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With a swift glance, Lin Yongcheng firmly raised his finger and pointed at the woman in front of him, his mother, and without a blush or a hiccup, accused her, "Mother, was it you? Really, was it you? How could you do such a shameless thing? Our family isn’t lacking food or clothing, even if you disapproved of Lin Yuan’s family building a new house, you couldn’t just go and steal from them!

Look what’s happened now that it’s come to light, how will you ever face anyone in the village again! "

Lady Ma’s mouth fell open in shock; she could hardly believe that these words were coming from the son she had cherished and protected with all her heart.

From the start, she’d denied herself even a single good bite to eat, saving everything for her two sons, and had even taken the blame for them when they did wrong.

Never did she imagine that all she would get in return were these accusations of shamelessness and not being fit to show her face!

Her heart felt as if it was being cruelly stabbed, and the one wielding the knife was the son she had so dearly loved.

Lin Yuan narrowed her eyes; she hadn’t expected Lin Yongcheng to stoop so low. Indeed, there was no greater shamelessness than this!

Although moved by Lady Ma’s deep maternal instinct, Liu Limin was also utterly disgusted by Lin Yongcheng’s behavior and, indignant, stood up and shouted, "Lin Yongcheng, are you even human? These red bricks are obviously stolen by you, and you don’t even have the decency to repent.

Instead, there’s your mother, taking the fall to protect you, and here you are, without a trace of gratitude, cursing her out!

Has your heart been eaten by a dog? You’re the one who’s the most shameless! Despicable!"

"Humph, how can you be so sure that I stole them? My mother has already confessed; why don’t you go after the one who has admitted to the crime instead of slandering those who are innocent?

Who is really the shameless one here?’ Lin Yongcheng retorted confidently, certain that Lady Ma would never change her confession, for he was now her only hope.

You think you’ve seen shameless? You’ve never seen shamelessness like this!

Having lived under the same roof with Lin Yongcheng for so many years, Lin Yuan was no stranger to his shamelessness. Now, she simply looked on at Lady Ma with cold, sympathetic laughter, as if seeing the future Lady Yang in her.

Liu Limin, however, was laughing out of sheer exasperation. The villagers weren’t fools; who wouldn’t see that Lady Ma was taking the fall for her son? It was only Lin Yongcheng who was deceiving himself.

"Just shut your mouth." Liu Limin rolled her eyes and pointed to the pair of shoes on the ground that had turned into muddy clumps, and then to his blistered hands, "How do you explain these shoes? And what about your hands? Don’t tell me it was your mother who stole the bricks, wearing your shoes, and using your hands! "

When Lady Ma had spread her arms to protect her eldest son earlier, her hands were completely visible to everyone, perfectly clean and unharmed.

Lady Ma herself was stunned. Under normal circumstances, she might have had an excuse, but these days, she had left all the household chores to her mother-in-law Lady Yang.

At home, she practically lived the life of a young lady, not exactly being handed everything but certainly not doing any rough work.

Not to mention her hands were free of callouses and blisters.

But her eldest son’s hands were the most compelling evidence. Her son, pampered since childhood, had never even touched a broom; how could he have so many blisters? And the red powder residue under his fingernails was clearly from the red bricks.

"This, this..." Lin Yongcheng still didn’t want to admit it, having finally found an opportunity to shirk responsibility. How could he willingly concede guilt?

Suddenly, Lin Jiazhong bit his teeth and glared at his son, saying, "The bricks were indeed stolen by my wife. My son’s hands were injured yesterday helping me with the cart, and the shoes are his as well.

Truth be told, my younger son just got out of jail yesterday, and he happened to run into a heavy rain.

The cart got stuck in the mud on the road, so there was no choice but to have my eldest son get out and push. "