*Slap...* Qiu Yan slapped Gu Xiaoran's palm.

With one slap, Gu Xiaoran's palm turned bright red and burned, and then his eyes reddened.

My mother was too ruthless.

Beside her, Zhu Juan's heart trembled as well. "Master, please spare the young master."

She looked at Gu Xiaoran, "Young Master, quickly apologize."

Gu Xiaoran turned her face away, "I did nothing wrong, why should I admit it!"

Seeing Qiu Yan strike him with her palm again, Gu Xiaoran quickly withdrew his hand, and his body became unsteady.

"Mother, it hurts, Xiao Ran's hand hurts."

Seeing Gu Xiaoran being punished, Zhu Juan felt sorry for her as well. "Young mistress, a mistake is a mistake, let's not hold a grudge."

Gu Xiaoran kept his face turned away, and this time, he pursed his lips and remained silent.

"Hold out your hand!" Qiu Yan said sternly. Gu Xiaoran's disordered breathing revealed her fear.

"Mother, Xiao Ran's hand hurts." He switched to his left hand, but because of Qiu Yan's gaze, he stretched out his right hand again.

*Slap...* A palm strike landed, Qiu Yan hitting Zhu Juan's hand.

Zhu Juan burst into tears as she pulled Gu Xiaoran behind her, shielding her from view.

"Master, if you must punish someone, punish me instead. Don't hit the child anymore."

Gu Xiaoran choked back a sob, but didn't cry out. "Mother doesn't like Xiaoran anymore."

Qiu Yan paused slightly and withdrew her hand.

"Xiao Ran, do you know that you almost caused a disaster? If someone had died, how would you have handled it?"

"I did nothing wrong!" Gu Xiaoran felt that her mother was too fierce today.

Looking at Gu Xiaoran's tearful eyes and swollen right hand, Qiu Yan felt a pang of heartache after hitting Gu Xiaoran.

Gu Xiaoran is still only a four-year-old child, and there are many things he doesn't understand yet.

What she needs to do is figure out how to correct him and guide him.

Severe punishment will only backfire.

Her younger brother and sister are both well-behaved and sensible, and under normal circumstances, they don't cause her any worry.

But Qiu Yan felt that Gu Xiaoran was not good at educating children.

She turned her back and said, "You did nothing wrong, I was wrong, I shouldn't have hit you." How could she punish a child like that?

She was also terrified afterward.

She lifted her foot and walked away, intending to go to the yard for some fresh air.

"Mother!" Gu Xiaoran panicked.

"Mother... Mother, don't go! Mother did nothing wrong. Xiao Ran shouldn't have made Mother angry." Gu Xiao Ran quickly chased after her and hugged Qiu Yan tightly from behind.

"They say that Xiao Ran was born of a mother but not raised by one."

If Mother doesn't want Xiaoran anymore, then Xiaoran will have no mother.

Because of Qiu Xiaobao's instigation, those children always liked to bully Gu Xiaoran.

Although Gu Xiaoran didn't fully understand what they were saying, he was extremely sensitive to the words "wild child".

This is also the reason why Gu Xiaoran has been frequently hurting people recently.

Gu Xiaoran knew he didn't have a biological mother, so he was filled with anxiety and insecurity. "Xiaoran isn't an orphan."

Qiu Yan paused and turned around.

She was no longer as stern as before, and her heart was filled with bitterness.

“Xiao Ran is not a wild child. If anyone talks about you like that again, tell me and I will stand up for you.”

Those two older sisters were talking about you today, weren't they?

"Mm." Gu Xiaoran nodded. "They didn't say Xiaoran was an orphan, but they said that Xiaoran doesn't have a mother. After her mother and father get married and have younger siblings, they won't want Xiaoran anymore."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan became angry, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Just now... I was afraid that if you heard that, you would really not want Xiaoran anymore."

"Don't worry, that kind of thing is impossible."