Chapter 994: Live Stream Car Crash

When the door to the Mayor's office was pushed open, Lin Dongfan was standing by the window smoking.

Yang Qing walked in, tossed his briefcase onto the sofa, plopped down, crossed his legs, and stared fixedly at Lin Dongfan's back.

"Zhuangbi Fan, where were you last night?"

Lin Dongfan turned around, stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray: "Get to the point, stop beating around the bush."

Yang Qing walked up to Lin Dongfan, sized him up from head to toe like he was examining a criminal suspect: "Were you with Su Qianqian last night?"

Lin Dongfan looked at him, gave a faint smile, and said nothing.

Yang Qing immediately assumed a serious posture: "What are you laughing at? Please, can you be serious? I'm talking about something important."

"What's not serious about me?"

Lin Dongfan walked to the desk, sat down, picked up his tea cup, and took a sip.

Yang Qing plopped down opposite him.

Yang Qing crossed his legs, lit a cigarette, and said: "Someone posted your hookup video online; the Provincial Department's Network Security Brigade detected it. If I hadn't acted fast, I would have cleaned up your mess within three minutes, and you'd already be trending."

"Who posted it?"

Lin Dongfan set down his tea cup, still calm and composed.

Yang Qing stared at him: "Answer my question first—did you or did you not hook up with Su Qianqian?"

Lin Dongfan leaned back in his chair, lit a cigarette, and said: "Someone smashed the door to her place, so I put her up in a hotel for the night. She took the presidential suite; I left."

Yang Qing doubted: "You left? Then how does the video show you helping her out of the car?"

Lin Dongfan exhaled a puff of smoke: "Her foot was injured—I just helped her a bit. I walked her to the hotel door and then left. Lao Ba can vouch for me; do you want to bring him in for a confrontation?"

Yang Qing stared at him for several seconds.

All that could be seen was Lin Dongfan's expression, calm as a stagnant pool.

There was no sign of anything unusual.

Yang Qing sighed, leaned back, and said: "Damn it, whether you slept or not, just one thing—be careful when you bring girls in and out of hotels from now on."

"You think I'm like you?"

Lin Dongfan flicked ash from his cigarette, chatting and laughing easily.

Yang Qing glared at him: "What's wrong with me? I'm perfectly serious. Speaking of serious matters, the video was posted by a guy named Xiao Weiming, a big internet celebrity with over ten million followers."

Lin Dongfan's brow furrowed slightly: "Xiao Weiming? How would he have the photos?"

Yang Qing said: "He didn't take them; someone sent the photos to him. The pictures were secretly taken last night at the entrance of the Everyman Grand Hotel, from a tricky angle that makes it look like you're putting your arm around Su Qianqian as you go in. With the caption claiming the Mayor secretly met a female college student late at night, it's classic clickbait—very eye‑catching."

He paused briefly.

Yang Qing then concluded: "It's obvious that someone behind the scenes is pulling the strings, trying to blow this up."

Lin Dongfan stubbed out his cigarette: "Have you found out who's behind it?"

Yang Qing shook his head: "Still under investigation. After the Provincial Department's Network Security Brigade detected the video, they immediately took containment measures—deleted the video and banned the account—and sent people to arrest Xiao Weiming."

Lin Dongfan looked at him: "Have they caught him yet?"

Yang Qing took a sip of his tea: "When I came out, there was no news yet. But it should be soon—the network security team has locked onto his IP address; he's in an apartment in East City."

Lin Dongfan stood up and walked to the window.

Outside the window, Wuzhou's sky was overcast, as if it were about to rain.

He stood there for Along time.

Suddenly he turned and said: "Let's go, to East City."

Yang Qing blinked: "What are you going to do? Do you really need to personally go arrest someone?"

"I want to see who dares to cause trouble right under the nose of the Grand Commander." As he spoke, Lin Dongfan had already picked up the administrative coat draped over the chair.

East City, Jadeite Apartment.

Xiao Weiming sat in the chair of the live‑stream room, a phone set up in front of him, the fill light on, the background a wall covered with stickers and neon signs.

He grinned brightly at the camera, showing a full set of white teeth.

"Folks, today we're not telling jokes or stories. Today we're talking about life, about how those who stand high end up falling."

The bullet comments immediately started scrolling.

"Is Brother Ming going to spill the beans today?"

"What gossip? Give us the spoilers!"

"Brother Ming is awesome!"

……

Xiao Weiming leaned toward the camera, lowered his voice, and said: "Last night, someone sent me a set of photos. Guess who's in them?"

The bullet comments got even livelier.

"Stop teasing and just say it!"

"Brother Ming, you've changed—you never used to keep us in suspense like this."

"This morning I saw you post a video, then delete it within three minutes, and your main account got banned—did something happen?"

"I was wondering why you're using a side account to stream."

……

Seeing these comments, Xiao Weiming smiled faintly, unfazed.

Just as he was about to speak, a sudden rush of footsteps came from outside the door—not one person's, but several people's.

"Bang!"

The door was kicked open from outside.

The door panel hit the wall, bounced back, and was kicked open again.

Several uniformed people rushed in.

The leader flashed his work ID: "Xiao Weiming? We're from the Cyber Security Detachment of the Provincial Public Security Department. You're suspected of spreading false information; we're now summoning you according to law. Please cooperate."

Xiao Weiming rose in shock.

The live‑stream phone was still set up in front of him, the comments were still rolling, and he no longer had the attention to turn it off.

"What crime have I committed? On what basis are you arresting me? I'm a self‑media worker; I only said a few truthful things in the live stream—doesn't freedom of speech exist anymore?"

The lead officer ignored him, waved a hand: "Take him away."

Two officers stepped forward.

One on each side grabbed Xiao Weiming's arms.

"On what grounds are you arresting me!"

Xiao Weiming struggled hard, but the result was being pressed down firmly; his face instantly turned from white to red, then from red to a bluish hue.

Xiao Weiming shouted angrily: "I want to make a call! I want to get a lawyer!"

"Take him away!"

The officers didn't waste a word.

As Xiao Weiming was being led out of the apartment, the harsh white hallway light shone on his face, making him the focus of the neighbors' onlookers.

He kept his head down the whole way, not daring to meet anyone's gaze.

Downstairs, a black Audi was parked at the curb.

The car door was open.

Lin Dongfan sat in the back seat, watching through the window as Xiao Weiming was escorted out.

Xiao Weiming was shoved into the police car; at the moment the door shut, he lifted his head and glanced at the black Audi. The windows were tinted, so he couldn't see who was inside, but he knew that person was watching him.

The police car pulled away, its red‑blue flashing lights strobing in the night sky, growing ever more distant.

Lin Dongfan withdrew his gaze, leaned back in the seat, and said: "Let's go. Back to the office."

"Just came to watch the spectacle."

Lao Ba chuckled, started the car, and merged into traffic.

Outside the window, the street scenery rushed backward; the sky over Wuzhou remained dull and overcast.

Lin Dongfan closed his eyes; only one thought filled his mind—Xiao Weiming was merely a pawn, and the mastermind behind him was the key.