Chapter 27

When Gu Nian and Xu Hua arrived, they saw a woman arguing with Li Pandi.

“Pandi, what’s going on? Isn’t Xiaoni the biological daughter of your sister and Chuanzhi?”

Mrs. Xu was also confused, and even Li Pandi started to doubt, but she still told the woman to clarify the truth.

“You claim Xiaoni is your daughter. Words alone are not enough—you must provide evidence.”

“Evidence? Fine. Back then, I was confused. When Dr. Liu came to me wanting to buy my daughter, I agreed. But now I regret it, and I want to take my daughter back.”

From what the woman said, Dr. Liu was deeply involved in this. Years ago, Li Zhaodi had given birth at the military hospital.

Since the matter was serious, Liu Chuanzhi reported it to the military leadership upon his return. The military authorities summoned Dr. Liu for questioning.

Soon, everyone gathered in Li Pandi’s courtyard. Dr. Liu’s full name was Liu Mei Qin.

She was the head of obstetrics and gynecology at the military hospital. Most women in the residential compound gave birth with her assistance, including all three of Mrs. Xu’s daughters.

“Dr. Liu, is what this woman said true? Is Xiaoni really her child?”

After spending so much time together, Li Pandi already saw Xiaoni as her own daughter. Being separated from her now felt like having a piece of her heart torn away.

Liu Mei Qin never expected the woman to return after all these years. She was afraid the truth would be exposed and remained silent. The woman grew impatient.

“Dr. Liu, speak up! You were the one who came to me back then, saying that a little girl was useless and that I might as well sell her for money. Have you forgotten?”

As soon as she said this, everyone’s opinion of Liu Mei Qin changed. They had once thought she was a good doctor, well-regarded in the compound.

Realizing that the truth was about to come out, Liu Mei Qin tried to shift all the blame onto Li Pandi, pointing at her.

“It’s not my fault! She was the one who begged me on her knees to find her a child! I had no choice but to approach you!”

As it turned out, on the day Li Zhaodi returned to her mother’s house, her brother pushed her while demanding money, causing her to feel sudden pain in her abdomen.

Fearing for her health, her mother and brother rushed her to the hospital. She barely survived, but the baby was lost.

Li Zhaodi didn’t have time to hate her mother and brother. She was too worried that Liu Chuanzhi might abandon her because of the lost child.

So, she approached Liu Mei Qin and offered her 100 yuan in exchange for finding her a baby—boy or girl, it didn’t matter.

Liu Mei Qin was tempted. There were so many babies in the hospital; she could just take one. And so, they took Xiaoni.

Liu Mei Qin gave the woman 20 yuan and kept 80 yuan for herself.

Everyone was furious. A child was not a commodity! How could they be bought and sold so easily?

The woman, seeing that Liu Mei Qin had confessed, finally smiled and turned to Li Pandi.

“This is all because of you! Now, hand over my daughter!”

She reached out to snatch Xiaoni, but the little girl clung tightly to Li Pandi, refusing to let go.

“Wait! Even if you’re her biological mother, you should respect her wishes first. Let’s ask Xiaoni if she wants to go with you.”

“Xiaoni, come home with Mommy. I’ve prepared lots of delicious food for you. We’ll leave this place and move to another city. Mommy didn’t mean to lose you back then.”

“I don’t want to! I want to stay here!”

Xiaoni was firm—she only recognized Li Pandi as her mother. Seeing this, the woman grew angry.

“Xiaoni, be obedient! Mommy will be very angry if you don’t come with me!”

Gu Nian found this suspicious. This woman had admitted to selling Xiaoni before, so why was she coming back now?

If she truly loved her daughter, she wouldn’t have sold her in the first place. Besides, Xiaoni was already three years old—why had she never come looking for her before?

“Wait! You must have another reason for wanting Xiaoni back, right?”

The woman’s expression flickered with guilt, but she pretended to stay calm.

“What other reason could I have? I just miss my daughter. Now give her back to me!”

“Until this matter is fully investigated, Xiaoni cannot go with you.”

A military leader stepped in. The woman left angrily, dragging a man with her.

The military leadership assigned Jiang Huaijing and Liu Chuanzhi to investigate. Within two days, they uncovered the truth.

The woman didn’t actually want to raise Xiaoni—she planned to sell her again.

According to their findings, every child this woman had given birth to was sold.

Everyone was shocked. They couldn’t believe such a heartless mother existed.

Upon learning the truth, Li Pandi was even more determined not to give Xiaoni back. Soon, the military handed down its punishment.

Liu Mei Qin was fired from the military hospital and sent back to her hometown. The woman and the man were arrested for human trafficking.

After everything that happened, Li Pandi treated Xiaoni even better, feeling heartbroken that such a young child had already endured so much.

Once the situation settled, peace returned to the compound. One day, as the residents were sitting in the courtyard eating sunflower seeds, Li Pandi came running over with a big smile, waving a letter.

“Ladies, I got accepted to Beijing University!”

“Oh my goodness, Pandi, that’s incredible! That’s Beijing University!”

“Wow, Pandi, you’ve really made our military wives proud!”

“Now those men can’t look down on us anymore! Women can get into top universities too!”

The military wives in the compound all congratulated Li Pandi. She herself could hardly believe it—it felt like a dream come true.

She knew she had to thank Gu Nian. Without Gu Nian’s study notes, she never would have passed the exam.

As everyone chatted, Mrs. Xu suddenly remembered something and turned to Gu Nian.

“Gu Nian, didn’t you take the exam and apply to universities with Li Pandi? Why hasn’t your acceptance letter arrived yet?”

Gu Nian shook her head. She had also applied to Beijing University, but she wasn’t worried about the delay.

“It’s fine. Maybe it’s just taking longer to arrive. I’ll probably get it tomorrow.”

The next morning, Gu Nian was still sleeping soundly when Mrs. Xu knocked on her door. She groggily got up to answer.

“Gu Nian, hurry up and get dressed! Something big has happened! The military leaders are here!”

Still half-asleep, Gu Nian looked confused. Mrs. Xu didn’t wait—she pulled her inside and started dressing her.

“Mrs. Xu, what’s going on? What big thing happened?”

“You!”

“What about me?”