Chapter 76 Being in a vulnerable position requires expressing one's rights
The sound was neither too loud nor too soft, but exceptionally clear.
Dean Qiu was taken aback and turned his head.
"Little girl, what did you say?"
Tu Yao repeated, "I said, it seems like you've been the one talking the whole time, and no one has asked whether she actually did it."
Dean Qiu, with tears still wet on his face, chuckled: "Young lady, you're joking. Xiao He's intellectual capacity is so low that she can't even understand what I'm saying, and she doesn't know many words. How am I supposed to ask her questions?"
The girl remained in the same dazed state as before.
Tu Yao was even more puzzled: "If she can't understand or read, how did she learn to steal?"
Dean Qiu's expression changed slightly as he glanced at the girl in front of him again.
He hadn't watched much of this live variety show, only knowing that the production team invited celebrity guests and ordinary people as guests.
Compared to the other guests' clothes that cost tens of thousands of yuan, this girl was wearing an ordinary floral dress, so she must be an ordinary person.
The contempt in Dean Qiu's eyes vanished in an instant. "Little girl, you're still young. You shouldn't get involved yet."
But as soon as she finished speaking, Tu Chaoxi's face darkened instantly: "My sister is eighteen, she's an adult. Even if she weren't an adult, she could still speak! She can speak whenever she wants!"
Xu Bai immediately chimed in, "That's right! So what if my older sister is young? She's still my older sister!"
Ma Zhiyuan, watching from the sidelines, muttered to himself, "She's already gotten involved in so many things, what's one more?"
"Right, Xiao Wen, Xiao Jiang?"
Wen Yu and Jiang Ye said in unison, "That's right!"
The staff present were all seasoned veterans of the entertainment industry, and Tu Yao's words instantly made them realize something.
It seems that from the very beginning, it was Dean Qiu who was guiding the flow of information.
Even knowing that Dean Qiu is a good person, this way of judging the case seems too arbitrary.
The look in her eyes couldn't help but include a hint of scrutiny.
Dean Qiu looked embarrassed. She was just a country girl, why were so many people protecting her?
Across from him, Tu Chaoxi ignored him and gently patted Tu Yao's head. "It's okay, speak freely, I'm here!"
Xu Bai also stepped forward: "It's alright, big sister, your little brother is here too."
Tu Yao: ...
Tu Chaoxi impatiently pushed the person aside: "So you think she didn't steal it?"
Tu Yao shook her head: "I don't know, but I think we should ask her."
Knowing that Cheng Sangsang would be angry, she turned around and explained, "My friend Da Pang was wronged a couple of days ago, and it doesn't feel good to be wronged."
Even if she doesn't understand, I still feel I should ask her.
Those who are in a vulnerable position need the right to express themselves even more.
Cheng Sangsang felt a pang of jealousy. She hadn't expected this little sycophant to be so popular!
Just as I was about to get angry, I immediately deflated upon hearing these words.
She knew about this, but it was Chu Meng's aunt who turned the tables and wrongly accused her.
The Wei family was trending on social media just two days ago, but now they've become a laughing stock in the entire city.
She didn't want to become a laughing stock too!
"But you already said she can't understand what I'm saying, so how can I ask her anything?"
Tu Yao pursed her lips and said seriously, "I need to think about it."
After speaking, he looked at the girl, but Xiaohe remained silent, staring at the ground.
Looking around at the children, despite the commotion, they were all standing quietly by the bookshelf.
Tu Yao had just told Tu Chaoxi that she felt something was off about this place, but at first she couldn't put it into words.
But now it seems like it exists.
She felt that the children here were like robots, robots that could only follow instructions.
At a single command, even if he was starving and about to faint, he would shake hands with Cheng Sangsang.
At a signal, all the children gathered to help organize the books.
Without instructions, no matter how hungry they were, they could not eat the rice cakes and biscuits she gave them.
Without instructions, these children have not left on their own so far.
...But Xiaohe just ate bread.
So where did the bread come from?
All the children were hungry, but Xiaohe had a piece of bread.
Will this be free food?
If it's not free, what does she need to do to get the bread?
...Would she steal without instructions?
Tu Yao blinked, and in an instant, the brainstorming session made her breathing a little heavier.
She seemed to have a guess.
Tu Yao suddenly spoke up: "Xiao He, I want to ask you where you got that bread from?"
As he spoke, he glanced at Dean Qiu beside him, and it was clear that his pupils widened instantly when he heard the word "bread."
Tu Yao paused for a second, shook her head, and asked in a different way: "Does Xiao He still want to eat bread?"
The next second, Tu Yao asked again:
"If Xiaohe wants to eat bread, what should we do?"
Dean Qiu, who was standing to the side, had already turned pale.
The girl, whose eyes had been vacant, suddenly opened her mouth as if she had been rebooted:
"...in exchange...for...food..."
Everyone was stunned.
Holy crap! My sister can do magic?!
The girl paced anxiously back and forth in the library, stammering as she spoke.
Tu Chaoxi frowned slightly: "Tu Xiaomao, what is she looking for?"
Did you hear what she said clearly?
Tu Yao gripped the dog leash tightly, her eyes shining as she looked at the girl in front of her... She understood.
The girl's voice was so soft that Tu Chaoxi quickly leaned closer to listen.
A flicker of panic crossed Dean Qiu's face. Why would she ask such questions? Did she know something?!
Dean Qiu dared not think any further and immediately interrupted, "Xiao He, come back!"
At another command, the girl immediately changed direction, her goal clear, and stood blankly next to Dean Qiu.
Tu Chaoxi immediately retorted irritably, "Why did you suddenly call her?"
Xu Bai frowned: "That's right, I still don't understand!"
Dean Qiu's face paled slightly, but he managed to remain calm as he said, "I...I just suddenly remembered."
"The library has surveillance cameras installed!"
"Just look at the security footage, and we'll know she took it!"
Upon hearing this, even the viewers in the live stream instinctively sensed something was amiss.
[What's going on? It feels like Dean Qiu is trying her best to prove that she stole it.]
Xu Bai scoffed: "Why didn't you say there was surveillance footage sooner!"
Dean Qiu wiped his forehead. "Yes, yes, books are precious. I was worried that these kids would get out of control if they made a ruckus, so I installed a few surveillance cameras here to warn them."
"I don't use it often, so I forgot about it."
He quickly took out his phone, opened the surveillance footage replay, and fast-forwarded.
Six minutes ago, Cheng Sangsang was tidying up the bookshelf while bickering with Xu Bai.
The ring she casually tossed aside was placed in a corner of the bookshelf.
Xiaohe appeared five minutes ago.
The next second, the girl used extremely skillful movements to quickly grab the two rings and then ran away!
...Did she really steal it?
People both inside and outside the live stream frowned involuntarily, seemingly unwilling to believe the result.
"Little girl, is everything alright now?"
Dean Qiu subconsciously looked at Tu Yao.
The girl seemed to have been convinced by the "truth" she saw with her own eyes, and stood obediently beside Tu Chaoxi.
He exclaimed "Oh!" as if suddenly realizing something.
Just as Dean Qiu was about to breathe a sigh of relief, he saw her look up again:
"Then why do we have to wait two days? Can't we just go look for it as soon as it's lost?"
Dean Qiu: ...
Tu Yao tilted her head and asked in confusion, "Does she manage to return it intact every two days after taking it so many times?"
Before Dean Qiu could nod, she added, "Even if they were returned intact before, what if she accidentally broke or damaged them this time?"
"You can't guarantee that."
"So if you can't guarantee it, why not find it on the spot if you lose it?"
Dean Qiu: ...
"Also, why don't you scold her when she does something wrong? I'm not perfect either, but even if we can't understand what she says, we can still understand what she says..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tu Chaoxi immediately slapped him down, saying irritably, "What nonsense are you spouting!"
Tu Yao scratched her head and added the last sentence in a low voice: "...See? Anyway, every time I do something wrong, my brother beats me on the spot, he never has to wait."
Tu Chaoxi: ...
Those present exchanged bewildered glances. If they had only sensed something amiss before, these astute individuals were now almost certain that there was more to the story.
Tu Yao's few simple words were like parting layers of clouds.
The live stream chat exploded.
[Wow... this sister is amazing! I almost didn't realize there was a plot hole in Dean Qiu's statement!]
[Instead of waiting for Xiaohe to take it out on her own in two days, wouldn't it be faster to go find it now? This orphanage isn't very big; there are only a few places to hide it!]
[Intellectual disability is not an excuse. The fact that this has happened so many times without any advice or lesson is quite abnormal.]
[I was just thinking how touching it was that he was willing to humble himself and beg the nouveau riche for his child's sake, but now that I think about it, this director isn't as good at raising children as Tu Chaoxi! At least Tu Chaoxi actually chased after his sister to hit her!]
[Keep your voice down, or Teacher Tu will get cocky again!]
[And don't you guys think it's weird? On one hand, he begged the nouveau riche for Xiaohe's sake, and on the other hand, when his sister suspected him, he suddenly went to great lengths to find CCTV footage to prove that she was the one who stole it. Strange, very strange...]
Dean Qiu's face flushed red and then turned pale. He was bombarded with questions, and for a moment he didn't know where to begin answering. His mind was in complete chaos.
A mixture of anger and embarrassment welled up inside him, and he blurted out, "So what do you want!"
Tu Yao immediately smiled and said, "I want to help you!"
Tu Chaoxi quickly pulled the person over, frowning: "You're helping him? What are you helping him with?"
Tu Yao said earnestly, "I helped him find the ring and return it to Cheng Sangsang."
Everyone: ?
"Do you know where it is?"
Tu Yao shook her head: "I don't know."
He then proudly raised the dog leash: "But Wolf Fang definitely knows!"
A group of people turned to look, and there was Wolf Fang, his tongue lolling out, squatting on the ground, looking quite spirited.
Seeing that everyone was looking at it, it twitched its nose and let out a thunderous sneeze!
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