Exposed!

Chapter 45: Exposed!

July 7 was another dazzlingly sunny day. The clear blue sky that morning had made that obvious.

At two-thirty in the afternoon, the glaring sunlight outside seemed capable of scorching the earth. Cheng Yun sat at the front desk with the air conditioner blowing on him, refusing to leave for even a moment. Time slipped by bit by bit in this drowsy state.

Anju Hotel required guests to check out by two in the afternoon on their departure day, so especially many people checked out after noon. Heroine Yin was busy checking rooms and cleaning, replacing whatever needed replacing and replenishing whatever needed replenishing. She had long since worked up a full-body sweat. As soon as she finished, she went straight down to the front desk, fanning herself with one hand while using a sheet of toilet paper to wipe the sweat from her cheeks. After getting a cup of water and drinking it, she dropped onto the sofa and enjoyed the air conditioning.

"It's so hot, so hot! I thought it wasn't this hot in your Upper Realm!"

"...This isn't the Upper Realm."

"Oh, right. It must be pretty hot in your Upper Realm too. Otherwise, how did that person get so dark from the sun that day?"

"..."

Cheng Yun really didn't want to talk to a creature like Heroine Yin, whose combat power was off the charts but whose intelligence was severely lacking. He continued propping up his chin, watching the television series and dozing.

Before long, however, Heroine Yin came over again of her own accord.

When Cheng Yun looked up, he saw Heroine Yin staring eagerly at his computer screen.

"Station Master, what are you watching?"

"..." Cheng Yun was helpless. "My Own Swordsman."

"Martial arts? Is it about the jianghu?" Heroine Yin's eyes immediately lit up, and she hurriedly squeezed into the front desk area. "I want to watch too!"

But after watching for a little while, she found this 'martial arts world,' which contained not the slightest hint of flashing blades or clashing weapons, utterly boring. Apart from the miraculous Sunflower Acupoint-Sealing Hand, there was nothing that could interest her. Her excitement gradually turned into disinterest.

Soon, both of them were propping up their chins, their eyes half closed as they stared at the images on the computer screen.

A midsummer afternoon break was a clear stream amid the sweltering heat, leisurely to the point of near-boredom.

Before long, Heroine Yin yawned in disappointment and went upstairs to rest, muttering all the while, "Boring, boring. I might as well go upstairs and watch the news..."

Around four in the afternoon, Heroine Yin came downstairs again after sleeping and working up another sweat. This time, however, she was clutching a five-yuan bill. It was crumpled, with faint traces of dampness from sweat.

Heroine Yin lingered at the foot of the stairs for a long while, her face filled with hesitation and nervousness. Her gaze remained fixed on the refrigerated cabinet at the front desk, and only after quite some time did she grit her teeth and walk down.

With a smack, she slapped the bill onto the front desk.

"Station Master, I want one iron can of Sprite!"

Cheng Yun, who had been dozing with his eyes half closed, was startled awake by the loud noise. He froze, and even his sleepiness vanished. He hurriedly paused the television series and looked up at Heroine Yin. "What did you say?"

Heroine Yin's gaze darted about. She timidly pushed the crumpled five-yuan bill toward him while trying her best to smooth it out. "I... I want one iron can of Sprite."

"You want one iron can of Sprite?"

"Mm, can I?" Heroine Yin watched him guiltily. "The really cold kind."

"Of course! It's only a can of Sprite!" Cheng Yun yawned, stood up, and went outside to open the refrigerated cabinet. After searching around, he took hold of a can of Sprite.

Heroine Yin immediately relaxed and stared eagerly at his hand and the can of Sprite in it.

However, she discovered that Cheng Yun made no further move.

That made her heart rise into her throat again.

"Wait!" Cheng Yun turned around and stared at Heroine Yin with a puzzled frown. "Why are you so nervous?"

"I... I'm not... How could I be!" Heroine Yin was so nervous that she could barely speak coherently.

"Is it because this is your first time buying something in our world? If so, it'll be fine after you do it a few more times," Cheng Yun muttered.

"Right, right, right! That's exactly it!"

"One can of Sprite is three yuan. I still need to give you two yuan in change." As Cheng Yun spoke, he took out the can of Sprite. Just as he was about to hand it to Heroine Yin, he suddenly froze, feeling that something was wrong.

"Um, Station Master?" Heroine Yin stared eagerly at the Sprite in Cheng Yun's hand and couldn't help calling out.

"Oh, right!" Cheng Yun handed her the Sprite and patted his head. He was still rather muddled after just waking up.

"Hiss!"

Heroine Yin popped the tab and hurriedly gulped down a mouthful, feeling incomparably happy and satisfied.

Cheng Yun opened the drawer behind the counter and took out two yuan. Just as he reached out to hand it to Heroine Yin, he suddenly froze.

Heroine Yin had initially reached out to accept the money, but when she saw him pause like that, she instantly pulled her hand back and stared at him blankly.

Cheng Yun looked at the money in his hand and finally realized what was wrong—

"Where did you get the money?"

"Ah... huh?" Heroine Yin parted her lips slightly.

"I remember you shouldn't have any money." Cheng Yun's expression grew solemn. After pausing, he said, "You didn't go and do something illegal, did you?"

"I... I borrowed this from that young girl. I told her I'd pay her back once I received my wages!" Even though Heroine Yin had practiced these words many times upstairs, she couldn't help feeling nervous. Her voice trembled.

"Really?" Cheng Yun looked at her expression, unable to hide his suspicion.

"Yes, yes." Heroine Yin hurriedly nodded.

"I'll ask Yu Dian!" Cheng Yun's words turned Heroine Yin's face deathly pale. Her heart seemed to stop beating.

With a serious and earnest attitude, Cheng Yun returned to the front desk, sat before the computer, and typed away. He sent Yu Dian a QQ message. The young girl replied almost instantly, sending several messages in a row. Her typing speed was practically flying—

"No!"

"Is there a problem?"

"Oh, right. Sister Yin Dan bought a can of a drink from me in the middle of the night last night too. I think it was Sprite."

"She bought several cans the night before as well."

"I told her bottled drinks and the larger bottles were better value, but she refused!"

Cheng Yun was stunned. Only then did he look at Heroine Yin, who resembled a frightened kitten. He was speechless and beckoned. "Come in and look for yourself!"

Heroine Yin walked stiffly into the front desk area as though she were about to enter an execution ground. Swallowing nervously, she poked her head toward the computer screen and spent quite a while finding what she was supposed to look at.

In an instant, her face was filled with the expression, I'm doomed, I'm doomed!

Cheng Yun cleared his throat and calmly looked at this heroine. "Tell me, where did your money come from?"

Heroine Yin was submissive and timid, unable to say anything.

"Tell me the truth!" Cheng Yun's expression suddenly turned stern. "Did you take advantage of the dark night to rob passersby?"

At those words, Heroine Yin looked as though she had eaten a fly. She turned her head away and said in a tone that made it clear she felt insulted, "I, Yin Dan, would never do anything so underhanded!"

"Then where did you get the money?" Cheng Yun narrowed his eyes slightly.

"I..."

Before Heroine Yin could say anything, Cheng Yun suddenly thought of something. His face lit up with realization. "Oh! I remember now! Was it that day? At the police station? From that black man?"

"Mm!" Heroine Yin nodded honestly.

"You should've said so sooner! You made me waste all that breath!" Cheng Yun let out a sigh of relief. "That black man was unforgivable anyway. Taking his money is still better than robbing passersby!"

"Exactly, exactly." Heroine Yin also relaxed. She snatched the two yuan from Cheng Yun's hand like lightning and had just turned around to go upstairs and continue watching the news when Cheng Yun said—

"Hand over the several thousand yuan too!"

"Huh?" Heroine Yin was dumbfounded.

"What do you mean, 'huh'? That's stolen money. Of course you have to turn it over to the authorities! You weren't planning to keep it for yourself, were you?" Cheng Yun said. "We're a socialist country governed by the rule of law. How can we take ill-gotten gains?"

"Sp... split half with you!"

"What do you mean, split half? Am I that kind of person?"

"Fine! But, but there weren't several thousand yuan at all! That black man was talking nonsense!"

"Is that so?" Cheng Yun frowned. He seemed to recall Heroine Yin muttering something that day.

"How much was there?" he asked.

"There was..." Heroine Yin hesitated, then held up one finger. "Ten yuan."

"Really? Feel around and show me." Cheng Yun tilted his head slightly and gave her a sidelong look.

"Oh."

Heroine Yin reached into her trouser pocket and rummaged around, blinking repeatedly. After quite a while, she finally pulled out a bill.

A twenty-yuan bill.

The atmosphere immediately became awkward.

The two of them silently stared at each other.

Her eyes seemed to say, Station Master, I didn't feel around very well this time. Can I try again? Cheng Yun, however, merely stared coldly at her and firmly refused!

After a long silence, Heroine Yin grew increasingly guilty.

Only then did Cheng Yun finally hold out his hand. "Hand it over!"

Heroine Yin weakly placed the money in his hand, her face full of pain and reluctance. She looked exactly like a tenant handing over rent in the old society.

"How much more is there?"

"Th... thirty." Heroine Yin hesitantly held up three fingers. "There are thirty left in total."

Cheng Yun tucked the twenty-yuan bill into his own pocket, then held out his hand again, his gaze inspecting the pockets of Heroine Yin's shorts.

Heroine Yin immediately understood. She reached into her other pocket and rummaged around for a while. That pocket was a little tight, and it took considerable effort for her to pull her hand out.

As a result, she accidentally pulled out quite a few bills along with the several tens of yuan clenched in her hand. They scattered across the floor.

Cheng Yun looked down. There were five-yuan bills, ten-yuan bills, twenty-yuan bills, and even a fifty-yuan bill.

"..."

"..."

The two of them fell silent.

Heroine Yin was quicker to react. She hurriedly crouched down, picked up all the money from the floor, placed it on the front desk in one bundle, and said, "Here you go, Station Master. It's all yours."

The corner of Cheng Yun's mouth twitched. He glanced at the money on the desk, then pointed at Heroine Yin's trouser pocket. "I think I saw something red sticking out from there."

Heroine Yin looked down. She immediately panicked, shoved her hand into her pocket, and shook her head. "No, no. That's my... my underwear."

"You have red underwear?" Cheng Yun froze.

"I do." Heroine Yin nodded seriously.

"Where did you get it?"

"I bought it."

"Weren't all your clothes bought when I took you shopping?"

"You bought it too."

"I bought you red underwear?" Cheng Yun's mouth twitched. "Nonsense. You're just making things up!"

"I do." Heroine Yin continued nodding seriously.

"You're still making things up!" Cheng Yun finally couldn't stand it anymore. He emphasized each word as he said, "Taking stolen money is a crime! Hand it over honestly!"

"..."

Heroine Yin gritted her teeth tightly and handed over the hundred-yuan bill. Then she pulled another hundred yuan from a different pocket, another hundred from her back pocket, and there were even two hundred yuan hidden in her shoes...

Finally, she brought Cheng Yun back to her room and pulled another hundred yuan out from beneath the bedsheet.

The total came to over seven hundred yuan.

Cheng Yun collected all the money. At the same time, he was fairly satisfied with Heroine Yin's serious and honest attitude.