Zhang Chunxue became more and more angry as he spoke, his chest heaving violently.

"Mom! We don't dare! How could we dare!" Zhong Chengfa spoke first, hastily defending himself, "Yes, he started it! He even cursed at Hong Qing!"

Zhong Chengren was not to be outdone, stiffening his neck and retorting, "Bullshit! You were the one who started it all! And you even called my daughter names!"

"Shut up!" Zhang Chunxue shouted, interrupting their new round of quarrel.

She pointed to the corner of the yard and said, "Everyone, get over there and kneel down! No one is allowed to get up without my permission!"

Although Zhong Chengfa and Zhong Chengren were not convinced, they finally did not dare to be stubborn after seeing Zhang Chunxue's murderous eyes and the glaring kitchen knife on the ground.

Both of their faces were covered in bruises and looked in a miserable state.

Zhong Cheng walked to the south corner of the yard in a sullen manner and knelt down with his head down.

Zhong Chengren didn't want to kneel with Zhong Chengfa, so he walked to the west corner with an unhappy look on his face and knelt down.

The two brothers didn't look at each other, with half the yard between them, and were sulking with each other.

Zhang Chunxue snorted heavily, then bent down to pick up the kitchen knife on the ground, turned around and went back into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Zhong Chengyi was still holding Zhong Yuanyuan and coaxing her clumsily.

But Zhong Yuanyuan didn't know what was wrong. Her little face was red from crying and her voice was a little hoarse, but she just couldn't stop.

Zhang Chunxue glanced at Zhong Chengyi suspiciously, then looked at her granddaughter who was crying breathlessly: "Why are you still crying? It's been half an hour."

Zhong Chengyi showed a trace of embarrassment on his face and laughed dryly: "I... I don't know how to comfort a child. The more I comfort her, the more she cries."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhong Hongqing, who had been huddled by the stove, watching all this silently, suddenly spoke timidly.

"Grandma, I...I just saw Uncle San secretly pinching my sister's butt."

The smile on Zhong Chengyi's face froze instantly, and he turned his head in disbelief to look at Zhong Hongqing.

This little bastard!

He never thought that he pulled the boy away with good intentions, but ended up being told off by this little brat!

Zhong Chengyi was so angry that his face turned green. He gritted his teeth and muttered softly, "If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have pulled you away! I wish they would have beaten you up!"

Zhang Chunxue took Zhong Yuanyuan in his arms, his face gloomy enough to look like water dripping out of it.

She raised her foot and kicked Zhong Chengyi on the thigh: "Get out of here and kneel down!"

Zhong Chengyi was caught off guard and was kicked, staggering and almost falling.

He widened his eyes, his face full of grievance and disbelief: "Mom, I..."

Before he could finish his words, Zhang Chunxue interrupted him coldly: "Stop talking nonsense! Get out! You're just like them, a tough nut to crack!"

Zhong Chengyi gritted his teeth, but didn't dare to talk back. He had to run out of the kitchen with a bitter face and his head in his hands.

The wind was strong in the yard. When he came out, he saw his two brothers, one at the south corner and the other at the west corner, both kneeling with their heads bowed, ignoring each other.

He sighed and was too lazy to choose a place, so he simply found an open space in the east. His knees went weak and he knelt down with a plop.

The three brothers filled the entire yard and looked very much like the clay Buddhas in the temple, except that they were much more miserable than the Buddhas - one had a swollen nose and face, one had blood at the corner of his mouth, and another had dust marks all over his trouser legs.

At this time, there was a sound of footsteps outside the door. It was Zhong Xiaoxiao who came back from playing outside.

As soon as she entered the courtyard, she was stunned: "Oh my god, big brother, second brother, third brother, what's wrong with you? Are you guys doing a collective confession?"

Zhong Chengyi winked at her and whispered, "Xiaoxiao! Come here quickly! This is such an injustice!"

Zhong Xiaoxiao walked over suspiciously, looked around, and asked quietly, "What's going on? Is there a commotion at home?"

"What else can I do?" Zhong Chengyi lowered his voice and recounted the entire incident, exaggerating it. He then patted his chest to emphasize his innocence. "I pinched Yuanyuan to stop them from fighting, to make her cry a little so that Mom would come out to mediate. And now, I've become the scapegoat!"

At this point, he added pitifully, "Please say a few good words for me, or my old back will really give up."

But Zhong Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him and ruthlessly sabotaged him: "You can't pinch a child's butt either. She's so small, and if you pinch her too hard it'll definitely hurt! You deserve it!"

After saying that, she clapped her hands and stood up, "Okay, I'll go in and take a look at the situation."

She turned and went to the kitchen, ignoring the three kneeling men.

The yard suddenly became quiet, with only the three brothers sulking in silence, and the rustling of leaves in the wind as their companion.

After a moment, someone couldn't help but speak first -

Zhong Chengyi sighed: "Brother, do you see, what are the three of us now? Xiaoxiao is the apple of Mom's eye."

Zhong Chengfa curled his lips and said sourly, "The three of us put together are not as effective as a word from that damn girl! Especially the third brother, don't think you are a good person!"

"Are you crazy?" Zhong Chengyi immediately retorted, "Who are you scolding? Did I provoke you?"

Zhong Chengren, who had been silent all the time, suddenly interrupted:

"Didn't you dote on Big Brother and Hongqing the most before? Now Mom changes her attitude faster than turning the pages of a book. Can you bear it?"

He shook his head, looking gloating, "If someone didn't know, they'd think you were a baby waiting to be fed. Why are you being so aggrieved?"

This sentence directly hit the sore spot, and Zhong Chengfa's anger, which had originally subsided a little, began to flare up again.

"Damn it!"

Zhong Cheng's eyes were wide open with anger, his upper body heaving slightly, and he looked like he was ready to pounce and beat someone up at any time!

"Brother, don't!" Seeing that the situation was not good, Zhong Chengyi quickly reached out to stop him and whispered, "If you dare to stand up and try, do you believe that Mom will chase us out with a knife and kill the three of us!"

Hearing this, the air froze instantly.

Thinking about Zhang Chunxue's murderous look just now, and then looking at the shadow of a kitchen knife dangling at the kitchen door, they all retracted their necks, and then obediently straightened their posture to continue kneeling as punishment, each with their own thoughts, feeling extremely helpless.

At this time, the kitchen was filled with smoke.

Zhang Chunxue sat by the stove, holding Zhong Yuanyuan and coaxing her gently, patting her little butt lightly with her hands. Her movements were so gentle that they didn't resemble that of a usual female demon, but there was still a cloud of gloom between her brows, and it was obvious that she was still angry.

Suddenly a tall and thin figure flashed into the room.

"grandmother……"

Only a soft sound was heard coming from the door. It was Hongqing who came in holding the corner of Zhong Xiaoxiao's clothes. The little head looked around, feeling a little scared and a little expectant.

"Mom," Zhong Xiaoxiao hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't dare to plead. She just pretended to be nonchalant and smiled, changing the subject: "Mom, let me hold Yuanyuan! You cook first?"