mtlumby2d Chapter 5 The Shen family is willing to repay the money.
Chapter 5 The Shen family is willing to repay the money.
The villagers were terrified of the police in those days, so the interrogation went smoothly and was over in less than an hour.
Back in the main room, the Shen family members looked at each other, all wanting to know what the others had told the police, but dared not ask.
The lead police officer spoke.
"Shen Dapeng, Liu Chunhua, Shen Daxing, Shen Dabiao, and others have all stated that you have taken all of Comrade Shen Datian's funeral expenses, pension, and monthly compensation. Is this true?"
“Officer, Shen Datian is my son. He sacrificed his life, and it is only right that I receive state compensation.”
An officer from the People's Armed Forces Department said, "The compensation is distributed per person. Even if you, as Comrade Shen Datian's parents, are entitled to a portion, it shouldn't be all of it."
Another officer asked in confusion, "I checked the files when I came here. Comrade Shen Datian's monthly compensation only covers three people and does not include Comrade Shen Datian's parents."
Liu Chunhua thought the clerk was speaking up for the Shen family, so she immediately responded loudly.
"Yes, my poor son was killed just after being promoted to deputy battalion commander. His compensation was even reduced. The police officers did not stand up for us and even accused us of misappropriating other people's property."
The female officer from the People's Armed Forces Department kept talking with the Shen sisters, Shen Wancheng and Shen Yao, on the way.
Shen Wancheng then subtly revealed that Shen Datian had signed a property and retirement agreement with Shen Dapeng more than a decade ago.
In 1963, when Shen Datian was 25 years old, he was still an ordinary soldier with little money. He was forced by his parents, Shen Dapeng and Liu Chunhua, to give Shen Dapeng 500 yuan in one go, using all his savings and borrowing some money from his comrades.
They also signed an agreement that the elderly care of Shen Dapeng and his wife would be the responsibility of their eldest son, Shen Daxing, and their youngest son, Shen Dabiao.
After learning about the situation, the female officer from the People's Armed Forces Department directly refuted Liu Chunhua's words.
"Didn't you already sign an agreement that the two elders' retirement would be entirely the responsibility of the brothers Shen Daxing and Shen Dabiao?"
"What agreement? Who said our family signed an agreement?"
The female officer from the People's Armed Forces Department glanced at Shen Wancheng and Shen Yao, but didn't say anything about them.
It's already quite remarkable that the two girls mustered the courage to go to the county town to report it. Pushing them to the forefront at this point would definitely scare them.
The female officer snorted coldly and simply said, "I just know you signed the agreement!"
"You little brat, you need to provide evidence to support your claims!"
"That's right, where's the agreement? Show it to me!"
"It only counts if you show it!"
The Shen family members were all fearless and emboldened.
After Shen Datian's death, the Shen family almost dug up the entire Shen Datian branch of the family in their search for the agreement, but they never found it.
The Shen family therefore believed that Shen Datian had not kept the agreement in a safe place and had lost it long ago.
How could something they've been searching for for years still be there?
"I...I just knew I had signed it!"
The female officer from the People's Armed Forces Department did not expect the Shen family to be so persistent, but she still insisted on believing in the Shen sisters, Wancheng and Shen Wancheng.
Shen Wancheng was grateful for the female cadre's righteous words and would not let her "charge into battle" all the time.
She arranged for herself to play the innocent and naive girl, and also arranged for Shen Yao to play the role of a simple and straightforward girl.
“I can vouch for it! There was an agreement. One night when I was a child, I saw my dad put the agreement into a small wooden box with my own eyes.”
Shen Dapeng glared at Shen Yao, "Shen Yao, you can't just say whatever you want because you're young."
Shen Daxing chimed in, "Exactly! How do you know it's an agreement if you haven't even seen it!"
Shen Yao took a step back and hid behind the female cadre. She didn't look at Shen Dapeng and the others, but she continued talking.
"The wooden box is buried under the pomegranate tree in front of Grandpa's house. We'll know if it is when we dig it up."
Shen Dapeng and Shen Daxing exchanged a glance. Shen Daxing shifted his body, as if he wanted to go outside.
The leading police officer spoke loudly and solemnly.
"stop!"
"Stay inside and don't move! Shen Yao, take the two of them to find the wooden box."
The Shen family members dared not move again, and waited in the main room with trepidation.
When Shen Wancheng led his people into the village, many villagers saw them and gathered around the Shen family's house to look around.
Someone summoned the village chief, who was also the village party secretary. The police found the wooden box, read the contents of the agreement, and realized that the village chief had acted as a witness to the agreement. So they called the village chief into the main room as well.
The agreement was passed around and read by everyone.
The lead police officer asked, "Shen Dapeng, does your Shen family have anything else to say?"
"Village Chief of Xixia Village, were you the notary for the pension agreement signed between Comrade Shen Datian and Shen Dapeng?"
The village chief of Xixia Village nodded repeatedly, "I was the notary."
The villagers in a village are all related by some degree, and people generally don't interfere in other people's internal affairs. So even if someone talks badly about the Shen family behind their backs when the Shen family bullies Shen Wancheng's family, no one will stand up for Shen Wancheng and her two children.
But now that the police have intervened, as the village chief, it's impossible for him to lie to the police for the sake of the Shen family.
The Shen family members all lowered their heads, trembling and remaining silent.
The police officer stopped wasting words and got straight to the point.
"Our preliminary investigation confirms that Shen Dapeng and his family abused the orphans of martyrs, misappropriated the martyrs' property, and violently interfered with others' freedom of marriage. Suspects Shen Dapeng, Liu Chunhua, Shen Daxing, and Zhou Fengxia all need to be taken back to the Public Security Bureau for further interrogation."
"Officer, I'm innocent! I'm Wancheng and Yaoyao's grandmother. How could I rob them of their money? I was just keeping it safe for them."
"Yes, officer, we've been planning to give all the money to them as dowry when they get married. We didn't intend to take a single penny from them."
"Officer, marrying Wancheng and Yaoyao to Liu Datong's son was only Zhou Fengxia's idea; we weren't involved."
Shen Dapeng and Liu Chunhua said this, but before the police officers could tell them to be quiet, Zhou Fengxia objected.
"Dad! Mom! You both agreed to my marriage to Shen Wancheng and Shen Yao. What do you mean it was my idea all by myself? When has this family ever allowed me to make decisions all by myself!"
"Shut up! Who can prove we agreed? You can't slander people!"
"You old geezer! Bah! You turn your back on me!"
Zhou Fengxia and the two elders of the Shen family were arguing fiercely.
The rest of the Shen family, including Shen Dapeng's son and grandson, all kept their heads down and remained silent, like cowards.
No one offered any help, trying to minimize their presence.
Shen Wancheng, however, did not want them to get away with it so easily.
Whether it was Shen Daxing, Shen Dabiao, or their children, they were all beneficiaries of this affair.
They should all be skinned alive.
Shen Wancheng, who had been pretending to be a timid and innocent girl for a long time, finally made a move for the first time.
Shen Wancheng reached out and tugged at Liu Congyi's clothes.
Liu Congyi asked Shen Wancheng, "Niece, what do you have to say?"
Liu Congyi's voice was loud, immediately attracting the attention of everyone in the main room.
Shen Wancheng bit her lip, ignoring Shen Dapeng and his group, and focused on Liu Congyi and the leading police officer.
“Grandpa and Grandma... they never hit me or my sister. They returned my dad's money to us, and I'm willing to forgive them.”
Shen Wancheng and Shen Yao are both still young. This time, they have broken ties with all their relatives. Without money, they will have a hard time surviving.
The best solution would actually be for the Shen family to return the money to Shen Wancheng and Shen Yao.
Liu Congyi looked at the leading police officer, and they both understood each other's thoughts.
The leading police officer said to Shen Dapeng and Liu Chunhua.
“If you return all the property that you have misappropriated from Comrade Shen Datian’s orphans, you will not be interrogated or questioned.”
Shen Dapeng and Liu Chunhua were overjoyed.
"We'll pay it back! We're willing to pay it back!"