Thinking of something, Yu Yao's gaze fell on the bedside table. She lifted the curtain and saw the intact lock on it, and breathed a sigh of relief.
Inside are her and Lu Ze's savings book, as well as jewelry left to her by Lu Ze's grandmother and small gifts given to her by Lu Ze.
She put books on it and covered it with a curtain, so the thief probably didn't notice.
Who on earth is so bold as to steal things from the military compound?
Yu Yao didn't know how many things were missing from the house, so she went to check first. When she got to the kitchen, her anger flared up instantly.
The kitchen was a mess, and the wooden rack that Lu Ze had made for her to hold cans was overturned on the floor.
The canned goods and various sauces that were meant as souvenirs were either smashed or taken away, and there was soup everywhere on the ground, even on the walls.
In the center of the kitchen, two jars used to hold crab sauce and yellow lantern chili sauce were smashed, spilling gray-blue crab sauce and yellow chili sauce onto the floor, which was covered with footprints mixed with the sauce.
That's such a waste.
These canned goods and sauces were the culmination of her hard work, and they were ruined just like that. Yu Yao was furious.
Yu Yao suppressed her anger and continued to check the inventory.
"Little sister, how much stuff did you lose?"
Yu Yao said coldly, "We lost more than twenty yuan, a dozen tickets, six cans of food, three catties of dried shrimp, and five catties of dried oysters. Some of the walnuts, hazelnuts, and dried blueberries you brought this morning are also missing. There are also quite a few damaged items."
"What should we do now? Sister, do you have anyone you suspect?"
Yu Yao shook her head, suspecting that it might have been stolen by the person who left footprints in the yard earlier.
But who that person was, there was no clue.
A faint aroma of sauce wafted in the air. Yu Yao's gaze fell thoughtfully on the footprints on the ground, which were stained with a mixture of grayish-blue and yellow sauce.
Perhaps there is still a way.
The kitchen and the yard were both places where the sauce was stored. Although the smell had been diluted by the wind, Yu Yao still used her keen sense of smell to find the direction the thief had left by following the lingering sauce scent in the air.
Yu Yao's gaze fell on the left wall. Peeking out, she could see a faint footprint stained with sauce in Yu Feng's yard.
Just then, Song Yufeng heard a noise next door and came out to check.
"Yu Yao, what's wrong?"
Yu Yao glanced behind her and asked, "Sister-in-law Yu Feng, where are Grandma Niu and Wu Shufen?"
"Old Wu bought them train tickets to go back to their hometown today. He just saw them off, about half an hour ago."
Yu Yao sneered inwardly. So they knew they were leaving and were fearless, planning to pull off one last big heist.
Song Yufeng, heavily pregnant, noticed Yuyao's unusual expression and asked, "Sister Yuyao, is something wrong?"
Yu Yao pointed to the soy-stained footprints at Song Yufeng's house and said, "Something is missing from the house."
Song Yufeng was startled and rushed over to check. When she saw the situation at Yu Yao's house, her face showed a mixture of anxiety, anger, and shame.
"Yu Yao, I'm so sorry! I'll send someone to find Lao Wu right away. We should be able to stop him by bicycle in time."
Song Yufeng found a young soldier and asked him to go find Battalion Commander Wu.
When the young soldier heard that she was looking for Battalion Commander Wu, he said, "Battalion Commander Wu and his men are being held up at the gate by several women from the family compound. They're still there."
Upon hearing that the person hadn't left yet, Yu Yao and the others hurried towards the entrance of the military compound.
Grandma Niu, you think you can run away? No way!
On the way, I ran into Lu Ze, who had several stone carp strung together with wild grass.
"Why are you in such a hurry?" Lu Ze asked with concern, his gaze falling on Yu Yao.
Yu Yao's eyes immediately reddened, and she felt extremely aggrieved: "Lu Ze, thieves broke into our house, and they smashed my canned food and sauce all over the floor."
Lu Ze knew how much she loved cooking and how much effort she put into making those dishes. He squeezed her hand tenderly, "Don't worry, I've got everything covered. Have you called security?"
Yu Yao felt a little better after being comforted by Lu Ze. She shook her head and said, "I was so angry. I heard them at the door and forgot to look for the security department."
Lu Ze patted her head. "It's okay. You guys wait for me at the compound gate. I'll go find the security department right away. The lost item is definitely in their hands. The security department will catch you red-handed after a quick search."
Looking at Lu Ze's gentle gaze, Yu Yao nodded, "Then hurry back, I'll wait for you at the main gate."
"good."
Lu Ze went to find the security department, while Yu Yao and Wu Huaiqing went to the gate of the compound.
Before even reaching the door, one could hear the sounds of Old Lady Niu arguing with an older woman from the family compound, along with Wu Shufen adding fuel to the fire and Battalion Commander Wu trying to persuade her.
The old woman cursed Old Lady Niu as a shameless clothes thief, but Old Lady Niu wailed that she was innocent and that the military families had ganged up on her, demanding that Battalion Commander Wu stand up for her.
"You military dependents are really bullying us! We are all law-abiding citizens. Look at your waist, who would want to steal your clothes?"
The old woman was furious and pointed at Old Lady Niu: "You're the ones who stole them! Your eyes never left my clothes when I was hanging them out to dry. Not only my clothes, but I also saw you sneaking around spying on Commander Lu's house."
Niu Laotian felt a little guilty. "What nonsense are you talking about? I just heard a dog barking in her yard and took a few more glances out of curiosity. How is that considered sneaking around? You said I stole your clothes, did you see it with your own eyes? There's no evidence. You just don't like me and are deliberately framing me."
The old lady was rendered speechless by the old lady's interruption.
She really had no evidence, otherwise she wouldn't have been arguing with Old Lady Niu for so long.
Seeing that she had no other options, Old Lady Niu pressed her advantage, saying, "Considering that we are all military families, I'll let bygones be bygones. We need to catch our ship, so we won't say any more. Eldest son, Shufen, old man, let's go."
The crowd had all come to watch the spectacle, so they made way for them.
Old Lady Niu walked past the middle-aged woman with an arrogant air, her eyes seemingly defiant, which infuriated the middle-aged woman.
Although she didn't see it with her own eyes that it was Old Lady Niu who stole it, she had seen Old Lady Niu lurking around in front of her clothes with a shifty look on several times before when she was hanging them out to dry.
Grandma Niu and Wu Shufen exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with smugness.
So what if she stole it? There's no proof that the clothes are hers.
"Stop!" Yu Yao's icy voice rang out in the silence.
When Grandma Niu and Wu Shufen saw that it was Yu Yao, a hint of panic flashed in their eyes.
Didn't she go to the dock to buy things? How come she's back so soon?
Song Yufeng and the others followed, looking at Old Lady Niu and the others, "Dad, Mom, did you take Yu Yao's things? Give them back to her quickly."
Upon hearing this, the people around immediately stopped in their tracks.
The old woman whose thick clothes had been stolen had given up hope, but when Yu Yao arrived, she was like a lifeline.
She had no evidence on her own, so Old Lady Niu wouldn't allow a body search. But if Yu Yao had evidence, Old Lady Niu wouldn't be able to avoid a body search even if she wanted to.
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