Chapter 280 - Chapter 280: The Mastermind
Chapter 280: The Mastermind
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Although the majority of Wen Nian’s fan club consisted of students, there were also many adults among them. Some of these adults possessed video evidence that they discovered would be deleted no matter how many times they uploaded it online. This was the reason why Wen Nian had been targeted by malicious rumors for so long.
Zhao Jiao had saved evidence a while ago, but considering her husband’s advice, she had refrained from intervening and let Wen Nian handle things.
However, with the situation escalating to the point of videos being systematically removed from the entire internet, she couldn’t remain passive any longer. Zhao Jiao quickly picked up her phone and dialed a number.
She shed her usual demure demeanor and spoke with authority.
“I don’t care who’s behind this. This video must be released. If you delete it again, think about the consequences of offending the Shen and Zhao families.”
“I won’t accept any excuses. I know it’s likely the Jiang family’s doing these petty tricks. Wen Nian is someone I’m protecting. You figure it out!”
After hearing a satisfactory response from the other end, Zhao Jiao hung up the phone and then contacted the photographer who had captured the video.
In less than two minutes, Zhao Xin, the Chief Photographer of Z Nation’s Geographic Magazine, updated his personal status. This time, he used his work account to publish the videos of Wen Nian and Jiang Chun from that moment, as his personal account had already been banned.
Coincidentally, Zhao Xin was also part of a distant branch of the Zhao family and should have called Zhao Jiao “Aunt” according to their family hierarchy.
He had been in the ancient town that day for work reasons. It was Jiang Guo’s initiative to promote the ancient town that led to a collaboration with Z Nation’s Geographic Magazine. Jiang Guo invited the team to capture promotional materials.
At that time, his eyes lit up when he saw Wen Nian. Coincidentally, the Geographic Magazine needed a cover photo for an upcoming issue featuring humans in nature. He had already taken a few photos from different angles. Just as he was about to explain to Wen Nian that he might need to use her photos, he saw Jiang Chun jumping into the water.
His camera happened to be filming the activities in the ancient town and recorded this scene.
Since there were no casualties, Zhao Xin had thought that the incident had been slightly problematic, so he hadn’t used Wen Nian’s photos for the cover. He hadn’t anticipated that the video footage he captured would become crucial evidence.
What he didn’t expect was that his aunt, Zhao Jiao, whom he only met a couple of times a year, would contact him immediately when she found out that his alternate account had posted a video. She even wanted him to continue supporting Wen Nian.
Though skeptical, Zhao Xin didn’t hesitate. He followed Zhao Jiao’s instructions and posted the video.
Zhao Xin: Invited to the ancient town to capture promotional photos and videos, I happened to witness this scene. If you need a witness, you can contact me. @WenNian @SeasidePoliceDepartment
Under this post was a video that had been deleted and processed by the entire Internet.
The netizens also quickly gathered to comment on Zhao Xin’s post.
“See! I told you I saw someone post an evidence video yesterday, but I couldn’t find it on the Internet!”
“I’ve had this video on hand all along, but no matter how many times I try to upload it, it fails. I wonder if the platform is blocking the video on the backend?”
“Thank goodness it was the Chief Photographer from Z Geographic Magazine who posted it. Otherwise, Wen Nian would’ve been truly wronged this time!” “Isn’t it too obvious that she jumped into the water from this angle? Who said that Wen Nian deliberately murdered her?”
“That’s right! Could it be that Wen Nian used her internal energy to injure someone? Does she know Qigong?”
Many media outlets had released videos of Wen Nian being interviewed in the afternoon. The video showed Wen Nian, who looked aggrieved, and her teacher, Li Fang, who was trying her best to protect her. The videos evoked a strong sense of empathy from viewers.
Now, with the evidence taken by the chief photographer of Geographic Magazine, the fact that Wen Nian had been framed was already set in stone.
Shen Jun spent a few hours and found the real IP address of the paid commentors. Zhao Wu even contacted the police. The head of the paid commentors had also been arrested. Without much interrogation, he directly announced the mastermind behind the scenes—Wei Lai.
Wen Nian specially applied for leave after school. Wen Xing and Zhou Mei received Li Fang’s notice in the afternoon and were waiting for her at the school gate after school.
Wen Nian knew that the school wouldn’t be able to keep such a matter from the parents, but she hadn’t expected both her father and mother to show up.
“Mom, Dad, if you are both here, who’s taking care of the shop?”
Zhou Mei embraced her tenderly, saying, “You dear child, at a time like this, you’re worried about the shop? Were you scared? Your parents are here, so you can relax!”
Beside her, Wen Xing clenched his fists and added, “Absolutely. This time, Dad won’t let whoever falsely accused you get away with it. It doesn’t matter who they are, they won’t be able to harm our Wen family!”
Shen Jun remained silently behind her, observing the family’s embrace. As their emotions gradually settled, he finally spoke, “The police have identified the mastermind behind this. We’ll discuss how to proceed when we go to the police station..”