"Zhao Han, the lipstick you're wearing must be a limited edition from some luxury brand, right?" Xiao Qing stared at Zhao Han.

"So what?"

"So what?" Xiaoqing scoffed, repeating Zhao Han's words. "I remember you told us just a few days ago that you weren't enough for living expenses this month. How come you can afford this brand of lipstick in the blink of an eye?"

"It's none of your business. This money was given to me by my parents," Zhao Han glanced at Xiao Qing and retorted angrily.

"That's a good reason. But I remember you also said that your parents have always been against you using these things, saying that you don't act like a college student at all. So, how dare you ask your parents for this money?" Xiaoqing sneered again.

"I think I understand now." Zhao Han smiled as she stood on the podium. "Xiao Qing, you don't need to throw mud at me just to clear Sima Chu's name."

“My reasoning is reasonable. If you took the money and then said it was stolen, we naturally wouldn’t suspect you. And that’s exactly what happened. If I hadn’t brought up this possibility, Sima Chu would most likely have become your scapegoat. Besides, this is just a guess, and I’m not saying you’re definitely the thief.” Xiaoqing crossed her arms, but her eyes remained fixed on Zhao Han.

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing again, Ling Zixuan stood up, clapped his hands, and successfully attracted everyone's attention. "There's no point in continuing this argument. I think there are two ways to handle this. First, we're pretty sure the thief is one of us, so for the sake of our friendship, we can let him off this time and each of us can chip in to cover the loss. Second, if you insist on finding the thief, then we'll have no choice but to call the police."

After Ling Zixuan finished speaking, everyone looked at each other, but no one directly expressed their opinion. Finally, Han Lin was the first to speak.

"Let me share my thoughts," Han Lin said, standing on the podium and glancing at everyone present. "It's truly remarkable that we've all come together as classmates. As you've all said, under normal circumstances, why would someone do something like this for a mere thousand yuan? So, I think we should leave this matter here and give this student a chance to reform."

Everyone looked at Han Lin, their expressions incredibly varied. After a while, one of the boys jokingly said, "Class monitor, you've really hit the jackpot perfectly. Although what you said isn't wrong, I think that no matter the reason, stealing is wrong. Classmates can talk about their difficulties, and I believe everyone would help within their means. But I can't tolerate theft. Besides, we're not children anymore; we should understand that wrongdoing has consequences. I agree with the second option: call the police."

After he finished speaking, the once quiet classroom became noisy again. Some agreed with the first option and chose to let the matter rest; while others insisted on the second option, determined to make the thief pay the price.

“Since everyone is still debating, let’s vote by raising our hands. The minority shall obey the majority,” Ling Zixuan said, clapping his hands. “Now, those who agree with the first option, please raise your hands.”

As soon as Ling Zixuan finished speaking, several hands went up. Soon after, Ling Zixuan finished counting the number of people who agreed to the first option. "Based on everyone's opinion, more people chose the second option, so we will..."

Before Ling Zixuan could finish speaking, Qi Huan walked in from outside the door.

"Why is it so lively? What are you all doing?" Qi Huan asked, looking at the noisy crowd.

"Sister Huan, you don't know yet, but something big has happened in our class." Xiao Ye went up to Qi Huan as soon as she saw her walk into the classroom, put her arm around Qi Huan's arm, and told her what had happened.

After hearing Xiao Ye's words, Qi Huan slapped his forehead, smiled, and then walked up to the podium. Zhao Han, seeing Qi Huan approach, consciously stepped aside. Once on the podium, Qi Huan actually bowed to all the students.

Everyone was shocked by Qi Huan's actions and had no idea what he was up to.

"I'm sorry everyone, I took that thousand yuan." Qi Huan smiled, then gave a very apologetic look and bowed to everyone again.

"Ah!" Most people exclaimed in unison. They couldn't believe Qi Huan's words. Why would someone as rich and successful as Qi Huan "steal" a thousand yuan? Was it really just to experience the thrill of being a thief?

"I'm so sorry for the inconvenience. Let me explain. I needed to pay a training fee, but they only accept cash, and I never carry cash with me. Going to the bank to withdraw money is too much trouble. So I thought of our activity funds. I originally wanted to explain it to Zhao Han in person, but I didn't see her when I came over. I needed the money urgently, so I took it to tide me over. I was thinking of explaining it to Zhao Han now, but I didn't expect you to find out first. It was definitely my fault, and I'm sorry everyone." After saying this, Qi Huan bowed to everyone again.

Everyone's minds were still buzzing, and they couldn't quite make sense of Qi Huan's train of thought. But since Qi Huan had admitted that she had taken the money, there was no need for them to investigate further.

"Qi Huan, what you did was really unethical. How could you do such a thing? Those who know you won't say anything, but those who don't will see you as a thief." Zhong Xu looked at Qi Huan and sighed after speaking.

"Alright," Ling Zixuan interrupted Zhong Xu. "Now that Qi Huan has made herself clear, although her behavior was inappropriate, based on our understanding of Qi Huan, surely none of us would believe she would steal money, right?"

After Ling Zixuan finished speaking, everyone looked at each other and then shook their heads.

"In that case, let's put this matter to rest." Ling Zixuan clapped his hands and smiled at Qi Huan.

At this moment, Qi Huan clapped his hands, successfully attracting everyone's attention. "In the end, it was my oversight that caused this. How about this, I'll treat the whole class to milk tea this afternoon." As soon as Qi Huan finished speaking, the whole class burst into applause. The controversy over stealing money vanished in the applause.

Sima Chu sat at the back of the classroom, looking at Qi Huan standing on the podium, the envy in his eyes impossible to hide.

As evening approached, Qi Huan received a text message from Sima Chu: "Sister Huan, are you free tonight? I'd like to invite you to dinner."

"Okay," Qi Huan replied.