Chapter 50 Big White

Chapter 50 The Big Reveal

"Such a tiny thing can really record video? I've never seen anything like it," Ye Ran said skeptically.

"Of course it can," Ji Yixing gave him a brief glance and explained, "You haven't seen it because it's not commercially available. This is a military-grade micro-defensive device with recording capabilities. If you don't believe me, we can test it right now."

【That sounds really advanced. Though I've never seen one, I don't think Mr. Ji would make false claims.】

【Excellent! With this, we can finally know what really happened before Yu Ning fell off the cliff.】

【Isn't Ji Yixing on good terms with Yu Xin? Why is he helping Yu Ning's side prove Yu Xin guilty?】

【You're overthinking it... Yu Xin doesn't look guilty at all. Maybe he's actually helping to clear Yu Xin's name?】

【Yu Xin fans, stop being as stubborn as your idol Yu Xin! Hurry up and project the recording. Let's see how they try to weasel out of this later.】

【I second showing the projection! Yu Xin fans are about to get exactly what they asked for—hahaha!】

Everyone else was convinced. Ji Yixing clearly wasn't your average guy; it wasn't surprising he could get his hands on something exclusively for imperial military use.

"Perfect. Let's all see what really happened so no one can deny it anymore," Ye Ran said with clear implication, snorting coldly.

"Thank goodness for Mr. Ji. Otherwise, we'd never get to the bottom of this today," the director said with relief, wiping sweat from his forehead. Whether Yu Xin pushed Yu Ning or not, this would at least give the Yu family an explanation.

"Shall I begin?" Ji Yixing fiddled with the device. Probably triggered by a fingerprint, the metal surface flashed, revealing previously hidden buttons.

"W-wait..."

Little Ning, lying in the medical capsule, suddenly cried out in pain, interrupting them: "Big Brother, my head suddenly hurts so much..."

Seeing his pale, pained expression, Yu Zhizhou immediately rushed over to support him, forgetting everything else. "What's wrong, Little Ning? Still feeling unwell? Tell the doctor immediately if you're uncomfortable anywhere..."

"It's just a terrible headache..." Little Ning leaned weakly against Yu Zhizhou. "Big Brother, can we forget about all that for now? Just stay with me for a while, please?"

His voice was faint, his brows tightly furrowed, and his lips had lost all color, as if he were enduring extreme agony.

Seeing him like this, Yu Zhizhou's heart ached unbearably. "Okay, don't be afraid, Little Ning. Big Brother will stay with you. Doctor! Come quickly and see what's wrong with my brother! Could it be a concussion from hitting his head earlier?"

Yu Xin watched the scene of brotherly affection and scoffed silently.

Because of Little Ning's sudden headache, the previous matter was abruptly interrupted. Ji Yixing raised the device in his hand and raised an eyebrow. "Shall we still watch the recording?"

"Yes, of course! And we should watch it in front of everyone. I'm just afraid some people might not dare to see it," Ye Ran jumped in, provocatively glancing at Yu Xin.

Yu Xin crossed his arms, fully accepting the provocative glance, even smiling slowly. "Fine. Let's watch."

"Xiao Ran..." Little Ning, still leaning against Yu Zhizhou, suddenly called out anxiously.

Ye Ran turned back and grasped his other hand. "Don't worry, Little Ning. I'm here. Just focus on your treatment. I'll watch the recording for you and make sure the real culprit who hurt you doesn't get away!"

"..." The color drained further from Little Ning's lips.

You idiot! You complete idiot!!

This Ye Ran was useless when needed and now only knew how to ruin his plans!

He never expected to completely pin the blame on Yu Xin for pushing him. It was enough if most people suspected it; Yu Xin would never shake the reputation of being malicious.

But who would have thought that Ji Yixing would suddenly interfere?

What should he do? Yu Ning kept his composure but his mind raced for a solution. This thing might not have recorded the part at the cliff's edge with Yu Xin. But what if it did? If Yu Xin was cleared, his own image would be completely ruined. No, he had to stop them from watching the recording.

But he couldn't think of a good solution right now. He could only buy as much time as possible...

"What's wrong?" Yu Xin smirked. "You seem very opposed to us watching the recording. I'm not afraid, so what are you scared of?"

【Now that you mention it, Yu Ning is acting really strange. How is it that his head starts hurting exactly when we're about to watch the projection?】

【I thought so too. His expression changed so obviously just now...】

【I can't stand this. Stop listening to Yu Xin's nonsense and his attempts to shift blame. Little Ning's face changed because of the headache, okay? Don't forget he's the victim. What good would it do him to stop others from watching the recording?】

【Wouldn't dare to say... Only Yu Ning himself knows the real reason.】

Yu Xin was asking knowingly!

Yu Ning was seething with frustration but couldn't show it on the surface. He suppressed it so hard he tasted blood in his throat.

They both knew the reason, but with things having come to this, if Yu Ning continued to stop them, it would indeed make him seem deliberate.

It's over. Everything is ruined. All his schemes were messed up by this suddenly appearing Ji Yixing.

"Hurry up and start!" Ye Ran urged impatiently, eager to deliver the final proof to Yu Xin.

"Alright." Ji Yixing pressed some hidden button, and the previously seamless metal surface suddenly split open, revealing a lens beneath. It projected a small image into the air.

Although the projection was small, everyone could clearly see the content. There was no sound, only visuals.

It started with ordinary scenes from the campsite. Ji Yixing manipulated the air with gestures, and the projection fast-forwarded rapidly until Yu Xin and Little Ning were seen leaving the campsite one after the other, heading into the woods.

"This is it!" Ruan Qing exclaimed. "This is when they left the camera's view."

"Then let's start from here."

In the projection, Yu Xin and Little Ning didn't seem to be talking. Little Ning led the way silently ahead. The two went deeper and deeper into the woods until Little Ning stopped and looked around. Everyone recognized it as the place where Little Ning had fallen.

"See? He chose this place himself. I'm not clairvoyant enough to specifically pick a cliff edge to harm him," Yu Xin said coldly.

"Who knows if you acted on impulse? Seeing Little Ning chose this place, you might have gotten evil ideas..."

"Alright, alright. Whether Yu Xin did it or not, we'll know by watching further. What's the point of arguing now?" the director interrupted helplessly. "Let's continue watching."

In the projection, Little Ning and Yu Xin were talking the entire time, but without audio, no one knew what they were saying. However, judging by their expressions, the conversation was certainly not pleasant or lighthearted.

At one point, they stood extremely close, but they were still far from the cliff edge, not in a position where someone could fall accidentally.

Everyone watched patiently. Yu Xin and Little Ning seemed to be talking less and less agreeably. Even without sound, the tension was palpable. Finally, Yu Xin turned as if to leave the area.

But then he stopped and looked back, probably because Little Ning called out to him. Meanwhile, Little Ning kept slowly backing up, getting closer and closer to the cliff edge.

The audience and the rest of the production team held their breath, not blinking as they stared at the two figures in the projection.

Little Ning moved closer and closer to the cliff edge, almost merging with it. For some reason, he kept backing up while speaking rapidly.

He had reached the very edge!!

Almost in the next moment, everyone watched in shock as Little Ning's figure in the projection then fell from the cliff.

And Yu Xin, just as he had claimed, had never approached the edge the entire time.

Yu Ning wasn't pushed by Yu Xin!

【No way, I saw it right. Yu Ning clearly fell down on his own. It has nothing to do with Yu Xin!】

【I can testify. When Yu Ning fell, Yu Xin was like half a mile away from him. How could he have pushed him from such a long distance?】

【I knew it. I knew Yu Xin couldn't have done something like this!! I was so frustrated earlier.】

【I can't believe I doubted him for a moment earlier. Sorry, Yu Xin, sorry!】

【Where are those people who confidently accused Yu Xin without seeing the evidence? Keep talking big, huh? What, can't say anything now that the evidence is here?】

【Can these people, including Ye Ran and the Yu family, apologize to Yu Xin? Don't think you can just pretend nothing happened and move on! You owe Yu Xin an apology!】

【That's right!! Come out and apologize!!】

The viewers who had been silently supporting Yu Xin earlier all jumped out now. The comments flooded the chat, one after another, all demanding that those who slandered Yu Xin come out and apologize.

"Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! Is there something wrong with your video?" Ye Ran exclaimed in disbelief.

How could it not have been Yu Xin? Then what did all those confident statements he made earlier mean?!

"Are you okay? Earlier, without any evidence, you insisted on blaming Yu Xin. Now that the evidence proving Yu Xin's innocence is right in front of you, you still doubt him??" Sheng Xingyao was almost speechless and retorted without hesitation.

"If anyone questions the authenticity of the recording, we can have professionals come to verify it," Ji Yixing said coldly, side-eyeing him.

"No need, no need. We definitely trust the recording provided by Mr. Ji," the director hurriedly said, also heaving a huge sigh of relief. Now Yu Xin was in the clear, and he no longer had to worry about finding someone to replace Yu Xin.

"Now the truth is finally out. Yu Xin shouldn't have to face those baseless accusations just because he was at the scene of the accident, right?" Shen Tong mocked Ye Ran's tone and clapped back sarcastically.

Ye Ran's face flushed red with shame and anger. He wished he had never come here. Ever since joining this show, he had been proven wrong repeatedly, and he'd lost all face!

How... how could it not be Yu Xin?

He wasn't that sure at first either. He only insisted it was Yu Xin after Yu Ning said he felt like someone pushed him.

If Yu Xin didn't do it, then why would Yu Ning say that?

This question wasn't his alone.

Everyone still remembered how Yu Ning, feigning weakness, said someone pushed him. It was because of this that many people's suspicions turned toward Yu Xin.

【Yu Ning is really strange. Yu Xin was so far away from him. Why did he say he was pushed?】

【And it was after he said that everyone started suspecting Yu Xin...】

【Looking at the clip, he clearly fell because he was backing up. Couldn't he see if someone pushed him or not?】

【Even the location was chosen by him when he led Yu Xin there. When you put it all together, it seems really suspicious...】

"Wait, this isn't over yet," Yu Xin said.

From the beginning, when he was suspected of pushing Yu Ning, his tone had always been calm. Now that his innocence was proven, he remained unfazed.

"My suspicion has been cleared, but shouldn't Yu Ning explain some of his actions?"

Yu Ning was still lying in Yu Zhizhou's arms, eyes tightly shut, out cold.

Yu Zhizhou had been focused on accompanying him since earlier and hadn't watched the clip with the others, so he didn't know what had happened.

Seeing everyone gather around, he frowned. "Is the result out?"

Why did everyone's expressions seem... hard to read?

The director took on the role of explaining and stepped forward to fill him in. "It's like this, Mr. Yu. We all watched the full recording. Yu Xin is innocent. Your brother Yu Ning fell off the cliff on his own."

"How is that possible? My brother clearly said someone pushed him..." Yu Zhizhou's first reaction was disbelief, and he looked toward Ye Ran, whom he trusted the most.

Ye Ran, grimly and unwillingly, nodded at him, confirming what the director said was true.

"Where's the recording? Let me see it!" Yu Zhizhou carefully laid Yu Ning down and asked to see the clip.

He watched it from beginning to end himself and saw that Yu Xin, as he had claimed, didn't touch Yu Ning.

Had he really wronged Yu Xin?

Yu Zhizhou had to admit the truth. He looked up at Yu Xin with a complicated expression, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something.

Since he didn't speak, Yu Xin wasn't going to stay silent. "You saw it, Mr. Yu. I didn't lay a finger on your precious brother. But I have some questions for him. If he's still conscious, could he open his eyes and answer?"

The slight guilt Yu Zhizhou felt toward Yu Xin vanished again because of his words. "Xiao Ning is also a victim. Since you've proven your innocence, why are you being so pressing?"

"Mr. Yu, that's not the way to put it," Ji Yixing stood by Yu Xin's side and said calmly. "There are indeed some doubts about this matter that require your brother's cooperation in answering."

"Your brother was injured, and you went to great lengths to seek justice for him. Should Yu Xin just accept being wrongfully accused for no reason?"

"Mr. Ji, you should choose your words carefully," Yu Zhizhou's expression darkened. "Xiao Ning never once said Yu Xin pushed him. How can you say he slandered Yu Xin?"

"That's right, he didn't explicitly say Yu Xin pushed him, but those ambiguous remarks of his successfully directed all suspicion toward Yu Xin, didn't they? That's even more effective than directly accusing Yu Xin. Your brother knows exactly what he's doing." Shen Tong's words left Yu Zhizhou's face alternating between green and white.

She, Miss Shen, knew exactly what kind of background she came from. She had seen plenty of schemers like Yu Ning who could manipulate others with just a few words.

The others might not have noticed anything unusual when they first heard Yu Ning speak, but now they were starting to realize that those seemingly innocent remarks were the key evidence that made them suspect Yu Xin.

"Xiao Ning isn't feeling well right now. He needs rest. You can ask your questions after he wakes up," Yu Zhizhou stood in their way. "Yu Xin, I can apologize to you for wrongfully accusing you, but you can't use that as an excuse to deliberately make things difficult for Xiao Ning. He's still injured!"

"Your apology? Who cares." Yu Xin showed him no respect and said expressionlessly, "I'm going to make him clarify things today. Step aside."

"Just happened to fall off the cliff when he was alone with Yu Xin and no cameras were around. Just happened to have a headache when we were about to watch the recording. Just happened to faint when everyone has questions for him," Ji Yixing said pointedly, making sure everyone heard him clearly. "Your brother's coincidences are all 'awfully convenient,' aren't they?"

【Hahahaha, that's right. How is it that Yu Ning just happens to have issues at all these critical moments?】

【Yu White Lotus, stop pretending! Get up and answer the questions! Why did you say Yu Xin pushed you?】

【Now that I think about it, there are problems everywhere. I used to like Yu Ning, but now I don't want to side with him.】

【Same here. This is the first time I've realized Yu Ning is like this... I even cursed at Yu Xin for him earlier. I need to apologize to Yu Xin.】

【Hahahaha, the little white flower has finally been exposed. I knew it. Those who market themselves as innocent and kind never last long. Not to mention, the Yu family claimed he grew up on a junk planet until he was eighteen before they found him. Haven't you ever wondered? If he were truly innocent and kind, how could he have survived alone in such a chaotic place until he was that old?】

【Where are those mindless stans of Yu Ning? Come out and see what kind of heart your little angel really has. Stop blindly protecting him.】

【Same to them. Wake up and see if the person you're defending is even worth it.】

At this point, Yu Zhizhou couldn't protect Yu Ning any longer without causing more issues. He had no choice but to compromise and gently patted Yu Ning. "Xiao Ning, Xiao Ning? Are you still asleep? Wake up and let them ask you a few questions, okay?"

He called Yu Ning's name a few times. Yu Ning, as if roused from sleep, opened his eyes with a dazed look. "Brother... what's wrong..."

"Stop pretending. Aren't you tired?" Yu Xin cut him off and directly asked, "I'm asking you, why did you say someone pushed you earlier? Didn't you know there were only two of us there? Saying that would direct all suspicion toward me."

"I... that's not what I meant..."

"Then what did you mean? Don't tell me it was just another coincidence or hallucination."

"I didn't..." Yu Ning mumbled, unable to form a coherent defense, and looked desperately pleadingly at Yu Zhizhou. But even Yu Zhizhou wore a faint look of confusion, clearly puzzled by Yu Ning's earlier statements.

"Can't explain? Let me answer for you. If you hadn't said that, how could you have nailed the suspicion firmly on someone? Wasn't that the whole point of injuring yourself in the first place?" Yu Xin pressed relentlessly, as if backing Yu Ning into a corner.

"That's not it, I just... just sensed wrong, yes, I must have seen wrong!" Yu Ning clutched at this lifeline, stumbling over his words in a desperate attempt to defend himself.

Even without Yu Xin pointing it out, everyone could tell how weak his explanation sounded. They all saw clearly that Yu Ning was facing Yu Xin when he fell backward—how could he not have known whether someone pushed him?

【Yu Ning should just stop explaining—the more he talks, the worse it gets.】

【I feel like he's just hammering himself at this point.】

【Exactly, I didn’t believe he intentionally fell to frame Yu Xin before, but seeing him like this now... tsk tsk.】

【Right, if he had nothing to hide, why is he so panicked now?】

【He’s so cunning... He must have exactly scouted that cliff beforehand and specifically tricked Yu Xin there under the pretense of a conversation. If Ji Yixing hadn’t happened to give Yu Xin something to record with, Yu Xin would really be unable to explain clearly.】

【Turns out Yu Ning is so skilled at pretending, always playing the innocent and pure one. Thinking about what Yu Xin went through before, it’s terrifying—what if it was the same back then?】

"Do you really think anyone will believe you after this?" Yu Xin looked at him disdainfully, striking a heavy blow to his already fragile defenses. "Stop pretending. You just can’t stand me having anything better than you. Still planning to play the innocent, delicate act, that naive little white flower, from now on? Starting today, no one will believe your act anymore."

Now you can experience what it feels like to be doubted and despised by everyone.

"No..." Yu Ning looked around panickedly, meeting the subtle expressions watching him. Even Yu Zhizhou, who had always doted on him, and Ye Ran, who had consistently stood by his side, didn't rebut for him.

"No, it can’t be, it can’t!" Yu Ning jerked upright, almost hysterically as he lashed out at Yu Xin. "It’s all your fault! You caused this to me! I... I’m innocent... You’re lying!"

Before he could finish, his emotions overwhelmed him, and he truly passed out, or fainted, before everyone's eyes, collapsing in front of everyone.

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Author's Note: I've committed the sin of breaking my promise. I judge myself orz. Thank you all for your support, I'll keep working hard!