Chapter 29: A Letter from the Capital

In another interrogation room, the aunt and uncle from the Zhang family had long since lost their nerve. Under the psychological pressure of the officers' policy of "leniency for confessions and severity for resistance," they quickly confessed everything in detail. This included how they had abused An'an, how they had harbored malicious intentions to sell her for a bride price, and how they had planned to cause a disturbance at the military compound that day to ruin Zhou Susu's reputation and seize the child back in the chaos. All of their sophistry crumbled under the scrutiny of the people's police.

By comparison, the atmosphere in Wang Cuifen’s interrogation room was somewhat "lighter." After all, she had merely formed a "league of villains" with Old Mrs. Zhang in the courtyard.

"Comrade, I’ve been wronged!" she wailed, tears and snot streaming down her face. "I was just there to watch the commotion! I don't know anything!"

The officer in charge glanced at her and said coldly, "You certainly didn't participate in the trafficking. However, as the biological mother of Comrade Zhou Susu, knowing full well the Zhang family’s illicit intentions, you not only failed to protect your own daughter and granddaughter but instead colluded with them to falsely accuse and slander the family of an active-duty military officer."

"What do you call such behavior?" The officer paused. "It’s called… abetting! It’s called disturbing the public order!"

"According to the Regulations on Administrative Penalties for Public Security, your actions have severely disrupted social and military order! We are fully authorized to place you under administrative detention."

Detention? Wang Cuifen was so terrified she nearly fell off her chair. She was nothing more than a rural shrew who bullied the weak and feared the strong, and she had feared those in uniform her entire life. Once she heard she would be locked up, all her arrogance vanished instantly.

"No… please, Officer!" she begged, crying. "I was wrong! I was truly wrong! I was just muddle-headed for a moment, blinded by greed!"

"I’ll never do it again! I swear! I will never bother my daughter again!" She began slapping her own face frantically, trying to win sympathy. However, the officer only watched her coldly, unmoved. If only she had known it would come to this, why act that way in the first place?

Outside the interrogation room, Zhou Susu sat quietly on a bench, holding the sleeping An'an. Lu Zhan stood at the far end of the corridor, his tall silhouette stretched long by the light. He hadn't participated in the interrogation, but he knew the outcome was already sealed.

Before long, Officer Liu emerged with the leadership of the Public Security Bureau. "Battalion Commander Lu, Comrade Zhou Susu," the leader said with an apologetic expression, "the matter has been basically clarified."

"The Zhang family's behavior was extremely vile and the nature of their actions is severe! We will definitely punish them strictly according to the law!"

"As for your mother..." He looked at Zhou Susu, appearing somewhat troubled. "Considering she did not cause substantial harm and her attitude in admitting her mistake was relatively 'good,' we have decided to place her in administrative detention for fifteen days as a disciplinary measure."

"We abide by the organization's decision," Lu Zhan replied concisely.

This result was within their expectations. For someone like Wang Cuifen, prison was too harsh, but mere criticism was too lenient. Fifteen days of detention would be just enough to make her remember the lesson and realize who she could not afford to provoke.

The farce had finally come to an end. As the sun set, golden light filtered through the windows into the corridor. Looking at An'an’s peaceful sleeping face in her arms, Zhou Susu felt the heavy stone that had been weighing on her heart for so long finally lifted.

Ever since Wang Cuifen received her "luxury fifteen-day tour package" from the Public Security Bureau, Zhou Susu's world was finally completely peaceful. Without the constant buzzing of malicious neighbors or the intrusion of greedy relatives looking for handouts, the very air seemed to freshen. Life suddenly slowed down—so much so that it felt almost unreal.

In the mornings, Zhou Susu would prepare varied and nutritious breakfasts for An'an in the kitchen. Today, it was sweet and creamy pumpkin and millet porridge, paired with golden, crispy fried dough sticks (produced by her space and fried in an air fryer—healthy and delicious). An'an ate until her little mouth was covered in oil, looking like a little kitten stealing a treat.

"Mommy, yummy!" she praised, her voice muffled, not forgetting to stuff the largest piece of dough stick into Zhou Susu's mouth. "Mommy eat too!"

"Oh, my sweet treasure," Zhou Susu laughed, her heart feeling as sweet as if it had been coated in honey.

During the day, she would hold An'an's hand and walk through the compound. Now, no one dared to point fingers at them behind their backs. The military spouses who had once gossiped about them now went out of their way to avoid her. Those who were truly sensible, like Sun Xiulan, the wife of Regiment Commander Wang, would greet her warmly.

"Susu, taking An'an out for a stroll again?"

"Yes, Sister Sun."

"My, our An'an’s little face is getting more and more radiant. She looks just like a doll from a New Year painting!"

An'an would tilt her little head and say sweetly, "Hello, Grandma!" Her soft, milky voice was enough to melt anyone's heart.

In the afternoons, when the sunlight was just right, Zhou Susu would bring a small stool out to the courtyard, sitting in the sun to tell An'an stories. She recounted classic fairy tales from the future that she had found in her space—*Snow White*, *The Ugly Duckling*, *The Three Little Pigs*... The novel and interesting stories captivated An'an so much that she didn't even notice when Lu Zhan returned from training.

Lu Zhan seemed to enjoy it too. He would silently bring a small stool and sit beside the mother and daughter, pretending to clean his sidearm, but his ears were pricked high, listening more intently than An'an. Occasionally, upon hearing something funny, his usually tight and serious face would unconsciously soften with a faint smile.

The entire courtyard was filled with a warm and peaceful atmosphere, as if the chaotic farce of the past was nothing more than a fading dream.

That afternoon, a messenger from the military unit delivered a letter. It was addressed to Lu Zhan. Zhou Susu glanced at the postmark on the envelope—it was from the capital. She didn't pay much attention and left it on the table.

When Lu Zhan returned in the evening, he saw the letter. His movements as he opened it visibly paused. He stood by the table, quietly looking at the letter in the sunset for over ten minutes. His brows were slightly furrowed, and his expression was one of extreme complexity that Zhou Susu had never seen before—a mix of nostalgia, struggle, and a faint sense of detachment.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Susu asked, walking over with An'an in her arms.

Lu Zhan snapped out of his reverie and quickly folded the letter, stuffing it back into the envelope. "Nothing," he shook his head, his tone as flat as ever. "It's a letter from home."

"Oh," Zhou Susu nodded.

And then, she froze. Home? Where was his home? It was only then that she suddenly realized she didn't seem to know anything about Lu Zhan at all.