Chapter 91 Abuse: I Grew Up in an Orphanage
The smell of disinfectant permeated the ward.
Seeing that Xiaoyu's trembling gradually subsided under Wen Xiufen's comforting words, Jiang Ling felt slightly relieved.
Jiang Ling asked Wen Xiufen softly, "Sister Wen, is Xiaoyue home alone?"
Wen Xiufen knew what Jiang Ling was worried about, and explained with a smile, "Don't worry, Xiaoyue has finished dinner and is doing her homework at home. She's in junior high now and can take care of herself. It'll be fine for me to stay here."
Although he knew this would disrupt Wen Xiufen's life, Xiaoyu was like a wounded little animal right now, and he could only feel safe when Wen Xiufen was by his side, so he could only trouble Wen Xiufen for now.
Jiang Ling said, "Once Xiaoyu falls asleep, you can go back. There are doctors, nurses, and police officers from the local police station here, so it's alright."
Wen Xiufen looked at the two policemen standing by the window.
Li Qiuyun and Wu Jianbin had just graduated from police academy, their young faces still carrying a hint of naivety and immaturity. Although they were still the same two familiar faces, Wen Xiufen felt that their spirit and energy were very different from what she had seen at the police station before.
Wen Xiufen couldn't quite put her finger on what was different.
Perhaps it was because Li Qiuyun's eyes had become sharper and less hesitant;
Perhaps it's because Wu Jianbin's expression has become less casual and more responsible.
These two police officers reminded Wen Xiufen of Jiang Ling from before, which made her feel at ease and trusting. She looked at Jiang Ling and said, "Okay, I'll call them if anything happens."
Jiang Ling stood up and walked to Li Qiuyun and Wu Jianbin: "I'm entrusting Xiaoyu to your care. Please ensure his safety, cooperate with the doctor's treatment, and notify me immediately if anything happens."
"Yes, sir! Mission accomplished!"
The two straightened their backs almost simultaneously, their voices soft but crisp and clear, their eyes sparkling with a bright light, completely different from their previous slow and hesitant demeanor.
Jiang Ling nodded slightly, a hint of relief appearing on her lips.
She could sense that these two rookie police academy students had undergone a transformation in this case—they were no longer just mechanically following orders, but had truly begun to understand the weight of the word "police."
Li Qiuyun hesitated for a moment before asking, "Sister Jiang... Sister Ling, what should we do with Zhang Minghui?" She originally wanted to call him Teacher Jiang, but felt that would be too formal, so she changed it to Sister Ling.
Jiang Ling's eyes turned cold: "The criminal case will be filed, and the perpetrators will be severely punished according to the law."
These eight simple words conveyed Jiang Ling's determination to Li Qiuyun. Faced with domestic violence, Jiang Ling did not choose to compromise, but instead took a stance of declaring war to protect the vulnerable and confront the abuser.
Wu Jianbin was relatively more composed. He had been at the police station for some time and had handled several family disputes with Wei Changfeng, usually focusing on mediation. Now, with a direct criminal case being filed, Zhang Minghui faces imprisonment. What will happen to the children?
Thinking of this, Wu Jianbin cautiously asked, "Then, what about Xiaoyu?"
Jiang Ling's gaze fell on Xiao Yu, whose breathing was gradually stabilizing: "There will be a way. Even without parents, there is society and the government."
Wu Jianbin and Li Qiuyun exchanged a glance and nodded thoughtfully.
Jiang Ling's attitude once again told them that even within a family, the law will not tolerate any violence. And the duty of the police is to protect the vulnerable and combat crime.
The ward fell silent, save for Wen Xiufen's soft, comforting words to Xiaoyu.
Jiang Ling glanced at the two of them one last time, then turned and left, her back view as elegant as bamboo, her steps light yet firm.
At this moment, Zhang Minghui was curled up on a wooden bench in the temporary detention room of the police station.
The dim light bulb outside the iron bars stayed on all night. In this room of less than six square meters, the stench of sweat, urine, and cheap tobacco mingled together. Next door, a drunken thug was locked up, kicking the iron gate every half hour, the loud bangs making his temples throb.
Zhang Minghui's mind was racing, and he felt a little dizzy.
Why handcuff him when he was just being beaten behind closed doors? Why lock him up?
The last time, the police officers at the police station handled the situation gently; they neither handcuffed him nor locked him up, but gave him a reprimand and then let him go.
Why is this time so serious and so ruthless?
Zhang Minghui cursed Wen Xiufen in his heart, secretly plotting to get revenge on her once he got out. Wasn't the factory always after his dyeing and brightening method patent? He'd use that to blackmail the factory leaders into firing Wen Xiufen! He'd kick her out of the factory.
A widow with a daughter in school, no job, no house—how will she survive!
After berating Wen Xiufen for a while and imagining her miserable, helpless state, Zhang Minghui felt a little better. But soon, he felt a sudden, inexplicable pang of anxiety—what if he couldn't get out? What if he was arrested and sentenced by the police?
My heart sank to the bottom.
Large beads of cold sweat broke out on my head, trickling down my forehead to my cheeks and then rolling down my neck.
Zhang Minghui suddenly sat up from the wooden chair, desperately trying to encourage himself: No, no!
When a father disciplines his son, the police will at most give him a few words of criticism; how could they possibly arrest him?
Don't they say family conflicts should be handled internally? When he beat his wife before, was he ever arrested? Even if someone died, wouldn't it just be a matter of paying some money? Besides, this time he knew how to control himself, so Xiaoyu is definitely not in any danger. She'll be fine in a couple of days. Don't worry.
Thinking of this, Zhang Minghui let out a long sigh and lay back down.
By the way, his workplace still wants to give him an important position, so they will definitely try to get him out of trouble and won't let him be dealt with by the police.
The temporary detention cell was hot and stuffy, and the bench was narrow and hard. Zhang Minghui lay down for a moment, then sat up again as his back began to sweat.
For some reason, Zhang Minghui suddenly saw Jiang Ling's sharp, furious eyes.
By the way, Zhang Minghui finally realized why he was so uneasy.
Because those eyes are so bright.
It was like a beam of light in the dark night, illuminating the deepest, most hidden darkness in his heart.
Zhang Minghui was afraid of a policeman with such eyes.
The next morning, when the police opened the iron gate, Zhang Minghui's vest was already soaked with sweat.
He was led into the interrogation room, and when he saw Jiang Ling sitting across the iron table, the palpitations he felt last night returned.
"Officer, I really was just disciplining my child." Zhang Minghui rubbed his hands together, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Spare the rod and spoil the child, that's what our ancestors always said..."
"Zhang Minghui!"
Jiang Ling slammed the doctor's injury assessment report onto the table with a "bang".
"Xiaoyu's back and chest are covered in bruises, including rectangular bruises from belt buckles, curved contusions from coat hanger hooks, and round burns the size of a thumb. The doctor counted a total of 27 new and old injuries, and 3 old fractures. You call this education? I think it's abuse!"
Upon seeing the injury assessment report, Zhang Minghui's brow twitched. Hearing the word "abuse," his face contorted, looking somewhat horrified.
He lunged forward, his upper body almost crashing onto the table: "Impossible! That's my son, my own son! How could I possibly mistreat him?"
Wei Changfeng stepped forward and grabbed his shoulder: "Behave yourself!"
Zhang Minghui gripped Wei Changfeng's hand tightly: "Officer Wei, you know me. Xiaoyu is my son. How could I possibly mistreat him, right? I'm an educated man. I know the principle that strictness is love and leniency is harm. I've always been strict with Xiaoyu since he was little. I... I just got angry and didn't know my own strength. I was wrong! I know I was wrong!"
Wei Changfeng frowned, shook off Zhang Minghui's hand, and said coldly, "You were the same when I criticized you last time. You admitted your mistake well, but what was the result? Less than two months later, you hit the child again and almost beat him to death!"
Knowing that Wei Changfeng was tough on the outside but soft on the inside, Zhang Minghui quickly pleaded, "Yes, yes, I was wrong, I haven't corrected myself well enough. This time I accept criticism, education, and your supervision, and I promise I will never do it again."
Wei Changfeng looked at Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling's eyes were cold, and her voice was clear: "Child abuse is a criminal offense, and causing serious injury can result in a prison sentence of 2 to 7 years."
Zhang Minghui's head buzzed.
Criminal case filed?
The thing I was worried about all night finally happened!
He hurriedly defended himself: "Officer, I was really just angry and hit him without thinking. I promise I'll change! My intentions were good; I wanted to discipline the child properly. When I was a child, my dad raised me the same way. He broke several firewood sticks in the house, which is why I was able to leave my small mountain village, go to university, and become a technician, right?"
Jiang Ling didn't say anything, just watched his performance coldly.
Wei Changfeng stomped his foot angrily: "Your father beat you, so you beat your son? What kind of logic is that! Let me tell you, it's too late for you to admit your mistake now! The old and new wounds on Xiaoyu's body, along with multiple old fractures, prove that you have been continuously and frequently abusing him. Our police station believes that you are suspected of the crime of abuse and has submitted a criminal case for filing, which will be transferred to the Municipal Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Detachment for handling."
Even if Zhang Minghui didn't understand the law, he knew that filing a criminal case and transferring it to the criminal investigation branch was not a good thing.
He no longer cared about his image, slipped and fell to the ground, grabbed Wei Changfeng's leg, and burst into tears, crying, "No, no! I only hit my son, I didn't hit anyone else, how is that abuse? Officer Wei, you can't just ignore me, I didn't commit a crime, I didn't commit a crime!"
Wei Changfeng tried to pull Zhang Minghui's hand away for a long time, but couldn't. He was so anxious that sweat started to bead on his forehead.
Suddenly, Zhang Minghui thought of something and started to play the victim: "Xiaoyu's mother passed away early, and I'm in a bad mood. I admit that I drank some alcohol and lost control of my strength, but I promise that I will never drink again and I will never hit my child again. I will treat my son well, reason with him, and never lay a finger on him, okay?"
Zhang Minghui's cries echoed in the interrogation room.
How did Xiaoyu's mother die?
Jiang Ling's words brought Zhang Minghui's cries to an abrupt halt. His eyes flickered, and his arrogance vanished instantly: "I'm sick, I'm sick."
"What illness?"
Jiang Ling's voice remained steady.
Zhang Minghui hurriedly changed his story: "I fell, I fell and got hurt."
Jiang Ling asked again, "Where did you fall? Where did you fall? Which hospital did you get treatment at?"
Zhang Minghui suddenly started acting like a spoiled child: "Why are you asking this? I'm saddened by Xiaoyu's mother's passing, but life goes on. I admit I wasn't good enough to Xiaoyu before, but I'm his only family. I will definitely take on the responsibility of being a father, raise him, teach him to study hard, and help him become a useful person to society and the country. If you arrest me, what will happen to Xiaoyu? Are you going to send him to an orphanage? Xiaoyu is timid; I'm afraid he'll be bullied. I'm worried about him!"
This rhetoric was Zhang Minghui's trump card.
If he's arrested, who will take care of Xiaoyu? Which police officer would be willing to take on such a complicated and tedious case?
Jiang Ling slowly stood up, leaning slightly forward, her eyes sharp as knives.
Zhang Minghui lay on the ground, looking up at Jiang Ling. For some reason, he felt a sudden tightness in his chest and felt like an ant.
Jiang Ling spoke slowly: "Zhang Minghui, look at me."
Zhang Minghui stared blankly at Jiang Ling, his mouth agape.
Jiang Ling said, "I grew up in an orphanage, but I still went to school, went to police academy, and became a policeman. Growing up with a beastly father is worse than being raised by society. At least I wouldn't have to live in constant fear, go hungry and be locked up, be covered in bruises, or suffer physical and mental trauma!"
Zhang Minghui never expected that the policeman in front of him had grown up in an orphanage.
He was speechless, unsure how to respond.
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