[Celebrating World Falun Dafa Day] The Case of the Missing 2,000 Yuan

(Minghui.org) My next door neighbor came over while I was making lunch in April 2023. She lives by herself, as her husband died in a car accident a few years back, and her only daughter lives in another province. Although we’re neighbors, she usually keeps to herself and rarely comes over. Even when we talk, it’s usually in the front yard. But she invited herself in that day and came directly into the kitchen.

She greeted me, and said, “There’s something that’s been bothering me, and I don’t know whether I should tell you. I told my sister, and she thinks I should let you know.” I smiled and asked what it was. She blushed and gave me a nervous look. In a trembling voice, she said, “Your husband stole more than 2,000 yuan from me.”

I was surprised to hear that, and asked when and how it happened. She said, “Remember you were gone for a few days a couple weeks ago. I went into the bathroom, closed the door and was about to take a shower. I then remembered I forgot to grab my shower cap. But the bathroom door wouldn’t open no matter how hard I tried. I had locked myself in by accident. I opened the bathroom window and started shouting, hoping someone would hear me. I shouted until my voice was gone but nobody responded.

“So I waited until I heard a noise outside. I thought it might be your husband coming home from work. So I called out to him as loud as I could. He responded, and I told him I locked myself in the bathroom. I then asked him to climb into my house and told him where the keys were. So he helped me get out of the bathroom.”

I nodded, “Yes, I remember you telling me that when I came back. You said you really appreciated him helping you out, and thanked him again and again. If it weren’t for him, you’d have been stuck. But how do you figure he stole your money?”

“I had just taken out 2,700 yuan in cash a few days prior. I gave my sister 600 to buy clothes and shoes for my mother. I put away the rest, along with my debit card, underneath my chest. When I went to get the money this morning, it was gone. I looked everywhere, and turned the house upside down, but couldn’t find it. Your husband is the only one that has been in my house lately. He went into that room to get the keys, which were near the chest. Who else could it be? It’s got to be him. How could he do such a thing?”

She pulled up a bank receipt on her phone to show me the date and amount she withdrew. She then took me to her house and showed me where she put the money, “Look, the money was right under here. When he came in to look for the keys, he found the money and took it.”

I asked her if there was a chance she hid the money somewhere else. She shook her head and was positive that she wasn’t mistaken, “No! No way! I put the money right here. Your husband took it. If I had a retirement pension I could still get by without that money, but I’m a farmer and all I have is my savings.”

She started complaining about my husband, and became more worked up, “I asked my sister if I should confront him and ask for my money back. As long as he gives my money back, I won’t tell anybody. I’ll act as if it never happened. Do you think I should go to him directly?”

I told her I didn’t think that would work. “Why not?” she asked, as her eyebrows scrunched up.

“Think about it. If he really took the money, why would he admit to it? But, on the other hand, if he didn’t take your money and you accuse him of stealing, aren’t you wrong in thinking bad about him?

“He helped you when you were in trouble, and now you’re accusing him of stealing. How do you think he’s going to feel about that? You’ll hurt him and his reputation. There are no secrets in our small village. You know that. Everybody will gossip about it and think he’s a thief. He’s going to resent you. What would you do then?”

After hearing this, my neighbor slumped into the chair. I added, “If the villagers learn that you wrongly accused someone who tried to help you, who would want to help you if you run into trouble again?”

She nodded, “It makes sense. But what should I do? I can’t just let it go. It’s more than 2,000 yuan. It’s a lot of money to me.” Her eyes welled up with tears.

“Don’t worry. Don’t let it get to you. The last time someone said something you didn’t like, you got so worked up you ended up in the ER with an appendicitis. You had to pay more than 20,000 yuan for treatment. It’s not worth it. How about this. I’ll pay you the amount you’re missing? If you didn’t tell me this, there would be nothing I could do. But since you came to me, it must have something to do with me. I’ll give you the money. Don’t worry.”

She stood up and gazed at me, “Is your husband going to be okay with that?”

“He manages our finances and keeps all the cash and our debit cards. But I can’t let him know about this, or he’ll try to get that money back from you. Don’t worry. I’ll figure something out.”

“Thank you so much! You practice Falun Dafa, and even I’m benefiting from it.”

After we parted ways, I became a little concerned, and thought, “Where am I going to find more than 2,000 yuan?” I had a little bit of savings a few years back, but ever since my husband and I re-married, I spent most of it on the house, and he keeps the rest. I’m not working and don’t have an income. If I asked my husband for the money, he will definitely say no. Plus, I can’t let him know about the accusation. If he finds out, he will resent our neighbor and scold me for promising to cover her loss. But that money is a lot to her. I have to keep my word.”

I then remembered, “Don’t I still have a small amount stashed away? I’ve saved all the money my daughter gave me.” Since I never needed to use that money, I almost forgot I had it. I went home and took the money out—2,350 yuan in total. I took all of it to my neighbor and told her, “Here is the money. Now you don’t have to worry.”

Just as I finished making lunch, my neighbor came back, “I’m only going to keep 2,000 yuan. Here is the 350 extra.” She put the money on the table and left.

Within ten minutes, she came back, and asked, “Would you look through your husband’s things and see if you can find my debit card? It disappeared along with the money. It’s useless to him as he wouldn’t be able to withdraw money without a password.”

I told her, “I can give you money, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to go through my husband’s things for you. We’re married, but I cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and respect my husband and his privacy. I could ask him but I can’t go through his things without his permission. You know I can’t let him know about this, right? He would not let it go so easily. We don’t want to make a big deal out of it, do we? Let’s just call it good since this is all I can do for you. You can always go to the bank and get your debit card replaced.”

Seeing that I was not going to change my mind, my neighbor gave up and went home.

That was not the end of it, however. After a short while, my phone rang. It was my neighbor. She called me by my full name and said, “Hurry. Come over!” I asked what it was about, but she just said, “Just come over. You’ll like it. Hurry!”

I turned off my stove and went over to her house. She was holding a big brown envelope. She excitedly waved the envelope at me, “I found it! I found it! I was wrong about your husband. This time, I am convinced that you are a true cultivator of Falun Dafa.”

She put a stack of bills in my hand, “Here is your 2,000 yuan. Count it to make sure.” I told her there was no need and asked where she found the envelope. She pointed at her chest and said, “Right here! It was under the chest. I came home from your house and just didn’t feel right. I searched through the house again and found it underneath.”

She took the debit card and the cash out of the envelope to show me. I put my hand on her arm, and said, “That’s great. I’m so happy that you found the money. Now we know my husband is a decent man. I also learned through all this that you’re an honest person as well.”

She gave me a wide-eyed smile, “What do you mean?”

“Because a lot of people nowadays would do anything for a little bit of monetary gain. They wouldn’t think twice about doing something unethical in order to get money. I gave this money to you willingly and nobody else knew about it. Even if you decided to keep it after you found the envelope, nobody would know. But you owned up to your mistake and returned the money. This goes to show that you’re an honest and kind person. Goodness will be rewarded. As the old saying goes, ‘There are countless divine beings watching from three inches above our heads.’”

In a span of two hours, I gave away 2,000 yuan and then got it back. In the meantime, my heart was calm and unmoved. Looking back on how the series of events unfolded, I felt truly touched.

Master Li said:

“Our school of cultivation directly targets one’s mind. When your personal interests are on the line or you are in the midst of an interpersonal conflict, can you take these matters lightly and care less about them? This is the crucial question.” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)

I give thanks to our great, compassionate Master. How lucky and honored I am to have obtained the Fa in this lifetime and become his disciple.

As we celebrate the 33rd anniversary of Falun Dafa being introduced to the public, I want to share this as testimony to how wonderful Dafa is. Through cultivating in Dafa, I’ve changed from the core, and transformed from being a self-absorbed person to someone who always puts others first. I will continue on this path and cultivate to become more selfless and compassionate, rising beyond the realm of ordinary people.

(Selected Submission in Celebration of 2025 World Falun Dafa Day on Minghui.org)