Everyone was stunned, it was the first time they had seen Mu Dashan lose his temper and get physical like this.

In the past, everyone knew Mu Dashan as someone who always spoke kindly and did good deeds. Even if one of his brothers made a mistake, he would just endure it and let it pass.

But this time, Mu Dazhong had harmed his own daughter. He had even said things that could take his daughter’s life.

Mu Dashan was both angry and anxious, yet his grip did not lessen.

When his palm got tired, he switched to using his fist.

He punched Mu Dazhong directly on the nose, causing Mu Dazhong to scream out in pain, and blood immediately gushed from his nose.

Mrs. Lin went crazy, screaming and shouting uncontrollably, finally alerting the people at the Old Mu Family’s side.

But it wasn’t Mu Dade and his classmates because they were all relaxing and having fun in the Old Mu Family’s wing room and couldn’t care to notice what was happening here.

The ones who rushed over were Mr. Mu, Old Mrs. Mu, and a few people from the fourth branch.

Mr. Mu walked at the front, noticing Mu Dazhong with blood streaming from his nose, and then looking at his always honest and diligent son, who had reddish eyes and was sitting heavily on his second son.

Mr. Mu panicked immediately.

"What’s going on here? Someone explain this to me clearly!"

Mu Shuangshuang thought for a moment and stepped forward to explain, "Grandpa, the origin of this matter is that my second uncle stole the villagers’ rice, including ours.

Yesterday, in the afternoon, Shuangshuang went to work and noticed someone had tampered with our rice bundles. Although it was done stealthily, traces could still be seen.

Shuangshuang knew that a thief had visited. Originally, we planned to catch this thief at night, but no one showed up.

This noon, Fengzi and I staked out again, and caught my second uncle and second aunt stealing rice from the fields, visiting almost every field in the village..."

After hearing this, Mr. Mu was so surprised his mouth twisted.

What he feared most his whole life was that someone in his family would go astray and do something sneaky or underhanded.

Although the Old Mu Family wasn’t wealthy, they would never do something so disgraceful.

"Second, you’re confused, aren’t you? You even dared to steal things from the villagers. Are you not afraid of losing your life?" Mr. Mu scolded.

Mu Dazhong naturally shook his head, "Dad, I didn’t do it. It’s the nasty girl from the third branch framing me. She wants me to be scolded and looked down upon. Dad, you’re my real dad; you can’t believe what an outsider says."

"You just shut up!" Mr. Mu shouted.

He understood what kind of character his son had, lazy and idle by nature.

He had been wondering why he had suddenly become so diligent, always going out to work after lunch and staying in the fields until very late, and it turned out it was all for stealing rice.

Old Mrs. Mu was more direct. She rushed up to Mrs. Lin and gave her two slaps on the face.

"You slut, did you corrupt my son? You little wench, since marrying you, my good son has gone bad. I should divorce you."

While she slapped, her hands fiercely pinched the flesh on Mrs. Lin’s body, causing Mrs. Lin to scream and wail in agony.

"Mother, it wasn’t me, it wasn’t me..."

Screams almost like a pig being slaughtered echoed throughout the Old Mu Family. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Mu Shuangshuang watched from the side without any intention of intervening. The Old Mu Family needed to be straightened out.

All they ever did was steal or sneak around.

But the root of the problem lay with the elders.

Old Mrs. Mu often took things from the third branch without asking, taking as much as she wanted as long as she could get her hands on it.

In the end, if there were lessons to be taught, Old Mrs. Mu should be taught alongside them.

After a thunderous round of beatings, both Mu Dazhong and Mrs. Lin had snot and tears streaming down their faces.

But this matter was not over yet. Mr. Mu walked up to Mu Shuangshuang, and his face bore an apologetic expression.

Mr. Mu was already quite advanced in years, but now he had to discuss matters with a young girl, feeling embarrassed but having no other choice.

"Shuang, can grandpa ask you to do something?" Mr. Mu said.

"What is it?" Mu Shuangshuang asked.

"Can you keep your second uncle’s matter a secret and not tell anyone else? I, as the head of the Old Mu Family, wish to handle this myself."

In his heart, Mr. Mu was scared. If the news of the second son’s theft spread, the eldest son’s reputation would also suffer greatly.

And his prospects for government office would be even less likely.

In a significant matter like this, Mr. Mu considered the big house of the Old Mu Family.

"Shuangshuang, grandpa won’t let you keep this secret without compensation. I’ll give the third branch fifty pounds of hulled rice and buy your family a hen, how does that sound?"

Fifty pounds of rice would cost more than four hundred coins in town, plus an old hen would cost dozens more. Mr. Mu was indeed bleeding out here.

But Mu Shuangshuang was not particularly happy.

Mr. Mu’s solution was nothing more than giving a beating and then allowing Mu Dazhong to continue his misdeeds.

The real problem still lingered.

"Grandpa, I can stay out of this matter, but I want to say something: sometimes indulging doesn’t equal protection! A small hole can sink a great ship, and if some issues are not properly addressed, eventually it will lead to big problems."

Mu Shuangshuang said this not to help the Old Mu Family, but out of fear that the third branch might be implicated.

In the Da Ning Dynasty, some crimes carried collective punishment, and whether they were part of a separated family or not, anyone with the same family name could not escape punishment once trouble arose.

Mr. Mu fell into deep thought but ultimately the desire to protect Mu Dade’s official position took precedence over his inner thoughts.

He believed that as long as he kept a close watch on his sons, nothing would happen to the Old Mu Family.

But when disaster eventually struck and the Old Mu Family found themselves in dire straits, Mr. Mu finally realized with regret that Shuang had warned him long ago.

Mr. Mu led Mu Dazhong and Mrs. Lin back to the Old Mu Family, entrusting Mu Shuangshuang with the task of dealing with the stolen rice from the abandoned house.

The rice belonged to the villagers, so naturally, Mu Shuangshuang intended to return it to them. Unable to determine whose rice was stolen, she could only wait for nightfall to deliver it to the village chief for a resolution.

After Mr. Mu left, the third branch’s courtyard quieted down again, but Mu Dashan and Yu Si Niang’s emotions had not yet settled.

Especially Mu Dashan. He sighed repeatedly, unable to understand how his second brother could resort to theft.

There’s a saying that stealing a needle is as bad as stealing rice, let alone something as significant as stealing rice.

"Shuang, Shuang’s mother, and Fengzi, let’s distance ourselves from the other branches in the future. Some things, once entangled, are difficult to extricate from.

Even if we return the stolen things, the damage to integrity remains. Our third branch can be poor and not earn much money, but we cannot resort to immoral actions."

Mu Shuangshuang nodded in agreement with Mu Dashan’s words.

What makes us human is knowing restraint and understanding that immoral actions are unacceptable.

To earn money, we rely on our own hands, working with shovels and hoes.

If we seek fame and fortune, then we must study tirelessly and earn our achievements.

Ultimately, anything acquired through improper means will return to its rightful owner; it’s only a matter of time.