Seeing him leaning against the railing, panting heavily, his chest heaving, Cheng Muyun frowned instantly and asked in a deep voice, "What's wrong? Why are you so flustered?"
There was a hint of tension in his voice—something that could make Zhang Qi so flustered could not be a trivial matter.
Zhang Qi suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, the fear almost overflowing from his pupils, his voice trembling: "Young Marshal! Outside the camp... a large group of people are coming with torches, shouting slogans, saying... saying they want to attack you!"
The word "punishment" struck Cheng Muyun's heart like a heavy hammer.
He felt a throbbing pain in his temples, as if something had exploded in his head, followed by a buzzing sound. The sound of the wind and the distant noise vanished instantly, leaving only that sharp, long piercing sound, like static from a suddenly interrupted signal, making his vision go black.
He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails almost dug into his palms before he could barely steady himself and asked in a hoarse voice, "How many people are coming?"
Zhang Qi took a deep breath of the smoky air, his Adam's apple bobbing, and uttered two words with difficulty: "Quite a few."
The last word was still hanging in mid-air when suddenly a deafening shout came from downstairs, dense and overwhelming, like a tidal wave.
Cheng Muyun suddenly turned around and looked at the entrance of the military camp—countless torches were surging from the end of the road, forming a leaping sea of fire that illuminated half of the night sky as bright as day.
In the firelight, there were distorted faces, their ferocious expressions becoming even more terrifying under the interplay of light and shadow. The shouts, accompanied by the crackling of the flames, crashed fiercely into the military camp, and also into Cheng Muyun's suddenly gloomy eyes.
The reporters seemed to have received instructions beforehand; the crowd that had been huddled together just moments before instantly parted to both sides, creating a straight path. Their movements were strangely swift.
The next second, countless cameras were aimed at the surging torches, and flashes of light went off one after another. One after another, blinding white lights pierced the night, like lightning that suddenly struck down, stabbing hard into Cheng Muyun's eyes, causing him to subconsciously squint.
More and more people gathered, and the dense crowd quickly blocked the gate of the military camp, completely surrounding it from all sides.
By the flickering firelight, one could see that the leaders were mostly young and strong workers, their coarse cloth jackets soaked with sweat, and the five black characters "Remove Cheng Muyun" on the wooden sign they held high were particularly glaring in the firelight.
Some people screamed at the top of their lungs, the words "murderer" flying at them like poisoned pebbles, one after another.
Cheng Muyun felt as if an invisible hand suddenly gripped his throat, and the feeling of suffocation spread through his blood vessels to his limbs and bones.
He stumbled and nearly fell, frantically grabbing the railing behind him. His knuckles turned white from the force, and the cold metallic touch couldn't suppress the turbulent emotions surging within him.
The shouts continued to rise, one wave higher than the next, making his eardrums ring—
"The Dongzhou Army oppressed the people! Blood must be paid for!"
"Cheng Muyun, the murderer! He condones his subordinates' disregard for human life!"
"Dongzhou Army, get out of Xinhai City! Give us justice!"
"Cheng Yuguang failed in his command and protected his rebellious son! He deserves to die!"
"Cheng Muyun is smuggling arms, enriching himself, and plotting a rebellion!"
Every word was like a red-hot branding iron, searing into Cheng Muyun's heart.
He gazed down at the crowd below, engulfed in anger and flames, his eyes darkening to an extreme degree, as if the air around him had frozen into ice.
These accusations came too suddenly and too densely, like a carefully woven net that caught him off guard and trapped him in the center.
Cheng Muyun spotted a few students from Aurora College in the crowd, and a heavy feeling settled over him.
Those who were once protected by him have now turned against him.
Cheng Muyun's expression was solemn as he looked at the ferocious faces of those holding torches, his anger rising ever higher.
"Where did these people come from?"
Zhang Qi said, "Many of them were among those who participated in the violent suppression, as well as quite a few students and merchants who were previously oppressed."
"The people who oppressed the merchants have been identified; they weren't from the Dongzhou military camp."
Zhang Qi looked troubled. "Young Marshal, sometimes people don't believe the truth; they only believe what they want to believe."
Cheng Muyun narrowed his eyes. "Is someone stirring things up?"
Zhang Qi nodded, "These workers are basically from Chairman Luo's factory."
A terrifying glint flashed in Cheng Muyun's eyes.
Chairman Luo is trying to completely destroy him.
Cheng Muyun asked, "Is Madam safe?"
Zhang Qi said, "All the roads out are blocked by rioters, and I can't get any information."
Cheng Muyun realized something and immediately rushed down.
If these people are here to attack Cheng Muyun, then they only need to come to the main gate. If they give the reporters exposure, their plan will be half accomplished.
Why block the door?
Why prevent messages from coming in?
So the goal wasn't to attack Cheng Muyun, but to trap him here.
Chairman Luo, by using public opinion to trap Cheng Muyun here, means that his target is Xu Zhuohua, who is currently alone at home.
Once Xu Zhuohua is dead, Luo Yunqiao will no longer have to suffer.
This was originally a perfect plan that Chairman Luo had been working on for countless days and nights.
Xu Zhuohua comes from an ordinary family. The Xu family is just a small family in Xinhai City. Even if they find out about their daughter's accident and make a fuss, they won't be able to cause much of a stir or make any fatal impact.
He had calculated that as long as Cheng Muyun's reputation was completely ruined by these framing, and he fell from grace into the mire, he would inevitably need external support—and he, as Cheng Muyun's nominal "father-in-law," was the most suitable backer.
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