Chapter 18: Counterfeit Money!

Manager Huang sensed that this wealthy young lady’s outburst was purely for the sake of showing off her status and putting someone in their place. He decided he must cooperate fully to ensure his benefactor felt thoroughly satisfied.

He clicked his tongue with a mocking air, drawling, "I don't think so. With Miss Lin’s aura, even if she were slumming it in cheap rags, one could tell she is a daughter of a prominent family. You actually thought she would steal a gold locket?"

"Mr. Yu, I know your recent investments failed, leading to significant losses and cash flow problems, but I didn’t realize you were so destitute that you’d be this frantic over a lost gold locket."

Yu Hongyi’s face turned ghastly, but since Manager Huang was currently his debt collector, he dared not talk back.

Lin Qiongqiong added languidly, "And that’s not all. Mrs. Yu even thinks I’m trying to steal her husband."

Manager Huang looked from Lin Qiongqiong to Yu Hongyi and burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Miss Lin is young, beautiful, and wealthy; what kind of handsome man couldn't she have? Why would she settle for a middle-aged, married man with a child? Mrs. Yu, don't forget your humble beginnings—just because you view everyone as a potential mistress, don't assume everyone is after your husband!"

Humiliated, Mrs. Yu’s face turned the color of liver. Yu Hongyi, too, was left speechless.

Manager Huang snickered, turning to Lin Qiongqiong. "Miss Lin, you might not know, but that’s how insecure wives are—they always imagine others are eyeing their husbands."

Mrs. Yu took a deep breath. "It’s a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. It’s all Lele’s fault for babbling and insisting on calling Miss Lin 'Mommy,' which led us to misinterpret the situation." She pinched Yu Le as she spoke.

Yu Le wailed, "Bad woman! Anyone can be Lele’s mommy, but not you! Lele doesn't want you!" She sobbed, glancing at Lin Qiongqiong. Though young, she had grasped the situation. "Big Sister Lin cannot be my mommy. Dad is too old, too ugly, and too poor—he isn't good enough for Big Sister Lin."

Yu Hongyi felt as though he’d been shot in the knee. Lin Qiongqiong found the little girl a bit more likable now.

"Miss Lin, whatever compensation you need, we can provide it." Mrs. Yu signaled for Auntie Liu to bring over a stack of cash. "Here is 100,000 yuan. I know you aren't short on money, but please take this as compensation for your emotional distress."

In truth, Lin Qiongqiong was quite short on money; she didn't even have 10,000 yuan in her account. However, as she glanced at the cash in Mrs. Yu’s hands, her expression froze.

Counterfeit! It was actually counterfeit money!

***

Just then, the doorbell rang. Auntie Liu opened the door to find two police officers standing there.

"We received a report from Ms. Lin Qiongqiong. What is the nature of the dispute?" the officer asked.

Yu Hongyi hurriedly said, "A misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. We previously mistook Miss Lin for a thief, but that has been cleared up. Sorry to trouble you."

However, Lin Qiongqiong stepped forward. "It’s not a misunderstanding. Officer, they falsely accused me of stealing a gold locket and illegally searched me! Furthermore, I suspect they are intentionally using counterfeit currency and abusing a child!"

At these words, Mrs. Yu looked as if she had been struck by lightning. Her hand trembled, and the entire stack of hundred-dollar bills fell to the floor.

Yu Hongyi frowned. "What counterfeit money? Miss Lin, it was our mistake to suspect you, but you cannot slander us like this. The money in this house is all legitimately sourced! And as for child abuse, that is utter nonsense!"

Lin Qiongqiong grabbed Yu Le and pulled up her pant legs and hem. Bruises from pinches covered her legs and stomach, hidden beneath her clothes. Even the police officers were shocked.

"Who is so deranged as to treat a child this way?"

Yu Le burst into tears, pointing at Mrs. Yu. "The bad woman bullies Lele! Lele doesn't want the bad woman to be my mommy!"

Mrs. Yu never expected Lin Qiongqiong to discover the marks on Yu Le. Yu Hongyi was horrified and glared at his wife. "You vicious woman! No wonder Lele never liked you! Is this how you treated her behind my back?"

Mrs. Yu panicked, scrambling to explain. "Husband, it’s not like that! Lele must have bumped into something; it has nothing to do with me!"

Yu Hongyi slapped her across the face. "Enough! Don't take me for a fool. These marks are clearly from someone pinching her! Lele is so young—would she lie? No wonder she wanted to replace her mother!"

Stunned by the slap, Mrs. Yu dropped the rest of the cash. Lin Qiongqiong seized the opportunity to pick it up and handed it to the officer. "This is evidence of the counterfeit money." She paused, then added the 400 yuan she had earned from tutoring. "And this, too."

The officers, choosing to err on the side of caution, took the bills. "We will take these back for testing. If everything is in order, we will return the money."

***

Mrs. Yu was frantic, wanting to grab the money back but daring not to. She now loathed Yu Le and Lin Qiongqiong with a burning passion. It was those two wretches who had brought this disaster upon her.

Yu Hongyi, now deeply uneasy, said, "Then I leave it in your hands."

Lin Qiongqiong followed them to the station to give a statement before returning to school. The police quickly confirmed that the cash used by Mrs. Yu was indeed counterfeit. She was arrested, and the investigation soon uncovered the organization behind the production of the fake bills.

Later, when Lin Qiongqiong met Manager Huang to view her newly purchased villa, she learned of the family’s fate. "Mrs. Yu was arrested for distributing a massive amount of counterfeit money and was sentenced to ten years. Yu Hongyi had to pay heavy damages and even had to sell their villa."

Lin Qiongqiong merely smiled. At least with the stepmother in prison, the child wouldn't be abused anymore.

Manager Huang asked curiously, "Miss Lin, how did you know the money was fake? I’ve seen those bills, and they are almost indistinguishable from real ones—even bank machines can’t detect them. The only clue would be the serial numbers, but that’s not something an ordinary person could spot."

Lin Qiongqiong couldn't exactly say she possessed a "Counterfeit-Buster" buff, so she went along with it. "It just so happened that one of the bills Mrs. Yu gave me had the exact same serial number as a note in my personal collection of currency, which gave me the hunch."

Manager Huang exclaimed in wonder, "Then she really kicked a steel plate when she messed with you!"

Not far away, hidden by the bushes, Xu Ruyin froze as she saw Lin Qiongqiong enter the villa with Manager Huang. She immediately pulled out her phone and snapped several pictures of them.

A girl standing next to her, dressed in designer labels, laughed. "Ruyin, what are you looking at?"

Xu Ruyin stared at the villa. "Cousin, who lives in this villa?"

The girl shook her head. "I'm not sure. I heard it was sold recently. But detached villas in this area cost at least twenty million. Whoever bought it must be on par with your brother-in-law’s family status."

Xu Ruyin felt a secret jolt of shock. Her brother-in-law was the son of a major shareholder in the Chu Group—he had one foot firmly in the circle of the elite. Since becoming related to the Chu family, the Xu family’s business had flourished. Her father had urged her to spend more time with her cousin to integrate into that circle and eventually marry into a wealthy family.

As for Cheng Ziyu, she was merely playing with him to humiliate Lin Qiongqiong.