CH 142

“It’s time!”

At the entrance of the assembly hall on the south side of the Xinni Embassy, someone said something similar to Li Jingtian.

Only compared to Mr. Li Jingtian’s excited and impatient tone, the person who said this was quite anxious. He looked down at his watch and then shouted to his companion, “It’s really too late!”

The other person who was urged didn’t feel the slightest tension. His hair was soft amber, and his eyes were gentle. At this moment, he was standing contentedly under the camphor tree, holding a camera in his hand, and shooting at the crazy female fans around him, like a dedicated reporter.

Seeing that his companion was so addicted to the long legs of the girls without a care, the one who was a bit short and fat finally took out his phone anxiously. “If you don’t call shixiong, then I will!”

“What’s the hurry?” Finally, the man put down his camera and leaned against the camphor tree as he replied slowly.

“We’re here. Why didn’t you tell shixiong? Maybe he needs our help. There must be something wrong with Li Jingtian.”

“Since he has use for you, why are you in such a rush?” the other party asked rhetorically.

“I… I have to help!”

“Help with what? Fate?”

After saying this, the man looked at the live video of Yongchuan Satellite TV from a distance and smiled slightly at the camera.

At this moment, Lin Chen didn’t know there were strange people trying to communicate with him through the live broadcast. He was standing in front of Song Shengsheng’s TV, staring at the live news in silence.

The anchor was doing the final background introduction before the live broadcast. Yongchuan Satellite TV’s in-field camera was installed at the end of the venue, giving a huge panoramic view of the entire area.

The assembly hall of the exchange center wasn’t very large. It was filled with dark green tables and chairs that were occupied with journalists whispering to each other. The background cloth on the podium had the words “Mr. Li Jingtian’s Press Conference” written on it. Although time was tight, Li Jingtian’s team still remembered to make this backdrop. Obviously, it meant this press conference wasn’t just a whim.

It was five minutes past noon. The host finally walked out of the backstage. It was only when the host, wearing a standard suit, stood on the podium that the reporters in the audience stopped talking and whispering. Such standard actions weren’t normally seen at a celebrity press conference and were usually reserved for serious government press conferences, where journalists had to be obedient.

As a result, the venue fell silent, giving off quite an unpleasant atmosphere.

The host, probably realizing that there were countless pairs of eyes watching him, coughed lightly and said proudly, “The conference is about to begin. Please adjust your phones to silent and abide by the corresponding venue etiquette. After Mr. Li Jingtian speaks, everyone will be given ten minutes to ask questions. Please prepare your questions beforehand. The candidates for questioning will be selected by Mr. Li Jingtian. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Looking at the host’s high-strung face, Lin Chen felt this was all unbelievable. The criminal suspect was holding a press conference with great fanfare, but they, the so-called police, could only stand in front of a TV to watch the live broadcast. They allowed Li Jingtian to turn black and white; not to mention seeking justice for the victims, they couldn’t even do the most basic thing and be present there. This sense of powerlessness was excruciating.

He had never wished to appear on the live broadcast as much as he did now, but Fengchun was hundreds of kilometers away from Yongchuan, and technology like space teleportation was still being developed, so naturally he couldn’t be there now.

Just as Lin Chen was making this unspoken wish, the director once again gave Li Jingtian’s support, holding their banners outside the venue for one last broadcast.

The camera swept across the excited crowd under the scorching sun. Everyone’s eyes were flushed with anger. They chanted the slogan “Protect”, as if they were forming an unstoppable torrent. Among this angry crowd, the only ones who were calmly smiling became particularly eye-catching.

Lin Chen thought he was hallucinating.

He closed his eyes subconsciously, and when he opened them again, the TV screen had cut back to inside the venue.

He looked around and saw that both Wang Chao and Xing Conglian were in a daze, just like he was now. Lin Chen knew it wasn’t just him who was seeing things.

“I… Did I just see a big pervert?” Wang Chao asked tentatively.

Ever since he had experienced someone’s mental torture in Yongchuan, Wang Chao was used to calling Su Fengzi by that name. When thinking of him, Lin Chen had an inexplicable feeling. Are you kidding me? Why is Su Fengzi on the sidelines?

“The one next to him… is that Professor Fu?” Xing Conglian inquired, as if he hadn’t fully grasped the situation.

However, no one answered his question.

After Xing Conglian finished speaking, the two of them took out their phones at the same time, as excited as a lottery player who just saw they had won the jackpot on TV and was planning to call the lottery center immediately. In fact, this feeling was really no different from winning five million.

The moment the phone connected, Lin Chen almost couldn’t help yelling, “Su Fengzi, are you kidding me? Why didn’t you call me earlier?”

“Because it’s fun to hear you get angry.”

“Fuck off!”

“Hey, you actually cursed. Are you upset that I’m here? Why do you want me to fuck off?”

“I’m very happy.” Lin Chen gritted his teeth.

“Is he happy too?” Su Fengzi asked.

Lin Chen subconsciously looked at Xing Conglian, who was obviously talking to Fu Hao. Professor Fu was talking non-stop, most likely complaining about Su Fengzi.

“He’s also very happy.” Lin Chen said it with extreme emphasis.

“Just be happy…” Su Fengzi laughed. Lin Chen was about to speak, but he interrupted, “Then, please ask that kid next to you to get on the line.”

When Wang Chao heard him talking to Su Fengzi, he had already shrunk to the far corner of the sofa. Lin Chen turned it on speaker and forcefully pushed the phone over.

“Wang Chao~…” Su Fengzi stretched his tone.

“Why are you looking for me?!” Wang Chao shouted boldly.

“I’m now walking towards the entrance of the press conference hall, about 300 meters away from the security guards checking the invitation letter. If your A’Chen Gege needs my help, then please prepare an invitation letter for me and Professor Fu to attend the conference within 60 seconds…”

Wang Chao looked at the phone and was stunned. “What?”

“You see, the press conference was so sudden that there was no time to send paper invites, so the reporters only got…”

“Electronic invitations!” Wang Chao replied.

“Yes. There are only 50 seconds left.”

The next moment, the teenager dropped the phone, jumped from the sofa as if he were flying, and rushed frantically to the laptop on the dining table. He began to tap the keyboard at an unprecedented speed.

“You’re scaring him.” Lin Chen turned off the phone from speaker.

“Hey, listening to you say that, it sounds like you already got married and became a stepmother to others.” Su Fengzi laughed.

Lin Chen almost had the urge to drop the phone.

Su Fengzi changed the subject and said seriously, “Okay, tell me. What is going on with Li Jingtian?”

When Su Fengzi asked this, he didn’t want the details, so Lin Chen only said to him, “The crime is heinous.”

“I understand,” Su Fengzi said.

The background sounds on the phone gradually quiet down. He could hear Su Fengzi walking up steps. He seemed to have reached the security checkpoint.

He took a deep breath and then said, “I’m really sorry. We came as soon as we received the call from the agency, but the traffic jam on the road was too severe. I’m not too late yet, right?”

“Sir, please show me your ID and electronic invitation,” the security guard said in a businesslike tone.

“Wait a minute.” Su Fengzi put down his phone and said, “It’s in my email.”

After he finished saying this, he hung up the phone.

He exited the call interface and the moment he opened his email, the prompt of +1 mail lit up.

Su Fengzi laughed, clicked on the scan code in the email, and handed it over with his ID.

He turned his head and saw Fu Hao running up the steps, panting.

“I also have a colleague. So sorry,” Su Fengzi leaned slightly toward the security guard as he said this.

……

Lin Chen could no longer hear Su Fengzi’s voice.

Since the time he hung up, the director had fixed the TV screen at the podium. Because Li Jingtian had just walked out of the backstage area and onto the podium, the sound of a pin dropping could be heard.

The anchor said excitedly, “After weeks of the sexual assault scandal and yesterday’s throat-slitting incident, Mr. Li Jingtian is finally holding a press conference to face the public and answer their questions for the first time. Regardless of the truth, let us first applaud such courage.”

The anchor’s voice was spoken to the audience in front of the TV, but the applause inside and outside the venue was exactly the same. Some people even blew whistles off the stage as flashes kept blinking, brightly illuminating the venue.

Lin Chen watched as Li Jingtian walked on stage amidst the applause.

The moment he saw Li Jingtian again, Lin Chen found that he was much calmer than he thought.

The singer maintained a humble and decent expression, as if to show respect for this occasion. He wore a suitable light gray suit and had his hair combed back, which was held together by hairspray and revealed his smooth forehead. His face was pale and blue; a complexion that was completely different from when Lin Chen met him yesterday. Presumably the makeup artist had put in much effort to make the singer look haggard and pitiful.

Li Jingtian slowly took to the stage. After he stood up on the stage, the first thing he did was bow to everyone at 90 degrees. There was a burst of applause from the audience, which seemed like they were welcoming a hero’s commendation, which just made everything all the more ridiculous.

But Lin Chen was no longer angry by these applause, because that kind of anger was meaningless other than occupying emotions.

He keenly noticed there were two groups of black-clothed security personnel on both sides of the podium. That was the same group of people who picked up Li Jingtian from the hospital. He thought of these embassy staff who had diplomatic immunity and were armed.

Lin Chen thought that what Su Fengzi was going to do next might be a bit dangerous.