Little Yuanyuan, who had been cluelessly watching everything unfold, slowly raised her head, realizing her father’s words were directed at her.

The not-so-bright little one recalled the lesson she had received earlier while eating.

“If someone bullies you, you must fight back and show them you’re not to be messed with.” Her father’s stern voice echoed in her head.

That’s right—Yuanyuan was confident she could remember what her father had taught her.

Even though she didn’t fully understand, she nodded, looking a little unsure of herself.

The father of the narrow-eyed boy sighed deeply, thinking that Yuanyuan’s tiny arms and legs wouldn’t be able to cause much harm. As long as it appeased Yu Jinxiao’s anger, everything would be fine.

Afterward, he could always buy his son something nice to cheer him up—no big deal.

But if Yu Jinxiao held a grudge, the consequences would be unimaginable.

“Stand still and don’t fight back, understand?” The man crouched down and whispered harshly into his son’s ear.

Then, he stood up with a forced smile, patting his son’s shoulder with a firm, yet sympathetic grip.

When he rose, he turned to Yu Jinxiao with a smile plastered on his face, his tone full of false sincerity. “Apologies, apologies. It’s my son’s fault. Let her… just hit him once, and we’ll call it even, okay?”

“What?!” His wife, shocked that her husband would actually agree to this, immediately objected, her face turning pale.

She wanted to protest, but her husband quickly pulled her aside, signaling her with a desperate look.

No further explanation was needed—she understood what he was afraid of.

Yu Jinxiao’s notorious reputation was well known. Now that their family had angered him, if they didn’t let him vent his frustration right now, who knew what kind of retribution he might unleash on them later?

That future punishment would be far worse than what they were dealing with now.

The wife’s eyes reddened with distress, and she painfully swallowed back the words she had wanted to say, clenching her fists, unable to bear watching what would come next.

The narrow-eyed boy stood alone.

He hadn’t expected his parents to side with the other party, offering him up to the little girl to vent her anger.

It wasn’t anger or frustration that filled him—it was shock and sadness.

The parents who usually spoiled him and gave him everything he wanted were now showing such helpless and defeated expressions because of someone else.

A heavy weight pressed down on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

If he hadn’t caused this trouble, things wouldn’t have escalated like this…

He regretted it deeply, feeling overwhelmed with guilt.

Tears streamed down his face as he shut his eyes, ready to endure whatever came his way. His parents were already bearing the burden of his mistakes. The least he could do was obey them now.

Yu Jinxiao casually picked up a stone from the ground, roughly the same size as the one the boy had thrown earlier, and handed it to Yuanyuan. “We won’t bully anyone—just use the same size stone.”

The dazed little Yuanyuan took the stone, glanced at her father, and then at the boy.

The narrow-eyed boy looked terrified, his shoulders hunched, tears staining his cheeks. His pants were still torn from earlier, exposing bruised and scraped knees that hadn’t been treated.

He stood there trembling, eyes tightly shut, looking utterly pitiful.

“Are you ready?” Yu Jinxiao’s voice was cold and commanding.

“Ready!” Yuanyuan’s chirpy voice responded.

“Throw it at him.”

Without hesitation, Yuanyuan tossed the small stone in her hand.

The entire scene fell into a sudden, eerie silence.

Even the birds in the trees seemed to have stopped chirping, making the atmosphere feel even more tense.