No one else reacted, but Teacher Mi, who understood her grandson, was stunned for a moment. "You mean those people were brought by Xiao Huang?"

Ning Shaobai didn't comment and said casually, "Didn't they say there was another commotion this morning? Did Aunt Liu contact the union? The union must have contacted Zhang Qiming."

"I know that. I heard from our old man, Mr. Li, that Director Wang criticized Zhang Qiming today!" someone said, "Zhang Qiming didn't even go home at noon, and as soon as he got to work this afternoon, he actively applied to go on a business trip."

At this point, a lightbulb suddenly lit up in that person's head. "Ah, I thought he was criticized and took the initiative to take this difficult task in order to win this year's advanced award. It turns out he was just trying to avoid the limelight."

"Indeed." Someone actively joined in. "Today, Huang Xiaojuan went out and was caught by Xiao He's country wife and scolded for a long time. No one wanted to play with Xuanxuan in the nursery, so Huang Xiaojuan took him home. She looked so weird at that time..."

Everyone followed Ning Shaobai's train of thought and instantly turned into Sherlock Holmes. "So, they framed Xia Mian. This way, everyone would hate Xia Mian and forget about their family's affairs."

"Yes, when Huang Xiaojuan left today, many people began to sympathize with her."

Xia Mian suddenly realized, "No wonder I scolded those people so badly, but they didn't leave. It turns out they accepted the mission."

"Did you scold them?"

"Well, they whistled at me, so of course I had to scold them."

"So they really don't know about summer sleep."

The members of the Holmes Women's League made rich guesses: "Don't say it, this trick is simple and effective. Those hooligans, if they give them a few dollars and spread Xia Mian's name in the yard, the little girl will be ruined!"

Old Lady Liu said, "That's something those two black-hearted people could do. They're trying to drive Xia Mian away. Xia Mian just came to the city from town and is unfamiliar with the place. If she gets harassed by those hooligans, who would trust her?"

Teacher Mi thought of something even worse, "Xiao Xia, a sixteen-year-old girl from another place, if she was taken away by those hooligans..."

This possibility is too great. The middle-aged woman clapped her hands and said, "Isn't it! Otherwise, why would the whole family leave so suddenly? Zhang Qiming is going on a business trip for seven or eight days, and Huang Xiaojuan took her luggage with her when she left."

"She said she was scared of those hooligans and wanted to go back to her parents' home to hide for a few days. This is like asking Xia Mian to cry out to heaven and earth for help but no one will answer her!"

"Yeah, I was thinking Huang Xiaojuan was too embarrassed to stay in the compound and wanted to avoid the limelight, but I didn't expect she had such malicious intentions!"

"A beast is a beast. This whole family is black-hearted and rotten-hearted. Xia Mian is still with Xiao Feng. Are they going to throw them both to the gangsters?!"

Amidst the crowd's condemnation, Xia Mian was only concerned about one thing, "Are they all gone? Is the door locked?"

"Do you have the key?" Although Mrs. Liu asked this, she already knew the answer in her heart.

Sure enough, Xia Mian shook his head.

Old Lady Liu asked, "What should we do? Where are you two going to stay today, and you're bringing Xiao Feng with you?"

Xia Mian felt her legs tighten, and sure enough, Xiao Feng was hugging her legs, his little hands nervously clenched together. This child had been treated like an object since she was a child, and was very sensitive.

Xia Mian touched his head and said, "Don't worry, Auntie won't abandon you. Auntie will go do something and buy some food. Xiao Feng is tired and hungry, so it will be faster for Auntie to go alone."

Xiao Feng was still very scared, her little hands tightly grasping the hem of her skirt, but she still pursed her lips and nodded obediently, "Auntie, I'll be a good boy, please come back soon." At the end of her words, tears were already in her big eyes.

Xia Mian couldn't stand the crying voice of the little baby. "Forget it." She picked up Xiao Feng and said, "Auntie, take Xiao Feng with you wherever you go, okay?"

Xiao Feng hugged her neck tightly, tears finally falling, "Auntie, I'll be good."

The adults looked at them with sadness. Old Lady Liu scolded them, "This family is such a waste of time! What are you going to do, Xia Mian? Why don't you stay at my house for the next few days? It'll be just right for Xiao Feng and Zhuang Zhuang to keep you company."

"It's okay, Aunt Liu." Xia Mian originally wanted to deal with those thugs and ask them for some information.

But Xiao Feng is more important now.

Xia Mian didn't plan to stay anywhere. She didn't like to trouble others, nor did she want to live under someone else's roof. Besides, it hadn't reached that point yet.

If it was a young girl who just came from a small county town, she might be at a loss, but Zhang Qiming and Huang Xiaojuan thought that they would be unable to defeat Xia Mian and the others with such a small matter, but they made a wrong calculation. I just hope they don't regret it after they come back.

"Don't you even have any money?" Old Mrs. Liu asked worriedly.

Xia Mian smiled, "Don't worry, I'll call Zhang Qiming first and ask him what I should do."

"He's on a business trip, what can we do?" Old Mrs. Liu was still worried.

"Ask first. Aunt Liu, can I borrow your phone?"

"Use mine," said Teacher Mi, "so you don't have to go upstairs." Then she turned and walked back.

Xia Mian didn't refuse, as Teacher Mi's house was on the first floor, which was more convenient.

Looking at Ning Shaobai following behind him, Xia Mian felt like something was about to come out. It wasn't until he walked into Teacher Mi's house that Xia Mian realized that this guy was actually Teacher Mi's genius grandson, Xiaobai?!

Ning Shaobai saw her incredible look and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." Xia Mian instantly forgave him. After all, it was normal for a genius to have some flaws. Considering that he had helped her today, she would never hold a grudge against him again.

Ning Shaobai always felt that she was up to no good.

Xia Mian called Zhang Qiming.

There were no mobile phones in those days, and there were not many large mobile phones in inland cities.

In the original body's memory, only the richest man in Mingxi County had a mobile phone. He could always be seen walking on the street with his mobile phone in his hand, yelling, "Ah, what did you say? The signal is bad, I didn't hear you clearly. Say it again."

It can immediately attract almost everyone's attention on the street.

However, pagers are still quite popular, and anyone with similar conditions can own one.

Xia Mian left a message saying that she was at Teacher Mi's house and asked him to call Teacher Mi back, so Zhang Qiming's call came relatively quickly.

But right away, he started questioning, "Xia Mian, someone complained to me. How could you call those shady people to the family compound? What if something happens? Also, why are you bothering Teacher Mi?"

"Mianmian, be obedient. Your second uncle called me today and said he wants to take you back to see me," Zhang Qiming said earnestly. "You know your second uncle's old ways of thinking. There are no adults in your family, and your grandmother listens to your second uncle. If he marries you off casually, you'll be helpless. What will you do?"

Xia Mian narrowed her eyes. This was blocking her retreat. She couldn't get in the house, and she didn't dare go back to her hometown. Wasn't the only option left for her to go with the gangsters?

She snorted and didn't argue, but simply said, "There's no one at home and I can't get in, so I can only borrow Teacher Mi's phone. Don't gossip, aren't you afraid of wasting phone bills?" Chatting on time is a feature of this era. After all, phone charges were much more expensive these days than in later generations, and answering the phone was also charged. People who had just escaped from hard times lived more frugally.

After she said this, Zhang Qiming suddenly didn't know what to say. He only heard Xia Mian ask, "Now that Huang Xiaojuan has left with Xuanxuan and doesn't seem to be planning to come back, what should Xiaofeng and I do?"

Zhang Qiming said helplessly, "I was arranged to go on a business trip at the last minute. I've already bought the train tickets, so there's nothing I can do now. So, I'll call Aunt Liu later. You can go find Aunt Liu, or Teacher Mi. As for the money, didn't Xiaojuan say you just got 500 today? It should be enough for a few days. If it's not enough, you can borrow some or something."

"I've already spent all my money." Xia Mian said, "Xiao Feng has nothing. I bought everything for Xiao Feng."

"Huang Xiaojuan hasn't returned my passbook yet. Why should I borrow money when I have my own money?" Xia Mian said unhappily, "My mother said I can't borrow money from anyone casually. I don't like borrowing money."

Teacher Mi heard this and said, "It's okay. We can only give it to Xiao Zhang when he comes back."

Zhang Qiming only then realized that Xia Mian was actually using the hands-free mode. Thinking back on what he had just said, he realized that there was nothing wrong. After knowing that Teacher Mi was listening, he said earnestly, "Your money is what your mother left for you to study. Don't always think about it and do something rash. If you don't have money, you can figure it out first. If you really can't, ask the neighbors for help. I'll be back in a few days. Teacher Mi, I'm really sorry to trouble you with our Xia Mian and Xiao Feng."

Teacher Mi said, "It's nothing, just neighbors."

"Anyway, I won't lend you money." Xia Mian gave him a quick warning. "Then I'll see what happens. Return my passbook to me when you come back. I don't believe you."

Zhang Qiming sighed and said, "Don't worry, I will return the passbook to you as soon as I get it back," if you still need it.

"Anyway, just go ahead and ask your neighbors for help. If you really owe me money, I'll pay it back when I get back."

Old Lady Liu, who had followed in, heard this and said, "That's more like it. Since you've brought someone here, you should act like one. Besides, there's Xiaofeng. I think your Huang Xiaojuan is hopeless. She actually abandoned two children and ran away. I think she did it on purpose!"

Zhang Qiming frowned slightly. This situation was a little different from what he had imagined. Why didn’t the neighbors hate hibernation?

Zhang Qiming was thinking in his mind, but he still took the opportunity to flatter Xia Mian, "Xiaojuan just called me and said that she was scared by the thugs who came to her house. Xia Mian did something similar when she was in her hometown." Otherwise, she wouldn't be so skilled in fighting.

"Her second uncle thinks she's not good at studying, so he's always thinking about marrying her off. I think she should still study at such a young age..."

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore. I'll teach them both a lesson when we get back. But for now, I'll have to trouble Aunt Liu and Teacher Mi to take care of Xia Mian and Xiao Feng."