Zhong Suian couldn’t be bothered wasting words with him.
She simply turned around, took out her phone, and made a call.
“Hello, I’d like to report an incident.”
“Someone has deliberately damaged another person’s property. The amount involved is as high as fifty yuan. Please dispatch officers as soon as possible…”
The moment Wang Hao heard that, he panicked.
He lunged forward, trying to snatch her phone, but the people beside him quickly restrained him.
Unable to break free, Wang Hao shouted at the top of his lungs.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“You just said it was worth two yuan! Now it’s suddenly fifty?”
“You’re the liar! You dare call the police? I’ll report you too!”
“Officer! I want to report her for extortion!”
The scene quickly descended into chaos.
Zhong Suian, however, remained perfectly calm.
She glanced at the frenzied Wang Hao before adding into the phone,
“We’re at X Sports University Gymnasium.”
“Please come as soon as possible. The other party has shown violent tendencies, and I’m concerned for my personal safety.”
Hearing that the case involved as much as fifty yuan, the authorities took it seriously.
Especially since the incident had occurred on a university campus.
Less than half an hour later, a police car arrived.
Two officers got out and walked toward the noisy crowd.
“What’s going on?”
“Who made the report?”
Just as Zhong Suian was about to answer, Wang Hao rushed forward first.
“Officer! Thank goodness you’re here!”
“It’s her!”
“This little bitch is slandering me! She made a false report to extort me!”
Zhong Yaoran immediately stepped in front of his sister.
“Watch your mouth!”
Unlike him, Zhong Suian remained composed.
“It was me who reported the incident.”
“He intentionally damaged my personal property.”
“The amount involved is fifty yuan.”
The two officers exchanged glances, their eyes moving between Wang Hao and Zhong Suian.
Naturally, the calmer party was easier to communicate with.
One officer stayed behind to keep an eye on Wang Hao.
The other led Zhong Suian and Zhong Yaoran to a quieter area for separate questioning.
Even Zhong Yaoran felt uneasy.
He leaned closer to his sister and whispered,
“An’an… is that outfit really worth fifty yuan?”
Falsely reporting damages could carry legal consequences.
It was no small matter.
Zhong Suian said nothing.
She simply gave him a reassuring look.
The clothes themselves certainly weren’t worth fifty yuan.
But the pendant that had been torn off together with the shirt was.
Once they reached a secluded corner, the officer asked seriously,
“You stated that the damages amount to fifty yuan.”
“Can you provide proof?”
Zhong Suian nodded.
“Of course.”
She tapped her phone several times, pulled up her purchase record, and handed it over.
“This is the authentic item I purchased from the official boutique.”
“The payment record is here.”
Still worried, Zhong Yaoran leaned over to look as well.
The receipt clearly showed:
Total: 136.85 yuan.
Merchant: Hermès Boutique.
His eyes widened.
If he had known the outfit was worth that much, he would never have worn it to play tennis.
The payment record, of course, could not be forged.
After carefully examining it, the officer already had a rough understanding of the situation.
Still, to remain thorough, he continued asking,
“This only proves that you purchased something from the boutique.”
“It doesn’t prove the value of the damaged item itself.”
“Do you have any additional evidence?”
“I do.”
Zhong Suian had already anticipated this question.
“It’ll just take a little time.”
“I’ve already contacted the boutique’s sales associate.”
“She’s helping me retrieve the electronic invoice.”
“We should have it very soon.”
If she had known something like this would happen, she wouldn’t have casually thrown away the paper receipt.
After finishing the discussion, the officer brought Zhong Suian and Zhong Yaoran back.
Wang Hao was still glaring at Zhong Suian with bloodshot eyes, looking as though he wanted to devour her alive.
After quietly discussing the matter together, the two officers announced,
“Since the amount involved is relatively large, the three of you will need to come to the station and provide formal statements.”
Unexpectedly, the moment Wang Hao heard “formal statements,” his earlier resistance completely disappeared.
“Fine!”
“Let’s go!”
“I’m not the one with something to hide!”
He was convinced that Zhong Yaoran’s clothes had to be counterfeit.
Once they arrived at the police station, the truth would finally come out.
Although resolving the dispute was important, Zhong Suian still felt somewhat disappointed.
She had originally planned to approach Shen Jibai after the match ended.
Now…
Before leaving, she looked back through the crowd.
There was no sign of him.
Then again, he didn’t seem like the type to stay around watching excitement.
He had probably already left.
At the police station, Zhong Suian and Zhong Yaoran cooperated fully with the investigation.
Wang Hao, however, behaved quite differently.
He tightly grabbed one of the officers’ hands.
“Officer, you have to investigate this thoroughly!”
“We’re classmates.”
“I know exactly what kind of family he comes from.”
“They’re trying to extort me!”
“You have to stand up for me and uncover the truth!”
The officer frowned slightly but patiently reassured him.
“Please calm down.”
“We’ll determine what actually happened.”
“We won’t wrong anyone.”
“That’s our responsibility.”
“We also ask that you cooperate with our investigation.”
The two sides were taken into separate interview rooms.
Since many people had witnessed the incident, Wang Hao had no choice but to admit that he had damaged the clothing and pendant.
There was only one point he stubbornly refused to budge on.
Zhong Yaoran’s clothes had to be fake.
Given his family background, there was no way he could afford genuine luxury goods.
Meanwhile, Zhong Suian’s interview proceeded smoothly.
Not long after questioning began, the electronic invoice from Hermès arrived.
It not only listed the exact prices but also thoughtfully included photographs of the purchased items.
“If this still isn’t enough proof,” Zhong Suian said,
“I’m also willing to cooperate with a professional authentication.”
“Authentic items will always remain authentic.”
“I have plenty of ways to prove it.”
At that point, the facts were essentially beyond dispute.
Although Wang Hao was already an adult, he was still a university student, and the amount involved was considerable.
The police therefore immediately instructed him to contact his parents.
When Zhong Suian and Zhong Yaoran came out of the interview room, Wang Hao was already waiting in the lobby.
He still looked completely confident.
With one leg crossed over the other, he casually played on his phone.
He seemed to be sending voice messages.
Fragments of his conversation drifted over.
“Baby, don’t worry…”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m at the police station.”
“But don’t worry.”
“I’ve been falsely accused.”
When he noticed Zhong Suian and Zhong Yaoran approaching, he not only failed to lower his voice but deliberately spoke even louder.
“Of course I’m not letting this go!”
“My parents already paid the down payment on the house.”
“This weekend I’ll take you to see it!”
After giving a few more instructions, the officers left to handle other matters.
The three of them sat together on a bench in the lobby, waiting for Wang Hao’s parents to arrive.
Zhong Suian remained completely relaxed.
She browsed shopping items on her phone, occasionally discussing them with Zhong Yaoran.
Seeing her so calm only made Wang Hao angrier.
“Just wait.”
“When they prove it’s fake, let’s see how the two of you clean up this mess!”
Once everything was exposed, they would be paying him compensation for emotional distress.
Wang Hao’s hometown was a small city near Hai City.
Both of his parents worked in Hai City.
After years of living frugally, they had finally saved enough for the down payment on a home.
Although it wasn’t in Hai City itself—only in a modest development in a lower-tier city—it was enough to make Wang Hao proud.
If he could squeeze some money out of Zhong Suian, paying off the mortgage later would become much easier.
Not long afterward, a middle-aged man hurried in through the entrance.
Before he even reached them, his booming voice echoed through the lobby.
“Son!”
“Son!”
“What happened?”
“Who are you saying tried to extort you?”
The moment Wang Hao saw his father, he immediately rushed over as though grabbing a lifeline.
“Dad!”
“You finally came!”
“It’s them!”
Seeing that Wang Hao’s father had arrived, the two officers immediately walked over.
“Mr. Wang?”
“Your son is suspected of intentionally damaging another person’s property.”
“Because the amount involved is relatively large, we’d like your cooperation in handling the matter.”
The officer displayed several photographs.
“These are the damaged items.”
The photos showed a sports outfit and a simple pendant necklace.
Mr. Wang only glanced at them once before letting out a disdainful laugh.
“Just this pile of junk?”
“Was all this fuss really necessary?”
“It’s just a cheap outfit and a necklace.”
“How much could they possibly be worth?”
“It’s not like they’re made of gold.”