The confession did look staged, but this time it is for the benefit of the suspect. Xiao looked like he was having a really good time there and actually the surrounding was very luxurious for a place of detention. The purpose of his confession seemed to water down the severity of his offense and while not disputing the fact that he hired these people.

It may not be too late yet since the case still has to go to the prosecutor's office, but really, you need talk to people in position to advocate on your behalf, and I hope Fang have kept talking to the cops on the case after Xiao's arrest. (Both are legal and reasonable.) It is certain that the other side is doing exactly that. If in the west justice tilts toward the one with the better advocate of law, in China it tilts to the one with the better advocate of influence. In no country is the justice system a machine where you just press a button and the right result will come out. These are the rules of the game, you either play according to it or pack and leave. Screaming out loud on this forum may be a good diversion and meaningful to some limit, but it is not the most important thing.

This is really a very serious thing. If Xiao can get away with this, it will send a very powerful signal. And it is not just for Fang himself. Nobody who is not crazy will dare to expose anything, and attacks to silence opponents, which has always been going on secretly, will become publicly acceptable for people of certain background because of this very public case.