Chapter 17: Embezzlement

“Why are you back?” Mu’s parents greeted Mu Tong with a mixture of surprise and unease. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to tell their daughter what had happened; everything had unfolded so suddenly, and they had been so overwhelmed and busy that they hadn’t found the time or the heart to inform her.

“Sheng Han’s birthday is coming up. I came back to see him. If I hadn’t come back, were you planning to keep it from me?”

Mu’s parents fell silent. It wasn’t that they intended to hide the truth from Mu Tong; they had hoped to handle things on their own without always relying on their daughter. They never imagined one crisis would follow another so relentlessly that they barely had time to breathe, and it would end up like this.

Mu Tong suppressed her imposing aura. It seemed these people were just debt collectors, here to intimidate rather than cause real harm.

With her pressure lifted, the group regained their courage. Their leader, momentarily stunned by the earlier display, quickly composed himself. Collecting the debt was important, but they couldn’t forget their purpose: if these people left, who would they turn to for compensation?

“This is your daughter, right? Whoever shows up, they have to pay!” Zhao, the leading lawyer, was visibly displeased. He had already extended the payment deadline several times, yet this family still hadn’t produced the money. How could that be acceptable?

“What’s going on?” Mu Tong asked her parents again. If money was to be paid, she needed to understand the details first.

Her father sighed deeply. “It’s your brother. He lost control of the car, causing several deaths and seriously injuring others. He’s fully responsible.”

“How much is still owed?” Mu Tong inquired. Since it was her brother’s fault, compensation was inevitable.

“Compensation for deaths, funeral costs, and medical allowances… a total of 1,823,455 yuan.” Zhao was a professional lawyer representing the victims in their claim against the Mu family.

“How can there still be such a large outstanding amount?” Standing nearby, Qian Li was stunned. She thought it impossible. From what she knew, the Mus had sold the car and the house, and borrowed some money from relatives and friends. They should have gathered enough by now. How could they have paid over a million already and still owe more than that?

Qian Li voiced her doubts aloud.

“We don’t know exactly how much you gathered! All we know is that only an initial 200,000 yuan was paid in cash, and after that, nothing.” Zhao emphasized firmly, “Originally, the 1.82 million would have covered everything, but two days ago, two of the injured worsened significantly and required extensive emergency treatment, adding another 200,000 in medical expenses.”

The additional 200,000 in medical fees offset the initial 200,000 cash payment, leaving an outstanding balance of over 1.8 million, assuming the condition of the remaining hospitalized injuries doesn’t deteriorate further.

“Where’s the money?” Mu Tong looked at her parents with questioning eyes. Even if the money from selling the house and car wasn’t enough, they should at least have paid part of it. She wasn’t blaming them; after such a tragedy, they must be exhausted and distraught. Yet, with such a large sum involved, the whereabouts of the money had to be clarified.

“It was taken by your sister-in-law.” Her father lowered his head in disbelief. He couldn’t believe that their usually gentle and understanding daughter-in-law would abscond with the funds at such a critical time.

“Hmph! Sister-in-law? That shameless woman, Zuo Xiaojun, seeing your brother injured and the family losing everything, took all the compensation money we had gathered!” Her mother’s anger flared at the mention of Zuo Xiaojun. She had never seen such a heartless woman—ignoring the injured husband and abandoning her son.

Mu Tong then heard the full sordid story: after Mu Chang’s accident, which caused deaths and injuries, the family sold everything they could. But Zuo Xiaojun, harboring sinister intentions, took advantage of her in-laws’ focus on caring for their severely injured son and volunteered to handle the compensation payments. After tirelessly running around, once she obtained the money from selling the house and car, she deceived Mu Chang—who was barely conscious—into signing a divorce agreement, then disappeared with the money without a trace.

Thus, the originally insufficient but not far-off compensation funds vanished entirely. With Mu Chang himself injured and requiring medical treatment, the Mu family had no money left. After repeated delays, the victims turned to a lawyer and came to demand payment in person.

“I don’t care how complicated your situation is. The fact is, we haven’t received any compensation. You need to find a way to resolve this.” Zhao’s eyes gleamed with determination. It was clear this family couldn’t pay, but he had learned that their daughter was a successful professional writer with a decent income. She should be able to contribute, though how much remained to be seen.

“All right, I understand the situation. Zhao, you’re the lawyer, right?” Mu Tong turned to him.

“Yes, I am. What do you propose we do?”

“Give me the account number. I’ll transfer the money.” Mu Tong didn’t waste words. It was only right to repay debts, especially since the other party were victims. The people behind Zhao were relatives of the victims, assisting in collecting the compensation, which was only fair.

Hearing this, everyone’s faces lit up with surprise and disbelief. They had heard about the daughter-in-law running off with the money and thought the family was simply unwilling to pay. They had come together, rallied by Zhao, prepared for confrontation, only to find the daughter herself willing to pay?

Zhao was taken aback but handed over the account details. Without hesitation, Mu Tong began the bank transfer.

When Zhao saw the confirmation message, his eyes widened: two million yuan?

“The extra money is my apology to the families. The harm my brother caused these families, I am here to atone for.” Mu Tong bowed deeply to the group. No matter how much responsibility her brother bore, the damage to these families was real. The dead could not be brought back; she only wished peace for those still living.

“Fine, consider this matter basically settled.” Zhao led the group away. This young woman had guts—no wonder she was a popular internet writer. He still had to distribute money to each family; there was much work ahead.

Mu’s parents stood dumbfounded. Their daughter had just given two million yuan? They knew she had earned some money, but she had already bought a house and a car, and given the family tens of thousands. How could she possibly have so much?

“Mom, Dad, how much did we borrow? Tell me so I can pay off the debts.” Mu Tong’s question startled them again. Their daughter had money? Could it be that writing really was that lucrative?

“We borrowed fifty thousand from Uncle Wang, thirty thousand from Uncle Jie... and, oh, fifty thousand from Aunt Qian.” Her father, now calm, noticed Qian Li who had come in with Mu Tong.

“Aunt Qian?” Mu Tong asked in confusion. She didn’t recognize the woman.

“Aunt Qian also lives in the Impression Tianma neighborhood. When she found out about our troubles, she voluntarily bought our house. When she learned we were short on money, she lent us another fifty thousand. If she hadn’t known we had enough, she would have lent more,” her mother said emotionally.

Qian Li had been seen around the neighborhood before, familiar but not close—just nods and greetings. They never expected that in this crisis, she would be such a great help. If not for her, the desperate house sale might have been at a much lower price.

Moreover, she bought the house but didn’t ask them to move out; they were still living there. Only because Mu’s father felt uncomfortable did they move out. Otherwise, they would still be residing there.