The live broadcast platform collapsed, the personal website was paralyzed, the internal mobile phones were scrapped, and even the radio station was attacked. Gong Xuanqi had no other way out except to give Zhu Jianrui another chance.
Even if he rushed to the hospital, lay in bed, and took photos of his serious condition and medical records, what would it matter? If the public could not see them, all his clarifications would be in vain.
"Just go for it, don't put too much pressure on yourself. Whether you succeed or not, your uncle won't blame you." So in the shortest time, Gong Xuanqi adjusted his almost collapsed emotions.
Now he has become the amiable, steady and wise uncle again, as if his previous harsh words, disgust and contempt were all an illusion.
Zhu Jianrui looked up at his hypocritical face, but Zhuang Li's gentle and doting smile flashed in his mind. He often praised others with a proud tone: "My son is the best! My son is very smart, just like me!"
Zhu Jianrui's nose felt slightly sore, and he almost cried. Only in such embarrassing moments would he reveal his childish fragility.
But it was too late to say anything now. What had been done was done, and there was no way to deny it. Zhuang Li was such a skilled hacker, he could even unearth the entire hacker army hidden in the dark web, so how could he not know what his son had been doing behind his back?
Zhu Jianrui knew exactly how he had arranged the long-awaited reunion of Zhu Miaomiao and Gong Xuanlin, and how he had plotted his return to the Gong family clean. So he sorted out the accounts, signed the divorce papers, and made a complete and undone break. He would never forgive his once beloved wife and son.
He now only wants to destroy all those who betrayed him, including Zhu Jianrui, Zhu Miaomiao, Gong Xuanlin, and even the high and mighty Gong Xuanqi.
And he was almost there. He was a powerless little guy, yet he had caused a powerful politician like Gong Xuanqi to stumble at the most crucial moment. When he got serious, he was terrifying!
Fearful and timid, Zhu Jianrui began tracking down all the smart devices controlled by the botnet. Unable to hack into Zhuang Li's computer, he resorted to the most rudimentary method.
Mima also joined the pursuit after venting her crazy outburst.
They are the world's top hackers, with few rivals except Zhuang Li. But they soon discover that Zhuang Li's scheme is unsolvable.
Zhu Jianrui almost bit his tongue after finding tens of thousands of zombie devices in just ten minutes.
He struggled to raise his arms, but his fingers were too stiff to type on the keyboard, as he gradually realized that even if all the zombie devices were found, the crisis would not be resolved and would only cause greater trouble.
Gong Xuanqi immediately noticed his abnormality and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"
"I found the zombie device controlled by Zhuang Li." Zhu Jianrui said in a hoarse voice.
"Why don't you close them quickly?" Gong Xuanqi urged impatiently.
"These devices are all mobile phones," Zhu Jianrui listed them, his voice barely audible. "They all come from people around us: you, me, dad, mom, as well as our colleagues, relatives, and friends."
Gong Xuanqi stared at this outrageous list, unable to react for a long moment. This was truly ridiculous. When he monitored others, he never considered that he would be monitored; when he hacked others, he never considered that he would be hacked. Every method he used against Le Zhengming would be met with the same exact retaliation from Zhuang Li.
Zhuang Li is not an ant, but a poisonous snake that cannot be touched!
Gong Xuanqi took out his two cell phones with shaking hands, pressed the power button fiercely, and shouted, "Turn off all your phones! Quick!"
Everyone was frantically turning off their phones, each one more terrified than the last.
Zhu Jianrui covered his eyes and shook his head dejectedly, "This is useless. My botnet is made up of randomly selected smart devices, but Zhuang Li's isn't. He's already implanted a Trojan horse in our phones that replicates and spreads automatically, thus radiating the zombie virus."
"You all know the theory of six degrees of separation, right?" He opened his eyes, and his pupils were stained blood red.
Everyone showed a horrified expression.
The so-called six degrees of separation theory is also called the small world theory, which means that there are no more than six people between you and any stranger. In other words, you can get to know any stranger through at most six people.
If this theory is applied to the spread of viruses, the consequences are quite terrible. If a person is infected with a virus, then in a very short period of time, he will infect everyone around him.
Mobile phone viruses are hundreds of times more contagious than real viruses because they are the most frequently used communication tool. On average, a person sends dozens of messages a day, and those who receive those messages exchange dozens or even hundreds of messages with others. These people then contact even more people...
You can imagine what a big net they will spread.
The number of infected zombie devices will increase exponentially. And just now, when Gong Xuanqi's livestream was cut off, his team members, while their phones were still connected, made numerous calls for help, digging out even the most obscure contacts and making use of them.
So the big net built by Zhuang Li expanded several times in just a few minutes.
What’s even more terrifying is that most of the people who can get in touch with Gong Xuanqi are high-ranking politicians. Not everyone can hack into their phones, nor can they be remotely shut down without warning.
If Zhu Jianrui really did that, the hackers serving these politicians would follow the clues and launch a counterattack against Zhu Jianrui.
By then, Gong Xuanqi will be in a worse situation.
In other words, Zhuang Li had created not just a botnet but a hornet's nest, one that Zhu Jianrui wouldn't even dare touch, let alone dismantle. He scrolled down the list, letting Gong Xuanqi clearly see the prominent, powerful names.
"If I want to stop this data tsunami, I have to shut down their phones remotely. If the phones are shut down inexplicably, their security officers will immediately investigate. Uncle, what do you think I should do? Should I turn it off or not?" Zhu Jianrui threw the hot potato away.
Gong Xuanqi's face turned completely dark, and his eyes, which always shone with kindness, revealed a rare look of shock and anger.
This list was terrifying! Every single one of them was someone he couldn't afford to offend. If he really let his nephew hack into these people's phones, he would incur public wrath, and who knew what kind of suspicion he would face in the future.
"Can you find evidence that Zhuang Li hacked into their phones?" Gong Xuanqi asked, clinging to a last glimmer of hope. If he could find evidence, he would tell the bosses about it and alert them to Le Zhengming.
Zhu Jianrui fell into a long silence.
Gong Xuanqi looked down at him and said in a cold tone, "You can't find it?"
Zhu Jianrui shook his head and remained silent. It wasn't that he couldn't find it, but that he didn't dare to speak up. He realized his phone was the central controller for this botnet, but he kept pressing the power button for a long time, and the screen remained on. He removed the SIM card and battery, but the data tsunami continued to pour in.
Only then did he realize that Zhuang Li might have copied his phone and used his identity as a cover to start this war.
If they really wanted to hold someone accountable, all the evidence would point to him. He would bear all the blame on behalf of Zhuang Li! He had no choice but to admit defeat! On the Internet, they were simply not on the same level.
Such ruthless tactics, nothing like the meek and timid wimp from before. Has the silent lion been awakened? If I had known Zhuang Li was hiding so deeply, I shouldn't have betrayed him!
Zhu Jianrui once again fell into deep self-doubt. He clenched his fists, his blood-red eyes tinged with water. He looked like he was about to cry, but he bit his tongue, drawing blood, and forced himself to hold it back. He couldn't let himself collapse, because the Gong family wasn't a safe haven, but a jungle teeming with danger.
If he showed weakness, he would be devoured by the beast lurking nearby.He was originally carefully protected under the wings of another more powerful beast.
He regretted it and was afraid, but it was too late.
Gong Xuanqi indeed looked at his nephew with a cold and ruthless gaze, as if he was evaluating whether this person was still valuable to him.
When Zhu Jianrui's muscles were almost frozen, Gong Xuanqi rubbed his brow and sighed, "Forget it, let's end it. Everyone go home and wait until the network is back to normal."
He appeared calm and composed on the surface, as if he could maintain a cool and wise judgment even in the face of great crisis, but in fact he was extremely frustrated inside.
He took Zhu Jianrui with him as they left the livestreaming platform's headquarters, afraid to say a word along the way, fearing Zhuang Li would overhear. He simply couldn't imagine being in such a hopeless situation, with no way out, no way forward, and no way forward.
Just in case, he destroyed all his smart devices: phones, tablets, computers... He even distrusted his car's smart control panel, always reminding the driver to be careful and drive slowly. He knew Zhu Jianrui could control a car or airplane through sound waves. If Zhu Jianrui could do it, there was no doubt Zhuang Li could do it too.
Gong Xuanqi kept massaging his Taiyang acupoint, his head aching like a splitting stone. It was truly terrifying to provoke an enemy like this that he didn't know how to defend himself against.
Zhu Jianrui sat in the back row, holding the puppy tightly in his arms, his neck and shoulders stiff and curled up, like a child who had made a serious mistake and dared not say a word. Of course, this childlike weakness was only revealed after being beaten by Zhuang Li.
Dad is always your dad - this popular Internet phrase aptly explains the relationship between him and Zhuang Li.
The car slowly pulled up in front of the Gong family's old house. A slender woman stood on tiptoe and called into the videophone, "Gong Xuanlin, come out! You said you'd marry me! I even gave birth to a son for you, how can you deny it?"
Gong Xuanlin, who had been dismissed from all his positions in the company, suppressed his anger and said, "Can you please stop making a fuss? My eldest brother is in trouble, and I'm trying to find a solution for him. Go back first, I don't have time to chat with you about these trivial matters."
"You actually said that marriage is a trivial matter? That is the most important event in my life! For you, I have suffered so much and endured so much pain over the years! Wuwuwu..."
Zhu Miaomiao leaned against the wall and cried bitterly, but her shrill voice was unbearable for Gong Xuanlin. He sarcastically said, "You've spent millions of dollars in just a few years. How have you suffered? Let me tell you, our Gong family won't accept a gold digger like you. Even if you give birth to a son, it's useless!"
Zhu Miaomiao's hopes were dashed, and she burst into tears, cursing Gong Xuanlin for being heartless. When she married Zhuang Li, she had lived a carefree and refined life; but when she returned to the powerful Gong Xuanlin, she had become a worthless, disgusting, worthless person.
Seeing his mother so humble, Zhu Jianrui quickly covered his face, refusing to face the embarrassment. His dignity seemed to be destroyed by Zhu Miaomiao's self-deprecating behavior. He could abandon his adoptive father, who treated him with unwavering kindness, and naturally he could also abandon his mother, who only used him as a tool to marry into a wealthy family.
Gong Xuanqi's pent-up anger finally erupted at this moment. He opened the window and growled at the bodyguard, "Keep this woman under guard. Don't let her run around outside."
A group of people immediately dragged Zhu Miaomiao into the car and took her to a remote place for detention.
As the car drove away, Zhu Miaomiao's screams could still be heard faintly. At first, she kept shouting, "Xuanlin, save me!", then she turned to calling for her son. When he didn't respond, she kept shouting, "Zhuang Li, Zhuang Li, Zhuang Li..."
It’s a pity that the man who always appeared when she encountered difficulties has disappeared forever.
He had been her Superman...
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