Chapter 16: Fanning the Flames

Qiong Cang stepped out into the sunlight and glanced at the Suicide Progress in the upper right corner of her vision.

Ever since the value had jumped to 100%, the spot where the suicide progress bar used to be had turned into a line of red text: Suicide Countdown: 24 Hours.

The prompt below it read: The Player may arrange their own schedule, or it will be enforced upon expiration.

Life really was fragile sometimes.

Qiong Cang rummaged through her bag, pulled out a hat, adjusted it neatly on her head, and set off.

She was going to find the middle-aged man who had been the first to speak to her in the conference room last time.

Using the name Xu Manyan had given her, she searched for photos online to confirm his identity and position.

The middle-aged man was a director in the school’s administrative office, and he was very likely the person whose photos had been stolen by Tian Yun.

Judging by the details, this man was bold and unrestrained when it came to sexual crimes, possessed an arrogant personality, and was highly narcissistic. When taking the photos, he had deliberately focused on his watch several times, indicating a strong sense of vanity.

Usually, when such people held high positions, they exhibited overconfidence. They believed their intelligence and abilities far exceeded others, or at least far exceeded those of his students, especially since he had committed crimes for years and remained unscathed.

However, his psychological resilience was weak, making him easy to provoke and lead into cognitive traps. Last time, Qiong Cang had publicly humiliated him, causing him to show a crack in his facade and receive a reprimand from the Principal. He must harbor a grudge against her.

Qiong Cang stopped near the school’s administration building. She pulled out her phone and drafted several text messages, breaking a complete thought into multiple short segments and sending them in rapid succession to create the illusion that she was currently emotional and out of control.

Qiong Cang: You got my mom to pressure me. Do you think that’s going to end this? Do you think teaming up with parents is going to scare me?

Qiong Cang: No way, it’s far from over! You’ve already killed two people, and now you want to drive me to suicide too? I’ll fight you to the bitter end!

Qiong Cang: Do you really think I don’t have evidence? Zhou Nansong told me everything before she died. She recorded every single thing you did.

Qiong Cang: I know it’s you. I recognize your watch!

Qiong Cang: The person in the photos is definitely you. Even if your face isn’t showing, the things on your body, the blemishes and moles on your skin can prove it. Once the police search you, they’ll know. You can’t escape.

Qiong Cang: Forcing students into bed, you’re finished!

Qiong Cang: At worst, we’ll go down together! I’ll be watching you!

Sitting in his office, the middle-aged man heard his phone vibrating incessantly. He picked it up and glanced at it. As the black text kept popping up, his eyelid began to twitch ominously.

He cursed, calling her a psychopath, threw the phone onto the desk, walked to the window, and roughly pulled the curtains aside.

He pulled a cigarette from his pocket, placed it between his lips, and as he looked down to search for his lighter, he spotted a figure hiding suspiciously under a tree in front of the building.

The person was wearing a hat, squatting on the ground, with their head down, looking at something in their hands.

Just then, the phone on the desk vibrated again.

Holding the cigarette between two fingers, the middle-aged man walked over suspiciously and picked up the phone once more.

Qiong Cang: I’m waiting for you at the cafe outside the school. I’ll give you half an hour. If you don’t show up, I’ll release the photos directly, and we’ll all go down together.

Qiong Cang: I know you’re at school. Don’t try to play dead, I know everything!

The middle-aged man quickly walked back to the window, leaned out, and observed the figure below.

The girl downstairs looked around warily, then shrank her body behind the tree to ensure she couldn’t be seen from the building’s exit. However, from the perspective of the upper floor, this action was laughably transparent, leaving her completely exposed.

The middle-aged man laughed heartily, slowly raised his phone, and arrogantly replied with a single word: “Fine.”

Of course he could tolerate and play along with this girl who was all bark and no bite.

He even found it quite amusing.

The middle-aged man pulled up his contacts and dialed a certain number.

“…Letting her run her mouth outside, though it’s not a big deal, is still a bit risky.”

“If possible, it’s best to eliminate the threat once and for all by expelling her directly. Now is a good opportunity.”

“…She’s just an ordinary student. Didn’t you say her mother came to the school to apologize today? The parent is a sensible person. Without her parent’s support, what can she do besides panic?”

“Don’t worry, she can’t possibly have any evidence. Zhou Nansong probably just told her verbally, otherwise she would have brought out the photos long ago. When Tian Yun died, wasn’t her phone taken by Xu Manyan and the others?”

“They’re all bitches!”

After hanging up the phone, the middle-aged man made a few arrangements in the room, then picked up his suit jacket and calmly walked out of the office.

Pretending to know nothing, he walked out of the main entrance and headed toward the school gate without looking left or right. Only when he turned into a blind spot did he stop, turn around, and gaze at the camphor tree in front of the building with the look of a hunter teasing his prey.

Once he saw the dark figure by the entrance run into the building in a panic, he smoothed the wrinkles in his clothes and retraced his steps, unable to hide his smile.

Inside the office, the girl wearing a hat and a face mask was frantically searching the desk.

The middle-aged man leaned against the doorframe, tapped on the door, and asked, “What are you looking for?”

Qiong Cang seemed startled. She flinched, took a few quick steps back, and pressed her back against the wall.

As if amused by her reaction, the smile on the man’s face grew more genuine.

“Are you wondering why I didn’t go out?” the middle-aged man chuckled. “If you really had evidence, you wouldn’t have just come to threaten me verbally. Did you really think you could deceive your teacher with such a clumsy lie? I told you long ago that the real world isn’t that simple. You should listen to your teachers. Why wouldn’t you believe me? Learned your lesson now, haven’t you?”

He let out a hypocritical sigh, walked into the room, and shook his head. “You entered my office to steal without my permission. Now, all I have to do is call the police, and you’ll be sitting in a detention cell. A student with a criminal record won’t be accepted by any good university. Tell me, why did you do something that ruins your own future? How can you face your parents? I’m truly disappointed in you.”

Qiong Cang was at the end of her rope. Though she glared at him, she lacked any real presence. She was merely using her voice to mask her anxiety. “I didn’t steal anything, and you don’t have any proof. If you call the police, I can call them too.”

The middle-aged man stared at her as if he had just heard something hilarious.

“Forget it. As expected, you’re just a student who doesn’t know the first thing about the law. You need evidence to back up your words.” He took off his coat and hung it on a nearby rack. “I can understand that as a high school senior, you’re under too much pressure and have lost control of your emotions, which makes you spout nonsense. I don’t want to hold it against you either; it’s too boring. Sit down, let’s talk.”

Qiong Cang stood still.

The middle-aged man tapped his fingers on the desk, tilting his chin up slightly as he looked down at her. “My willingness to talk to you is a good thing. Otherwise, all I’d have to do is call the police, and everything would be resolved. Whether you accept it is up to you, but my patience is limited.”

Qiong Cang struggled internally, but in the end, she walked over. She pulled out a chair and sat opposite him, casually placing her phone on the table.

The middle-aged man glanced at it and gestured. “Turn it off.”

Qiong Cang turned off the phone in front of him.

The middle-aged man clasped his hands on the table and clicked his tongue, sighing, “Student Wang Dongyan…”

·

He Jueyun was currently taking a detailed statement from Xu Manyan alongside his colleagues from the sub-bureau. At the same time, they were trying to contact other Victims to see if they were willing to step forward and testify.

This was a long and tedious task. They had to persuade, question, and verify over and over again, while also soothing the other party’s emotions.

He Jueyun also wanted to check if First High School had other vulnerabilities. If they could coordinate with other departments to prove that the school administration had committed multiple derelictions of duty, they would hold a significant advantage later on. However, his authority was limited, and he did not want to blow the matter out of proportion, making negotiations somewhat difficult.

As evening approached, He Jueyun, who had been busy all day, finally remembered that Comrade Qiong Cang, who had agreed to stay in touch, had not reported to him yet.

That girl was always slipping in and out like a ghost; he had no idea where she had gone this time.

He Jueyun originally wanted to contact her, but remembering the annoyed look Qiong Cang had given him earlier that day, he decided against it.

He went to brew a cup of coffee and leaned back in his chair to rest. Just as he was relaxing, his colleague suddenly came over to tell him that the local police station had received a report from First High School. The police were currently looking for Wang Dongyan, and his colleague wanted to know if he had any news of her.

He Jueyun choked violently on his coffee, the liquid burning his nose and throat.

He gasped in shock, “What?!”

His colleague said, “First High School has already posted an announcement on their official website. They are accusing Wang Dongyan of extortion, defamation, and theft. Isn’t that student in a lot of danger right now? Should we go give our colleagues at the station a heads-up? First High School is very likely retaliating.”

He Jueyun raised his hand to stop him. “Wait a minute!”

He stood up, then sat back down. After considering the situation, he picked up his phone from the side and told his colleague, “Go comfort those students first. Tell them not to believe any of the news. Let me look into the situation, and then I’ll tell you what to do.”

He Jueyun opened First High School’s official website and saw a large announcement pinned to the homepage.

“Statement Regarding the Malicious Extortion by a Student of Our School.

“As a key high school in A City, First High School has always aimed to cultivate physically and mentally healthy talents who can make long-term contributions to our country. We are willing to trust our students and hope to give them opportunities for free development. Recently, however, a student at our school has repeatedly made major mistakes, even indirectly causing another student to commit suicide by jumping off a building. Now, she is attempting to extort school administrators. Since she is a high school senior, the school originally intended to focus on guidance and pacification. However, because the nature of her actions is too egregious, we have decided to deal with her strictly. A detailed explanation is provided below.”

Below it was an audio file and a web link.

“The student in question has a history of school bullying, which led to a female student in her dormitory jumping to her death in March of this year. Because her parents pleaded earnestly, the student usually performed well and had excellent grades, there was no clear evidence of bullying, and the deceased’s family expressed their understanding, the school agreed to handle the matter quietly.

“However, this student has refused to mend her ways. Recently, she was caught red-handed by the teacher on duty while climbing over the wall at night to fight with other students. She was punished and made to write a self-criticism. Consequently, she harbored a grudge against the school, believing the school acted unfairly. During the school’s routine morning assembly, she publicly made inappropriate remarks, inciting chaos among the students and nearly causing a serious incident, which had an extremely negative impact. The school informed her parents and hoped she would reflect on her actions.”

“Before the disciplinary action could be officially handed down, this student sneaked into the administration building’s office to steal. After being caught, she once again used fabricated evidence to extort school administrators. The details are as heard in the audio above.”

“Out of concern for the student’s privacy, the relevant video footage will not be released for the time being. Our school is extremely disappointed by her behavior. We have now officially reported the matter to the police and have requested the student’s withdrawal¹. Hereby announced.”

He Jueyun clicked on the audio file and listened quietly to the voices inside.

A young female voice: “I was just passing by the office. I didn’t take anything from inside, and you don’t have any evidence to prove I came to steal.”

A middle-aged male voice: “Alright, I also find talking like this exhausting. Just name your price. What do you want?”

“You haven’t even provided the bare minimum of compensation. I can call the police too.”

“Then how much compensation do you think is appropriate?”

“These are human lives. How much do you think they’re worth? And you still want to push me. You deliberately let other students bully me.”

The man’s voice sounded very helpless. “I’ll say it one more time: you have no evidence. I hope you stop talking about these useless things.”

The girl said agitatedly, “Don’t push me! At worst, I’ll jump off that dormitory building too! Two people have already died at this school. If another one goes, none of you will have a good ending!”

There was also the sound of someone slamming the table in the middle.

Male voice: “Okay, fine. The school is willing to offer one million. Do you think that’s acceptable?”

“Not enough.”

“Then how about another million?” The male voice asked. “Do you really know what you’re doing? Let me confirm with you one more time.”

“I know,” the girl said. “You can’t go looking for my mother anymore. I can pretend none of this ever happened.”

Male voice: “We were just reporting your situation at school to your parents, about the fight in the middle of the night…”

The female voice grew agitated again: “You’re lying! Shut up!”

Male voice: “Alright… alright…”

The audio ended there.

The related content had also been uploaded to Weibo and other social media accounts.

As soon as this post went live, multiple news outlets quickly picked it up, while paid promotions were bought to heavily push it.

By the time He Jueyun discovered it, it had already spread like wildfire, accompanied by all sorts of unverified “insider leaks.” The comments were extremely toxic.

“So disgusting. What is with this student? School bullies deserve to die! She already caused someone’s death, so why hasn’t she been suspended yet? This is so irresponsible to the other students!”

“Even if a piece of trash like this graduates from a prestigious university, so what? She’ll just go from being illiterate trash to a high-IQ piece of trash with even greater destructive power. The school’s leniency is just breeding criminals.”

“She’s been doxxed. Wang Dongyan, phone number: XXX, home address: XX Street… Her mom works at XX government agency. Fuck! It’s actually a public sector job. Let’s start spamming the complaint hotline!”

“Doxxing is illegal, are you guys crazy? And why did the student’s information come out so quickly? Don’t end up targeting the wrong person in the end.”

“I’m a student at First High School, and this news is definitely real. She’s like a lunatic at school, lashing out at everyone. We all hate her.”

“Here we go again. Whenever something happens, countless ‘classmates’ suddenly pop up. Post your student ID to prove it before you talk.”

He Jueyun was completely dumbfounded. The viewers in the Live Stream Room were also roasting the situation.

The viewers who had been following Qiong Cang’s perspective were doing fine. Having received enough of a lesson in this Instance, they were now calmly eating popcorn and watching the drama unfold, passing judgment on it all.

“As a netizen myself, watching these netizens act like idiots in the game makes me feel personally attacked.”

“Are netizens really this stupid? I refuse to let them represent me.”

“F*ck, watching these people is making me suffocate.”

“Netizens watching netizens? No nesting dolls² allowed.”

“This batch of paid trolls³ is so low-quality. The formula is too obvious, yet bystanders are still taking the bait. Netizens of this era are so naive. Sigh, they’re not this easy to fool nowadays.”

Meanwhile, the viewers on He Jueyun’s side were feeling quite frustrated. Having missed the best part of the plot yet again, they were deeply pained and kept urging He Jueyun to hurry up and do something useful, rather than just lying down and letting the big boss carry him to victory.

“Mr. Officer, this won’t do.”

“Middle-aged uncle, why are you always lagging behind? She’s already sprinted ahead to 10G, while you’re still happily surfing on a 2G network. Are you worthy of the viewers in your Live Stream Room?”

“Do something big, and I’ll tip you a dime.”

“Brother Q, if this keeps up, you’re going to get stuck with the title of ‘creepy middle-aged uncle’ again. For the sake of Brother Q’s dignity, get moving!”

“I feel like I’m being looked down upon, but I’m just here to watch a live stream.”

·

He Jueyun quickly pulled up Qiong Cang’s contact info and dialed her number.

It barely rang twice before Qiong Cang hung up on him, followed by a text message.

Qiong Cang: Phone is charging, too hot. Talk here.

He Jueyun: What’s going on with you? The internet is exploding. Weren’t you going to fan the flames? How did you end up getting burned yourself?

Qiong Cang: Hmm?

He Jueyun: 【Web Link】 What on earth is this! They hired paid trolls to accuse you of extortion and theft. It’s already blowing up online, and your photos and personal info have been leaked. Where are you right now? Are you safe?

He Jueyun: Come to the police station first. It’ll be easier for us to protect you.

Qiong Cang: I rented a new computer and I’m editing a video in a safe place. Go protect Wang Dongyan’s mother first. Don’t let anything happen to her.

He Jueyun: …Are you really sure about this? With such a massive uproar, don’t end up crashing and burning.

Qiong Cang: Those whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make mad. I fanned the flames perfectly. Isn’t the fire burning now?

He Jueyun: Was the audio edited? How much was cut? Can we nail them with it?

Qiong Cang: Hmm?

He Jueyun: Do you need paid trolls?

Qiong Cang: Well, well, the police offer that kind of service? I’ll wait a bit longer, until the momentum gets even bigger.

He Jueyun: Hiring paid trolls is illegal. The police do not offer such services. I was just reminding you not to hire random trolls online. It sets a bad example for the Live Stream Room, and the stream could get banned.

Qiong Cang: …

Qiong Cang: Oh. 【Tch】

Seeing this, the netizens in the Live Stream Room wailed in agony, wishing they could rip off their clothes and whip He Jueyun in the face with them:

“No – we have eyes that can go temporarily blind! Ignore us, big boss, go for it!”

“Why is Brother Q so wimpy? Brother Q, you’re not a firefighter, can you let things heat up?”

“Brother Q is the inspector this time, a staff member of Sanyao, right? The word ‘wimp’ is deeply engraved in his heart.”

Translator’s Notes