NOVPUB
Chapter 129: Chapter 129: The Truth Revealed
Everyone was surprised that someone would stoop to stealing Tong Yao’s clothes while she was showering. Indeed, it was a despicable act. If it was Qian Niannian’s doing, the water dumping was well deserved.
However, considering the righteous indignation of Qian Niannian, it seemed like she was innocent. Tong Yao had offended many people, there was a chance that Qian Niannian was falsely accused. Although everyone thought this, no one dared to speak up for Qian Niannian. Everyone had come to understand Tong Yao’s temper. If she could douse someone with water, she would surely steal clothes too.
They didn’t want to find their clothes missing after coming out of the shower.
"What evidence do you have to prove that it was Qian Niannian who discarded your clothes?" Yu Shiya didn’t expect that someone would do such a thing. However, since the incident had escalated to her, she couldn’t just take Tong Yao’s word for it. Evidence was needed in such matters.
"Of course, there is." Tong Yao answered confidently as if she had some solid evidence.
"Show us your evidence!" Qian Niannian was slightly panicked. She clearly remembered there was no one around. What kind of evidence could Tong Yao have?
Tong Yao must be bluffing. As long as she insisted she didn’t toss the clothes, no one could do anything to her.
Yu Shiya nodded, "Right, since you claim to have evidence, then present it! Everyone is here to witness."
Tong Yao spoke calmly and in a well-organized manner, "The clothes were touched by whoever tossed them, so there should be fingerprints. Before coming here, I had already bagged the clothes and will take them to the police station for fingerprint identification tomorrow morning."
"Isn’t it a bit much to involve the police over such a small issue?" Yu Shiya thought Tong Yao was making a mountain out of a molehill and frowned, "Since you have not provided substantial evidence to prove it was Qian Niannian who threw your clothes and are only suspecting her, it was too much of you to douse her with water."
In their quarters, which hosted many people, disputes were inevitable. However, it was only Tong Yao who had set the precedent of physical retaliation, throwing water at people. If not stopped, everyone would resort to violence over minor issues, leading to chaos.
This was not a remote village; it was a residential area for doctors’ families.
"Now someone is ruling this residential complex with an iron fist, disregarding everyone. Throwing water is just the beginning; next time she might resort to using a knife," Chen Yanmei, who enjoyed excitement, deliberately incited, her eyes provocatively focused on Tong Yao.
"It’s not a suspicion; I saw her throw the clothes with my own eyes. I just couldn’t stop her at the time. Why else would I throw water on her and not someone else?" Tong Yao lied effortlessly, as if she had truly seen Qian Niannian discarding her clothes.
Upon hearing this, everyone thought Tong Yao appeared genuine and they were confused whether it was actually Qian Niannian who had thrown away the clothes or not.
There seemed to be no past conflict between Tong Yao and Qian Niannian. If it wasn’t Qian Niannian who had discarded the clothes, there was no need to frame her. On the contrary, Qian Niannian seemed to have had a thing for Dr. Si before and there may be some basis for her to do such a thing.
"Qian Niannian, did you do it or not?" Yu Shiya’s eyes narrowed, her tone slightly impatient, "If you did it, admit it and apologize to Tong Yao."
Seeing the doubtful eyes of everyone on her, Qian Niannian blurted out in a panic, "I didn’t! It’s Tong Yao who is falsely accusing me. With so many people she has offended, we can’t be sure who actually discarded the clothes. We never had any issues, why would I throw her clothes in the trash on a whim? Maybe she is orchestrating this whole thing herself."
Hearing Qian Niannian’s confession, a bit of amusement flashed across Tong Yao’s eyes, she sneered sarcastically, "You still refuse to admit that you discarded my clothes, I never mentioned that they ended up in the trash. If you didn’t throw them there, how do you know?"
Everyone: ...
Exactly!
Tong Yao hadn’t said that her clothes had been in the trash.
How did Qian Niannian know?
The truth was unspoken but obvious.
They hadn’t expected that the innocent girl was capable of such a mean act, taking advantage of someone’s vulnerability and discarding her clothes. This time it was Tong Yao’s, next time it could be someone else’s if they accidentally offend her.
"I...I was guessing. You mentioned that your clothes were missing; where else could they be if not in the trash?" Realizing her slip-ups, Qian Niannian tried to argue, but no one was naive enough to believe her. Everyone saw her defense as feeble and baseless.
"The clothes are still in the trash bin downstairs. I just mentioned taking them to the police to trick you into confessing. Did it work?" Tong Yao coldly glanced at Qian Niannian, then turned to Yu Shiya, "Dr. Yu, now it is confirmed that it’s Qian Niannian who threw them away. I’ll leave the resolution of this matter to you!"
Since Yu Shiya wanted to mediate and pass judgment, Tong Yao would let her handle it. She was eager to see how Yu Shiya would handle the situation.
"..."
Yu Shiya’s face turned red, feeling as if she had been slapped in public. Her cheeks were burning with embarrassment.
Anyone with discerning eyes could see that earlier Yu Shiya, while seemingly impartial, was actually siding with Qian Niannian. However, the victim turned out to be Tong Yao.
The conflict between Tong Yao and Qian Niannian was also a competition between Tong Yao and Yu Shiya.
Originally, Yu Shiya, the referee, was standing in the spotlight, and Tong Yao was typecast as a ferocious and unreasonable shrew. The gap between them was clear at first sight. In just a short time, Tong Yao had torn down Yu Shiya’s saintly image. Now, if Yu Shiya didn’t appease Tong Yao, she would truly be unreasonable.
Yu Shiya, keeping her anger in check, scowled at the culprit Qian Niannian, "Qian Niannian, you should apologize now."
The truth had been laid bare, and trying to deny it was futile amidst the crowd’s scrutiny. Qian Niannian’s pride was trampled upon. Overwhelmed with shame, she wished she could hide somewhere. However, her mortification was now the least of her concerns.
Intentionally throwing a resident doctor’s clothes into the trash, could either be a huge issue or a minor one. If Tong Yao decided to bring this up with the dean, Qian Niannian might lose her job. 𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝒎
Swallowing hard, Qian Niannian’s earlier bravado was gone, and tears began to drop like rain, "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have thrown your clothes in the trash. I don’t know what came over me that I acted impulsively and discarded your clothes."
After calming down, Yu Shiya said to Tong Yao in a neutral tone, "Qian Niannian has apologized, and you’ve doused her with water. We all have to work tomorrow, let’s just put this issue to rest."
