Jiang Jianhua rubbed the corner of his clothes against the door frame, not daring to look up for a long time: "Sister-in-law, I just went home and discussed it with Yuanshan. You've only just married into this family and you're already managing the accounts, you must be exhausted. How about... we separate the household?"

Yun Tangyin paused as she was putting account books into the cash register. She turned around with a smile on her face and said, "Separate the family? What are you saying, Second Sister-in-law? Mother is still alive. How can we separate the family so soon after you get married?"

"That's not what I meant." Jiang Jianhua hurriedly waved his hand, but his eyes were glancing at Fu Yucheng.

“I mean, how about we each manage our own expenses, so you don’t have to be so tired from staring at the books every day? You and Acheng are a young couple, and so am I with Yuanshan. It’s nice to live separately and have some peace and quiet.”

Fu Yucheng frowned.

He himself didn't care, but Yun Tangyin didn't want to separate from the family, so he unconditionally supported Yun Tangyin's choice.

Fu Yucheng said in a calm tone, "Second sister-in-law, you're mistaken. The Fu family has no rule about dividing the family."

Jiang Jianhua was taken aback, and her eyes reddened again: "I was just afraid of causing trouble for my sister-in-law... Look at my brain, I can never remember the accounts. If I make a mistake again, wouldn't that be causing you trouble? Now that we're separated, I can spend the money I earn myself, and I don't need to trouble my sister-in-law to keep accounts."

Yun Tangyin hung the key to the cash register back on the wall, the metallic clinking sound clear: "If you're worried about making mistakes in the accounts, take your eldest sister-in-law with you when you go shopping next time, and have her keep track for you. Besides, how can household expenses be split so precisely? If your family eats today and my family eats tomorrow, are we going to keep separate accounts?"

These words were deliberately meant to annoy Jiang Jianhua, and were also intended for Fu Yuanshan's ears, since Jiang Jianhua would definitely discuss it with Fu Yuanshan when he got back.

She walked up to Jiang Jianhua, her voice soft but firm: "If you really find managing the accounts tiring, you shouldn't have taken this job in the first place. Now that you've handed over the account books, you're saying you want to separate the family. Do you think I'm too strict, or do you find it inconvenient to hide your secret stash of money?"

Jiang Jianhua's face flushed red instantly. It was Fu Yuanshan who had asked her to say those words to test Yun Tangyin's feelings.

Seeing that Yun Tangyin really didn't want to separate from the family, Jiang Jianhua could only lower his head and say, "I didn't mean that..."

Having learned her lesson the hard way, she truly dared not confront Yun Tangyin head-on without anyone backing her up.

"That's good." Yun Tangyin interrupted her, and picked up a brown sugar steamed bun from the table and handed it over: "Sister-in-law's steamed buns are delicious. Second sister-in-law, take two back for second brother to try. Don't mention dividing the family property again, or Mom will be sad if she hears it."

Jiang Jianhua stood there, holding the steamed bun, unsure whether to go forward or backward.

Fu Yucheng had already turned around to pour hot water, clearly indicating that she was being asked to leave. She could only mumble, "Then I'll go first," and practically fled out of the courtyard.

As soon as the courtyard quieted down, Fu Yucheng turned to Yun Tangyin and asked, "Why didn't you agree with her earlier? If we really separated the family, we could support Mom together and save her from having to worry every day."

Yun Tangyin took a bite of her steamed bun and laughed out loud: "Separate the family? She's dreaming."

She pulled Fu Yucheng to sit on the sofa, tracing circles on the back of his hand with her fingertips: "You think she really wants to separate the family? She's afraid I'll investigate the old accounts. In the past few years while she's been managing the household, the holes in the ledgers aren't just these."

“I’ve looked through all the ledgers. Although the recent accounts are all balanced, I found that the money for cotton purchased three years ago was reported as 20 jin, but the actual amount recorded was only 15 jin. Where did the other 5 jin of cotton go?”

Fu Yucheng was stunned: "Is that so?"

“There’s plenty.” Yun Tangyin counted on her fingers: “The money from buying coal and cloth, if you add it all up, is enough to buy two new TVs, not to mention a radio.”

She suddenly leaned close to Fu Yucheng's ear: "If we split up now, wouldn't that just mean they'd pocket all the money they embezzled? I'm not that generous."

Fu Yucheng then realized: "You want to get all the money they embezzled back?"

"Otherwise what?" Yun Tangyin raised an eyebrow: "Mom put me in charge of the accounts, not to make me a sucker. They used the Fu family's money to subsidize their own family, bought defective products to make up the numbers, and now they want to separate and have some peace and quiet? They'll have to spit out what they've swallowed first."

Just then, Yu Xia came over again with a porcelain bowl containing freshly pickled radish strips: "Yinyin, I brought you some pickled vegetables. I just saw Jiang Jianhua storm off. Did you two have another fight?"

Yun Tangyin took the porcelain bowl and smiled: "Sister-in-law is quite well-informed."

“That’s just the kind of person she is.” Yu Xia tugged at the corners of her mouth, her eyes smiling, but also hiding a hint of calculation.

Fu Yucheng's expression darkened: "Sister-in-law, please sit down. I'll go get some water."

Yu Xia sat down after responding: "At the end of last year, Mom was hospitalized. As a military dependent, Mom was entitled to free treatment, but when Jiang Jianhua went to pay the bill, she insisted on claiming an extra five yuan subsidy. I saw her and that's how she was prevented from doing so. I didn't dare tell Mom about this, for fear of upsetting her."

Yun Tangyin poured the radish strips into a dish: "Don't worry, sister-in-law, with me here, no one will be able to touch a single penny of Mom's money."

She looked at Fu Yucheng: "Go ask about the old accounts in the warehouse tomorrow, especially the records of cotton and coal entering the warehouse. It would be best to find the person who handled them at the time."

Fu Yucheng nodded: "I'll go prepare right away."

Yu Xia's eyes lit up: "Do you need my help? I know Grandpa Zhang who manages the warehouse. He remembers things very well."

"That's perfect." Yun Tangyin smiled. "Sister-in-law, ask Uncle Zhang tomorrow if Jiang Jianhua picked up the cotton on the day it was harvested."

Yu Xia nodded repeatedly: "Leave it to me! I guarantee I'll get all the answers you need to know!"

As she spoke, she stood up. She knew that Yun Tangyin was making her first big splash as a new official, and it was bound to be a spectacular one.

Yu Xia thought that after all these years of pretending to be deaf and dumb and keeping quiet, she finally had a chance to vent her anger.

The second son and his wife have caused her a lot of grievances over the years by abusing their power as housekeepers!

After Yu Xia left, Fu Yucheng grasped Yun Tangyin's hand and said, "If it's really found out they embezzled a lot of money, Mom will be heartbroken."

“It’s better to be heartbroken than to be kept in the dark.” Yun Tangyin leaned on his shoulder. “Besides, Mom actually knows everything, but she’s too proud to make a scene. It’s easier to deal with things once the truth is out.”

She paused, then suddenly laughed: "Besides, isn't that Jiang Zhicheng coming soon? They definitely want Jiang Zhicheng to stand up for them. When the time comes, we'll just show him the accounts, and who cares who he is, let's see if he still has the nerve to speak up for us."

Fu Yucheng lowered his head and kissed the top of her head: "I'll do whatever you say. But don't overwork yourself. If it's too difficult to investigate, I'll find a few more people to help."

"Don't worry." Yun Tangyin squeezed his arm. "I'm not that stupid. With my sister-in-law keeping watch and you investigating the past, we can work together from the inside and outside. Are we afraid we won't be able to find their true colors?"

The setting sun outside the window dyed the sycamore leaves in the courtyard golden red. Yun Tangyin looked at the key to the money box on the wall and gently tapped the table with her fingertips.

So you want to split up the family after something goes wrong?

Not a single penny owed to the Fu family can be spared! They must return everything before anything else!