This female comrade was Zhao Lingcheng’s aunt, Zhao Hui.
She was actually an adopted daughter. Her adoptive parents had five children of their own—all boys.
They had always wanted a daughter, and during the war, they adopted Zhao Hui.
After living through the years of war, those five boys were either dead or scattered. Among the younger generation, only Zhao Lingcheng remained.
The Zhao family had always been surrounded by sacrifice, constantly receiving the ashes of fallen martyrs. This was the first time they had heard news of a new life.
For Zhao Hui’s aging adoptive father, this would undoubtedly be tremendous news.
But for now, she had neither contacted her distant father, a senior military officer, nor dared to disturb Zhao Lingcheng.
Because she knew better than anyone how heavy Zhao Lingcheng’s responsibilities were.
Besides, she had practically raised him herself. She understood him well—although he had a fiery temper and a strong personality, he was not someone who acted recklessly.
She had also specifically asked his superiors about his divorce and confirmed that it was requested by the woman.
But after the divorce, the woman claimed she was pregnant and said the child belonged to the Zhao family. Could that be trusted?
The Zhao family had waited far too long for a child—but what if the woman was joking, or even trying to deceive them?
Zhao Hui changed into civilian clothes, intending to quietly investigate the matter in private.
After entering the city, she instructed the driver to head straight to the post office. However, what first caught her attention was the commotion across the street at the state-run guesthouse.
…
Xu Cigang had just filled two thermoses with boiling water and greeted Director Jiang with a smile. “Busy, Director?”
Director Jiang nodded. “Cigang, you’re 21 now, right? Quite tall.”
At 21, although his eyes were a bit small, he could still be considered fairly handsome.
As he passed by Chen Mianmian, he curled his lips slightly and went upstairs.
Director Jiang happened to glance toward the gate and shouted angrily, “Wu Jingjing, instead of sweeping the yard, where are you running off to again?”
Wu Jingjing was about to report a case. She had almost slipped out the gate but abruptly turned back. “I’m going to the toilet.”
She went around to the backyard latrine, jumped over the wooden board covering the pit, stepped onto the red bricks stacked against the wall, climbed up the wall, and jumped out.
Director Jiang urged Chen Mianmian, “Hurry up and go, or your mother will start worrying.”
Holding a basin and bedding, Chen Mianmian walked out into the yard, sat on the steps by the gatehouse, and unbuttoned her coat.
The sunlight was dazzling, but warm on her body. As a pregnant woman, it was just right for getting some calcium.
Soon, two female workers came out of the post office across the street and wandered over to bask in the sun as well.
One asked, “Miss, are you planning to go to the army to find your husband?”
The other asked, “Is your child okay? What about your younger brother? What did the police find?”
They had followed everything yesterday and came back today for updates.
Chen Mianmian sighed. “Xu Xiaomei has already come back. My brother should be back soon too.”
A traveler brushing his teeth spat out foam and said, “Impersonating someone to get into the steel pipe factory—just one night in detention?”
The two postal workers said in unison, “There’s something wrong with how the police handled that!”
Chen Mianmian cried sincerely, “The doctor said my baby is in danger and I need to rest, but the guesthouse kicked me out. I have to walk 40 kilometers back to my parents’ home. I just hope my baby can hold on… sob…”
The man brushing his teeth said, “Forty kilometers? What if you miscarry?”
An elderly woman from next door came over with her cane. “There are wolves and bears out in the Gobi. They’ll eat you!”
Although there was a bus to the countryside, it didn’t pass through the village.
And in the northwestern Gobi at this time, wolves and bears were indeed common and could attack people—Little Niuniu had been eaten by a wolf.
But in this era, people in small cities all knew each other, and public opinion was just as powerful as it would be in the future.
Did Xu Xiaomei think driving her away would solve everything?
Chen Mianmian was actually pleased. She could use public opinion to settle the drowning-and-forced-marriage case.
The man brushing his teeth shouted, “Why won’t the guesthouse let a pregnant woman stay?”
The elderly woman also raised her voice, “Director Jiang, why are you driving out a pregnant woman?”
Chen Mianmian pretended to panic. “Keep your voice down. Xu Xiaomei has powerful connections. Be careful or she’ll call the police on you.”
The man laughed. “Isn’t she just an accountant? What connections could she have?”
The elderly woman added, “She’s got three dependent younger brothers and a poor mother—just an ordinary family.”
Quancheng was a new industrial city. People with real backing were usually high-ranking military officials. Ordinary people didn’t have much influence.
Seeing more and more people gathering, Chen Mianmian lowered her voice. “But her three brothers are all militia. One of them is even a squad leader.”
She glanced toward the yard. “I’m scared… what if I leave the city…”
Just then, Xu Cigang came out. The elderly woman looked at him and said, “Wearing green—he really is militia.”
Then she imagined further: “Could he be planning to arrest you and send you to a labor camp?”
Quancheng had five labor reform farms where “rightists” from all over the country were sent, guarded by militia.
The man said, “Arrest a pregnant woman and send her to labor reform? Are they insane?”
A postal worker added, “Using militia status to arrest people at will—that’s too dark.”
Chen Mianmian fanned the flames. “They’re militia. They can label anyone a rightist if they want.”
From outside the crowd, a female cadre said loudly, “The central government has repeatedly issued directives forbidding people from being labeled as rightists arbitrarily. What kind of background does the Xu family have to dare defy this?”
Xu Cigang heard everything, turned around, and went back into the accounting office—probably pretending nothing happened.
But Director Jiang came running out. “Xiao Chen, we’ve prepared a good room for you. Go stay there.”
Weren’t they the ones who had just kicked her out with all her belongings? Now they wanted her back?
Chen Mianmian refused. Before the police arrived, she still needed to stir up the crowd.
Director Jiang tried to pull her. “You’re a divorced woman. Your parents’ home is your only support. Don’t go too far.”
Chen Mianmian bent forward and held her stomach. “Ah! Why did you hit my stomach? It hurts!”
Director Jiang jumped back in fright, raising both hands. “I didn’t do anything!”
The women shouted in unison, “She’s pregnant—don’t touch her!”
Cursing under his breath, Director Jiang left angrily.
Someone brought a chair and helped Chen Mianmian sit down. “Sit and rest—don’t upset the baby.”
The elderly woman said, “Your belly is pointed—it must be a boy.”
Another added, “With your small face and big eyes, you’ll definitely have a very handsome boy.”
At that moment, Chen Mianmian’s belly moved. The elderly woman smiled knowingly. “Look, he’s moving.”
A postal worker said, “Good boy—he heard us praising him and got excited.”
As the pregnancy progressed, fetal movement became more obvious.
Although they had only depended on each other for a day, the unborn child had already become Chen Mianmian’s emotional support.
She lifted her belly and said loudly, “No—I hope it’s a girl.”
From ancient times until now, the preference for sons over daughters had always existed.
The elderly woman said, “Daughters aren’t worth much. You need a son.”
A postal worker added, “Sons are better—they’ll support you in the future.”
Chen Mianmian said loudly, “No! When I got married, my bride price was a full 500 yuan!”
The crowd was shocked. “Five hundred yuan—that’s a lifetime’s worth of money!”
At that time, 500 yuan had enormous purchasing power.
A female cadre outside the crowd said, “You must have deposited it all in the bank. The interest alone must be significant.”
Bank interest rates could reach as high as 7%.
Depositing 500 yuan could earn interest equal to a person’s monthly salary.
The crowd looked at her with envy.
But when Chen Mianmian glanced back at the guesthouse, her eyes dimmed. “I handed all that money over to Xu Xiaomei myself.”
The elderly woman understood immediately. “They sold you so your brother could marry her.”
Chen Mianmian sighed. “Back then, Xu Xiaomei was already pregnant. She said if my brother didn’t marry her, she would accuse him of rape. My brother was only 18 then and had just gotten a stable job at the steel pipe factory.”
Xu Xiaomei was five years older than Chen Jinhui. She forced the marriage with her pregnancy and gave birth to a son soon after, who was now being raised in their hometown.
…
The female cadre said, “So your brother was originally facing a rape charge, and because of you, he avoided prison?”
Chen Mianmian gently stroked her belly. “So daughters are valuable too. Both Xu Xiaomei and I were worth 500 yuan.”
A man said, “Miss, it’s fine to have a bride price, but you should have kept it yourself.”
He added, “Selling children is a feudal remnant. What your brother did was wrong.”
Chen Mianmian said innocently, “But the Xu brothers are militia. My brother said if he didn’t marry her and didn’t pay 500 yuan, they would frame him as a hooligan and a rightist and beat him to death in a labor camp. I asked my officer ex-husband for a high bride price just to save my brother’s life.”
A man said, “Sounds like your brother and his wife tricked you together to get your bride price money.”
Chen Mianmian lowered her eyes sadly. “I thought if I sold myself, they would be grateful and love me, but…”
The elderly woman struck her cane. “Silly child—if they can sell you once, they can sell you again.”
Chen Mianmian stroked her belly. “They can do whatever they want to me, but they must not harm my child!”
She had noticed a pattern: the baby moved about every hour, usually every fifteen minutes. At that moment, her belly shifted under her sweater.
“Look, my daughter is moving. I don’t want to lose her.”
The movement of the fetus stirred anger among the crowd. “What kind of family is this? Heartless beasts!”
Someone whispered, “Look—it’s Xu Xiaomei and her brother.”
Immediately, people spat in disdain.
Xu Cigang was pushing a bicycle, and Xu Xiaomei was carrying a travel bag—they looked like they were about to leave town.
Chen Mianmian said at the right moment, “That bicycle was bought with my bride price.”
The crowd looked at them with contempt, while Xu Xiaomei, though appearing calm, felt her head buzzing.
She didn’t understand what had gotten into her sister-in-law.
They were all women—wasn’t it natural to support one’s family and younger brothers?
Xu Xiaomei’s father had died early, and she had raised her three younger brothers with her mother. Had she ever complained?
Chen Mianmian felt wronged, but how could she know how much Xu Xiaomei had suffered for her brothers?
Originally, Xu Xiaomei thought driving her away would solve everything, but instead, Chen Mianmian was spreading rumors outside, making things worse.
Unable to deal with it, she decided to leave and stay at her parents’ home for a while.
But just as she hung the travel bag on the bicycle, someone said, “Why are the police here again?”
Chen Mianmian, who had been acting weak, suddenly became bold and pointed at Xu Cigang. “I’m reporting Xu Cigang by name—he has killed someone. He’s a murderer!”
All eyes in the crowd turned to Xu Cigang.
Chen Mianmian continued shouting, “Look! He’s been exposed—he’s panicking and trying to run!”
Zhao Hui was the female cadre who had asked about the bride price. Although she and Chen Mianmian had never formally met, she had seen her photo and recognized her.
She had rushed here after receiving the telegram, intending to confirm the Zhao family’s bloodline, but instead stumbled upon a potential murder case.
As a soldier, she acted decisively and focused on the suspect. She pointed at Xu Cigang. “Stop right there!”
The crowd quickly surrounded him.
Seeing the situation turn bad, Xu Xiaomei shouted angrily, “Chen Mianmian, you’re talking nonsense! Be careful or I’ll have you detained by the police!”
Just like Chen Jinhui had never beaten his sister, Xu Cigang had never killed anyone.
Xu Xiaomei believed this, and so did Xu Cigang. He pushed Zhao Hui aside. “Miss, please don’t block the way.”
But Zhao Hui grabbed his bicycle. “If you haven’t killed anyone, just explain it to the police. Why are you running?”
At that moment, the police arrived. Xu Xiaomei rushed forward first. “My sister-in-law is spreading rumors—quick, arrest her!”
She was confident because Xu Cigang had indeed never killed anyone.
But what she didn’t know was that the drowning incident they had once conspired in was essentially attempted murder.
And that was exactly what Chen Mianmian intended to expose.