Chapter Forty-Five: Why Is It Her?

The form of address did not surprise Su Yongming much; anyone who could call him clearly knew his identity.

"Hello, Reporter Xu. This is Su Yongming. I hope I'm not disturbing you. I noticed a missed call from your office—was it you trying to reach me?"

Zhou Yi nodded to himself. Su Yongming was indeed someone seasoned in the business world; he could deliver such formal lines without the slightest strain.

"Oh yes, I tried to contact you yesterday. I passed by the intersection near the medical college on the 30th and witnessed a car accident. I took photos and videos at the scene—a young man acted bravely, and I thought it would make a good positive story. When I was editing later, I heard the driver involved yelling that her father was Li Yugang. I hesitated for a moment then. After some inquiries at the hospital, I learned that the injured were your father and another person. I thought about it overnight, and that’s why I called you yesterday. If you need evidence, I can provide the video."

Su Yongming had answered the call on speaker, so Zhou Yi and Fatty heard everything. It was clear that Xu Youliang had wanted to insert this incident into the news but had second thoughts. After all, the people involved were not ordinary—if this got out, even the TV station's leadership couldn’t cover it up. He'd had a history of being straightforward; warnings from above must have been frequent. Still, the fact that he was willing to call Su Yongming indicated Xu Youliang was an upright man.

Zhou Yi quickly scribbled a note and handed it to Su Yongming, who glanced at it and nodded slightly before saying, "Thank you for your integrity, Reporter Xu. To be honest, last night after nine, my father and another injured person were threatened in the hospital. They were told to leave soon and to go to the traffic police station to say they wanted a private settlement. I just got back from the hospital and don’t know what to do now."

Xu Youliang’s voice on the other end rose a pitch. "Something like that happened?"

"Yes, I’m thinking of going to the traffic police station to ask about the intersection’s surveillance footage. Otherwise, I’m not sure how this will be handled."

There was a brief silence on the other end. Just as Su Yongming looked up at Zhou Yi, Xu Youliang spoke again.

"That day, I was shooting footage of snowy road traffic, so my video is very comprehensive. I recorded from the moment the Santana ran the red light and crashed into the white car. I kept the camera rolling the whole time. Lately, I’ve been suspended, and any videos I submit have to be reviewed by the director personally. So I can’t just insert this into the news, or I would have helped you already."

At this, Fatty held up a piece of paper. Su Yongming followed its suggestion: "Just give me the video. Delete the original footage and, no matter when you see it again, pretend you know nothing. I have my own way of getting it aired."

Upon hearing this, Xu Youliang agreed without hesitation. "Of course, that's no problem. I just want to help. It bothers me to keep silent. Those who abuse their power should be punished. But even our TV station has its hands tied sometimes."

"I understand. Where are you? I’ll send someone to pick up the video. Just burn it to a disc."

After arranging the details, Su Yongming, no fool, saw the wisdom in sending someone. Zhou Yi, not dwelling on it, glanced at Fatty with a questioning look. Fatty merely gestured at the computer, and Zhou Yi nodded slightly.

"Do they use computers for the broadcasts?" Zhou Yi asked in a low voice.

Fatty leaned in and whispered, "Nothing happened last night, so I wandered in and checked. The equipment is really advanced, probably set up for some live broadcast job. All I have to do is insert the footage into the news sequence, add a text description—just like a PowerPoint. It’ll take less than two minutes. The TV station’s directors won’t even notice in time. Even if they do, it’ll already have aired—there’s no undoing it, and they won’t be able to trace who did it. We’ll pick the evening news slot."

Fatty’s small eyes gleamed. Zhou Yi nodded at him, and Su Yongming, having hung up the call, leaned in toward them.

"What’s the point of getting the disc? Should we go to the police?"

Zhou Yi shook his head. "If the news airs the footage, nobody will be able to cover it up, no matter how hard they try. Once the public knows, even if someone wants to suppress it, public opinion can’t be controlled. Missing surveillance footage, private settlements—none of that will fly anymore."

Su Yongming was stunned. He knew these two young men were capable, but this was beyond his imagination. Tampering with a TV station’s programming—was this even legal?

"Isn’t this against the law?"

Fatty burst out laughing. "Mr. Su, just pretend you know nothing about it. Not even the police could find out. We won’t leave any trace, not even an IP address. But you’d better move your father to another hospital room, just in case someone tries to find him again."

Su Yongming looked from Fatty to Zhou Yi. Seeing Zhou Yi nod, he slapped his thigh. "All right, let’s do it. Let’s go—I’ll find you a place to stay. My father's old house isn’t much, just a three-bedroom apartment, but it’s spacious enough for you two and very close by, even closer to the medical college. I’ve already had someone set up a computer, printer, and the like. You can work there in peace. You can’t stay here forever—you still have classes Monday to Friday. After school on Friday, come check on their samples and see if there are any issues. If we can start clinical trials this morning, all the better."

Zhou Yi had no objections—this was ideal. They did need a private place; here, they always worried someone might barge in.

"All right, we’ll follow your arrangement. We’ll have a look at the place, then I’ll come back to check the samples. Tomorrow night, before we leave, we’ll leave them another blueprint. They can work on it for the week."

With that, the three went downstairs. The car was already waiting.

They left the industrial park, turned into a residential complex across the bridge, and Su Yongming showed them an apartment.

The place was tidy and warm, with central heating. The cozy temperature made Fatty reluctant to leave—being a southerner at heart, he found this warmth irresistible.

"All right, you two can rest here. The internet is set up. Once I get the disc, I’ll bring it over personally."

Before Zhou Yi could say anything, Fatty piped up, "Thank you, Mr. Su. This is too generous of you. Why don’t we rent the place from you?"

Su Yongming waved it off without a second thought. "No need for formalities. I originally prepared this for Zhou Yi, thinking his mother might come, and the size is just right. I had it cleaned up for you. When I get the disc, I’ll call, and you can come down to collect it."

Zhou Yi had no objection; Su Yongming left quickly.

Watching the car drive away, Zhou Yi finally relaxed. At last, they had a real base of operations.

"If we’re going to help Su Yongming, let’s look into Li Mei. Didn't someone go to the hospital last night? They wouldn’t know the ward number on their own. Li Mei works at the health bureau—she could easily get that information."

Fatty rubbed his hands together. "We just need to check the surveillance. I’ve already saved footage from the intersection where Li Mei had the accident, but now it’s gone—probably just like Su Yongming feared. The traffic police have already dealt with it."

He opened the computer as he spoke. Fatty’s fingers clattered over the keys as he pulled up the hospital surveillance. That night, several men in black down jackets, hats, and masks forced their way into orthopedics, banging so hard the door shook.

"Let’s rewind to see how they arrived."

Fatty said nothing, quickly scanning back from the ward cameras to the entrance footage. To their surprise, the men hadn’t entered through the main door but had slipped in through a fence beside the boiler room, where a camera was likely installed to prevent coal theft.

Outside the boiler room, there was a van and a Santana. Two people seemed to be sitting in the cars. Zhou Yi leaned in close to the screen; from this angle, he could see shadows but not clearly make out the faces.

Just then, the Santana’s door opened. Someone stepped out, followed by the driver. A coat was draped over a woman’s shoulders. As she looked up, Fatty captured a screenshot and zoomed in.

The man’s face was covered by a mask and couldn’t be identified, but when they saw the woman’s face, Zhou Yi was visibly shaken, drawing a sharp breath and exclaiming in shock.

Fatty stood up, staring at Zhou Yi in bewilderment.

"How could it be her?"