The First Order

Chapter 969: No regrets

In everyone’s eyes, Hope Media stood opposed to the Wang Consortium and deliberately targeted them.

Although they adhered to the principle of reporting the truth, Hope Media had indeed reported too much negative news about the Wang Consortium during this period.

Moreover, those articles had caused a huge reaction in society. Rumor had it that even within the Wang Consortium, there were also some opposition voices. Many people sat quietly in front of the Wang Consortium’s administrative office to protest the Wang Consortium’s disunity with the Alliance of Strongholds in the war.

The Wang Consortium’s diplomatic team had remained in Luoyang City in hopes of meeting with Jiang Xu. Many of the reporters from the other media outlets also came here hoping to capture the scene when Jiang Xu and the Wang Consortium interacted.

Hope Media had always been the leader in the media industry. Many of the media outlets wanted to get a handle on Hope Media to topple this huge figure of the industry from its pedestal.

Actually, as long as those media outlets stuck to the principle of reporting the truth like Hope Media did, they could also rise quickly in this era and gain the trust of the people.

But in the end, they still chose the quicker and more effective way of trying to topple Hope Media. As long as they could capture a scene of Jiang Xu and the Wang Consortium’s private meeting, the reporters and newspapers that published this news would instantly gain fame.

This was what the real world was like.

Now that the war was about to end, Hope Media would definitely report some news that was beneficial to the Wang Consortium in the future. That was because at the end of it all, the Wang Consortium was the true winner of this war.

Hope Media’s responsibility was to report the truth. They could not simply erase the Wang Consortium’s contributions even though everyone was extremely unhappy with them.

But the more it was like this, the more Jiang Xu could not meet with the Wang Consortium’s people. If he started reporting positive news of the Wang Consortium after meeting them, those who were waiting for Hope Media to fall would immediately make an issue out of it.

At this moment, Jiang Xu walked out of Hope Media’s headquarters. Although he was holding a cane, his posture was straight.

For such an uncorrupted and principled person, it did not affect his bearing one bit, even though he was crippled.

Most of the time, Jiang Xu would be picked up by a private car that sent him to Qinghe University for his classes. However, everyone at Hope Media knew that Jiang Xu also had a penchant for slowly walking over by himself when he was in a very good mood. There was no need for the car in that case.

Someone secretly asked him why he did that, and Jiang Xu’s answer was that when a person was in a good mood, their perception of the world would be exceptionally clear and beautiful. A person’s life was very short, and there might not be that many times when they were in a good mood. Therefore, they should cherish this beautiful scenery.

When he walked out onto the street, many of the pedestrians would smile at Jiang Xu when they saw him.

Many years ago, when Jiang Xu’s leg was just broken, he became the most respected person in Luoyang City. At that time, a lot of people would voluntarily greet Jiang Xu when they saw him.

After that, there were more and more examples where Hope Media enforced their principles, so Jiang Xu also became more and more respected. It was so much so that everyone could not help but greet him whenever they saw him.

Then everyone realized that no matter whether Jiang Xu knew any of them or not, he would return their greetings.

And then they realized Jiang Xu’s voice had gone hoarse.

His colleagues at Hope Media felt bad for him, so they secretly told everyone not to greet him anymore. With Chief Editor Jiang Xu’s character, it was impossible that he would ignore others if they greeted him. If such scenes were to take place every day, who could bear it? All of Jiang Xu’s time would be wasted on greeting everyone back.

As such, the residents of Luoyang City gradually stopped greeting him vocally. Instead, they just nodded at him with a smile.

However, it was different today. The news of the preliminary victory in the war had somehow spread to Luoyang City as well. When someone saw Jiang Xu’s smiling face, they could not help but ask, “Chief Editor, I see that you’re in a very good mood today. Did you also receive news of a great victory at the front lines?”

Jiang Xu looked at the pedestrian and said with a smile, “Yes.”

“When will the war end then? Will we achieve the final victory?”

“I can’t be sure about that yet.” Jiang Xu answered seriously, “The news published in the newspapers are the most factual, but I personally hope the war will end soon.”

The pedestrians jumped for joy. “Did you hear that? The chief editor has also received news that a great victory has been achieved on the front lines!”

Someone else asked, “Chief Editor, it’s rumored that the Wang Consortium sent people to destroy the Qing Consortium’s nuclear test site during the war. Is that true? Apparently, the Qing Consortium will be holding a press conference soon.”

Jiang Xu was stunned. He did not expect news of this matter to spread so quickly. However, he had no intention of answering this question. “I can’t express my opinions until there’s conclusive evidence that it was the Wang Consortium’s doing. Alright, I have to rush off to teach the students.”

After that, Jiang Xu smiled and bade everyone farewell.

But before he could even take two steps, a young man in a suit suddenly bumped into him. The young man was walking very quickly, so when he bumped into Jiang Xu, Jiang Xu nearly lost his balance and fell to the ground.

After Jiang Xu barely managed to stabilize himself, he looked at the young man who had brushed past him in surprise. The young man apologized softly before quickly disappearing around the corner.

But the moment the young man disappeared, a huge neon billboard not far from Jiang Xu suddenly crashed to the ground loudly.

Jiang Xu suddenly turned around and looked at the billboard on the ground. If that young man had not knocked into him just now, based on his walking pace, he would probably be dead under it.

Jiang Xu looked at the shattered billboard on the ground. The shop owner rushed out and had a look at the billboard as well. When he saw that his own billboard had nearly hit Jiang Xu, he hurriedly apologized to him and asked if he was alright.

Jiang Xu waved it off and said it was fine. Then he looked at the billboard and fell into deep thought.

Suddenly, he stopped walking towards Qinghe University and turned towards another street.

Jiang Xu passed through the long streets of Luoyang City as he walked. The empress trees[1] on the sidewalks had just sprouted new buds. As the sunlight penetrated through the branches and leaves, it cast mottled shadows on the ground.

When he returned home, he had just opened the door with his key when a little tabby cat rushed to his feet. It hugged him around the ankle and refused to leave.

Jiang Xu was stunned before breaking into a smile. “Luna, have you sensed something as well?”

Jiang Xu sat down on a walnut stool at the door that he used when changing his shoes. He hugged the little tabby cat in his arms and tickled it gently.

The cat stretched its paws comfortably and looked extremely cute.

Jiang Xu carried the cat into the house and tidied up the litter box and toys before carrying them out together.

He came to the door of his neighbor’s house and knocked on it. It was a little girl around seven or eight years old who answered. Jiang Xu smiled and greeted her, “Little Yue’er, are you home alone?”

When the little girl named Li Yue’er looked up and saw Jiang Xu, she said in surprise, “Grandpa Jiang Xu! Daddy and Mommy have gone to work. I’m at home by myself!”

Jiang Xu squatted down with great difficulty and placed the cat’s litter box on the ground. Then, he handed the cat to Li Yue’er and said with a smile, “You always liked playing with Luna the most. so I’ll give her to you now, alright?”

Li Yue’er’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

“Yes, really.” Jiang Xu smiled and patted Li Yue’er’s little head until her hair was a little messy, but her attention was entirely focused on Luna.

It seemed that Luna was also very familiar with Li Yue’er, so she did not resist at all when the little girl hugged her.

Jiang Xu stood up. “Take good care of her.”

When Li Yue’er saw that Jiang Xu was about to leave, she hurriedly asked, “Grandpa Jiang Xu, where are you going?”

Jiang Xu looked at Li Yue’er and said with a smile, “To handle some important matters. It feels like there’s still a lot of things I’ve not done.”

With that, Jiang Xu left.

Finally, he turned around and took a look at the house he had been living in for decades. Garlic shoots had just sprouted in the yard, and the sun was shining brightly.

…

At 10:20 AM, Zhang Chentong was reviewing the draft in his office when he saw Jiang Xu’s figure through the glass.

Zhang Chentong stood up and asked, “Chief Editor, didn’t you go to teach your class?”

Jiang Xu said to Zhang Chentong, “They’re serving fish with pickled veggies for lunch at the cafeteria, right? Have them send some over to me.”

Zhang Chentong was stunned. “Sure.”

Jiang Xu returned to his office and quietly took in the sight. Then he withdrew a stack of letters and sat down at the table. He filled his fountain pen with ink before holding it up to write: “Xiaosu, first of all, I’d like to congratulate the Northwest for their great victory at Mt. Zuoyun. When I heard the news, I was really elated. Before this, I always thought Fortress 178 would probably decide to sit out of it. But it turned out I was wrong. But after learning I had judged the situation wrong, I was very happy…

“When we first met, you were sitting in the conference room like a normal young man. When you wrote down the words ‘don’t let the sorrows of our era become your sorrow as well,’ I was really moved. However, I somehow felt that it wasn’t something someone your age would say. But at this moment, I’m very happy because I’m sure you were the one who said those words. I want to thank you for protecting Hope Media that day. You’ve let us know that Hope Media isn’t alone in adhering to our principles and reporting the truth…

“The path of adhering to our principles and reporting the truth is a tough and dangerous one. I’ve always known it from the beginning. But if there is a need for a founder of this belief, I, Jiang Xu, will not be the first, nor will I be the last…

“It was nice knowing you. Good luck, and take care.”

Jiang Xu wrote four letters in a row addressed to different people.

Zhang Chentong knocked on the door and came in. He said in a low voice, “Chief Editor, the food delivery man is here.”

Jiang Xu got up and stuffed the four letters into Zhang Chentong’s hands. “Send these personally by hand.”

After that, he turned around and opened the safe in his office. He took out a leather envelope and made his way towards the back entrance of the cafeteria downstairs.

There was already a plump driver waiting there. Jiang Xu smiled and greeted, “You’ve gained weight again.”

“Life’s been good.” The plump driver said with a laugh, “Why did you suddenly—”

Jiang Xu interrupted him by stuffing the envelope into his hands. “Send it to the usual place. This information is very important and can’t fall into the hands of someone with ulterior motives. It has to be kept classified for 50 years before it can be made public.”

“OK, I understand.” The plump driver nodded seriously. He hesitated for a moment before suddenly asking, “Chief Editor, is something about to happen?”

Usually, such classified information would be taken away on a schedule. But today, Jiang Xu had requested for it to be delivered in advance, so he thought that something must have happened.

Jiang Xu patted him on the shoulder and said calmly, “It’s nothing, don’t overthink it.”

When the plump driver saw that Jiang Xu did not look flustered at all, he felt relieved.

He hid the envelope in a hidden compartment under the cargo container and turned around to get into the truck. When he turned his head again, he saw Jiang Xu looking at him with such seriousness it was as though he was trying to remember his face.

It felt like a silent farewell.

Jiang Xu watched as the cargo truck drove away. He said to Zhang Chentong, “Drive me to Qinghe University. Please inform the Qinghe University side that I’m rescheduling my class today and will be taking up the students’ lunch break.”

Zhang Chentong went to arrange everything calmly while Jiang Xu stood in the lobby of Hope Media’s headquarters. He looked at the names on the walls, names of the pioneers who had tread this path before.

Li Xiang, who had investigated the use of gutter oil within the Alliance of Strongholds, was on his way home from the newspaper firm when he got stabbed dozens of times by some thugs and died on the spot.

Jiang Weisuo, who investigated the Zhou and Kong Consortium’s fake milk manufacturing incident, was beaten to death as a retaliation.

Jian Guangzhou.

Le Qian.

Yang Wei.

Gao Qinrong.

These names were engraved on the walls of Hope Media, reminding all the reporters of the path they were going to be taking.

Actually, many people thought the Hope Media reporters were all brave, decisive, and fearless. However, Jiang Xu knew very well that the people he knew were no different from any other person.

They would also feel fear, unease, and panic.

The word “responsibility” was not as rosy as one would imagine. Instead, it was as cold as a rock. But even so, these people still chose this most difficult path while trembling in fear.

Moreover, there would be even more people taking this path in the future.

Just as Jiang Xu had written in the letter to Ren Xiaosu, he would not be the first or last person to go down this path.

Jiang Xu walked up to the wall with his cane and gently wiped off the dust on “everyone” with his sleeve.

Zhang Chentong came up behind him. “Chief Editor, the vehicle is ready. The Qinghe University students are also waiting.”

Jiang Xu resolutely turned around and walked out of the building before getting into the car.

When he arrived at the lecture theater, it was already full of students. Jiang Xu said with a smile, “I’m sorry. I was delayed by something, so I didn’t manage to make it to this morning’s lesson. I apologize for taking up everyone’s lunch break.”

The students in the audience did not think too much of it. They just said, “It’s alright, Professor Jiang Xu. Please go on with the lesson. We don’t have a habit of taking afternoon naps anyway.”

Jiang Xu smiled and said, “I teach humanities and politics, but I’d like to speak about something different today. Does anyone here want to know what I was doing when I was your age?”

The students’ interest was immediately piqued. Chief Editor Jiang Xu rarely mentioned his past, so this lesson was totally going to be worth it!

Jiang Xu looked at a female student. “Guess what I was doing when I was your age?”

“You must’ve been investigating some unfair issues, right?” The female student said loudly, “Who knows? You were probably undercover at one of the consortiums and probing for firsthand evidence.”

This answer was likely what everyone was thinking as well.

However, Jiang Xu shook his head. “No, when I was your age, I was still aspiring to be a Rider. At that time, I was always uninterested in working. I just ate, drank, and goofed off every day. There was even one time when I smashed someone’s glass panel and got arrested by the Public Order Division. It wasn’t until when I was 31 that I suddenly felt that I couldn’t keep going on like that.”

The students were stunned. They did not expect Jiang Xu’s past to be so normal.

In their opinion, Jiang Xu should have been the kind of person who was a model student or the president of the student council when he was still at school. They did not expect Jiang Xu to behave like a rebel before the age of 31. This was completely unexpected.

Jiang Xu said calmly, “I’m telling you all this because I want you to understand that it’s not too late to decide to work hard and change yourself. To put it bluntly, the best time to plant a tree was ten years ago, and the next best time is now.”

“This war made me realize that Qinghe University has protected you guys too well. You should really go out and take a look at how much the world has changed. This will make you more pragmatic people.” Jiang Xu said, “I believe in your potential, so when you start growing as a person, you’ll definitely experience a rapid change.”

The students in the audience suddenly felt that Chief Editor Jiang Xu seemed a little different today, and it was not only the content of the lesson that was being taught.

Jiang Xu suddenly changed the subject. “But right as you start to grow, I hope you will remember everything that I’m going to say here.

“When you start to experience the myriad ways society functions, I hope you’ll still believe that rules can overcome unwritten rules.

“That you’ll still believe that academia is not the same as bureaucracy.

“That you’ll still believe that academia does not equal politics.

“That you’ll still believe that having strength of character outshines sycophancy.

“Nowadays, more and more people pursue promotion while fewer seek the truth. There’s more talk of gaining preferential treatment and less discussion of ideals. So while you’re heading into society, what I want to say is, please guard the passion and ideals you once believed in. In this era of doubt, we still need to have faith.”

Jiang Xu looked at the silent students in the audience and continued, “In Hope Media, there’s a file archive that contains many secrets and truths of the world. I might’ve seen more of the darkness in this world than all of you, but even though I’ve seen so much truth and darkness, I still love the world. Don’t let the sorrows of our era become your sorrow as well.”

After that, Jiang Xu turned around and walked out of the lecture hall. This was his last lesson as a professor of Qinghe University.

Zhang Chentong waited outside the classroom, ready to pick Jiang Xu up after his class. However, Jiang Xu said to him, “You can go back to Hope Media first. I want to take a walk around by myself.”

After Zhang Chentong left, Jiang Xu walked across Hongde Square in Qinghe University, supported by his cane. He walked down the footpath next to the tennis court, then walked past the sculptural fountain in the center of the school.

He replayed all of this in his mind. This was the path he had walked every week for over twenty years, and today was no different from the past.

When he first arrived here, he was still very young. At that time, he had written in his journal phrases like “ride with the wind and travel thousands of miles in the vast sky, looking down at mountains and rivers far and wide.” But now he was old.

Thinking of his predecessors’ names on the wall at Hope Media, he felt it was rather fortunate he had not ever taken a wrong step on this bumpy road.

Jiang Xu committed all of this to memory and walked out of the school calmly.

The moment he stepped out of the school gate, a huge explosion erupted on the next street. It sounded like someone was fighting there.

In that instant, an amber dragon flew into the sky and dived down onto the next street.

For the first time since the chaotic battle in Luoyang City, peace was disrupted again.

The residents of Luoyang City started fleeing. As flames burned, huge black smoke billowed into the sky.

Gunshots and explosions boomed as Jiang Xu walked calmly through the noisy world. He stopped at an intersection and looked at a young man in black clothes standing on the opposite street.

A crowd was fleeing across the streets, but only Jiang Xu and the young man remained still.

Jiang Xu did not look at him anymore. Instead, his view turned to the huge Luoyang City. This was where he had lived all his life. Before this, he knew that such a day would come sooner or later, and he was even afraid of it arriving.

But he was no longer afraid.

In his daze, Jiang Xu seemed to notice some apparitions appearing next to him. There was Jian Guangzhou, Li Xiang, Le Qian, and Yang Wei. They were all smiling at him.

And there was his younger self as well.

The younger version of himself asked softly, “Do you regret it?”

Jiang Xu smiled. “No.”

After that, the apparitions dissipated in his mind. Jiang Xu turned to the black-clothed young man and said, “Do it, but don’t hurt the innocent.”

The young man quietly raised his gun and pulled the trigger.

The bullet seemed to cut through the sea of people before snipping the thread of life.

As bloodstains spread out from the gray suit on Jiang Xu’s chest, Jiang Xu slowly sat on the ground and gently placed his cane by the side. He treated it as an old friend of his.

A young man in a suit sprinted over from another street. His face was covered in blood.

The black-clothed gunman had wanted to take advantage of the chaos to escape. But when he saw the young man in the suit, he instantly raised the gun to his own chin and pulled the trigger.

The bullet pierced through the black-clothed gunman’s skull.

The young man in the suit looked at Jiang Xu’s corpse from afar and said into his earpiece, “Mission failed. Retreat. I repeat, the mission has failed. Old Tang, evacuate as soon as possible.”

…

30 years ago, a roguish young man walked into a small newspaper firm and said loudly, “Are you people recruiting reporters here?”

The newspaper firm’s door was shattered as though someone had smashed it, and there was only an old editor left in the office.

The old editor adjusted his glasses. “We don’t recruit bums around here.”

“Hey, old man, watch your tongue. Who’re you calling a bum?” the young man said unhappily.

The old editor examined him silently. “What’s your name?”

The young man said, “Jiang Xu, that’s who I am. Jiang Xu from Luoyang City’s West Avenue! Have you heard of my name?”

The old editor was amused. “I’ve heard of you. So tell me, why do you suddenly want to be a reporter?”

The young Jiang Xu thought for a moment and said, “I just don’t want to lead a meaningless life anymore. Before my mother passed, she said that if I continued living like this, she couldn’t put her mind at ease even if she died. Also, I somehow feel that this isn’t how the world should be. Do you understand? Two days ago, I saw—”

“Why did you come to our newspaper firm?” the old editor asked.

“I heard a few days ago that your firm was destroyed because you reported about the factory scandal.” The young Jiang Xu chuckled and said, “Don’t worry, let’s see who dares to come and smash the front door after I start working here.”

The old editor handed him a form. “Have you heard of a career as an investigative journalist?”

“Investigative journalist? Are there different types of reporters?” the young Jiang Xu wondered.

“Of course.” The old editor smiled. “It’s the most dangerous profession among reporters and also the most difficult path in the world that one can choose.”

Jiang Xu turned smug. “Old man, you know me. I like doing the most difficult things!”

The old editor confirmed again, “You won’t turn back until you hit the south wall[2] then?”

The young Jiang Xu smiled brightly. “Don’t worry, I won’t turn back even if I hit the south wall.”

[1] Paulownia tomentosa, common names princess tree,(1) empress tree, or foxglove-tree,(2) is a deciduous hardwood tree in the family Paulowniaceae, native to central and western China. |

[2] A spirit screen, also called spirit wall or screen wall, (Chinese: 影壁; pinyin: Yǐngbì; lit. ‘shadow wall’ or Chinese: 照壁; pinyin: Zhàobì) is used to shield an entrance gate in traditional Chinese architecture. These walls are always erected on the south side, thus if you walk straight, you’re sure to hit it. |

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