Cheng Ying Collected
After Ting Yu finished speaking, Ji Jiang felt even more convinced that she was suffering from persecution mania.
He couldn’t help but laugh, and even shot a glance at Gu Zhiya.
Seeing that Gu Zhiya ignored him, he awkwardly said, “Well, that’s true. This world has no shortage of weirdos, but I think strangers usually wouldn’t have this kind of controlling obsession over you, Xiao Yu. This person must be someone close to you.”
At first, Yu Song thought the same, but she had gone through everyone she knew and still couldn’t find anyone suspicious.
“I really can’t think of who it might be, but I’m not afraid. Officer Gu told me that Officer Ji is the Criminal Investigation Team Captain. He said you’re very capable and will definitely help me find this person.”
Gu Zhiya silently glanced at her.
When had he ever said that?
People just love to hear compliments.
Ji Jiang was quite pleased when Ting Yu said that.
He was, after all, justice incarnate, and as a police officer, his sense of responsibility was at an all-time high.
“Xiao Gao, don’t worry. We will definitely investigate the truth as soon as possible and will not let any villain get away.”
Yu Song had long suspected that they were still treating her like a suspect during the investigation.
Judging from how quickly Gu Zhiya arrived and his reaction when facing Zhao Xue, she believed he still trusted her.
But Ji Jiang’s gaze always carried scrutiny, so she simply gave him a hat of honor.
After all, she was the protagonist, wasn’t she?
Didn’t protagonists have a halo?
Better make full use of it!
If they can’t figure it out clearly, then stop hounding her.
Hurry up and find a way to investigate!
Ji Jiang wasn’t a fool.
After his brief happiness, he understood the meaning behind Yu Song’s words.
He felt that Yu Song was a bit too trusting, but even though they suspected she was fabricating the whole thing, they hadn’t stopped investigating.
Besides, he was a cop.
Finding the black hand behind all this was his duty.
No need for this little girl to try to provoke him.
Although Ji Jiang had resolved both verbally and mentally to find the truth quickly, their investigation so far only uncovered signs of the school network being hacked.
Yu Song didn’t want to keep playing cat-and-mouse with the dark mentor.
Frowning, she asked, “The technical staff can’t find any information about him? What about tech personnel from other bureaus? Even if he uses the Internet as a relay, you should still be able to trace it, right? I don’t believe you can’t get online.”
Gu Zhiya replied, “It’s possible to check, but it’s very difficult. Even if we find something, it won’t necessarily be accurate. Since he dares to do this, he definitely covered his tracks well. Do you know why overseas scams have been rampant? Because it’s hard to investigate, and even harder to trace back.”
Yu Song naturally knew this, but she wasn’t a police officer now; she was the victim.
If she didn’t pressure them, Ji Jiang might start suspecting her again while investigating.
“So there’s no way to investigate? He calls me, and you can’t trace it. He randomly uploads videos at school, and you have no way to stop it. What if next time he uploads something that can’t pass censorship, or some reactionary troublemaking videos from the Internet? You won’t be able to handle those either?”
Ji Jiang said helplessly, “Don’t worry, those will definitely be blocked. Xiao Yu, don’t be anxious for now. I’ll have the technical staff send the info they gather to the Security Bureau. They have professional hackers who, even if they can’t locate the source, can analyze the opponent’s skill level and methods.”
Gu Zhiya added, “Captain Ji is right. Leave this to the professionals. What we need to investigate now are these three video clips. How did they get into the mysterious person’s hands? Did the person who filmed them give them to the mysterious person, or did he steal them using hacking skills?”
Ji Jiang said, “Yeah. Although He Zilu is no longer around, her little classmate knows about it. We have to find her quickly.”
At that moment, Yu Song’s phone rang a few times. She opened it and saw, “Her name is Xia Yuxin. She was He Zilu’s high school classmate and has already been exposed.”
The message was from Senior Xing, who had added her on WeChat before.
He was very enthusiastic, not only sending Yu Song videos he filmed himself but also forwarding related videos he found online.
Now, he had sent a self-confession video from a girl.
【Xiao Gao, this girl was also bullied by He Zilu. She says the little classmate in the videos is Xia Yuxin.】
Yu Song didn’t hesitate and directly played the video.
In it, the girl was crying as she spoke.
“I, Lu He, He Zilu, and Xia Yuxin were all high school classmates. The two of them were very famous in our entire grade. He Zilu also hit me once, just over a small matter. She liked to be called ‘Lulu Sister’ and enjoyed forming cliques.”
The girl wiped her tears. “If anyone offended her or her little group, she would come up with all sorts of ways to bully them. Insulting them verbally was the lightest punishment. She even forced people to drink toilet water.”
She paused, then gritted her teeth. “It wasn’t exactly toilet water because our school only had squat toilets. The toilet water looked relatively clean, but you have to imagine the kind of school bathrooms we had. How could they be properly cleaned? It was just…”
The girl choked and couldn’t continue for a long time.
Then she resumed, “Today, when I saw the video from Jingnan University, it suddenly reminded me of those high school days. The introverted girls in the class were all bullied by them. I’m not the least bit sad that He Zilu died. On the contrary, I even applauded. I know you’ll say I’m cold-hearted, but you don’t know how I felt then. You don’t know that I’m still affected by those things. And don’t even mention the classmates who were forced to drink toilet water — that’s a lifelong humiliation.”
Yu Song felt a deep ache watching.
This girl was unable to hide it at all; she was definitely forced to drink squat toilet water.
That was a lifetime scar.
She had mustered the courage to point out the bullies but didn’t dare say she herself was also bullied.
Ji Jiang grew angrier and angrier. “These kids talk too much.”
Gu Zhiya, however, noted the watermark ID on the video and immediately searched for it online.
The girl’s tone in the video gradually became firmer.
Her eyes stared straight into the camera. “What I want to say today is, no matter who killed He Zilu, I want to thank them. I know that kind of person definitely wouldn’t commit suicide. She had a thick skin, was mentally tough, and had no sense of right and wrong. The teachers said she was useless and scaring her didn’t work. I heard she later got smarter and stopped hitting people but still bullied others. If she was really killed by the green-haired girl in the video, then she must have done something unforgivable to that classmate and deserved it.”
Yu Song had been listening intently, feeling very sympathetic toward the girl. But now she couldn’t help twitching the corner of her mouth.
No way, this classmate is dragging her into it again?
She didn’t kill anyone, so why make her out like a hero?
Just then, Huo Anran knocked and came in. “Captain Ji, Captain Gu, the Jingnan University incident is causing a big stir online and has already made the trending list.”
Gu Zhiya had already found the video online — on Douyin. The views had surpassed 200,000 and were still growing rapidly.
Yu Song quickly went online to check. Not only was this video going viral, but the videos of her arguing with Zhao Xue and He Feng were also trending.
Of course, the most popular were the three bullying video compilations.
Recently, incidents of bullying in middle and high schools had been frequent. Netizens became hypersensitive whenever they saw the words “school bullying” and even called for reopening the reform school.
These topics naturally generated heat and skyrocketed quickly.
“Too much. Watching this makes my feet itch. If this person doesn’t die, I’ll find a way to kill her too. For these girls’ sake.”
“Why doesn’t she dare bully boys? Always picking on the weak.”
“She’s not even pretty—skinny like a monkey. How can she talk about others like that?”
“Her parents even had the nerve to cause trouble at school. People like that should just die. Living is a waste of food, and she pollutes the air.”
“Right? Look at how crazy her mom looks. She definitely takes after her. Not good people at all.”
“The man’s hiding again, right? Her dad’s even worse.”
“You guys didn’t get the full story. That man already had a mistress. After his daughter died, he was thinking about divorcing his wife.”
“No matter what, the green-haired little cutie is right. Even if she really forced He Zilu to death, she was just eliminating harm from the people.”
“That’s right. Although she looks like a delinquent girl, what she did was good.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. Evil people always get what’s coming.”
“Just punish her by dyeing her green hair back. The girl’s just clueless. Who dyes their hair green? Walking around with that green mop on her head? How’s that attractive?”
A debate broke out below.
Some said green hair looked good, others said it was a personal freedom whether it looked good or not.
Someone even posted about a past case where a pink-haired girl was cyberbullied, warning everyone not to get involved in online bullying unintentionally.
In short, all kinds of opinions existed, but they all agreed that Yu Song forced He Zilu to die.
But she wasn’t a murderer—she was a hero!
Yu Song was dumbfounded.
Had these people selectively edited the video?
She clearly said she didn’t kill anyone.
On the contrary, she saved He Zilu.
This was her first realization of how insane and uncontrollable public opinion could be.
Gu Zhiya understood what she was feeling and comforted her, “It’s okay, Xiao Yu. The innocent will be cleared. When the investigation is complete, there will definitely be an official announcement. The authorities will help you clear your name.”
Yu Song sighed, “Experience tells us that rumors can never be completely eliminated. Even the most ridiculous rumors always have some fools who believe them.”
Ji Jiang was amused by her words. “Haha, don’t be afraid. Most people can still tell right from wrong. Right now, netizens are emotional, thinking He Zilu deserved to die. They even think He Zilu’s parents don’t deserve to look for you, so you naturally become the hero standing against them.”
Yu Song understood the truth of this, but she didn’t want to become this kind of hero at all.
Revenge by violence feels satisfying and effective, even giving a sense of accomplishment, but it’s addictive and can easily turn the dragon slayer into the evil dragon.
She intended to stride boldly on the right path!
Looking at those comments, Yu Song couldn’t help but touch her hair.
She really needed to change her hair color quickly.
Green was too eye-catching, making her the brightest spot in any crowd.
There were even people online giving her nicknames like Green-Haired Little Cutie, Frizzy Green Turtle, Green Bamboo Hero!
So embarrassing.
Yu Song wished she could just shave her head clean.
The one saving grace was that her green hair was so striking it had become her trademark, so few people mentioned her real name.
Huo Anran, like a big sister, gently stroked her hair. “Xiao Yu, your hair is so beautiful and full of life. I really like it, and so do many others online. You have to know how to choose—only pay attention to what makes you happy. This isn’t self-deception; it’s self-protection.”
Yu Song was deeply touched.
Truly a heroine—so thoughtful and kind.
“Officer Huo, don’t worry. I won’t be affected. But this hair really needs to be dyed. I don’t want to be surrounded everywhere I go.”
Hearing her call her by her name, Huo Anran liked Yu Song even more.
Previously, she had worried this little girl would call her “Sister Anran” in the bureau, but a simple “Officer Huo” gave her a sense of honor and responsibility. She found her own duckbill cap and gave it to Yu Song. “You wear this for now.”
Yu Song didn’t refuse and thanked her, putting the hat on.
Since her hair wouldn’t be dyed back anytime soon, she might as well wear the cap to calm herself.
“Shouldn’t we go find Xia Yuxin?”
The three in the office looked at her together.
Yu Song instantly read their expressions—they were saying, “Who do you think you’re talking to?”
“Heh heh, then hurry up and investigate. Not only find out the mysterious person’s identity but also clear my name quickly. First, I didn’t force He Zilu to die. Second, I don’t want to be this kind of hero.”
Ji Jiang immediately said, “Don’t worry, we will investigate. You should go back now.”
Yu Song knew that even as the victim, she couldn’t join the investigation or be taken to find Xia Yuxin.
She was anxious, but she couldn’t rush.
She had to return and think.
The dark mentor’s every move wasn’t random.
What exactly was he up to?
Did he guess that everyone would see her as a hero?
Did he want to numb her with applause, mislead her with honor, and make her think killing those who deserved it was right and even worthy of worship?
While Yu Song pondered the dark mentor, Ji Jiang and Gu Zhiya had already found Xia Yuxin.
This girl had even learned to stand on the rooftop like He Zilu.
When the police arrived, her first words were, “Where’s that green-haired girl? I want to see her!”