Chapter 86 - 086: Who Stole the Jade Pendant
Bai Ruozhu felt a sudden anxiety and the baby in her belly began to roll as if asking: where did the Jade Pendant her father left for him go?
She didn’t know if it was due to the baby’s impact or because of pre-birth anxiety, but her entire body was on edge. She could even hear her own heart beating faster. She didn’t really care about the Jade Pendant. The only thing that mattered to her was that it seemed to be worth some silver. So why was she so upset about it?
However, at this very moment, the baby started causing even more trouble.
Bai Ruozhu took a few deep breaths in order to calm herself down.
Had the Jade Pendant been stolen? Or was this all just a misunderstanding? She struggled to get off the bed. She remembered that she’d asked her mother to keep her marriage certificate safe. Perhaps, she’d given the Jade Pendant to her mother to keep as well and just didn’t remember doing so because her memory got worse in the late stage of pregnancy. She pondered with the hope that she just simply misremembered.
She went directly to the main room. Bai Yihong and Lin Ping’er had already woken up. Seeing that his daughter looked odd, Bai Yihong quickly asked, "Ruozhu, what’s wrong? Didn’t sleep well?"
Lin Ping’er was just bringing in the porridge. She looked at her daughter, thinking that she hadn’t slept well due to her worries about childbirth.
"Mom, did I give you Chang Sheng’s Jade Pendant to keep safe?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
"No, you’ve always kept it with you. Did you lose the Jade Pendant?" Lin Ping’er also began to feel anxious looking at her daughter’s expression.
Now, Bai Ruozhu was almost certain that someone snuck into her room. She remembered feeling that her quilt was different before going to bed last night. She should’ve been alert, but she was too heavy and slow due to her pregnancy.
"I felt something off with my quilt when I returned to the room last night. I always fold my comforter neatly, but I was too tired to think too much about it. When I woke up this morning, the Jade Pendant was gone," Bai Ruozhu explained.
Bai Yihong and Lin Ping’er couldn’t sit still any longer. The three of them went to Ruozhu’s room to search, and in the end, they confirmed that the Jade Pendant was indeed missing.
"Father, who visited our house yesterday?" Bai Ruozhu asked in a serious tone. From her memory, Mountain Village was very safe. There were very few thefts, so it was usually safe even if the doors were left unlocked at night. So, why was her Jade Pendant stolen?
Bai Yihong recalled, "Just those who helped us build the new house. They’re all people we know well; they surely wouldn’t have done it."
Bai Ruozhu also thought it was unlikely. She knew all of those uncles. They weren’t the type to steal things. If it were them, they would’ve done it a long time ago.
"No one else?" Bai Ruozhu asked unwillingly.
The door of the yard rang out at this moment. It was Bai Zehao, who had chopped pig grass early in the morning. As Ruozhu could no longer carry out tasks, Lin Ping’er had to take care of her, and Bai Zepei was studying, so a large amount of their household tasks had fallen on Bai Zehao. Because of his work and the building of the house, he seemed to have lost some weight. But he never complained and never said he was tired.
Seeing the serious faces of his parents and sister, Bai Zehao asked confusedly, "What happened?"
"Brother, did anyone other than the uncles who helped us build the house come over yesterday?" Bai Ruozhu asked before answering.
Bai Zehao, not knowing what was going on, answered, "The fourth boy came over for lunch, why?"
Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but widen her eyes. Could it be Xiaosi? She felt an unbearable disappointment in her heart. If it were really true, she would have to shield her child from even small things in the future.
Seeing that Bai Ruozhu was lost in thought, Lin Ping’er quickly explained to Bai Zehao about the misplaced quilt and the missing Jade Pendant.
Bai Zehao expressed surprise, but he was very certain saying, "It definitely wasn’t the fourth boy. He left right after eating, and I saw him leave the yard."
Hearing these words, Bai Ruozhu let out a sigh of relief. It was a huge relief, really. Even though she still didn’t know who had stolen the Jade Pendant, if it wasn’t Xiaosi, she wouldn’t feel the sense of deceit and betrayal.
"Then who could it be?" Lin Ping’er was also getting anxious. "The Jade Pendant can’t be lost."
Suddenly Bai Zehao slapped his head and exclaimed, "I remember now, the third boy came over yesterday. Before I could ask him what he was doing, he said he was here to call Xiaosi and then ran away. Now that I think of it, it was definitely the behaviour of a guilty thief!"
The third boy is Bai Yibo’s eldest son, Bai Zehong, who is fifteen years old. He doesn’t study as well as the first and second boys. Probably because the Wang Family had two daughters before finally having this son, he was spoiled at home. Now, he always liked to play around and didn’t care much about his responsibilities.
"What? That really happened?" Lin Ping’er couldn’t sit still anymore. "I’m going to the old mansion to ask them. I must get the Jade Pendant back!"
Thinking of the third boy’s face, Bai Ruozhu couldn’t directly confirm that it was him who had done it, but she still had to go and ask.
"Mom, don’t be impulsive. Let’s go together and ask first," Bai Ruozhu said.
Bai Yihong nodded, "I’ll go too. Boss, watch the house. The people coming to build the house will be here soon."
Probably because their voices were too loud, Bai Zepei, who was in the inner room, heard the noise and rushed out, his face showing signs of fatigue, "I’ll accompany you."
During this period, not only the eldest in their family had lost weight, the second child had virtually stopped eating and sleeping, and he had visibly lost a lot of weight too. Only Bai Ruozhu seemed to have gained weight...
Bai Ruozhu didn’t want to disturb her second brother’s studying, so she said, "Second brother, you stay at home and study, or rest a bit. If we really need something, we’ll ask for your help."
Bai Zepei thought for a moment and didn’t insist. He said, "If they don’t return the thing, just say we’ll report it to the government."
Bai Ruozhu, upon gaining this insight, realized that people of this time have a significant fear of the government.
Once they stepped out the door, Bai Ruozhu walked quite anxiously. Lin Ping’er hurriedly supported her and quietly comforted, "Ruozhu, don’t get agitated; you should calm down."
Bai Ruozhu took a few more deep breaths. She was indeed quite angry. Can’t the people of the main room stop being disgusting? Calling us ’family’, but stealing within! Don’t they realize the significance of the Jade Pendant to her and her child? Bloody ’family’!
"Father, Mother, when we get there, don’t question the third boy immediately. This will prevent my uncle from claiming that we’re bullying the younger generation. I’m a peer of his; I’ll ask," Bai Ruozhu suggested after some thought.
Bai Yihong and Lin Ping’er were aware that their daughter was full of resources, so they both nodded in agreement.
Soon, they reached the old mansion. Because they arrived early in the morning, the old mansion was just eating breakfast. The breakfast in the agricultural family is usually porridge or lumps of soup, which is genuinely not worth much. Still, as soon as the old lady saw the three, her face sagged.
"Why are you here so early? You didn’t even say anything in advance, I haven’t made more food."
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If you pardon me for rambling a bit more, the subscription on the first day is very important to the author and it also determines whether the book can achieve better results. Hence, Mouka kindly begs for subscription, and everyone has always been encouraging so here’s another request~