Another interrogation room

Xue Yanchen had gone without food or water for a day and a night, and the ropes binding him were still very tight, almost to the point that he was numb and unaware of the pain.

The door creaked open, and Zhang Ming walked in, wearing black leather military boots. He was holding a flashlight, and the bright white light shone directly into Xue Yanchen's eyes, causing Xue Yanchen to instinctively close his eyes.

Zhang Ming chuckled coldly a few times, glancing at the few bowls of leftover rice on the ground, and subconsciously curled the corners of his lips.

"Battalion Commander Xue, look at you! We brought you steamed buns and vegetables, but you won't eat them. Do you want to eat delicacies? Oh dear, it seems you really don't know how hard life is for the people of our country right now. You're just a battalion commander, while division commanders and army commanders are eating steamed buns and cabbage. And you're complaining about the food?"

"How about this, I can report to my superiors and say that you, Battalion Commander Xue, are arrogant and tired of simple meals, and want to eat sea cucumber and abalone. I'll make an application for you to the higher-ups."

"Zhang Ming, you've gone too far!" Xue Yanchen finally spoke up.

Hearing his angry tone, Zhang Ming felt he had succeeded and laughed triumphantly and arrogantly.

"Haha, Battalion Commander Xue, I thought you had become mute. Turns out you can still talk."

Just wait, once you're sentenced and in jail, we'll make you mute and dead sooner or later.

But he didn't get a response from Xue Yanchen anymore. He couldn't hear the other person's voice, and when he saw that the other person had closed his eyes, he became dissatisfied again.

"Hey, why are you silent again? Say something, please, I beg you, maybe I'll loosen your ropes for the sake of us being comrades. Aren't you uncomfortable being tied up so tightly?"

Xue Yanchen ignored him.

Zhang Ming was disappointed, finding the smell here unbearable: "Who would want to stay with you? I came here to tell you that Commander Li's men will bring the witness from Renjia Village tomorrow. You deceived and molested a respectable woman. Let's see what you have to say for yourself. You'll be going to jail, oh no, you might even be eating peanuts. Well, if you're gone, we brothers can regain our confidence."

After he left, Xue Yanchen bit into a steamed bun on the ground and ate two bites, purely to conserve his strength. In this situation, he needed to persevere.

The next morning, a special vehicle from the military unit came to pick up Luo Jingyan and Grandma Xue and take them to the military area. Commander Lu held a small commendation ceremony for Luo Jingyan.

Not only was she awarded a second-class merit medal and announced that she had successfully removed her hat, but she was also given a pass that allowed her to freely enter and exit the military region.

They should stay for lunch at the military canteen.

When Luo Jingyan received the medal and pass, the first person she thought of was Xue Yanchen.

I want to see him as soon as possible, and then go with him to get our marriage certificate.

Commander Lu then added, "Comrade Xiao Luo is a meritorious soldier of our military region, and Comrade Xiao Xue has also made many contributions to the military region. Since Comrade Xiao Luo has successfully been removed from his post, why don't you get married in the military region? I will have the soldiers hold a grand wedding ceremony for you two. What do you think?"

"Of course, thank you, Commander." Luo Jingyan quickly thanked Commander Lu.

Grandma Xue said, "I was just about to tell you about this, but you interrupted me and spoke for me. However, I just wanted them to get married here. Since you said you wanted to have some kind of ceremony, that would be even better."

Taking this opportunity, Luo Jingyan once again asked Commander Lu to see Xue Yanchen. Commander Lu readily agreed: "You don't know which dormitory he lives in. I'll have my guard take you there."

Twenty minutes later, Luo Jingyan and Grandma Xue, led by the guards, arrived at Xue Yanchen's dormitory.

The guard knocked on the door, but no one answered.

"Battalion Commander Xue, Battalion Commander Xue." He called out twice, but still received no response.

Grandma Xue also knocked on the door twice: "Yanchen, your grandma and your wife are here, open the door quickly." After shouting, she muttered to herself: "What time is it? They can't still be sleeping inside."

Luo Jingyan called out to the door twice, "Yanchen, Yanchen, get up and open the door."

However, no matter how much they knocked on the door or shouted, no sound came from inside.

Luo Jingyan looked at the guard with suspicion: "Could he have been called away by his superior?"

The guard said, "His direct superior is Regiment Commander Jiang. You wait here, I'll go check on Regiment Commander Jiang."

"good."

The guards arrived at Commander Jiang's office, but the clerk there told them that Commander Jiang had gone to the front lines to direct the battle yesterday and wouldn't be back for a while.

The guard ran to the regimental political commissar's office, leaving the commissar completely bewildered.

"If we can't find Yanchen, where could he have gone?"

No wonder that guy hasn't been urging him and Lao Jiang to apply for marriage these past two days.

“He didn’t come to see me, and I haven’t seen him either. Didn’t his girlfriend and his grandmother come? He must have gone out to find his girlfriend and grandmother.”

"His girlfriend and his grandmother asked me to come and find him."

"Oh? Is that so? Did you go to Commander Jiang's place?"

"Commander Jiang has gone to the front line to direct the battle."

"When did they leave? How come I didn't know?"

"Just two days ago, Commander Li sent me there."

The regimental political commissar and the regimental commander were in charge of political work and military affairs, respectively, and sometimes they would not be able to communicate with each other.

At the same time, he also began to wonder what Xue Yanchen had been up to.

“Such a living person couldn’t just disappear into thin air. Keep looking.”

"Yes, but if he comes looking for you, please call the army commander and let him know."

"OK."

After the guards left, the regimental political commissar began to wonder why the army commander had the time to help Xue Yanchen's girlfriend and grandmother find people.

The guards searched everywhere but couldn't find Xue Yanchen. When they returned to the dormitory, they met Luo Jingyan and Old Mrs. Xue.

"Comrade Luo, Aunt Xue, I still haven't been able to find Battalion Commander Xue."

Luo Jingyan and Old Mrs. Xue both frowned at the same time.

“How could a grown man just disappear? Besides, this is in the military; he can’t just vanish without a trace,” said Mrs. Xue.

Luo Jingyan didn't speak, but her face was extremely pale and her emotions were inexplicably chaotic, as if something terrible was about to happen, or had already happened.

"Could he have gone to the front lines with Commander Jiang?" Luo Jingyan asked, though she felt that this was unlikely.