"See that?! This is Cifera's trickery! A masterful misdirection!"
Seeing Host Qiu Qiu's utterly bewildered expression and the live stream chat flooded with "???," Nie Junfeng let out a "heh" and resumed his confident analysis:
"Why would she stage such a spectacle? Why specifically turn off the lights before projecting her announcement?
"To deepen the impression!
"She wants you all to believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that her target tonight is the Starry Light!"
Nie Junfeng slammed his fist on the table, emphasizing his point:
"But this very act betrays her true intentions!
"Given the abilities Contestant Cifera has demonstrated thus far, if she genuinely wanted to steal the Starry Light, she could have done so silently and without a trace. Why announce it with such fanfare?
"Some might argue that this is simply Cifera's style, but as I've already explained, successfully stealing any jewelry from tonight's auction—let alone the priceless Starry Light—is incredibly difficult!
"With Contestant Cifera's intelligence, she must understand this perfectly well. By revealing her intentions in advance, she's only making her task infinitely harder!
"Back in our day, there was a saying online: 'A person who truly wants to win doesn't smile.'
"Similarly, a thief who genuinely intends to steal something wouldn't turn the heist into a spectacle!
"Of course, this only applies when the target is extremely difficult to acquire, which the Starry Light certainly is.
"The point I'm making is that Cifera is deliberately deceiving everyone. She never truly intended to steal the Starry Light!"
A glint of wisdom flashed in Nie Junfeng's eyes.
"She's still playing psychological warfare! Planting a deeply ingrained belief in the Pursuit Team, Ms. Liu, and the entire audience!
"Making us fixate all our attention and resources on the Starry Light and this auction!
"She deliberately created such a commotion, even risking exposing her potential presence at the venue, just to make this 'smokescreen' seem utterly convincing!
"Making everyone believe she's gone mad, determined to steal the most expensive Starry Light at the charity auction!
"That way, when the Pursuit Team receives the news and frantically rushes to the Starry Headquarters Building..."
A knowing smile curled the corner of Nie Junfeng's lips.
"She seized the perfect opportunity and space to strike at a truly unguarded target with ease!
"This is her feint attack, far more sophisticated and effective than a simple escape!
"She's using a dazzling performance to conceal her true, lethal strike!"
Nie Junfeng's analysis ignited another explosion of bullet comments.
[Patriarch is a beast! His logic forms a perfect closed loop!]
[Exactly! Cifera would never announce her plan to steal the Starry Light beforehand. This is strategic deception at its finest!]
[The entire Pursuit Team is guarding the auction, leaving other areas wide open. This move is pure venom!]
[What are you guys even saying? LOL! The Patriarch's stubbornness reminds me exactly of myself making excuses after failing an exam.]
[Nie Family's Art of Verbal Persuasion, Article 36: "The Patriarch reserves the right to final interpretation of all Poison Milk analyses!"]
[Cifera already sent a warning letter! Still clinging to denial? Patriarch, just admit your Poison Milk divine power is unrivaled!]
[Watching this variety show is more brain-draining than binge-watching a drama... Kitty Phantom Thief, please just stop causing trouble and give up already!]
[Patriarch, please! Use your invincible Poison Milk to declare Cifera will definitely steal it! A reverse prediction might save us!]
[LOL! Do you really think Poison Milk is a voice-activated switch? Even if the Patriarch recanted now, it's too late to undo the curse!]
[It'd be more practical to crowdfund life insurance for Sister Liu, with the "Cifera Children's Relief Fund" as the beneficiary.]
Watching the Bullet Comments swarm with doubts about his analysis, Nie Junfeng merely smiled, remaining silent.
His real concern was whether anyone on the Pursuit Team would see through Cifera's ruse.
Those caught up in the situation are blinded by the moment, while onlookers see clearly. Nie Junfeng held little hope.
Meanwhile, inside the Pursuit Team's command vehicle speeding through the city, the five members of the Expert Team were gathered together, with Zhang Hong at the wheel.
The five were watching the press conference on the car's screen. The moment the lights went out and the pre-emptive notice appeared, the car fell into dead silence.
Against the backdrop of a deep, starry sky, each word of the pre-emptive notice pierced their nerves like cold needles.
The playful winking black cat avatar now seemed to drip with naked mockery.
[Yours sincerely, Kitty Phantom Thief...]
Nie Bing stared intently at the words on the screen.
Thump!
A muffled thud echoed as Nie Bing's tightly clenched fist slammed into the seat in front of her.
Her usually calm face was now twisted with fury and disbelief.
"Ci... Fer... A!"
Nie Bing hissed the name through gritted teeth, each syllable dripping with venom.
"How... how dare she?!"
Clearly, Nie Bing's fury wasn't solely directed at Cifera's provocation.
Her decision to "kidnap" Liu Shanhe and mobilize the entire Pursuit Team for an early operation stemmed from her deepest fear: that Cifera would recklessly disrupt the charity auction—an event representing Liu Ruyan's rebirth and the hopes of countless children.
She had reasoned that no matter what Cifera planned to do at the press conference, if the Pursuit Team refused to play by her rules, taking a staunchly protective stance over the auction and appearing early on the scene, Cifera might back down.
Yet Cifera had not only done exactly what Nie Bing had desperately tried to prevent, but had done so with such brazen flamboyance, such utter... foolishness!
The moment the announcement went public, not just China, but the entire world would be watching.
Once Cifera made her move, whether successful or not, she would be forever branded on the pillar of shame as one who had "destroyed charity for personal gain."
What Nie Bing feared most was this:
The positive image Cifera had painstakingly built through saving lives and cracking trafficking cases, her extraordinary talent far exceeding ordinary people's, and the goodwill represented by the Children's Relief Foundation newly named after her—all would crumble instantly under this reckless act, potentially turning into a monstrous backlash against her!
"Cifera is really going too far!"
Zhang Hong's booming voice, laced with shock and provoked anger, shattered the brief silence following Nie Bing's words.
"Ms. Liu just announced the Children's Relief Fund—so many children are counting on it! Yet Cifera immediately teases that she's going to steal their charitable masterpiece?
"To do something like this now... it's completely disregarding Ms. Liu's intentions and the needs of those children!
"Cifera... sigh, she really shouldn't have done this!"
His initial admiration for Cifera had been shattered into pieces by this reckless announcement.
Beside him in the passenger seat, Feng Chiyu's playful expression had vanished, replaced by grim seriousness and a hint of absurdity. He unconsciously tapped his fingers on the armrest, his brow furrowed:
"Tsk... I have to admit, Cifera's got some serious guts.
"They just placed her on a pedestal, naming a charity fund after her, and she slaps everyone in the face in return.
"She's essentially jumped off the protagonist's shining stage and landed in the villain's dark sewer.
"This is playing with fire, challenging everyone's bottom line."