Act contrite, say sorry. That was the script Donald Tsang Yam-kuen followed closely when he went to the legislature to explain himself.
Gone was the look of indignation as he lambasted the news media for challenging his integrity. A humble, almost tearful, Tsang - not the self-righteous, confident chief executive - briefed Legco and faced hostile lawmakers for almost 90 minutes.
In the event, he managed something never achieved before during his seven years as chief executive: he kept 'Long Hair' Leung Kwok-hung and 'Mad Dog' Wong Yuk-man - Legco's disrupters extraordinaire - quietly in their seats. They recognised the historic occasion for what it was, and they kept to their places. So did most of Hong Kong.
Never in the city's history has the head of government had to apologise publicly and explain his private dealings with the tycoons and the upper crust, from storing vintage wines and leasing a luxury penthouse to flying in private jets and catching a ride on a luxury yacht.
Between 3pm and 4pm, thousands stood still and watched intently the giant TV screens at Times Square in Causeway Bay, Chungking Express mall in Tsim Sha Tsui and Broadway Theatre in Mong Kok, riveted by the spectacle of a remorseful chief executive.
'He shouldn't have done it in the first place,' said Waverly Lai, a 22-year-old student watching the screen in Times Square, who believed Tsang had harmed the government's clean image. 'Now it won't help no matter what he does.'