"I've called the police, which is enough to prove that I'm not mistaken. The item must be on one of you."
Xu Qingqing's sharp gaze swept over each of them one by one. With a cold aura around her, she looked unyielding.
Li Jiayi was at a loss for words. Her gaze fell on Zhou Qianqian, trying to shift the blame onto her.
"I agree to a body search, but I demand that Zhou Qianqian be the first one to be searched. Since she's not from your family, we can't rule out her suspicion of committing the crime."
The deputy class monitor and Yu Wenwen both nodded in agreement. Qian Lili even gave Li Jiayi a thumbs - up.
Searching Zhou Qianqian first would give them time to hide the hairpin.
Zhou Qianqian never expected to be stabbed in the back by the person she thought was her friend. Her expression gradually stiffened. She slowly raised her eyes, and the muscles on her cheeks twitched slightly.
"What did you say? You actually suspect that I stole the hairpin? How could you say such a thing!"
Zhou Qianqian felt like she was about to vomit blood from anger. She originally thought that as long as she selflessly dedicated herself, she could find good friends.
But unexpectedly, after the lie was exposed, they were the first to betray her.
Although Li Jiayi felt a bit guilty under Zhou Qianqian's stare, she still stared back rudely. Her words stabbed Zhou Qianqian in the heart.
"You lied to us that this villa was yours. It makes us have to suspect that you would also do something like stealing."
"You!"
Zhou Qianqian couldn't believe that this was still the class monitor who used to be so understanding and comforted her.
Seeing that they agreed to the body search, Qin Hongying didn't care who would be the first. She loudly urged Zhou Qianqian to come over.
"Since it's decided to be you, stop being so coy."
Seeing that she was all alone, Zhou Qianqian felt both aggrieved and angry. Tears welled up in her eyes.
Her heart felt like it was being grabbed by a huge force, and dirty water was constantly being splashed on her.
Zhou Qianqian subconsciously turned to look at Aunt Zhou, hoping that she could speak up for her.
"Mom, I really didn't steal the hairpin!"
Of course, Aunt Zhou believed her daughter. She walked behind Zhou Qianqian without hesitation, planning to speak up for her. But a single sentence from Qin Hongying stopped her in her tracks.
"If you speak up for your daughter, then I can suspect that it was really your daughter who stole the hairpin. I'll even fire you!"
There were so many caregivers in the world. It wasn't like she couldn't live without Aunt Zhou.
Aunt Zhou never expected that Qin Hongying would want to replace her. She was stunned for a few seconds. A feeling of being betrayed welled up in her heart, forcing her to shout hoarsely.
"You actually want to fire me. Have you forgotten who has been taking care of you so hard these years, taking care of your three meals a day meticulously?"
Hearing this, Xu Qingqing just thought it was funny. She immediately set a trap for Aunt Zhou.
"By 'taking care of meticulously' that you mentioned, do you mean that you've been drugging auntie every day?"
Although Xu Qingqing didn't know what kind of medicine that tablet was or who it was for, it didn't stop her from saying it to test Aunt Zhou.
Seeing Xu Qingqing's determined look, Aunt Zhou thought that her actions had been discovered. Her body instantly froze and she didn't dare to move.
Her face changed from angry to panicked and scared. Her voice also trembled with uncertainty.
"You can eat medicine randomly, but you can't talk nonsense. What makes you say that I drugged her with sleeping pills!"
Xu Qingqing didn't expect that such a bluff would make Aunt Zhou admit it. The smile on her lips became more confident and a bit smug.
"I didn't say what kind of medicine it was, but you could accurately name the medicine. Isn't this a kind of self - exposure?"
Only then did Aunt Zhou panic and cover her mouth. Because of her extreme panic, the arteries on both sides of her temples were pounding like hammers, making her ears ring and her eyes blur.
It was only then that Qin Hongying, who was still in the dark, realized that Aunt Zhou had been drugging her with sleeping pills. She immediately lost all her rationality, and the elegance and charm she had always prided herself on disappeared.
Furious and almost spitting fire, Qin Hongying rushed in front of Aunt Zhou and directly slapped her.
"No wonder I would feel drowsy after drinking the soup you made. It turns out you've been drugging me with sleeping pills every day!"
The loud sound of the slap echoed in the spacious living room. Zhou Qianqian let out a scream and rushed in front of Aunt Zhou to block her.
"Don't you dare hit my mom! It was you who couldn't sleep at night and tortured my mom first. Why can't my mom drug you with sleeping pills!"
"Is drugging someone reasonable!"
Looking at Zhou Qianqian's indignant and righteous look, Qin Hongying was so angry that her chest hurt.
All her kindness had been wasted on these two. She shouldn't have been so nice to this mother - daughter pair!
Li Jiayi and the others were scared by the sudden scene and stepped back one after another, for fear of getting involved.
Qin Hongying was so angry that she felt dizzy. Her body was tottering like a small boat on the sea.
Fortunately, Lu Chuanbai quickly stood behind Qin Hongying and supported her from falling.
"Auntie, don't be angry."
"Search their bodies immediately!"
Qin Hongying gasped angrily. Her raised hand trembled as she pointed at Aunt Zhou and her daughter.
"If the hairpin isn't in their luggage, let them get out immediately. I don't want such disgusting people!"
Hearing that she was about to lose her precious job, Aunt Zhou was eager to defend herself. But Zhou Qianqian, who seemed to dislike Qin Hongying, deliberately made a face to annoy her.
"Let's go. Anyway, my mom doesn't want to serve you anymore!"
After saying that, Zhou Qianqian pushed Aunt Zhou, who wanted to say something but hesitated, upstairs while muttering.
"Mom, let's go get our luggage now. We won't stay in this lousy place anymore!"
Aunt Zhou had no choice but to follow Zhou Qianqian upstairs half - pushed.
Qin Hongying shouted at the mother - daughter pair on the stairs at the top of her voice.
"Don't think that you'll be fine just because you leave. I won't let your drugging me go so easily. Just wait to go to jail!"
After shouting this, Qin Hongying seemed to have been drained of all her strength. Her body slumped weakly against Lu Chuanbai, and she was helped onto the sofa.
"Shameless! They're really shameless! I've never seen such thick - skinned people!"
Qin Hongying was heart - broken for misjudging people. She pounded her chest angrily, which instead caused a violent cough.
Aunt Zhou and her daughter went upstairs and entered Zhou Qianqian's room. Aunt Zhou slammed the door shut and stomped her feet anxiously.
"What should we do now? Qin Hongying is going to sue me! I've committed such a serious crime. What will I do in the next life!"
Saying that, Aunt Zhou couldn't help but sob softly and hugged Zhou Qianqian tightly in her arms.
She knew Qin Hongying's power. If she was really sued, she would definitely not be able to escape prison.
But Zhou Qianqian resented Qin Hongying for exposing her lie. Her tone was cold.
"Then just let her sue. Even if you go to jail, I'll live a good life and wait for you to come back."
Hearing this, Aunt Zhou couldn't feel touched. Her heart was filled with grief and indignation.