What they talked about until now, Ding Yun would have probably gone back after resolving her inner doubts.
However, their conversation quickly turned to Ding Yun herself.
They talked about Ding Yun also claiming her money was lost.
The excuse was too fake, not even convincing for a child, and so on.
Facing this situation, Ding Yun naturally refused to accept it, so she quickly emerged from the corner, displeased:
"Hey, hey, don't just talk nonsense.
I'm not lying to you. In all these years, when have you ever caught me in a lie? If I say it was stolen, it was stolen. Why would I lie to you about this?"
Ding Yun's sudden appearance and rebuttal made the gossiping onlookers quite awkward. Anyone would feel embarrassed after talking about someone and then running into them.
However, one socially adept person, unfazed by the awkwardness, immediately said:
"Oh, come on. Do you think we haven't seen how people react when their family loses money? Last year, Li Dama Zi's family lost three hundred yuan. He wailed and screamed so loudly. His wife cursed the thief at their doorstep for three days and nights, and even now, she brings it up from time to time, saying their family is unlucky and the thief deserves to be cut into a thousand pieces.
Your reaction is so calm, nothing like someone who lost money.
That's over ten thousand yuan.
If I lost over ten thousand yuan, I'd probably want to die and might have already hung myself from the nearest branch."
With the first person speaking, the rest felt less awkward and chimed in with their complaints.
"Who's not saying that?
If you ask me, among those who lost money today, only Song Bao's family's reaction was truly genuine. They're still making a fuss at home, arguing, yelling, and cursing. Honestly, it doesn't seem fake at all, like they were truly robbed!"
"Yeah, Ming Yue, among these people claiming their money was stolen, you're the least convincing."
Just as they finished speaking, they saw a piece of paper Ding Yun handed over. It was the police station's case filing receipt.
Although the people present weren't highly educated, they weren't all illiterate. Most had at least attended literacy classes, so they could recognize the words on it.
At the same time, someone began to read it aloud.
Then, everyone realized that Ding Yun might actually be telling the truth. After all, even if she were lying, she wouldn't go to such lengths to fabricate evidence. No one would really pursue it further.
"Oh, it's true!"
"This definitely can't be fake. Fabricating evidence is a crime, Ming Yue, you're too careless."
"How could so much money be stolen!"
"If it were me, I'd rather lose my life than lose money. It's too careless!"
"If I lost such a large sum of money, I'd probably be beaten to death by my family that very night. But Ming Yue, you don't have to worry, you don't have anyone at home."
"Oh, what are you saying..."
"Unbelievable! If Ming Yue's money was really lost, then among the other families who claim their money was lost, could some of them be genuine? Is the public security on the streets already this bad? Truly, people's hearts are not what they used to be!"
"The public security hasn't been good in recent years. Since those educated youths returned to the city, there are noticeably more idle young people wandering the streets. Plus, many people are laid off. Sigh, life is definitely not as good as before!"
"Hey, do you think someone knew they were going to the factory to collect money today and was deliberately waiting for them? Was this an organized and planned theft?"
"That's quite possible, that's too terrifying!"
"No, we have to notify others!"
"Right, right..."
After expressing their surprise that Ding Yun was telling the truth, the aunties and grandmothers quickly diverged their thoughts to other directions, discussed for a bit, and then rapidly dispersed.
Some were preparing to tell others about this matter.
Others were planning to hurry home.
To deposit the cash they had saved at home into the bank. They felt very uneasy keeping it at home, fearing it might be stolen.
After everyone left, Ding Yun returned to her room.
She then thought for a moment and decided not to touch the 15,000 yuan that the original owner had deposited in the bank for her daughter. Even though the money had depreciated significantly over the years, money that could have bought a large house now might not even buy half of one.
But that was meant for her daughter.
If it were to be used, it should be for the child.
She absolutely couldn't use it for opening blind boxes.
So, Ding Yun could only search through the remaining small change and odds and ends at home, totaling forty-eight yuan and two jiao.
She then bought the cheapest blind box available.
The Beginner Food Blind Box.
After the purchase was successful, the blind box did not immediately appear before Ding Yun. Instead, it remained stored in the blind box machine. However, the extraction page on the side now showed a Beginner Food Blind Box, marked as available for retrieval.
Since there was no one else at home, Ding Yun naturally chose to extract it.
Subsequently, a fully black blind box, even with a black ribbon tied in a bow, appeared beside Ding Yun. This blind box looked very small, only palm-sized, and felt light when lifted, as if it were an empty box.
At this moment, Ding Yun could only pray internally that the blind box had some folded space inside as she reached out to pull the black ribbon and open the Beginner Food Blind Box.
Then, the blind box, like a space capsule, burst open with a bang.
Simultaneously, a small amount of white mist appeared.
Fortunately, the mist was not suffocating. Ding Yun waved her hand a few times, dispersing the mist, revealing the contents of the blind box: a grain of rice, a grain of rice the size of an adult, crystal clear and with its husk removed.
At the same time, an instruction appeared in Ding Yun's mind.
[One grain of Giant Country Rice, can satisfy hunger!]
Seeing this, Ding Yun had to take several deep breaths to calm down. After weighing the grain of rice, she became quite troubled:
"This blind box is really hard to describe. It's not a loss, though. One grain of rice weighs over a hundred jin. For five yuan, you can't buy a hundred jin of rice on the market now. But how am I supposed to eat it!
If I cook it directly, let alone whether I have a pot big enough, I can't eat it all. If I grind it, I don't have anything at home to grind it with. This isn't a golden finger!
This is just causing me trouble...
And it calls itself a Happy Blind Box Machine.
If all it gives me are things like this, how can I be happy! "
Although she grumbled, she couldn't just leave this item in the living room. If someone saw it later, how would she explain it? After trying and finally discovering that this grain of rice could not be stored in the blind box machine's storage space, Ding Yun could only use all her might to drag the grain of rice to her bedside.
Then she went to the kitchen and took out the cleaver.
She planned to break down the rice first.
It was too large to hide easily, it wouldn't even fit under the bed. But if she chopped it up, it might be easier to hide, and even more convenient to cook.
However, three to five minutes later, Ding Yun became even more frustrated.
Because her cleaver chipped.
And the grain of rice only showed a slight white mark.
So faint that you wouldn't notice it if you didn't look closely.