Lan Yi and Rui Shu had just brought A Xi to the courtyard entrance when they ran into Ba Gu, who was returning to the courtyard with Mrs. Zhou and a few card-playing friends. Mrs. Zhou felt a sense of familiarity when she saw A Xi dressed in men's clothes. Suddenly, she remembered that this was the thief who had stolen her bag, and she pointed at A Xi, shouting, "You thief! You stole my things and still dare to show your face in front of me? Someone, catch the thief!"
369, who was conducting a search under the guise of checking identification, heard someone shouting "Catch the thief!" at the courtyard entrance and rushed over immediately.
Li Yu and A Xiang were just about to go out shopping when they also heard the shouting at the courtyard entrance, and they walked over as well.
A Xi explained, "Madam, I really didn't steal your handbag. You and that police officer both saw that I had something in my mouth at the time."
Mrs. Zhou, unreasonable as always, said, "Maybe you hadn't eaten at the time and we caught you red-handed. No one was there to testify for you then! You're the one who stole it, and I'm going to take you to the police station before I can get over this anger!"
At this moment, 369 rushed in front of Mrs. Zhou and said, "Mrs. Zhou, you just said catch the thief. Where is the thief?"
Mrs. Zhou pointed at A Xi with her finger. 369 immediately pointed his police baton at A Xi and said, "You Cutter Demon, you've been hard to find! I've been looking for you for days, and finally I've caught you! Come with me to the police station." He then grabbed A Xi's arm and pulled her out.
When Lan Yi and Rui Shu saw 369 taking A Xi away, they rushed forward to stop him. Lan Yi said, "Jiu Ge, please let A Xi go, she's innocent!"
369 replied, "No wonder I couldn't find her for so long! It turns out you two were hiding this thief. You two are coming with me too!" He released A Xi's hand and grabbed Lan Yi and Rui Shu, one with each hand.
A Xi quickly said, "Police officer, please let Lan Yi and Rui Shu go! I'll take all the blame. Just take me away."
Mrs. Zhou said triumphantly, "You need to learn your lesson before you'll confess! 369, take them all away. When my husband comes back, I'll have him reward you handsomely."
Just then, Li Yu and A Xiang arrived at the courtyard entrance and saw what was happening. Li Yu said, "Hold on! Mrs. Zhou, the head of the police station, your husband's authority is quite impressive. On my turf, you're directing my people to randomly arrest innocent people. Do you not consider me at all?"
Mrs. Zhou immediately changed her attitude and said with a chuckle, "How could I not put you in my sights? It's just that this person stole my handbag, and I only asked your people to catch a thief."
Li Yu glared at 369, and he immediately released Lan Yi and Rui Shu, lowering his head and not daring to look at Li Yu.
Seeing 369's reaction, Li Yu replied, "Really? Then do you have any evidence to prove she's the thief? But I have evidence to prove she isn't."
Mrs. Zhou, as if she had heard a joke, said, "Deputy Chief Li, don't be ridiculous. What evidence could you possibly have? If you can prove it, I'll apologize to her immediately."
Just then, a police officer rushed in, came to Li Yu's side, and said, "Report, Deputy Chief, I've caught the person you asked me to find and I've interrogated him. He is the one who stole Mrs. Zhou's handbag."
Mrs. Zhou's face turned red and white upon hearing the police officer's words.
Li Yu said with a smile, "Mrs. Zhou, now I have the evidence, and it proves A Xi's innocence. Should you fulfill your promise?"
A Xi heard Li Yu's words and quickly said, "You don't have to apologize to me. I just need to prove that I'm not the thief."
Li Yu shrugged and said with a smile, "You're lucky this time. Mrs. Zhou, go to the police station and get your phone and bag back."
Mrs. Zhou turned around angrily and walked away. Seeing Mrs. Zhou leave, Ba Gu quickly followed her.
After they left, Li Yu walked over to 369, kicked his butt with his foot, and said, "369, how have I been teaching you? Is this how you operate, grabbing people without evidence? Or is this how you listen to the accuser's side of the story and arrest people without verifying the facts? How can I possibly promote you if you act like this?"
369 stood there, head bowed, listening to Li Yu's scolding. At the end, he felt a surge of happiness, but then he remembered Li Yu's earlier words and his face fell. He said, "Deputy Chief, you're right. I was reckless. I promise I won't make these mistakes again."
Li Yu nodded and waved his hand, dismissing 369.
Lan Yi, Rui Shu, and A Xi came before Li Yu. A Xi said, "Thank you, A Yu. If you hadn't proven my innocence, I might have been arrested. I'm so grateful."
Li Yu said with a smile, "It's just a small favor. You don't have to thank me."
Aang Mei borrowed tools from Fa Zi and took her broken cigarette box to the open space in the courtyard, preparing to repair it. As she was putting her things down, she saw a crowd at the courtyard entrance and walked over curiously.
When Aang Mei reached the courtyard entrance, she saw A Xi thanking Li Yu. Suddenly, she realized that A Xi, dressed in men's clothes, was the one who had knocked over her cigarette box. She walked up to A Xi, grabbed her clothes, and said, "You knocked over my cigarette box and stepped on my cigarettes. You'd better pay me for it."
A Xi also recognized Aang Mei as the girl she had knocked over when 369 was chasing her. She said apologetically, "I'm sorry. I knocked over your cigarette box and stepped on your cigarettes. Don't worry, I'll pay you back, but I have to wait until I return to the boat to get the money."
Aang Mei was about to speak when Li Yu interrupted her. He said, "Aang Mei, don't worry. You can see she's like this, she has to wait until her foot is healed before she can return to the boat to get the money for you. If she doesn't pay you back when she gets to the boat, I'll pay for her."
Aang Mei didn't say anything after hearing Li Yu's words, but Rui Shu spoke up, "How about this, Aang Mei, Lan Yi and I will fix your cigarette box first. You can go back to your business, and when A Xi is healed, she'll get the money for you."
Aang Mei sighed and said, "That's the only way."
A few days later, A Xi's foot was finally completely healed. She returned to the boat, took some money, and brought some of her own sun-dried salted fish back to the courtyard. She gave the money to Aang Mei and gave the salted fish to those who had helped her as a token of gratitude.
Li Yu looked at the salted fish A Xi had given him and immediately went to buy some pork belly to make a dish he had been craving (salted fish steamed with pork belly).