Chapter 267: Rivals in the Same Field

After Ms. Dong left, Lin Dongxue and Xu Xiaodong went to find Luo Haifeng. Luo said, “Got the keys! Let’s go inside.”

Xu Xiaodong replied, “Officer Luo, once we’re in, I’ll pin the guy down while you guys rescue the cat.”

Luo sighed, “We’re here to mediate a dispute. He’s not a criminal, so no rough stuff, okay?”

As they prepared to enter the building, a reporter approached and asked, “Officer Luo, what are you planning to do?”

Luo showed the key and explained the situation.

The reporter objected, “No, no, we’re still interviewing Ms. Dong’s father. We need to interview Mr. Ma too before going inside.”

Luo protested, “It’s already nine o’clock. I want to finish this up and go home.”

“Sorry for the inconvenience,” the reporter said without a hint of apology. “I promise it’ll only take an hour. Just prepare your statement, and make sure not to mess up during the interview.”

“Could you please stop filming?” Lin Dongxue said impatiently.

“Please understand, this is for the news. Plus, with a cameraman and a reporter present, Mr. Ma is less likely to act out, which could help your work,” the reporter argued.

Left with no choice, the three had to wait. Luo smiled, “We cops are often on TV. We’re used to it. You detectives are more mysterious, always ‘no comment’ on cases.”

“Maybe cops are more down-to-earth,” Xu Xiaodong said, pulling out his phone and starting a game.

“Get up and act like a detective!” Lin Dongxue kicked him lightly.

“Is he your boyfriend?” Luo asked.

“No, no, I have a girlfriend. She’s single,” Xu Xiaodong quickly clarified.

“Who’s the dog now?” Lin Dongxue retorted.

Luo looked at Lin Dongxue’s profile with interest.

After the TV crew finished interviewing Ms. Dong’s father, they were about to interview Mr. Ma when another news van pulled up. The logo indicated a well-known online news outlet. Everyone paused, taken aback.

A balding man in a red jacket, followed by a cameraman, stepped out, saying, “Viewers, this is Uncle Geng from XX News. We’ve received numerous calls about a man occupying his girlfriend’s house after she broke up with him, threatening to kill her cat if she doesn’t contact him by midnight. So, I’m here to get to the bottom of this.”

“What’s going on?” Xu Xiaodong exclaimed.

The TV reporter objected, “Hey, we were here first!”

Uncle Geng replied, “What does it matter who got here first? This isn’t your private property.”

“Just some grassroots online news, getting cocky, huh?”

“Our viewership is higher. What’s the problem? Nobody watches local TV anymore.”

Lin Dongxue watched in amazement. She’d seen these reporters on TV but didn’t know they were so confrontational in person.

Luo explained, “These two news outlets are rivals.”

The argument escalated, and both sides started shoving each other. Luo quickly intervened to mediate. Uncle Geng spotted the cops and asked, “Officer, can you explain the situation here?” He thrust his microphone forward.

“Hey!” the TV reporter interrupted. “We’ve already interviewed this officer. Go find someone else.”

“Move aside!” Uncle Geng demanded.

“No way!”

“Warning you, our cameras are rolling. I’ll expose your ugly behavior tomorrow.”

“Who cares? Our cameras are rolling too.”

“Hah, as if anyone watches your channel. We get more clicks in a day than you do in a week.”

“So what? We’re a legitimate TV station, not some private grassroots program. We have credibility.”

Watching this unfold, Lin Dongxue sighed, “When can I go home?”

Luo tried to calm both sides, “Everyone’s here for the same reason. No need to fight. You serve different audiences. Let’s just interview together.”

“Fair enough,” Uncle Geng agreed, extending a hand. “Give me your interview footage.”

“What kind of attitude is that, you old coot?” The TV reporter glared. “Forget it. Let’s just go interview the subject.”

The TV crew angrily approached the apartment window, ready to knock, when someone shouted, “Someone sabotaged our recording equipment!”

The reporter tapped the mic, realizing there was no sound. Investigation revealed water had been poured into the equipment, causing a short circuit.

Furious, the reporter confronted Uncle Geng, who smirked, “Maybe bad luck isn’t on your side.”

“You scumbag! Competition is fine, but this is dirty!”

“Who’s dirty? We haven’t moved. Prove it was us. The police are right here.”

The argument continued, with Luo trying to mediate again. Lin Dongxue watched in disbelief.

With the TV crew fixing their equipment, Uncle Geng began interviewing residents, Officer Luo, and Ms. Dong’s father. This dragged on until 11 PM. Unable to wait any longer, Lin Dongxue urged Luo, “It’s almost midnight. We need to resolve this now!”

As she turned, she noticed the camera pointed at her. Uncle Geng handed her the microphone, “Ma’am, are you also a police officer?”

Caught off guard, Lin Dongxue hesitated. Luo quickly said, “It’s almost eleven. Let’s stop arguing and go in to mediate.”

“Cut! Do it again without the ‘stop arguing’ part,” Uncle Geng directed.

Luo reluctantly repeated, “It’s almost eleven. Let’s go in and mediate now.”

The rival news teams moved together but stayed separate, each filming their own footage. They crowded in front of the apartment window and called out to Mr. Ma.

After repeated calls, Mr. Ma slid open the window, revealing an extremely irritated face. “Get lost! This is my private business. ..”

“Help your own damn self!”

“Mr. Ma…”

“Damn you!”