Xu You pushed aside Chen Qingsong, who had been standing in front of her.
Her voice was cold. “Regiment Commander Peng, I understand that you want to find a scapegoat so you can feel a little better. But there are some things I still have to say. You know very well that if I hadn’t been there last night, your wife wouldn’t have survived.”
“Don’t rush to argue with me. I have one more thing to say. You should ask yourself why your wife was willing to risk her life by taking abortion medication. Where did she get it?”
Regiment Commander Peng’s dark, muscular body tensed, his eyes bloodshot as he stared fiercely at Xu You.
Xu You met his gaze openly and without fear.
“I, Xu You, have a clear conscience.”
The Peng family was still cursing and shouting when the chief’s guard arrived.
“Regiment Commander Peng, the chief wants to see you.”
Regiment Commander Peng never expected that this family matter would alarm the old chief.
The guard glanced at Xu You and announced loudly, “The chief said that Director Yang and the military headquarters will jointly investigate this matter. They will definitely give the victim justice. Everyone else, disperse.”
The Peng family left unwillingly, but their eyes were filled with hatred toward Xu You.
Chen Qingsong asked worriedly, “Were you frightened?”
Xu You shook her head.
“I’m used to it.”
Chen Qingsong looked at Xu You with sympathy.
“Don’t be afraid. They won’t dare do anything to you inside the military district, unless Regiment Commander Peng is willing to throw away his entire career.”
Xu You nodded.
“I didn’t do anything wrong, so I’m not afraid. We’ll just wait for the investigation results.”
Chen Qingsong coughed lightly.
“I just said that we’re going to get married. Are you willing?”
Xu You had originally thought that she and Chen Qingsong were simply together because they were suitable for each other. Normally, both of them were so busy that they barely acted like a couple at all.
She never expected that at a critical moment, Chen Qingsong would actually protect her and stand up to Regiment Commander Peng for her.
“Aren’t you afraid of offending Regiment Commander Peng?”
“Didn’t you just say you have a clear conscience?”
Xu You smiled.
“Mm. If you aren’t afraid of offending Regiment Commander Peng, why would I be unwilling to marry you?”
“Good. In a couple of days, I’ll prepare my marriage report. You submit your marriage application too, and then we’ll get married.”
Xu You nodded.
“Okay.”
Chen Qingsong walked Xu You back to the dormitory. He gently took her hand.
“If the Peng family comes looking for trouble again, tell me. Don’t be afraid of causing me trouble.”
Xu You nodded lightly.
“Okay.”
“I just got back from the meeting, and I still have to submit my report. I’ll leave first.”
Xu You nodded and watched Chen Qingsong walk away.
By the time Chen Qingsong finished his meeting, it was already seven o’clock.
He was about to go to the mess hall when a young soldier on guard duty came to find him.
“Battalion Commander Chen, your mother came looking for you just now. She said something important happened and asked you to go home.”
Chen Qingsong thanked him, picked up a boxed meal, and headed back to the family housing compound.
The moment he knocked on the door, his mother pulled him inside.
“I heard Xu You killed someone?”
Chen Qingsong said, “That’s nonsense. Don’t listen to people spreading rumors.”
“Fine. Even if that part is false, then tell me why you publicly said that you were going to marry her? What if the investigation really finds that Xu You had malicious intentions? What if her curse actually worked?”
Chen Qingsong glanced around the room. Seeing that Chu Ying wasn’t there, he patiently explained everything to his mother.
“Mom, don’t be fooled by how strict security is in the military district and how it hasn’t been affected by the political movements outside. That doesn’t mean we can promote feudal superstition.”
“Regiment Commander Peng came from the countryside. He was obsessed with the fact that Zhang Yan, the daughter of a capitalist family, was beautiful, and thought that he was a hero when he married her. What he doesn’t realize is that his career is basically ruined.”
“This time, Regiment Commander Peng allowed his family to go around talking about curses, and the matter even alarmed the chief. He’ll probably receive a disciplinary action.”
Chen Qingsong sighed.
“Xu You really does have strange luck. Last time, Deputy Regiment Commander Li of the Third Regiment was disciplined because of his preference for sons over daughters. This time, it’s Regiment Commander Peng’s turn.”
“Almost all the commanders in the Third Regiment have been taken down one after another. If I were in the Third Regiment, I might have had a chance to move up.”
Chen’s mother was also frightened. She secretly warned herself that she absolutely must not say anything reckless.
Still unwilling to accept it, she said, “But you didn’t have to bring up marriage.”
Chen Qingsong replied, “We were going to get married sooner or later. Bringing it up now will only make my sincerity more obvious.”
As a man, he had long since realized that Xu You had no romantic feelings for him. Unless they happened to run into each other, Xu You would never come looking for him.
And since he was focused on his career, he needed an independent partner.
The more he looked at Xu You, the more satisfied he was with her.
Chen’s mother was about to say something else when Chu Ying happened to open the door and return.
Chen Qingsong immediately stood up and left.
“Mom, go to bed early. I’m leaving.”
When Chu Ying saw Chen Qingsong, she immediately broke into a huge smile.
“Qingsong, have you eaten? Do you want me to cook you a bowl of noodles?”
Chen Qingsong shook his head. He didn’t want to say too much to Chu Ying and cause unnecessary trouble.
Ever since the incident when she fell into the water, Chen Qingsong had been deliberately avoiding Chu Ying.
The fact that he could take a liking to Xu You, a widow, didn’t mean he could take a liking to every widow.
He had always been very clear about what he wanted.
After Chen Qingsong left, Chu Ying asked Chen’s mother, “Mom, why did Qingsong suddenly come back? Did something happen?”
“Do you have any sugar coupons, cloth coupons, or anything like that? Give me some.”
Chu Ying didn’t move.
“I already sent you all the coupons I’d saved before. I can only wait until I get paid next month. If you need them urgently, I can go to school tomorrow and borrow some from someone.”
Chen’s mother said, “Qingsong is getting married. He’s a battalion commander, after all. I have to buy wedding candies to hand out. And we can’t be too stingy. We need to prepare some betrothal gifts too, otherwise people will laugh at us. When you have a day off, come into the city with me to buy some.”
Chu Ying clenched her fists.
“Why is he suddenly getting married?”
Chen’s mother looked at her eldest daughter-in-law disapprovingly.
“I’m warning you, get rid of any thoughts you shouldn’t have! Our Chen family only has Qingsong left as our sole heir. No one is allowed to stand in the way of our family line.”
Chu Ying forced a smile.
“Mom, before, after Qingsong saved me from drowning, I was afraid people would gossip, so I wanted him to marry me. But I’ve thought things through now.”
Chen’s mother said, “As long as you don’t cause trouble, our Chen family isn’t unreasonable.”
Chu Ying rolled her eyes.
“Mom, I contribute half of my salary to the family. Will Qingsong’s wife also contribute half of her salary after she marries into the family?”
“Of course. Which daughter-in-law in our town doesn’t do that?”
“But today, I ran into Dr. Xu at the post office. She sent fifty yuan to Shanghai.”
Chen’s mother sucked in a breath.
“Fifty yuan? Are you sure you heard correctly? Qingsong only earns seventy-two yuan a month. After deducting fourteen yuan for meals, he only has fifty-eight yuan left.”
Chu Ying was envious too.
“I asked around. Dr. Xu earns seventy-five yuan a month.”
Now Chen’s mother understood why Chen Qingsong insisted on marrying Xu You.
Her salary alone was one yuan higher than Qingsong’s!
Even if she had ten or eight children in the future, they could still afford to raise them.
She didn’t even dare imagine how much higher Xu You’s salary would be than Qingsong’s once she became a department director.
“Mom, what’s the use of a high salary if she doesn’t bring the money home? Isn’t that the same as having nothing? I’m better. I only earn thirty-one yuan a month, but I contribute fifteen yuan to the family.”
Chen’s mother immediately calmed down.
“Did you ask around to find out where Xu You sends her money?”
“I was picking up a parcel right next to her. I memorized the address.”
Chu Ying took out the address she had kept hidden in her pocket…