He was a disabled military officer who doted on his research work in the Northwest.

No.

You shouldn't think in that direction.

She took a deep breath and forced herself to look away from the window.

But the thought, beyond her control, popped into her mind—

Shen Tang, a woman who was abducted by human traffickers and raised in the countryside for fifteen years, why does she enjoy all of this? She is picked up and dropped off by military vehicles, personally picked up by Mu Qinghan, and lives in the military area with no worries about food or clothing.

And what about her? Zhao Jianhui made her take the factory shuttle bus today, squeezed among a group of workers, the smell of sweat and machine oil mixed together.

Shen Yao gripped the strap of her schoolbag tightly.

……

That evening, in the residential area of ​​the machinery factory.

"Jianhui."

Zhao Jianhui was lying in bed reading the newspaper when he heard Shen Yao call him. He turned over and said, "Hmm?"

Shen Yao sat at the table, fiddling with a well-worn magazine. She turned to a page—it featured a green floral dress, with a model wearing it standing in a garden, the hem billowing in the wind like butterfly wings.

"I saw this dress in the provincial newspaper," Shen Yao said softly. "They sell it at the department store in the city... for thirty-eight yuan."

Zhao Jianhui frowned. Thirty-eight. Almost a month's salary.

"A bit pricey—"

"Hmm..." Shen Yao lowered her head, her fingers twisting the edge of the magazine. She didn't continue talking about whether it was expensive or not, but looked up at him with red eyes: "Jianhui, I saw Sister Shen Tang after school today—Mu Qinghan personally came to pick her up in a military vehicle. A military jeep! Look at her... and then look at me."

Her lips trembled: "I don't even have a decent dress. My classmates all laugh at me..."

Zhao Jianhui's expression changed.

Shen Tang.

A country girl who was forced into a marriage by the Shen family is now being chauffeured around by military vehicles.

And he—the son of the dignified Factory Director Zhao—couldn't even afford to give his woman a dress.

What man could tolerate this?

"Okay, it's just a dress," Zhao Jianhui sat up, gritting his teeth, "I'll buy it for you tomorrow."

As for where the money comes from—

His father's batch of military-grade bearing parts hadn't been registered in the warehouse yet. If they took a few dozen sets from there, replaced them with inferior parts, and then sold the genuine ones...

Thirty-eight yuan is more than enough.

"Thank you, Jianhui!" Shen Yao hugged his arm tightly, her voice as sweet as honey. "I knew you were the best to me."

"Yaoyao, whatever others can give, I, Zhao Jianhui, can give too, and even more. I have plenty of money." Zhao Jianhui hugged her contentedly. "What's so great about that Shen Tang? She married a cripple. Comparing yourself to her is just demeaning yourself."

"Okay, I knew it," Shen Yao smiled sweetly. "Following you is truly a blessing from eight lifetimes. You are much better than that Mu Qinghan."

"Good to know, give your brother a kiss." He lowered his head to kiss him.

Shen Yao giggled and dodged away, saying, "We'll kiss after the engagement."

She knew in her heart that the longer a woman was kept in suspense, the more valuable she became, and the less likely he would get his hands on her.

……

From that day on, Mu Qinghan's act of picking people up became a daily routine starting the following day.

Every afternoon at 4:30, a military jeep would pull up at the school gate. Sometimes it was just Xiao Li picking them up, and sometimes Mu Qinghan would sit in the passenger seat.

People at the school quickly noticed the military vehicle that appeared punctually every day. The old man at the gatehouse chatted with the old man selling popsicles next to him: "That's a military vehicle; it's here to pick up Commander Mu's cousin."

The students gradually got used to it. But for Shen Yao, seeing that car every day made her feel uneasy.

Although Zhao Jianhui is considered wealthy and generous, having bought her many things these past few days, she herself doesn't receive the same treatment.

She suddenly remembered the way she saw Shen Tang and Teacher Lu discussing issues alone that day.

Shen Tang, you've been flirting with other women and not being a virtuous wife, so you can't blame me for this.

During break, in Class 1, Shen Yao was knitting a scarf for Zhao Jianhui while chatting with several girls.

"Did you know? My sister doesn't leave after school every day; she stays in the classroom to chat with Teacher Lu alone."

"Really? Just the two of you?"

"Um...we didn't leave until it got dark." Shen Yao's tone held a hint of hesitation, as if she was "too embarrassed to say too much." "I didn't know what we talked about...maybe academics? But—"

She bit her lip and lowered her voice: "She lives in the military district? She gets picked up and dropped off by military vehicles every day… She's being supported by officers while spending time with young male teachers in empty classrooms until dark… I'm not saying anything, I just feel…"

She didn't finish speaking.

No need to finish speaking.

The girls in the room automatically filled in the rest of the blanks in their minds.

She not only spread the rumor in her own class, but also asked several of her close female classmates to spread it in other classes. Plus, yesterday some students saw Shen Tang and Lu Yanzhi walking together after school, completely distorting the story.

"Have you heard? That top student from the countryside was walking home with Teacher Lu at night yesterday."

"I knew it! She was always asking Professor Lu questions, her eyes practically glued to him. Everyone knows Professor Lu, though he was sent to the countryside, is good-looking and very knowledgeable!"

"Isn't she living at Commander Mu's house?"

"Come on! Commander Mu is disabled, and I heard she's impotent. How could a young woman like her possibly stay faithful? She's just greedy!"

These words, as if they had grown wings, floated into the classroom of Class Two.

……

After lunch on Wednesday, Shen Tang went to the hospital to see patients and was not in the classroom.

Several students in the front row, influenced by the rumors, were whispering among themselves.

"What exactly is Shen Tang's relationship with Teacher Lu?!"

"She has military vehicles picking her up and dropping her off, yet she's with other men—"

"Snapped!"

A pen was slammed onto the table.

Gu Bei slammed his hand on the table and abruptly stood up. The sound was so loud that it startled everyone in the class.

"What are you whispering about? If you're so tough, speak up in front of the whole class!" Gu Bei pointed at the girls, his thick eyebrows raised, his face full of anger.

The girls were stunned by the shouting. One of them, who was usually close to the girl in the class, mustered up the courage to retort, "What we say is none of your business! Gu Bei, you're not anyone to her, why are you so eager to protect your master?"

"I'll protect your grandma's leg!" Gu Bei, a kid from a high-ranking family, lost his temper and didn't care about being polite at all. He strode to the middle of the classroom and said, "Do you guys even have brains? The other class just stirred things up a little, and you all joined in. You're being used as pawns and you think you're so clever?"

"Can't you all use your brains?" His voice was so loud that everyone in the classroom turned to look at him. "Who was picking up Shen Tang? It was her cousin. Commander Mu. Mu Qinghan."

He was the son of a staff officer in the military region, and he knew everything about the people and things in the compound.

"Shen Tang lives in Commander Mu's courtyard, but her household registration is under her distant cousin's name. The military vehicle pick-up and drop-off was arranged by Commander Mu; that's her cousin taking care of her sister. What kind of 'supporting' is that? What's wrong with a commander picking up his own family? Are you all out of your minds? You believe everything people say!"

The people in the front row were rendered speechless by the rebuttal.

Gu Bei wasn't finished: "And then there's Teacher Lu—do you even know what Shen Tang asked after class? She asked an academic question about saline-alkali land improvement! Who among you could have asked that? Shen Tang is the top student among the transfer students, gets 103 in math, everyone has seen how hard she studies, she always gets full marks on her assignments. Is it not normal for a student like that to discuss academic matters with a teacher after class? What do you call that flirting?"

The classroom fell silent for a moment.

He took a step forward, his voice rising: "Then let me ask you—from now on, girls won't be allowed to ask questions in classes taught by male teachers? They won't be allowed to go to the office to ask questions after class either? Or we might as well just separate boys and girls into classes, with male teachers teaching boys and female teachers teaching girls, and nobody talking to anyone else!"

His words were both reasonable and absurd, and several classmates were amused by them.

Gu Bei scanned the classroom, finally fixing his gaze on the two girls. His tone hardened: "Remember this, we're in the same class. This is someone trying to sow discord with malicious intent—"

What's the relationship between Shen Yao and Shen Tang? Shen Tang signed a disassociation agreement and was kicked out, so of course Shen Yao is hoping Shen Tang suffers. And you two, you fell for someone's divisive tactic, embarrassing our class!