57
The next day, when Officer Chen went to work, he carefully checked the source of the phone number and finally determined that it was from a university in a certain district of the city.
He video-called the two of them and found it strange: "You two know college students?"
There was no sarcasm in his words; he spoke the truth: "It's probably a prank. I really don't believe you two have any disputes with each other. Could it be that the text message was sent to the wrong person?"
"impossible."
Chu Qinghuai felt that there was no such coincidence in the world. There were three meaningful sentences sent at two different times, and the probability of sending the wrong message was 0.1%.
"Is it possible to find out who it is?"
Officer Chen shook his head: "It's a bit difficult, it will take time, because the person didn't register the number using their own ID card."
Chu Qinghuai pondered for a moment, then suddenly had a new idea: "I want to go to the noodle shop."
Zhong Wan grasped his hand: "Have you thought of something?"
The man's gaze was firm as he said to her, "Do you remember the first time we took the children to the amusement park?"
"You mean..."
"I suspect it's related to people who secretly take pictures of babies online."
Seeing the couple's back-and-forth banter, and unable to get a word in edgewise, Officer Chen waved from the other end of the video call, "Hey, what are you two talking about? Have you figured out who it is?"
Chu Qinghuai didn't give a definite answer, hurriedly hung up the video call, put on his coat, and was about to leave, catching Zhong Wan off guard.
"Take it easy on the road, don't rush," Zhong Wan said worriedly.
"I will."
Cai Cai, with her sharp eyes, noticed that her father was changing his shoes and about to go out. She ran over, grabbed Chu Qinghuai's legs with both hands, and looked up at him, saying, "Dad, where are you going? I want to go too."
"I have something important to do and can't take you. Be a good girl and stay home to play with your sisters."
Cai Cai pouted, shook her head unhappily, and said in a humming tone, "Take me away, take me away."
The noise he made attracted Mumu and Xiaohe in the living room. The two little girls ran over and surrounded him, calling him "Dad."
This disturbance makes it impossible to leave.
Chu Qinghuai hadn't considered taking them along; if something happened, both adults and children would suffer. He turned to Zhong Wan for help, who, receiving the message, cleared her throat and then asked the children, "Does anyone want some potato chips?"
Chu Qinghuai couldn't compare to potato chips, which he could only eat once a week. Hearing his mother's words, the three children no longer looked reluctant and all ran over to get the potato chips.
He smiled helplessly. The three mischievous kids had no choice but to deliberately shout, "Aren't you going to say goodbye to Daddy?"
They can't hear.
Zhong Wan quickly pushed him out the door, "Hey, hurry up and go, stop making a fuss."
Chu Qinghuai snorted softly, noticing out of the corner of his eye that Cai Cai, who had just been crying and didn't want him to leave, was now happily enjoying potato chips. He laughed angrily, "What a waste of raising her."
-
Chu Qinghuai's approach was correct; upon arriving at the noodle shop, he indeed discovered some clues.
According to Chen Yu and Lin Jiang, Yu Yue has been coming to eat more and more frequently, from once a week at the beginning to twice a week, and now she wants to come every day.
"Qinghuai, what happened?"
Lin Jiang usually dotes on her three children, and Chu Qinghuai actually has a strong urge to tell her the truth, but the time is not right and he dares not act rashly.
So he turned the received text message into a scare story.
Lin Jiang: "How could this happen! Why don't we call the police and let them deal with these bad elements?"
Chu Qinghuai touched his nose, thinking that the worst thing to do was to call the police, because if he did, everything would be over.
"Don't call the police yet, let's see what their next move is."
No sooner had he spoken than a group of people suddenly entered through the door, and the one in the middle was none other than Yu Yue.
It's such an unbelievable coincidence.
Chu Qinghuai remained calm, while Chen Yu tried to drive these people out, causing Lin Jiang to be greatly alarmed.
"Uncle, it's him, the child trafficker!"
The girl's loud voice echoed throughout the room, and everyone present, except for Chu Qinghuai, showed a strange expression.
"Bullshit! What are you saying, girl? Spreading rumors is illegal, you know?"
Chen was so angry that he frowned and accidentally swore.
"Who spread the rumor? You can ask him if you don't believe me."
Yu Yue pointed at Chu Qinghuai, and everyone in the room stared at his movements.
Chu Qinghuai hesitated, opened his mouth but didn't know what to say. It was impossible for him not to be flustered at all, but he could only remain calm.
He pinched his palms until they were red marks. While he was flustered, he was also very glad that he hadn't brought the children. Given Cai Cai's gentle nature, she would definitely be scared if she saw so many people.
"Mr. Chu, I am a police officer. We have received a report that you may be suspected of child trafficking. Please come with us."
Yu Yue's backer is the serious-looking policeman in front of her, who is in charge of this area and has a slight family relationship with her.
The drama often depicted in TV dramas was now unfolding in his life. Chu Qinghuai felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He took a deep breath and said, "How come I didn't know I had abducted a child? Officer, you can't arrest me without evidence."
"Six months ago, you and your wife didn't have any children, and there's no record of you adopting children in the system. So where did those three children come from?"
There were loopholes everywhere. The police showed him photos of three children, who were indeed his babies.
Even Chen Yu and Lin Jiang were speechless. After all, they had many doubts since they first met the child, but they had not asked out of respect for their friend.
"Qinghuai, Mumu and the others are your and Xiaowan's children. The three babies look so much like you two."
One lie requires countless lies to cover it up. Upon hearing this, Chu Qinghuai suddenly smiled softly, her eyes moistening, feeling powerless as she realized she couldn't protect her child.
Officer Chen only remembered registering the fruit and vegetable flower, but overlooked these small details. To this day, Zhong Wan's medical records still state that she is married but has no children. Indeed, the evidence is right in front of us and cannot be denied.
But he still refused to admit it.
"The child is mine."
The police officer hesitated for a moment, then said, "Let's use the simplest method: get a paternity test."
"good."
-
Officer Chen was extremely busy, making phone calls to the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs while also trying to coordinate with the city's Public Security Bureau through connections.
He really worried himself sick over Chu Qinghuai's family; he wasn't even this concerned about his own son's college entrance exam.
On the phone, he told Chu Qinghuai, "Don't worry, wait for the results. We're not facing certain death yet."
His way of comforting people was truly unique, and Chu Qinghuai felt no sense of unease at all.
After a group of people stormed into his home yesterday and frightened his three children to tears, Chu Qinghuai was filled with hatred and anger. He was forced to take hair samples for paternity testing. Three samples were done, but the results wouldn't be available until tomorrow morning at the earliest. He still had one night to go and had to figure out a solution.
Officer Chen said that at worst, they could negotiate with the other party and go through the formal adoption procedures to see if they could uncover the truth. If all else failed, they would have to involve the Bureau of Spirits and Monsters. But Chu Qinghuai didn't want to. He didn't want so many people to know the children's secret. He just wanted his baby to be an ordinary child.
"knew."
Even after hanging up the phone, he was still unsettled.
Zhong Wan heated up a glass of milk and handed it to him, saying, "You didn't eat much for dinner, drink some milk to warm your stomach."
Chu Qinghuai turned to meet her gaze, smiled slightly, but his eyes were full of bitterness.
Zhong Wan also didn't sleep well all night, and she guessed that tonight would be another sleepless night. Just now, when she was putting the children to sleep, she actually felt a pang of reluctance.
"They all sleep in the big bed?"
"right."
The three children who were frightened yesterday have parents who feel sorry for them, so they have been allowed to sleep in the same bed in the master bedroom for the next two days.
What do you suggest we do tomorrow?
His voice was muffled, revealing an imperceptible weariness; this was the first time he had asked the three words "why".
"Things will straighten themselves when they reach the bridge."
At this point, Zhong Wan absolutely cannot say anything discouraging, otherwise there really won't be anyone sober in the family.
Although she was also very scared and worried that the children would be harmed, there was nothing she could do but wait quietly.
"Didn't Officer Chen say he would expedite the adoption process for us?"
She comforted him.
In fact, the couple did not meet many of the requirements for adoption, but Officer Chen said he could do it, so it was okay.
...
The next morning, the couple took their children to the police station, where the paternity test report arrived immediately.
Neither of them had an appetite for breakfast, and they only fed the three children some porridge. The children seemed to be able to sense that their parents were in a bad mood, and their own emotions were also very low.
Xiao He was still asleep, held in Zhong Wan's arms, her eyes tightly closed, as if the surrounding chaos had nothing to do with her.
The adults were reluctant to involve the children, except for the egoist Yu Yue. When she saw the children she hadn't seen in a long time, she reflexively took out her phone to take pictures, but of course, she was stopped.
Zhong Wan thought to herself that once this matter was over, she would sue the other party for violating the children's portrait rights. It seemed that she had been too soft-hearted to tolerate it for so long, and she had to pay the price.
"The paternity test results are in? Open it and take a look; the truth will be revealed at once."
Yu Yue stood beside her backer, arms crossed, determined to win.
Zhong Wan pursed her lips, glanced at Chu Qinghuai's profile, and patted his shoulder to encourage him, "See?"
Anyway, the outcome is already decided; whether you die sooner or later, you're going to die anyway.
Officer Chen stood to Chu Qinghuai's left, and for some reason, his palms were sweating.
A group of people stared intently at the three documents.
Just as Chu Qinghuai was about to open the sealed bag, Yu Yue suddenly shouted, "Wait a minute!"
"Who knows if you'll tamper with it? Let the police take it down."
Zhong Wan resisted the urge to slap her, while Chu Qinghuai stepped back and let Officer Chen open the door.
His actions were much rougher. He opened it in two seconds, waved the paper in his hand, and was about to proceed according to the plan when he was suddenly at a loss for words because of the words on it.
Person being examined: Chu Qinghuai; Gender: Male; Relationship: Father
Person being examined: Zhong Limu; Gender: Female; Relationship: Daughter
A biological parent-child relationship exists.
Not to mention Officer Chen, even Chu Qinghuai, who was standing beside him, was stunned when he saw the result. His eyes widened, and he whispered in his ear, "You did this?"
He thought the other party meant that they had tampered with the paternity test.
"I didn't do anything."
Officer Chen tried his best to distance himself from the matter.
Chu Qinghuai then explained to Zhong Wan, stammering, "I..."
"What happened in the end?"
Zhong Wan frowned, the situation seemed quite complicated, but when she saw that the three reports had the same result, she was so shocked that she almost dropped the child in her arms.
"Is he/she their biological child?"
This is even more terrifying than not being born to one's own parents.
"Do you believe me? I didn't cheat on you."
Zhong Wan felt it was absurd; don't tell her that her husband, with whom she lived day and night, was also some kind of monster.
Her worldview began to crumble.
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