[Holy shit!]
[Wait! My brain's fried! Let me process this! Night Shadow = Supermodel Lu Yue = A man = Cifera's die-hard fan who trashes Night Shadow?!]
[No way! This can't be true! My goddess Lu Yue! How could you be a man?! My youth is over! Waaah!]
[Calm down! This is just Little Grandchild's scheme to deceive Old Liu. Bullet Comments, anyone know Lu Yue? Call and confirm!]
[No, at least the fact that "Night Shadow is Lu Yue, and he's a man" has to be true! You can't joke about that—it's illegal! Little Grandchild wouldn't go this far just for a TV show.]
[So Night Shadow, aka Lu Yue, would rather sacrifice his entire career as a supermodel than let his identity as the Grandchild of the Phantom Thief be revealed?]
[Not only that, he even trashes his own "Night Shadow" persona so viciously! If I were Old Liu, I'd definitely rule out the possibility that he's the Grandchild of the Phantom Thief too.]
[Am I the only one who thinks the Pursuit Team is going too far? Forcing a supermodel to ruin his career like this—where's the justice in that?]
[It's hard to blame Old Liu, really. He never suspected Lu Yue wasn't a woman. Who could have imagined he'd expose himself for a variety show?]
[What a terrifying competitive drive! Little Grandchild is a true wolf!]
[I can't wait to see what happens next. After enduring so much humiliation and hardship, will Little Grandchild finally stage his comeback?]
[Comeback my ass! Compared to Cifera's elegant composure as she effortlessly outmaneuvered the Pursuit Team, Little Grandchild looked utterly pathetic under Old Liu's relentless pressure, forced to make that painful "sacrifice the pawn to save the king" choice.]
[Yeah, the comparison really shows how much Little Grandchild lags behind Cifera. He's been completely led by the nose by the Pursuit Team.]
On screen, Liu Shanhe continued in a gentle tone:
"Miss Lu Yue... or rather, Mr. Lu Yue, on behalf of the Pursuit Team and the Production Team, I apologize for the circumstances that led to the exposure of your gender secret.
"However, for the security of Starry Light, questioning you is our duty. Please understand. At least we, the Pursuit Team, will continue to keep your secret safe and won't disclose it to Starry personnel."
Liu Shanhe, a seasoned Criminal Investigator, lived up to his reputation. He astutely anticipated potential online backlash and proactively apologized, aiming to minimize the impact on the Pursuit Team and the show.
In truth, even if he hadn't acted this way, the Pursuit Team wouldn't have been at fault. At its core, this was Lu Yue's personal choice.
Consider this: had Lu Yue foreseen the vulnerability in his fabricated excuse, he wouldn't have found himself on the brink of elimination.
Had Lu Yue prioritized his career as a renowned model, he should have chosen to be eliminated from the show rather than revealing his true gender.
Ultimately, Lu Yue had to pay the price for his miscalculation, and the sacrifice he was willing to make was his modeling career.
Liu Shanhe turned to Lin Zhiyuan, who was staring in stunned silence:
"Little Lin, remember this well: never reveal Lu Yue's secret."
"Yes... I understand!"
Lin Zhiyuan was clearly shaken by Lu Yue's sudden "self-outing," barely daring to make eye contact with him—the situation was too awkward.
Hearing Old Liu's words, he quickly agreed, eager to demonstrate his full cooperation and avoid further provoking this true "crossdressing master."
Lu Yue kept his head lowered, still feigning a fit of rage, his chest heaving violently as if about to "explode." But deep within his eyes, unseen by Liu Shanhe and the others, flickered a triumphant gleam—
Success!
By detonating the "cross-dressing" bombshell, he had temporarily masked the even bigger one: Grandchild of the Phantom Thief!
Though he might no longer be able to use the "Lu Yue" identity to earn money as a model, with his mastery of disguise, he could simply change his appearance and adopt a new name, starting afresh after a while!
This is the confidence of Lu Yue, the unparalleled genius of cross-dressing and disguise!
Of course, to maximize his chances of fooling Liu Shanhe, he had to deliver a particularly scathing self-critique.
Though the content was fabricated, the emotions behind it were genuinely felt.
At the start of the show, Lu Yue had indeed been brimming with self-assurance, only to discover that he was nothing more than a clown in the face of Big Sister Cifera's overwhelming power.
He admired Cifera's power, yet simultaneously loathed his own ugliness and powerlessness...
Thus, this public self-critique served as an intense form of self-motivation!
Surely the audience could sense his unwavering, burning determination to defeat Big Sister Cifera, right?
Lu Yue's resolve burned brighter with each passing thought, and he felt an overwhelming urge to rush out and snatch the safe from Lei Gang's grasp.
But he wasn't a fool. Such a reckless move would be tantamount to suicide.
Everything had to be approached gradually, like a shadow lurking in the darkness, darker than the night itself, waiting for the perfect moment to extinguish the Starry Light in the heavens.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Yue slowly lifted his head. His face had regained the commanding aura of the renowned model Lu Yue, now appearing composed and collected.
"Old Liu, you needn't apologize. What I choose to say is my own decision, unrelated to the Pursuit Team's investigation.
"Since the interrogation is over, may I leave now?"
"Thank you for your understanding. You're free to go," Liu Shanhe nodded, gesturing toward the exit.
-
[Little Granddaughter succeeded! He survived another round on the show! Tearing up!]
[This kamikaze-style clarification... it's too convincing! Who would risk such social suicide just to lie?!]
[I salute Little Granddaughter as a true hero! As long as he isn't eliminated, we, the Granddaughter fans, will stand by him forever!]
[You dark history trolls are showing your true colors now!]
[My heart aches for Miss Lu Yue... oh wait, I mean Little Brother Lu Yue! Just for a second. Then HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm dying of laughter! Little Grandchild just got gender-swapped!]
[Lu Yue seems to be taking it all in stride. I saw "Top Model Lu Yue Suspected to Be Male" trending online.]
[Is it Sister Aya's turn next? I hope Old Liu doesn't dig up any secrets about her too.]
[Like, what if Aya's also a man? Haha, that would be too hilarious!]
[Have you guys not been watching the show properly? Old Liu and the others said earlier that they've basically ruled out Aya as a suspect. They probably won't need to question her.]
The Pursuit Team had finished questioning Lu Yue, but they didn't know that Cifera had overheard the entire interrogation process.
Cifera had secretly placed a listening device on Lu Yue's clothing long ago. This device, created using her Gadget Master Ability, was undetectable by the Pursuit Team's current anti-eavesdropping equipment.
Meanwhile, "Aya," who was currently at the fashion studio altering clothes for other models, wore a mischievous smile, clearly relishing the chaos.