Niu was anxious. Her mother had said that the money was for Shu'er's education, and now what was she going to do?

Madam Lü was even more heartbroken. That money was something she had exchanged for her daughter, and now it was all gone. What would happen to her Yuan'er if she couldn't afford to go to school?

Just then, Old Man Shen rushed back from outside. Upon hearing that the money was missing, he was so anxious that he almost fainted.

The group went inside and began searching.

They searched high and low, but couldn't find any money.

Niu said, "Fourth brother, why didn't your wife come out? Could she be hiding something?"

Shenhe was immediately displeased when he heard his sister-in-law say that; she was treating Zhizhi like a thief who stole money.

“Sister-in-law, what are you saying? Zhizhi doesn’t like to go out usually, what could she possibly be hiding?”

However, when Niu said this, everyone else began to doubt Sun Zhizhi.

Even Yu Yuan, the only child in the family, had run away. Only Sun Zhizhi and her two children remained hidden in the house. It's easy to guess who stole the money.

Chen ordered Shen He, "I think she took it. Go and call her out."

"Mother, Zhizhi has never been to this room."

"You're not even listening to your mother anymore, are you?"

Although Chen loved Shenhe, ever since Sun Zhizhi returned, Shenhe had been protecting Sun Zhizhi in every way, which almost wore down Chen's temperament.

Besides, her son used to be very capable and even married a girl from the city, which made her very proud.

But now, Chenhe is practically crippled. He can't do any work, let alone earn money. He also needs someone to take care of him.

"If your mother tells you to shout, then shout."

Shen He wanted to say something more, but Old Man Shen's words immediately shut him up.

Helpless, he had no choice but to call Sun Zhizhi and the two children out.

Sun Zhizhi: "Mom, it really wasn't me. I've never been to your room before."

Chen was furious: "You still dare to argue? If you didn't take it, who else could have? Before you came back, everything was fine at home. Ever since you came back, the money has been missing. You still dare to say you didn't take it?"

Shen Tao'er is eight years old this year, and Shen Yufeng is four years old. The two children are used to living in the city, and they are not used to living in the countryside. When Chen Shi shouted, the two of them were immediately frightened and cried.

Sun Zhizhi felt sorry for her child and quickly squatted down to comfort him.

"Tao'er, Feng'er, don't be afraid, don't be afraid."

This made Chen even angrier. These two children weren't close to her at all; they were nothing like the children of the Shen family.

"Cry, cry, all you do is cry. If you keep crying, I'll throw you up in the mountains to be eaten by wolves."

Sun Zhizhi's two children were her bottom line. Upon hearing Chen's words, she immediately protected her two children like a mother hen spreading her wings.

Sun Zhizhi looked at Shen He, wondering what her husband meant. Did he also suspect that she had taken her mother-in-law's money?

Shen He said, "Zhizhi, Mother is right, you are indeed a suspect."

Sun Zhizhi was utterly disappointed in her husband because he didn't protect her.

“Mother, I told you, I didn’t take your money. If you still don’t believe me, then report it to the authorities.”

She grabbed her two children and tried to leave.

However, the road was blocked by the Niu and Lü families.

They wanted to search Sun Zhizhi's body.

Sun Zhizhi did not resist and let them search her.

"Should we search the house as well?"

Madam Niu said, "Fourth sister-in-law, just tell the truth, where did you hide the money?"

Sun Zhizhi sneered, "Sister-in-law, as I said, we can report it to the authorities and let the officials investigate who took Mother's money. Besides, I'm not the only suspect in this family; everyone in this family is a suspect."

She paused and said, "Also, I remember Shen Yushu just returned to the town academy yesterday, right? Isn't he also a suspect? Shouldn't you interrogate him as well?"

Everyone was furious upon hearing this, especially Chen and Niu, who reacted most strongly.

Chen said firmly, "How could it be Shu'er? Shu'er would tell the family directly if she needed money, how could she steal it?"

Madam Niu trembled with anger, her voice shrill as she questioned, "Sun Zhizhi, I think you're just jealous. My Shu'er is destined to be the top scholar, while your two older brothers are no longer capable. You must be jealous of my Shu'er, and that's why you stole all the money so he can't study."

Sun Zhizhi, standing to the side, sneered: "Ha, him? Dreaming of becoming the top scholar? He's dreaming."

When someone belittled her son, Niu immediately became furious and slapped Sun Zhizhi.

"You dare hit me?"

Sun Zhizhi was somewhat incredulous. In all her life, no one had ever laid a finger on her.

She was the youngest in the family. Her two older brothers were capable, and the family spoiled her. Outsiders also looked up to her.

I never expected that after marrying into this small mountain village, I would be beaten by my sisters-in-law.

She had practiced martial arts with Sun Shi for a couple of days when she was young, although she hadn't mastered anything and was barely a novice. She couldn't beat a man, but she was still much better than this country woman.

She immediately grabbed Niu's hair and dragged her out, all the way to the base of the wall, where she slammed Niu's head against the wall.

"Ouch, help! It hurts so much!"

By the time everyone reacted and pulled Sun Zhizhi back, Niu's head had already been bruised and bleeding.

Chen said angrily, "You've gone too far! You've gone too far, Sun! What do you think you're doing? You even dare to hit your sister-in-law! Chen He, do you even care about your wife?"

Old Man Shen continued to sigh, "What a misfortune for our family, what a misfortune for our family."

Under pressure from Chen, Shen He raised his only left hand, ready to strike Sun Zhizhi.

Sun Zhizhi sneered: "Shen He, have you thought this through? If you slap me like this, our relationship will be over."

Tao'er and Feng'er, who were standing nearby, kept crying, "Father, don't hit Mother."

Faced with her mother's aggressive questioning, Shen He raised his hand and landed on Sun Zhizhi's face. Sun Zhizhi stared at Shen He in disbelief.

It felt like she was meeting her husband for the first time.

"Shenhe, I'll say it again: I didn't take the money."

Chen stared at Sun Zhizhi, wondering if she had really wronged her.

"Sihe, take your wife back to her room first. Mother may have misunderstood her."

After the four family members left, Old Man Shen instructed Shen Dazhuang to call Shen Wan back from town.

Losing so much money from the house is no small matter.

Madam Lü said, "Father, since you've called Xiaohua's father back, why don't you call Yushu back too?"

The implication was that since you suspect Shen Wan, then Yu Shu is also a suspect.

When Madam Niu saw that Madam Lü also suspected her Shu'er, she immediately objected and shouted, "What do you mean, Third Sister-in-law? Do you also suspect Shu'er?"

“Sister-in-law, didn’t you also suspect Xiaohua’s father? Yushu also came back, so he is also a suspect.”

Niu Shi had just been beaten bloody by Sun Zhizhi and was now full of anger with nowhere to vent it. With a "howl," she rushed over, grabbed Lü Shi's hair, and the two started fighting.