Everyone couldn’t help but turn their heads to look. When Chuntao heard Zhang Shuanzhu say that, she followed the crowd’s gaze and peered through the gaps, looking into the distance.
She vaguely saw several people in police uniforms coming down the slope, and the one leading them was indeed Yang Weiming.
Chuntao’s heart tightened instantly, filled with anxiety and tangled confusion.
She had encountered Yang Weiming on her way to Dongshan, which had already aroused his suspicion.
Later, he had come to see her once more, back when her pregnancy wasn’t yet visible. But now, her belly was round and obvious at a glance...
The more Chuntao thought about it, the more afraid she became, her little face scrunching up in worry.
Zhang Shuanzhu wore a smug expression, his eyes fixed tightly on Zhou Zhijun’s face.
With a cold sneer, he said, “I only enforce family planning, but you seduce women and get them pregnant—that’s a key target for the police crackdown. You’re in serious trouble!”
Liu Cuilan’s eyes gleamed sharply. She was certain that Zhou Zhijun and Li Chuntao were finished this time, and she couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Hearing this sudden laughter, everyone’s eyes turned to her.
Liu Cuilan lifted her chin arrogantly and said stiffly, “What are you all looking at?” Then she hurriedly ran out of the yard to greet the police.
The people in the yard immediately began whispering softly. Second Aunt Zhou had only just learned about Zhou Zhijun and Chuntao’s situation today and couldn’t help but worry.
She walked over to Zhou Zhijun, quietly tugging at his clothes, signaling him to hide for a while.
But Zhou Zhijun stood there like a rooted boulder, motionless, his fists clenched so tightly that his fingertips dug deeply into his skin.
The old party branch secretary stepped forward and said firmly, “No matter who comes, we must reason with them!”
Though his words sounded tough, he felt uneasy inside.
These days, family planning policies were already very strict. Given Zhou Zhijun and Li Chuntao’s situation, without a birth permit, they were clearly violating the policy.
The villagers gathered around, encircling Chuntao protectively, determined to shield her at all costs.
The yard was in chaos when Liu Cuilan came back panting, followed by several police officers.
She pointed at Zhou Zhijun and urgently said, “Captain Yang, Director Wu,
Zhou Zhijun seduced Li Chuntao and even fathered an illegitimate child. Please arrest him and give him a severe crackdown!”
Zhang Shuanzhu, grinning slyly, stepped forward to greet them, bowing and scraping, “Captain Yang, Director Wu, you’ve come just in time!
Zhou Zhijun was just now trying to violently obstruct our family planning work...”
As he spoke, he reached out to shake their hands, but neither of them even glanced at him, walking straight past.
Embarrassed, Zhang Shuanzhu rubbed his hands nervously, said nothing more, and hurried to follow.
Seeing the police enter, the villagers instinctively drew their circle tighter, shielding Chuntao thoroughly.
Yang Weiming, tall and imposing, looked over the crowd and fixed his gaze on Chuntao sitting in the middle.
Seeing her swollen belly, his heart sank sharply.
A few months ago, when he last saw her, everything seemed fine. How could her belly have ballooned like a balloon in such a short time? Judging by this, she was close to giving birth.
All his previous suspicions had now become reality, and Yang Weiming could hardly believe it.
Though he had been mentally prepared, seeing this scene with his own eyes still stirred an uncontrollable wave of pain deep within his heart.
In his mind, Chuntao had always been that pure, innocent girl next door. Now, all of that was brutally shattered.
His thoughts became a blur, and he couldn’t quite tell who he was at this moment.
Was he the law-abiding police officer, or the young man still clinging to a past love?
His fingers absentmindedly brushed the buttons on the sleeve of his uniform. The cold fabric beneath his fingertips suddenly brought a flood of memories from years ago.
That night, on the eve of his enlistment, in a small grove, he cupped her face gently and wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes with tender kisses.
Her eyes red-rimmed, she had said softly, “Brother Weiming, I’ll wait for you!”
That promise became the warmest hope he held close to his chest.
No matter how grueling the training or how harsh the watch duty in the army, the thought of Chuntao and her words “I’ll wait for you” gave him the strength to endure it all.
But not long after he enlisted, he heard the news that Chuntao was marrying his brother.
His heart felt as if it had been torn open, hollow and aching.
Unable to change the reality, he buried all his grievances, unwillingness, and heartbreak deep inside, channeling them into even fiercer determination on the training grounds.
It was as if only by pushing himself to the limit could he momentarily forget the stabbing pain.
Years passed in a flash. He had long since married and had children, and Chuntao had been through her own trials—people and things had all changed. Yet that flicker of old affection in his heart had never completely died out.
Now, his chest felt tight and heavy. A fellow officer quietly called his name twice, but he didn’t respond, standing frozen in place.
On one side was the police uniform he wore—the duty to uphold the law; on the other, the tangled strands of youthful love—an unbreakable longing hidden deep in his heart.
And in between, the weight of his established family life pressed down, three conflicting emotions twisted together like an unresolvable knot.
Chuntao could clearly feel Yang Weiming’s gaze on her. She felt utterly uncomfortable, burying her head low, her hands clutching the edges of her clothes tightly.
Yang Weiming was already married with children; their connection had long been severed. Her matters had nothing to do with him.
She and Zhou Zhijun were both single, and there was no reason for anyone to criticize their being together.
But the key issue was that they had no marriage certificate, no birth permit—the child in her womb was, in official terms, born out of wedlock.
In front of Yang Weiming, she felt completely ashamed, overwhelmed by a suffocating fear that made it hard to breathe.
Wu Mingwei, however, didn’t look at the crowd. He strode directly to Zhou Zhijun’s side.
Zhang Shuanzhu, his men, and Liu Cuilan all fixed their eyes on Wu Mingwei, full of confidence and smug satisfaction, convinced that “Zhou Zhijun wouldn’t escape this time.”
Liu Cuilan was still babbling nearby, “Director Wu, you don’t know—Zhou Zhijun is always reporting on others, but he’s the worst of them all!
He seduced Li Chuntao, got her pregnant out of wedlock—he deserves a charge of hooliganism at the very least!
And Li Chuntao, a single woman with a big belly, has also violated the family planning regulations…”
Wu Mingwei’s face darkened. Suddenly, he turned sharply and shot Liu Cuilan a piercing glare. The look was icy enough to chill to the bone. Liu Cuilan shivered and immediately fell silent.
Zhang Shuanzhu standing beside them also glared at her, whispering sharply, “Who asked you to talk so much?”
He grinned mischievously and moved closer, about to speak, when he saw Wu Mingwei pat Zhou Zhijun on the shoulder and say in a low voice, "Come here!"
Before the words even finished, Wu Mingwei strode toward the north room, and without a word, Zhou Zhijun followed.
The two entered the room, and with a loud bang, shut the door tight behind them.
The courtyard instantly fell silent, with only the sharp cold wind rustling the withered grass in the corner. Even the villagers’ breaths seemed frozen in the air.
Liu Cuilan’s eyes widened in shock, her mouth hanging open as if stuck that way. She instinctively shifted closer to Director Zhang.
She tugged at his sleeve, her voice trembling, "Director Zhang, what—what is Director Wu going to do?"
Director Zhang’s face was equally incredulous. His outstretched hand froze mid-air, his face turning a deep shade of red.
He ignored Liu Cuilan, spat hard on the ground, and muttered, "What the hell is going on?"
He tiptoed toward the north room’s door, and Liu Cuilan hurried to follow.
Neither dared to breathe as they pressed against the doorframe, straining to see inside through the crack.
Their ears perked up like they had sprouted donkey ears, desperate to catch every sound from within.
The villagers stood frozen in place, no one daring to speak. They exchanged glances and whispered among themselves in hushed tones.
Second Aunt Zhou remained behind Chuntao, tightening her arm around her shoulder as she felt Chuntao’s body tremble even more violently.
"Tao’er, Zhijun knows what he’s doing. Don’t be afraid."
Chuntao nodded mechanically, burying her head lower. Her knuckles gripping her clothes turned pale, and her belly was stretched round and tight.
With the corner of her eye, she fixated on the tightly shut north room door through the gaps between the villagers’ arms.
Her heart felt as if it was being gripped hard by a giant hand, suspended in midair—cold and aching, making it hard to catch her breath.
Suddenly, the north room door slammed open with a bang, making Zhang Shuanzhu and Liu Cuilan jump back to the side.
Wu Mingwei stepped out with a stern expression, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. He left behind a firm, unyielding command: "Zhou Zhijun, come with us."
The courtyard fell deathly silent. Everyone was stunned. Chuntao’s face drained of color in an instant; her body wavered, and she grabbed the stool for support as she suddenly stood up.
