After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

Zhao Tiancheng's words were like a wad of rotten cotton soaked in oil, dirty and greasy, blocking the entrance of the movie theater, which had just ended and was bustling with noise.

His handsome face was slightly contorted with jealousy, and he adopted a full-on interrogation posture, as if Ye Zhen were some unfaithful woman caught red-handed. The noisy crowd around them seemed to sense the tension, and their voices gradually quieted down, with curious glances falling upon them.

Lin Wan leaned weakly against him, a hint of smugness hidden in her eyes, but she spoke with concern, "Brother Tiancheng, don't be like this, my sister..."

Before she could finish speaking, a casual voice, tinged with amusement, interrupted from beside Ye Zhen.

Gu Zheng took half a step forward, his tall frame of over 1.8 meters naturally blocking Ye Zhen's side. This small movement formed an unassailable protective stance. He wore a flawless smile, his gaze fixed on Zhao Tiancheng, polite yet distant, as if he were sizing up an ignorant stranger.

"Sir, do you know my...girlfriend?"

He spoke slowly and deliberately, especially the word "girlfriend," which he enunciated with exceptional clarity. Each syllable was like a small pebble, precisely thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples.

Ye Zhen's breathing paused almost imperceptibly for a moment.

She could feel a subtle resonance in the man's chest when he uttered those three words. His warm breath brushed against her earlobe, the same temperature as when he had secretly held her hand in the movie theater, carrying an undeniable, forceful authority.

She neither admitted nor denied it, but simply raised her eyes, her cold gaze sweeping over Zhao Tiancheng's face, which froze instantly. She wanted to see what kind of play this man was going to put on.

But Zhao Tiancheng was completely enraged by the word "girlfriend." His face turned from white to green, then from green to red, his chest heaved violently, and his hand pointing at Ye Zhen trembled, as if his most precious treasure had been stolen and flaunted in front of him.

"Girlfriend? She's clearly my ex-fiancée!" He practically yelled, his voice filled with anger and resentment at having his beloved taken away.

Upon hearing this, a series of suppressed gasps and whispers arose from the surrounding crowd of onlookers.

"Oh—" Gu Zheng drawled, as if suddenly realizing something. His expression was less one of surprise and more of undisguised mockery. "So it's your ex. No wonder."

That word "ex," though light and airy, carried more weight than any harsh words. Like a stamp, it landed squarely on Zhao Tiancheng's forehead, clearly defining his identity—a thing of the past, an outsider.

Gu Zheng didn't give Zhao Tiancheng any chance to refute. He turned his head, lowered his eyes slightly to look at Ye Zhen, and said in a tone of indulgence mixed with a hint of helplessness: "Look at you, you're so charming. Even though we've broken up, your ex is still haunting us, coming to the movie theater to check up on us. People who don't know better would think we did something to offend him."

He spoke softly, but his words were clear enough for everyone around him who were listening intently to hear the gossip.

Some people in the crowd couldn't help but chuckle softly. People these days may be conservative, but they still understand basic principles. He's already an "ex," yet he's here criticizing her current partner—what kind of behavior is that? Shameful.

Lin Wan's face paled. She hadn't expected Gu Zheng to be so persistent, turning the tables in just a few words and portraying them as the unreasonable ones. She quickly tugged at Zhao Tiancheng's arm, urgently explaining, "No, comrade, you've misunderstood! Brother Tiancheng came to see the movie with me!"

She tried to emphasize that they were a serious couple on a date, attempting to rationalize their "chance encounter."

"Then that settles it?" Gu Zheng laughed even more heartily upon hearing this. He spread his hands, his posture nonchalant, his logic as clear as if he were conducting tactical analysis in the military. "You do your thing, we do ours, let's keep to ourselves and live peacefully. Isn't that a simple matter?"

He paused, his gaze returning to Zhao Tiancheng's face, which had turned a deep purplish-red. His smile remained unchanged, but his words were like a soft knife, cutting into Zhao Tiancheng's face piece by piece.

"Or does Dr. Zhao think that Ye Zhen needs to submit a written application to your office, her 'former fiancé,' and have it signed and stamped before it's considered compliant, regardless of who she goes to the movies with or where she goes?"

"Pfft!"

Finally, a young man in the crowd couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing.

That's really hurtful.

It completely deconstructed Zhao Tiancheng's accusatory attitude from earlier into a ridiculous joke of unreasonable demands and an insatiable desire for control.

Zhao Tiancheng felt like he was being roasted over a fire, with everyone's gaze turning into needles, piercing him relentlessly, leaving him nowhere to hide. He wanted to argue, but found that whatever he said would be wrong. If he said yes, he would seem unreasonable; if he said no, then what about his actions just now?

His lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word, only rapid breathing remained.

In the midst of this extremely awkward silence, Ye Zhen, who had been silent all along, finally moved.

She raised her eyelids, and for the first time, her clear, cold eyes, like those of a star, looked directly at the furious Zhao Tiancheng. Her voice was soft and flat, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, yet it was like the sharpest scalpel, precisely targeting the other person's most vulnerable nerve.

"Zhao Tiancheng," she began, each word clear and distinct, "I remember reminding you that your intelligence might affect your offspring."

She paused for a moment, and under Zhao Tiancheng's astonished gaze, she added the second half of the sentence.

"Now it seems that emotional intelligence is also included."

As soon as Ye Zhen finished speaking, the air seemed to freeze for a moment.

If Gu Zheng's words were a playful jest with hidden barbs, then Ye Zhen's words were like a sharp and ruthless steel needle, piercing straight into Zhao Tiancheng's heart.

The double denial of both IQ and EQ was an even more humiliating blow than slapping Zhao Tiancheng, a proud and arrogant young man.

All his reason was burned away by rage at that moment.

"You!" His eyes were bloodshot, his mind blank, and every vicious, hurtful word uncontrollably burst from his mouth, "You country bumpkin who crawled out of some poor mountain village! What right do you have to talk to me like that!"

The moment the word "bastard" was uttered, the expressions of the surrounding crowd, who had been watching the spectacle, all changed.

Insults should not go too far, and one should not expose someone's shortcomings. To publicly attack a young woman based on her background, especially with such vicious language, is not just a lack of manners, but a serious character flaw.

Those mocking glances directed at Zhao Tiancheng instantly turned into contempt and disdain.

Lin Wan's face turned deathly pale. She desperately tugged at Zhao Tiancheng's sleeve, pleading softly, "Brother Tiancheng, please stop talking, please stop talking..."

She knew that Zhao Tiancheng's words had completely destroyed the "victim" image they had painstakingly created.

Almost at the same moment Zhao Tiancheng uttered his curse, the smile on Gu Zheng's face vanished completely. The lazy aura around him disappeared, replaced by a chilling sense of oppression honed from countless battles.

But unexpectedly, he didn't get angry, nor did he rush up and attack.

He simply reached out and gently patted Ye Zhen's tense back, the gesture conveying a sense of reassurance. He leaned down, whispered in her ear, in a voice only the two of them could hear: "Don't get angry with a dog, it's beneath you."

The warm palm pressed against her back through the thin fabric, like a solid barrier. Ye Zhen's body was tense, but upon hearing those words, her clenched fists loosened slightly.

Gu Zheng straightened up and looked at Zhao Tiantian again. His eyes were devoid of any emotion, only a condescending and almost pitying calm remained.

"So what if I come from the countryside?" he said, his voice steady yet carrying immense weight, clearly echoing in the noisy movie theater entrance. "My grandfather was also a peasant back then, carrying a gun and following the revolution, risking his life countless times, so that we, his descendants, can stand here today, watching movies and talking about love in peace."

His gaze swept over the pale-faced Zhao Tiancheng and Lin Wan, before finally settling on the faces of everyone around him.

"My grandfather often said that people can choose their own path, but they can't choose their own birth. People who attack others based on their background are either stupid or malicious. Dr. Zhao, which one do you think you are?"

His words were powerful and resounding.

The entire area outside the movie theater was completely silent.

Zhao Tiancheng froze on the spot, like a weathered stone statue, his face drained of all color.

Gu Zheng didn't look at him again, as if looking at him would be a waste of time. He turned around and, under the complicated gazes of everyone, reached out and grabbed Ye Zhen's wrist with utmost ease.

His palms were burning hot, and his strength was irresistible.

Ye Zhen was pulled along by him, staggered half a step, and before she could resist, he dragged her through the crowd that automatically parted for them and strode toward the jeep parked by the roadside.

Behind them were the disheveled figures of Zhao Tiancheng and Lin Wan, nailed to the pillar of shame, and countless contemptuous and probing gazes.

In her world, all that remained was the domineering and scalding heat emanating from her wrist.