Chapter 2: Reading the Mind

◎Zhao Xiangwan, please help me!◎

Zhou Qiaoxiu's body was a little stiff. She stood there in a daze with her hands at her sides, not hugging Meimei back as she usually did.

Meimei felt her mother's strangeness and panicked. She hugged Zhou Qiaoxiu and looked up at her little face, tears streaming down her round cheeks. "Mom, where have you been? I was so scared. When I closed my eyes, I saw my sister crying and looking for me."

Zhou Qiaoxiu looked down at Meimei, the child she had raised. Even though she was not her biological child, she still loved and cared for her from the bottom of her heart. Although she had been a little neglectful of Meimei after the baby was born, Zhou Qiaoxiu believed that she had fulfilled her responsibilities as a mother.

Now that the baby is gone, Zhou Qiaoxiu feels resentful whenever she sees Meimei.

[My child, who was born with my own blood, is missing, but Meimei, who has no blood relationship with me, is still alive. We are exhausted from trying to find her, but she is still crying and trying to get my sympathy and attention! ]

Meimei's big eyes were soaked with tears, shining brightly under the light of the street lamps. Her wet and innocent eyes made people feel pity for her. But when her voice echoed in Zhao Xiangwan's mind, it was chilling.

[Want to compete with me for my parents? Forget it! It is because of you that my mother refuses to hug me or kiss me. She hugs you every day when she opens her eyes, and kisses you from head to toe before she goes to sleep at night. You are just a nasty little waste. If I throw you away, my parents will be mine alone. ]

Zhao Xiangwan looked at Meimei carefully, trying hard to recall the professional books she had read in the library.

——Human activities are composed of many subtle, habitual movements, and facial expressions can reflect emotions such as anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, surprise, etc. Zhao Xiangwan has the help of mind reading, first reaching the correct conclusion and then inferring the micro-expression reaction, which is really the most covert and effective cheating method.

Zhou Qiaoxiu suppressed her inner emotions and asked softly, "I can't sleep, I'm going out to find the baby."

Meimei was very quick-witted. Seeing Zhou Qiaoxiu's cold attitude, she pouted and continued to act coquettishly: "Mom, I can't sleep either. Let's go find my sister together."

Zhou Qiaoxiu ignored her coquettishness and turned to look at Zhao Xiangwan.

Zhao Xiangwan walked over, squatted down and looked Meimei in the eye: "Meimei, where did you lose your sister? Let's go look for her together."

Meimei stepped back, a hint of vigilance flashing in her eyes: "Who are you? I don't know you."

The light from the street lamps shone on Zhao Xiangwan. His amber eyes flashed brightly, deep and quiet, revealing all his frivolity and hypocrisy.

Meimei hid behind Zhou Qiaoxiu with a guilty conscience and asked timidly, "Mom, who is this sister? Is she here to help us find my sister?"

Zhou Qiaoxiu held Meimei's shoulder with her right hand to prevent her from retreating further: "Sister is Mom's student. Whatever she asks you, just answer it properly."

Zhao Xiangwan remained squatting and began to ask, "Meimei really wants to help mom find her sister, right?"

Meimei straightened her chest and tried to show her loyalty: "Of course."

Zhao Xiangwan: "When did you find out your sister was missing?"

Meimei hesitated, tears falling like pearls from a broken string: "I don't know, I really forgot. I only remember watching the rotating plane and didn't notice that my sister let go of my hand."

[My sister is bossy and cries a lot, she is not as obedient as me, but mom and dad only love her, isn't it because she is their biological child? If there is no such thing, they will love and care about me as before. There are so many people in Benlong Park, I took my sister to the back door and let go of her hand, watching her crying and looking for mom is really happy.

Go out the back door of the park and walk through a neighborhood. There is an alley. There is a couple who sell roasted melon seeds in the alley. They have three sons and want a daughter. If I throw my sister at their door, they will definitely take her away. In this way, my sister will have new parents and a new brother, and I can have my parents all to myself. 】

Zhao Xiangwan heard what was in her heart, narrowed his eyes slightly, and quickened the pace of his questioning.

"You were watching the spinning plane so hard that you didn't even notice the baby let go of your hand?"

"No, I didn't."

His eyes unconsciously looked to the lower right, telling a lie.

"There are a lot of snack stands in the park, right? Is your sister clamoring for food? Candy figurines... marshmallows... fried dough twists... roasted melon seeds..."

When talking about roasted melon seeds, Meimei's pupils dilated unconsciously and her breathing became rapid, which indicated fear.

"I didn't pay attention to these. I was very worried when my sister was lost."

"Did Meimei hold her sister's hand and go to the roasted melon seed stall? The front door? Or the back door?"

"No, I don't!"

"There's a small area behind the back door. Is there a shop selling roasted melon seeds there?"

Hearing Zhao Xiangwan repeatedly mention the three words "fried melon seeds", Meimei's expression became more and more tense as she got closer to the truth. Finally, she suddenly burst into tears and screamed, "I don't know, I don't know anything. I didn't want my sister to be missing. I panicked at the time and called her name everywhere, but I couldn't find her. I lost my sister. It's all my fault. You guys catch me!"

The crying was so loud that the lights in the apartment building were turned on one after another.

A middle-aged man in police uniform rushed down from the stairs, hugged Meimei, and looked at Zhou Qiaoxiu with condemnation in his eyes.

"Zhou Qiaoxiu, what are you doing? I told you, leave everything to me. All the forces I can mobilize in the entire city bureau have been mobilized. We have been visiting the vicinity of the park, and we will definitely find the baby. We have also sent people to keep an eye on the train station and the bus station. If it is a kidnapper, he will not be able to escape from Xing City. It is our responsibility as adults that the child is lost. Why do you keep asking Meimei? She was frightened today and needs our comfort. If you keep asking, do you want to drive her crazy?"

Meimei hugged her father's waist tightly, her face full of tears, looking pitiful and miserable.

This is the school family area. Zhou Qiaoxiu opened her mouth and wanted to say something but held it back because she didn't want to disturb the neighbors.

Meimei choked up and said, "Dad, I want to find my sister too. I'm so scared."

Xu Songling visited countless tourists in the park today. His legs were almost broken. He returned home after dark. A deep sense of helplessness enveloped him. He had been a policeman for so many years, but he never thought that his little daughter was lost and he couldn't find her even after mobilizing the entire city police force!

The eldest daughter held him with her soft little arms. Her body was shaking slightly. It was obvious that she was frightened. Xu Songling's heart softened and he patted her on the back gently: "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. Daddy doesn't blame you."

Zhao Xiangwan shook his head inwardly. Who could have thought that an eleven-year-old girl would have such a vicious heart? This little girl hid her jealousy of her sister very deeply and did not hesitate to hurt the benefactor who raised her. She was the venomous snake in the fable of the farmer and the snake.

Zhou Qiaoxiu watched her husband comfort Meimei with disdainful eyes. A feeling of suffocation surged up over her. She didn't want to suppress her emotions anymore and raised her finger to point at Meimei.

"Look at her, look at her. The baby is lost and she just cries and keeps saying she is scared. No matter how scared she is, can she be as scared as the baby? The baby is only three years old, and she cries even when going to kindergarten. My heart aches as if it is broken when the baby is left alone to face everything. And you still want me to comfort her? Will she go crazy after asking her a few questions? Xu Songling, do you know who your biological child is!"

It was past eleven o'clock in the evening, the street lights were dim, and Zhou Qiaoxiu's family was making too much noise. Someone in the dormitory was putting on his clothes and going out. Seeing that something was wrong, he hurried over to try to persuade them.

"Teacher Zhou, don't get excited. I understand that you must be worried because your baby is lost. But I don't think Meimei wants this to happen, so don't blame her."

"Yes, Meimei is a good sister and a good kid at school. This time it was an accident. Who knew there were so many people in the park? The baby ran away by herself."

"The most urgent thing now is to find the baby and prevent the kidnapper from taking her away. Teacher Zhou, please calm down for a moment. Let's work together to find a solution."

Everyone fell to the ground and told Zhou Qiaoxiu to relax and not to be anxious. They all obviously thought that Zhou Qiaoxiu's rebuke of Meimei was just anger.

Zhou Qiaoxiu's chest rose and fell with anger, and the pent-up anger became more and more severe. The fatigue and tension of the day made her irritable and sensitive. Her husband and neighbors' protection of their adopted daughter made her face a breakdown.

"ah--"

A scream burst out from Zhou Qiaoxiu's throat. She rushed to Meimei like a madman and shook her shoulders vigorously: "Tell me, tell me! Where did you lose the baby? You must have lost her. You are just greedy. You can't bear to see me love the baby, right? Right?!"

Zhou Qiaoxiu's hair was in a mess and she didn't care that her shoelaces were loose. She usually paid the most attention to her image, but at this moment she was very emotional, and scared the neighbors who came forward to persuade her to stop.

Xu Songling was tall and quickly grabbed her shoulders to stop her from shaking Meimei. He shouted, "Zhou Qiaoxiu! What are you doing?"

Meimei's head was shaken like a wave drum, her braids were shattered, tears were falling, and she kept saying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Mom, it's my fault, I deserve to die, I shouldn't have let go of my sister's hand, I'm sorry to my sister."

After a series of words, her voice became weaker and weaker. Amid the screams of the crowd, she leaned back and fainted in Xu Songling's arms.

"Oh my, the child has fainted, hurry up and take him to the hospital."

"Poor Meimei, since she's not my biological child, I don't feel sorry for her."

"I didn't expect Teacher Zhou to be so cruel. She accidentally lost her child while taking him out, but she put all the blame on her adopted daughter. It's outrageous!"

Xu Songling glared at Zhou Qiaoxiu with a complicated look, then ran out quickly holding Meimei in his arms, started the police tricycle parked at the family building, and drove away.

Zhou Qiaoxiu's knees went weak and she almost fell down.

Seeing her in pity, the neighbor next to her supported her and consoled her, saying, "Teacher Zhou, children are connected to our hearts. We all know that you were worried when your baby went missing today. You are also an educated person, you should know the priorities of things. Blaming Meimei will only make things worse. Don't dwell on who lost the baby. We have to work together to find the child. You are arguing with Officer Xu at this time and holding him back, aren't you delaying the important work?"

Zhou Qiaoxiu held her breath and felt uncomfortable and had difficulty breathing. She turned to look at Zhao Xiangwan who had been standing beside her without saying a word.

Zhao Xiangwan walked up to Zhou Qiaoxiu, bent down to help her tie the buckle of her cloth shoes, and said softly but firmly: "Teacher Zhou, I believe in you."

I believe your judgment, Meimei is lying.

When Zhou Qiaoxiu heard what Zhao Xiangwan said, she seemed to be injected with vitality. Her eyes suddenly lit up and her limp body straightened up: "Zhao Xiangwan, please help me!"