The room fell silent instantly upon hearing this; you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was lost in their own thoughts, waiting for the man's reply.
Bai Chen couldn't help but facepalm. It was just a meal, what was all this fuss about? He wanted to ask Yuan Shuhui, but then he noticed that Shen Ying's expression was even more unpleasant than his own, as if she was about to stand up and hit someone.
"Comrade Yuan, are you kidding me? You're always either stirring up trouble or on your way to stir up trouble. If you're so good at chatting, why don't you go work at the village intelligence station? If you ask me, the army isn't for you. You should find someone else, really."
Bai Chen suppressed his restless impulse and stood up first to argue. Deng Wei was secretly pleased, thinking that she wouldn't believe these words when she heard them from someone else.
After all, everyone had witnessed what happened on the way to the provincial capital. If she hadn't heard that there was a beggar outside who was a relative of Battalion Commander Shen's wife and knew many of the woman's unsavory pasts, she would have given up on the man.
"Company Commander Bai, please don't be angry. We just heard it from others and were driven by curiosity, so we couldn't help but ask."
Deng Wei stepped forward to apologize sincerely, not giving the two men a chance to get angry. To make amends, she deliberately went around to the table, picked up a wine bottle, and poured wine for the man.
"Commander Shen, I'm sorry, we shouldn't have asked such a foolish question. The innocent are innocent, and I believe that your lady must have been framed. She is completely innocent."
Because Shen Ying's seat was already cramped, Deng Wei pretended to apologize and poured him more wine, but she had ulterior motives. She deliberately leaned towards the man and inadvertently touched his skin with her fingers, wanting to take things further.
Shen Ying reflexively moved away a few paces, and just as everyone was wondering what was going on, Deng Wei spoke up:
"Battalion Commander Shen, did I accidentally spill some wine on you? I'm so sorry, so sorry. Shall I wipe it off for you?"
After saying that, he picked up a tissue from the table to wipe it.
"Bai Chen, I have something to attend to, so I'll head back first."
Even if Shen Ying was furious, he couldn't publicly reveal that the woman had taken advantage of him. He was truly angry but had nowhere to vent, so he kept his distance.
"I'm leaving too. You guys take your time eating. Be careful on your way back."
Seeing that he was about to leave, Bai Chen couldn't stay any longer. He had initially avoided a confrontation with his cousin out of respect for Commander Bai. But this woman had gone too far, showing absolutely no sense of propriety. He shouldn't have agreed to it; now, not only had he failed to get any information, but he was also furious.
The two pushed open the door and headed out without looking back. Deng Wei, disregarding her image, rushed to chase after them, leaving everyone in the room looking at each other in bewilderment.
It was already dark when they left the restaurant. Fortunately, it wasn't far from the military base, so Bai Chen could drive Shen Ying back home; it wouldn't take long.
"Battalion Commander Shen, what's wrong? Wait a minute, please wait a minute."
Deng Wei chased after her relentlessly, nearly falling because she was wearing high heels. After regaining her balance, she simply took off her shoes and walked barefoot on the ground, hoping to catch up faster.
Although the temperature this season isn't as cold as walking on ice in winter, the chill from her feet still made her shiver.
But for the sake of her own perceived happiness, she gritted her teeth and gave it her all.
Upon hearing the sound, Shen Ying quickened his pace, even Bai Chen beside him struggled to keep up.
"No, brother, slow down, she's a woman and you can't catch up."
Bai Chen was having some trouble keeping up and spoke up to remind him.
"If you want to slow down, go ahead and slow down. I wouldn't have come to tonight's dinner if I hadn't listened to your nonsense. You even talked about gathering information. At this rate, not only will we not get any information, but we'll also get killed there."
He didn't know exactly what was making him angry—was he angry at himself for not thinking things through, or angry at the woman's close contact with him? And he couldn't tell Bai Chen any of this.
"Okay, it's my fault, don't be angry. We'll go back to the unit and drive you home first. We can talk about this later."
Bai Chen noticed Deng Wei's subtle actions and understood what had angered Shen Ying. He felt a mix of guilt and... well... schadenfreude. Of course, he dared not say it.
Deng Wei chased after them for a while, only stopping when she saw the two disappear at the gate of the military compound. Enraged, she threw her high heels to the ground with a thud, then burst into loud sobs.
In the darkness, a figure watched for a long time before slowly emerging.
......
The two didn't exchange a single word on the way to Shenjiazhuang. It wasn't until they arrived at their doorstep that they spoke.
"Brother, I'll remind Commander Bai about the child every now and then, and I'll also keep an eye on my sister-in-law's sister in the city. I'll report to you immediately if I find anything."
He learned about Shen Ying's missing child by chance from Chief Zhang. He had been trying to find out more, but to no avail.
"Yeah, thanks, bro."
Shen Ying felt that he was too tired lately, with things piling up on his mind. He even asked Shen Zenglin to help oversee the construction of his house.
After a brief farewell, and seeing Bai Chen leave, Shen Ying pushed open the courtyard gate. The house was brightly lit, and the family was having dinner, enjoying a harmonious meal.
Upon his return, the cheerful sounds abruptly ceased, and even the two children remained silent, befitting the occasion.
After all that fuss, he was starving. Smelling the aroma of food, he walked to the cupboard, picked up a bowl, and sat down at the table.
"Cough~"
Zhao Meiyun coughed heavily, her face stern. Shen Ying sensed something was wrong, glanced around, and exchanged a look with her sister. Shen Wan, seemingly content with herself, continued eating in silence.
Jiang Yu ate quickly. After the two children finished eating, she stood up and said:
“Mom, Niannian hasn’t done her homework yet. I’ll take her and Suisui to Sister Cuihua’s house to ask Dongdong.”
After saying that, he told Shen Suisui to take her homework and go out.
“I’ll go too, and I’ll also get some mung bean cakes for Dongdong, and let Sister Cuihua try my cooking.”
Seeing that things weren't going well, Shen Wan quickly made an excuse to go out with her mother. She knew her mother too well; she wouldn't have acted like this if she wasn't extremely angry.
"Come back early, don't stay up too late."
Zhao Meiyun looked at Jiang Yu with a kind expression and gently gave her some instructions, as if she hadn't been the one who was just angry. After Jiang Yu agreed, she led her small team away without looking back.
After the others left, the room fell silent instantly. Zhao Meiyun finished her meal and went to the inner room. Seeing this, Shen Ying wolfed down a few mouthfuls of food and followed her in.
Although he didn't know exactly what had happened, he knew he must have done something that crossed his mother's line.
His mind raced, trying to recall the reason, but he couldn't figure it out. He hesitated for a long time before approaching Zhao Meiyun to hear the specific cause.
"Kneel down."
While he was still thinking, his mother's words made him kneel down reflexively.
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