She was tricked into marriage for three years, then remarried a childless, tough guy and became preg

Shen Tang followed two soldiers out of the rehearsal hall. The corridor was long, and their footsteps echoed in the empty hallway.

As soon as I stepped out of the gate, I saw Huo Xiuyuan standing on the steps outside.

He stood ramrod straight, his gaze fixed on Shen Tang's face, like a wall standing there.

The two soldiers stopped and looked at Huo Xiuyuan.

Huo Xiuyuan did not move aside; he stood there, looking at Shen Tang with unwavering eyes.

He took half a step forward, stopped, and spoke in a gentle yet firm voice:

"Don't worry, everything will be alright."

Shen Tang looked at him, nodded silently, and followed the soldier forward.

Shen Tang didn't turn around, but Huo Xiuyuan stood there, watching her back walk away, clenching his fists.

Shen Tang was led into a room with a table, two chairs, and a high window. Sunlight streamed in through the iron bars, making it somewhat dazzling.

She sat down in the chair, her hands on her knees, sitting very upright.

A middle-aged man in military uniform walked in, sat down opposite her, holding a file folder in his hand, and glanced at Shen Tang:

"Comrade Shen Tang, I am Officer Wang from the Discipline Inspection Department. I've invited you here today to verify some information with you."

Shen Tang raised her head: "Okay."

Officer Wang opened the file folder: "Do you know Chen Zhongyi?"

"I've met him a few times," Shen Tang said. "At first, he would always look at me from afar, which made me feel awkward, so I cornered him. He told me he was a distant relative of mine. I didn't believe him."

"And then?" Officer Wang looked at her sharply.

"Then, he said that my father, Shen Qingshan, had saved him when he was driving a truck, and he wanted to repay the favor. But he found that my father had already passed away. That's all." Shen Tang finished speaking and looked calmly at Officer Wang.

Do you know that he is your biological father?

"I don't know, he never mentioned it. The last time we met, he said he was saying goodbye and leaving this place. I haven't seen him since," Shen Tang said.

Officer Wang made a few notes: "Have your parents ever mentioned Chen Zhongyi to you? Have they ever hinted that he isn't your biological parent?"

"No. I always thought they were my biological parents." Shen Tang felt a pang of sadness when she thought of her deceased parents.

Officer Wang put down his pen, looked up at her, and said, "So, you didn't know you weren't her biological child, and you didn't know you had Chen Zhongyi as your biological father?"

"Yes. Before today, I always believed that Shen Qingshan was my biological father."

After a moment of silence, Officer Wang lowered his head and wrote something in his notebook, then looked up again:

"Is there anything else you want to say?"

Shen Tang was silent for a few seconds before saying, "You can check Chen Zhongyi's release date from prison and the time he arrived here. If I really wanted to hide something, I wouldn't have let him keep appearing around here."

Officer Wang glanced at her, scribbled a few lines in his notebook, and stood up.

"Okay, we'll investigate."

After the conversation, Shen Tang was moved into a temporary dormitory.

It's a separate courtyard, and the room isn't big—just a bed, a table, and a chair.

Shen Tang stood at the doorway, looked around, and then turned to the soldier who had brought her there, saying:

"Comrade, I'm about to take the self-study exam. Could you please bring me my English review materials? They're in my bag in my dorm room locker."

The soldier hesitated for a moment: "I'll go ask for permission."

About half an hour later, the door was pushed open again.

The soldier placed Shen Tang's bag on the table and glanced at her:

"Once the matter is investigated and clarified, you can leave. It will take at most seven or eight days."

Shen Tang thanked him, and the soldier turned and left.

Shen Tang sat at the table, took out a test paper, and began to look at the questions. The words on the page squeezed into her eyes one by one, but her mind was blank.

She stared at the test paper on the table for a long time.

Even if the truth is found out, so what? She didn't cover it up, she's innocent, but her biological father is Chen Zhongyi—a man who has killed people and been imprisoned.

The performing arts troupe would not keep a murderer's daughter, and the military would not allow Huo Xiuyuan to marry a murderer's daughter; he would not pass the political review.

Even if Huo Xiuyuan were willing to marry her, he was still a soldier, and the families of military officers had to have a clean background, which she couldn't clean up now.

Her heart felt like it was being squeezed tightly, torn and twisted, the pain making it hard for her to breathe.

She raised her head, took a deep breath, and suppressed the sour feeling.

She shouldn't have put men in her heart so easily, yet it still turned out this way.

Shen Tang forcefully wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. Even if she left the performing arts troupe, she could support herself. Without the constraints of her military status, she could even open a factory and start a business. She could make it big and strong!

She opened her English book and started doing the exercises.

The pen scratched softly on the paper as she banished those chaotic thoughts from her mind.

In the evening, someone brought her a lunchbox, which Shen Tang ate in large mouthfuls.

It got dark, and there were no lights in the house.

She lay quietly in bed with her eyes open, tilting her head to look at the night sky outside the window.

The night sky in this era is so beautiful, with bright and numerous stars scattered across the sky.

Shen Tang moved slightly towards the windowsill.

"This is Polaris, this is the Big Dipper, this is Orion, this is..."

She counted the constellations in the sky, which made her feel much better, and she finally fell asleep in the middle of the night.

The next morning, she woke up early and went to the yard to do some morning exercises to stretch her body.

Then a soldier brought breakfast and took away last night's lunchbox.

Shen Tang didn't inquire about the progress; she knew it wouldn't be that quick.

By the second day, Shen Tang had already gotten used to it. She quietly read books and did exercises. If the investigation was fast enough, she would still have time to take the exam.

Before I knew it, another day had passed.

As usual, Shen Tang lay in bed looking at the stars that night, but unexpectedly, the wind picked up outside, and dark clouds rolled in and filled the sky, pressing down heavily.

Shen Tang quickly closed the window and locked the door.

A thunderous boom echoed across the sky.

Shen Tang was shaken so much that she trembled. She wasn't afraid of thunderstorms, but the room was dark and there were no lights.

Shen Tang groped his way down to the ground and found a kerosene lamp in the corner, but no matches.

"Boom!"

A series of thunderclaps rang out, followed by a bolt of lightning that illuminated the courtyard and the house.

"Ah!" Shen Tang was so startled that she quickly burrowed into the blankets.

Lightning flashed and thunder roared, followed by a torrential downpour.

The sounds of wind, thunder, and rain blended together, and lightning continued to strike haphazardly.

Shen Tang huddled under the covers, not daring to show her head.

She couldn't help but cry, feeling inexplicably wronged.

The sound of chains rattling echoed in the courtyard as someone strode in.

"Shen Tang—"

The door was pushed open, and a tall figure, soaking wet, barged in.