Guan Xiaomei was extremely excited. What beautiful colors! Could she also have such beautiful clothes? She nodded repeatedly and said sweetly, “Thank you, big sister.”
She really was just a cute little girl. Guan Xiyue also smiled. Then she gave the three children a “meeting briefing”:
“You are not allowed to go into the kitchen. I will bring food to you. If anyone breaks this rule, I will never give you anything again. I know you all do work at Grandpa’s house, but here, you don’t need to work. However, you are not allowed to cause trouble here.”
The three little kids nodded vigorously. Guan Xiyue gave each of them two eggs, two steamed buns, and some preserved fruits. They happily left, promising not to cause trouble.
Guan Xiyue thought like a modern person. As long as the Guan family didn’t stir up trouble, she preferred peaceful coexistence. As for the children of the Guan family, they were still blank slates; the scheming and greed of adults should not be passed onto them. As for her “cheap parents,” she had somewhat complicated feelings—after all, she had taken over their daughter’s body. Perhaps because of blood ties, she felt both sympathy and a hint of guilt toward them. If she could help, she would.
The house construction progressed smoothly, but Aunt Qian soon discovered that for two consecutive days, a significant amount of rice, flour, and meat had been stolen from the kitchen. Even though she kept a close watch and all the helpers wore clothes without pockets to avoid suspicion, the items still disappeared. Were they just vanishing into thin air?
Aunt Qian quietly reported this to Guan Xiyue, who told her not to make it public.
Since nothing was lost during the day, the theft must have occurred after the door was locked at night. That left only two possibilities: either the key was stolen, or someone highly skilled could open the lock without a key.
That night, there was no moonlight—only a few scattered stars. Guan Xiyue and Chunliu hid behind a dirt mound. Around midnight, they finally saw two shadowy figures sneaking toward the kitchen. Soon after, the door was opened, and a faint light appeared inside.
“Catch the thief!” Guan Xiyue and her maid immediately rushed out, pulled the door shut from the outside, and shouted loudly for help.
The kitchen was actually a separate storage room belonging to Aunt Qian, with no windows and only one exit. The people inside panicked and desperately tried to open the door, but it was impossible.
Nearby villagers quickly arrived with sticks. They lit torches and opened the door, only to find two women crouching on the ground, covering their faces and refusing to look up.
To everyone’s shock, they turned out to be Sun Shi, granddaughter-in-law of the Guan family’s second branch, and Lü Shi, the daughter-in-law of Aunt Qian.
Aunt Qian was so embarrassed she had nowhere to hide her face. She grabbed Lü Shi and was about to hit her, while Lü Shi begged for mercy.
It turned out the food—rice, flour, and meat—was too tempting. Sun Shi had also been influenced by other members of the Guan family. Together with Lü Shi, she planned to steal Aunt Qian’s key while she was asleep at night and take the supplies.
They succeeded for two nights in a row, and since no one made a fuss, they assumed Guan Xiyue was careless and hadn’t noticed anything. And since Aunt Qian herself was involved in the loss, she naturally wouldn’t dare speak up either.
Aunt Qian never expected the thief to be caught within her own household. Ashamed, she said to Guan Xiyue:
“Xiyue, I have failed your trust. I never imagined my disgraceful daughter-in-law would cause such a thing. I have nothing to say. Please find someone else to do this job.”
Lü Shi panicked inwardly, fearing she would be beaten badly when she returned home; her husband had a terrible temper.
Sun Shi quickly tried to shift blame: “It was Lü Shi who suggested it. She said her mother-in-law sleeps like a log—even thunder wouldn’t wake her—and that the key was kept right by her bedside, easy to steal.”
Lü Shi immediately cried out in grievance: “It was clearly you, Sun Shi, who kept asking me where my mother-in-law kept the key! You also said these good things belonged to the Guan family anyway, and even if Guan Xiyue found out, nothing would happen—that it was only right to ‘honor the elders’!”
The situation escalated, and many villagers came to watch. However, no one from the main Guan family appeared.
Guan Xiyue asked the village head, “Uncle Yang, according to our laws, how should this theft be punished?”
Everyone was shocked that she intended to send them to the authorities. Once taken to court, it would be extremely difficult to get out. Although the stolen goods weren’t extremely valuable, theft was theft, and the law allowed up to three years of imprisonment.
Moreover, once a case reached the authorities, endless bribes and expenses would follow. As the saying goes, “the authorities don’t act unless someone reports it,” but once reported, these two women would be ruined.
Both Sun Shi and Lü Shi immediately begged for mercy, and the villagers also tried to persuade her. Aunt Qian was stunned as well—if Lü Shi were jailed, what would her family do?
Seeing everyone’s reaction, Guan Xiyue calmly said:
“If I insist on pursuing this, you could indeed spend three years in prison. This is the first time, so I can let you go. But if it happens again, I will make it clear in advance—I will definitely report it to the authorities.”
Everyone felt a chill. Guan Xiyue was not someone to be trifled with. Just because she was a young woman living independently didn’t mean she could be bullied. If she chose to, even her own relatives could be sent to jail.
Then she continued: “Although I’m not sending you to the authorities, this cannot be brushed off lightly. First, return everything you stole. Then go kneel in the ancestral hall for one night. Uncle Yang, what do you think?”
Village head Yang nodded. Even if they weren’t reported to the authorities, they couldn’t be let off easily—otherwise the village’s moral order would be damaged.
So Sun Shi and Lü Shi were dragged off to the ancestral hall.
The next morning, Guan Xiyue brought several helpful villagers to the Guan household to retrieve the stolen goods. When the old couple of the Guan family saw them coming in force, they already knew why, but still put on an act:
“What is the meaning of this?”
Sun Shi, looking weak and defeated, said, “Father, Mother, please return the rice, flour, and meat from the past few days to Xiyue.”
Mrs. Wang rolled her eyes. “What rice, flour, and meat? I know nothing about it.”
The third branch—Guan Lao San and his wife Zhang Shi—looked at each other in shock. They knew nothing about any of it. These past days they had been building the house for Guan Xiyue, and no meals had been prepared for them at home. When they returned at night, the kitchen was cold. Their children, Guan Xiaomei and Guan Ziyuan, were sent out to gather pig grass and firewood, and only ate coarse steamed buns. They had no idea the others were secretly eating the stolen food.
Sun Shi pleaded, “Father, Mother, I know there’s still a lot left. Please return it. If you don’t, I’ll be reported to the authorities.”
Guan Lao Er also begged, “Mother, just return it. It’s already been exposed. Everyone saw it—what’s the point of denying it?”
Mrs. Wang flew into a rage. “You useless bunch! I just ate some food from my granddaughter—what’s the big deal? As long as you still carry the Guan surname, if you keep forcing me, I… I will report you to the authorities for unfilial conduct!”