When the official Xinhua news agency reported the formal arrest of journalist Ching Cheong for spying 10 days ago, observers believed it heralded the beginning of the end of the saga.
Friends of Ching and commentators smelled a rat, however, when Beijing's mouthpieces in Hong Kong began to detail his alleged spying activities for Taiwan's intelligence agencies, quoting unidentified mainland sources.
The smear campaign, featuring money and sex, is seen as a character-assassination attempt to manipulate public opinion before Ching goes to court.
The story took a dramatic turn on Thursday when the woman whom Chinese-language newspapers claimed was Ching's mistress emerged in Hong Kong to rubbish the allegations. Huang Wei told Commercial Radio: 'The reports are fabricated ... They are unfair to Mr Ching and have caused harm to me.'
Ms Huang's surprise denial was a slap in the face for the Chinese media which was accused of campaigning against Ching at the expense of journalist integrity. For Ching's friends and supporters, it helped deepen their conviction that he is innocent. That, however, has been mixed with simmering feelings of frustration and disillusionment about the broader, deeper implications of Ching's case.
Known as a moderate patriot imbued with a deep love of the motherland, Ching's plight has shocked his peers, particularly in the pro-Beijing circle, who have reacted with disbelief and doubt over the spying allegations.
More damagingly, the way that the mainland authorities have handled the case has raised serious questions about the price of embracing the motherland.
