CH 277

Mu Wenhua was also watching TV.

A kind-hearted colleague covered her shift, allowing her to get away. Before going downstairs, she passed by the entrance of the opposite electronic chain store.

The crowd had already dispersed a lot, but as she passed by the row of shop windows, it felt as if she had stepped into a surrealistic story. The characters on each TV screen were moving in a uniform manner. The anchor seemed to be trying to connect to a mysterious network, and a large block of text appeared on the screen.

Although the flow of people in the mall didn’t visibly decrease, there was an eerie silence around her, and she could only hear the sound of her hurried and quiet footsteps.

She stepped onto the escalator, and the black steps moved slowly downward. During this time, she kept checking her phone and saw thousands of messages in the WeChat group for her child’s class. Although the teacher had repeatedly explained that their kindergarten was very small and the children were very safe, many parents kept asking about their children’s well-being.

Mu Wenhua held her phone and even saw some forwarded messages in the WeChat group about detoxification methods. She felt it wasn’t right, but she didn’t have the courage to say anything. In special times, people could only take care of themselves. She put her phone away and looked up. For some reason, she felt that everyone in the mall was whispering.

The cashiers were huddled close together, and customers were talking in hushed tones.

Although she couldn’t hear the exact words, it seemed like everyone in the world was discussing drugs and poisons—things that were once distant but suddenly became dangerously close.

Everyone’s eyes gleamed with panic, fear, excitement, and fanaticism. This scene finally made her feel scared.

She stuffed her phone in her bag and rushed down the escalator in her sneakers. She ran past the corner, then descended another level, repeating this process until she finally reached the mall’s exit. However, when she looked up, she saw a large screen on the square directly in front of her. Under the logo of Yongchuan TV station, a simple letter was being slowly opened.

A grand and splendid female voice descended from the sky—

“Dear fellow citizens. I hope this letter finds you well.”

The same female voice gradually echoed in subway stations, on buses, on passersby’s phones, and inside the small shops at the school entrance.

It belonged to the female anchor of Yongchuan TV station.

“I apologize for meeting you all in this manner. I have no intention of introducing myself because who I am is not important. You can call me a sociopath or a terrorist, as I represent a portion of abnormal individuals who cannot integrate into society.”

These voices had the same frequency and identical pace, yet they presented different textures through various electronic devices. When combined, they collided and resonated like blooming flowers, reverberating between the small cities in this vast universe.

“Here, we announce our responsibility for the riot at Meicun Clothing Market; we take responsibility for the attempted attack at Meicun Train Station; we take responsibility for the recent sporadic incidents of violence in Yongchuan; and we take full responsibility for the collective adverse reactions to Nao Kangning.

Our actions disturb your daily lives, but they are necessary. We hope for your understanding. However, throughout human history, there have been moments that arrived without warning, appearing as misfortune in incomprehensible ways, yet, to a great extent, they changed the world.

Since the 6th century B.C., the Greeks established the earliest democratic system through voting. Now, the group I represent hopes that even in our resistance against society, you can obtain such rights as well.

To ensure the fairness of the game and uphold your spirit of freedom and democracy, if your government agrees, we will grant each resident the right to choose the next target for our attack. The specific process of granting this right can be supervised by representatives from both sides.

If your government chooses not to let you have this right, I have no choice but to follow our interests in determining your fate.

I look forward to your response and wish you an enjoyable game.

Best regards.”

The last note lingered in the air, dissolving into the vast horizon. The contact information on the letter was shown on the screen, and then the image faded away.

The whole process was quick and straightforward, yet it felt slow enough to require a long time to regain one’s composure. As the letter was put away, the female anchor’s face reappeared. One could imagine how many people were left in shock and bewilderment in front of countless screens, big and small.

Hongjing Municipal Bureau, inside a glass-walled room.

Someone raised the remote control and turned off the TV with a snap. The entire transparent room felt like it was made of solid ice, emanating a cold and stern atmosphere filled with icy shards.

Xing Conglian looked up, gazing at the elderly man who had turned off the TV. Each of Lin Chen’s stages of deduction had been realized one after another, and for those long-standing figures in power, it was nothing short of a challenge.

The old man’s gaze, hidden behind his glasses, was deep and meaningful, but none of them spoke first.

Therefore, the public opinion expert who rushed into the glass room from the outside became the first person to break the ice. “Captain Xing, Yongchuan TV station may have been bought off by the other side. We must send someone to take control.”

Xing Conglian looked at this Director Chen and, for the first time, felt that most people were overly kind-hearted. He put one hand in his pocket, and Minister Shen pointed to an empty seat, gesturing for Director Chen to sit down and close the door.

“Private stations like BAS are one thing, but Yongchuan TV station, without our approval, broadcast the letter from a sociopath under the guise of a national TV station, causing social panic and shifting the pressure of dialogue onto us. It is a huge challenge to the government’s authority… We can’t tolerate it; otherwise, other online media will be even harder to control…” The public opinion expert explained while walking, and Minister Shen listened thoughtfully, rubbing his chin with the back of his hand, glancing at Xing Conglian.

“No need,” Xing Conglian said.

At this, the elderly man with a profound expression said, “I thought so too. It’s not easy to explain so much to us.”

Xing Conglian knew that, in that instant, the old man probably understood all of his thoughts. Indeed, while explaining to these people, he was also delaying them, preventing them from interfering with Lin Chen’s plan.

But it had come to this point, and no one could turn back time to when they entered this glass room.

He and Lin Chen never intended to control the situation in such a dark way.

Because since this was about igniting the fire of human nature, Lin Chen wanted that fire to burn even more brightly and majestically. That was Lin Chen, more audacious than anyone else.

And he stood here only as a representative of Lin Chen, and naturally, that was what he thought.

“Captain Xing, Yongchuan TV… It was you?” The public opinion expert asked in shock.

“It was my idea,” Xing Conglian said.

Several glances in the glass room darted towards him. Some were suspicious, some were contemplating, and some were restraining their anger.

Suddenly, another government strategy expert who rarely spoke slowly spoke up, “I also agree with Captain Xing’s approach.”

That young man sat in the shadow of the light, and Xing Conglian could only see the several drafts spread out on his desk, covered in dense lines and paths. “Since this matter will inevitably erupt into a public opinion frenzy, it’s better for the national TV station to step forward and represent the government in releasing information openly and effectively. Moreover…” He paused, “This is why Captain Xing and Consultant Lin previously reported the news of Shen Lian’s arrest. The psychological exposure effect means that people are more likely to have a natural favorability toward familiar people. I think… Captain Xing and Consultant Lin probably have a series of response plans prepared, right?”

Xing Conglian admired the calm and composed strategy expert in the corner. In a certain sense, when he looked at the other, he seemed to see Lin Chen.

But he also knew that this person could never be Lin Chen.

Minister Shen lightly tapped the table and asked his subordinate sitting in the corner, “You tell us your thoughts and handling suggestions for the current situation.”

The person nodded and said, “Captain Xing’s analysis just now reminded me to pay attention to the deep motivation of these sociopaths. Although I’m skeptical about whether he can achieve his ultimate goal, the letter indicates that they have several objectives in creating the poisoning case.” He paused for a moment and continued, “First, they want to attract some deeply hidden sociopaths in society to join their frenzy. Second, they want to design it so that every voter who has no choice becomes the murderer. Third, they aim to use bystanders to accuse residents of the three provinces, intensifying internal conflicts among the people. The fourth and most important point is to prove that selfishness and ugliness are the true nature of humanity. All those self-righteous moral standards are just decorations that hide ugliness, causing contradictions and distrust among people.” He asked, “Am I right, Captain Xing?”

Xing Conglian nodded.

“In that case, to achieve this series of objectives, although he appears to be manipulating ‘medicine’ as a tool, he is actually influencing people’s minds through planning the direction of public opinion. And public opinion is the public’s perception of the events.” The seasoned strategy expert said, “His brilliance lies in the fact that when the first person votes, a sense of mistrust has already arisen. And if you abstain from voting, you pass the fate-deciding opportunity to someone else. Therefore, in the short term, since voting cannot be avoided, we must manipulate public opinion.”

“Captain Xing didn’t communicate with me and acted on his own; this part of the work is difficult for me to carry out.” The public opinion expert still felt uneasy.

“There’s nothing wrong with Director Chen’s approach of controlling and guiding public opinion to avoid the public’s distrust towards society and human morality; of course, this is something we must do,” the young man in the corner said solemnly, “but the premise of all manipulation lies in the viewpoint. What kind of public opinion do we want to guide? What kind of views do we want to instill in the public to prevent the achievement of the sociopath’s goals?”

Xing Conglian felt the dark yet faintly burning gaze from the corner and calmly said, “I would like to hear the details.”

Then, he heard the word.

—”Sacrifice.”