Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

The morning in Jingzhou was as usual.

The elderly people who get up early to buy groceries, and the office workers who hurry to work—everything seems so peaceful.

But beneath this calm surface, a violent undercurrent has already stirred up a raging storm in the online world.

The commotion in the Bright District last night was truly enormous.

The deafening roar of the dozen or so armed helicopters circling at low altitude was impossible to conceal.

Some daring night owls living in high-rise buildings took blurry photos with their mobile phones.

Military vehicles! A convoy of military vehicles blocked the streets!

And helicopters!

Even more shockingly, just before dawn, someone filmed a bizarre video.

A group of men, probably more than two hundred.

On a freezing cold day, wearing only underwear, they ran in a scattered formation on an empty street in the early morning.

The video went viral as soon as it was posted on local forums and social media.

"Holy crap! Something big has happened in Jingzhou? Is this a mutiny?"

"The Guangming District Public Security Bureau is surrounded by the military. My classmate's cousin works at the Municipal Public Security Bureau, and he's telling the story in great detail!"

"Those guys running around naked, could they be police officers from the precinct? Were they disarmed?"

"Terrorist attack! It's definitely a terrorist attack! Why haven't the authorities spoken out yet!"

Rumors spread like wildfire, like a virus with wings, at an exponential rate.

Panic began to quietly spread among the citizens.

The mayor's hotline of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee was completely overwhelmed with calls starting at 7 a.m.

The phone rang incessantly, and the operators were frantic, but they knew nothing and could only repeat "Please wait for official announcements" over and over again.

……

The Propaganda Department of the Provincial Military Region Compound.

Shen Zhong stayed up all night.

But he showed no signs of fatigue; his pine-green military uniform remained impeccably straight, and his top button was fastened meticulously.

He had just returned from the branch office and came straight here without even having a sip of water.

The atmosphere in the publicity department's meeting room was terribly oppressive.

The heads of all major news media outlets in Handong Province, the directors of television stations, the editors-in-chief of newspapers, and the directors of websites—every single one of them—was summoned from their warm beds to this place by an urgent phone call.

They sat upright, their faces solemn, not daring to even breathe loudly.

These people are all seasoned veterans in the news industry, very well-informed, and they had all heard some of the rumors from last night.

But it is precisely because of this that they are even more terrified.

Military-civilian conflict—getting even a little involved can lead to utter destruction.

No one dared to speak first, for fear of saying the wrong thing.

The meeting room door was pushed open.

Shen Zhong walked in.

The large screen behind him lit up in response.

Without any unnecessary opening remarks, a scanned copy of a document was projected directly onto the screen.

Everyone present felt their hearts skip a beat.

That was a statement of facts.

At the very bottom, there are two signatures written in a flamboyant style.

Heavy.

Li Dakang.

There are also two bright red seals, belonging to the provincial military district and the Jingzhou municipal party committee, respectively.

Shen Zhong walked onto the podium and looked around the room.

His voice was flat, devoid of any emotion.

"Dear media friends, thank you for coming so early this morning."

"I have something to report to everyone."

"Last night, the Handong Provincial Military Region, together with the Jingzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau and the Provincial Public Security Department, successfully held a joint counter-terrorism and emergency response drill codenamed 'Thunder-2024' in Guangming District."

drill?

All the media representatives present were stunned.

Countless question marks popped into their minds at the same time.

What kind of exercise is being conducted so realistically?

What kind of drill would make police officers run around shirtless?

Why would an exercise require so many armed helicopters?

But no one dared to ask.

The heavy-handed assistant distributed a stack of pre-printed press releases to everyone.

"This is the official press release for this exercise."

"I have only one request."

His heavy fingers tapped lightly on the podium.

"All media outlets should maintain a unified tone and strictly adhere to the content of the official press release when reporting."

"No media outlet may arbitrarily delete, alter, or add any speculative or leading comments."

His words are beyond question.

A young reporter from the provincial television station mustered up his courage and raised his hand.

"Sir, we received a tip from a citizen that they heard gunshots at the scene..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

Shen Zhong's gaze fell upon him.

That gaze, devoid of any emotion, left the young reporter speechless, unable to utter a single word.

He felt as if he were being stared at by a ferocious beast, and his blood was about to freeze.

He awkwardly lowered his hand.

Shen Zhong ignored him and nodded to Zhou Weiguo beside him.

Zhou Weiguo took out a USB drive and handed it to the director of the provincial television station.

"This contains footage from a live drill."

"These photos were taken by our military's embedded journalists at the exercise site."

Shen Zhong added a sentence.

"This video can be used as official footage of this exercise and will be shown in the morning news at 9:00 AM today."

The director of the provincial radio station took the small USB drive with both hands, feeling as if it were incredibly heavy.

He knew this wasn't a discussion, it was an order.

at the same time.

The Provincial Cyberspace Administration and the Provincial Public Security Department's Cyber ​​Security Corps also received a strongly worded letter from the Provincial Military Region.

They were instructed to immediately activate the highest-level public opinion control plan.

Citing "national security and military secrets" as the reason, a comprehensive cleanup and deletion of all "false rumors" about last night's events on the internet was carried out.

The military, with an undeniable stance, completely took control of the narrative surrounding the entire incident.

Everything is arranged.

Shen Zhong picked up the teacup on the table and gently blew on the floating tea leaves.

He waited calmly for the morning news to start.

……

Building No. 1, Family Compound of the Jingzhou Municipal Committee.

Li Dakang sat on the sofa in the living room, his eyes bloodshot.

In front of him was a cup of tea that had gone completely cold, but he didn't drink a drop.

The television was on, and he stared intently at the screen, waiting anxiously.

He was not only skinned alive by Shen Zhong, but now he has been completely kidnapped by that man.

He could neither refute nor protest his innocence.

He also had to actively cooperate with Shen Zhong to continue this absurd play.

Otherwise, the charge of "treason" could be pinned on him again at any time.

The TV screen flickered.

The opening theme music for the morning news of Hantong Provincial Radio and Television Station started playing.

A female anchor, dressed in a dignified professional outfit, appeared on the screen with a smile.

Her clear and articulate voice came through.

Good morning, viewers. This is your morning news report.

"According to our station, in order to test the province's military-civilian joint combat capabilities and improve the city's counter-terrorism emergency response level, the Provincial Military Command, in conjunction with the Provincial Public Security Department and the Jingzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau, successfully held a test in Guangming District, Jingzhou City, in the early hours of last night..."