The Cannon Fodder Roles I Play All Become White Moonlights [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 30.1

Old Zheng and Li Jianhua both turned to look at Lin Jiaying, whose expression had become uncontrollable, and could only cover their own nearly uncontained reactions with coughs.

After coughing for a while, Li Jianhua finally spoke seriously: “Director Lin, everything must be based on evidence. With your current attitude, it’s difficult for us to carry out our work.”

His words were tactful, but the underlying meaning was clear: he was advising Lin Jiaying to stop making baseless accusations.

Old Zheng nodded in agreement.

Lin Jiaying’s face turned ashen, his breathing growing noticeably heavier. He pulled two pills from his pocket and swallowed them. Su Qingmeng almost thought he would faint, but unfortunately, he stubbornly pressed on: “Comrade Su, Jiang Lingfeng is pursuing you, isn’t he? And you like him too.”

“Old Yang is dead. He took care of me on behalf of the organization. I’m beautiful, capable, and have a good personality. Isn’t it normal for a thirty-year-old bachelor who can’t find a partner to fall for me? But I haven’t agreed to his pursuit.” Su Qingmeng flashed Lin Jiaying a particularly radiant smile, causing him to nearly choke on his breath again.

“Cough!” This time, Li Jianhua and Old Zheng were genuinely coughing from swallowing wrong. Su Qingmeng was indeed beautiful, but had a good personality? They glanced at Lin Jiaying, whose face could no longer be described as merely dark, and thought, well… from this perspective, her personality did seem rather likable.

Su Qingmeng continued, “Right now, I only want to focus on dancing and shining in my own position. Of course, if I meet a like-minded comrade and remarry, that would be perfectly normal.”

She suddenly raised her eyes and glared fiercely at Lin Jiaying, who was about to speak, and accused him: “Director Lin, you are a cadre of the new era. Old Yang is dead, and Division Commander Jiang is pursuing me, a widow. If you see a problem with that, it’s not Division Commander Jiang who has the problem, it’s you. As a cadre of the new era, your thinking is so feudal and decayed. You urgently need to strengthen your ideological education.”

She then turned to Old Zheng and said, “This issue should be reported to the higher-ups by Minister Zheng when you return.”

Who was the one making baseless accusations here?!

Lin Jiaying was so enraged that he couldn’t help but pinch the philtrum on his face harshly. He had dealt with many people before, and it was always him who made unfounded accusations and pinned labels on others. But Su Qingmeng was something else, she kept slapping label after label on him.

Old Zheng and Li Jianhua glanced at Lin Jiaying, whose breathing grew increasingly laboured, and asked, “Director Lin, should we call it a day for now?”

Lin Jiaying’s face was dark. His usual tactics were impossible to use on Su Qingmeng with others present. Moreover, given his identity as Lin Wangbei’s father, he couldn’t demand to question Su Qingmeng alone. There was nothing else to do but let her go.

Su Qingmeng stood up and, for once, showed some courtesy by bowing to the three men. But as she straightened up, she added to Lin Jiaying, “Lin Wangbei looks so much like you.”

Lin Jiaying couldn’t hold back any longer and finally slammed his cup heavily onto the floor.

Old Zheng tried to calm him: “She’s a martyr’s family member, and she’s still young. Why get so angry with her? It’s not worth it.”

By repeatedly emphasizing “martyr’s family member,” Old Zheng was reminding Lin Jiaying that, regardless of the circumstances, martyr’s family members were protected. Even he couldn’t act recklessly.

The thought of this only infuriated Lin Jiaying further. If it weren’t for her, his son wouldn’t have died on Nanjiang Island.

Lin Jiaying stared in the direction Su Qingmeng had left, his gaze cold and venomous. She was right—Lin Wangbei resembled him, but he knew better than Lin Wangbei how to leverage his advantages.

He wouldn’t let any of them off!

Everyone knew that the leader from the capital had come to question Su Qingmeng. When she returned, they were all curious, but Teacher An’s stern expression and Su Qingmeng’s usual aloofness kept them from asking anything.

During the break, someone nudged Kong Jufang, who indeed glanced toward Su Qingmeng. But Su Qingmeng’s face was also rigid. Her beautiful peach-blossom eyes swept coldly over them, and everyone fell silent…

It was a little intimidating. Was this the aura of someone who had once been a commander’s wife?

Lin Jiaying’s investigation into Jiang Lingfeng was not going smoothly, so he launched a sweeping rectification campaign across Nanjiang Island, starting with the Cultural Troupe.

Before he could even devise a pretext to target Su Qingmeng, she suddenly claimed a foot injury and requested leave. Lin Jiaying made a point of visiting her.

Su Qingmeng’s foot was wrapped in thick bandages, and she leaned on a crutch. When she saw him, she flashed a bright, artificial smile and said, “My foot is injured, so I’ll need to take some time off. I was afraid that requesting leave from the troupe leader wouldn’t be formal enough, so I sent a telegram to the Central Cultural Troupe in the capital. My leave has been approved by the higher-ups.”

After returning, Lin Jiaying received a call from the capital instructing him not to stir up trouble, especially since the military and the Cultural Troupe were areas of particular importance to the leadership. He was advised not to overstep.

Furious, Lin Jiaying slammed the phone down and decided to take his anger out on Jiang Lingfeng.

In reality, Jiang Lingfeng had already promptly reported Lin Wangbei’s case to the capital. With Li Jianhua in possession of Lin Wangbei’s detailed confession, there was no chance of overturning the charges against him.

Although Lin Jiaying had extensive connections, he couldn’t immediately bring down a naval division commander and political commissar. If he wanted to deal with Jiang Lingfeng, he could no longer use Lin Wangbei’s death as leverage.

He glared darkly into the distance and decided to focus his efforts on Jiang Lingfeng for the time being.

Jiang Lingfeng had been confined to his barracks quarters these past few days. Aside from being unable to see Su Qingmeng, the restrictions hadn’t affected him much.

But he was used to being busy, and the sudden idleness left him restless. When Lin Jiaying arrived, Jiang Lingfeng was practicing martial arts. A punch, thrown with unchecked force, grazed Lin Jiaying’s face and struck the doorframe squarely. The fragile frame shuddered, and a large chunk of wood splintered off.

“Apologies, I didn’t expect Director Lin to visit,” Jiang Lingfeng said as he retracted his fist, his tone not particularly sincere.

Lin Jiaying was a political officer, skilled mainly in framing others. He had never been to the front lines or fired a gun, and the punch had startled him.

But he quickly masked his fear with contempt. Before coming, he had carefully reviewed Jiang Lingfeng’s file: Jiang Lingfeng was a homeless orphan who would have starved if the military hadn’t taken him in. He had never received a formal education, his literacy came from army literacy classes. At his core, he was just a rough, unrefined man who knew nothing but fighting.

He had merely been lucky that Old Yang’s death allowed him to become division commander.

“Division Commander Jiang,” Lin Jiaying said, hiding his disdain behind a smile, “you’ve been confined to your quarters these past few days to cooperate with the investigation. Since Minister Zheng and I both have time today, why don’t you show us around the barracks?”

Jiang Lingfeng cast a cold glance at the smile on his face, nearly causing it to falter, before casually remarking, “I thought Director Lin would be quite familiar with Nanjiang Island after these past few days.”

Lin Jiaying chuckled lightly. “I’m not very familiar with the troops. Why don’t you give me an introduction?”

Jiang Lingfeng remained unmoved. It was Li Jianhua, who was following behind Lin Jiaying, who nudged him and smoothed things over by saying, “Come on, let’s take a walk together.”

Jiang Lingfeng still gave face to Li Jianhua, but he felt that Lin Jiaying had ulterior motives.

The four of them walked together to the training ground, where the first and third regiments were conducting drills. Chen Dayong, the commander of the third regiment, rushed up to Lin Jiaying and Old Zheng, shouting loudly, “Leaders, I have something to report regarding Comrade Jiang Lingfeng’s improper conduct.”

Jiang Lingfeng remained unruffled as he looked at Chen Dayong. Despite his name meaning “Great Courage,” he was a short, thin middle-aged man who had once been a river pirate. He was quite skilled in martial arts and had later joined the army under Old Yang.

With a slight lowering of his gaze, Jiang Lingfeng could see the standard-issue shoes on Chen Dayong’s feet, likely size 42.

Old Zheng frowned deeply and immediately looked at Lin Jiaying. Lin Jiyiang, with a satisfied nod, maintained the smile on his face and said with a hint of smugness, “Let’s discuss this in the interrogation room.”

Jiang Lingfeng didn’t move and said calmly but firmly, “We are all soldiers. Let’s not resort to underhanded tactics. If Commander Chen has something to report, he should say it in front of everyone.”

Chen Dayong quickly glanced at Lin Jiaying.

Lin Jiaying sneered coldly. “Since Division Commander Jiang has said so, Commander Chen, speak your mind here.”

Chen Dayong was not skilled with words. The first part of his statement had been taught to him by Lin Jiaying. For the rest, he had planned to make things up freely with only the four of them present. But now, having to speak in front of so many people, he stammered, struggling to recall the fabrications Zhang Fenglian had spread about Jiang Lingfeng and Su Qingmeng. He stumbled over his words: “He… he cuckolded Division Commander Yang.”

“Jiang Lingfeng has long been involved with that… that woman from the cultural troupe, Su something. He deliberately introduced her to Division Commander Yang. They’re like Wu Dalang and Pan Jinlian!” Chen Dayong’s accusations grew increasingly absurd, and he even dragged Yang Dongming into it. “That woman from the cultural troupe not only has a thing with Jiang Lingfeng but also with Division Commander Yang’s son…”

“Enough! Utter nonsense!” Jiang Lingfeng’s hawk-like eyes were icy cold. “Division Commander Yang enlisted with you, and Dongming usually calls you Uncle Chen. Now, not long after Division Commander Yang’s death, you dare to spread such rumors about his family!”

Chen Dayong was over a decade older than Jiang Lingfeng and had always resented him. But under Jiang Lingfeng’s piercing gaze, he felt frozen to the core and unable to move.

Lin Jiaying’s face darkened. “If you don’t want others to know, don’t do it. Jiang Lingfeng, how dare you turn around and accuse Commander Chen after what you’ve done? In front of everyone, I must ask: what exactly is your connection to Division Commander Yang’s death?”

Jiang Lingfeng looked at him, but Lin Jiaying waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t rush to answer. I’ve already sent someone to bring Su Qingmeng here. You two can explain yourselves clearly in front of everyone.”

Jiang Lingfeng’s gaze toward Lin Jiaying was frigid, while Lin Jiaying’s eyes gleamed with unmistakable triumph.

His specialty was tarnishing reputations. With someone as outspoken as Su Qingmeng around, all he needed was to add a little fuel to the fire, and he was confident he could ruin Jiang Lingfeng’s image.

Su Qingmeng wasn’t wrong, he was indeed aiming to sling mud. Once the mud was thrown, even a blank sheet of paper would no longer appear clean.

Jiang Lingfeng clenched his fists tightly but reminded himself to endure, at least until Su Qingmeng arrived safely.

He said coldly, “In that case, let’s wait until the entire army is assembled. First Regiment Commander, go and summon the Second Regiment as well.”

Lin Jiaying shot him a veiled glance. Currently, the First and Third Regiments were present. The First Regiment had originally been trained under Jiang Lingfeng and could be considered his loyalists, while the Third Regiment belonged to Chen Dayong. The two regiments had been evenly matched, but with the addition of the Second Regiment…

Recalling how the Second Regiment Commander had been currying favor with him recently, Lin Jiaying couldn’t help but think that Jiang Lingfeng was nothing more than a reckless brute who only knew how to fight.