"Ow, Encore, you little handful, where did you run off to?" Aalto wailed.
"Ling An, what are you doing here too?" Chixia immediately spotted Ling An trapped firmly in Encore's arms.
"And Verina too."
Ling An gave the two of them a pleading look.
How was this little girl so strong?
"So everyone knows each other! In that case, Officer, perhaps you could..." Aalto rubbed his palms together and chuckled.
"Hold on!" Chixia looked at Encore and asked gently, "Little girl, is your name Encore? Do you know this guy?"
Encore nodded. "Yep! Encore knows him!"
"See, Officer?" Aalto spread his hands helplessly.
"Aalto runs a business without a license, likes making money as a middleman, eavesdrops on trade secrets, and loves teasing children... but Uncle Aalto isn't a bad person."
Encore's words left everyone frozen for quite some time.
"Uh... well, children don't know any better. She's just joking," Aalto explained weakly.
"If that doesn't make someone a bad person, what does?" Chixia asked, dumbfounded.
Encore pressed a finger to her cheek in thought, looked around, and delivered a string of verdicts:
"Uncle Aalto is a good person!"
"You're a good person too, red-haired big sister!"
"The big sister in the green dress is a good person too!"
"Big Sister Rover is a good person too!"
She looked down at Ling An in her arms. "Kitty is a good person too!"
"Hiss-"
Everyone couldn't help pressing a hand to their forehead. So everyone was a good person, then.
Only Ling An shakily stretched out a paw and tapped the Gourd. "Save me! Save me!"
But Tide Sis merely gave him a smiling glance, showing no intention of pulling him out of Encore's arms.
Her eyes said just two words.
Serves you right.
*That's what you get for burrowing into