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

The atmosphere in front of the Municipal Bureau was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

The flashes of light were like a silent bombardment, relentlessly exploding on Lin Miaomiao's innocent face. She knelt on the hard cement floor, her white princess dress stained with dust, the rag doll in her arms old and faded, its half-broken arm swaying with her sobs, looking particularly pitiful.

"Officer... my dad isn't a bad person..."

Lin Miaomiao tilted her head back, her voice hoarse, carrying the unadorned fragility unique to children, "He just wanted me to have a better life... Please, let him go... Miaomiao can't live without her father..."

This cry, broadcast through countless live streams, instantly shattered the defenses of the internet.

The netizens who were initially cheering for the "cleanup of the entertainment industry" have fallen silent.

Although reason told them that Lin Miaomiao's father, Producer Lin, was suspected of laundering hundreds of millions of yuan and was a confirmed serious offender, looking at the "national daughter" who had grown up in the public eye, and seeing her crying like an orphan abandoned by the world, an instinctive pity instantly took over.

The tone of the comments in the live stream began to subtly shift.

"So pitiful...this child is only twelve years old."

"Even though her father is guilty, the child is innocent, right? Why is she being made to kneel like that? Aren't the police going to do anything about it?"

"Where is Lu Jingyan? He was so ruthless when he arrested them, why isn't he coming out to face the families now?"

"Isn't this a bit too inhumane? There's a human element beyond the law; at least let the child see the child once, right?"

On the outskirts of the crowd, Lin Miaomiao's agent, Sister Hong, wearing a mask, gripped her phone tightly, staring intently at the rapidly scrolling comments on the screen.

Seeing the public opinion begin to reverse, a triumphant smirk curled at the corner of her mouth, hidden beneath her mask.

This "bitter trick" worked!

She made a subtle gesture towards Lin Miaomiao.

Upon receiving the signal, Lin Miaomiao's crying intensified, and she lunged forward, her forehead slamming heavily against the concrete floor.

"Thump!"

The dull thud seemed to strike everyone's heart.

"Uncle! If you don't release my father, I'll kneel here and die!"

"That's too much!"

Among the onlookers, several emotional female fans couldn't hold back their tears, and some even started shouting at the police station entrance, "Officer Lu! Come out! Don't hide inside like a coward! Give the child an explanation!"

"Yes! Come out! Stop bullying the children!"

The outcry grew louder and louder, and what started as a casual observation gradually turned into a moral judgment against the police.

In the special investigation team's office, Su Xiaoxiao was so angry that she smashed her headphones.

"Shameless! Utterly shameless!"

She pointed at the surveillance footage, her fingers trembling, "That's her own daughter! How could they bear to use such a young child as a scapegoat? Is this agent even human?"

Zhao Tiezhu's face was also ashen, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked: "Captain Lu, I'll go and get rid of those troublemakers! This is disrupting office order!"

"Need not."

Lu Jingyan stood up and straightened the hem of his police uniform. His expression remained calm, without even a trace of anger; only his eyes were as cold as a deep winter pool.

"Driving them away will only confirm our accusations of 'violent law enforcement' and 'bullying the weak'."

He picked up the unopened pack of tissues on the table, took long strides, and walked straight outside.

"Since they want to watch a show, I'll play along with them until the end."

"However, I have to decide the direction of the script."

The electronic gate of the municipal bureau slowly opened.

The noisy crowd fell silent for a second, and all the cameras focused on the tall, slender figure emerging from the shadows.

Lu Jingyan wasn't wearing a police hat, and the stray hairs on his forehead were ruffled by the night wind. He wasn't carrying any police equipment, and he had even taken off his signature gold-rimmed glasses, making him look less sharp and more gentle than usual.

He walked step by step to Lin Miaomiao.

The flashes of the cameras were frantic, casting his long shadow over the kneeling little girl.

Lin Miaomiao felt the shadow above her head. She looked up and stared at the legendary "villain" with teary eyes.

Before she arrived, Sister Hong told her that this policeman was a ruthless killer, and that as long as she cried pitifully enough, she could use public opinion to force him to his death and save her father.

But now, looking into those calm eyes that showed no emotion whatsoever, Lin Miaomiao felt a sudden pang of panic for no apparent reason.

She instinctively wanted to continue crying and shouting, wanting to recite those sentimental lines from the script.

But Lu Jingyan didn't give her a chance.

He slowly crouched down, his gaze level with Lin Miaomiao's. His crisp police uniform didn't intimidate her; instead, his crouching posture conveyed a unique respect.

Lu Jingyan took out the pack of tissues from his pocket, pulled out a tissue, and instead of wiping her tears directly, handed it to her.

"Let's wipe it."

His voice was soft and steady, and it was clearly transmitted throughout the venue through the microphone on his collar, reaching the ears of tens of millions of viewers in the live broadcast room.

"My makeup is ruined. This is waterproof mascara; it will hurt if it gets in my eyes."

Lin Miaomiao was stunned.

She clutched a tissue in her hand, her prepared sobs caught in her throat. She instinctively touched the corner of her eye, her fingertip smeared with a black paste.

The entire room fell into a deathly silence.

Even Sister Hong, the agent hiding in the crowd, felt a chill run down her spine.

Looking at Lin Miaomiao's bewildered face, Lu Jingyan's lips curled up slightly, revealing a very faint smile.

He leaned closer and asked softly, in a voice only the two of them and the recording equipment could hear:

"Little sister, that kowtow you made quite a loud noise just now. Did your manager teach you, or did you practice on your own?"

This sentence is like a needle, precisely piercing the false bubble called "warmth".

Before Lin Miaomiao could answer, Lu Jingyan had already stood up.

He didn't look at the child on the ground, but instead raised his head, his gaze passing over the layers of cameras, and precisely locked onto the middle-aged woman in the crowd who was wearing a mask and whose eyes were darting around.

Then, he said something that instantly silenced the entire internet:

"Sister Hong, right? You're letting a minor interfere with judicial fairness by playing the victim on a live stream outside the police station. Have you paid this kid for the appearance fee?"