21. The Hearing Witness

Tong Zhenzhen nodded vigorously, never expecting to receive the reply, "I'll tell you later." She was so annoyed her nose nearly went out of joint.

"Forget it then!" Tong Zhenzhen turned and ran back to the car. "Take me home!"

Jun Lengche watched her pouting in anger, his heart softening. The reason he wouldn't tell her the details was that in his heart, he didn't want her to know that their first meeting was due to his cousin, Qin Xiangyang.

Since childhood, Jun Lengche had looked after Qin Xiangyang, continuing to check on him even after entering military school. Ever since Qin Xiangyang started middle school, the name he heard most often was "Tong Zhenzhen." In Qin Xiangyang's accounts, Tong Zhenzhen possessed every virtue in the world.

Thus, one day, Jun Lengche decided to visit Qin Xiangyang's school to see this girl for himself.

While walking through an alleyway, Jun Lengche heard a commotion. He stopped and saw a group of people gathered inside.

"Hand it over!"
"Why should I?!"
"Careful, or I'll bleed you dry!"
...

Jun Lengche realized two girls were being blocked by four ruffians with flamboyant hairstyles, who seemed to be demanding one of the girls' bags.

The two girls had their backs to him. He could only see one with short hair, shielding a girl with long hair.

"Oh, look, the police are coming!" the short-haired girl shouted, pointing toward the other end of the alley. The young men turned their heads in a panic.

Taking advantage of the moment, the short-haired girl grabbed her companion and ran toward him.

Jun Lengche noticed the red birthmark on the short-haired girl's forehead at once.

As they ran past him, the short-haired girl stopped abruptly, her eyes bright with excitement. "Soldier brother, those jerks are all yours!"

The panicked long-haired girl tugged at her hand. "Zhenzhen, we don't know him!"

"My name is Tong Zhenzhen." The short-haired girl reached out, grabbed Jun Lengche’s hand, and shook it twice. "There, now we're friends. You hold them off for us!"

"Stop right there! You dare lie to us?!" The boys, realizing they had been tricked, shouted and gave chase.

The short-haired girl patted Jun Lengche on the shoulder and winked. "It's up to you."

With that, she dragged her friend away.

Was this girl Tong Zhenzhen? Jun Lengche immediately connected her to the enthusiastic, justice-seeking girl his cousin had described. *How interesting,* he thought at the time.

True to her expectations, Jun Lengche dealt with those punks. The lingering warmth on his hand made him remember her.

"Are you taking me or not?" Tong Zhenzhen was no mind reader. Seeing him standing there motionless, she yelled at him.

When he didn't answer, she turned and ran off.

Watching her back fade away, a silhouette that overlapped with his memory, Jun Lengche couldn't help but wonder if there was truly such a thing as fate.

Just as he prepared to follow her, his phone rang. After answering, his expression turned grave. He glanced at her retreating figure and got into his car.

***

After parting ways with Jun Lengche, Tong Zhenzhen took several transfers and didn't arrive home until it was pitch black. She had barely caught her breath when her phone rang.

An unknown number? She stared at the caller ID, waiting for the ringtone to persist for a full minute before answering.

"Zhen'er..."

*Ugh, it’s Long Tianyu. That jerk ruined my life!* Tong Zhenzhen’s anger flared. "Long Tianyu, get as far away from me as you possibly can!"

"Zhen'er, don't be angry. I'll handle it. The media won't bother you anymore," Long Tianyu explained hurriedly from the other end.

"Is that so? Good. We're over. Let's just live our own lives." She wanted nothing to do with him.

"Zhen'er..." Long Tianyu called out softly, full of pleading. "Can you forgive me? At the time, I had no choice. Even now, I still..."

Tong Zhenzhen had no interest in listening to his repentance and hung up. When he called again, she simply turned her phone off.

While eating instant noodles, she heard a knock at the door. Peering through the peephole, she was surprised to see Qin Xiangyang.

"Thank goodness, Zhenzhen, you're okay." Qin Xiangyang, looking tense, let out a sigh of relief when he saw her.

"Why wouldn't I be? Come in." She stepped aside to let him enter.

After sitting down, Qin Xiangyang hesitated.

"What do you want to say?" After three years of sitting together at school, she was familiar with his habits.

"Are... are you being harassed?" he asked worriedly.

Tong Zhenzhen raised an eyebrow, unsure what he meant.

He understood and laid it out plainly. "Zhenzhen, I know you wouldn't be a mistress. Have the media been bothering you?"

*A true old friend,* she thought, touched by his trust and concern. "No. Thank you."

Her "thank you" made him feel awkward. "Aren't we friends? Why be so formal?"

So, all these years, he still remembered they were friends. Her heart warmed. Being any more grateful would be pretentious. She stood up. "Little Yang, have you eaten? I have instant noodles."

"Sure, I just got off the train, I'm actually quite hungry. Let's have a bowl." He slapped the table decisively.

She happily prepared the noodles, adding two fried eggs.

True friendship isn't about being together every day; it's about not being forgotten. Watching her sit across from him with a smile as he ate, Qin Xiangyang had the illusion that time had reversed. A bowl of instant noodles tasted like the finest delicacy in the world. Something seemed to be sprouting and growing deep within his heart...

Over the next few days, Tong Zhenzhen was no longer besieged by reporters; Long Tianyu had apparently kept his word. However, the rumors did not fade with the silence of the parties involved; instead, they spawned countless versions.

***

*Let others talk, I'll live my own life.* Tong Zhenzhen ignored the whispers behind her back.

Unexpectedly, less than three days after the "mistress" storm, she was summoned to the military hospital under the guise of "assisting an investigation." "Invited" was the polite term, but she felt more like a prisoner, flanked by two stone-faced soldiers.

*Summoned to the military hospital?* Her intuition immediately pointed to Jun Lengche. Since they parted in that alley, he had essentially vanished. What did he have to do with her now?

As the heavy doors of the hospital conference room opened, she was met with a sea of intense gazes. The crowded room fell completely silent.

*What a spectacle,* she thought. She hadn't expected to become the center of attention. Scanning the stern faces, she sensed something major was happening.

"Miss Tong, please sit in the front row." A deep, resonant bass voice drew her wandering attention.

She looked ahead to find a row of desks on the right. Two men in their fifties were seated there, wearing white doctor's coats over their green military uniforms.

When she entered the building, she had glanced at the staff directory and quickly recognized the man in rimless glasses as Dean Qiao. His black hair was perfectly groomed, and his smile was polite but distant.

Beside him sat Political Commissar Mo, with a crew cut, a square face, thick eyebrows, and an intense gaze. He sat perfectly straight, bearing the unmistakable mark of a long military career.

After a quick assessment, Tong Zhenzhen nodded with a smile and walked forward with her head held high.

Just as she was about to take the only empty seat, she met a pair of icy, familiar eyes. Three seats away sat Jun Lengche.

Recalling how he had saved her from the media, she smiled at him, unaware that her radiant expression was interpreted by others as a sign of intimacy.

After listening for a while, she realized this was a hearing for the promotion of a military hospital officer.

"Next, I invite Deputy Director Jun to the stage," Dean Qiao announced, a flash of lightning passing behind his lenses.

Tong Zhenzhen had to admit that Jun Lengche looked impressive in his uniform, standing straight as a spear, his expression resolute and calm.

Dean Qiao then invited those present to express their opinions on Jun Lengche’s promotion from Captain to Major. Before he finished speaking, someone stood up, claiming Jun Lengche had issues with his personal conduct.

"Offering opinions is fine, but please base them on facts," Political Commissar Mo's booming voice echoed through the hall.

The man then used a projector to display several posts from Tong Zhenzhen’s social media, translated into Chinese, in which she criticized "that Jun guy" as a beast.

*No way? Isn't this an invasion of privacy?* Fortunately, it didn't mention being "deflowered" by him. She frowned in annoyance.

"What does this prove? It only mentions a man named Jun," Jun Lengche replied dismissively, his face composed.

"Three days ago, the XX police station recorded an incident of molestation, which clearly notes your name and the victim's name." The man dropped a bombshell and pointed at Tong Zhenzhen. "The victim, Miss Tong, is sitting right there. Please, explain this!"

The room erupted. Tong Zhenzhen keenly noticed the brief eye contact between the man and Dean Qiao, and the slight, quick smirk on the latter's lips. It seemed Jun Lengche had offended this Dean.

On the other side, Political Commissar Mo furrowed his thick brows, looking worried.

After letting the murmurs grow for a few minutes, Dean Qiao stood up calmly. "Quiet, everyone. Miss Tong, could you please clarify this matter?"

And so, Tong Zhenzhen became the focus of the entire room once again.