Chapter 7: Someone is Stealing!

The woman took the initiative to confess. Although she was not well-versed in criminal law, she knew they had only caused a disturbance without causing any serious harm. If they could obtain the store owner's forgiveness, they might receive a more lenient sentence. However, if they were to follow the police’s assessment, they would be looking at jail time. She knew which path was the lesser of two evils.

She spoke in a conciliatory tone, "We know we were wrong. We are willing to compensate Boss Sang for her losses and cooperate in clearing her name. We hope Boss Sang can forgive our recent behavior."

Sang Ye sensed something inexplicably strange about their behavior, but since she couldn't put her finger on it, she decided to follow her intuition: resolve the matter as it stood. After glancing at Pei Jun, she told the police, "I will leave it to the officers."

The officers conferred briefly before announcing, "Given that while you caused a disturbance, you did not cause any financial loss, your malicious fabrication of false information to smear another's reputation warrants a ten-day detention and a fine of 500 yuan. Furthermore, as your actions have damaged Boss Sang’s reputation, you are required to pay her 2,000 yuan in compensation and cooperate with a public clarification."

The couple's expressions changed upon hearing the news of a ten-day detention. However, the woman remembered what had been promised earlier; she took a deep breath, tugged at her boyfriend, and said, "We agree."

Although her boyfriend didn't understand why she had agreed, the words were already out, and he had no choice but to follow suit. He knew that if he caused a scene in front of the police now, the situation would only worsen.

Sang Ye nodded, "I agree as well."

The couple then turned to the crowd outside and made a formal clarification and apology. "There is nothing wrong with Boss Sang’s pet food. Everything we did was to try and get something for nothing. We sincerely apologize to Boss Sang. We are sorry! We hope Boss Sang can forgive our behavior, and we hope everyone will take this as a warning not to harbor malicious intent. Boss Sang’s products are perfectly fine; our intent was solely to sabotage her business. Everyone can buy with confidence."

"I knew those two were bad news! I’ve bought from this clinic so many times, and there’s never been an issue."

"Exactly!"

The couple was then taken away by the police. After offering a few words of comfort to Sang Ye, the onlookers gradually dispersed. The shop suddenly grew quiet, leaving only Pei Jun and Sang Ye.

Sang Ye turned to Pei Jun apologetically, "I'm sorry for taking up your time, and thank you for blocking them for me earlier."

She added, "She is fine now. If you’re worried, you can add my WeChat. If any issues arise, feel free to message me or bring her directly to me."

After vomiting, Yunduo had been fed some probiotics and water by Pei Jun and had since recovered. Seeing Pei Jun, the cat nudged him with its head. Just as Pei Jun reached out to pick her up, he saw Yunduo—who was usually proud and aloof toward everyone but him—run to Sang Ye’s feet, rubbing against her legs and meowing coquettishly.

Pei Jun’s expressionless face creased into a frown.

What Sang Ye heard, however, was, "Big sister smells so good, big sister is so nice, I like big sister so much~" and "I’ll have my human servant feed you dried fish~"

She looked down in surprise at the beautiful Ragdoll. Sang Ye had always been popular with animals and had fed many, but this was the first time one had offered to "keep" her with dried fish.

Sang Ye reached out, took a piece of dried fish from the side, and bent down to offer it. "Thank you for liking me."

Yunduo happily took the treat, purring with delight. Although Pei Jun couldn't understand what Yunduo was saying, he could clearly see that the cat liked Sang Ye. This was the first time Yunduo had shown such affection to a complete stranger. It had taken quite some time for Yunduo to act this way even with him.

The contrast made him purse his lips tightly and call out, "Yunduo."

But Yunduo was too focused on the dried fish to do more than twitch her ears and meow softly at her owner. Sensing the atmosphere shift, Sang Ye handed the rest of the dried fish to Pei Jun, saying, "Her name is Yunduo? It suits her quite well."

Some people dislike others feeding their pets, and realizing she might have overstepped, Sang Ye explained, "This dried fish is something I made myself; it’s harmless to cats."

Seeing that Yunduo seemed to enjoy it, Pei Jun pursed his lips and accepted it, waiting until the cat finished. When it came time to pay, he paid double the price, intending it to cover the cost of the dried fish.

When Sang Ye saw the amount, she said, "You overpaid..."

Before she could finish, Pei Jun interrupted, "For the dried fish," and walked away with Yunduo in his arms.

Sang Ye stood there, stunned for a moment, before realizing he meant the piece she had fed the cat. A single piece of dried fish worth nearly two hundred? If word got out, her clinic would be labeled a rip-off joint!

By the time she snapped out of it, he was already too far away to chase. She returned to the clinic, tidied up, and prepared to close for the day. Just then, she heard the little white cat clawing at the side of its cage, saying, "Human, someone was stealing things earlier!"

Sang Ye didn't mind that it used her name. She walked over to the cage, scooped the kitten out, and placed it on the counter, meeting its eyes. "Are you saying someone stole something while the chaos was happening? Did you see who it was? What did they take?"

The kitten wagged its tail, its furry face looking strangely serious as it nodded. "I saw. It was an ugly woman. She snuck over, opened your cabinet, and took something."

The kitten used its paws to gesture vividly. Following its directions, Sang Ye opened the drawer with a serious expression. She checked the contents and found that all her valuables were intact, except for one key.

That key belonged to a box her grandfather had left her before he passed away. It was a memento she had always cherished. Who would go to the trouble of stealing a seemingly useless key?

Sang Ye quickly pulled up the surveillance footage on her computer. A familiar figure appeared on screen: it was Xie Yirou, her cousin.

But what could Xie Yirou possibly want with the key to her grandfather’s box?