CH 106

Zhang Xiaolong shuddered. This elder sister truly knew which pot not to open and which pot to lift*.

*Idiom referring to people shouldn’t talk about other people’s shortcomings (i.e. knowing what to and not to say).

Consultant Lin was right. This woman was amazing!

After Liu Ying finished speaking, the situation on the scene changed.

The crowd at the ward’s door all followed the queen’s lead and began to look around, hoping to spot a police officer.

However, the only police officer here…

Zhang Xiaolong thought about it. It seemed like she was the only one there.

“It seems there are no police coming.”

“How can this be?! Jingtian is injured like this, and the police haven’t come yet?!”

Doubts and complaints came from all sides. Zhang Xiaolong understood it well. After all, their idol was injured, so they hoped that a police uncle would be present to state the situation and promise to arrest the culprit and bring her to justice.

The problem was…

Zhang Xiaolong lowered her head weakly. There were so many of them that she dared not go out!

Although intuition told her she’d become a target if she went out, if she didn’t, who knew how the media would chastise the Hongjing police?

“So, after such a big incident, the police didn’t send someone here?”

Sure enough, finding that there really wasn’t anyone related to the police around, the queen spoke indifferently.o

Zhang Xiaolong shivered.

With things at this point, she turned to her phone and asked in a pensive voice, “Captain Xing… should I go out?”

The other end of the line was silent for a moment. Although no one spoke, the scene of Captain Xing and Consultant Lin looking at each other and exchanging ideas appeared in Zhang Xiaolong’s mind.

She asked since a normal leader would probably send one of their subordinates out to shoulder the blame.

Soon, she heard what seemed like Xing Conglian approaching the phone again. His breathing sounded in Zhang Xiaolong’s ears, making her nervous.

Suddenly, she heard the person on the phone say, “Don’t go out. It’s okay.”

At that moment, she wanted to hopelessly cry.

……

At the entrance of Ansheng International Shopping Mall, under a camphor tree.

Wang Chao had already rushed to search for various information. Lin Chen stood outside and was accompanying Xing Conglian on his call.

After a few words of relief, Xing Conglian hung up the phone with a helpless expression.

Although he didn’t talk to the girl, based on Xing Conglian’s expression, she was probably frightened at the scene. “Is it Xiaolong?”

“It looks like she’s crying?” Xing Conglian shook his head as if he were saying, “I don’t know why she’s crying.”

Lin Chen sighed inaudibly. He thought to himself, ‘If you have a handsome boss who will shoulder the blame and protect you, naturally you will be moved. If you’re a girl, it’s more likely you will cry.”

Xing Conglian made a gesture to take out another cigarette, but when he was halfway there, he paused. “Speaking of which, why is Li Jingtian’s manager so good?”

Lin Chen replied, “Women are amazing. That’s all.”

Xing Conglian said, “But I suddenly felt the words of that powerful woman to be very heavy-handed. First, show weakness, then establish authority. First, share hatred, then fight against the enemy. Are people in the entertainment industry that thoughtful?”

Lin Chen glanced at him and saw that he was asking it seriously. Aren’t you quite scheming yet you can’t see through this setup?

However, he could only say that in his heart. “You mean, she has the ‘same hatred’ with the fans and media, so who is the ‘enemy’?”

“It seems that’s now us.” Xing Conglian leaned against the newly planted camphor tree and started to question. “A star suddenly encounters an accident, but his manager is targeting the police. So, if you’re in the entertainment industry, why do you think this is?”

Although Xing Conglian’s suspicion seemed cold, it wasn’t unreasonable.

In fact, although Li Jingtian’s manager’s speech didn’t put any blame, it was precisely because of that—seemingly too calm and victorious—that it felt sketchy.

Lin Chen said honestly, “I don’t know what kind of setup this is. After all, playing with the mind hasn’t been my strong point.”

Hearing his answer, Xing Conglian was taken aback and couldn’t help laughing. “Consultant Lin, why doesn’t that sound right?”

“Captain Xing is thinking too much,” Lin Chen replied.

Xing Conglian then approached him and continued, “Tell me, in that ward Li Jingtian’s in, do you think they are treating him for a ‘serious injury’? Are we falling into a hype plan in the entertainment industry?”

Lin Chen didn’t refute him. “It’s possible that if Li Jingitan and others are trying to hype this incident, then they may target us to prevent the police from investigating it.” When he said this, he shook his head. “To be honest, this approach is too stupid. The police may be afraid of public opinion, but if they insist on investigating, it’s not like the public can stop them. In fact, ever since Li Jingtian’s throat was slit, I have had an indescribable feeling—as if I’m falling into a trap, but…” He stopped at this point. He really wasn’t a person who liked to analyze personal emotions in the process of handling cases, but he really did feel weird. “I think it’s vexing…”

Xing Conglian smacked his lips and said, “It’s quite refreshing hearing you say ‘vexing’. Why do you find it vexing?”

“I don’t know.” Lin Chen shook his head, unable to describe this strange feeling.

Vexing was indeed an imprecise word.

But perhaps it was the same feeling Lin Chen had when he was standing on the upper floors of the mall, when he saw Li Jingtian fall to the ground, or even when Xing Conglian untied the bouquet of roses.

If he had to choose a more appropriate and specific description, he could only say that being vexed came from a sense of powerlessness.

Analyzing emotions didn’t have much effect on solving the case. Lin Chen seriously thought about the questions surrounding Li Jingtian and finally cruelly stated, “To judge whether this is hype or not, it will depend on Li Jingtian’s final condition.”

Thinking of the blood on the stage, he added, “In fact, judging by the amount of bleeding at the scene, it’s difficult to say the culprit didn’t cut his carotid artery. If that’s the case, it’s very unlikely Li Jingtian can be rescued.”

“What Consultant Lin means is that if Li Jingtian is pushed out covered in a white cloth over his face, then we must admit that our thoughts are too pessimistic about people, but if Li Jingitan is pushed out as if he were saved on the verge of death, we have to consider the possibility of all this being a plot he devised on himself… That is quite cruel.”

“Although both choices A and B are cruel, if C appears, it will be even more of a headache, so I hope that there isn’t a third possibility,” Lin Chen said.

In fact, Lin Chen didn’t know why all his bad premonitions usually came true.

Two minutes after he spoke, Xing Conglian’s phone rang again. Seeing that the ID showed “Zhang Xiaolong”, he knew he was about to get his answer.

Xing Conglian answered it and put the phone on speaker.

“Captain Xing, Li Jingtian is out!”

The girl’s voice sounded excited as it came out of the speaker. Such a soft and sweet voice was collided by the noise of traffic around creating a kind of illusory setting.

Sure enough, it was option B—self-inflicted and directed.

Xing Conglian asked, “How’s Li Jingtian’s condition? Is he still conscious? What did doctors say?”

Zhang Xiaolong said, “He’s awake. How can he be unconscious?”

“Just after an operation, and he’s still conscious?” Xing Conglian asked suspiciously.

“You won’t believe it, Captain Xing. Li Jingtian actually walked out by himself!”

……

Municipal Hospital, corridor outside Emergency Room No. 3.

Zhang Xiaolong held up her phone and stared at the man standing at the door of the ward in disbelief.

The singer himself wasn’t much different from on TV. Compared with his slightly noble appearance, Li Jingtian in real life looked more approachable. Of course, this wasn’t to say he wasn’t handsome. He was still elegant and good-looking, though his face was pale due to excessive blood loss. He stood slowly, with a thick gauze wrapped around his neck. After looking around, Zhang Xiaolong saw him slowly bowing, as if thanking the surrounding fans for their support.

Seeing this scene, the surrounding girls began to scream and applaud desperately, as if it were the best celebration they had ever experienced.

Li Jingtian’s face was full of gratitude. His eyes were a little moist, but he didn’t speak.

Naturally, Zhang Xiaolong was also extremely happy. She smiled and looked at the singer from top to bottom. The singer’s shirt was covered with blood, and even his pants were soaked in it.

She found it a bit strange. Zhang Xiaolong suddenly realized that Li Jingtian had his throat slit and lost copious amounts of blood, which dyed his shirt red. With this amount of bleeding, how could he still stand?

At this moment, she heard Consultant Lin’s voice coming through the phone.

“Quietly take a picture for me,” he said.

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaolong stood on tiptoe and raised her phone, and with a click, she quickly withdrew her hand. The people around her gave her a nasty glare.

The photo was quickly sent over.

On the other end of the line, Consultant Lin’s voice became hesitant. “It’s true. He has come out.”

“Is it option C?” Captain Xing asked.

Zhang Xiaolong didn’t understand what they were talking about, and even she was full of doubt.

Why did someone rush on stage to try and kill someone, and the person who was attacked managed to come out of the emergency room alive?