The Shen family tried to find out more. They couldn't get any in-depth information, but they learned the basic facts.

Chief of Staff Duan's eldest son is in prison.

Mayor Shen hesitated for a long time before finally calling Chief of Staff Duan.

He wanted to test whether he could resolve the rift between the two families.

Chief of Staff Duan never admitted that there was any rift between their families. He even apologized on behalf of his wife because she was upset about the family incident.

However, the politeness and distance in his tone were palpable.

Mayor Shen would certainly care about Duan Lijiang's situation.

Chief of Staff Duan spoke as if to an old friend, recounting how his son had defected for money. The murdered boss was named Chang Xiaohu, Wei Aiguo's sworn brother.

Mayor Shen still couldn't figure out what exactly happened.

But this indeed involved Shen Changchuan's son, Wei Aiguo.

If Chief of Staff Duan had simply lost his temper with you, things might not have been a big deal. But since he kept saying nothing was wrong while acting distant, it's hard to believe there wasn't something fishy going on.

But Shen Hongxiang refused to admit it no matter what.

Mayor Shen looked at his ridiculous younger sister and thought, "You can't just deny things because you don't want to."

Their elderly father was already in such a state that their family had no choice but to leave for the time being.

A few days later, the old father passed away.

Mr. Shen used to live in a government-arranged nursing home for retired cadres, a place not open to ordinary people. After Mr. Shen passed away, his wife was no longer eligible to live there.

The Shen brothers discussed it and decided to let their elderly mother stay at Mayor Shen's house for a year or two. If she didn't like it, she could move to one of her sons' houses.

It takes four or five years for his four sons to go through a cycle.

None of the four sons objected to their mother taking care of him in his old age.

But now Shen Hongxiang has nowhere to live. After her divorce, her workplace immediately allocated her an apartment.

Now that she's been fired, she's no longer eligible to live there. She'll temporarily move in with her father.

Grandma Shen still dotes on this daughter the most. Her requirement is that wherever she lives, her daughter should follow, and she wants her daughter to take care of her.

Mayor Shen said at the time that it is only natural for a son to support his mother in her old age, and he had never heard of a brother supporting his sister for the rest of his life.

I can support you, but I can't support my younger sister.

Grandma Shen cried and made a scene, but it was no use at all.

In a fit of anger, Old Mrs. Shen took her daughter to her second son's house. Her son was at work at the time, but her daughter-in-law came back from her workplace. She politely led her mother-in-law into the house, but when her sister-in-law tried to enter, she pushed her out the door.

The person just needs to be delivered; she doesn't need to come in.

How could Old Mrs. Shen agree to that? So she went to all her sons' homes. The results were pretty much the same.

But the most ruthless one was Shen Lao Si's wife.

When the old lady was about to leave, she kept all of the old lady's belongings.

She carefully searched through the old woman's belongings. There was quite a bit of money inside.

One reason was that Mr. Shen's salary was high, and another was that he received subsidies after his death.

Shen Lao Si's wife hated Shen Hongxiang the most. What happened back then had already implicated her husband once.

Now it's uncertain whether her husband can even stay in the army. If the three families unite, will her husband have any chance of survival?

His husband is in the military, so it's easiest for them to deal with him.

Shen Dongqi was also in the military. One reason was that his rank was not high, so people were less likely to suppress him. Another reason was that he was still young, so he had time to lie low.

Ultimately, it was Shen Laosi who was most affected.

Shen Laosi's wife received the money, but she didn't keep it for herself.

Instead, he discussed with the eldest son of the Shen family whether to divide the money or to save it for the old lady so that he could supervise her spending it later.

If this money is given to the old lady, it will eventually end up being spent on Shen Hongxiang.

If we go back a few years, the Shen brothers would have been more magnanimous; they would have let their mother give the money to their sister if she wanted to.

But now the men in the Shen family disagree, because they know their wives would definitely not agree.

In the end, it was decided that everyone would control the money and let the old lady spend it.

The brothers couldn't really let their old lady live on the streets. So they rented a house for her and hired a caregiver.

The living expenses were in the hands of the caregiver, and the meals were rationed, enough for only two people. One portion was for Grandma Shen, and the other was for the caregiver herself.

If Grandma Shen doesn't want to eat, the nanny won't interfere, but she absolutely won't give her share to Shen Hongxiang.

The old lady initially shared some of her food with her daughter. But she couldn't hold on for more than three days; she was starving.

Grandma Shen called her sons together, hoping to reason with them and persuade them not to be so heartless towards their sister.

The four brothers began by recounting what happened back then.

They asked their mother who was right and who was wrong about what happened back then, and who was holding onto the matter.

Old Mrs. Shen acted unreasonably because she had someone to rely on. Now that she no longer has that support, she doesn't dare to be so arrogant anymore.

She didn't say anything, which meant she was wrong.

Then the four brothers talked about what Shen Hongxiang was doing. She still hasn't said what she's done.

But her four brothers knew who she had offended. Moreover, the Shen family had recently learned that Song Yan had an elder named Zeng behind him—a man of equal status to his father.

I wonder if they'll be able to forgive Shen Hongxiang now that she's lost her job. But none of the four brothers want to have anything to do with their sister, who doesn't know any better.

Old Mrs. Shen is a selfish person who always puts herself first. She used to be domineering, but now she has no right to be.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!