Chapter 71

Yu Xiangnian never agreed with that way of thinking.

“Even if he had done something to me, I would still call the police!”

In the darkness, her expression was invisible, but her tone was unmistakably resolute.

“Brother Haozi, please come with me to the police station!”

At that moment, the man who had tried to assault her let out a foolish laugh.

Furiously, Yu Xiangnian kicked him twice in the stomach. “I’ll make sure you go to jail!”

So, the four of them went to the police station.

Cheng Jingmo had been waiting for Yu Xiangnian at home, wondering why she hadn’t returned as usual. It was already past ten, and a sense of unease gnawed at him.

He kept glancing towards the door, and finally, he saw a figure approaching.

“Report, Deputy Commander Cheng. The police just called saying your wife was robbed on the road tonight. You need to bring a set of clothes and go to the station to get her.”

Cheng Jingmo looked at the duty officer, still finding it hard to believe.

Yu Xiangnian was with Qiu Yang and they had a car—how could they have been robbed?

His heart clenched with worry, yet he remained calm. “Thank you, comrade. I’ll need to borrow the duty vehicle.”

He fetched a set of clothes from Yu Xiangnian’s room, told Xiao Jie to sleep on his own, and drove to the police station.

From a distance, he saw Yu Xiangnian sitting on a bench in the police station’s hallway. Her hands were wringing her lap, head almost touching her chest, hair disheveled, white clothes stained with mud, and a military jacket tied around her waist.

She already had a frail build, and under the dim orange light, she looked utterly helpless and small.

Cheng Jingmo felt as if he had been punched in the chest, both aching and suffocating. He hurried over. “Yu Xiangnian.”

Yu Xiangnian’s head jerked up. Cheng Jingmo saw her face streaked with mud and fine scratches oozing fresh blood.

With a sudden wail, Yu Xiangnian stood up, wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, and buried her face in his chest, crying loudly.

Cheng Jingmo’s heart almost broke from her sobbing. He hugged her back, soothing her softly by her ear, “Don’t be afraid, I’m here now.”

Through her sobs, Yu Xiangnian managed to say, “He isn’t mentally ill, he’s faking it!”

Cheng Jingmo didn’t understand what she was saying but continued to comfort her, “Okay, I understand. I’ll handle it.”

Haozi, Ding Yunfei, and the police officers looked on in amazement.

Yu Xiangnian had transformed so quickly!

Moments ago, she was like a steel warrior, cooperating with the police with rationality and strength during the questioning and medical check-up.

When told that her assailant was mentally ill, she argued her case logically.

The police had just been secretly admiring her resilience.

But as soon as Cheng Jingmo appeared, she broke down crying.

Yu Xiangnian couldn’t stop crying in Cheng Jingmo’s arms. He held her by the waist with one arm and stroked her head with the other, comforting her.

It was the first time she had cried in front of him, and though she was the one in tears, he felt as if his own heart was being torn apart, his chest filled with pain.

After a while, Yu Xiangnian calmed down, looked up at him with tearful eyes, and said, “Cheng Jingmo, you have to believe me.”

The front of Cheng Jingmo’s shirt was soaked. He wiped her tears with his thumb. “I believe you. Let’s get you changed.”

When Yu Xiangnian came back after changing, Cheng Jingmo used a damp handkerchief to wipe the mud off her face, gently saying, “Wait here for me.”

Earlier, Yu Xiangnian had lost control of her emotions. The moment she saw Cheng Jingmo, all the grievances, fears, and resentments she had endured that night came rushing out, causing her to cry.

Now, she had calmed down. “Go ahead, I’m fine now.”

Cheng Jingmo went to speak with the police officers to understand the situation.

The police explained that they had called the military unit, saying Yu Xiangnian had been robbed, to avoid damaging her reputation.

The assailant was a local villager named Zhao Laosan, known as a lunatic because he suffered from intermittent mental illness.

According to your wife, she has been frequently visiting the nearby mountains lately, and Zhao Laosan probably saw her. Tonight, Zhao Laosan had another episode, which led to this incident. However, your wife doesn’t believe he was having an episode and insists he was in a normal state when he attacked her.

Your wife is very agitated and insists on putting him in jail, but without evidence proving he was sane during the attack, you need to calm her down.

Cheng Jingmo said, “I want to see that man.”

The police led him to the interrogation room.

Cheng Jingmo saw a man in his twenties, handcuffed, with messy hair, and dirty all over, looking like a beggar.

What struck him the most was the man’s vacant eyes, unfocused, not appearing to be feigned.

He kept giggling foolishly, “Hehe, pretty, sleep.”

Cheng Jingmo felt like a stone was pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe. His fists clenched tightly, and his hands trembled.

He couldn’t bear to imagine what would have happened if Yu Xiangnian had been violated…

Trying to control his emotions, Cheng Jingmo still lost it.

He stepped forward, grabbing the man’s chin, staring coldly into his eyes. The man remained dumb, mumbling, “Sleep…”

Cheng Jingmo squeezed harder, making the man cry out.

“Do you know her?” Cheng Jingmo asked.

The man only yelled nonsensically.

A police officer nearby said, “He’s been like this all night. No matter what we ask, he just says, ‘pretty, sleep.’ We can’t get anything else out of him.”

Furious, Cheng Jingmo punched him several times. The man bled from his nose and mouth, fell to the ground, curled up in the corner, shivering.

Cheng Jingmo kicked him twice more. The man shrieked in the corner.

If the police hadn’t pulled him away, Cheng Jingmo might have beaten the man to death!

As he left the interrogation room, Cheng Jingmo saw Yu Xiangnian talking to Haozi.

Seeing Haozi’s back, he recalled the figure he had seen previously.

He knew Haozi and that Haozi worked for Brother Ping.

This meant Yu Xiangnian had been meeting Haozi when she went into the city recently. What was she doing with him? What was their relationship?

And there was Ding Yunfei, now wearing only a white shirt since his military jacket was gone. There had been rumors about him and Yu Xiangnian before.

Tonight, Yu Xiangnian was in trouble, and both men happened to be nearby to save her.

Was it a coincidence or something more?

Yu Xiangnian had the same suspicions, which is why she was talking to Haozi, trying to extract information.

Haozi said, “Brother Ping has been looking for you for days. Today, my guys saw you leaving the city on that road, so I followed. When I heard you shouting in the field, I saved you.”

Yu Xiangnian asked, “Why is Brother Ping looking for me?”