Listening to Zhuang Rouhui’s repeated cries for security, Yue Qingqing’s expression was blank.
She was momentarily stupefied.
The security guard arrived swiftly, and, as always, a circle of rubberneckers gathered around.
The security guard, who had started his job in the last two months, hadn’t seen Yue Qingqing before.
He only saw a beautiful woman stopping a little girl who bore some resemblance to her, his expression somewhat indescribable.
Zhuang Rouhui pointed at Yue Qingqing, "She stole something from the store."
Yue Qingqing, holding a basket full of snacks, said, "I was preparing to go to the first floor to pay."
The onlooking crowd, seeing Yue Qingqing’s pretty appearance and her sweet manner of speaking, naturally took her side.
"Apart from items sold in the shop, everything else on the shelves is supposed to be paid for on the first floor, why accuse the young girl of stealing?"
"Yeah, kid, where are your parents?"
"Speak nicely, don’t scare the child. How can you accuse someone of being a thief just like that?"
Zhuang Rouhui took a step forward and pulled two red cords out of Yue Qingqing’s top pocket.
A Jade Token and a Safety Pendant.
The two pieces of translucent jade dangled in midair as Zhuang Rouhui said sharply, "You go to the first floor to pay for snacks, what about these two pieces of jade?"
"At such a young age, to become a thief, you’re the kind of person who would have had their hands chopped off in the past!"
The onlookers suddenly fell silent; the two pieces of jade obviously weren’t cheap, definitely amounting to four figures or more.
It amounted to many people’s income for half a year.
The people who had just spoken up for Yue Qingqing immediately quieted down; everyone thought that a little girl could not possibly possess such valuable items.
"I just bought these," Yue Qingqing put down the basket, trying to take the items back from Zhuang Rouhui.
But Zhuang Rouhui raised her arm high, looking down on Yue Qingqing with disdain.
"You bought them? A child from the countryside, even if you were sold, you couldn’t afford them."
Yue Qingqing frowned as Zhuang Rouhui pressed her further.
"If a store employee sold them to you, why aren’t they packed in boxes? How could they simply hand them over to you so casually?"
With that said, the onlookers’ gaze towards Yue Qingqing carried a heavier judgment.
"Never expected such a pretty little girl to actually... you really can’t judge a book by its cover."
"After such a fuss, why aren’t her parents here? They couldn’t be hiding somewhere, orchestrating the child to steal, could they?"
"I’ve heard of such things before, deliberately dressing up children to look nice and pretty, just to steal from others. If they’re caught, many people don’t hold it against the child."
Yue Qingqing looked around at the pointing fingers, taking a deep breath.
Zhuang Rouhui felt that she was unlucky every time she encountered Yue Qingqing.
How did Yue Qingqing not feel the same?
Why did chaos always ensue whenever she crossed paths with this woman?
If it had been an ordinary child accused in this way, they probably would have started crying by now.
But Yue Qingqing, facing the dense crowd, remained calm.
"I really did buy the items, you can ask the store employees if you don’t believe me," she said.
Yue Qingqing pointed towards the jade store not far away.
Then—she discovered that the store had just been closed, and through the glass door, she could see it was empty inside.
It just so happened to be noon, and many of the employees and the owner had gone to the food court specially set up in the basement of the mall for lunch.
No wonder, despite Zhuang Rouhui’s shouting for security for quite some time, Yue Qingqing hadn’t seen any familiar aunts or uncles around.
Unfortunately, these people had all gone for lunch.
Yue Qingqing felt a sense of weariness, whereas Zhuang Rouhui seemed triumphantly pleased, as if she had caught her prey.
"I always knew you were no good, and now I’ve finally caught you red-handed. With a bad seed like you, I must report to the school and ensure you are expelled!"