First watch, begging for pink votes.

*****

Unlike Lian Manman and Lian Yeye, who first suspected the He Family members, Lady Zhou immediately identified Lady Gu as the one who stole the money.

Whether to say Lady Zhou is sharp or that she truly hates Lady Gu to the bone is up for debate. Lian Manman thought, even if it wasn’t Lady Gu who stole the money, Lady Zhou would be more than happy to pin the blame on her.

During this period, Lian Manman didn’t want to openly oppose Lady Zhou, but the matter of money missing from the Yeye Household must be thoroughly investigated.

"Since my grandmother mentioned it, my aunt really does seem suspicious," Lian Manman said, following Lady Zhou’s lead.

"Suspicious or not, it was definitely her, no one else," Lady Zhou said to Lian Manman with satisfaction, "I’ve seen right through her. Sweet in words, but bitter in spirit. You see, her words are nicer than a song, but in secret, she’s capable of anything foul."

Nobody in the room, including Lian Shouren, Lian Jizu, and Lady Chiang, refuted Lady Zhou’s claim that Lady Gu stole the money. They didn’t even raise the slightest doubt.

Indeed, they were all wise enough to prioritize their own selves. In contrast, when the family wasn’t split, Lady Zhang always defended Lady Zhao, appearing quite "foolish."

Lian Manman nodded in agreement.

"But, my aunt isn’t here right now. As Yeye just said, it was someone from Tailor Old He’s Family who saw where her money was kept. Why don’t we call over the He Family members and ask them first?" Lian Manman suggested in a negotiating tone, "Even though we live far away, we’ve heard about the recent thefts of firewood and eggs on this street. These things never happened before. What people are saying is getting increasingly unpleasant."

"Now that the money from Yeye Household has been stolen, if we don’t promptly find out the truth, this thief might get too comfortable, and future issues will be hard to manage," Lian Manman said, looking at Old Master Lian.

Wife of He Laoliu and her children were residing here, eating and drinking at the Upper Room, and were essentially entangled with the Lian Family Main House. If they were caught stealing money, the villagers would definitely hold Old Master Lian and others accountable.

Old Master Lian clearly understood this logic. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

For farmstead families, saving money isn’t easy, and stealing someone’s money is an exceedingly severe and vile act.

"Manman is right, we should call them and ask," Old Master Lian said.

"Grandfather, this matter should ideally involve Lizheng, and be questioned in front of everyone," Lian Manman didn’t call them right away but spoke slowly to Old Master Lian, "I didn’t invite Lizheng for a reason. Grandpa, you should understand what I mean."

Old Master Lian was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.

Lian Manman’s concern was that interrogating the He Family might inadvertently involve some members of the Lian Family Old Mansion, making things awkward for them.

"Grandfather, such matters don’t happen twice or thrice; this is the last time," Lian Manman continued, implying that this was her last time covering up for the Lian Family Main House. If something similar occurred again, she would handle it impartially.

Old Master Lian sighed.

Having a flawed reputation, being restricted everywhere, and being looked down upon by others is not a pleasant experience. He also understood that Lian Manman was giving him one last chance to properly rectify the family conduct at the Lian Family Old Mansion.

After speaking to Old Master Lian, Lian Manman signaled to Lian Yeye, who went out and returned shortly, bringing with her the Wife of He Laoliu and her children, who were being watched by Xiao Xi and two long-term workers. Zhao Shi came along as well.

"Oh my, what’s happening here!" Lady He exclaimed upon seeing her family members being treated like criminals.

"What do you think is happening?" Lady Zhou glared at her and scolded fiercely, "I’m telling you, this is interrogating the thief! Why are you shouting here? This is not your place to make noise. Stay put; no one will sell you off as a mute."

Lady He immediately went silent.

"My goodness, we’re just a widow and her kids. You can’t bully us like this. Old lady, you can’t falsely accuse us of being thieves," Wife of He Laoliu protested, slapping her thigh.

"Bah!" Lady Zhou spat toward her, "Shameless enough to deny being thieves. You’ve stolen from every house along this street. If Heaven had eyes, your guts and your brat’s intestines would have rotted a hundred times over."