Chapter 27: Explosive News

“All day long you’re flustered and in a panic! What’s the rush? If there’s something, say it.” Carrying a belly full of doubts, Zou Linsen was already in a foul mood when he returned home. Seeing his son’s lost and distraught appearance, his anger flared up instantly, and he snapped harshly.

“Dad! Our… our family is in serious trouble. Just now, a friend called me and said that there’s a storm of attacks against us online—even the major news portals have put it on their headlines!” Zou Tao was sweating profusely, panic written all over his face.

“Our family is the richest in Ning City, always in the spotlight—do you know how often we get attacked? Is that all?” Zou Linsen, upon hearing his son’s words, actually felt a bit relieved. The strange things that happened during his morning run had left him with a sense of foreboding. But if it was just another public attack, there was nothing to worry about—he’d handled such things countless times before, hadn’t he?

“No… Dad, you should check the news online—it’s… it’s that incident!” Unlike his father, Zou Tao’s nerves only tightened further. He hadn’t dared to look online himself, afraid that if that matter had truly been exposed, their family would be utterly finished.

“What incident?! Speak clearly, which one?!” At these words, Zou Linsen’s heart gave a jolt. He forced himself to stay calm.

“It’s the one… with Sennan International Real Estate back then…” Zou Tao said cautiously.

Crash!

The sound of porcelain shattering rang out. The antique teacup Zou Linsen cherished most slipped from his hands—his grip lost in his sudden shock—and smashed into pieces on the floor.

“What?!” Zou Linsen’s body trembled violently. For all the storms he’d weathered in his life, his face turned ashen, almost frighteningly pale.

“What are you standing there for? Go check online now!” he roared.

“Alright… I’ll look now…” Zou Tao quickly nodded and opened several news apps on his phone. Sure enough, the headlines blared—

“A Shocking Family Massacre Shakes the Nation: The Mastermind Is Him!”

And below, there were already tens of thousands of comments. Thankfully, it was still early morning and most people were still asleep—otherwise, there would be hundreds of thousands, even millions of comments by now!

That would truly be a disaster, utterly beyond redemption.

Zou Linsen snatched the phone from Zou Tao, anxiously reading through the news. The more he read, the paler his face became, until even his lips began to tremble.

Back then, his Forest Real Estate had not reached today’s scale. In both name and market share, it was overshadowed by Sennan International Real Estate. Zou Linsen, ruthless and unscrupulous in his ambition, had taken a desperate gamble to rise to the top—he’d actually hired someone to murder the chairman of Sennan International Real Estate and his entire family of four.

With the chairman dead, Sennan International Real Estate was decapitated, and Zou Linsen systematically carved it up. After a series of maneuvers, Sennan International was merged into his own company. From that moment, the title of Ning City’s richest passed to the Zou family.

It was the proudest moment of his life, and also the most taboo.

Impossible! How could this be? Zou Linsen’s mind reeled. He had carried out the deed with the utmost secrecy—no one else could possibly know. Even the hired killer, whom he had bribed, was later disposed of by another hand he’d arranged, ever wary.

He was certain that he’d left no loose ends. No one could know—not a soul!

Yet, now, the news reports were filled with irrefutable evidence: not only photographs of him meeting the killer, but even recordings of their phone conversations.

It was terrifying.

Now he finally understood why, during his morning run, everyone had looked at him so strangely.

Who? Who could be so capable, knowing every detail of such a secret? Suddenly, Zou Linsen’s gaze fixed on Zou Tao, his eyes fierce and predatory. “Well, well! I never thought—my own son… truly is a chip off the old block!”

“Dad… why are you looking at me like that?” Zou Tao realized immediately and cried out, “Dad, you suspect me?! How could I? I’m your son—your own flesh and blood!”

“Your own flesh and blood?! Other than you and me, not even your mother knows about this! Everyone else, leave us!” Zou Linsen motioned for the servants to go, then grabbed Zou Tao by the collar, growling in a low, furious voice.

“Dad! How could you suspect me? Why would I do something like that? Besides, what good would it do me? If you fall, so does our family—your money is my money! Why would I sabotage myself?” Zou Tao explained anxiously. If Bai Tian were here, he might look at him in a new light; at this critical moment, Zou Tao was still able to analyze things clearly—he wasn’t such a fool after all.

Zou Linsen, hearing this, calmed down a little and nodded. “You’re right. I was too agitated. You have no reason to do it. But if not you, then who? Who could be so powerful, knowing even the deepest secrets, and preparing such damning evidence?”

“For money? No… If they wanted money, they wouldn’t have put it all online so openly. And did you notice? Whoever did this is truly extraordinary—overnight, they managed to make this the top headline across all major news sites. That’s not something just anyone can do…” Zou Linsen fell into deep thought.

But no matter how hard he racked his brains, he could never have guessed that someone like Bai Tian had appeared on Earth—someone who, when it came to the internet, was almost godlike.

The surveillance photos of the meeting could be accessed directly from the police system, and the phone recording was an unexpected windfall—almost as if fate itself was dooming Zou Linsen.

It turned out the killer had secretly recorded their conversation, intending to blackmail Zou Linsen once everything had blown over. But before he could act, he was silenced—leaving the recording hidden on an encrypted computer at his secret hideout. It was Bai Tian who unearthed it.

In truth, it wasn’t just the Zou father and son who were thrown into chaos. The staff of those news portals and news apps were equally dumbfounded and frantic.

No one knew exactly when it happened, but suddenly, this explosive news had appeared on every front page. The source couldn’t be traced, and it was impossible to delete!

Some even suspected that the authorities were deliberately trying to embarrass Ning City’s richest man…

With evidence this conclusive, why not just hand it to the police? Why orchestrate such a spectacle? What was the mastermind really after?

“Never mind all that, Dad. I think you’d better find someone to handle this at once. Otherwise, I’m afraid the police will be at our door before long…” Zou Tao interrupted his father’s thoughts, urgently reminding him.

“Yes… you’re right. We need to mobilize every connection we have. We must suppress this immediately!” Zou Linsen said with conviction. “Don’t just stand there—contact every news site and media outlet. No matter the cost, make sure this news comes down at once!”