Qin Sichao, manipulating Zeng Huanian, or analyzing the little babies’ psychology to design targeted plans, what did he do wrong! He couldn’t be so unlucky that he couldn’t even cover his tracks, right! Jin Youliang, clutching his hair, didn’t want to face his current failure, he didn’t want to think about the upcoming investigation.
But he still had to do something.
Jin Youliang rubbed his face vigorously, he first sent a message to the staff in charge of the live broadcast page, asking them to post an announcement about the technical issue, then he called Zeng Huanian.
He was now a dedicated assistant director who knew nothing about what had happened, but for the sake of the program team’s reputation, he had to cut off the live broadcast when the accident happened!
Jin Youliang tried to calm down, to get into character. But the unanswered call made him increasingly anxious as time passed.
Zeng Huanian… truly wasn’t deliberately not answering the call.
It was just that one thing after another, like hailstones suddenly falling from the sky, hitting him hard and fast, making him dizzy.
Where did the rope come from? What trap? Who was Cheng Tingyan shooting at? How come the monitoring screens suddenly went black? And the live broadcast was also gone?
What was going on over there! Were the babies okay!
Shi Dingshan’s emphasis on safety echoed in Zeng Huanian’s ears, he rushed into the air-raid shelter like a crazed leopard. He didn’t need night vision goggles, he didn’t need a flashlight, he just relied on his memory from the multiple times he scouted the location and charged into the darkness.
In various parts of the air-raid shelter, the babies, unaware of the situation outside, were still shooting their water guns, and the dedicated NPCs were still shaking their broken bowls, sieves, and small balls, waiting for the next customer.
Zeng Huanian rushed past them without even glancing at them, leaving behind a trail of shocked gazes.
Light, darkness, light, darkness, darkness, darkness…
Finally reaching the last dark tunnel, Zeng Huanian saw a flashlight beam in the distance, at roughly the same location where the monitoring screen went black earlier.
But before reaching the light, Zeng Huanian was greeted by a strange, pungent smell.
Zeng Huanian, caught off guard, before he could even feel relieved that the two little babies were standing there unharmed, he couldn’t help but sneeze repeatedly.
“You… Achoo… Are… Achoo… Achoo…” Zeng Huanian said, tears streaming down his face, but his mind suddenly clicked, he was shocked. “What smell… Achoo… Gas leak… Achoo… Leak…”
“It’s my pepper spray, walk forward, towards the upwind direction.”
A muffled female voice came from the corner outside the flashlight beam, startling Zeng Huanian, he looked around in panic. “Achoo… Who!”
Wei Maomao, standing in the upwind direction, kindly turned her wrist, illuminating the… people… a few steps away, partially hidden behind a box.
Zeng Huanian, who had rushed towards the two little babies, never expected to see, wow, there were three other people there!
“Xiao Liu, Xiao Shi… Achoo…” Zeng Huanian said, walking towards the upwind direction, squinting his stinging eyes at the three disheveled figures. “And Xiao Lü? What’s going on? What happened here? Were you fighting?”
Liu Ming, her eyes red and throat sore from using the pepper spray at close range: “… “
Shi Hongxiao, his glasses knocked off and one eye bruised from being overpowered: “… “
Lü Liwei, his face covered in pepper spray, clutching his face, enduring the pain, he had been planning to escape: “… “
Half an hour later…
Unrelated personnel were gradually evacuated, after clearing the air-raid shelter, only Zeng Huanian, Liu Ming, Shi Hongxiao, and Wu Qiao, the strong man who was used to scare the person who bought all of Cheng Rongrong’s vegetables, remained.
Lü Liwei, held down like a chicken by Wu Qiao’s large hand, looked at the green stains on his clothes, then at the rope tightly held by Shi Hongxiao, he had given up on escaping, he was just thinking about how to explain himself when Director Shi, who had sneaked out of the hospital, arrived.
The first to arrive was Jin Youliang, with a few staff members he was close to, they asked about the details while trying to help clean up the air-raid shelter. But Zeng Huanian, specifically instructed by Shi Dingshan and Qin Sichao, stopped them.
Before Jin Youliang could find more excuses, Shi Dingshan and Qin Sichao arrived, followed by… a police car.
Jin Youliang’s eyes widened, he no longer dared to think about destroying the evidence in the cameras, he just frantically winked at Lü Liwei, hoping he would be smart. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if they exposed each other.
Wei Chengli was the last to arrive, the place where the dads were earlier was quite far, he rushed over, worried, and arrived just as they were talking about the two little babies using hair ties to exchange for clues to the treasure chests.
The dark tunnel, the glowing treasure chest on the high platform in the distance, the indistinguishable slope, the taut tripwire on the ground, the pulling force from the person in the darkness trying to retrieve the rope after being caught, the eye contact, the attempt to escape after being discovered, the spray of water to the face, the little girl’s cry of “I caught the bad guy!”, the person rushing over from the darkness, the glasses knocked off by a punch, the attempt to escape again, the pungent pepper spray…
Lü Liwei truly didn’t understand what was wrong with Liu Ming and Shi Hongxiao, it was just a three-year-old child who shouted, how could they blindly believe her and attack him so ruthlessly, without any fear of hurting the wrong person! He had planned his escape route perfectly, he could have retreated safely whether he succeeded or failed. But starting from that water gun… plans never went as expected… These people! Were they crazy!
“I was just an NPC, trying to create some challenges for the little babies.”
“Just trying to scare them, I wouldn’t actually hurt them.”
“It was just a spur-of-the-moment idea, I wanted to make the show more exciting… I didn’t have any ulterior motives…”
“I was too greedy, I also wanted to be someone who could create exciting game segments, I wasn’t content with being an ordinary staff member, I overstepped my boundaries, but I truly didn’t intend to hurt them. Look, they’re fine, right?”
“I didn’t hit Xiao Shi on purpose either, he suddenly rushed over in the darkness, I thought he was a bad guy…”
“Officer, look, my eyes, my face, I’m the one who was injured.”
Although he didn’t have much hope, Lü Liwei still tried to clear his name.
A spur-of-the-moment delusion or a malicious act of collusion, the difference was huge, Lü Liwei naturally wanted to choose the easier path.
Shi Dingshan, after understanding the situation and rushing over, leaned against a rock by the roadside, he didn’t even want to listen to Lü Liwei’s excuses.
“I’m telling you, stop with the nonsense, just confess honestly. Honesty is the best policy, you can choose not to say anything, but if we find out later, it won’t be the same as confessing now.” Shi Dingshan said, annoyed, he took the water bottle Qin Sichao handed him and took a sip, then sneered. “People have reasons for doing bad things. What was your reason? Money? Power? Fame? Love? For yourself, or for someone close to you? Whose secret are you being threatened with? Yours? Or someone you care about?”
“Director Shi, I didn’t, I truly didn’t, it was just a spur-of-the-moment idea to show off…” Lü Liwei said, trying to look sincere as he looked at Shi Dingshan.
“Heh.” Shi Dingshan sneered, he stood up, walked to Lü Liwei’s side, bent down, and whispered in his ear, “How much do you think it’ll cost me to find out? I’m willing to spend my entire fortune, I can even find out who your ancestors were, believe it or not?”
Although he didn’t believe Shi Dingshan would spend his entire fortune, Lü Liwei still couldn’t help but stiffen upon hearing his words.
“Don’t underestimate me, young man.” Shi Dingshan said, patting Lü Liwei’s shoulder. “Did you read the news? My son is someone else’s, I have no son now, only this little bit of career left, you’re trying to ruin my career, you’re trying to kill me, I have nowhere else to spend my money, so I’ll just spend it all on you. Just you wait!”
Lü Liwei’s lips trembled, he forced himself not to look at Jin Youliang, he wanted to be tough and tell the police officer next to him that someone was threatening him. But he… couldn’t say it.
Shi Dingshan’s words were too real.
A man, cuckolded, raising someone else’s son, the whole world knew, he was about to go crazy… And he was still trying to ruin his only career… He admitted, Jin Youliang had his secrets. If he didn’t admit it, Shi Dingshan would find out and expose him… Lü Liwei’s back was covered in cold sweat, he felt like he was doomed.
Shi Dingshan didn’t expect to get him to talk in one go.
After the police finished questioning him and went inside the air-raid shelter to collect evidence, Shi Dingshan had them take Lü Liwei, the footage from the cameras in the shelter, and the rope. Of course, he didn’t forget to make a backup of the footage.
The evidence collection and arrest were all done in front of Jin Youliang.
Jin Youliang, his heart pounding with fear, didn’t dare to say a word, he just stood there obediently, like Zeng Huanian, who was pretending to be remorseful.
Only after the person and the evidence were taken away, and the police car was gone, did Jin Youliang finally relax a little.
Shi Dingshan’s words were harsh, it was normal for Lü Liwei to be scared. But compared to the secrets that had already been exposed, even the scariest person, who hadn’t even started looking for his secrets, was still limited. Jin Youliang believed Lü Liwei would understand this simple logic.
As long as he wasn’t implicated, he still had time, he still had a chance. That anonymous person on the other end of the phone, they were very generous these past two days, Shi Dingshan had money, that person also had money, let them fight.
Jin Youliang was happily daydreaming when Shi Dingshan’s next sentence fired him.
“Xiao Jin, you can take a break from now on. You don’t have to worry about the program anymore, you can leave now, no need to stay with us.” Shi Dingshan said calmly, his tone dismissive, anyone could hear it.
“Director Shi, I don’t understand, this… I’m also responsible for using this location, I didn’t stop Xiao Zeng, I also agreed to use this place. But this Lü Liwei incident… I…” Jin Youliang said, stunned by Shi Dingshan’s sudden dismissal, his words incoherent.
“It’s my responsibility, I was the one who decided to use this place, I was the one who arranged for these staff members…” Zeng Huanian said, stepping forward, admitting his mistakes with a heartbroken expression.
“Zeng Huanian, will you shut up!” Shi Dingshan said, glaring at him, exasperated. “It’s your responsibility, you’re blind, deaf, and your brain is filled with water, do you know why you can still continue working? Because finding a new assistant director now is truly troublesome, there are only a few days left, just be a brainless robot and follow my instructions, from now on, I’m your brain, you do what I say, when I’m not speaking, you’re deaf, blind, and mute, consider this my way of thanking you!”
Zeng Huanian, being treated so harshly by Shi Dingshan for the first time: “… “
“As for you.” Shi Dingshan said, turning to Jin Youliang again. “Zeng Huanian is a fool, I’m not. I’m giving you some face now, letting you leave. Or should I abandon the show right now, go and investigate, then fire you?”
Jin Youliang: “… “
Damn it! Wouldn’t leaving now be admitting guilt! But if he didn’t leave, would Shi Dingshan really give up and start investigating now…
Jin Youliang, caught in a dilemma, his face pale, froze.
“Xiao Jin, Director Shi isn’t feeling well. He’s just saying it casually, don’t take it to heart. Just go along with him, the show is almost over anyway, right? Just consider it a vacation, don’t provoke him, if he collapses, it’ll be your fault. Go back and rest, have a good rest.” Qin Sichao said, his tone gentle, he stood between them, mediating.
His words were meant to smooth things over, but Jin Youliang knew very well that his impression points with Qin Sichao had already hit rock bottom.
But this was the only lifeline offered, Jin Youliang had to take it, whether he wanted to or not.
After saying a few polite but meaningless words, Jin Youliang finally ran away, hurriedly seeking his anonymous teammate.
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