Thanks to Xiong Ziyao’s comments, the atmosphere completely chilled.

Everyone looked visibly displeased, but out of respect for Zhou Yaoyun no one said anything.

After a moment of silence, Zhou Yaoyun turned to Xiao Mu and said. “Let it go. We’re all friends here. I’ll cover the cost of the phone in a few days.”

Xiao Mu stammered, “There’s really no need…”

Xiong Ziyao sneered and said, “Yaoyun, think about it carefully. That phone costs over six thousand. It could even be a police matter. Besides, stealing from a friend over a phone? Who knows what they’ll steal tomorrow?”

Hearing this, the girl who Xiong Ziyao had been staring at couldn’t hold back her anger. “Xiong Ziyao, what are you trying to say? Are you accusing me of stealing Xiao Mu’s phone?”

Xiong Ziyao responded. “Liu Rui, I don’t know if you took the phone or not, but I did see you rummaging through her bag when she went to the bathroom.”

Liu Rui’s face flushed with anger. “What nonsense! Xiao Mu asked me to grab a pad from her bag before she went to the restroom. Watch what you say or you’ll bite your tongue off!”

Maybe because she was so upset, Liu Rui mentioned the word “pad” in front of all the guys present, leaving them visibly uncomfortable.

Xiong Ziyao turned to Xiao Mu. “Xiao Mu, did you ask Liu Rui to bring you a pad?”

Xiao Mu looked stunned. After a brief pause, she stammered quietly. “M-my period ended last week.” Meaning, she would have had no reason to ask Liu Rui for a pad.

Liu Rui was furious, snapped. “Xiao Mu, what on earth are you saying? What do you mean by that?”

Xiao Mu stayed silent, shrinking behind Xiong Ziyao as she began to cry quietly. Xiong Ziyao, who had a fiery temper, snapped. “Liu Rui, I’ve put up with you long enough. It was one thing to steal in the dorm, but you’re stealing out in public too? Did your mom raise you to be a thief?”

Liu Rui trembled with anger, pointing at Xiong Ziyao as she started yelling back. The scene quickly devolved into chaos.

Meanwhile, Zhou Yaoyun seemed utterly unconcerned with the argument. Sitting beside Ji Chenai, he leaned his head on Ji Chenai’s shoulder, sighing quietly. “Bro, I feel so down.”

Thinking about how it was Zhou Yaoyun’s birthday and how this mess would ruin his mood, Ji Chenai tried to comfort him. “Don’t feel bad. Tonight, I’ll make you longevity noodles.”

This cheered Zhou Yaoyun up a bit, and he looked back at the noisy living room.

After the outburst between Xiong Ziyao and Liu Rui, things escalated to the point where Liu Rui was about to open her bag for inspection. Furious, Liu Rui grabbed her bag and went to unzip it.

But at that moment, Ji Chenai suddenly stopped her. Unlike Zhou Yaoyun, Ji Chenai had been quietly observing the entire situation, and with some information from Xiao Qi, he had noticed something else.

Xiong Ziyao turned to him. “Brother Zhou, what’s going on?”

Ji Chenai said, “Hmm… I just think it’s not right to search a classmate’s bag so rashly. I think I may have figured out where the phone is, so, if I may, could I explain?”

Xiong Ziyao and Liu Rui both agreed immediately, though the owner of the phone, Xiao Mu, looked a bit uncertain.

Ji Chenai pretended not to notice Xiao Mu’s change in expression and said. “This will take a little of everyone’s time, but could you all go over what happened again?” With that, he activated the “End of the Liar” skill in the system.

Xiao Qi had explained this skill to him briefly: for a short period, no one would be able to lie. Xiao Qi had also hinted to Ji Chenai that among the three girls—Liu Rui, Xiong Ziyao, and Xiao Mu—the one emitting the strongest negative energy was actually Xiao Mu, who had lost her phone.

Following Ji Chenai’s prompt, Xiong Ziyao spoke first. “Xiao Mu went to the restroom, and when she got back, her phone was missing. She came to me privately, asking if anyone had touched her bag during the time she was gone. I saw Liu Rui going through it. To be honest, things go missing in our dorm all the time. Just last month, someone took the moisturizer I’d just bought, along with my metro card.”

Ji Chenai, sensing that Xiong Ziyao was telling the truth, nodded and turned to Liu Rui whose face was bright red with anger.

Meeting Ji Chenai’s gaze, Liu Rui said loudly. “Xiao Mu asked me to find a, well, certain item in her bag before she went to the restroom. I found it and brought it to her, and then I went to the restroom myself. I never touched her phone! And if Xiong Ziyao’s talking about stolen things, I’ve had stuff go missing too! I just bought a new pair of shoes, wore them once or twice, and they disappeared. Hmph, if it weren’t for liking Zhou Yaoyun, I wouldn’t have come to this birthday party with you two!”

At that, the room erupted with laughter. The guys cheered and teased while the girls giggled kindly. Liu Rui’s face flushed even redder. She opened her mouth to say something but, embarrassed, lowered her head, unable to look at Zhou Yaoyun who was standing beside Ji Chenai.

Even Ji Chenai couldn’t hold back a small smile, though Zhou Yaoyun’s own laughter was a bit forced; his mood clearly wasn’t great.

^_^