Chapter 129 This is deadly! He pulled her into his arms.

"I have ulterior motives?!" she shrieked, no longer caring about the occasion. "If your son, Du Wenxiu, hadn't come to me, patting his chest and telling me that spending a few thousand yuan could guarantee my brother a high-ranking position in the military, would I have done this?! He's the one who took the money, and he's the one who gave me the goods! And now you're trying to pin all the blame on me!"

Minister Du's facial muscles twitched violently.

He grabbed He Xiaoman's arm: "Explain yourself. What exactly is your relationship with my son?"

On the other side, as soon as He Xiaoman and the others left, Zhao Wenchang escorted Bai Weiwei to Chief Le.

He walked over and naturally went around to stand behind Jiang Wanqiu.

The moment Bai Weiwei saw Chief Le's face, as black as the bottom of a pot, her legs went weak, and she knelt on the ground with a thud, sobbing uncontrollably: "Chief, I was wrong! I really didn't mean to! I was just confused for a moment, I, I was just joking around with Wanqiu..."

Commander Le was furious and wouldn't listen to any of this. He slammed his fist on the table: "Are you kidding me? Setting fire to the sheet music, is this a joke?! The most taboo thing in the army is comrades forming cliques, engaging in malicious competition, and undermining unity! Your kind of thinking is very dangerous!"

He announced on the spot: "Bai Weiwei of the cultural troupe has a lawless attitude and poor conduct. She has been given a major demerit! Her military rank has been reduced by one level, and she is to be transferred out of the cultural troupe immediately. She will report to the amateur cultural troupe after the New Year!"

This punishment is tantamount to directly ruining Bai Weiwei's future.

She screamed like a madwoman, "No! I don't want to go! Commander, you can't do this to me! I'm the star performer of the cultural troupe! I..."

She climbed all these years to get to this position, she can't...

Before she could finish speaking, two of Chief Le's bodyguards stepped forward, each grabbing one of her arms and forcibly dragging her out.

"Let me go! Let me go! Jiang Wanqiu, you're the one who killed me! I'll haunt you even as a ghost!"

Her hysterical shouts echoed in the banquet hall, silencing everyone around her, before bursting into suppressed whispers.

The farce ended, and the results of the performance were quickly announced.

The host walked onto the stage and announced loudly: "The first place winner of this Spring Festival performance is Comrade Jiang Wanqiu, who will perform the violin solo 'The Soldier Has the Rising Sun in His Heart'!"

Amidst enthusiastic applause, an officer stepped forward and handed Jiang Wanqiu a neatly square certificate of merit.

In fact, there is no prize money or reward for the first place winner of the performance, but for soldiers, honor is more precious than any material thing.

As the performance ended, Le Yunyun sidled up to Jiang Wanqiu, nudged her with her elbow, and whispered, "Actually, Bai Weiwei is really stupid. Even if she hadn't done anything, first place was hers anyway. My brother was in the same program as her, and those judges, out of respect for my dad, wouldn't have let her lose, would they? But she's so petty, she had to do something unnecessary, and now she's ruined herself. Isn't she stupid? Vanity really does kill people."

Listening to Le Yunyun's mutterings, Jiang Wanqiu smiled and said with her almond-shaped eyes that were full of water: "Some people's paths are ultimately narrowed by their own actions."

The cold night wind stung their faces like knives. Zhao Wenchang reached out, took off the military green scarf from his neck, and carefully wrapped it around Jiang Wanqiu's neck. His large hands then wrapped around her slender waist, pulling her tightly into his embrace.

"It all ended really quickly today," Zhao Wenchang exhaled a puff of white breath. "In previous years, after the performance, we'd play games like musical chairs and make a ruckus until midnight. But this year, with the leader's face so dark, who would dare to go up to him?"

He spoke with a hint of regret, turning his head to gaze intently at the delicate face of the person in his arms, which was slightly flushed from the cold: "I was planning to take you out to play a little longer."

Jiang Wanqiu was held in his arms, the man's cool yet domineering scent lingering around her nose. She tilted her head up, her long eyelashes fluttering, and a sly smile played on her lips: "I didn't lose out at all. I got to see two great shows in one performance, much more interesting than that game of musical chairs."

Zhao Wenchang chuckled softly, amused by her foxy appearance.

"The matter of He Xiaoman is probably also related to Du Wenxiu," Jiang Wanqiu said softly.

"Hmm." Zhao Wenchang tightened his grip on her, pulling her closer to him. "That kid isn't one to stay put; he'll cause big trouble sooner or later."

The two had just returned home and were still taking off their thick cotton-padded coats when a loud crash came from next door, as if something had been slammed to the ground.

Then came Zhou Jianjun's suppressed rage: "How many times have I told you! Don't take those crooked paths! Giving gifts? You dare to try to fool the leaders with fake alcohol and cigarettes! He Xiaoman, is your brain filled with mush?!"

"How was I supposed to know it was fake! I was fooled too!" He Xiaoman's shrill cries pierced through the thin wall, filled with immense grievance.

Zhao Wenchang and Jiang Wanqiu exchanged a glance.

"You got scammed?" Zhou Jianjun sneered. "Who scammed you? Tell me, and I'll go settle the score with them!"

There was a moment of silence in the room, then He Xiaoman's voice weakened, leaving only sobs: "I...I don't know who it was, just a businessman I didn't know...I bought it on the black market..."

How could she dare to reveal Du Wenxiu's name? If Zhou Jianjun found out that she was involved with another man, the family would probably fall apart on the spot.

But those several thousand yuan were no small sum! She was unwilling to let it all go to waste!

He Xiaoman had only one thought in her mind: she had to find Du Wenxiu and get her money back!

But early the next morning, with her eyes red and swollen like walnuts, she sneaked off to the logistics department to look for Du Wenxiu, only to find her gone.

I asked everyone, but no one said they had seen Minister Du's son.

He Xiaoman stood at the entrance of the empty warehouse, the north wind whipping up snowflakes that stung her face.

Her hands trembled uncontrollably, and a chilling feeling of being deceived and abandoned crept up her spine.

She couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe that the man who had showered her with sweet words and made such promises would just lie to her and disappear without a trace!

On the other side, it wasn't until the sun was high in the sky, and the warm sunlight streamed through the window onto the bedding, that Jiang Wanqiu finally woke up in the comfort of the warm sun.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes, yawned lazily, and saw that Zhao Wenchang was already dressed and stuffing the last few items into a bulging burlap sack.

Two large sacks were laid out on the ground, filled to the brim with food, clothing, and other necessities, enough for them to have a very prosperous New Year back in the village.

"Awake?" Zhao Wenchang turned around and saw the little girl on the bed sleeping with her face flushed, like a ripe peach. His eyes darkened slightly.

He strode over, bent down, and without a word, scooped up the person still lingering in bed, blanket and all.

"Hey, what are you doing!" Jiang Wanqiu exclaimed, like a frightened kitten, her hand instinctively clinging to his broad shoulder.

Zhao Wenchang ignored her protests and placed her directly on the edge of the bed. He reached out and grabbed a neatly folded cotton-padded coat from the head of the bed, clumsily and carefully putting it on her like he was taking care of a child.

"Hurry up and pack your things, we're leaving now. I've already spoken to the convoy, the military region's jeeps will take us back, we should be in the village first thing tomorrow morning."

Jiang Wanqiu was in a daze, letting the man do as he pleased. His fingers were rough, calloused, and when they occasionally brushed against her delicate neck skin, they always sent a slight shiver down her spine.

After she put on her thick cotton-padded coat, Zhao Wenchang magically pulled an oil paper package from his pocket and stuffed it into the inner pocket of her coat without saying a word, patting it down: "Keep this in your pocket, eat it if you get hungry on the way."

The oil paper package still held the man's body heat, and inside was a fragrant meat pie.

The jeep drove very slowly on the snow-covered road.

The wheels crunched over the thick layer of snow, making a "crunching" sound. A biting gust of cold wind occasionally slipped in through the cracks in the windows.

As Jiang Wanqiu watched the white snow rushing past the window, a sudden wave of nausea washed over her as she felt the cold wind blowing through her.

I hadn't been in the car for very long, but my lower back started to ache terribly, as if something was weighing me down.

She furrowed her beautiful willow-leaf eyebrows and subconsciously reached out to cover her mouth.

"Sister-in-law, what's wrong?" The young soldier driving noticed her pale face in the rearview mirror and asked with concern, "Are you... carsick?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang's dark eyes immediately locked onto the sound: "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Jiang Wanqiu shook her head gently, her voice a little weak: "It's nothing, I guess it was just too stuffy in the car, I got a little carsick."

Her small, delicate face, already exceptionally fair, appeared even paler now, making her large, almond-shaped eyes stand out even more, revealing a vulnerable and endearing quality.

"Suffocating?" Without saying a word, Zhao Wenchang stretched out his long arm and turned the window crank on her side a few times, opening a small crack.

"call--"

A gust of cold wind, sharp as a knife, rushed in instantly, carrying icy snowflakes that mercilessly scraped against Jiang Wanqiu's delicate cheeks.

She shuddered and instinctively shrank her neck; her stomach, which had been churning just moments before, now felt a chill run through her.

She quickly and silently reached out and closed the fatal gap again.

Seeing her suffering like this, Zhao Wenchang felt extremely sorry for her. He reached out his large, warm hand and enveloped her cold little hand in his palm, saying in a deep voice, "If you can't take it, just lean against me and doze off for a while. You won't feel uncomfortable anymore once you fall asleep."

Jiang Wanqiu obediently shifted her body, and just as she rested her head on his strong shoulder, before she could even sit up properly, she felt a tightening around her waist.

Zhao Wenchang's strong arm had already encircled her slender waist, and with a little effort, he lifted her up horizontally and placed her steadily on his firm thighs.

In an instant, Jiang Wanqiu was firmly encircled in his arms.

Her back was pressed against the man's broad, warm chest.

"Oh my, what are you doing!" Jiang Wanqiu exclaimed, her cheeks instantly flushing red. She nudged his chest lightly with her elbow, both embarrassed and flustered. "There are people in front! You...you have no sense of propriety!"