Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

Lu Jingyan's meaningful smile was like a poisoned hook, piercing deep into Su Qingge's heart.

There was no mockery, no anger in that smile, only a kind of... all-knowing calm. It was as if all her struggles and stubbornness were nothing more than a clown's farcical performance in his eyes.

This feeling of being intellectually crushed terrified her more than any direct humiliation.

"What...what are you laughing at?" Su Qingge's voice trembled slightly with guilt, but she still managed to maintain her last shred of dignity. "Did I say something wrong? Paying taxes according to the law is every citizen's duty. I, Su Qingge, have been a major taxpayer for ten years since my debut, and I have a certificate of honor for it!"

"A major taxpayer?"

Lu Jingyan seemed to have heard something interesting. He didn't refute it, but simply turned around and called out towards the office door:

"Xiaoxiao, bring the things in."

The door opened.

Su Xiaoxiao walked in carrying a thick folder. She didn't even glance at Su Qingge. She placed the folder directly on Lu Jingyan's table, then turned and left like an emotionless tool, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

The whole process was smooth and seamless, full of tacit understanding.

Su Qingge's heart sank. She had a bad feeling that the folder contained a bomb that could destroy her completely.

Lu Jingyan did not open the folder immediately.

He simply pulled out a chair, sat down again, and then pulled out the top sheet of paper from inside, gently pushing it in front of Su Qingge.

"Miss Su, since you're so confident, why don't you explain this first?"

It was a copy of a contract.

Su Qingge only glanced at it, and her pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints.

That contract was signed last month when she was filming a fantasy drama! But... wait! The amount is wrong!

The contract clearly states in black and white that the film remuneration is five million yuan.

"This...this is my contract for my salary. Is there a problem?" she asked, trying to remain calm.

"Yeah?"

Lu Jingyan pulled out a second contract from the folder and pushed it over in the same way. The format and signature of this contract were exactly the same as the first one, but the amount was an astronomical figure that was glaringly obvious—fifty million yuan.

"And what about this one?" Lu Jingyan's voice was soft, but it struck Su Qingge's heart like a hammer blow. "For the same production, the same actor, why are there two contracts with ten times the amount? Miss Su, do you think our colleagues at the tax bureau don't know what a 'dual contract' is?"

"boom!"

Su Qingge felt her mind go blank, as if all the blood in her body had been drained instantly.

Finished!

Her biggest secret was laid bare on the table!

"This...this is a forgery! It's a setup!" she screamed hysterically, reaching out to tear up the two contracts. "I haven't seen the second contract! This isn't my signature!"

Don't rush to deny it.

Lu Jingyan's fingers pressed lightly on the document, the force was not great, but Su Qingge could not budge it at all.

He pulled out another thick stack of papers from the folder, which were filled with densely packed bank statements and company equity structure diagrams.

"Miss Su, don't take us for fools."

Lu Jingyan's voice was cold and devoid of any emotion. His newly acquired skill, "Commercial Crime Insight," made him seem like an all-knowing god, accurately dissecting Su Qingge's chain of crimes.

"Your official salary of five million went through your studio's public account and was taxed normally. The other forty-five million was transferred to an offshore company called 'Qingge Global' registered in the Cayman Islands under the name of 'film and television consulting fees'."

He pointed to a hidden node on the shareholding chart.

"The sole shareholder of this company is your third aunt, who lives in Canada. And this third aunt, through a series of complicated trust agreements, transferred 99% of the company's profits to a pet supply store under your name."

"Ms. Su, you're very clever to know how to disguise taxable personal labor compensation as tax-free overseas company investment income. But you've forgotten one thing—"

Lu Jingyan pushed up his glasses, a cold glint flashing behind the lenses.

"As long as money flows within China, it will inevitably leave a trace."

Su Qingge slumped into the chair, her whole body ice-cold, as if she had fallen into an ice cave.

Her tax avoidance methods, which she was so proud of, and the firewall she hired at great expense to design with a top international legal team, were all exposed as easily as a thin sheet of paper in front of this ridiculously young policeman, and were riddled with holes!

"I...I don't know...These were all arranged by the company, I don't know anything..." She was still making a last-ditch effort, trying to exonerate herself by claiming ignorance.

"have no idea?"

Lu Jingyan stood up and began his final "legal education blitz".

"Ms. Su, according to Article 201 of the Criminal Law, if a taxpayer uses deception or concealment to make a false tax declaration or fails to declare taxes, thereby evading a substantial amount of taxes exceeding 10% of the tax payable, he/she shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention, and shall also be fined."

"Anyone who pays a huge amount of tax, exceeding 30 percent of the tax payable, shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than three years but not more than seven years, and shall also be fined."

He walked up to Su Qingge, looking down at her pale face, his voice like a death knell from hell.

"The total amount of taxes you have evaded over the past few years is estimated to be over 1.8 million. This amount is not just 'huge,' but 'exceptionally huge.'"

Do you know what this means?

"This means that once convicted, you will not only have to pay all back taxes and exorbitant late fees, but you will also face up to seven years in prison. Your Best Actress title, your millions of fans, and all your glory will vanish."

"No...don't..."

Su Qingge shook her head in terror, her breathing becoming increasingly rapid.

Seven years!

What does that mean? By the time she comes out, she'll be old and faded, and there won't be a place for her in the entertainment industry.

Her life's work, all her pride, will be utterly destroyed!

"I'll pay it back! I'll pay it back right away!" she cried frantically, as if grasping at a last straw. "I'll call finance right now! I'll pay back all the money! Please, don't arrest me! Don't let this get out!"

"It's too late."

Lu Jingyan shook his head, his expression unmoved. "The moment you used your fans to attack state organs, you lost the opportunity to voluntarily pay back the fines and avoid criminal punishment."

"Now, you only have one choice—"

He pointed to the stack of evidence on the table. "Come back with us and cooperate with the investigation."

This sentence became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

Looking at Lu Jingyan's cold and ruthless face, and hearing the echoing words "seven years in prison" in her ears, Su Qingge felt a sudden darkness before her eyes and a huge wave of dizziness wash over her.

Her once-proud psychological defenses completely crumbled in the face of overwhelming evidence and the coldness of the law.

"Well……"

She let out a painful groan, her body went limp, and she slid off the chair, collapsing to the ground unconscious.

The entire office fell silent instantly.

Su Xiaoxiao peeked half her head in from outside the door, looked at the unconscious actress on the floor, and asked softly, "Captain Lu, is she... really unconscious or faking it?"

Lu Jingyan squatted down, checked Su Qingge's pulse, and then examined her eyelids.

"Dilated pupils and a rapid heart rate are likely due to transient shock caused by acute anxiety. It's not a serious problem."

He stood up and shouted into the walkie-talkie, "Forensic Doctor Qin, come to my office. Someone needs a 'medical assessment'."

Just as he was about to have Zhao Tiezhu carry the person to the infirmary.

"Waaaaah—waaaah—!!!"

The highest level of emergency red alert suddenly sounded throughout the special investigation team's office area! The piercing whistling sound seemed to pierce people's eardrums!

Almost simultaneously, the office door was violently kicked open.

Zhao Tiezhu rushed in like a cheetah, his face showing unprecedented solemnity and anger.

"Captain Lu! Something terrible has happened!"

His voice was hoarse with excitement. "The city's No. 1 Detention Center was violently attacked! Surveillance footage shows someone driving a bulldozer and crashing down the outer wall in an attempt to break in!"