Chapter 5 : Despicable Marriage Fraud

“Huh?”

Aiguo was stunned when he held the photo.

The man in the photo was indeed Zhuang Mingcheng.

Frowning, he turned around and picked up the letter again. Li Dajun’s name was clearly written on it.

“Comrade Zhu Haimei, there is a man named Li Dajun in our regiment. Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”

Zhu Haimei shook her head and said firmly, “This is impossible. I have the photo as evidence. Moreover, he also mentioned in the letter that he is the commander of the first battalion.”

Aiguo was startled. He nodded and said, “He is indeed a battalion commander, but he’s a deputy. I think I understand what’s going on now.”

With an unpleasant expression, he turned around and shouted out the door, “Xiao Liu, go call Li Dajun over and tell him to come here without delay!”

After taking a deep breath, Aiguo turned to Zhu Haimei again.

Looking at the Western-style capitalist lady, he wasn’t sure how to start the conversation. If this turned out to be what he thought, it would be really awkward!

Li Dajun had used Captain Zhuang’s photo to deceive people from Shanghai. This scoundrel was despicable!

“Comrade Zhu Haimei, please sit and wait for a moment. Things will be clarified soon.”

Seeing Zhu Haimei’s pale face, he quickly added, “Don’t worry, I, Aiguo, will never cover for anyone. I will definitely give you a satisfactory resolution on this matter.”

—

“Captain Zhuang, let’s eat.”

“Captain Zhuang, are there new members in our regiment?”

“Captain Zhuang, who is this? Could it be my sister-in-law?”

Zhuang Mingcheng replied casually and then pulled Lu Fangfang straight to the cafeteria.

A little while later, they reached the cafeteria entrance.

Just as he was about to go in, Zhuang Mingcheng felt the woman behind him tugging on him.

“Let go, let me go!”

Zhuang Mingcheng was stunned. He could tell that Lu Fangfang was genuinely angry now.

When he turned around, he saw Lu Fangfang staring at him stubbornly.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“I’m not hungry!”

At that moment, five or six people from the regiment were standing nearby. Lu Fangfang felt uncomfortable under their gaze and just wanted to leave quickly.

“I didn’t think it through.”

Zhuang Mingcheng apologized, but he still didn’t let go.

He turned around, pulled Lu Fangfang, and walked towards the east.

“Hey? Where are you taking me again?”

“Guest house!”

The regiment’s guesthouse was simple, not comparable to the one in the county town.

Zhuang Mingcheng registered with the staff and then took Lu Fangfang into a double room.

“Take a rest first. I’ll be back soon. This is a military stronghold, so don’t wander around.”

After leaving those instructions, Zhuang Mingcheng turned and left with his thermos.

Lu Fangfang stood alone in the room, feeling a bit confused.

After a while, she saw a washbasin on a shelf beside the door, so she walked over, poured some water, and washed her face thoroughly.

She wiped her face with a towel and looked at herself in the mirror, feeling somewhat absent-minded.

Pulling her long braid from her back to her chest, she took the photos from her pocket and compared them.

“You were so young.”

“She” from three years ago looked almost the same as she did now, except her braids were longer, and there were more fine hairs at the corners of her mouth.

With a sigh, she walked to the bed and sat down.

Looking around, Lu Fangfang didn’t know what to do. Should she really listen to the “scumbag” and wait obediently in the room for him to come back?

—

Reception room at the regiment headquarters.

“Bang, bang, bang.”

Aiguo frowned and shouted loudly “Come in!”

A man in his thirties walked in from outside the door.

He is not tall, about 1.7 meters, but he is quite strong and muscular.

Panting, he strode to Aiguo and saluted, “Political Commissar, are you looking for me?”

“Humph!”

Aiguo looked Li Dajun up and down.

He appeared to be a simple and honest man, but Aiguo hadn’t expected him to do something so shameful.

“Political… Political Commissar, what’s wrong?”

Li Dajun felt uncomfortable under Aiguo’s gaze and stuttered as he spoke.

“Bang!”

“What else?”

Aiguo slammed the table hard, pointed at Zhu Haimei, and said angrily, “Li Dajun, look at the person sitting on the bench. Do you recognize her?!”

Li Dajun turned his head and stood there, dazed.

After a while, he murmured, “Haimei, you… why are you here?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he immediately put his hands to his face.

“Bang!”

Aiguo was so angry that he suddenly stood up. He pointed at Li Dajun and said furiously, “Okay, Li Dajun, this person really is you!”

He paced back and forth for two steps, feeling both ashamed and enraged. “Look at what you’ve done. How am I supposed to explain this to others?”

Aiguo grew even angrier when he saw Li Dajun holding his face and not daring to look anyone in the eye.

“Li Dajun!”

“Yes!”

“Put your hands down. You have the nerve to do such a thing, and now you’re afraid of being embarrassed?”

Li Dajun closed his eyes and slowly lowered his hands.

“Open your eyes, you bastard!”

“…”

Zhu Haimei sat on the bench, stunned, no longer hearing Aiguo’s curses.

At this point, she was utterly confused.

Is this Li Dajun?

This little man, Li Dajun, was the one she had been corresponding with?

“I was deceived. I, Zhu Haimei, thought I was clever, but I was tricked…”

Holding the photos she had taken along the way, she looked at the man in the photo, then glanced up at Li Dajun in the room.

With a silly smile, she slowly began to tear the photo apart.

When Aiguo saw Zhu Haimei’s reaction, he was so angry that he kicked Li Dajun.

“Li Dajun, tell me, why did you send Comrade Haimei a photo of Battalion Commander Zhuang?”

Li Dajun staggered, and when he stood at attention again, he didn’t know how to start.

After a while, he whispered, “My brother-in-law in Shanghai wanted to introduce me to a girl. I heard her family was well-off, so I was afraid she wouldn’t like me. Blinded by greed, I sent her a photo of Captain Zhuang.”

After speaking, he lowered his head in shame.

“You bastard, Li Dajun, you bastard!”

Zhu Haimei burst into tears. She never expected something so outrageous.

Beside her, Aiguo was so angry he almost laughed.

He pointed at Li Dajun and said angrily, “Li Dajun, Li Dajun, I really underestimated you. You could come up with such a despicable trick.”

“Have you even thought about your future? Do you need Captain Zhuang to marry you? You might as well just hand your wife over to Captain Zhuang!”

Li Dajun gritted his teeth, a bit unconvinced. “Political Commissar, people in the countryside set up blind dates for others, and they still get married and have kids. I just…”

Before he could finish, Aiguo kicked him, “Bang!”

This time, Li Dajun lost his balance, staggered, and fell directly to the ground.

“Li Dajun! What kind of idea is that? Are you even still a soldier?”

“I’m going to punish you. I’m putting you in solitary confinement!”

Aiguo was nearly beside himself. Even now, Li Dajun hadn’t realized the gravity of his mistake.

And he still thought his method was right.

Li Dajun, now in a panic, quickly got up and said, “Political Commissar, I was wrong. I was just confused for a moment.”

“Comrade Haimei, I shouldn’t have lied to you, but I am sincere with you. Except for the photo, everything else is true. I want to be your partner, but I was afraid you’d look down on me. I…”

“I’m a bastard!”

Li Dajun slapped himself hard, “Political Commissar, Haimei, please forgive me.”