A Manual for Surviving a Weird World

Chapter 380 The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, Part One
The morning in Yundu was bright and sunny, but a light drizzle was falling from the clear blue sky. The rain fell at the same time as the sun, turning the flowerbeds in the hospital into a golden carpet. This is called a sun shower.

Wearing a loose apricot-yellow long dress, Bai Zhi sat in her wheelchair, rubbing her sleepy eyes. Her gaze was fixed on the hazy osmanthus tree through the window in the misty rain. She had just woken up from a nightmare.

Bai Zhi is no longer as afraid of nightmares as she used to be. It's not because the dreams themselves have changed and become harmless, but because she encounters people she knows in real life in her dreams, and the fear that she used to have to endure alone can now be shared with them.

With Ning Zhe by his side, the endless, eerie dream didn't seem so hopeless.

dong dong dong-

"Ah Zhi, are you there?"

A rapid knocking came from the door. Bai Zhi looked up at the wall clock; it was not yet 11 a.m., not lunchtime yet.

As she arrived at the door in her wheelchair, a bright crimson-purple hue greeted her as she opened the door. Feng Yushu, dressed in a light purple gauze dress, stood outside, her face filled with anxiety.

"What's wrong, Mom?" Bai Zhi asked, puzzled. "Did something happen?"

“It’s your father…look at the TV.” Feng Yushu pushed open the door, picked up the remote, turned on the TV, and switched to the local channel in Yunnan. A news report marked as “Breaking News” appeared on the screen.

Bai Fugui, a well-known entrepreneur from Yongzhou and a member of the board of directors of Xinjiayuan Group, has been exposed for suspected serious violations of discipline and law...

An investigation revealed that Bai Fugui, before his death, abused his power to collude with foreign forces and resell state assets for personal gain, which constitutes suspected espionage...

Bai Zhi blinked, somewhat stunned, then took out her phone and clicked on today's trending topics on Weibo.

As expected, the top trending topic today is the president of a Fortune 500 company suspected of espionage.

While official media reports were relatively restrained, the information provided by tabloids was far more sensational. Bai Zhi quickly scrolled through her feed and saw several different media outlets spreading conspiracy theories about Bai Fugui's death in a car accident.

Some self-media outlets have "revealed" that Bai Fugui's apparent death in a car accident was actually a cover-up, claiming he was silenced. They allege he amassed a huge fortune by reselling state-owned assets, only to meet with an "accident" just before fleeing with his ill-gotten gains. Is such a coincidence really possible? This editor believes he was most likely silenced by interested parties…

There are also tabloids spreading rumors that Bai Fugui actually died at the hands of his wife, and that the car accident was orchestrated by his first wife, Feng Yushu, who was already using her husband's inheritance to support a gigolo.

“Azhi, your father…” Feng Yushu opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Bai Zhi.

“Someone is manipulating public opinion.” Bai Zhi put down her phone and said calmly, “These things are most likely fake news fabricated out of thin air. Even if they were true, they shouldn’t be generating this much buzz.”

As Bai Zhi spoke, she showed Feng Yushu her phone screen.

"Mom, look, the top trending topics on every online platform are almost all about 'New Home Group director suspected of espionage' or related discussions. This level of popularity is very abnormal."

Feng Yushu was somewhat puzzled. She didn't use the internet much and didn't quite understand what her daughter meant.

Bai Zhi swiped her phone screen and continued, "It's just that the CEO of a Fortune 500 company was exposed as a foreign spy. This kind of small news shouldn't have caused such a huge uproar online."

"At the end of last month, the United States of Europe issued a war threat to our Kyushu through diplomatic channels, and World War III was about to break out. However, at that time, the topic of 'World War III may break out' was only ranked 60th on Weibo's trending topics."

Feng Yushu asked in surprise, "Then what about number 1?" "The number 1 trending topic is that Xiao Zhan changed his profile picture," Bai Zhi said calmly.

Feng Yushu was even more surprised; she realized that she really couldn't understand the internet and young people.

Bai Zhi didn't explain much, but continued, "Although Dad is the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, he's just a businessman in the end. No matter how much buzz there is about a businessman being exposed as a spy, can it be higher than the outbreak of World War III?"

The outbreak of World War III barely made it to the 60th spot on Weibo's trending topics, but the discovery that a dead businessman was a spy quickly surged to the top of the trending topics across the entire network, even pushing "Nana's sweater pilling" to the second spot.

Feng Yushu nodded slightly. She now understood what Bai Zhi meant by "someone is manipulating public opinion."

“Someone is manipulating public opinion behind the scenes,” Bai Zhi said. “And it’s not just anyone.”

She picked up the remote and changed the TV channel, but the same news content was still playing on the screen. Bai Fugui's name, photo, and public images kept scrolling. Bai Zhi changed the channel several more times, but the result was still the same.

Whether it's CCTV, local TV stations, entertainment channels, educational channels, or even major internet platforms, overnight, all media channels across Kyushu were repeatedly broadcasting the same event. This can no longer be explained by simply 'buying trending topics'.

Bai Zhi opened her browser to access overseas networks, and news about Bai's return dominated the top of the charts on major foreign video platforms and social media. Some media outlets were criticizing Kyushu's autocracy and lack of democracy, while others were lamenting the heroic death of a freedom fighter.

But whether it's positive praise or negative criticism, they are all discussing and reporting on the same topic.

"Simultaneously mobilizing such a massive amount of public resources is not something that can be done with money."

Bai Zhi turned off her phone and turned to look at Feng Yushu, who was standing next to the wheelchair: "Mom, do you have Ning Zhe's contact information? I sent him a message before, but he didn't reply."

Feng Yushu shook her head: "No... Actually, that's why I came to find you."

She wanted to ask Bai Zhi if she had dreamed about Ning Zhe recently—after the dream in Vanessa Castle ended, Bai Zhi told her mother about the two of them having the same dream despite sleeping in different beds.

The mother and daughter were both preoccupied with their own thoughts and remained silent when suddenly, a rapid ringing broke the silence.

Alarms blared in the corridor, and bright red warning lights reflected off the white tiles. Feng Yushu walked to the door with some surprise and asked a nurse who was hurrying past, "What happened?"

"Many people downstairs suddenly fainted! I don't know what happened, maybe it's acute food poisoning? I'm not sure..." the nurse said, and then hurriedly ran downstairs.

"So many people suddenly fainted?" Feng Yushu watched the nurse's figure disappear at the end of the corridor, a sense of foreboding creeping into her heart.

At this moment, Bai Zhi pushed the wheelchair up behind her and said softly, "Don't be afraid, Mom."

"Huh?" Feng Yushu exclaimed in surprise, "Azhi, what did you say?"

“I told you not to be afraid,” Bai Zhi said. “Don’t be afraid, Mom, or you will die.”

These are the rules for today.

(End of this chapter)