She grabbed Hu Li’s hand, her face completely cooling, "Hu Li, I don’t want to waste words with you. Everyone in our village is from Shicheng, and we can’t stand such sneaky behavior. Hurry up and return Granny Lu’s money to Xiang Yang. That was money Granny Lu worked hard to earn. How can you take it and not feel guilty?"
At this moment, Qin Pengfei happened to return with Qin Xiangmei, who was still holding candy and eating it, chatting away with Qin Pengfei,
"Brother, I want that hair accessory. You have to buy it for me later. That dirty beggar gave us more than a hundred yuan, didn’t she? I saw you count it. I don’t care, I want the hair accessory,"
As she spoke, Qin Xiangmei tugged forcefully at Qi Pengfei’s sleeve, determined not to give up until she got the hair accessory. She was always the treasure of the family; she got whatever she wanted, whether it was Qi Xiangyang or Qin Xiangnuan, none dared to argue with her. Qin Pengfei always indulged her, while the Qin Xiangyang siblings feared her. Now, she was really getting angry, causing a commotion, completely unaware of what was happening, nor who was inside the house, inadvertently exposing Qin Pengfei.
Qin Pengfei had wanted to coax Qin Xiangmei a bit, but the moment he looked up, his face went pale as the blood drained away rapidly.
He stared at Aunt Hua’s side, fixated on the beggar granny in tattered clothes, and instantly knew things had taken a bad turn—the old woman was back to claim her money. He had thought after Granny Lu left the money, she would have gone away, but never expected that she would dare to come back for it.
Hu Li’s face was also a mess of anger, turning a ghastly hue of green and white, a clear admission without saying a word. Even if Qin Pengfei had really taken the money, as long as they denied everything, could Aunt Hua possibly search their house? But now, even if they wanted to deny it, they had no leg to stand on.
"Qin Pengfei, give back Granny Lu’s money, or else I’m going to your school to tell your teachers that you’ve been stealing money.
Aunt Hua’s face was stern, and her words were every student’s fear.
Qin Pengfei also knew that if the teachers really learned about this incident, his name would be tarnished in the school. If he was marked with such a disgraceful stain, which school would dare to accept a student like him in the future?
He shakily took out the money from his person; after all, he was still a child without much resolve, easily intimidated, and now he was scared into giving in. As soon as Qin Xiangmei saw Qin Pengfei taking out the money, she knew her hair accessory was gone, and with a loud cry, she burst into tears.
Aunt Hua walked over, ignoring Qin Xiangmei who was crying like a chicken, and snatched the money from Qin Pengfei’s hand, then handed it to Granny Lu.
"Auntie, count it to see if it’s all there. If there’s a penny missing, let Qin Guohua make up for it."
"It’s the right amount," Granny Lu said, still somewhat reluctant, "Aunt Hua, don’t take it to heart so much. They’re all kids, let’s not blow things out of proportion. This can affect a child’s reputation for life. If this incident had happened in the past, it would not have been a small matter. Sometimes it’s better to do less than to do more. After all, you can’t write the name Qin twice."
Aunt Hua had never wanted to blow things out of proportion in the first place. Though neither Hu Li nor Qin Guohua were decent people, the child should not be deprived of a future.