Chapter 35 The Thief is Xia Qianqian

The fifth brother's words instantly put Xia Qianqian in the spotlight.

In Xiangyang Village, the women either wear ponytails or have short hair. Xia Qianqian, with her long, wavy hair, is quite unique.

"I never expected Xia Qianqian to do something like this!" someone exclaimed in surprise.

"This child looks so respectable, yet he did such a heinous thing!"

"Captain, we can't let Xia Qianqian stay in our Xiangyang Village. We don't want her to corrupt the village's atmosphere."

"Yes, get the thief out!"

The crowd echoed his sentiments, and soon, accusations and curses rose and fell.

Lu's mother was sweating profusely with anxiety. She shouted, "Fifth brother, you can't make false accusations against people! Qianqian isn't that kind of person!"

The fifth brother was startled by Lu's mother's imposing manner and said aggrievedly, "Sister-in-law Lu, don't be angry. I didn't say that Xia Qianqian did it."

Just then, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Hey, look! There are footprints on the ground!"

Upon hearing this, someone immediately lowered their head, raised their torch, and leaned closer to examine it carefully.

Liu Xiao'e's eyes darted around, and she shouted at the top of her lungs, "Oh my! Look, there's a woman's footprint here!"

She abruptly turned her attention to Lu's mother, "Sister-in-law Lu, Fifth Brother has already identified the person. How long are you going to keep covering for Xia Qianqian? Who else could have done this besides her? When has our village ever seen such petty theft before! You're letting such a menace stay in the village? Could it be... that you're all a family of thieves?"

Upon hearing this, Lu's mother trembled with anger, pointing at Liu Xiao'e: "You... what nonsense are you spouting! Qianqian would never do such a thing! I believe her, she's not that kind of person!"

Unfortunately, her words were not convincing at all, and the villagers immediately erupted in uproar.

"Captain, let's follow the footprints! I refuse to believe we can't catch her!"

"Yes! Let's go and catch this thief!"

The production team leader looked grave and said to Lu's mother, "Sister-in-law Lu, now that things have come to this, let's go and see together."

Carrying torches and lanterns, the group followed the footprints on the ground. At a bend in the path, the footprints became so faint they were almost invisible.

"Captain, we can't see the footprints ahead anymore, how are we supposed to proceed?" The villager at the front stopped and turned to ask the production team leader.

Liu Xiao'e quickly interjected, "The footprints are heading in this direction! The Lu family's house is just ahead, so Xia Qianqian must be the one who stole the grain! Let's go search her house right now!"

"Yes, search her house!" A chorus of agreement immediately rose from the crowd. "These footprints look recent; maybe the stolen goods haven't been hidden yet!"

The production team leader said with a dark face, "Sister-in-law Lu, now that things have come to this, you'd better open the door."

Knowing that she couldn't stop them no matter what she did, Lu's mother could only open the courtyard gate.

Xia Qianqian was standing in the courtyard when she saw the villagers holding torches and looking at her with unfriendly expressions. She asked in confusion, "Mom, why is everyone coming to our house?"

Liu Xiao'e was the first to push her way out of the crowd, her triangular eyes glaring fiercely at Xia Qianqian: "Hmph! You still have the nerve to ask? You've done something wrong and you're trying to play dumb? Hand over the stolen grain right now!"

"What grain?" Xia Qianqian looked at Liu Xiao'e with a blank expression. "I don't understand what you're talking about."

"Don't understand?" Liu Xiao'e raised her voice and shouted at the production team leader, "Team leader, look, she still won't admit it! In my opinion, we should search now. In such a short time, she definitely won't have time to hide the grain far away!"

Just as the production team leader was about to nod and give the order, Xia Qianqian stepped forward: "Production team leader, on what grounds do you accuse me of stealing? Just because of a few words she uttered, do you think you can come and search my house at will? If this gets out, won't it say that our Xiangyang Village can disregard the rules, trespass on private property, and search arbitrarily?"

"That's right! What makes you think you can frame Qianqian? Show us the evidence!"

A furious shout came from behind the crowd, and Lu Zheng had somehow pushed his way out.

He shielded Xia Qianqian behind him, his eyes sharp as knives as he scanned the crowd present.

The production team leader was startled by Lu Zheng's aggressive stance and quickly softened his tone, explaining, "Lu Zheng, don't be impulsive. It's just... everyone's anxious about the grain tax. Old Five said he saw a woman with curly hair..."

"So, if I don't let everyone in to search, it would seem like I'm being unreasonable?" Xia Qianqian's lips curled into a half-smile.

She gently squeezed Lu Zheng's hand, signaling him to calm down. Then she looked up at the production team leader and the villagers: "I can let you in to search. But—"

She paused, her gaze sweeping across everyone's faces. "If we can't find anything, we need an explanation for what happened today."

"You're the one who stole it!" Liu Xiao'e shouted in a shrill voice, but Lu Zheng glared at her, and she shrank back like a hen being strangled.

Seeing this, no one in the village dared to step forward. Everyone looked at the production team leader, waiting for him to make a decision.

The production team leader had heard that Lu Zheng had apparently committed a crime in the provincial capital and was sent down to the village. Judging from the look in his eyes just now, he might actually have killed someone!

He forced a smile and asked Lu Zheng cautiously, "Nephew, about this matter?"

Lu Zheng didn't even look at him. He squeezed Xia Qianqian's hand and said, "I'll listen to Qianqian on this matter."

"Qianqian, what kind of explanation do you want from us?" the production team leader asked, forcing himself to speak.

He had already been considering giving up, and if it weren't for the villagers holding him here, he would have liked to slip away and go home immediately.

These people hide behind him when trouble arises. If Lu Zheng really goes berserk and starts beating people, he'll be the first to suffer!

Xia Qianqian glanced at everyone and said, "Captain, why don't you tell us first? Why are you so insistent that I stole the grain?"

The production team leader had no choice but to repeat what Lao Wu had said about seeing a woman with curly hair and about finding a woman's footprints near the granary.

After listening, Xia Qianqian said, "In that case, to be fair, since the footprints disappeared at this intersection, we can't just search my house. We have to search all the neighboring houses one by one!"

Liu Xiao'e squinted and looked Xia Qianqian up and down. Xia Qianqian was the only neighbor on both sides. Could it be that Xia Qianqian suspected me?

Hmph, so what if they doubt us!

She sneered inwardly, but remained completely calm on the surface.

The fifth brother had already hidden the bag of grain in the woodpile in the Lu family's yard. Once the grain was found, Xia Qianqian's reputation as a grain thief would be completely confirmed. Let's see how she can still have the face to stay in Xiangyang Village!

Thinking of this, Liu Xiao'e said to the production team leader, "Fine! I have nothing to hide! I haven't done anything wrong, so search all you want! But if you really find any grain in your house, you're fired tonight!"