Liang Kailai only dared to joke about Fu Sinian in his own mind—he wouldn’t dare say a word to his face.
He stood at attention and saluted, speaking respectfully, “Regimental Commander Fu, your wound…”
At the mention of Fu Sinian’s injury, both of them looked at his right arm. A stream of dark red blood was slowly flowing down from his arm, seeping through the sleeve, which Fu Sinian was gripping tightly with his palm.
His voice was low, and he didn’t even furrow his brow as he said, “It’s nothing. How’s the prisoner situation?”
“Reporting! Commander Fu, the prisoner has been successfully handed over without any information leaking. I also just helped the railway police catch two human traffickers,” Liang Kailai replied.
Fu Sinian and Liang Kailai had left the military unit this time to carry out a special covert mission—to capture an important prisoner and obtain classified intelligence.
Because the mission was extremely dangerous, the unit had specially issued them secret equipment before departure. For example, the antidote Fu Sinian had just fed Jiang Tang was part of that equipment.
The mission was completed successfully, but the level of danger had exceeded expectations. Fu Sinian was injured during the operation—a bullet passed through his shoulder blade, nearly crippling his arm entirely.
Fortunately, he was blessed with good fortune. His arm was saved, though the injury was quite severe.
Fu Sinian had gone into the restroom to re-bandage his wound, but he hadn’t expected Jiang Tang to crash into him, rubbing against his chest and shoulder.
It was both sweet and torturous.
That was when the wound had started seeping blood, yet he never once pushed Jiang Tang away.
Just as Liang Kailai finished reporting on official matters, he suddenly leaned close to Fu Sinian and lowered his voice. “Commander Fu, I heard your wife is a local. You haven’t been back in five years—shouldn’t you seize the chance to go see her?”
Fu Sinian didn’t answer. He simply turned and stepped off the train.
He already had his answer in his heart, because… he had seen her.
Jiang Tang… she seemed different from five years ago.
Fu Sinian thought of what Jiang Tang had just said: “My husband is also a soldier. He and I have a harmonious relationship—we’re a loving couple.”
Were those truly her heartfelt words?
Wasn’t she the one who had been writing letters demanding a divorce for the past five years?
At the thought, Fu Sinian’s brows knitted tightly together. His handsome features took on a stern, sharp edge—more irritating than the pain of his wound.
In his blood-stained, clenched palm lingered the soft sensation of Jiang Tang’s touch and the faint, sweet fragrance of her.
Just moments ago, he had not only held her waist but also grasped her hand.
Liang Kailai suddenly noticed Fu Sinian walking faster and quickly caught up. “Commander Fu, what are we going to do?”
“What about those two traffickers? I have evidence of their crimes in my hands. I want to interrogate them myself!” Fu Sinian’s tone was low and heavy, each word landing with an icy, bloody edge.
Thinking of what Jiang Tang had gone through today—if she hadn’t run into him, what would a young woman like her have done?
Fu Sinian’s hanging hand clenched tightly into a fist.
…
When Jiang Tang left, she told Fu Sinian she had urgent matters to attend to. That wasn’t just a casual excuse—she truly did have something urgent!
She had just changed the original owner’s fate, but the original owner still had two children. If the original owner could be sold for money, could the two children be sold too?
She had to hurry back and check.
The original owner’s two children were twins—a boy and a girl. The boy was the older brother, named Fu Chaoyang, and the girl was the younger sister, named Fu Chuyue.
“Brother… I’m hungry…”
The two small children huddled close together, curled up in the corner of the kitchen. They wore gray, dusty clothes and dirty pants, and their shoes had holes in them—they looked nothing like children of this well-off household.
Their little faces were remarkably similar, as if carved from the same mold, except the boy had slightly deeper features and the girl had rounder eyes. Both had the same jet-black, bright, and clear eyes with distinct pupils and whites.
Chaochao was the older brother. At this moment, he held Yueyue even tighter, placing his small hand on her belly and gently rubbing it.
“Yueyue, bear with it a little longer. As long as Mom comes back, we’ll have something to eat,” Chaochao said softly, his little lips cracked. These two children hadn’t even had a sip of water, let alone a meal.
Yueyue raised her big, black-grape-like eyes to look at her brother and asked timidly in a small voice, “Mom… will she really give us food?”
“She will. She definitely will.” Chaochao hugged his sister tightly and said, “Yueyue, big brother is holding you. Hold on tight, and you won’t feel so hungry.”
“Brother, I miss Mom. I want to eat big steamed buns…”
The siblings pressed close together for warmth, heads leaning against each other, little hands clasped together.
They had been inseparable like this ever since they were in Jiang Tang’s belly.
Even if the original owner had treated them terribly, in Chaochao and Yueyue’s hearts, she was still the mother they loved most.
Just as the two poor little things were squinting their eyes, about to fall asleep, a sudden bang—the kitchen door was kicked open with force.
The person who walked in was Jiang Qinghuan, the daughter of Jiang Tang’s unscrupulous uncle Jiang Dehai. She was only three years younger than Jiang Tang. Ever since she moved into Jiang Tang’s two-story attic, her arrogant and domineering nature had gradually revealed itself. She truly treated the place as her own home, and herself as a pampered young lady of wealth and status.
As soon as Jiang Qinghuan entered, she lifted the pot lid and immediately started shouting, “Where are my meat buns! Where did my meat buns go?”
Then, Jiang Qinghuan’s gaze landed on the twins, who were trembling at the mere sound of her voice.
She stood in front of the two children with her hands on her hips, pointing her sharp nails at them.
“What are you two sneaking around in the kitchen for? Did you steal and eat my meat buns? You two little beggars, now you’ve turned into thieves! Hand over what you stole!”
Yueyue was so frightened by Jiang Qinghuan’s fierce and terrifying demeanor that she quickly hid behind Chaochao.
Chaochao stepped forward to shield his sister, lifting his small face and looking at Jiang Qinghuan with his dark, bright eyes. Despite his young age, he spoke with proper manners and composure.
“Yueyue and I were just looking for something to eat in the kitchen, but there were no meat buns here like you said, and we didn’t steal any. This is our home. Looking for food here isn’t stealing, so you can’t call me a thief.”
“Your home? Hahaha… how ridiculous. How is this your home? If it’s your home, then why aren’t your parents here? If you have the guts, call your mother over! You two little brats, what big talk! You dare to say this is your home? You must not want to live! Go on, call her! Call your mother over!”
Jiang Qinghuan, a grown adult, was arguing with a four or five-year-old child without a shred of shame, even laughing smugly and triumphantly.
At the mention of his mother Jiang Tang, the little boy’s expression turned grim.
Because he knew very well that Jiang Tang wouldn’t care about them at all.
The marriage five years ago was not what the original owner had wanted. The pain of the wedding night and the tragic reality of becoming pregnant after just one night made the original owner hate these two children to the core. She believed it was their existence that made Fu Sinian refuse to agree to a divorce.
So the original owner never looked after the two children and simply dumped them on the uncle’s family.
Children without a mother’s care, falling into the hands of a greedy and vicious family, naturally had no good fate.
Under Jiang Tang’s neglect, these two little children not only had to wash dishes, do laundry, sweep floors, and handle chores every day, but sometimes they couldn’t even get a single meal. Jiang Qinghuan’s family would only occasionally toss them a corn bun or two when they were in a good mood.
In an era of scarce resources, Jiang Qinghuan’s family used the money left by Jiang Tang’s parents and spent the allowance Fu Sinian sent every month, feasting on meat daily while abusing Jiang Tang’s children.
Seeing the little boy at a loss for words, Jiang Qinghuan laughed even more arrogantly and said smugly.
“Hahaha… Still thinking about that heartless, stupid mother of yours? She’s already run off with some other man! She doesn’t want you anymore! No mother, no father—you two are just little bastards! Hear that? You’re fatherless, motherless little bastards! And you little bastards still dare to say this is your home! Even if I starve you to death, no one would care!”
“Why should Jiang Tang be born a rich young lady of a capitalist family, while I’m just the child of a poor worker! Why should she get to marry a military commander as his wife! I won’t accept it! I won’t accept it!… But now, that stupid woman Jiang Tang has run off with some scumbag, and everything in this house is mine! All of it belongs to my family!”
“You two fatherless, motherless little bastards listen carefully—from today on, this is my home! This is Jiang Qinghuan’s house! That stupid mother of yours abandoned you long ago!”