It was the first time Chu Han had seen Meng Yuxin in such a state.
"Sister, what's wrong?" Chu Han asked, concern evident in his voice.
Meng Yuxin remained silent for a long time before finally responding, "Xiao Han, I... I accidentally took the wrong set of badges and mistook them for the ones my cousin ordered."
"What do you mean?" Chu Han asked, surprised.
"I'm really sorry, Xiaohan. I had no idea it would turn out like this. My cousin also bought a box of badges, and it wasn't until later that I realised I had made a mistake. But when I saw how happy you were and how much you liked that set, I didn't know how to explain it to you..." Meng Yuxin admitted, feeling guilty.
"Is this box of badges Chu Ci's?" Chu Han looked surprised.
"Yes... I'm sorry, I just realised I made a mistake..."
"No, why did Chu Ci..."
Chu Han felt a bit confused, as many memories flashed through his mind. Chu Ci had also mentioned that the set of badges belonged to her and that it was Meng Yuxin who took them. So, was what Chu Ci said true? Did he blame her unfairly?
As he looked at Meng Yuxin in front of him, doubt began to creep in for the first time. When he had told her that Yi Xuecheng's badge was stolen, Meng Yuxin hadn't mentioned anything about a mix-up with the package. She remained silent until he brought it up.
"Why... didn't you say anything earlier?"
"I'm sorry, Xiaohan. I just realised that I picked up the wrong package and accidentally switched it with Chuci's. I don't know how to explain this to you now that I've found out..."
Chu Han looked at Meng Yuxin, torn between believing her and doubting her words. Intellectually, he felt her explanation was somewhat implausible, but emotionally, he didn't want to question the sister he had grown up with.
After a long moment of contemplation, the feelings he had accumulated over the years began to outweigh his reason.
"Alright, so the badge actually belongs to Chu Ci. But..." Chu Han's confusion resurfaced. "Yi Xuecheng said the badge was stolen, so then... what about Chu Ci?"
The guilt he had just felt for wrongly accusing Chu Ci was quickly overshadowed by new concerns.
Meng Yuxin bit her lip and remained silent. Chu Han's unease continued to grow.
"I'm sorry, Xiaohan. I just realised that I picked up the wrong package and accidentally switched it with Chuci's. I'm not sure how to explain this now that I've found out..."
Chu Han looked at Meng Yuxin, torn between believing her and doubting her words. Intellectually, he found her explanation somewhat implausible, but emotionally, he didn't want to question the sister he had grown up with.
After a long moment of contemplation, the feelings he had accumulated over the years began to outweigh his reasoning.
The guilt he felt for wrongly accusing Chu Ci was quickly overshadowed by new concerns.
Meng Yuxin bit her lip and remained silent.
Chu Han's unease continued to grow. They had previously told him that children who grew up in slums were much more likely to commit petty theft as they got older. Was it possible that Chu Ci had picked up such a bad habit?
"I'm sorry, Xiaohan. I should have realised sooner that I received the wrong package," Meng Yuxin apologised.
"I'm going to find Chu Ci," Chu Han said as he hurried out.
Chu Han and Chu Ci had only met at an event, and afterwards, he saw her get into an unfamiliar car and leave. At that moment, Chu Han was preoccupied with finding Meng Yuxin to clarify some matters, so he didn't pay attention to where Chu Ci went.
Meng Yuxin watched Chu Han hurry away, lost in thought. After asking the driver to take him to school, Chu Han realised that Chu Ci had not returned. Besides school, he had no idea where she might have gone, so he decided to go home and wait.
It wasn't until nine o'clock in the evening that Chu Ci finally came back. As soon as she entered the room, she noticed Chu Han and Meng Yuxin sitting on the sofa in the living room. Without hesitation, Chu Han asked her, "Chu Ci, did you steal Yi Xuecheng's badge?"
Chu Ci narrowed his eyes and glanced at Chu Han before looking over at Meng Yuxin, who was sitting on the sofa next to them.
He asked, "If I stole it, why did it end up in your hands?"
Chu Han interjected, "Sister Yuxin said she picked up the wrong package. She bought a set of badges that are exactly the same as yours, but she accidentally took the wrong set. The one you received was supposed to be hers."
As siblings who grew up together, Chu Han's trust in Meng Yuxin was much stronger than Chu Ci's.
"Stealing," Chu Ci repeated.
"I'm sorry; I should have looked more carefully at that time," Meng Yuxin apologised.
Chu Ci glanced at Meng Yuxin with indifference. "Do you think a simple apology will suffice? Before this became a criminal case, those things were yours, and now they are mine. Meng Yuxin, you're quite good at this."
Meng Yuxin, who was mercilessly mocked by Chu Ci, turned as pale as a ghost.
As Chu Ci turned to leave, Chu Han quickly stopped her. "Sister Yuxin did make a mistake by picking up the wrong package, but how did you end up with these badges? You need to explain yourself clearly. If you were scammed, that's one thing. But if that's not the case... then you should come with me to the police station and turn yourself in."
"Why don't you take Meng Yuxin with you to surrender?" Chu Ci asked.
"This is different. Sister Yuxin didn't do it on purpose, but on your side, Yi Xuecheng has already made a public statement and even filed a police report."
Although Meng Yuxin took something that didn't belong to her, it actually belonged to Chu Ci. As long as Chu Ci doesn't report the incident, Meng Yuxin wouldn't be guilty of theft.