Exile with Storage Space: Family Fortunes in the Barren Lands-Chapter 709 - 0662: She is a Thief (1)

Guoguo hid her little body behind the chair, quietly watching Qiao Lan’s actions.

She was shorter than the chair’s backrest, and when she stood in the dark, it was hard for others to notice her.

The weak glow from the stove illuminated Qiao Lan’s movements.

Guoguo vaguely saw Qiao Lan throwing something into the medicine pot on the stove.

After throwing it in, Qiao Lan stirred it with chopsticks.

Then, she tossed a few pieces of charcoal into the stove.

Qiao Lan patted her sleeves, glanced back towards Second Madam Baili’s bedroom, and quietly left.

Guoguo walked to the stove, picked up a cloth to wrap around the medicine pot’s lid, and opened it to take a look.

The dregs of the medicine inside were steaming.

She put the lid down and chased after Qiao Lan.

Qiao Lan’s residence was also in Second Madam Baili’s courtyard, living in an adjacent room with another maid.

Outside, the ground and roof were covered with thick snow; there was no need to light lanterns, as the path was clearly visible.

Qiao Lan quickly ran to her room, pushed open the door, and went inside.

Guoguo chased all the way to that side room.

She pushed the door and found it was tightly shut.

Guoguo looked around, glanced at Qiao Lan’s closed door, and returned to her own room.

Everyone was asleep, and nobody noticed she’d left.

Guoguo climbed onto the kang bed and slipped back under the covers.

She couldn’t sleep, staring at the ceiling with wide-open eyes.

After a while, she turned over and gently removed the pair of small golden bracelets from Baili Xin’s wrist, hiding them in her clothes’ pocket.

Baili Xin was sleeping deeply, completely unaware.

Early the next morning, just as the sky began to lighten, Second Madam Baili’s two maids, Qiao Lan and Xiang Lan, arrived at the main room to start their duties.

Xiang Lan opened the main room door, clearing the snow blown in at the entrance, while Qiao Lan wiped the table and furniture with a cloth.

Since Second Madam Baili and Baili Huang hadn’t gotten up yet, and Guoguo with the other two children were still asleep, the two maids moved quietly, speaking softly.

Guoguo opened her eyes, glanced at the nanny sleeping soundly in the room, and quietly got off the kang bed, dressed and put on her shoes.

She gently opened the door, and while the two maids didn’t notice her, she lifted her little skirt and ran from the main room’s back door towards the side room.

When she returned, her small face was flushed from running.

Qiao Lan turned around, saw her running in the room, and jumped in surprise, "Ah!"

Guoguo took two steps back, snorting, "You scared me! Wah—"

She started crying loudly.

Qiao Lan stomped her foot in frustration, threw down the snow broom, and quickly came to coax her, "Don’t cry, don’t cry, I didn’t do it on purpose. You, how come you walk so quietly?"

Guoguo didn’t heed her coaxing and continued to cry loudly.

The other maid Xiang Lan also came over to console Guoguo, "Guoguo dear, stop crying. I’ll give you something to play with, alright?"

Early in the twelfth lunar month, making a child cry like this, could they still survive?

The meticulous old lady would surely punish them.

"What will you give me to play?" Guoguo stopped crying, blinking her tearful eyes, looking up at them.

"You can take anything you see." Xiang Lan said with a smile.

Qiao Lan glared, "Xiang Lan, what if she takes my silver?"

"Oh, come on. How much silver do you have?" Xiang Lan shot her a look, "Just appease her first."

Xiang Lan held Guoguo’s hand and led her towards their side room.

Worried Xiang Lan would let Guoguo play with her things, Qiao Lan quickly followed.

In the side room, Xiang Lan patted Guoguo’s head and pointed at the items in the room, "You can pick."

Guoguo stood in the room, looked around, and ran towards the bed. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Qiao Lan followed her, "Hey, there’s no toys on the bed."

Please don’t dirty the bed, during snowy days, she really didn’t want to wash the sheets and quilts.

Guoguo had already climbed onto the bed, without taking off her shoes, walking around on it.

Qiao Lan was so upset she wanted to yank her down to freeze her in the snow.

"Get down from there!" Qiao Lan rushed forward, hands on her hips, glaring fiercely at Guoguo.

But Guoguo just laughed and continued jumping on the bed, even grabbing a pillow to throw at Qiao Lan.

Qiao Lan tilted her head, and the heavy pillow filled with chaff struck Xiang Lan behind her.

Xiang Lan, with tears coming out, cried out in pain, "Ow—"

Qiao Lan turned back and sneered, "Ow ow what? Wasn’t this your own doing?"

"Is it my fault? If you hadn’t scared her to tears, would I have brought her here? You dare blame me!" Xiang Lan shot her a look in return.

"Hey, what’s this? It’s pretty." Guoguo’s voice suddenly chimed in.

Xiang Lan, covering her sore left eye, could only look at Guoguo with her right eye.

"This is..." She exclaimed in shock.

Qiao Lan turned back to see Guoguo bowing her head, blinking at her little feet, under her right foot, stepping on a pair of children’s small golden bracelets.

Both maids walked to the bedside together, took a closer look at the small golden bracelets, and collectively gasped.

These were Second Madam Baili’s daughter Baili Xin’s small golden bracelets!

This pair of bracelets was crafted by the most skilled goldsmith in the city found by the old lady, as Baili Xin’s birthday gift.

Each bracelet even had two small lotus flowers hanging on it.

The bracelets were also engraved with lotus flowers.

"What... what’s going on? Why are these bracelets here?" Xiang Lan asked, utterly confused.

Qiao Lan walked over to take the bracelet.

But Guoguo’s foot pressed tightly on them, unwilling to yield.

Qiao Lan angrily pushed Guoguo.

With her strength, Guoguo, only two and a half years old, fell over with just a nudge.

Guoguo fell sitting onto the quilt.

She stretched her empty hands and started crying loudly, "You stole my bracelets, my bracelets! Give them back, give them back—ah ah ah, wah wah wah, boo hoo hoo—"

Guoguo cried out sharply.

"Your bracelets? These are Miss Xin’s bracelets, you little thief!" Qiao Lan sneered, cursing.

"Mine, mine, give them back to me!" Guoguo continued crying.

Xiang Lan stomped her foot, "Qiao Lan, she’s crying again, don’t curse her."

"I will curse, this little thief, stole something herself, and actually accuses me of stealing, pfft!" Qiao Lan rolled her eyes and sneered.

While the room was in chaos, outside, the nanny who took care of Baili Xin walked over, "Making the child cry so early, what are you doing?"

Nanny Qing was the old lady’s person and held much prestige in the household.

The two maids immediately lowered their heads and greeted the nanny, "Nanny Qing."

Nanny Qing folded her sleeves, walked into the room with a stern face.

She immediately noticed the golden bracelets in Qiao Lan’s hand and sneered, "Things were indeed here! Hmph!"

Qiao Lan looked up, blinked, and realized she was still holding the pair of golden bracelets in her hand.

"Nanny, these belong to Miss Xin, they were stolen by this little thief." Qiao Lan handed the bracelets to Nanny Qing with both hands, and shot a glare at Guoguo.

"What? You say she stole them?" Nanny Qing glanced at Guoguo, both shocked and angry, "Qiao Lan! You dare falsely accuse a guest? A two and a half-year-old guest? What can a two and a half-year-old child understand?"