Technology invades the modern world

Chapter 421 Help me call the professor!
All the sounds in the room—the clatter of the typewriter, the busy tone of the telephone, the whispers—froze in an instant.

The air seemed to have been sucked out, leaving only a vast silence.

Ben Bradley, a seasoned journalist who has weathered countless storms, felt a chill run from his feet to his scalp.

He took a deep breath and gestured for Jimmy to hand him the paper bag.

He knew this was not a prank; the fear on Jimmy's face was real.

He took the videotape out of the paper bag. It had no label, no sender information, and only a letter written in marker: V.

Without hesitation, he put the videotape into the editorial department's player.

All eyes were on the screen.

The image is shaky, as if it were taken by an amateur photographer in the dark.

At first, it was a blurry black and white image, but soon the picture stabilized.

It was a video taken from across the street using a high-powered telescope.

The image shows Edgar Hoover's private villa in the suburbs of Washington.

The time indicated it was late at night.

In the video, two black Volga sedans quietly stopped in front of the Hoover Villa, and several figures in coats got out of the cars.

Their movements were swift and professional, avoiding all surveillance cameras.

Most shockingly, one of the figures in the image is none other than Dobrynin, the Soviet ambassador.

There were also close-up shots, as if afraid the audience wouldn't know he was Dobrynin.

In the latter part of the video, the Soviet Russians are seen taking some items away from the villa.

They then quickly cleaned up the scene and drove away.

Bradley didn't say anything, but his fists were clenched.

He saw the last scene of the video: a close-up shot of a man lying in a pool of blood, and it was Hoover.

The camera quickly zoomed out, revealing eight corpses in the frame. They were Hoover's bodyguards and FBI security personnel.

The playback ended, and the room fell into a deathly silence.

The first to break the silence was Bernstein, who slammed his fist on the table like an enraged beast: "This is impossible! This is a declaration of war! Have the Soviets gone mad?"

Woodward's face turned ashen, his hand trembling as he pointed at the screen: "Hoover, how could he? How dare the Soviets?"

Bradley ignored their emotions; he was like an iceberg, his mind racing.

He knew that this videotape was more than just news; it was a nuclear bomb, enough to shatter the fragile balance of the entire Cold War.

"Holy shit!"

Ben Bradley had only one thought left in his mind.

A veteran media professional and editor-in-chief of The Washington Post, this was the first time he had encountered such a complex situation and such a bizarre event.

America has many urban legends and a strong basis for conspiracy theories.

And V is definitely the most mysterious and unpredictable of all the conspiracy theories.

Some say he's a Soviet KGB officer, others say he's an Indian, some say he has superpowers, and still others say he received the most rigorous training and was among the most elite members of the CCP.

In any case, since Hoover's death, V has been the thickest dark cloud hanging over America's skies.

Even with heavy protection, Hoover still met a tragic end, so every member of Congress was trembling with fear.

No one dared to propose legislation targeting V.

People will suggest increasing legislation to protect themselves, but no one dares to publicly propose a thorough investigation into V's identity.

Now, V has reappeared, bringing news that's like a nuclear bomb.

As a media professional, Bradley's first reaction wasn't to report on or monopolize the news, but rather how to cover it up at this peaceful crossroads.

Freedom of the press, the power of truth, and the public's right to know are no longer important at this moment; what matters is suppressing this news story.

Fortunately, Bradley didn't have to worry about it for long before his office phone suddenly rang.

The sound was piercing and sharp, shattering the deathly silence of the room.

He glanced at the caller ID; it was Henry Luce, the editor-in-chief of Time magazine.

Bradley's heart sank; he understood what this meant.

He took a deep breath and answered the phone.

“Henry.” His voice was a little hoarse.

On the other end of the phone, Luce's voice sounded hoarser than usual, carrying an unusual weariness.

"Ben, you received it too?"

This is not a question, but a statement.

Bradley knew they were now in the same boat.

“Yes, Henry. Just received it,” Bradley replied.

Did you see it?

"Looked."

Silence fell on both ends of the phone call—a silent confirmation between two news giants of a disaster that defied description.

"As expected, V sent it to everyone; it couldn't be kept a secret any longer." Luce finally spoke, his voice filled with sorrow.

Bradley did not answer immediately.

He walked to the window, looked at the peaceful street scene outside, and thought about his mission and the principles he had always believed in.

He also thought of the innocent lives lost and how this videotape could reignite the war.

“We had no choice,” Bradley said calmly.

Luce repeated, "We have no other choice."

After hanging up the phone, Bradley returned to work. Since there was no way to hide it, he would tell the public the truth.

“Howard,” he pointed to Simmons, “contact our informants immediately, everyone we can reach in Washington. I need to know everything that happened at Hoover House, every single detail.”

"Woodward, go with Bernstein and make this videotape a headline."

The choice of words must be absolutely precise; not a single word can be superfluous.

I want to see the raw, unadulterated facts, without analysis or speculation.

“And you, Jimmy,” Bradley’s gaze returned to the pale intern. “Give this paper bag, this videotape, and all of our fingerprints to BI. We can’t keep this stuff to ourselves.”

Reporters from major newspapers were still in a state of confusion.

Everyone is aware of the impact this will have on the situation. Can the Cold War continue?
And to consider whether the Soviets had gone mad?
The Soviet ambassador personally led a team in a Volga and assassinated America's high-ranking officials.

Hoover was an absolute figure of power. Even after stepping down as director of the BI, he still wielded enormous authority, as evidenced by the fact that he had only eight security personnel.

What's worse, not only did you do it, but someone also filmed it. They even recorded your faces and tried to shift the blame to V.

Previously: The gun was taken from the Soviets, and Lin Ran left a big V sign at the scene.

An unassuming independent news agency called United News broke the news with a brief but explosive report: "Edgar Hoover, killed by Soviet Russia?"

This unverified report was like a spark falling into a dried-up powder keg.

When the United Daily News report was broadcast on the airwaves, the entire American media industry was thrown into unprecedented chaos.

The editorial departments of major media outlets were instantly abuzz. Reporters who hadn't received the videotapes frantically called giants like The Washington Post and Time magazine for confirmation, but were met with silence. This silence itself became a confirmation.

The headlines in mainstream media shifted instantly from discussing "the dawn of peace" to "the specter of war."

The New York Times' front-page headline became "The Death of Hoover: A Shadow Over the Peace Process," a cautiously worded but unmistakably inquisitive headline that demanded the truth.

The Los Angeles Times went even further, directly questioning in its editorial: "Is this an ultimatum from Moscow? How will Washington respond?"

Local tabloids made no attempt to conceal their incitement of American sentiment, with headlines proclaiming, "The blood debts of the Soviets must be repaid in blood!"

The television station kept playing that videotape over and over again.

The national mood shifted rapidly from a desire for peace to anger, fear, and a thirst for revenge.

The anti-war marches were replaced by calls to "declare war on Soviet Russia".

"What a terrible day." Jenny was in a bad mood. Yesterday she was excited about the peace the professor brought, but today she was worried about the future of the earth.

She could already sense that war was about to break out, and this war was no ordinary war; it was an unprecedented one.

"I believe the White House will exercise restraint," Lin Ran said softly.

Jenny shook her head: "No, Professor, you don't know, although I am very disgusted by Hoover's actions in many things."

But he was absolutely a legendary figure in American politics, and a symbolic one.

His mysterious death, confirmed to be the work of Soviet Russia, will trigger a massive domestic political earthquake.

Anti-Government hawks will immediately capitalize on this event, portraying the peace talks as a sign of weakness towards Soviet Russia.

They would demand a strong retaliation against the Soviet Union, and the continuation of the Vietnam War would become a direct means of putting pressure on the Soviet Union.

Those who benefit from the war, like John Morgan, will push for it to continue.

Hoover's death will be portrayed as a blatant violation of America's sovereignty by Soviet Russia and a direct escalation of the Cold War.

Public opinion would quickly shift from a desire for peace to support military action against the Soviet Union and its allies.

This is a massive event that cannot be ignored.

No matter how much the White House wants peace or to stop the war, it cannot do so.

Any peace agreement reached with North Vietnam would become politically unacceptable.

The White House will have to abandon or at least postpone peace talks indefinitely.

Because it's very simple: North Vietnam was an ally of Soviet Russia.

On television, the police tape that had been put back around Hoover Villa was shown, while media reports portrayed the Soviets as assassins who had infiltrated America's heart.

Jenny stared at the television screen and said sadly, "President Nixon will face the same predicament as President Lyndon Johnson."

His famous madman theory was based on the deterrence of Soviet Russia.

Soviet Russia had already taken such a bold step that Nixon faced a dilemma: either take real action, leading to a full-scale war, or be seen as bluffing and lose political capital.

The Madman Theory: To make the Soviet Union believe that it was willing to take any action, including a nuclear strike.

The Soviet Union executed Hoover in public, with the ambassador personally leading the execution. What could you do? What would you dare to do?
The collapse of Nixon's "madman theory" marked the beginning of the destruction of his credibility.

Late at night, the Kremlin's telephone rang, breaking the silence.

On Leonard's desk, the red glow of the telephone kept flashing.

When the call connected, the urgent and disorganized voice of Ambassador Dobrynin to Washington came through the receiver.

"Comrade Leonard, the situation is out of control! Hoover is dead, and our embassy is surrounded by the FBI."

We are accused of being killed by our own people!
V has set a trap for us!

Dobrynin's voice sounded like he was on the verge of collapse.

Leonard's brows were furrowed, and his face was as gloomy as the sky before a storm.

"What Hoover? What do you mean by 'surround'? Explain yourself!"

Dobrynin gave a rambling account of what had happened.

Leonard remained silent on the other end of the phone.

He certainly knew of the existence of "V," and that Soviet Russia's control over Hoover was entirely due to "V."

They have also been trying to find V.

“You idiot!” Leonard roared. “Whatever the reason, you were at the crime scene! You’ve given yourselves a huge handle against yourselves and our entire country!”

In fact, Dobrynin had reported the matter to him through diplomatic correspondence at the time, and he was furious because it had actually been photographed.

What he couldn't understand was how your face could actually be photographed?
Isn't it nighttime? Isn't it late at night? Isn't it pitch black?

He ordered Dobrynin to deny the charges at all costs and to shift all blame to the power struggle within America.

Leonard knew that now was not the time to admit the truth, because that would immediately ignite an uncontrollable all-out war.

In Washington, at the White House, Nixon and Kissinger were discussing the final details of the peace agreement in the Oval Office. The atmosphere was relaxed; what Johnson couldn't do, I would do as soon as I took office.

"If I take office, I can end the Vietnam War within 24 hours," Nixon regretted not having shouted such a slogan during the election.

Suddenly, security committee officials burst in, their faces filled with shock and fear.

“Mr. President, something terrible has happened,” an official said breathlessly. “Hoover was killed by the Soviets! V’s videotape clearly shows Dobrynin’s face.”

Nixon and Kissinger turned pale instantly.

They saw the videotape and also saw footage of the Soviet embassy delegation heading to the scene.

Kissinger's mind was instantly filled with all sorts of possibilities.

why?
Why was it announced precisely at this time, right before a peace agreement was to be signed?

Who exactly is V?

He no longer considers V to be a Soviet citizen, as Soviet citizens would not want the war to continue.

Kissinger knew that a peace agreement could not be signed and the Vietnam War would continue.

Nixon looked grim because he vividly remembered the recent killing of Hoover and the protesters surrounding the White House, chanting "Johnson out."

If he continues with appeasement, people outside will be calling for Nixon to step down.

"Please call the professor for me."

At such a critical moment, Nixon chose to trust Lin Ran rather than Kissinger.

(End of this chapter)