Ren Xiaosu thought for a moment and said to Zhou Yingxue, “Then I’ll head upstairs for a few hours of sleep first. Wake me up when it’s noon.”
“Sure.” Zhou Yingxue nodded.
But before Ren Xiaosu could head upstairs, he suddenly saw someone riding a green bicycle on the road outside. Two green cloth bags were hanging behind the bicycle with the words “Hope Media” written on them.
Ren Xiaosu ran out and asked, “Is that today’s newspaper? Give me a copy. Why are y’all still working at this time? You don’t look like someone who delivers newspapers.”
The cyclist was wearing a suit, and most newspaper delivery workers did not dress like this.
The person delivering the newspapers said with a smile, “We’re the staff of Hope Media. The people who usually deliver the newspapers are hiding at home, so we have no choice but to send the newspapers ourselves.” Then the cyclist handed a newspaper to Ren Xiaosu. “The newspapers in Stronghold 74 today don’t cost anything. They’re free of charge.”
Ren Xiaosu was stunned for a moment before saying, “Thanks.”
When the plainclothes guard in the lobby saw Ren Xiaosu taking a newspaper, he also went to get a copy. Whenever they passed through a stronghold, Fang Zhi would usually be the one to purchase the newspapers for the day.
Ren Xiaosu flipped open the newspaper. The newspaper today was a little strange, with four entire pages dedicated to reporting about the Experimentals’ attack on Stronghold 74.
The main point of the first page reported that the spokesperson of the Wang Consortium had told the media that they would send their troops to support the Zhou Consortium whenever they were called upon. They were willing to assist the Zhou Consortium to drive back the enemy together and exterminate the Experimentals in the south part of the Central Plains.
However, the Zhou Consortium rejected the Wang Consortium’s offer and told the media to let the Wang Consortium know they should not take advantage of this crisis. This was a common enemy of humanity they were dealing with, so if they really wanted to help, all they needed to do was to transport some supplies. There was no need for them to send their troops as the Zhou Consortium’s army was sufficient to deal with the problem.
Ren Xiaosu was amused. These two consortiums had started tearing into each other in the newspapers. It looked like the Zhou Consortium believed the Wang Consortium was up to no good by wanting to send their troops over. After all, no one would possibly allow another organization’s troops to freely march into their own territory. Who knew what the fuck the other party was really up to?
When he flipped the newspaper to the next page, the content was much more substantial. Hope Media actually explained the battle in detail, but it was mainly based on the perspective of the reporters who were at the scene. They then provided an addendum based on an interview with the Zhou Consortium’s higher-ups.
There was even an emphasis on the strategy the Experimentals had adopted. Everyone who thought the Experimentals were just a bunch of wild animals was shocked when they read this.
The more cultured had always looked down on the less cultured. In the eyes of many consortiums, the Experimentals were just barbaric beasts that could be eradicated with firearms. But now, the reports on the Experimentals would probably refresh their understanding of those creatures.
When he reached the third page, it was filled with pictures of moments from the battle that three of Hope Media’s reporters stationed at Stronghold 74 had captured. For example, when the Riders and the Pyro Company were fighting on the stronghold walls and killing the Experimentals, Ren Xiaosu couldn’t even see the happenings clearly at the time, yet those reporters still managed to photograph them using their extremely expensive cameras.
On this page, there was great affirmation given to the Pyro Company by Hope Media. They were praising them for setting aside their beliefs in order to fight the enemy together. They also reported the Pyro Company members at Stronghold 73 had already joined the reinforcements and were currently heading to Stronghold 74.
As far as everyone could remember, this was probably the first time Hope Media had praised the Pyro Company.
While the Pyro Company and Qinghe Group had always been on good terms, Hope Media was always critical of the Pyro Company’s actions.
When he reached the fourth page, Ren Xiaosu was surprised to discover that the most eye-catching photo actually turned out to be “Old Xu.”
In the picture, “Old Xu” was wearing a white mask while the Experimentals were running away in fear. This picture was a little shocking as it had captured the details very clearly.
In fact, the reporters from Hope Media had taken a lot of pictures, but in the one that was chosen to be published, the figure of “Old Xu” appeared a little blurry. Only his tall and upright posture, as well as that conspicuous white mask, could be seen clearly. Meanwhile, the clearest part of the picture was the expressions of the Experimentals.
It was no longer the fierce expression they had but one of fear.
The headline on this page was even titled “The Era of Gods.”
This newspaper had elevated the status of supernatural beings to such a high degree that even the terrifying Experimentals could only serve as an embellishment to them.
Of course, there was a lot of glorification in this. After all, everyone who participated in the battle knew the most terrifying thing about the Experimentals was their numbers. Even the Pyro Company could not compare to their numbers and their cruelty.
As Ren Xiaosu read the newspaper, Zhou Yingxue was also reading from his side. She kept glancing at Ren Xiaosu as she read, then whispered, “Master, that’s you, isn’t it?”
Ren Xiaosu whispered back, sounding surprised, “How’d you guess? Is it that obvious? Did you tell from the figure or something?”
“That’s not it. You purposely wore your clothes to appear slightly more cumbersome, so it’s not possible to tell from the figure. But I didn’t see any mention of you in the entire newspaper, so I just felt that this person might be you. After all, you’re the only one fearsome enough to scare the Experimentals away,” Zhou Yingxue muttered.
Ren Xiaosu was speechless. Zhou Yingxue had actually used process of elimination to deduce that it was him? Because she did not see any mention of him in the newspaper, she felt that this really strong person was him?
In any case, it did not matter whether this person wearing the white mask was Ren Xiaosu or not, the flattering was already accomplished.
However, while the two of them were whispering, a plainclothes guard nearby laughed and said, “Didn’t you claim you joined in the battle? Why didn’t I see you in the newspaper then? Or were you just hiding somewhere?”
Ren Xiaosu shot him a look and ignored him. He did not want to encourage the guard. Among those present, not even Mu Wan’ge knew the person wearing the white mask was him. After all, it was Ren Xiaosu himself who saved Mu Wan’ge back then.
So since he wanted to conceal his identity, he could not reveal it so casually, lest he incur the wrath of the Pyro Company after the war was over.
Ren Xiaosu continued flipping through the newspaper. The entertainment section had a mention of Li Ran, but even that was related to the battle at Stronghold 74. Reportedly, the concert had been canceled due to the situation in the stronghold.
Then the breaking of glass came from the streets outside the hotel. The noise woke Li Ran and the others. Li Ran wrapped herself in a blanket and opened her sleepy eyes. “What’s going on?”
When Ren Xiaosu walked out to take a look, he was surprised to see a group of people smashing the glass windows of a general store and a grocery store.
After they smashed the windows, a large group of people rushed inside in search of food.
With someone setting the precedent, more and more people joined in the act of larceny. Such acts would spread like a contagion, but it was an extremely base behavior.
“The aftereffects of the Zhou Consortium’s food commandeering has started.” Ren Xiaosu sighed and said, “After Stronghold 74 was put in lockdown for several days, and with the grocery stores emptied out by the Zhou Consortium troops, many of the residents don’t have anything to eat anymore. Hunger can really drive people to do anything.”
