Chapter 41 My older sister is too scary, Zhuangzhuang apologizes
Xu Zhili frowned, feeling utterly disgusted by Zhuangzhuang's mother's unreasonable behavior when she couldn't get what she wanted, but she still suppressed her anger and responded calmly.
"Sister-in-law! What you're saying is absolutely unreasonable!"
“What we value isn’t this piece of candy, but the concept of ‘reason.’ No matter how small or precious it is, it’s ours! Just because we refuse to give it to An’an doesn’t mean you can let your child cry, throw a tantrum, and hit them.”
Her gaze was cold and sharp, shooting straight into Zhuangzhuang's mother's eyes. Her gaze was so intense that it made Zhuangzhuang's mother feel uneasy.
"You, as a mother, only think about how you can benefit yourself, never caring whether others are uncomfortable or happy! You really need to think about this!"
She paused, her tone icy and prophetic, "If you spoil your child like this and act so unreasonably, who in the village will want to talk to you two anymore!"
The atmosphere on the oxcart suddenly became as tense as a fully drawn bowstring.
The older women exchanged knowing glances.
An older woman with her hair in a bun pouted and lowered her voice: "Zhuangzhuang is such a spoiled brat! Milk candy is so precious, why should her son have to give it to her just because he wants it? This is hilarious, it's making me laugh so hard!"
An elderly woman next to her immediately chimed in, patting her cheeks, "That's right! What Xu, the educated youth, said makes sense. He needs to be disciplined properly. He can't just try to pocket the good things he sees. I've never seen anyone like that before. Doesn't he feel ashamed?"
In the corner, an older woman who hadn't said a word shook her head and muttered under her breath, "Tsk, this city girl... she's got quite a temper."
Lu Yanchen sensed something was wrong, and his body tensed up immediately.
He pretended nothing was wrong, quietly shifted his feet, and subtly changed his position, standing steadily between Xu Zhili and her siblings and Zhuangzhuang's mother.
As soon as Zhuangzhuang's mother makes the slightest move, he can instantly intervene to stop her from making things difficult for Xu Zhili and her brother.
He could not participate in the woman's verbal battle, but his protective stance was silent yet firm.
Seeing that the crowd seemed to be siding with the other side, Zhuangzhuang's mother became even more furious. She decided to tear off the mask of civility, pointing her finger at Xu Zhili's nose, spitting as she cursed in the most vicious local dialect.
"You stinking outsider! Mind your own business in our village! Go back to your city! What are you pretending to be here for!"
Xu Zhili's eyes suddenly turned cold and sharp, as if they were filled with ice.
She gently pushed Xu Zhian behind her towards Lu Yanchen, and then slowly stood up.
The oxcart was already unstable, but when she stood there, her body was as steady as a rock, and an invisible sense of pressure instantly spread out.
She took a step forward, her gaze sharp as a knife, piercing straight into Zhuangzhuang's mother's eyes. Her voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling intensity, each word spoken with deliberate pause.
“This isn’t a matter for your village. It’s because your son is ill-mannered and you, as his mother, are irresponsible! He cried, grabbed candy, hit people, and spoke rudely. Shouldn’t you apologize? Or do you think that just because you’re from this village, you can bully us new educated youth and act with impunity?”
Her imposing manner completely overwhelmed Zhuangzhuang's mother's shrewishness.
Zhuangzhuang's mother was intimidated by Xu Zhili's gaze and aura, and instinctively took a small step back, bumping into the car floor. However, she refused to admit defeat and stubbornly stuck out her neck despite her fierce appearance.
"What does this kid know! You...you're an adult arguing with a child, how shameless!"
Xu Zhili's lips curled into a cold smile, devoid of any warmth.
"The child may be ignorant, but are you, a grown man in your forties, also ignorant? Spoiling a child is like killing a child, don't you understand this principle? This matter is not over until you apologize today!"
Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly moved with lightning speed! Not to hit her, but to precisely grab the finger that Zhuangzhuang's mother was pointing at her with, the movement so fast that it was impossible to see.
Zhuangzhuang's mother felt as if her fingers were being clamped by iron clamps, and a sharp pain shot through her. She immediately screamed like a pig being slaughtered.
"Ouch! That hurts so much! Let go! You crazy girl, how dare you hit someone! Help! The educated youth are hitting someone!"
She struggled desperately, trying to scratch Xu Zhili's face with her other hand, but was easily brushed away by the other party.
Xu Zhili did not loosen her grip at all; instead, she pressed her fingers back slightly, causing Zhuangzhuang's mother to bend over in pain, cold sweat pouring down her back.
Xu Zhili looked down at her, her voice cold, "Hit you? You'd dirty my hands. Make your son apologize! Now! Right now! Otherwise, I won't hesitate to teach this finger a lesson!"
She had dealt with people and zombies a hundred times more ferocious than this in the apocalypse, so this level of deterrence was second nature to her.
Her eyes told the other person that she absolutely meant what she said.
The entire oxcart was completely silent, save for Zhuangzhuang's mother's painful gasps and Zhuangzhuang's terrified, suppressed sobs.
Everyone was stunned by Xu Zhili's thunderous methods and icy aura, including Bai Linlin, whose eyes widened in disbelief.
Lu Yanchen lowered his eyes to hide the smile in them, but what he saw more clearly was understanding.
Seeing his mother's pained expression and Xu Zhili's icy, murderous gaze, Zhuangzhuang was instantly overwhelmed by immense fear, which drowned out any thoughts of throwing a tantrum.
He burst into tears of genuine fear, and before his mother could yell again, he sobbed and shouted in Xu Zhian's direction, "I...I'm sorry! I was wrong, I shouldn't have taken your candy! Waaaaaah..."
This time, Zhuangzhuang was so frightened that he burst into tears, crying his eyes out.
He was filled with fear, feeling that this older sister was terrifying, and the thought of wanting to go home kept echoing in his mind. Then he burst into tears.
Upon hearing the apology, Xu Zhili glanced at Zhuangzhuang, whose face was covered in snot and tears from crying, and then gave Zhuangzhuang's mother a cold look.
Confirm that the other party is filled with fear and resentment, and has no power to resist.
She then flung Zhuangzhuang's mother's fingers away as if she had thrown away something dirty.
Zhuangzhuang's mother clutched her throbbing, red, and swollen fingers, filled with shock, fear, and hatred. Clutching her still-crying son, she huddled in the far corner of the oxcart, no longer daring to curse, only glaring venomously at Xu Zhili with her eyes filled with resentment, her body still trembling slightly.
Xu Zhili acted as if nothing had happened, calmly patting non-existent dust off her hands.
She didn't look at the mother and child again, turned around and squatted down, hugging the frightened Xu Zhian tightly in her arms again, gently comforting her in a voice only the two of them could hear, "An'an, don't be afraid, it's okay, your sister is here."
She was completely different from her cold demeanor just moments before.
She looked up, her gaze calmly sweeping over the various expressions on the faces of the people in the car, finally settling on the front.
The old man driving the cart had been listening intently, and at just the right moment, he called out, "Whoa! We've arrived at the commune!"
The old oxcart finally came to a wobbly stop in front of the dusty supply and marketing cooperative.
The silence on the bus was broken, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief as they got up to get off.
But the aftershocks of that conflict, like lingering smoke, still linger in everyone's hearts.
Xu Zhili, carrying Xu Zhian, jumped off the car nimbly first, her figure straight, as if nothing had happened.
Lu Yanchen and Bai Linlin followed closely behind.
From the corner, Zhuangzhuang's mother's sobs and low curses could be faintly heard, mixed with Zhuangzhuang's still-shaken sobs.
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