Xia Xian curled her lips in a mocking smile, choosing not to engage in a war of words with them. After all, this mother-and-son pair had a remarkable talent for twisting the truth.
“You! Xia Xian!”
Chu Sheng couldn’t bear the humiliation, his face changing as he roared again.
“Are we going or not? Do I need to borrow a megaphone for you two so you can argue to your heart’s content?”
Quan Ruifeng didn’t say much, but when he did open his mouth, his sharp tongue could leave people speechless.
Chu Sheng, his mother, and Xia Xian all fell silent. The group continued on toward the Chu residence, and along the way, Quan Ruifeng asked Xia Xian what time she had arrived home the night before.
Liu Jun, meanwhile, had fallen a step behind, questioning Lei Juan at the Xia residence. If the two accounts didn’t match up, the suspicion would only grow stronger.
So Xia Xian didn’t lie, but Quan Ruifeng immediately seized on a loophole and pressed her sharply.
“Why did you get home so late? Where did you go in between? Do you have any witnesses?”
His jaw tightened, and his dark eyes fixed on Xia Xian with an aggressive intensity, but Xia Xian responded with composure, neither humble nor overbearing.
“Being near home made me nervous. I wanted to go back, but on the way, I grew timid and didn’t dare come home, so I lingered near the house. I arrived just in time—my family was about to argue over my situation.”
“No one saw me. After what happened to me, I’d avoid people at all costs. I wouldn’t dare show myself willingly.”
As she spoke, her voice dropped again. She pressed her lips together and lowered her gaze, her jet-black lashes resting still, revealing a faintly pitiful demeanor.
Since ancient times, a widowed daughter returning home was never an easy matter—even if her parents didn’t mind, she still feared her siblings might object.
Her explanation was plausible enough.
But Quan Ruifeng didn’t respond. Instead, his gaze drifted over her in a way that made Xia Xian’s scalp tingle.
This man was truly hard to deal with—she couldn’t read his intentions at all. Compared to him, the shameless Chu Sheng and his mother, or even Liu Jun, were easier to handle.
Xia Xian clenched her fingers secretly, forcing herself to stay calm. But she didn’t regret what she’d done yesterday one bit. She wanted the gold bars, and she wanted that money too! She would leave that mother-and-son pair no room to maneuver!
Fortunately, the silence didn’t last long before they reached the Chu residence. Liu Jun, who had caught up, went to fetch Mei Yanxia to testify on Xia Xian’s behalf.
“We left together, and when we left, the Chu house wasn’t like this. The thief must be someone else—you can’t just accuse someone because your money went missing, can you? Besides, you’ve offended so many people, who knows who did it.”
Mei Yanxia pulled Xia Xian close, backing her up, and squinted at Chu Sheng and his mother with suspicion.
In front of Director Mei, Xia Xian remained frail and delicate. Her dark hair cascaded down, making her look even more innocent and pure. She clutched Director Mei’s arm and spoke in a soft, gentle voice.
“Director Mei, it really wasn’t me. I didn’t know where they kept their money. I was afraid they’d come back and catch me, not let me leave—how could I possibly have spent time looking for where they hid it?”
“Only they know where they hid their money. In the few days since I married in, no one told me where it was. I even spent some of my own money to buy medicine for Eldest Brother Chu…”
Director Mei seemed to have a sudden realization. She stamped her foot and pointed at Chu Sheng and his mother, raising her voice.
“You’re not crying ‘thief’ to cover your own theft, are you! You deliberately trashed the house, claimed the money was stolen by Xia Xian, and when she couldn’t pay up, you’d make her pay with herself!”
“You’re dreaming! All the wicked schemes in the world are hiding in your guts!”
The more Director Mei thought about it, the more it made sense! She glared at the two of them in fury. No wonder—they’d claimed over two thousand yuan was lost. She’d bet her head that the Chu family’s savings didn’t even amount to a fraction of what they’d said!
As it turned out, her guess was close to the truth. Old Mrs. Chu, caught out, jumped up in panic.
“How dare you spew filth from your mouth! I’ve been tolerating you because you’re the Women’s Director, but you keep coming to my house and sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong. Who do you think you—”
Old Mrs. Chu was itching for a fight, ready to lunge again.
“Shut up.”
“Your accusation that Xia Xian stole the money lacks evidence. First, you need to prove your family actually has that much in savings. Second, we’ll be following up on this case, and we’ll notify you when we have results. If you keep making baseless accusations, you’ll all be locked up!”
Quan Ruifeng swept his gaze over them, decisive and ruthless. He was used to being in control and wasn’t afraid of people playing dirty—if it came to that, he wouldn’t hesitate to throw them in jail as a lesson.
“But—”
Quan Ruifeng pressed his lips together and stared at him coldly, his eyes gleaming with a faint, ominous light—a clear warning that one more word would land them in a cell.
Chu Sheng had already been scared after spending a night in detention. His body stiffened, and he fell silent again.
He thought to himself, since filing a report wouldn’t work, he’d spread the word around instead and just go harass Xia Xian directly. She wouldn’t escape him either way!
The amount he’d claimed was indeed fabricated—it wouldn’t fool the police. He shouldn’t have filed that report.
At this point, Chu Sheng felt some regret and held back his mother, who was about to keep causing trouble.
“Let’s go.”
Quan Ruifeng didn’t want to waste time on such shameless people. Seeing that Chu Sheng had stopped making a scene, he glanced at Liu Jun and left first.
Liu Jun quickly followed along. Well, well—so it turned out you had to be more assertive to keep these ruffians in line. His previous people-friendly approach had been a mistake!
The two had only just walked out when Xia Xian caught up with them.
“Wait, Quan…”
Officer Quan? That didn’t sound right either, and calling him by his name directly would be impolite.
“Comrade Quan, wait—I have something I want to say to you!”
Xia Xian chose the safest form of address. Because she had run too fast, her breathing was rapid, and she was slightly panting, her curvaceous figure swaying with each breath—quite eye-catching.
She really was very beautiful.
It was easy to overlook her beauty because of how she’d nearly been tricked into marriage and become a widow. Liu Jun glanced at Xia Xian, then at Quan Ruifeng. Seeming to catch on, he couldn’t help but smile subtly.
“You two talk, you two talk—I’ll head back first.”
“There’s nothing urgent at the bureau anyway. Take your time, no rush.”
With that, before either of them could react, he darted off, giving the two some space.
So it seemed no matter how talented a young man was, he couldn’t get past the allure of beauty!
Xia Xian saw Liu Jun grinning like that and knew he had misunderstood.
“Sorry, I…”
She licked her red lips and awkwardly apologized to Quan Ruifeng, not expecting Liu Jun to get the wrong idea.
“What, have you thought it over? Decided to agree to the deal with me?”
Quan Ruifeng didn’t care about any of that. He raised an eyebrow, looking straight into Xia Xian’s eyes with an air of confidence.
Xia Xian nodded silently, then spoke hesitantly.
“I agree to help you. I haven’t figured out the specific conditions yet, but can I ask for anything? What if I said I want to go to the capital, have you help transfer my household registration there, and find me a place to rent as well?”
She wasn’t sure if those two conditions she wanted to propose were too greedy in his eyes—after all, it was the capital! The opportunities there were plentiful, and countless people wanted to go but couldn’t.
Quan Ruifeng’s answer was beyond Xia Xian’s expectations.