For a while, all eyes were on Shi Yunnan and Luo Lingsheng, the two outsiders.
“Since all the parents are here, please listen to me.”
Shi Yunnan, who wasn’t afraid of trouble, took the initiative to step forward and repeat what Little Goldfish had just said.
“Our child won’t lie. The injury on his forehead was caused by the joint efforts of these six children, and they also stole the necklace.”
He looked around and finally fixed his eyes on Yuan Kewang.
“Children should be taught how to apologize when they do something wrong. While they are young, we can still correct their moral values. Now they are only covering up for petty theft and robbery. When they grow up, who knows what they will do?”
When the rest of the voice landed, Yuan Mang, who heard the commotion, came out.
Seeing the wound on Little Goldfish’s forehead and Luo Lingsheng and Shi Yunnan’s unanimous unhappy eyes, his heart suddenly felt bad, “Patriarch, what happened?”
“What can happen? Are the bosses from the Imperial Capital better than us normal folks?”
Chen Fang felt annoyed when she saw Yuan Meng, who stood in the outsiders’ camp, and said unhappily, “Can they educate a child better than us?”
“What’s wrong with my child hitting the ducks? In our countryside, ducks are raised for food. Or else do we have to raise them as pets and children like city people?”
“It’s normal for boys to bump and bruise when they play together. It’s your kid who’s too delicate. The swelling on the forehead will subside in three or five days.”
“By the way, do you have any evidence? I think this kid knocked his forehead himself! Perhaps he also lost his necklace on his own! This is the first time I’ve seen rich people coming to the countryside to blackmail people.”
Since opening the farmhouse, Chen Fang had consciously met many wealthy bosses. These people either had good fortune or came from good backgrounds. They didn’t do proper work and were best at showing off.
She didn’t have much fear of Yuan Meng’s immediate boss.
The barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes1The poor, who have nothing to lose, do not fear those in power.. Chen Fang didn’t believe that Luo Lingsheng could really call the police and arrest people. In the worst case scenario, if the big boss was really offended, the one who lost their job wouldn’t be her.
Luo Lingsheng’s face sank.
He really didn’t expect that one day he would be treated as a wicked person who blackmails a child.
Yuan Meng felt deeply unpleasant and quickly stood up and said, “Sister-in-law, you should say less. The patriarch and Mr. Shi are not the kinds of people you say!”
He looked at his little nephew, who wasn’t close to him, and asked with a stern face, “Kewang, take out the young master’s necklace immediately!”
Yuan Kewang shrank behind Chen Fang and refused to admit it by clenching his teeth, “I didn’t take it! Mom, you are right, Uncle is a white-eyed wolf!”
When Chen Fang heard this, she quickly seized the opportunity to attack them by wailing and crying, “Everyone please help me decide who’s right or wrong ah!”
“When I married Ah Wei, how old was Yuan Meng? I, as his sister-in-law, took out my dowry to feed and clothe him. Now that he has found a rich man in the Imperial Capital as his boss, he actually bullies our mother and son!”
“His elbow is crooked to the limit2Elbow turning outward/outside/crooked is an idiom meaning to favor an outsider instead of someone on one’s own side.!”
“…..”
Yuan Meng’s face turned red.
Here she goes again! Here she goes again! filled with nonsense!
The money he spent on school back then was not Chen Fang’s dowry. Besides, the savings from his four years in the army and one year of work had been given to his brother-in-law and his wife.
To be honest, he didn’t owe her anything at all!
Yuan Meng looked at Luo Lingsheng and Shi Yunnan. Anger and apology flooded from his flushed face, “Patriarch, Mr. Shi, young master, I-I’m sorry.”
He was used to being honest and generous.
The other party was his nominal sister-in-law. There was no way he could subdue her like a stranger.
Shi Yunnan knew he couldn’t blame Yuan Meng for this, so he simply picked up his phone and turned on the video, “You six kids, you all refuse to admit that you robbed the necklace, right?”
Yuan Kewang refused to admit it, and several other children surreptitiously observed Yuan Kewang, the ‘boss’, wanting to say something.
Before they could say anything, Shi Yunnan suddenly said, “Yuan Mang, since you’re getting paid, you should know what to do now.”
“The right pocket of Yuan Kewang’s pants.” Shi Yunnan made the call, and Yuan Meng responded.
He immediately grabbed Yuan Kewang, who was hiding behind Chen Fang, and his hands were so strong that no matter how hard the mother and son struggled, they couldn’t break free.
Soon, a fish-shaped necklace made of pure gold fell out of the pocket, attracting everyone’s attention at once.
Shi Yunnan approached and picked up the necklace, held it in his hand and shook it lightly, “At a young age, he not only beat people but also robbed things, and even hid things and lied after robbing them!”
Except for Chen Fang, the faces of several other parents showed surprise and anger.
They came a little late just now, and because they didn’t know the cause and effect, they were more willing to trust Chen Fang, a fellow villager than unfamiliar faces like Shi Yunnan.
As parents, they willingly defended and trusted their own children, but to their surprise, the necklace was actually hidden in Yuan Kewang’s pants pocket.
Could it be that these children teamed up to bully the little child and injure him?
This is not good!
Shi Yunnan saw the changed attitude of the parents, and without the politeness at the beginning, he said, “Don’t think that it doesn’t matter if children do wrong, they are underage, but you should take responsibility as their guardians!”
He paused and deliberately started asking the other five children, “I’ll give you one last chance. Now you can admit your mistake and apologize, or else I’ll call the police to “arrest” your parents!”
As soon as the words fell, a child was flustered and told the truth, “I’m sorry uncle, I’m sorry little brother.”
“Brother Kewang said that we could use it to play.”
“Yeah, he wouldn’t let us tell anyone about it and said the necklace could be exchanged for candy and crispy meat for us to eat.”
“Sorry.”
Someone admitted it first, and then all the other children, except Kewang, chose to confess. They intermittently pieced the information together to restore the story.
It turned out that Yuan Kewang always used the identity of the “boss” to direct them to do things. As long as they were obedient enough and played the role of “subordinate” well enough, they could reap the rewards of food and candy.
If anyone was disobedient, there would be corresponding punishment.
The confessions came one after another, retaining the pure and sincere conscience of the children.
When the parents heard their children’s apology, they felt ashamed. There was also a burst of indescribable anger—
boss? subordinate? award? punishment?
What did this brat from the Yuan family order their children to do?
Today he could instigate a group of children to cooperate in robbing things. Then in the future, wouldn’t they imitate the “gang fight” like in TV dramas?
Small fights are fine, but one day it will get worse!
“Chen Fang, you really spoiled a good son.”
“Yuan Kewang is still young, but he is shrewd just like you.”
“This gold necklace must be at least a few thousand, right? He robbed something at a young age, but he asked our children to help keep it a secret and gave a few candies to silence them?”
“Ptooey! Chen Fang! The Chen family in this village is notoriously stingy. Ah Wei and Ah Meng are such good brothers. You have been controlling them for more than ten years! Without the money Ah Meng gave you, do you think you can build this farmhouse?”
“That’s right! It’s always been Ah Wei who’s busy taking care of this farmhouse. I only ever see you sitting idly doing nothing.”
Several parents immediately turned to attack Chen Fang.
Chen Fang blushed with shame and was reluctant to beat and scold her son to vent her anger.
“I-I just used it for fun and will return it.” Yuan Kewang sheepishly justified his action.
In fact, he did have the idea of taking this necklace as his own, but he didn’t expect it to be discovered so easily.
As the boss of the “gang,” he was accustomed to this kind of action. He had formed his own set of values, and he felt that what he could grab was his own.
Shi Yunnan put away his mobile phone and smiled, “Okay, I’ll give you a chance. Some children change when they learn from their mistakes. Let’s see if our Little Goldfish is willing to forgive you guys.”
Shi Yunnan put the necklace back on Little Goldfish’s neck and touched his face, “You decide.”
“Little Uncle, I accept their apology.” Little Goldfish glanced at Yuan Kewang, only disliking him, “But there are still people who don’t admit their mistakes. What should we do?”
Luo Lingsheng voiced his intention, “Yuan Meng, call the police.”
Shi Yunnan and his lover maintained the same view, “A pure gold necklace, Yuan Kewang attempted robbery, so his guardian should take responsibility.”
Yuan Meng was stunned for a moment, “Patriarch, this…”
“The guardian in my mouth refers to Chen Fang.” Shi Yunnan added.
“Yuan Meng, I know you’re honest and kind, but you’ve been with us all this time, and you should also know about Song Zhiqiu and Wen Chenglang’s mother-son relationship.”
“If you don’t take measures now, there will only be more disasters hitting your Yuan family in the future.”
Even if the police end up just verbally educating them, it’s better than ending without a hitch at the moment.
“Patriarch, Mr. Shi, I’ll listen to you guys, but I have to talk to my brother about this.”
Yuan Wei and Chen Fang had a total of three children. The eldest daughter, Yuan Juanjuan, and the second son, Yuan Kepan, were both sensible and obedient, so why did they spoil the youngest son to the point of lawlessness?
Yuan Meng knew that Shi Yunnan was right. If he didn’t get a proper education now, Yuan Kewang would probably go down the wrong path.
Luo Lingsheng nodded.
Yuan Meng took out his mobile phone and walked back to the kitchen inside the house while making a call.
Chen Fang didn’t expect this matter to really involve the police. Most of her initial confidence was exhausted. Yuan Kewang, who was hiding in her arms, was trembling with fear, “Mom, I can’t be taken away by the police, I…”
“Yuan Mang! Don’t you dare try calling! I’m your sister-in-law! Are you going to help outsiders bully us into submission?”
Chen Fang shouted in a strong voice.
Yuan Meng walked home on his own, ignoring her nonsense.
Chen Fang’s panic grew more and more. Her eyes flashed, and she hurriedly took the child’s hand in the opposite direction of the house.
The other parents shook their heads contemptuously.
She’s the one who was being unreasonable first, and then she took the child and ran away? What’s wrong with her?
“Two bosses, we’re really sorry. We didn’t know the situation at first.”
“Is this child’s forehead serious? The village hospital has already closed. I have medicine at home. Should I bring it over?”
Shi Yunnan wasn’t a stubborn little kid, so he took the initiative to say, “It’s okay, we can handle it ourselves. The children have already apologized and forgiven. This matter has nothing to do with you.”
“It’s getting late; you all should take them back home for dinner.”
Several parents were relieved, and after repeatedly apologizing, they took their children back to their respective homes.
Little Goldfish pinched the small necklace around his neck and grimaced, “Little uncle, Yuan Kewang ran away. Will the police catch him?”
“The monk runs away, but the temple remains3One can temporarily run but cannot hide forever..”
Shi Yunnan brought Little Goldfish to the side of the car, opened the back seat door and let him sit on the edge of the door temporarily.
Their luggage was in the trunk, and they had to quickly take out the medical kit and clean clothes to put on and change Little Goldfish.
Luo Lingsheng approached his little nephew while Shi Yunnan was looking for something, with a serious face, “Jinyu, sit tight. I have something to say to you.”
Little Goldfish immediately put his hand on his knee obediently, “Uncle.”
“First, in the future, you can’t just think about crying when things go wrong.”
“En.”
“Second, you must learn to protect yourself in case of trouble. In the future, if your little uncle and I are not there, and Yuan Meng and other bodyguards are also not there, what are you going to do?”
Little Goldfish shook his head, obviously not thinking about this issue.
“When you return to the Imperial Capital, I will find a martial arts teacher for you, so you won’t be bullied in the future.”
“…..”
Little Goldfish obviously didn’t understand what “martial art” meant and blinked in confusion.
“Then you don’t need to find another teacher, just learn how to fight from me,” Shi Yunnan smiled as he walked back with clothes and medicine box.
Only then did Little Goldfish realize, “Does little uncle know how to fight?”
Shi Yunnan asked Luo Lingsheng to move back a little while he stood in front of Little Goldfish, “Of course, little uncle has never lost a fight.”
Little Goldfish cooperated and gave adoring eyes, “Wow! Little uncle really is the most powerful.”
Shi Yunnan hummed twice, showing a little pride.
“But learning to fight is to protect what you want, not to bully others, understand?”
“Understood! I will protect my two uncles in the future.”
“Little ancestor, you’d better protect yourself first, and not have a situation like today in the future.”
“OK!”
Luo Lingsheng, who had retreated to the back, heard the big and small crosstalk, and his eyes were replaced with a smile.
The sky gradually darkened.
Shi Yunnan changed Little Goldfish into clean clothes before letting him lie on his side in his embrace.
Shi Yunnan took a tight breath, concentrating and carefully handling the injury on his little nephew’s forehead.
“Be careful!”
Suddenly, a chaotic sound came from behind.
Shi Yunnan’s left shoulder was hit by someone, and the hand that applied the medicine trembled.
Realizing that something was wrong, he hurriedly turned sideways only to find that Luo Lingsheng’s hands were firmly propped on both sides of the car door, and his usually calm face showed a painful look.
“Lingsheng, what’s wrong?”
Luo Lingsheng gritted his teeth and did not say anything. Instead, he turned around with difficulty to protect his lover and little nephew behind him.
He leaned on Shi Yunnan silently, barely maintaining his center of gravity.
Shi Yunnan was startled, and immediately noticed the figure of an unfamiliar tall man.
The other party was still holding an iron rod in his hand, and he sneered fiercely, “So you’re a fake cripple, huh? It seems that the blow just now was too light!”
“I warn you, don’t think that being a rich boss makes you great. I dare you to call the police and try to touch my sister and my nephew!”