A burly, fierce-looking man appeared at the doorway. In the darkness, he looked around but didn’t see anyone.
Inside, a skinny man said, “Stop wasting time. Hurry up—cut up this batch of fabric. We’ll take the rest.”
There was too much fabric to move all at once—it would make too much noise. They could only destroy half and take the rest to sell.
The burly man glanced around again before returning to the warehouse.
Outside, Xie Yulan covered Mianbao’s mouth as she and her son hid in a corner, not daring to breathe.
Only after the man went back inside did Xie Yulan let out a sigh of relief and whisper, “I’ll go to the security office to get help. You stay here and don’t let the thieves escape.”
With that, she was about to run off.
Qin Yanzhou reached out and took Mianbao from her arms.
“You won’t run fast carrying the little radish. Leave her with me—I can protect her.”
Xie Yulan hesitated. “Don’t act recklessly.”
“Got it, got it!”
Xie Yulan hurried off to find help.
Qin Yanzhou hid in the darkness, using the trees as cover, watching the warehouse. When he saw them destroying the fabric, he thought about how his father had been emphasizing the importance of this order at home.
If something went wrong with the fabric and they couldn’t deliver on time, the factory would have to pay a huge compensation.
Not only would his father lose his position as factory director, but the workers would also be punished, and their wages would be affected.
Qin Yanzhou waited for a long time, but the security team hadn’t arrived. He grew impatient.
“Little radish, hold tight.”
After whispering, he carried Mianbao forward and kicked hard.
With a loud bang, the warehouse door was kicked open.
The two thieves inside were startled and turned to run.
At the same time, Qin Shanhai and the security team arrived. When Qin Shanhai saw Qin Yanzhou rushing in with Mianbao in his arms, his heart jumped to his throat.
“Everyone, go!”
“Yes!”
They rushed forward and blocked the doorway.
The skinny man tried to escape through the window, but as soon as he jumped down, he was pinned by two wooden poles held by the security team, unable to move.
The burly man tried to break through the door, but Qin Yanzhou was skilled in fighting. Even while holding Mianbao, he didn’t falter at all.
In Qin Yanzhou’s hands, Mianbao was tossed like a ball—thrown up, caught, thrown again…
Mianbao squealed loudly.
Qin Yanzhou kicked the burly man flying, and the security team immediately subdued him.
Like a hero, Qin Yanzhou swaggered over to his father, lifting his chin proudly.
“Well? Old man, I’m impressive, right? Helped the factory catch thieves. Hurry and give me a commendation—and approve a few days off. I want to go to the dance hall…”
Qin Shanhai slapped him.
“Go, go, go—go your head!”
He quickly took Mianbao from Qin Yanzhou’s arms and checked her all over.
“Mianbao, you’re okay. Grandpa’s here.”
Mianbao excitedly waved her hands. “Fly again! Flying is fun!”
Qin Shanhai paused, then relaxed when he saw she was fine.
“You still want to play?”
“I want to!”
He handed Mianbao back to Qin Yanzhou. “Play with her.”
Qin Yanzhou turned his head away. “No.”
Mianbao’s excited face fell.
Qin Shanhai raised his hand again.
Qin Yanzhou immediately changed his tone. “Fine, fine—I’ll do it!”
In Qin Yanzhou’s hands, Mianbao became like a toy—sometimes tossed up, sometimes spun around by her arms.
When Xie Yulan arrived, she heard Mianbao’s clear laughter.
It was the first time she had heard such joyful laughter since bringing Mianbao home.
She stood there, feeling deeply relieved.
Even so, Qin Shanhai was still dissatisfied with Qin Yanzhou rushing in with Mianbao—it had been too dangerous.
Qin Yanzhou didn’t care. “That thief was all show—looked big, but had no real strength. Don’t worry, old man. Your son has been through plenty—I know my limits. I won’t let anything happen to your precious granddaughter.”
Seeing his smug look, Qin Shanhai’s hands itched again.
The thieves were taken to the security office for interrogation.
In the workshop, Tao Xiaohong was still sitting at her station.
“Xiaohong, why aren’t you off work yet?”
“I’ll finish this bit first.”
“Alright, we’re leaving then.”
“Okay.”
Most of the workers had left. Tao Xiaohong calculated the time, stood up, straightened her padded work jacket, and a determined smile flashed across her face.
After leaving the workshop, she suddenly ran toward the security office in panic.
“Catch the thief! Hurry, catch the thief! There are thieves in the warehouse!”
She pushed the door open and shouted.
Everyone inside turned to look at her as if she were a fool.
Tao Xiaohong sensed something was wrong but couldn’t tell what.
She steadied herself. “You… hurry and catch the thief.”
A security officer pointed to the two trembling thieves in the corner.
“They’ve already been caught.”
Tao Xiaohong’s eyes widened instantly.
How… how were they already caught?
This morning, her brother Tao Xiaojun had written to her, telling her to find a way to destroy the textile factory’s fabric so it couldn’t be delivered.
Her plan had been to wait until the thieves finished destroying the fabric, then come report it, stir things up, help them escape, and pretend to get injured.
That way, not only would the fabric be ruined, but she would also gain the Qin family’s approval for her “heroic” act.
It was supposed to be a perfect plan.
Everything had been under her control.
So how were the thieves caught early?
This wasn’t right!
Tao Xiaohong’s hand gripping the doorframe trembled.
Qin Shanhai narrowed his eyes slightly.
“How did you know there were thieves?”
Tao Xiaohong was speechless, her mind in chaos.
After a while, she stammered, “I… I heard about it…”
The security officer thought the commotion had spread and said, “Thanks to Director Qin’s little granddaughter wanting to play hide-and-seek in the warehouse, we caught the thieves early and avoided major losses.”
By the time they caught them, only a dozen bolts of fabric had been damaged.
If they had been any later, it would have been too late.
Xie Yulan proudly held Mianbao.
“It’s all thanks to our Mianbao. She insisted on going to the warehouse to play hide-and-seek, and that’s how we discovered the thieves in time.”
“Mianbao is the lucky star of our Qin family—and of our Xin County Textile Factory!”
Qin Yanzhou curled his lips. His mother really knew how to give the little radish credit.
But… once might be coincidence. Could it really be coincidence again?
He glanced meaningfully at Mianbao.
Tao Xiaohong looked at Mianbao, her fingernails digging into the doorframe so hard they nearly broke, barely maintaining her expression.
That little brat had ruined her plans again!
She forced a smile. “It’s… good that they were caught.”
She looked at the two thieves. “What will happen to them?”
Qin Shanhai said, “Of course we’ll send them to the police station and make them reveal the mastermind.”
Tao Xiaohong’s face turned pale instantly.