Luxury goods are fragile like that.
Shen Ci’s eyes darkened as she looked at the broken remains of her bracelet scattered on the floor.
Yu Xinxin froze for a moment too, but then let out a cold laugh, glancing at Shen Ci with disdain. “What kind of cheap trinket is this? I barely touched it, and it fell apart like that?”
Shen Ci didn’t answer. Instead, she crouched down to pick up the pieces. Gu Lianxing quickly crouched with her to help.
When Gu Lianxing picked up one fragment, her eyes instinctively fell on the logo engraved into the metal.
Though tiny, the engraving was crisp and neat—it was Cartier.
“You saw that clearly, right? This is Cartier—not some flea market junk!” Gu Lianxing stood, her delicate face darkened with anger as she spoke to Yu Xinxin.
Her own jewelry was all Cartier or Van Cleef & Arpels; she wore nothing less than top luxury. She could identify genuine hallmarks at a glance, and Shen Ci’s bracelet was undeniably authentic.
Yu Xinxin wasn’t the least bit shaken. Instead, she laughed louder. “Impossible! Her? Wearing Cartier? Must be a knockoff from some online store!”
“Exactly. Would she even dare walk into a Cartier boutique?”
“One Cartier bracelet could buy her life. And she thinks she deserves to wear one?”
Lin Shuang and Wang Hou chimed in with barbed remarks. Their sharp words, combined with their smug faces, made them look utterly spiteful.
But such cheap insults no longer touched Shen Ci. After all, truth cannot be faked, and wealth was her confidence.
Too lazy to argue, she calmly pulled out her phone and dialed the police.
“Hello, I’d like to report someone for intentionally damaging my personal property.”
“The value? Close to a hundred.”
“Location: Longcheng University of Science and Technology, south side, Yongle City Snack Street, Lili’s Dishes.”
She spoke with composure, her tone calm. The words ‘close to a hundred’ slipped from her lips as if it were nothing, like she couldn’t care less about the amount.
Her nonchalance only convinced Yu Xinxin further that she was lying.
Who wouldn’t be flustered over losing something worth a hundred?
Yu Xinxin snorted. “Quit bluffing, Shen Ci. Other people might not know you, but after living in the same dorm for over a year, you think we don’t?”
Lin Shuang sneered. “Exactly. The only valuable things you owned were gifts from Li Xiao. Now that you’ve broken up, you’re dirt poor again, aren’t you?”
Wang Hou added, “Before dating Li Xiao, you pinched every penny in the cafeteria. You even took dorm cleaning gigs from WeChat groups for pocket money. Now you dare boast about wearing a bracelet worth nearly a hundred? Careful you don’t bite your own tongue with that lie.”
“You three are going too far.”
This time, others couldn’t sit still. A girl stood up to defend Shen Ci. “It doesn’t matter how much her bracelet costs—Yu Xinxin broke it, so she has to pay.”
“Exactly. Breaking someone’s property and not apologizing is bad enough. But mocking them on top of it, just because you think they’re easy to bully?”
The voices came from the girls who had greeted Shen Ci earlier. Shen Ci gave them a grateful look.
Other diners joined in as well. Some even pulled out their phones, ready to record and post about the bullying on the school forum.
Realizing she had gone too far and now faced a room full of glares, Yu Xinxin scrambled to save face. “Who said I won’t pay? Of course I’ll compensate if I broke it. But she’s the one lying about it being worth nearly a hundred!”
“A fake bracelet like this wouldn’t fetch more than five cents. I’ll pay her right now!”
She whipped out her phone, ready to transfer money.
“Who called the police just now?”
Within ten minutes, two officers arrived. The nearest precinct was right at the other end of the snack street.
Yu Xinxin’s eyes lit up when she saw them. She immediately raised her hand and pointed. “Officer, she filed a false report!”
The officers turned to Shen Ci. One of them, face stern, asked, “Did you make the call?”
Shen Ci nodded lightly. “She damaged my bracelet.”
She opened her palm, showing the broken pieces. Gu Lianxing quickly added the fragments she had collected.
The officers exchanged glances, looking hesitant.
The call had been about property damage worth nearly a hundred. Could this broken bracelet really be it?
One officer asked, “Please show us proof of purchase, or any evidence of the bracelet’s value. Only disputes over items worth more than twenty cents fall under our jurisdiction for mediation.”
Yu Xinxin smirked in triumph. How could a fake bracelet have proof of purchase? Shen Ci was about to embarrass herself in front of the police!
But her glee lasted barely three seconds.
Her eyes widened as Shen Ci calmly pulled up her WeChat payment record.
And it didn’t show “close to a hundred”—it showed over two hundred yuan, paid to ‘Cartier Longcheng Meluo Boutique’.
Impossible.
How could Shen Ci spend over two hundred at Cartier in one go?
Even the officers were momentarily stunned. This young woman had dropped more than two hundred in a single purchase?
Only Gu Lianxing beamed proudly, gripping Shen Ci’s hand. She had known it was real—her eyes couldn’t be wrong.
“No… no way. Impossible!”
Yu Xinxin panicked now, shaking her head furiously. “That record must be fake. There’s no way you have two hundred yuan!”
Shen Ci looked at her with mocking disdain. “I just love watching you look so unworldly.”
The officer regained composure and said firmly, “We’ll investigate to confirm the purchase record. But since the item’s value exceeds twenty yuan, this already qualifies as significant property damage. Both of you need to come with us to the station.”
Shen Ci nodded calmly.
Gu Lianxing giggled and whispered, “I’ll go with you. I’ve never been inside a police station before.”
The other girls stood and addressed the officers. “We saw everything. If you need witnesses, we’re willing to testify for Shen Ci!”
“Yes, we’re all witnesses!”
“I recorded a video too.”
The officer raised a hand to quiet them. “If necessary, we’ll reach out to you. For now, please don’t share the video publicly, to avoid creating negative impact for your school. We will handle this properly.”
With that, they motioned for Shen Ci and Yu Xinxin to follow them back to the station.
Gu Lianxing tagged along with excitement. Lin Shuang and Wang Hou exchanged nervous looks but stayed frozen in place, too afraid to accompany Yu Xinxin.
End of Chapter