"Alright, let's establish the Jiang Ye Star Daily and the Jiang Ye Star Publishing House," Jiang Ye said.
"Why not merge them into one, the Jiang Ye Star Daily Publishing House? One organization responsible for publishing books and newspapers," Feng Zhi Shuang suggested. "You can appoint trusted confidants as the heads of the publishing house."
"Are we almost done deciding then?" Jiang Ye asked.
"The scale hasn't been set yet," Feng Zhi Shuang said. "The scale is the most crucial part; media in different scaled environments are entirely different."
Jiang Ye pondered for a moment, took out his phone, and dictated while taking notes:
"The media can report on my mistakes or the army's mistakes, but they are not allowed to spread rumors or insult."
"Everyone can express dissatisfaction with my mistakes online or on television programs, and they can also insult, but they cannot spread rumors."
"Establish an online content rating system. The older the age, the more content is uncensored. After 25 years old, all content can be browsed. I will determine the specific ratings later."
"Large-scale photos can be published, but they must be voluntarily taken. No surreptitious filming or forced filming."
"It is strictly forbidden to have content that teaches others to commit crimes, and the spread of cults is prohibited. Religions permitted by me can be propagated within a certain range, and legal folk organizations can publish legal information. Oh, Feng Zhi Shuang, I previously asked you to create a set of original laws, how is that progressing?"
Feng Zhi Shuang nodded. "It's almost done. It's drafted based on your ideas and the laws of similar planets. I estimate I can show it to you within a week."
"Good, then I'm relieved," Jiang Ye said. "Is that about it?"
"It's about done. You just need to transfer the money to me, and we can start construction," Xu Yan said. "Of course, you also need to decide on the locations for the television station, radio station, and publishing house."
"Put them all in Petroleum City," Jiang Ye said. "Petroleum City has the Art Museum and the Grand Theater, and there are still empty spots on that street. Put them all there. Then, build a small one in Binhai City, for example, the Jiang Ye Star Television Station Binhai Branch, and the Jiang Ye Star Daily Publishing House Binhai Branch."
"No problem!"
With the matters settled, Jiang Ye headed back.
As soon as he left the building and got into his car, he saw Xu Yan running over in a hurry, holding an umbrella and waving.
Jiang Ye quickly opened the car door again. Xu Yan nimbly closed her umbrella and got in.
"There's something I'd like to ask you for," Xu Yan said, her face flushed with embarrassment.
"Please, go ahead," Jiang Ye said, surprised that Xu Yan would ask him for a favor.
"Do you have any officers in your army between thirty and thirty-five years old, over 1.75 meters tall, with a university education, decent looks, and a rank above captain?" Xu Yan's face turned even redder. "Could you... introduce a few suitable ones to me?"
Jiang Ye couldn't help but chuckle.
"Don't laugh!" Xu Yan lightly hit him, completely flustered. "I'm serious!"
"Captains and majors, there should be some who meet your criteria," Jiang Ye said with a smile. "But are you sure you want to find someone from the army as a husband? It's a time of war, and the profession of a soldier is very dangerous."
"I hope to find someone in a civilian role, not so dangerous," Xu Yan said, her face as red as a cooked shrimp. "It depends on the person. If the person is suitable, anything is fine."
"How about this, I'll organize a banquet later, a matchmaking banquet, and pick some good young men to attend," Jiang Ye said after thinking. "Then you can dress up beautifully and attend the banquet."
"No! With so many men and only me as a woman, it'll be so awkward!" Xu Yan exclaimed in horror. "If you're having a matchmaking banquet, at least arrange for some women to go with me."
"Of course!" Jiang Ye explained the strategy. "I'll specifically find some ugly, old, poor, unfashionable actresses with many flaws to accompany you! That way, you won't be so awkward, and you can pick the handsome young men from the crowd."
Xu Yan's eyes widened, and she gave Jiang Ye a thumbs-up.
"Okay, I'll entrust my life's major event to you!" Xu Yan opened her umbrella, waved goodbye, and got out of the car, splashing through the rain-soaked street.
Jiang Ye smiled and piloted his car into the sky, heading home. Xu Yan's request indicated that she intended to settle on this planet, which meant their cooperative relationship could extend for many years. There were plenty of good young men in the army, and if nothing unexpected happened, one of them should be suitable to tie her down.
For the next week, Jiang Ye shuttled back and forth to Birong Star, battling the Happy Flu.
The military's disinfectant had been developed, specifically targeting the Happy Flu virus and its potential mutated strains. It was prohibitively expensive, costing as much as oil. Jiang Ye Star's military bases had stockpiled over 200 tons of disinfectant, which was diluted and added to the sanitation systems. They used an average of 10 tons per day. Birong Star's consumption was even higher, requiring over thirty tons daily.
The source of the virus remained unknown, but the flu's transmission speed was astonishing.
Monday, 68 planets, 24 million confirmed cases.
Tuesday, 69 planets, 362 million confirmed cases.
Thursday, 70 planets, 2.28 billion confirmed cases.
Saturday, 70 planets, 6.301 billion confirmed cases.
Weekend, 70 planets, 19.8 billion confirmed cases!
The death toll had also surged to 4 million.
Concurrently, the military database indicated that these figures were only the sum of reports from medical institutions. A large number of cases were not sent to medical institutions for treatment, and some medical institutions were paralyzed and unable to report more cases. According to models, the actual number of infections would be more than 50% higher.
Jiang Ye did not doubt the veracity of these figures at all, as his own camp was already piled high with corpses.
The fortress had become a den of infection. Soldiers who went there would get infected, and they would get infected. The Happy Flu wiped them out almost daily. Jiang Ye had to take an execution squad to the fortress every six hours to execute those lying on the ground, delirious. A lot of disinfectant had been sprayed, and the fortress, inside and out, was almost soaked in disinfectant, yet the number of infections remained stubbornly high, which was truly bizarre.
On Thursday afternoon, Jiang Ye himself was infected once. He was wearing his mecha the entire time and couldn't understand how he got infected.
After collapsing for a minute, he finally understood what the disease felt like. His entire body felt like it was being thrown into a pot filled with happiness hormones and boiled over high heat, cooking his bones and flesh until they were soft. He was so exhilarated that his vision went black, his ears rang with pleasure, and his mind was filled with thoughts of "just a little more pleasure," making it difficult to resist.
However, Jiang Ye's willpower was extraordinary. After convulsing for more than half an hour, during a moment of slight clarity, he struggled to climb out of his mecha, crawled shakily to the rooftop of the fortress, and jumped off, drenched in sweat. The moment he landed, all the pleasure vanished, and he went offline.
The conditions in other camps on Birong Star were not much better, as evident from the rankings of Jiang Shui Tang. In just one week, Jiang Shui Tang had climbed to third place on the entire planet!
On Sunday evening, Jiang Ye crawled out of the remote control cabin to rest. He lay motionless on the sofa, troubled by the dire situation in his camp and unsure of what to do.
Suddenly, his phone vibrated.
He picked it up and saw that the source of the virus had been identified!