Da Bao glared fiercely at He Xiufang. Under extreme fear, what burst forth was an unprecedented courage.
As He Xiufang approached, he staggered to his feet and tightly shielded Er Bao and Xiao Bao behind him.
“You’re not allowed to say that about my brother and sister!”
He Xiufang grabbed his ear with one hand, twisting it hard. Da Bao’s ear turned red as if it were about to bleed.
Da Bao grabbed her arm with both hands, opened his mouth wide, and bit down fiercely.
“Ow! You shameless brat—let go of me! Gu Zhiming, are you blind? Your wife is about to be bitten to death by this wretched child and you’re just standing there? It hurts so much!”
Da Bao was ruthless—no matter what, he refused to let go.
The taste of blood filled his mouth, while He Xiufang cried out in pain, tears streaming down her face.
Seeing this, Gu Zhiming hurried over from the corner to pull Da Bao away.
But Da Bao was determined to bite off a piece of He Xiufang’s flesh and refused to loosen his grip.
“You little bastard, how dare you bite people? Let go right now, or I’ll beat all three of you brothers to death today!”
Gu Zhiming grabbed Xiao Bao from behind, trying to pull him away.
Logically, a child shouldn’t have such strength—but they had pushed him too far.
Afraid he’d lose his chance to fight back, Da Bao bared his teeth like a little wolf.
“If you don’t let go, I’ll beat your brother and sister to death today!”
He Xiufang wailed in pain. Gu Zhiming glanced at the stunned Er Bao and Xiao Bao nearby and seemed to find a solution.
Da Bao’s expression wavered. He couldn’t let his impulsiveness harm his siblings.
In the end, Da Bao released his bite.
He Xiufang immediately slapped him across the face, splitting the corner of his mouth.
A ringing filled Da Bao’s ears—everything became a sharp buzzing noise.
Bang—!
The sound of the door being kicked open echoed.
Da Bao collapsed to the ground, struggling for a long time but unable to get back up.
Darkness clouded his vision. Before He Xiufang could strike him again, he heard someone break in.
“He Xiufang, are you even human? How can you lay hands on such young children? Just because you’re their elder, you think you can act however you want? If the neighbors testify, this is child abuse!”
Jiang Yunshu rushed in, still holding a hoe she had borrowed on the way. She was panting heavily from hurrying back in such a rush.
Seeing Jiang Yunshu, Er Bao and Xiao Bao felt as if they had seen a light.
Instinctively, they hid behind her.
“Jiang Yunshu, I haven’t even settled accounts with you for today’s matter yet! Look at how you’ve led our children astray! And you dare come here? I’m disciplining my own family’s children—what’s it got to do with you? If you’ve got the guts, report me to the police and have me arrested!”
He Xiufang showed the wound on her arm. Even if the police came today, she would argue her case!
She had worked so hard raising these children—who would’ve thought they’d turn out to be such ungrateful wretches?
No matter how you put it, this was a family matter!
Even if a husband beat his wife half to death, it was still considered fine—so what was wrong with her disciplining a few kids?
Jiang Yunshu didn’t bother arguing. She hoisted the hoe again and charged straight at He Xiufang.
“You’re already in your thirties—how can you have the nerve to say such things? Today, I’ll teach you a lesson on behalf of these children’s parents!”
Fortunately, Jiang Yunshu had arrived in time.
On her way back earlier, the more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt—especially after running into a few village aunties at the entrance.
The aunties spoke with deep sighs about the children’s suffering.
He Xiufang believed in “spare the rod, spoil the child.”
She doted on her own son, but never held back when beating and scolding these three children.
Listening to them, Jiang Yunshu felt a chill of fear.
The children were already malnourished—their frail bodies could barely withstand even a gust of wind.
If they were beaten again, forget Da Bao and Er Bao—even Xiao Bao might not survive the night.
The aunties’ vivid descriptions made Jiang Yunshu immediately turn back.
In her haste, she didn’t even think to grab a proper tool.
Fortunately, she ran into Uncle Wang returning from the fields. After briefly explaining the situation, she borrowed his hoe and rushed over—arriving just in time to witness this scene.
He Xiufang hadn’t expected Jiang Yunshu to actually act.
Startled, she quickly hid behind Gu Zhiming.
Seeing Da Bao lying on the ground, Jiang Yunshu’s heart ached.
She set the hoe aside and helped him up.
The little boy had blood flowing from his forehead and arms.
Er Bao and Xiao Bao hurried over as well.
Er Bao sobbed softly, tears falling like rain. “Brother… does it hurt?”
Usually, when their aunt got angry, they were beaten too.
But Da Bao had never bled this much before. He would probably have to go to the clinic again.
Their aunt hadn’t even wanted to pay for Xiao Bao’s medicine—if they went to treat Da Bao’s wounds, the doctor might just turn them away.
Perhaps because someone was finally standing up for him, Da Bao found his courage again.
He broke free from Jiang Yunshu’s embrace and tried to charge at He Xiufang again—but Jiang Yunshu pulled him tightly back into her arms.
The commotion Jiang Yunshu caused drew a crowd.
Neighbors who had been watching from over the walls also came over, nearly filling the Gu family’s courtyard.
“Eldest daughter-in-law, what terrible mistake did the children make to deserve such anger? Look at how badly you’ve beaten them—another couple of slaps and you’ll ruin them!”
Aunt Zhang, still carrying firewood on her back, had originally come to watch the excitement but was shocked by the children’s condition.
“Old woman Zhang, you must be blind in your old age! Can’t you see this child went crazy first? He’s got some kind of madness—I almost got bitten to death!”
He Xiufang exposed the wound on her arm.
Da Bao had bitten so hard he nearly tore off a piece of her flesh. The wound was deep and bleeding heavily—truly a frightening sight.
Just as everyone hesitated, a newly married young woman from next door spat on the ground.
“You think everyone here is blind? If you hadn’t tried to beat these children to death, would he have been driven to bite you? Stop playing the victim!”
Jiang Yunshu carefully examined the children’s injuries.
All three had wounds of varying severity—some clearly inflicted today.
Er Bao’s neck bore the most obvious marks. She was a little girl—those injuries would likely leave scars.
Fury surged in Jiang Yunshu’s chest.
She picked up the hoe again and told the children to hide in the corner.
Once she made sure they were safe from harm—
She suddenly swung the hoe straight at He Xiufang!