Entertainment: I really don’t want to be a thief!

Chapter 471 Cheating during the live broadcast
"Thank you everyone for caring about me." Xiao Meimei said in a childish voice. "Although life is a bit difficult, there are so many people supporting me and my mother. I feel very happy."

The donation account number and QR code suddenly appeared on the screen. "If you are willing to help little Meimei and her family, please scan the QR code here or donate directly to the account below." Li Qingtian added in a sincere tone.

Lin Ke held the remote control tightly. He could feel the strong and artificial sympathetic atmosphere coming from the screen. He snorted coldly.

"Zhang Qiang!" Lin Ke suddenly stood up, "Look at this! They are still cheating during the live broadcast!"

Zhang Qiang also turned his head and stared at the TV screen, "Brother Lin, this is simply an open challenge to the law!"

Their eyes met, a resonance between anger and determination. Lin Ke quickly picked up the phone and started making calls.

"Lawyer Huang? This is Lin Ke. Act now! We must submit these evidences to the police as soon as possible and request that the TV station stop any form of misleading public opinion and fund-raising activities regarding this incident."

Early the next morning, a large number of reporters and citizens gathered outside the court waiting to hear the latest developments. Lin Ke was surrounded by several reporters when he entered the door of the court.

"Mr. Lin, what do you want to say about the ongoing litigation?" a reporter asked eagerly.

Lin Ke looked steadily at the camera: "Everyone should solve problems through legal channels and rely on the facts. We trust that the judiciary will give a fair ruling and ensure that all victims receive due compensation."

Lin Ke's assistant, Li Ze, rushed into the office panting, holding a thick stack of folders in his hands. His brows were furrowed, and he was obviously in a very unhappy mood.

"Brother Lin, look at these!" Li Ze almost threw the folder on the table, "We have been deceived so miserably!"

Lin Ke frowned and picked up the document and quickly read through it. His expression grew heavier with each page. Account flows, bank records, photos of luxurious life... all of this ruthlessly revealed the unknown truth behind Xiao Meimei's family.

"Oh my god..." Lin Ke muttered, "Is this what they call 'difficulty'? Driving a fancy car and living in a mansion!"

Li Ze slapped the table angrily: "Pretend to be pitiful, gain sympathy and then make money! It's simply a fraud group!"

Lin Ke took a deep breath and his eyes were as bright as lightning: "We cannot sit idly by and ignore them. We must let the public see their true colors."

He immediately picked up his phone and started live streaming on social media. "Hello everyone, I am Lin Ke." He said seriously in front of the camera, "Today I am going to reveal a shocking fact."

The scene switches to a computer screen showing evidence. "Please take a look at these account records and life photos. This is not a burden that an ordinary family can bear." Lin Ke said firmly, "And all these sources of funds are actually obtained by manipulating public sentiment to obtain donations."

The barrage scrolled rapidly at the bottom of the screen, and netizens expressed shock and anger.

"We trusted them and thought we were helping a family in need." Lin Ke continued, "But now, please join me in calling for justice. Don't be deceived again!"

After the live broadcast ended, there was an immediate uproar on the Internet. News media rushed to report this matter, and public opinion overwhelmingly supported Lin Ke.

Lin Ke had just finished the live broadcast, but his heart was still heavy. At this moment, his cell phone suddenly rang. It's an unknown number. "Hello, Mr. Lin Ke? I'm Li Ming, a young reporter from Metropolis Express." A quick and anxious voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Li Ming? What's the matter?" Lin Ke asked with a frown.

"It's about the Xiao Meimei family incident you just mentioned in the live broadcast... My report was blocked! I posted it online early this morning and it was deleted within an hour. I was also notified that I was prohibited from publishing related content again."

Lin Ke immediately became alert, "Blocked? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely sure! I didn't even have time to make a backup." Li was obviously very angry and helpless. "I investigated a lot of information, and the result just disappeared."

Lin Ke held the phone tightly, "Have you ever thought about who might have done it?"

"I didn't know it at first, but then..." Li Ming paused, "I found that Xiao Meimei's family seemed to have signed a contract with an entertainment company. Maybe they suppressed it."

"Entertainment company?" Lin Ke frowned and thought, "Okay, give me all the information and evidence you have collected. We can't let them cover up the truth like this."

A few hours later, in Lin Ke's private office, the two sat face to face. Li Ming transferred all the files and chat records saved in his computer to Lin Ke.

The screen displayed a series of transaction records and dense contact emails with entertainment companies. "Look here!" Li Ming pointed to a screenshot of the email and said, "This email mentions 'ensuring that public opinion is controlled within a manageable range' - doesn't this mean that they are manipulating public opinion?"

Lin Ke took a deep breath and sighed: "I originally thought it was just a simple matter of fraudulent donations... I didn't expect it to be so complicated behind it."

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, Zhang Qiang pushed the door open and entered. "How's it going? Is there any progress?" Zhang Qiang asked nervously.

"It's worse than we imagined." Lin Ke stood up, "We need to take action. First, we should crack down on fraud through legal means, and publicly expose the entertainment company's manipulation of public opinion."

The three looked at each other firmly. "No matter how difficult the road ahead is, we must do things right." Lin Ke said firmly.

In the next few days, the three formed a temporary alliance and began to plan counterattacks. Zhang Qiang was responsible for contacting the legal team and preparing relevant litigation documents; Li Ming continued to dig out more inside information; and Lin Ke used his extensive influence on social platforms power, slowly directing public attention.
Lin Ke sat on the big black chair in the office, frowning, holding a bank check in his hand. Sitting opposite him was Li Ming, whose eyes were full of anxiety and expectation.

"Li Ming, this is for you." Lin Ke handed over a check with a six-digit amount written on it. "This money is enough for you to leave this circle and find a safe place to start over."

Li Ming hesitated for a moment, then took the check, his voice slightly trembling: "Mr. Lin...I..."

"There's no time to explain." Lin Ke interrupted him, "Things are more complicated than we thought. I will personally put all the evidence on the Internet. But from now on, you have to disappear for a while."

"But... what about those people who are on Xiao Meimei's side? They won't believe us easily." Li Ming said worriedly.

(End of this chapter)