Chapter 1270: Chapter 1270: The Abandoned Pawn

Ye Fan, Mengyao, and Qiu Wen were together, sighing and worrying about the news online.

"Wasn’t it just a meal?" Ye Fan said dejectedly, "How did it turn into such a storm, it’s ridiculous."

"Isn’t it?" Qiu Wen said helplessly, "This is an insult to the master’s reputation, it cannot be tolerated, absolutely not."

"A wife and a daughter came out of it, what a great thing," Mengyao joked, then sympathetically said, "Now, I’m afraid Jian Tao is in trouble, I bet, Jian Tao is hiding in a corner crying right now."

All the accusations were directed at Jian Tao, one can imagine the pressure Jian Tao was facing.

"Master, do something about them," Qiu Wen said indignantly, "Those who stir up trouble shouldn’t get away with it."

"Let’s take some action, the internet is too dirty these days," Mengyao sighed, "To give Jian Tao some justice and resolve this quickly, you, as one of the involved parties, the mysterious man giving Jian Tao a bad name, should do something."

"Leave it to me," Ye Fan said calmly, his fingers flying over the keyboard.

...

In the office building where Jiang Zhe worked, a group of people were bustling around, continuing to expand the influence of the Jian Tao incident.

As the initiator of the false accusations against Jian Tao, and the most important person in charge, Jiang Zhe played an irreplaceable role.

"Team Leader Jiang, the article’s view count has exceeded 800,000, heading towards a million."

"Good!"

"Team Leader Jiang, the article’s shares have also surpassed the record set three months ago."

"Good!"

"Team Leader Jiang, the comment section is exploding, attracting a large crowd of onlookers."

"Good!"

Listening to the reports from his subordinates, Jiang Zhe had a wide smile on his face.

"Our article has reached the top four on the trending list. Tell the internet trolls to intensify their efforts and aim for the top spot. We want to make headlines today." Jiang Zhe commanded.

"Yes." Someone immediately went to contact the trolls.

"Oh no, look, the computer is smoking, Team Leader Jiang, your computer is smoking and catching fire, the files on the desk are burning." Someone shouted in shock, pointing at the computer.

The first person Ye Fan decided to reprimand was the most active IP that slandered Jian Tao.

"Water, water, put out the fire, no, we can’t use water, unplug it, unplug it." Jiang Zhe panicked.

Before the subordinates could unplug it, other computers also began to smoke, and the copier caught fire.

Jiang Zhe was dumbfounded.

Likewise, everyone else was dumbfounded.

They were all staring blankly at each other, completely bewildered.

"What?"

"What is happening here?"

"How can this be? Even if there were malfunctions, it’s impossible for all of them to break down at once."

Jiang Zhe and the others were almost in tears, each with a sorrowful face, in utter discomfort.

"Put out the fire quickly!" Jiang Zhe snapped back to reality and ordered.

Next, there was a chaotic frenzy. After turning off the power and extinguishing the flames, everyone looked wretched.

"Team Leader Jiang, what is happening?" A woman with disheveled hair, covered in soot, fearfully asked, "How could something like this happen?"

"It must be hackers, hackers hacked in and exploited the computer’s vulnerabilities to create this disaster." Someone shouted, as if realizing something, and it was the only plausible explanation.

"Hackers? We’re just nobodies, why would hackers bother with us? Isn’t that giving us too much credit?" Someone was skeptical, but given the situation, hackers seemed to be the only explanation.

Another person said cautiously, "If it’s hackers, we’re in trouble. Our report must have provoked hackers, which means we’ve angered someone we shouldn’t have. We’re screwed."

"Team Leader Jiang, didn’t you say the woman in the photo was just an ordinary widow? Why did we incur such a huge problem without reason? Could that woman be someone we shouldn’t provoke?" Someone questioned.

"I don’t know, someone tipped me off, offered a huge reward, saying they wanted to seek justice for their brother. That person claimed their brother was the husband of the woman in the photo, and after the husband died, she got involved with another man. Based on the information provided, we made the report." Jiang Zhe explained in a muddled way.

Jian Tao was the daughter-in-law of the Zhao Family, a low-key housewife, who had only attended some business gatherings and was not a public figure.

So, Jiang Zhe didn’t think much of it and assumed that even if Jian Tao had money, it was just a small amount, and she was just an ordinary woman without a background.

For such a woman, there was nothing to worry about. To grab attention, anything could be said without consequence.

Jiang Zhe followed the instructions given by the person above to defame Jian Tao.

The one who instructed Jiang Zhe was naturally Heipi, but Jiang Zhe had never met Heipi; all contact was via phone.

Jiang Zhe was tempted by a long string of numbers that Heipi transferred to his bank account.

He was smart enough to know he was being used as a pawn, but it didn’t matter as long as there were benefits.

To be safe and to avoid offending any big shots, Jiang Zhe checked into Jian Tao’s background but found nothing concerning, so he boldly proceeded to defame Jian Tao.

The Jian Tao incident was just gossip among the vulnerable groups.

But in the business circle, it was a significant storm, enough to completely devour Jiang Zhe.

If Jiang Zhe knew what kind of person Jian Tao really was, he wouldn’t have been so calm; he’d be scared to death and wouldn’t dare act recklessly.

But now, seeing the situation in front of him, Jiang Zhe was dumbfounded. He knew he had angered a big shot and was about to face disaster.

Even online, they had the right and freedom of speech to report certain things, but some matters must not be reported.

The consequences of violating taboos were often severe, an unwritten rule in the industry.

"Team Leader Jiang, I think we’ve violated a taboo, which is why we’re being punished. Team leader, you brought this on, and if something happens, you must bear the responsibility. If it implicates us, everyone will not agree." Someone said harshly.

"I understand the seriousness." Jiang Zhe said, his face dismayed, incomparably miserable.

No longer was there any of the smugness from before.

He dialed the number of the person who contacted him, only to find it had become a dead number.

"Damn it!" Jiang Zhe was struck like lightning and cursed loudly.