Chapter 24: The Thief Within Is the Hardest to Guard Against

Grandma Su shot a glance at her eldest daughter-in-law and said, “Have your sister-in-law help you clean up. I’ll take care of Sanwa while he’s getting ready for bed.”

With that, she scooped up Sanwa and carried him off to Qian Yuemai’s room.

After being freed from the stove, Second Daughter-in-Law had finally mustered some energy—her mother-in-law wasn’t about to stop her now.

Zhao Chunhua was more than happy to have help. She cleared the table, then grabbed her pickle bowl and headed back to the kitchen.

When Qian Yuemai saw Zhao Chunhua enter, she clutched her stomach and blushed, mumbling, “Big sister… I’m not feeling well. I need to go to the outhouse.”

Zhao Chunhua glanced at the pile of uncleaned pots and pans and sighed. What could she say?

“Go ahead, sister-in-law,” she said. “Hurry up.”

“Big sister, why don’t you go rest in the room? I’ll wash these dishes myself later.”

“No, really—I’ll do it,” Zhao Chunhua said, resigned.

She bent over the sink, scrubbing with quiet resignation.

Qian Yuemai bolted out of the kitchen like a startled rabbit.

But she didn’t head to the outhouse.

Instead, she slipped into Grandma Su’s room.

There, nestled in the bamboo basket, lay Xiao Tangbao’s “magic pouch”—still untouched.

Qian Yuemai’s heart pounded like a drum. She snatched the little cloth bag, yanked it open, and dumped its contents onto the floor with a loud *clatter*.

Gold… gold…

She whispered the word again and again, frantically digging through the scattered items.

“Er’er’s wife, what are you doing?”

Grandma Su’s voice cut through the silence behind her.

Qian Yuemai nearly screamed.

“M-Mom… you’re here? How did you—?” She spun around, face flushed with guilt.

“If I hadn’t come in, I’d never have known what kind of trouble you were stirring up!” Grandma Su snapped, her face hard as stone.

This second daughter-in-law might be sharp-tongued and a bit bitter at times—but for the sake of her two grandsons, Grandma Su had always turned a blind eye.

But now? Look at this! What kind of behavior is *this*?!

If this keeps up, how can we live in peace?!

As the saying goes: thieves inside the house are hardest to catch.

Once there’s a thief in the family, how can we ever feel safe again?

This time, she had to put her foot down—hard.

Hearing her mother-in-law’s tone, and seeing the storm in her eyes, Qian Yuemai’s stomach dropped.

She knew—this time, Mama was truly furious.

“Mom… I—I just accidentally knocked over my sister-in-law’s little bag… everything spilled out… I-I’ll fix it right away…” Her voice trembled. “I’m putting it all back now…”

Without daring to look inside again, she shoved everything haphazardly back into the cloth sack.

“Er’er’s wife,” Grandma Su said coldly, “if you find life here so unbearable, you’re welcome to go back to your parents’ house.”

“Mom… what are you talking about?” Qian Yuemai panicked.

Was Mama actually kicking her out?

Did she mean to divorce her?

“I—I didn’t mean to… I swear…” she stammered.

Even though the Su family was poor, she’d never once thought of leaving. She still needed them to protect her family back home.

And besides—things were getting better now. They even got wild game on occasion. The men treated their wives with respect—no beating, no yelling.

“You didn’t mean to? When I tell you to work, you sneak off to twist Sanwa’s ear to avoid it?” Grandma Su’s voice rose sharply—something rare. “You can’t even leave your sister-in-law’s things alone?”

Qian Yuemai froze.

Her face drained of color.

So Mama knew she’d been faking pain just to get out of chores.

“You’re done,” Grandma Su declared. “We don’t want a daughter-in-law with rotten character in this house.”

Qian Yuemai’s legs gave way. She collapsed to her knees before her mother-in-law.

“Mom… I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… I’ll never do it again… please forgive me…”

Tears streamed down her face, snot dripping from her nose. She sobbed uncontrollably, broken and desperate.