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

Feng Yuling glanced at Shen Tang, then at Yang Xinyue, but did not step forward.

Seeing that everyone had fallen silent, the leader turned to Ge Aihua and said:

"There's one more thing. Have you shown any favoritism towards Shen Tang?"

Ge Aihua said with a smile, "Whether I have hemiplegia or not, Shen Tang, why don't you sit down and watch the rest of the performance?"

Next up is a solo performance.

One by one, the team members went on stage to perform. Yang Xinyue performed a ballet, which was noble and elegant, and the whole performance was perfect and smooth.

Everyone else also performed their own acts.

Shen Tang was the last to go on stage.

She wore a white cloak, stepped forward to the rhythm of the drums, raised her hand in salute, and moved with clean and crisp movements, like a sword drawn from its sheath.

"Treading on the snow of the northern land, covered with the frost of the frontier—" A powerful voice rang out.

The leader in the front row sat up straight.

Shen Tang twirled and raised her arms to the rhythm, her white cloak drawing an arc like an eagle spreading its wings.

As the music stopped, Shen Tang's dance froze.

"Good! That's quite the heroic spirit of a female soldier." The commander stood up and applauded.

The audience erupted in enthusiastic applause.

Ge Aihua asked with considerable pride, "How was it?"

The commander looked at Shen Tang and said, "Shen Tang, you are neither humble nor arrogant, perfectly meeting the selection criteria for the cultural troupe!"

The leader looked at everyone and said, "The matter is now completely clear. Comrade Shen Tang and Commander Huo are innocent. Moreover, Comrade Shen Tang won the competition based on his own strength. There was no favoritism involved."

Huo Xiuyuan stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "Now that the matter has been investigated, the person who wrote the anonymous letter is guilty of slander and defamation. We must find her!"

The leader nodded and said, "That's right! Can you recognize the handwriting?"

Huo Xiuyuan took the letter and handed it directly to Shen Tang.

Shen Tang was often in charge of collecting team members' reports and such, and she had seen everyone's handwriting.

Shen Tang read the letter carefully.

The handwriting on this whistleblower letter is different from that of Yang Xinyue and Sun Qian.

The handwriting on the letter was crooked and messy, as if it had been written with the left hand.

Shen Tang walked over to Sun Qian and said, "Come on, write a few words and let me see."

"I'll write it then." Sun Qian picked up her pen, about to start writing.

"Use your left hand," Shen Tang said.

Sun Qian frowned and threw the measuring cup onto the table:

"I can't write with my left hand."

"Stop dawdling!" the commander shouted sternly.

Sun Qian was startled by the stern shout.

She picked up a pen and scribbled a few words on the paper.

Shen Tang frowned slightly.

Sun Qian deliberately wrote in a very messy hand, just so that she wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

Huo Xiuyuan stepped forward and held up both the letter of complaint and the piece of paper at the same time.

"This letter was written by you," Huo Xiuyuan said with certainty.

Sun Qian widened her eyes and retorted, "It wasn't me! How did you know I wrote it? You're just trying to frame me."

"The pressure you apply to your handwriting is exactly the same as in this whistleblower letter. And there's something special about your horizontal strokes; the characters on the two papers look different, but the details match perfectly. What else do you have to say!"

Huo Xiuyuan slammed the two pieces of paper onto the table.

Sun Qian shuddered and turned to look at Yang Xinyue.

Yang Xinyue lowered her eyes slightly, her face calm, and didn't look at her at all.

"New Moon..." Sun Qian called out.

"Sun Qian, just admit it! You wrote this letter. I tried to persuade you to stop, but you wouldn't listen."

Sun Qian stared at Yang Xinyue in shock.

It was Yang Xinyue who suggested that Sun Qian write it. She said that Sun Qian's handwriting was not discernible, while her own handwriting was too beautiful and would be easily recognized.

Yang Xinyue continued, "Don't worry, even if you don't get into the performing arts troupe, I can talk to my dad and get you a job at the garment factory."

Sun Qian bit her lip tightly.

Yang Xinyue was pointing the finger at her. Now that the handwriting comparison had been completed, she couldn't deny it anymore.

She definitely won't be able to get into the performing arts troupe.

However, Yang Xinyue said that she would let her continue working at the garment factory, which could be considered as leaving her a way out.

After thinking it over and over, Sun Qian raised her head:

"Yes, I wrote the whistleblower letter. I just felt that Shen Tang and Commander Huo had an unusual relationship!"

"Making baseless accusations, slandering officers, disrupting the selection process for the cultural troupe, and maliciously defaming and spreading rumors about team members—Sun Qian's selection for the cultural troupe is hereby revoked, and she will never be employed again!" the commander sternly declared.

Sun Qian stood there blankly; she would never be able to join the performing arts troupe again.

Sun Qian looked up at the crowd, her gaze landing on Yang Chaoyang.

It doesn't matter. Even if she can't join the performing arts troupe, as long as she wins over Yang Chaoyang, she can still stand out from the crowd and be superior to others.

"Okay, I accept the punishment," Sun Qian said.

Shen Tang looked at Yang Xinyue, who stared directly at him with a cold gaze.

Huo Xiuyuan stared at Sun Qian with a chilling gaze.

There was no handwriting at all; he just tricked him, and that's how he got it out.

The leader cleared his throat and said in a deep voice:

"Reports must be based on evidence, and our officers are not to be slandered so easily. Sun Qian has publicly apologized and deeply reflected on her mistakes."

Shen Tang raised an eyebrow at Sun Qian. "Apologize."

"Apologize! Apologize!" the crowd below shouted.

Sun Qian clenched her fists and looked at Shen Tang:

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have reported Commander Huo and Comrade Shen Tang without evidence. I apologize to you both. I'm sorry!"

"Guards, take him away and send him to the police station for detention."

The commander waved his hand, and several people came up and took Sun Qian away.

"Pah! Morally corrupt, he's obviously no good."

Someone in the audience cursed at Sun Qian.

Sun Qian was taken away, her face pale.

"You can continue," the commander said before leaving.

Ge Aihua looked at everyone and said, "I hope everyone learns from Sun Qian's lesson and doesn't make the same mistake again. Fair competition among team members is a good thing, but malicious slander and rumors against others must be absolutely prohibited!"

"Now I will announce the list of selected candidates. Those selected, please come forward to the stage," said Ge Aihua.

"Feng Yuling, Zhao Wenjing, Zhou Nan, Chen Yanhong, Liu Ping, Yang Xinyue... The last one is also our first place winner in this competition—Shen Tang."

A round of enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience.

Yang Aimin and his family ran onto the stage and presented flowers to Yang Xinyue.

The families of the other team members also came up on stage to hug them.

The scene was lively and festive.

Those who weren't selected left with regret.

Lu Jingshen, who had been standing at the back of the crowd, strode towards the stage.

Shen Tang narrowed her eyes.

What is Lu Jingshen doing here? Is he going to cause trouble?

"I disagree with Shen Tang joining the cultural troupe!"

Lu Jingshen walked to the center of the stage and shouted loudly.

The originally joyful atmosphere froze because of Lu Jingshen's words.

Lu Jingshen raised his voice and said, "Shen Tang and I have been separated for three years. She finally came to the garment factory, and it hasn't been long before we have to live apart again. This is really affecting our relationship."

Shen Tang sneered, "Lu Jingshen, am I really your legal wife?"

Lu Jingshen gritted his teeth and said, "Of course!"

Shen Tang took a piece of paper out of her bag and said:

"My marriage certificate with Lu Jingshen was forged by him!"

Lu Jingshen clenched his fists tightly.

What exactly is she trying to do?!