CHAPTER 196: CHAPTER 196: SOONER OR LATER, YOU’LL REAP WHAT YOU SOW

196 Sooner or Later, You’re Asking for Trouble

Zhao Zhitong and her older brothers and sisters were playing a game of toss the sandbag, their joyous laughter and chatter unending.

Just as the sandbag was tossed astray again, a little boy suddenly rushed out from the side and picked up the sandbag they had thrown.

The little boy was around the same age as Zhao Zhitong and slightly chubby. Judging by his clothes and appearance, he seemed like a child who was pampered and indulged at home.

It was just that his punchable expression was truly unlikable.

Zhao Zhitong, who was standing in the middle as the player about to be targeted, trotted over and reached out with her small hand, saying, "Thank you for helping me pick it up."

The little boy was currently studying the sandbag with curiosity. Hearing Zhao Zhitong’s words, he immediately put the hand holding the sandbag behind his back, his face stiffening, clearly unwilling to give it up.

Zhao Zhitong said, "This is our sandbag. You have to return it to me. However, if you want to play, we can include you."

That little boy glanced at Zhao Zhitong, curled his lip, and retorted stubbornly, "Who wants to play with you?! You say it’s your sandbag, do you have proof? This is something I found. It fell on the ground, so it was ownerless. I picked it up, so it’s mine!"

Seeing how aggressive and unreasonable he was, Zhao Zhitong became quite angry and said, her cheeks puffed, "We were playing toss the sandbag, so of course it would be thrown out! We threw it, so of course it’s ours! Give it back to me now!"

The little boy, his face set stubbornly, said aggressively, "No, I won’t give it back, I won’t! Whatever I pick up is mine!"

After saying that, he stuck his head out and spat directly onto Zhao Zhitong’s outstretched little hand.

Zhao Zhitong froze instantly, feeling a wave of malice spread from her hand throughout her body. ...

Then, the next second, she let out a loud cry, "WAAH! It’s so disgusting! My hand is dirty..."

Hearing Zhao Zhitong’s cry, Zhao Cheng’s and Zhao Yu’s expressions changed instantly. They sprinted over and stood protectively in front of Zhao Zhitong, pushing the little boy away. "Hey, what do you think you’re doing? How dare you bully my sister!"

Sun Daji and the others also rushed over. "What happened, Little Cousin? Did Chen Xiaofeng bully you?"

Zhao Zhitong nodded, pointed at Chen Xiaofeng, and complained loudly, "He wouldn’t give us our sandbag, and he even spat on my hand! It’s so disgusting..."

Sun Daqing was a large boy. Hearing that his little cousin was being bullied, he immediately strode menacingly up to the little boy and roared in a gruff voice, "Hey! Give us back our sandbag right now! And apologize to my little cousin, or I’ll beat you up!"

Such an intimidating display truly scared the little boy, but only for a moment; he still stubbornly refused to return their sandbag.

Finally, pushed to his limit by Sun Daji and the others, he got angry and shouted, "If I can’t play, then nobody gets to play!"

Shouting this, he threw the sandbag directly into a muddy puddle by the road. After throwing it, he even viciously stomped on it several times!

Instantly, the small sandbag was submerged in the filthy puddle, completely caked in mud, becoming a dingy, dirty mess.

Only then did he withdraw his foot, satisfied, and look triumphantly at Sun Daji and the others. "There you go! Go get it~ HA HA HA."

After laughing, he made a face at Sun Daji, looking extremely smug. "Go get it. Why aren’t you going?"

This infuriated everyone. Zhao Zhitong screamed, "You’ll pay for my sandbag!"

That sandbag had been specially sewn for her by Sun Mei just last night using old cloth, and Sister Yaya had even embroidered a cute little flower on it.

It was made specifically for playing with her older brothers and sisters today. Now it was trampled in a muddy puddle, dirty and soaking wet, completely unplayable.

Zhao Zhitong was so furious her eyes turned red. She directly slapped Chen Xiaofeng’s face with the right hand he had spat on.

Chen Xiaofeng lost his balance and plopped onto the ground.

Zhao Zhitong exclaimed, "PTUI! You bad kid!"

Sun Daji and the others were also burning with anger, glaring viciously at him.

The little boy sat on the ground, stunned for a long moment. Then, he lifted his head, closed his eyes, and with a WAAH, began to howl at the top of his lungs. His crying was so loud and piercing that Zhao Zhitong instinctively covered her ears.

The next second, a young woman about Sun Mei’s age rushed out from next door. She immediately swept her son into her arms, crying out, "My child!" After quickly checking that he was unharmed, she turned her furious gaze on Zhao Zhitong and the others, snarling, "What are you doing? Bullying people?!"

"Mother~" The little boy immediately hugged the woman and started to wail, complaining, "Mother, it was them! They wanted to hit me—BOO HOO HOO—and they wouldn’t let me play with the sandbag!"

Zhao Zhitong immediately retorted angrily, "Stop slandering us! We didn’t hit you. You were the one who threw our sandbag into the puddle and got it dirty first. You spat on my hand, and you only fell because you lost your balance."

Sun Daji and the others instantly chimed in.

"Yes, yes! He fell down on his own, and he was the one who threw our sandbag into the puddle! Don’t listen to him; he’s the one who started it and is now playing the victim!"

"Look, our sandbag is all covered in water and mud! We can’t play with it anymore! You owe us a new sandbag!"

...

At this time, Sun Mei and Aunt Liu from the Liu Clan heard the commotion outside the courtyard and came out. They saw a woman holding a bawling child, confronting Zhao Zhitong and the others.

Sun Mei recognized the woman. It was Granny Guan’s third daughter from next door, Sun Ying—the very one who had snatched away her marriage prospect back then.

She was just like her mother, Granny Guan, always wanting to compare herself to Sun Mei in everything. Consequently, neither of them could stand the sight of the other; every encounter was like drawn swords.

Sun Mei gave her an unfriendly look and asked, "What’s going on here?"

Hearing Sun Mei’s voice, Zhao Zhitong immediately closed her eyes and, imitating Chen Xiaofeng, started wailing and complaining, "Mother, he threw my sandbag into the puddle, stomped on it, and even spat on my hand! Look, EWWW, it’s so disgusting! I don’t even want my hand anymore..."

Saying this, she held out her hand for Sun Mei to see.

Sun Mei glanced at Zhao Zhitong’s hand, then at the filthy sandbag in the puddle. Her gaze then fell on Sun Ying, her tone not at all pleasant, "Sun Ying, you need to manage your child. Indulging him like this is harming him."

Aunt Liu from the Liu Clan pulled Sun Daji and the others over, nodding in agreement. "That’s right, Sun Ying. As the saying goes, ’To spoil a child is to destroy a child.’ If you keep indulging your son like this, he’ll get into serious trouble sooner or later."

Sun Ying’s mood had already soured the moment she saw Sun Mei. Now, hearing the two of them speak ill of her son, she flew into a rage, shouting, "What gives you the right to speak like that? Does my child need you to teach me how to raise him?"

"Honestly! It’s just a worn-out sandbag. So what if it was thrown in the water? Just take it out and dry it, and it’ll be fine. Look at how petty you are."