Ling Huanwu felt as if she were having a nightmare.
In her dream, she floated in mid-air, watching Zhou Jiuzhen struggle to lift the villagers onto the rescue boat in order to save them, while she was swept away by the giant waves behind her and fell heavily onto the rocks.
She cried out, trying to call him to get up, but her body seemed to be imprisoned, unable to shout or move.
She was shaken until a strong force pulled her out of the nightmare.
When she opened her eyes, she saw Lin Xiaoqin sitting by her bedside, her eyes swollen like walnuts from crying.
Lin Xiaoqin held her hand and cried uncontrollably, while Qiao Hui hugged Lin Xiaoqin and patted her back to comfort her, "It's okay, Comrade Ling just fainted because of the long journey, she will wake up soon."
"No, Comrade Xiaozi must have fainted because she heard that Zhou Mutou was going to divorce her. Didn't you hear what the doctor said? Comrade Xiaozi is pregnant. How could she accept being suddenly divorced?"
Lin Xiaoqin was indignant, cursing as she wiped her tears and snot on Qiao Hui's white shirt. "And that wicked mother-in-law of hers is just too much! Doesn't she care about a pregnant woman's health? Saying such hurtful things! Comrade Ling even saved her life. Compared to Aunt Guihua, she's like heaven and earth. Chu Mei is nothing but a fart..."
The high-altitude camp is actually a huge training ground with a roof, built on the top of a mountain. Soldiers would rest and regroup there after their outdoor training.
The training ground was packed with people, so crowded that it was difficult to even sit down, let alone lie down.
Only Ling Huanwu was in a corner, where the villagers spontaneously made room for her to lie down and be examined by the army doctor.
Therefore, Chu Mei, who was squeezed in the crowd not far away, also heard Lin Xiaoqin's words.
Hearing Lin Xiaoqin compare her to Zhou Jiuzhen's adoptive mother and being called a nobody, her face turned red and then pale.
Chu Mei wanted to push through the crowd to apologize to her and explain that she did not know she was pregnant.
The thought that a mother-in-law should never treat her daughter-in-law well made it even harder for her to apologize.
At that moment, in the noisy training ground, Qiao Hui was completely unaware that he was comforting Lin Xiaoqin while holding her. It wasn't until he met Ling Huanwu's dark gaze that he belatedly realized and awkwardly let go of Lin Xiaoqin.
Lin Xiaoqin looked up and saw that Ling Huanwu had woken up. She threw herself on her and howled even louder.
"Comrade Xiaozi, how are you? Don't overthink it. What's the big deal about getting a divorce? I'll raise the child with you. That old woman Chu even said you can't have children. Tomorrow, after the storm, we'll sue her for spreading rumors and defamation. As for those scoundrels, we don't need them anymore. I can be the child's father!"
Qiao Hui, standing to the side, glanced at Ling Huanwu's expression, tugged at her sleeve, and said awkwardly, "Don't talk nonsense. Don't you know that Jiu Zhen was forced to sign the divorce papers? If you want to blame someone, blame that Chu..."
“Yes, yes, it’s all that old hag’s fault,” Lin Xiaoqin said, getting even more excited. “Comrade Xiaozi, you shouldn’t have saved that old hag. You didn’t even save the daughter-in-law she had her eye on, so why did you save her? You should have let her fall down the valley! And Su Haiting, she should have gone down to join her!”
"I was furious when I heard you being slandered in front of the crowd. If I had known, I would have torn those two women to shreds..."
Listening to Lin Xiaoqin's incessant chatter, Ling Huanwu regained some of her energy. She looked around, moved her dry lips, and asked, "Jiuzhen... has he come back?"
Lin Xiaoqin was so nervous by the question that she quickly looked to Qiao Hui for help.
Qiao Hui received the look in Ling Huanwu's eyes and immediately understood what she was worried about. He comforted her, "Jiuzhen will be fine. He's a great swimmer. Even if the storm surge comes, Pilot Song will be there to meet him and bring him up."
"Yes, Xiaoling, don't worry."
The aunties and uncles around her also chimed in, comforting her.
Political Commissar Hao, along with the soldiers carrying the stretcher, pushed through the crowd and explained to everyone, "Our military doctor just said that Comrade Ling needs to have her pregnancy saved. There's a small office in the camp, and I've prepared it for Comrade Ling to stay in. Does everyone have any objections?"
The villagers standing all around waved their hands, saying, "It's no problem, please take Comrade Ling to rest!"
"Yes, Battalion Commander Zhou and Comrade Ling are both good people, unlike some people who almost killed their own grandson!"
They all defended and supported Ling Huanwu, their gazes fixed on Chu Mei with sarcastic remarks.
Chu Mei felt extremely uncomfortable being stared at by the villagers, wishing she could disappear into a hole in the ground.
But they dared not argue back, fearing that they would incur the wrath of the crowd and be drowned in their spittle.
The crowd spontaneously made way for them.
When Ling Huanwu was lifted onto the stretcher, she was still touching her belly, looking incredulous.
She had been wondering why she had suddenly become so fragile, experiencing abdominal pain and fainting from time to time.
So she's pregnant!
She gently stroked her belly, her hand resting on her still-flat lower abdomen, her heart pounding in her throat with excitement!
As the stretcher passed by Su Haiting, Su Haiting saw Ling Huanwu's joyful expression and almost ground her teeth to powder.
Even though Zhou Jiuzhen had already signed the divorce papers and she could immediately become a military wife, Ling Huanwu was pregnant with another child.
As Su Haiting watched the people walk away, she gritted her teeth and squeezed through the crowd, finally reaching Chu Mei. She affectionately took her arm and said in a coquettish tone, "Auntie, that woman surnamed Ling is always flirting with men. The child in her belly definitely isn't Brother Zhou's..."
She kept talking, baring her two chipped teeth. Chu Mei turned to look at her. The girl, who had previously seemed decent-looking, now seemed repulsive. Her mind was filled with the image of her pushing her away and running away.
Chu Mei shoved her hand away, sending the still-talking woman stumbling backward.
Originally, there were people behind Su Haiting.
But everyone disgustedly took a step back, letting her fall flat on her back on the ground without any warning.
The moment Su Haiting fell to the ground, bursts of laughter erupted from the crowd around her, all pointing at her comical appearance and laughing uproariously.
"Shut up, you bunch of troublemakers!"
Su Haiting was extremely ashamed and angry, and she pointed at the villagers around her who refused to even help her up and cursed them.
Someone tripped her, and she fell face-first to the ground again, unable to utter another word.
If she hadn't come with the demolition team, she probably would have been trampled into mincemeat by this group of people!
Several demolition team members helped Su Haiting to a corner and comforted her, saying, "It's alright, we'll have plenty of opportunities to deal with Ling Huanwu..."
"Yes, there are plenty of opportunities!"
Su Haiting looked toward the office where Ling Huanwu was, a sinister smile curving her lips.
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