<h4>Chapter 622: Chapter 622: She’s Here to Stir Trouble</h4><h4></h4>


    Mrs. Pei struggled vigorously but couldn’t free her wrist.


    The strength of this Young Madam Huo’s grip was astonishing, locking her wristbone so tightly that she couldn’t move an inch.


    "Are you trying to suppress me with your power?"


    Pei Chun’s mother shouted loudly, "Everyone,e and see! Furong Beauty Salon is bullying people! Not only did they steal my expensive ne, but they’re also stopping me from calling the police! Everyone,e judge for yourselves!"


    Her voice was particrly loud, attracting the attention of many other female clients, who stopped what they were doing and gathered in the lobby to watch the spectacle.


    Some women with a strong sense of justice even began to speak up for Mrs. Pei.


    "Miss Qiao, Mrs. Pei must be anxious because she lost something. If it’s valuable, you should help her look for it first. If you can’t find it, then let her call the police."


    "Calling the police is a customer’s right, isn’t it?"


    "Miss Qiao stopping her like this—doesn’t it seem suspicious? A newly opened beauty salon might have some workers with sticky fingers. Jewelry worth hundreds of thousands is more than a few years’ sry for them. It’s not surprising if temptation struck."


    Faced with their chatter, Qiao Xi remained calm.


    It was perfectly normal that customers would speak from the perspective of other customers; after all, they sharedmon interests.


    She slowly released Mrs. Pei’s wrist, which showed no signs of bruises or even nail marks, leaving Mrs. Pei with no excuse to escte things further.


    Mrs. Pei rubbed her wrist and let out a coldugh.


    Qiao Xi scanned the lobby’s crowd, then raised her voice to address Mrs. Pei, "When your property or personal safety is threatened, it is indeed your right to call the police. That’s something I could never stop.


    But we should avoid wasting police resources before we’ve figured out the whole situation. The police force is quite stretched thin these days. How about letting our salon staff help you look for your ne first? Will that work?"


    Her suggestion was reasonable and fair.


    Mrs. Pei inwardly scoffed at how cunning Qiao Xi was. With just one remark about "avoiding wasting police resources," she’d boxed her into a moral trap. If she refused, she’d appear suspicious.


    She nced at the crowd and snickered.


    "Fine then, make sure you search thoroughly! If you can’t find it, I..."


    Qiao Xi interrupted, "If we can’t find the ne, our salon willpensate you double its value and formally apologize."


    Mrs. Pei smirked mockingly upon hearing this. "Compensation? Do you think I care about that kind of money? If it can’t be found, I’ll insist on involving the police. If the ne can’t be found, it means there’s a thief in your salon! And if there’s a thief, they must be caught! Otherwise, who would dare to visit your salon anymore? Isn’t that right?"


    "Exactly. Who knows what other low morals might be lurking here?"


    "If Mrs. Pei’s ne can’t be found today, I’ll cancel my membership card. Even if your Jade Skin Ointment is great at removing scars, the salon across at Yingyue Pavilion has simr products. Miss Lu manages her salon so well; nothing like this has ever urred there!"


    "It’s better to trust locals. Outsiders—they’ll do anything."


    Mrs. Pei was delighted by how she’d stirred up the crowd against them. She announced smugly, "Go ahead, search! You’ve got half an hour to retrieve my ne. If I don’t see it in half an hour, I’ll call the police."


    Qiao Xi pressed her lips tightly together. She knew that if they couldn’t locate the ne and clear the salon’s name today, their opening ceremony was doomed to fail.


    She instructed Old Chen and the salon’s staff to search carefully for traces of the ne in every ce Mrs. Pei might have been, from the lobby to the private rooms.


    "Old Chen."


    Qiao Xi called him softly and led him to the side, speaking quietly, "I need you to check the surveince footage of Mrs. Pei entering. She’s wearing a low-cut gown today. If she really had the ne on when she walked in, the cameras should have captured it."


    Old Chen looked at her and said, "Young Madam, do you suspect that Mrs. Pei is deliberately causing trouble?"


    "Hmm, it seems like she’s trying hard to stir things up. Besides, she’s Pei Chun’s mother—I can’t help but suspect her intentions. A normal person would let us help them look for the ne, but she immediately uses our salon of harboring a thief and insists on calling the police."


    It was highly suspicious.


    Qiao Xi kept her guard up.


    From the second-floor corridor, she gazed over at Yingyue Pavilion across the way. Competition in the industry was normal enough.


    Shady rivalry in business, however, was something she hadn’t encountered before.


    But she had long since learned to be wary of malicious human nature.


    "Old Chen, also bring in the beautician who served Mrs. Pei. Tell her not to act rashly, and if you discover any evidence, keep things as they are." Qiao Xi’s mind raced as she whispered a few strategic instructions to him.


    "Understood, Young Madam. I’ll handle everything as you directed."


    "Go ahead! If someone really wants to use this opening day to sabotage Furong Salon, we won’t stand for it. Mrs. Pei isn’t even the rightful matriarch of the Pei Family; there’s no need to hold back. I trust that no genuine Imperial Capital matron would stoop to such means."


    "Got it. I’ll tread carefully."


    Following Qiao Xi’s orders, Old Chen departed to check the surveince footage, which confirmed that Mrs. Pei had indeed been wearing the diamond ne when she entered.


    Meanwhile, Mrs. Pei remained on the second-floor hallway, speaking loudly to passing socialites, trying to make a bigger scene out of the earlier incident.


    Leaning against the railing with disdain, she sneered, "You’d better hurry and find it. Otherwise, Furong Beauty Salon can kiss its future prospects in the Imperial Capital goodbye."


    A beauty salon’s survival hinges on its reputation.


    Once a reputation is ruined, it’s all over.


    The first day of opening was crucial; failing to establish trust today would make it even harder to recoverter. Rumor had it that thest Furong Salon had botched its opening day so badly that it led to dissatisfaction among wealthydies and debutantes.


    Word spread quickly,pounded bypetitors’ underhanded tactics.


    Not long after, the salon had to shut its doors for good.


    Qiao Xi maintained her polite demeanor, even instructing the manager to bring Mrs. Pei a chair, along with some floral tea and light snacks.


    "High heels can be ufortable. Why don’t you take a seat? If you don’t feel like heading inside, the hallway here works perfectly fine too," Qiao Xi said patiently.


    Mrs. Pei scrutinized her. She hadn’t expected this famous Young Madam Huo, who was the talk of the city, to have such a soft temperament. A mere scare turned her so amodating. Mrs. Pei’s arrogant gaze swept over Qiao Xi as she grew even more aggressive. "I heard you’re offering free pulse diagnoses as part of your opening?"


    "That’s correct," Qiao Xi replied.


    Mrs. Pei slowly extended her hand and ced it before Qiao Xi. "Then check my pulse. You’re supposedly the first-ce winner of some needleworkpetition—shouldn’t you be better than Miss Lu at Yingyue Pavilion? Yet you don’t look like you’ve got three heads and six arms."


    Herughter carried a faint sense of ridicule, and her words were openly disdainful.


    That inherent condescension ran in her bloodline; it was no surprise Pei Chun resembled her so much.


    Just as Mrs. Pei uttered the veiled insults, Huo Sijiao, who had overheard everything, rushed in and couldn’t help but burst with anger, "What kind of attitude is that?! You—"


    "Jiaojiao!"


    Qiao Xi quickly stopped her niece-inw.


    Mrs. Pei chuckled softly, her voice dripping with mockery. "Getting worked up, are we? Everyone, look—this is the attitude they offer to clients! If you don’t enjoy being out here serving people, you could always stay home as pampered Young Madams. Why bother stepping into the service industry? Trying to y virtuous, aren’t we?"


    "Apologies, Mrs. Pei, Jiaojiao didn’t mean it. There’s clearly been some misunderstanding." Qiao Xi gently tugged Huo Sijiao’s sleeve and said, "Jiaojiao, please go get me the Pulse Pillow. I’ll check Mrs. Pei’s pulse so she doesn’t have to wait idly."


    On the surface, Qiao Xi appeared exquisite and warmly amodating, saying soft, agreeable words that gave the impression she was being browbeaten by Mrs. Pei.


    But deep down, she had a n.


    Just a little more time...