Accumulated Anger

Chapter 42 Accumulated Anger

Early in the morning, Martin drove away from the Clayton neighborhood and arrived at a parking lot near Highway 265. Less than ten minutes later, Barkley arrived in his car.

The two cars stopped together. Barkley got out and handed Martin his bag: "Everything's in there."

Martin opened the bag; the recorder, camera, press pass, and interview pass were all there. He took out an envelope and stuffed it into Barkley's hand.

Barkley quickly counted them and smiled with satisfaction.

Martin said, "Wait for my call."

"It's okay, no rush." ​​Barkley was still a little uneasy and gently reminded him, "You won't do anything illegal, right?"

Martin said, "I am a civilized man and will only attend the Methodist press conference in the name of your newspaper."

Barkley nodded, got into the car and drove away, but then he thought about it again and felt that something was wrong.

Martin drove to the club, went into the backstage dressing room, and took out the prepared cosmetics.

Bruce pushed the door open and came in, asking, "Why didn't you let that reporter go?"

Martin opened his makeup bag: "Even if you give him money, he might not ask a question in a way that completely infuriates someone."

Bruce said, "Man, I have a feeling that working with you is going to be a disaster."

Martin retorted, "A civilized man who dares to confront the British with mortar shells, is he afraid of a man whose brother is unreliable?"

"I'm afraid you'll poke the earth apart!" Bruce exclaimed, seeing Martin's expert makeup application. "You can do this too?"

Martin shrugged: "I'm an actor, Jack Davis..."

Bruce interrupted him: "I know Jack Davis is the most talented man in America, and you're his bastard son."

Martin snapped his fingers: "Congratulations, civilized man, you've learned a new skill—quick-answering!"

Makeup was one of the few benefits he gained from his many years as an actor in his previous life.

After Martin finished his makeup, put on a wig, and wore a pair of brown glasses, he changed into a well-fitting old-fashioned suit, looking like a conservative and rigid middle-aged man.

It would be difficult for someone who doesn't know him well to recognize him.

This was specially prepared by Martin according to his conservative style.

The two got into the Ford, and Bruce drove to the training center, saying, "Be careful, don't get beaten to death on the spot, or the shit in your brain will spill out, and the whole world will know you're brainless."

Martin pulled out his press pass: "I'm a journalist now."

The car stopped near the training center, and Martin got out, raised his camera, and took pictures of the crowd at the Wild Beast House.

Upon arriving at the entrance, Martin blended in with the other reporters, showed his press card and interview pass, and successfully entered the training center.

Martin also saw several familiar faces: a female TV reporter who had interviewed him outside the House of the Wild Things and a male reporter from the Constitutional Gazette.

Just in case, he deliberately kept his distance.

…………

The press conference was held in the training center lobby, where Ms. Jennifer directed the volunteers to set up the venue.

Elena was given the task of pasting the names of the media outlets participating in the press conference on the back of their chairs.

She posted the name of the Star Newspaper on the first row.

Jennifer then said, "There will be a Q&A session during the press conference. The microphone needs to be handed over to the reporter asking the question, with one person on each side."

Elena immediately stepped forward: "Madam."

Jennifer remembered Elena, who had reported the Wild Things House, and nodded: "Okay, the left side is yours."

Meanwhile, Martin and other journalists from Atlanta and Georgia were preparing to enter the press conference venue.

Two staff members from the training center came over to hand out lunch vouchers.

The intention behind using it at nearby upscale restaurants is self-evident.

Martin then stuffed it into his pocket, mingled with dozens of reporters, entered the venue, and quickly found a seat in the first row.

The press conference began, hosted by Jennifer, with a family representative who participated in the training taking the stage to express their gratitude to the Methodist Association.

A member of the Atlanta City Council praised their work highly.

Milton took the stage to speak, denouncing the absurd remarks and behavior of liberals and reiterating his position.

When it came to the Q&A session, Jennifer first called on a reporter from the Atlanta Constitutional Journal.

This is Atlanta's best-selling local newspaper.

Milton answered the Constitutional Daily reporter's questions with ease, as they were conventional.

"Next question." Jennifer glanced at the dozens of reporters.

Martin and the other two rows of reporters were the first to catch her eye.

The middle-aged male reporter, dressed in old-fashioned clothes, with a stiff demeanor and conservative attire, had just caught her attention, and she immediately pointed out, "This reporter in the gray suit."

Elena tried to be natural and handed the microphone to Martin.

Martin took the microphone and said, "Mr. Milton, you are a legend in Atlanta, and your ideas and beliefs have illuminated the land of Georgia."

Upon hearing this, Milton's tense demeanor eased slightly when facing reporters, and a faint smile appeared on his usually stern face.

Just as everyone was relaxing, Martin thrust his knife into their deepest wound: "Was all of this caused by your two ex-wives' infidelity?"

Before anyone could react, Martin spoke rapidly: "I interviewed Jessica and Lina. They said they cheated on you because of your incompetence. You couldn't satisfy them, yet you refused to divorce them. Out of desperation, they cheated on you with other men in your bedroom, under your wedding photos."

Everything he said pointed to Milton's incompetence, attributing Milton's ideas and propositions to his own incompetence: "So, your incompetence caused your extreme conservatism, right?"

Under normal circumstances, Milton's experience and knowledge would be sufficient to ensure that he could face these vicious questions with a calm demeanor.

But the scum at the House of the Beasts continued their protests and provocations day after day this Sunday.

Milton's second wife, Lina, had an affair with someone who publicly humiliated him in a bar. The news spread like wildfire, and not only his bar buddies but also his neighbors looked at him with strange eyes.

How can a man tolerate this?

Milton even lost his safe haven from his wife's harassment.

Jennifer gestured to the people on both sides of the venue, telling them to quickly take Martin's microphone away.

"Your question time is up." Elena was the first to rush forward and grab the microphone from Martin's hand.

She appeared to be struggling with Martin, but her tall figure blocked the two male staff members.

These days, Milton's already healed scars have been gradually reopened, and now they are being torn open and bleeding profusely.

Martin let go, and Elena snatched the microphone away.

Although it was a little late, Jennifer was quite pleased to see Elena snatch the microphone back.

The press conference was over; the reporters had gotten enough juicy scoops, so asking more questions was pointless. Going back to writing their reports was the only thing to do.

Jennifer said a few polite words and then announced the end of the press conference.

Reporters rushed out, some making phone calls as they went, asking newspapers or television stations to reserve space and time for their stories.

Two male staff members were "protecting" Martin as he left.

With so many reporters present, they couldn't possibly do anything.

Stepping out of the training center, Martin quickened his pace and turned into a nearby parking lot.

Bruce was standing in front of the Ford waiting for him, extremely disappointed: "You didn't get beaten to death."

Martin got into the car: "I'm a civilized person, I only do civilized things, and they were very polite in seeing me off."

Bruce started the car: "Where to?"

Martin removed the wig and put it away: "Go back and remove your makeup."

Back at the club, Martin removed his makeup and packed everything away.

He still had the meal voucher, which he took out and handed to Bruce: "High-end buffet restaurant, you can bring one female companion."

Bruce snatched it away, exclaiming, "I really admire you, you piece of shit, for getting the guy into trouble and taking the benefits too."

Martin said, "I regret it now and I want it back."

As Bruce stuffed the gun into his pocket, he pulled his jacket back, revealing a gun holster: "Are you sure?"

When a civilized person appeared, Martin offered to pay, saying, "It's on me."

The two left the club and headed to Highway 265, where they waited for Barkley in a parking lot near the Star Newspaper.

Martin handed the things back to him and said, "I've got some big news for you, listen to it."

Barkley turned on the speakerphone of the recorder and listened carefully.

Bruce was also listening intently, glancing at Martin every now and then. This guy's head was definitely full of shit!

"Great, great, that's really big news!" Barkley exclaimed excitedly. "Too bad it's not an exclusive."

Many stories automatically formed in his mind: "This will trigger a new round of media wars, the most intense kind!"

Martin asked, "In your experience, where is the focus of public opinion?"

Barkley immediately replied, "Of course it's freedom and brotherhood among men; that's a topic that's easy to get heated up."

"Thanks, Mr. Barkley." Martin prepared to leave. "I wish you the best of luck in winning the Pulitzer Prize."

Barkley got back to his car and rushed back to the newspaper office to finish his article. For a long time to come, he would have plenty of material to make up stories... no, news reports.

That evening, Milton's words appeared on television news.

In that case, it would be difficult to avoid controversy.

The newspapers and other print media were in an uproar.

Liberal and conservative media outlets attacked each other, and Milton, instead of backing down, reorganized his remarks from the press conference and published an even more incisive column.

The situation in Atlanta has become a media frenzy.

The conservatives, deeply entrenched in Georgia for years, decided to seize the opportunity to stir up a media storm, drawing all media attention to them.

The Atlanta council elections are just around the corner, and the lack of sufficient media attention could have serious consequences.

(End of this chapter)