Chapter 40. If you love me, kiss me
The accusations and suspicions of the crowd grew louder and louder, and all eyes turned to Xu Jiaru who was standing at the door. Her little face turned pale in an instant, her little mouth was tightly pursed without a trace of blood, and her small body was trembling slightly.
Xu Jiaru raised her eyes to look at Xu Xiaosi, who was leaning against Dean Xu's back with a look of grievance on his face. When their eyes met, Xu Xiaosi revealed an imperceptible provocative smile, and then immediately turned back into his harmless look.
Looking around the room, everyone looked at her with disdain, as if they were the clouds high up in the sky, and she, Xu Jiaru, was the dirty dirt on the ground. They were laughing and mocking her...
Obviously, she was very familiar with this kind of scene and could ignore their words and actions on weekdays, but today he was extremely angry, no, it should be fear. She didn't even dare to look up at Xie Fei's face, she was afraid to see disgust and disdain in his eyes.
A feeling of grievance and shame surged up from Xu Jiaru's heart, and instantly rushed to her forehead. The resentment, unwillingness and doubts that had been buried deep in her heart in the past all surfaced in her mind at this moment, and she couldn't help but scream in her heart -
Why, why did they do this to her?
She had given up everything, food, clothes, gifts... all given to them. She didn't even fight for the chance to be adopted. She planned to grow up quietly in the orphanage until she was fifteen, and then go out to find a job to support herself...
But she met Brother Fei, a man with such a warm smile who said he would take her home. She wanted to go home with him, but such a simple wish was completely destroyed by them.
Dean Xu had already heard what happened from Xu Xiaoliu, and others also echoed that Xu Jiaru had indeed stolen something. She had no choice but to believe it, and soon her face became very ugly.
As the saying goes, the barking dog never bites. Xu Shiqi looked well-behaved and didn't fight or compete on weekdays. She thought he was a good person, just a little eccentric. Who knew he was so thoughtful!
It would have been fine if this matter had not been discovered, but now that she has been caught in public, this distinguished guest might not want her anymore. This matter must be handled with caution, otherwise it will affect the future of the orphanage.
Thinking of this, Dean Xu said sternly with a sullen face: "Seventeen, is this how I taught you? You are so young and you are not a good person. You learned to steal things. Now that our distinguished guests are here, I will teach you a lesson later. You must go to the main hall and reflect on your mistakes right now!"
Xu Jiaru trembled, then immediately stood up straight, trying to raise her head, looking at Dean Xu stubbornly with red eyes, choking but firmly saying: "I didn't steal anything!"
She would never admit to something she hadn't done. Even if she couldn't go home with Brother Fei again, she didn't want to disappoint him by being accused of being a thief. It was just...
Xu Jiaru looked down at her hand which Xie Fei had let go of at some point, feeling aggrieved and sad. Didn't he believe in her either?
Dean Xu was startled by Xu Jiaru's look, but when he came to his senses, he immediately glared back and said angrily, "How dare you quibble? This Ruyi Jade Buddha fell out of your clothes. Who else could it be if not you?"
"I...I don't know why it's in my clothes..." Xu Jiaru was stunned by Dean Xu's question and murmured in response.
Xu Xiaoliu sneered and said, "How could you not know? Don't lie. You must have stolen the Jade Buddha and stuffed it into the cabinet in a hurry. You thought no one would notice it, but we found it anyway."
Xu Jiaru's eyes were filled with tears. The big tears slid down her cheeks one by one to her chin. Everyone looked at her with suspicion. Her nose felt sour and she cried in a muffled voice, "I didn't, I didn't..."
Dean Xu interrupted her impatiently and ordered directly: "Xiao Liu, Xiao Ba, pull her out."
As soon as the voice fell, the two men were ready to come forward to pull Xu Jiaru. Dean Xu also looked at Xie Fei with an apologetic smile, rubbed his hands embarrassedly, and said: "Dear guest, I am really sorry to make you laugh. How about we go back and discuss the adoption again?"
As soon as Dean Xu said this, all the children in the room became excited. As for Xu Shiqi's stealing, it was no longer important. Especially for Xu Xiaosi, he couldn't help but reveal a smile of success in his eyes. With Xu Shiqi, the thorn in his side, removed, no one in the room could compete with him. If someone else was chosen, he didn't mind letting him become the second Xu Shiqi. Anyway, he was already familiar with these methods.
These people's joy and happiness are Xu Jiaru's sadness and grief. She can't bear it anymore. Even if she may be scolded by Brother Fei and despised by him, she must fight for herself.
Thinking of this, Xu Jiaru moved sideways to avoid the two people who were walking towards her, stepped closer to Xie Fei, lowered her head, and slowly grabbed the hem of Xie Fei's clothes with a trembling hand. She whispered in a low voice: "Brother Fei, believe me, Jiaru didn't steal anything, really didn't."
The voice was soft and tender, and she sounded aggrieved, which melted Xie Fei's heart. He wanted to laugh but also felt distressed, so he bent down and picked her up and hugged her in his arms. He gently rubbed her little head with one hand and said with a smile: "Brother Fei, of course, believes Jiaru. How could such a cute little mushroom steal things? It's almost the same as giving it to you."
Xu Jiaru stared at Xie Fei blankly, her big eyes filled with tears, her long eyelashes were stained with water drops, twinkling like the beautiful stars in the sky. Because of surprise, her tender little mouth soaked in tears opened slightly, and she sobbed in a baby voice: "Brother Fei..."
"Be good and don't cry. You won't be beautiful if you cry anymore." Xie Fei coaxed her in a low voice and gently kissed her on the forehead.
Xu Jiaru was startled, her little heart felt as if it was filled with marshmallows, sweet and soft. She tried to curl the corners of her mouth and smiled brightly at Xie Fei. She unconsciously put her arms around his neck, stretched her body, pouted and moved closer, and a wet kiss fell on Xie Fei's forehead.
Xie Fei was stunned. In his surprised eyes, Xu Jiaru nodded with satisfaction, and then she shrank back the next moment. Her tear-stained face rubbed against his neck as if she was clinging to him, and she whispered in a baby voice, "Jiaru likes Brother Fei the most."
Xie Fei's heart was filled with honey, and his eyebrows and eyes couldn't help but smile. He laughed softly and nodded, "Yes, Brother Fei also likes mushrooms the most."
Everyone in the room was shocked by the scene before them. Dean Xu opened his mouth in disbelief. After a long while, he stammered, "Your Excellency, what...what do you mean by this?"
"There's no need to discuss adoption again. I've decided to adopt Seventeen, and this will never change." Xie Fei raised his head, looking at Dean Xu with a pair of cold eyes, and said lightly, glancing at Xu Jiaru's bed and cabinets, "Please trouble Dean Xu to hand the things directly to my secretary, I'll take her away now."
After saying that, Xie Fei hugged Xu Jiaru and was about to leave. Dean Xu said anxiously behind him: "But my lord, Seventeen is not clean——"
Before she could finish her words, she was frightened by Xie Fei's cold eyes that were filled with anger and chillness, and she shivered all over, and the rest of the words were stuck in her throat.
"If I hear any rumors from you that damage Seventeen's reputation again, don't blame me for being cruel." Xie Fei said slowly.
Dean Xu curled her lips and dared not say another word, but Xu Xiaosi beside her was unwilling to give up. He gritted his teeth and said, "This, this is the fact. Why can't I say it?"
"Who can prove that this is true?" Xie Fei's expression did not change, and he turned to look at Xu Xiaosi.
Xu Xiaosi raised his eyebrows and smiled: "Everyone here can testify, including you. We all saw it with our own eyes. This Ruyi Jade Buddha fell out of Xu Shiqi's clothes."
"Oh?" Xie Fei slightly curved his lips, his cold eyes slowly swept over the crowd, and said with a faint smile, "Who among you saw Seventeen steal his jade Buddha?"
As soon as he finished speaking, several children opened their mouths to speak. Xie Fei added slowly, "Think carefully before you speak. I said that I saw Seventeen stealing with my own eyes, not that I saw the jade Buddha fall out of her clothes. If anyone dares to lie, I will immediately have a lawyer sue him for defamation."
Frightened by Xie Fei, no one in the room dared to say a word. Xie Fei smiled, turned his eyes to look at Xu Xiaosi, and asked coldly: "Why, did you see it?"
"I, I..." Xu Xiaosi clenched his fists unwillingly. Although he was also afraid of Xie Fei, it had come to this point and he could not give up. After hesitating for a moment, he gritted his teeth and said loudly: "I didn't see it, but this doesn't mean she is innocent. Just now Xu Xiaoqi said that she had Xiaojiu's clothes in her closet-"
"No matter what you say, I only believe Seventeen. If she says it's not, then it's not." Xie Fei interrupted him and said lightly.
Everyone in the room immediately showed an expression of being angry but not daring to speak out. Xie Fei laughed sarcastically and said, "I know some of you are dissatisfied and think that I am using my power to bully others. I am not afraid to tell you that I do want to use my power to bully others."
Hearing this, everyone looked at each other. Before they could say anything, Xie Fei continued, "But for the sake of my Seventeen, I decided to speak with evidence."
Dean Xu was stunned when he heard this and asked, "Sir, do you mean you have evidence?"
"That's right." Xie Fei nodded, turned to look at Xu Xiaosi, smiled faintly, "Xu Xiaosi, you don't have to act anymore. I know that you planned all of this today. Do you want to confess and get leniency, or do you want me to use the evidence to send you to the police station for investigation?"
"You are slandering me!" Xu Xiaosi subconsciously tightened his hands, staring with red eyes and said, "According to what you said, I am not idle and have nothing to do. Besides, why would I wrongly accuse her?"
Dean Xu's frown softened. Since Xiaoyi and the others left, Xu Xiaosi was the child closest to her. He was capable, smart, filial and kind. She believed that Xiaosi would never have staged the theft himself, so she agreed with some dissatisfaction: "Yes, why did Xiaosi wrongly accuse her?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
