An Hegui held the fainted Yang Huixian, at a loss for what to do. It was An Heping who reminded him to pinch her philtrum. After being pinched awake, Yang Huixian happened to lock eyes with An Ran, and then, as if struck by a shot of adrenaline, she immediately demanded to know whether An Ran had stolen the family's money.
An Ran rolled her eyes without the slightest hesitation. "You can talk nonsense over a meal, but don't go spouting baseless accusations. Every cabinet in this house is locked. I don't have the skill to pick locks. Besides, when I asked you to buy me a job a while back, you made it perfectly clear that the family had no money. So even if a thief stole every last cent, how much could there possibly be?"
Yang Huixian: "…"
A lot, a whole lot!!
Her savings of so many years!
Her dowry!
Gone, all of it gone.
Seeing Yang Huixian looking utterly lifeless, An Ran continued to twist the knife. "So you see, people really shouldn't do bad things. Look at you—you did something bad, and now you're getting your retribution right away. You'd better not do any more bad things from now on, or else if that retribution falls on your most beloved sons, that would be really bad."
Hearing this, Yang Huixian lunged forward to hit An Ran. "You shut up!"
Seeing this, Yang Huishu quickly pulled An Ran and headed outside. "I'll take An Ran home first. You go ahead and take stock of what else is missing besides the money!"
"Wait!"
Yang Huixian called out to stop them, looking at the bag in Yang Huishu's hand. "Let me check to see if you've taken anything you shouldn't have."
Yang Huishu's face darkened. "What do you mean by that? I watched An Ran pack her things myself. Aside from a few sets of clothes, all she has is her diploma and high school textbooks…"
Yang Huixian wouldn't listen. She snatched the bag from Yang Huishu's hand and inspected it herself. After confirming that there was no money hidden in An Ran's luggage, she ignored Yang Huishu's protests and searched An Ran's person. Finding nothing on An Ran, Yang Huixian then insisted on searching Yang Huishu as well.
Yang Huishu was furious at Yang Huixian. "Are you a mad dog, biting anyone you see?"
Yang Huixian: "Yes, I'm mad… Tell me, is it because you found out I swapped your daughter that you've been holding a grudge, and deliberately came to my house to steal all our money? Tell me, was it you, was it you?"
Seeing Yang Huixian crazily grabbing his wife's arm and shaking her violently, An Heping stepped forward and delivered a hard slap across her face. That slap successfully brought Yang Huixian back to her senses.
Seeing this, An Heping told her to recheck and see if anything else besides the money was missing from the house.
Yang Huixian instinctively followed An Heping's instructions, and then her whole body trembled with rage. "The quilts, sheets, and thick clothes in the house are all gone, and a few bolts of new fabric are missing too. The kitchen—the pots, pans, bowls, and dishes in the kitchen, all the food—everything's gone. Which damned bastard did this? This is trying to take our whole family's life…"
An Heping hadn't expected that besides the money, so many other things would be missing from the house. "Don't rush to cry first. Let me ask you—who was the last one to leave the house this morning?"
Yang Huixian glanced at her husband. "Their father and I left together last. An Quan and An Jue went to find their classmates to play and won't be back until evening. I don't know if An Ran came back in the middle of the day."
An Ran: "I came back after getting my blood drawn at the hospital. The house was fine when I got back. Then Granny Liu and the others came to ask me about the blood test results, and afterward they dragged me along to find Mom and then go to the factory to confront things. Oh, and when I left, I just closed the door without locking it…"
The moment Yang Huixian heard this, she immediately demanded excitedly why she hadn't locked the door.
An Ran: "Anything in this house worth even a little money has been locked away in the cabinets by you. What difference does it make whether I lock the door or not? Besides, so many locks in this house have already been forced open—what's one more lock on the front door? In my opinion, our house—no, your house—was already marked by a thief long ago."
Yang Huixian still blamed An Ran for not locking the door.
An Heping spoke up for An Ran. "An Ran is right. So many locks in this house have been forced open—one more lock on the front door wouldn't have made a difference. I'm afraid your family was targeted by a thief long ago. But with so many things stolen, if it was a stranger, someone would have noticed. My suggestion is to report this to the police and let them investigate. If no one saw a stranger, then the thief is very likely someone from the family quarters…"
Before An Heping could finish, Yang Huixian urged An Hegui to go report it to the police, while she herself went around asking the neighbors whether anyone had seen a stranger entering or leaving the family quarters.
After receiving negative answers, Yang Huixian immediately concluded that the thief was someone from the family quarters, and promptly planted her hands on her hips and began cursing furiously.
Yang Huishu didn't want An Ran to listen to Yang Huixian's foul language, so she pulled An Ran and headed home first.
On the way home, Yang Huishu quietly told An Ran the reason why Yang Huixian was so agitated.
An Ran pretended to look shocked. "So all that talk about not having money to buy me a job was a lie!"
Yang Huishu nodded. "I wonder who it was that targeted her. And you didn't shut the door earlier, either. If the things and money can be recovered, that's best. But if they can't be found, I'm afraid she'll still blame you for it."
An Ran said, "Let her blame me, then. If you ask me, she deserves it—it's karma. Besides, in times like these, it's actually safer not to have those things at home. But Mom, what she has, you have too. If she can't get hers back, will she set her sights on you and ask you to share some with her? And if you refuse, will she report you? When Dad said he wanted to call the police earlier, she threatened to report us. That's what she was talking about, isn't it?"
Yang Huishu was jolted into alertness by An Ran's reminder. She couldn't vouch for anyone else, but when Yang Huixian went crazy, she was truly capable of doing anything.
Back home, Yang Huishu took out the gold bars and jewelry she had hidden and asked An Ran what they should do.
She felt these things were no longer safe to keep at home.
If Yang Huixian were to report them, the Geweihei would come and search the house.
If they were found in a search, at best they'd be confiscated, and at worst, she'd be branded a Youpai. She really didn't want to be labeled a Youpai.
An Ran looked at Yang Huishu's nervous expression and asked, "Mom, do you trust me? If you do, give these things to me. I'll find a place to hide them. Later, when the policies improve, or when Grandma and the others are rehabilitated, we can bring them out again."
Yang Huishu asked, "Where do you plan to hide them?"
An Ran said with certainty, "I guarantee it'll be a safe and secret place."
Yang Huishu knew she shouldn't trust An Ran so easily, but meeting her gaze, a voice in her heart told her to believe her. After agonizing for a long while, Yang Huishu decided to take a gamble. "Mom trusts you. I'll leave these things to you to handle. I haven't taken care of you all these years. If you can keep these things safe, then on the day they can see the light of day openly again, I'll give you half of them as compensation for all these years!"
An Ran replied, "Why wait until later to give them to me? If you truly want to give them to me, then tell me now which ones are for me. That way, I'll be more motivated to hide them properly~"
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