The wealthy military officer spoils his wife excessively

Only she was kept in the dark, believing that the other party was so eager to persuade her that she reluctantly agreed to sign the contract.

“Listen to me, the biggest problem now is that she said if we don’t agree to her conditions, she’ll hand over that recording to the police and report your connection to this money laundering case. I’m already in dire straits myself, and even if I can testify that you’re innocent, the police might not believe me. This whole thing started because of me, so I told her to name her terms…”

Nie Suwen felt as if someone had suddenly plunged her head into water. In a distorted, bewildered state, she felt separated from the real world by a layer. She couldn't breathe, couldn't shout, and apart from the dull, throbbing pain in her lungs, all she could see were strings of absurd bubbles before her eyes. The voice on the phone also had a dreamlike, floating quality, as if drifting on water, sometimes near, sometimes far.

She once thought that she didn't care how others lived, she just needed to do her own thing. But life is like a leaf; no matter how it shakes itself on the branch, a gust of dirty wind will sweep it into the mud. Who cares about its past or where it came from? People will only kick it in the mud.

"What does she want me to do?" She finally found her voice again.

"She wants to see you."

Xiao Rong and Yuan Yuquan had already arrived at a tea shop in the suburbs of Beijing and were sitting there.

A tea ceremony hostess in a cheongsam came forward to perform Kung Fu tea for the two, but neither of them was in the mood to appreciate it. Xiao Rong frowned slightly, waved his hand impatiently, signaling her to leave, and the quiet private room was filled with the lingering aroma of tea. It was a fine Dong Ding Oolong, but unfortunately, no one had the heart to savor it.

Yuan Yuquan picked up his teacup, slowly turning it along the rim, and smiled easily: "There were rumors before that you, President Xiao, were particularly fond of Nie Suwen. I said it was absolutely impossible. So many female artists in the company have had relationships with you in some way, but she is the only one who is completely innocent and has no connection with you at all. Now it seems that Nie Suwen is indeed your true love, President Xiao. You are even willing to condescend to have tea with a nobody like me for her sake."

"You wanted to see me, and here I am. Now, what else do you want?"

Yuan Yuquan swirled his glass and laughed, "Hasn't Nie Suwen arrived yet? Oh, I forgot, she disdains associating with someone as insignificant as me, even though the good deeds she's done are astounding. Sometimes when I look at those photos, I admire her immensely. Is it that you men like this kind of fickle woman...?"

"Shut up! I've agreed to all your demands. Hand over the recordings and photos, and you can do whatever you want from now on, just don't bother Nie Suwen anymore."

Yuan Yuquan said slowly, "President Xiao, although you are about to go to jail, I will remember your kindness and guidance. This cup of tea is my way of toasting you..."

As she was speaking, she reached for her teacup. Xiao Rong's cold laugh was still in her throat when the door to the tea room was pushed open.

Nie Suwen stood outside the door and glanced at the two people sitting in the private room.

"Looks like I missed the best part."

Yuan Yuquan straightened his back and smiled slightly: "You're late. You didn't see how our CEO Xiao loves beauty more than power."

Suwen smiled back: "Is that so? That's a pity. I love watching the clown's antics the most."

She walked to Xiao Rong's side and took the recordings and photos he had just obtained from Yuan Yuquan. Xiao Rong looked at her but did not stop her.

Suwen turned on the recording in front of the two of them, and the familiar conversation was once again presented in the room between the three of them.

She listened calmly, then tossed the tape back to Xiao Rong: "It's your stuff, you can keep it yourself."

Yuan Yuquan raised an eyebrow and smiled: "It's okay, I have plenty of backups of this. If you like, I'll give you a copy as a souvenir."

“You…” Xiao Rong was furious.

Su Wen smiled gently, took out a stack of photos from the envelope, and looked through them one by one. At first, when she saw the contents of the photos, she raised her eyebrows, but later she became more and more calm, as if reliving a beautiful time that had passed. Finally, she neatly arranged the photos with her hands before closing the envelope and handing it back to Xiao Rong.

"I had almost forgotten about these photos. I was thinner back then than I am now. Women really do gain weight when they are pregnant."

Her consistently nonchalant tone finally angered Yuan Yuquan, who had been trying to see her make a fool of herself.

"How dare you say you're pregnant? How can you face your husband? One in front of you, another in a photo, do you have no shame at all?"

“He likes me just the way I am.” Suwen turned her head and chuckled.

“You don’t deserve to be with him. If I were you, I would know better and leave on my own. No man would tolerate his wife having lived with another man before.”

"If you were me?" Su Wen's lips still held a knowing smile, "Unfortunately, you can never be me!"

Everyone has their Achilles' heel, and there will always be times when someone carelessly pokes it with a finger.

Yuan Yuquan stood up abruptly, then quickly sat back down.

She looked up at Suwen and said, "I want you to leave President Lu and let him go. Otherwise, I will let everyone know your dirty secrets!"

Su Wen picked up the teacup in front of Xiao Rong, then tossed it towards Yuan Yuquan. The premium Dongding Oolong tea, untouched, was already cold, the tea dripping down Yuan Yuquan's bangs.

"Oh, right, how could we forget you?"

Before the two could react, the cup that originally belonged to Yuan Yuquan was suddenly shoved onto the face of the dumbfounded Xiao Rong.

"Thank you for cleaning up my mess. I am where I am today thanks to you."

After Suwen finished speaking, he threw the cup to the ground. The crisp sound shattered the hearts of everyone present, and even many years later, Xiao Rong could not forget the resounding impact of that moment.

Like the tolling of a bell in life, it announces an end, yet it is also the beginning of another.

Su Wen's abrupt break over a cup of tea could not possibly satisfy Yuan Yuquan. On the very night Xiao Rong was arrested at her home, several police officers came to Su Wen and asked her to return to the police station to assist in the investigation of this money laundering case.

"Ms. Nie, someone has reported that you are involved in this money laundering case. Do you have anything to say?"

The interrogation room was airtight, with a single light shining directly onto the table, its stark white light stinging the eyes. A young police officer in a criminal investigation uniform sat opposite him; above her head was a surveillance camera, and on the other side, a recording device was running silently.

Such a scene was something Nie Suwen had never dared to imagine before. She didn't know if her words would become evidence in court, and her heart was filled with emptiness.

"Ms. Nie, please cooperate with our work."

Nie Suwen lowered her head and shook her head blankly: "I don't know. This matter has nothing to do with me. I won't say anything until the lawyer arrives."

The detective shrugged helplessly at the surveillance camera.

Just then, the door to the interrogation room was pushed open, and a familiar face flashed in.

The detective stood up in surprise. Gu Huai'an, dressed in an army uniform with two bars and two stars gleaming on his shoulders, handed over the documents in his hand and explained, "I am the captain of the Wolf Fang Special Forces of the Chinese Army. The suspect you are interrogating now may be related to the major drug trafficking case being investigated jointly by the military and police. I have been transferred to participate in the trial of this case, and my position is equivalent to that of your captain."

The young detective picked up the transfer order in disbelief, read it carefully several times, and then looked at the epaulets on Gu Huai'an's shoulders. At the same time, he heard instructions from his superiors through his earpiece, which were to order him to leave the interrogation room. The detective let out a disdainful snort, shrugged, and walked out of the interrogation room.

The military and police are supposed to be one family, but in reality, the Ministry of Public Security has accumulated deep resentment towards the military. This is because police are not allowed to arrest active-duty military personnel, yet in routine law enforcement, some soldiers abuse their status to harass police, even resorting to violence. Furthermore, when the military conducts exercises, it often requisitions urban police resources without prior notice, especially during special forces infiltration training, which frequently disrupts urban police operations. Even when they were arresting a suspect in a money laundering case, the military intervened. No wonder the young officers are dissatisfied.

Nie Suwen stared blankly at Gu Huai'an, who walked in and sat down in front of her, before finally speaking, "Captain Gu..."

"Didn't expect to see me here, did you?" Gu Huai'an's tone was relatively relaxed.

"Does Lu Zheng... know?"

Since Gu Huai'an knew she had been arrested, then Lu Zheng should also be...

She asked herself this question and then fell silent. She could remain silent in front of the police, but how could she explain it to Lu Zheng? In truth, the evidence was irrefutable; what would be the point of her explanation?

Thinking of this, she actually smiled.

Gu Huai'an took out the documents in his hand, which were the audio tapes and photos that Su Wen had seen in the tea room that afternoon.

“You’re a smart man. They can’t prove your involvement in money laundering with just this recording. But… these photos are more lethal than this tape.”

He then changed the subject and laid out the photos one by one on the interrogation table.

Suwen's eyes flickered, her composure far removed from what she had shown in the teahouse. She hadn't expected these photos to have become so widely available.

Who she's been with is her own business, and it's none of their concern. Even if it were made public, it wouldn't be a big deal. It's just that the people in front of her are people she knows well, and this face-to-face honesty makes her feel a little uncomfortable.

Did he force you to take these photos?

The "he" that Gu Huai'an mentioned is the same "he" in the photo, Hao Haiyun.

Suwen slowly scanned the photos, then shook her head slightly: "No one forced me; it was my own choice."

She saw the regret in Gu Huai'an's eyes, a look that was hard to describe in words, or even Nie Suwen herself couldn't understand. Perhaps it was... a look of pity for his lack of ambition.