Chapter 35: Who Gave You the Right to Call Her Tang Xiaojin?

The man in the raincoat cursed angrily, “Qin Yun, you little brat, you’re acting guilty as a thief. Why did you run when you saw me? I almost thought I mistook you for someone else.”
The speaker was a relative of the Qin family, a businessman from near Qinhuai Street.
Seeing him, Qin Yun immediately jumped up, wanting to retort, but Qin Hongfei pulled him back, giving him a warning glance to keep quiet!
This uncle was obviously not someone with a forgiving temperament.
If you dared to tell him you mistook him for a ghost, he’d surely hold a grudge.
“My uncle, my brother was just worried about me since I left early, so he turned back to look for me,” Qin Hongfei explained. “But what are you doing here so late at night in the rain, instead of going home?” she asked, puzzled.
“Oh, you cracked me up and I almost forgot my business—quick, something happened at your shop,” the uncle exclaimed urgently. “There were two thieves who somehow showed up in your store, trying to steal from Old Zhang’s shop next door, but they were caught…”
Thieves?! Two of them?
Qin Hongfei’s first thought was Tang Jinnan and Shou, those two.
She rushed toward the shop, rain pouring down, only to find a crowd gathered outside.
Old Zhang had assembled a group of people, loudly confronting someone—upon closer look, it was Shou!

“In the dead of night you’re running on my shop’s roof and claiming you’re not here to steal—who’d believe that?” Old Zhang’s excited voice boomed.
“Steal? Steal that pile of junk in your store?” Shou’s tone was insolent, successfully provoking the crowd into anger, as if a fight might break out.
Qin Hongfei couldn’t care less about the rain and squeezed to the front of the crowd. “Uncle Zhang, you’ve misunderstood. They’re not thieves,” she said quickly.
Uncle Zhang and his group frowned when they saw Qin Hongfei. “What, you know them?”
She couldn’t admit she’d picked them up off the street, so she nodded calmly. “Yes, I know them. They’re distant relatives I brought back. They wouldn’t steal. There must be some misunderstanding. Where’s Tang Xiaojin?” she asked Shou.
Shou bristled at her manner of address—was Tang Xiaojin just anyone for her to call by name?
But facing Qin Hongfei’s eyes, and seeing her standing protectively before him, he moved his lips and said, “On the roof.”
Qin Fei asked in confusion, “What’s he doing on the roof?”
Shou was even more baffled than they were. “I don’t know…”
Qin Hongfei was equally puzzled. Was there some treasure hidden on the roof?
She looked up, but saw no sign of Tang Jinnan.

Uncle Zhang’s voice rang out, “Even if they are distant relatives, what are they doing on my shop’s roof at this hour? Isn’t it obvious they’re eyeing my goods? Hongfei, even if you brought them here, who knows what kind of people you’re mixing with? Can you vouch for their character? If something goes missing from my shop, what will you say then?”
Shou glared at the man, deeply displeased.
Stealing?
Who did he think he was insulting?
But he disdained to explain himself.
Qin Hongfei considered for a moment, rain soaking her long hair which clung to her face. Honestly, she hadn’t known these two for long and couldn’t claim to fully understand their character. Yet… she recalled Tang Jinnan’s clear, honest eyes, and replied quietly, “He hasn’t come down yet, so I don’t know the details…”
Uncle Zhang pressed, “Don’t give me useless excuses. What if he did steal?”
“If you vouch for him, and he steals…”
“We’re neighbors, seeing each other every day. Here’s how it’ll be: if you guarantee him, and he turns out to be a thief, you’ll sell your shop to me—how about that?”