Chapter 12 You can punish me! Slap my palm or make me stand at attention! It’s all fine!

“You!! You!!…” A six- or seven-year-old kid, no matter how angry, didn’t have a huge vocabulary. On top of that, with emotions running high, Fu Chen’s little face turned red and almost purple from the rage, but he still couldn’t come up with any other words to scold Jiang Wan.

Seeing the brat so mad he was about to faint, Jiang Wan felt incredibly satisfied inside! Hmph, she thought smugly, I’ve lived two lifetimes already. And you think a little brat like you can fight me??

Her long, curled eyelashes fluttered slightly, and a knowing smile curled her lips. She clapped her hands, then put the half-eaten bag of crunchy noodles back into the plastic bag on the floor.

Then she deliberately said loudly, “Aiyoo~~ I’m still kind of hungry~ I’ll go see what’s in the kitchen to eat~”

Jiang Wan squinted her eyes and strode toward the kitchen. Once inside, she quickly hid behind the wall by the doorway, ears perked.

As expected!

It wasn’t long before she heard the rustling of the plastic bag outside.

Fu Chen, seeing Fu Xiaoyan still sobbing uncontrollably, glanced toward the kitchen and beckoned. “Xiaoyan!! Come here! The bad woman went to the kitchen!”

“Let’s eat all her snacks!! It’ll be revenge!!”

“She’s gonna cry out of anger when she sees it!!”

Jiang Wan nearly burst out laughing at such childish reasoning!

If you want snacks, just say so. Why make excuses?

But this was exactly the outcome she wanted.

Outside, rustling sounds continued. The two kids squatted in front of the plastic bag.

Jiang Wan sneakily poked her bright, glistening eyes around the corner and saw Fu Xiaoyan staring wide-eyed at the bag of snacks, even forgetting to cry.

“Bro… Brother!! So many yummy things!! I’ve never had this kind before!”

“Last time when Dad bought us some, Grandma Tang took them away! She said eating this kind of stuff causes internal heat!”

Fu Xiaoyan was practically drooling, sucking on her fingers with hunger.

Jiang Wan rolled her eyes hard at that.

Seriously? That absurd pair—Tang Feng and her daughter—have no shame. Even stealing snacks from children?

It’s not like they eat them all the time. What’s so bad about it?

Tang Feng’s the one who should be eating bland gruel every day to balance her hormones!

She looks like a woman deep into menopause anyway!!

“Let it cause heat then!” Fu Chen was still fired up from being provoked by Jiang Wan. His big round eyes were slightly red, and he gulped hard before tearing open the snacks and starting his “revenge.”

With her brother setting the example, Fu Xiaoyan couldn’t hold back anymore. She joined in, and the two little kids crouched together, heads almost touching, stuffing snacks into their mouths.

Watching this, a wave of sadness welled up in Jiang Wan’s chest.

These two children’s father was a hero—he had sacrificed his life for the country and its people.

Fu Jingchuan… was a rough-around-the-edges kind of man, but his willingness to adopt his comrade’s orphaned children showed he was kind and loyal—a real man.

And yet, as a company commander, Fu Jingchuan’s household wasn’t exactly poor.

Still, these two children had been mistreated by that ridiculous mother-daughter pair so badly that even eating a snack had become a rare joy.

Jiang Wan clenched her teeth in anger, then suddenly strode out without warning.

“!!! How dare you!! You two actually stole my snacks?! I paid for those with my own money!”

She pushed down the sting in her chest, put her hands on her slim waist, and pretended to be fierce.

Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes rounded in exaggerated anger as if she were truly furious.

Startled, Fu Chen and Fu Xiaoyan looked up at her at the same time, panic all over their little faces—cheeks still stuffed full of snacks.

It was, honestly, an incredibly adorable sight.

“I… You!! I…” Fu Chen nearly choked! His small brows furrowed tightly in frustration.

Fu Xiaoyan, meanwhile, tugged at her brother’s sleeve with wide, dazed eyes, murmuring, “Brother, that bad lady is so pretty!!”

“How is she still so pretty even when she’s mad??”

“She looks like a fairy!”

“She’s no fairy! Fairies don’t act all fierce like that!” Fu Chen quickly swallowed his snacks but didn’t run away from responsibility.

Instead, he scolded himself silently—why didn’t he think this through?

He had assumed their dad already gave this woman money, but these snacks were bought with her own!

“How much!! I’ll pay you back!!”

He was overwhelmed with shame, but still held his neck high, speaking louder to cover his guilt.

To his surprise, Jiang Wan narrowed her eyes, gave a sly smile, and asked mockingly, “Money? Do you even have any?”

“A real man doesn’t ask his dad for money, you know~~”

“If you don’t ask and just take it, that’s called stealing. If I go to the police, they might arrest you!!”

“I’m not a thief!! I… I…” Fu Chen was at a loss for words.

Even though he was furious and embarrassed, the truth was he had eaten snacks that this woman bought, without permission, in a moment of impulsiveness.

So, he thought for a moment. Then, with his short little legs, he walked a few steps forward and held out his palm.

“Here! You can punish me!”
“Hit my palm or make me stand in military posture! Either is fine!”
“I did something wrong, so you can punish me however you want! Just… don’t tell my dad!”

Jiang Wan looked at the small, tender palm in front of her and was momentarily dazed.

She still remembered that just yesterday, this child had been punished by Fu Jingchuan for scolding her.

It seemed that even though these two kids weren’t his biological children, Fu Jingchuan was still strict with them, likely because he was afraid of raising them the wrong way.

Fu Xiaoyan was a girl, so it was more forgivable. But if a boy grew up crooked, it could be much worse.

Jiang Wan pursed her lips, her delicate brows raised slightly.

But she didn’t raise her hand to hit him.

Instead, she said, “I won’t hit your palm, but we have to make a deal.”

“Since you ate my snacks, for the rest of today… you have to do everything I say! Whatever I tell you to do, you do it!”

“Of course, I promise I won’t make you do anything bad!”

“Deal? Just for today!”

Jiang Wan held out her fair little pinky finger, making a pinky promise gesture.

Fu Chen was stunned. He raised his eyes and looked at her in surprise.

What was going on? She actually wasn’t going to hit them?

All the other aunties before—when Dad punished them—would also hit them when he wasn’t around!

But he wasn’t stupid. He could tell that those women were just being unreasonable.

Still, he didn’t want to tell his dad.

Dad had already worked so hard to raise them…

But in the end, those aunties just became more and more cruel.

“… You really won’t make us do anything bad?”