SFBF CH109

Word has it the little ones were in the back garden.

On his way there, Shen Qing had already been briefed on the situation: Xiao Hangying had brought his nephew, Xiao Miao, to the banquet this time.

And clearly, Xiao Miao still remembered Ao-zai.

During the last audition, not only was Xiao Miao outshone by Ao-zai, but he had also been thoroughly schooled by him. Harboring a grudge ever since, the moment he spotted Ao-zai watching the little fishes by the back garden pond, he charged straight at him!

Of course, Ao-zai was always closely accompanied. Not only was Duoduo standing right beside him watching him look at the fish, but Elder Song’s granddaughter, Song Yuke, was there too. Furthermore, the bodyguards and Ao-zai’s agent, Lin Wenjue, were all present.

Because of this, even though Xiao Miao charged over, he couldn’t get anywhere near Ao-zai. The moment Tian Yi saw an unfamiliar kid sprinting toward the young master, he intercepted him immediately.

Even so, everyone present broke out in a cold sweat. The Xiao kid had run incredibly fast, aiming straight for Ao-zai’s back. Had Tian Yi not been quick enough to block him, who knew what the consequences would have been?

Intercepted, Xiao Miao had a meltdown and started struggling wildly. He was just a child, lacking the ability to control his temper and impulses. Knowing only that he was thwarted from doing what he wanted, he grew furious and threw a tantrum, screaming words nobody could understand.

Unfortunately for him, Tian Yi was a former Special Forces operative; handling a little kid was a breeze. No matter how much Xiao Miao kicked and screamed, he couldn’t break free from the man’s grip.

Under these circumstances, Tian Yi certainly wasn’t going to let him near the young master.

But since the kid’s parents were nowhere to be found, and Tian Yi couldn’t exactly beat up a child… it turned into a stalemate. Tian Yi simply stood his ground, not even using his hands, just acting as an impassable wall.

Unexpectedly, the exasperated Xiao Miao grabbed Tian Yi’s arm and chomped down on it.

This instantly infuriated Duoduo. As an adult, Tian Yi couldn’t hit a kid, but Gu Duo had no such qualms… The eldest young master personally took action, punching the screaming boy and demanding an apology.

Xiao Miao was stubborn. After taking the hit, he scrambled up and lunged at Gu Duo like a madman. His frantic shrieks finally attracted the person assigned to him—the middle-aged man who usually shadowed him.

However, the middle-aged man’s arrival didn’t deter Xiao Miao’s determination to fight Gu Duo. Gu Duo wasn’t afraid of him either, and the two boys grappled. Ao-zai, who absolutely couldn’t stand seeing anyone bully his older brother, didn’t just stand by; he immediately jumped in to help.

Thus, a one-on-one became a two-on-one.

But the two-on-one quickly reverted back to a one-on-one—Gu Duo hadn’t gone to that training camp for nothing.

Realizing his brother had the upper hand from the very start, Ao-zai stopped moving.

Song Yuke, who had been playing with them, asked in confusion, “Why did you stop fighting?”

Song Yuke was eight years old this year, a year older than Gu Duo, and relatively mature for her age.

Based on her observations, little boys rarely stopped halfway through a fight, whether they were just playing around or dead serious.

But Ao-zai, standing off to the side, simply shoved his little hands into his pockets. He said he was done fighting, and he meant it. He stated coolly, “Ao-zai doesn’t need to lift a finger.”

Song Yuke: “…”

Ao-zai’s voice was crisp: “My brother will win!… Hm?”

Right after delivering his cool line, someone squished his chubby cheek.

Song Yuke stared at her own hand in shock. “…I’m sorry, you’re just too cute. I-I-I couldn’t control myself!”

Ao-zai: …

Pouting with grievance, he rubbed his big, squishy cheek to get it back into shape.

Over there, Xiao Miao—who had already been pinned to the ground by Gu Duo—heard that this was Ao-zai’s brother. His eyes instantly turned red with rage. Drawing on some unknown burst of strength, he pushed Gu Duo off him when he was off guard and yelled, “You’re his brother?!”

—Xiao Miao remembered vividly that when he accused the little chubby cub of cheating, the cub had schooled him by quoting his older brother: something about ‘success having its reasons’ and ‘not always relying on external forces’…

Xiao Miao was even more infuriated now.

But pushing Gu Duo away had taken everything he had.

Compared to his brute thrashing, Gu Duo was clearly far more skilled.

And compared to his incessant shrieking, Gu Duo was vastly calmer.

His face remained completely tense, repeating only one sentence: “Apologize to my Uncle Tian.”

…

The two kids were fighting fiercely, making it genuinely hard for the adults to pull them apart.

Eventually, a few bodyguards stepped up and forcefully separated them. From the moment he saw an adult approaching from the other side, Tian Yi had ordered his men to contact Madame and President Gu…

Protecting the young master was his duty.

But the young master getting into a brawl with another kid? He genuinely didn’t know how to handle that.

Especially during the scuffle just now, Tian Yi saw clearly that his eldest young master was the one dealing the blows the entire time… The adult approaching from the other side was just that middle-aged man, and while it was inconvenient to pry the kids apart, the other side made zero effort to do so!

He neither pulled his kid back nor disciplined him… Since the other side wasn’t anxious, Tian Yi—seeing his young master holding the upper hand—was even less anxious. So he hadn’t rushed to break them up.

…

Therefore, by the time they were separated, the young master named Xiao Miao had his clothes torn and his face scraped.

Whereas their own young master was completely unscathed.

“Eldest Young Master, are you alright?” Even knowing he was unscathed, Tian Yi threw himself over with an exaggerated expression, checking Young Master Duo all over for injuries.

Gu Duo lowered his eyelids slightly, glanced at him, and said nothing. Keeping his back ramrod straight, he allowed the inspection and simply stated, “I’m fine.”

Tian Yi: “…”

Lately, he increasingly felt that a certain expression of Young Master Duo’s looked exactly like President Gu!

However, he saw the look in Young Master Duo’s eyes clearly. Tian Yi couldn’t help but smile where the other side couldn’t see… Young Master Duo had avenged him for that bite.

Although the two had been grappling, the only real damage Young Master Duo inflicted was that very first punch.

After that, he simply controlled Xiao Miao to keep him at bay while they grappled.

…He bit Uncle Tian once, so he punched him once.

Not excessive at all.

Of course, the reason he only threw one punch was… he still needed the other party to apologize.

“Apologize.” After being pulled apart, Gu Duo said coldly to Xiao Miao:

“You bit someone first, so you must apologize.”

“Not to mention, you tried to hurt my little brother.”

His tone was exceedingly flat.

It formed a sharp contrast with Xiao Miao, who was accustomed to shrieking.

Xiao Miao never expected that this little chubby cub’s brother, despite looking thin and frail, not only possessed great strength but also an imposing aura!

Facing the exact same situation, it was obvious that the person handling it with cool indifference was much cooler than the hysterical one.

Because someone who could maintain emotional stability clearly had much better self-control, appearing deeper and more formidable.

Xiao Miao couldn’t put this into words, but his uncle always scolded him for screaming and shouting. Every time his uncle criticized him for lacking depth, his face was full of disgust…

Hysterical Xiao Miao felt he was once again being looked down upon by the indifferent Gu Duo.

Even though there was no disgust in the eyes of the chubby cub’s brother as he looked at him.

There was absolutely nothing in his eyes…

At this moment, the middle-aged man shadowing Xiao Miao finally stepped forward. Looking down at the boy, seemingly unconcerned about the scrapes on his face, he simply said, “Young Master, Mr. Xiao said you are not to cause trouble here.”

Xiao Miao was terrified of his uncle, but not of this middle-aged man… unless the man used his uncle to threaten him.

The thought that his uncle was right here instantly extinguished Xiao Miao’s impulsive fury.

However, perhaps the commotion had been too loud, for it drew over a few young masters and misses who were clearly from wealthy families.

Tian Yi recognized a few of them: Gu Huairong’s (the eldest of the Gu family) children, Gu Hao and Gu You, as well as Third Miss Gu Huaixiang’s children, Gu Jie and Gu Ming.

Tian Yi didn’t recognize all the kids, but looking at the situation, the group of four or five were likely all “running with” the Gu family kids.

Among children, there was sometimes an even stricter hierarchy than among adults.

Clearly, the oldest, Gu Hao, was the “boss” of this crew.

Tian Yi had a bad feeling about this.

Tian Yi generally knew the reasons why President Gu had brought the young masters home to raise.

—It was simply because surviving in the Gu household was too difficult; they couldn’t stay there any longer!

Aside from the inaction of the Gu family adults, the fact that Gu Hao and these kids were complete terrors who constantly bullied the young masters was a major reason.

So, the moment he laid eyes on Gu Hao, Tian Yi was fully alert and on guard.

But to his surprise, Xiao Miao actually knew Gu Hao and his gang!

Xiao Hangying was deeply involved with the Gu family. When he recently visited them, he had brought Xiao Miao along, which was how Xiao Miao met Gu Hao and the rest.

Because the adults needed to socialize at the main gala up front, and with the media present, it was inconvenient to bring the kids. Thus, the back garden became the designated play area for the children.

Gu Hao and his posse had been huddled together whispering about something, but rushed over to watch the drama unfold when they heard the noise.

Upon arriving, they realized it truly was a spectacle—on one side was Xiao Miao, whom they had just met recently, and on the other were Gu Duo and Gu Ao, whom they hadn’t seen in a long time but remembered vividly…

Gu Hao and his group decided to stick around.

Xiao Miao was neither extroverted nor introverted, much like his uncle. Usually arrogant and dismissive of everyone, he could also adapt when it suited his interests.

He was merely acquainted with Gu Hao and the others; they had exchanged polite greetings, but weren’t particularly close.

But upon realizing that Gu Hao seemed to have bad blood with the Gu brothers he despised, Xiao Miao automatically gravitated toward Gu Hao’s group.

In a flash, Xiao Miao positioned himself right beside Gu Hao.

Gu Hao was, after all, a kid over ten. He glanced at the five-year-old Xiao Miao without speaking.

Xiao Miao was about the same age as Gu Ming, but his demeanor was far more mature. As Xiao Miao approached, Gu Ming gave him a strange look, seeming quite unwelcoming, and even let out a “Hmph.”

His expression was a spitting image of his mother, Third Miss Gu.

Xiao Miao kept a cold face the entire time, acting as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

Beside him, Gu Hao had already ordered the servants trailing them to bring over a chair.

At eleven years old, Gu Hao was the oldest of the group. Dressed in a small suit, he sat down and crossed his legs, looking rather pompous.

“Long time no see, Gu Duo.”

Once Xiao Miao was quietly standing behind him, Gu Hao took the lead and addressed the boys opposite them.

On the other side, Gu Duo held his little brother’s hand. He met the other boy’s gaze silently but calmly, without saying a word.

…Seeing this setup, Tian Yi instinctively moved to grab the young masters and pull them away.

Knowing the newcomers meant trouble, if they couldn’t afford to provoke them, they could at least hide!

But before the young masters could move, Gu Hao, sitting there putting on airs, sneered, “Who would have thought? After not seeing you for just a short while, you’ve become a young master too, Gu Duo.”

Tian Yi: …

If a kid tried to physically attack his young masters, Tian Yi could forcefully block them and ensure they remained unharmed.

But against verbal attacks like this, Tian Yi was powerless!

Gu Hao continued his provocations against Gu Duo.

Of the two brothers, Gu Duo had left a deeper impression on him. Back when they moved out of his house, Ao-zai was just a little bean who listened to everything his older brother said, which made Gu Duo’s role stand out prominently.

—In the Gu household, Gu Hao had always assumed that all the children, including those from affiliated families, had to obey him.

Until the brothers Gu Duo and Gu Ao showed up. Gu Duo didn’t obey him, and neither did Gu Ao.

In fact, Gu Ao only listened to Gu Duo!

This had made Gu Hao feel humiliated on more than one occasion. As a result, he hated the brothers even more, finding them completely eyesores while they were at the Gu estate.

Later, when the brothers were taken away by his Sixth Uncle, Gu Hao recalled his Sixth Uncle’s cold, strict demeanor and breathed a sigh of relief. He figured sending them to Sixth Uncle was basically a death sentence. He relaxed, glad he wouldn’t have to see them again.

But who could have imagined that one day he’d suddenly hear Gu Duo and Gu Ao had been formally adopted by his Sixth Uncle!

They went from complete orphans to kids with a father!

And most crucially, he heard that Gu Duo was studying like crazy at Sixth Uncle’s place and had already mastered several foreign languages…

When Gu Hao’s mother heard this news, she immediately enrolled Gu Hao in three extra cram schools!

What was even more infuriating was that Gu Duo had recently completed that training camp which all the elite children of Huacheng attended.

…At the age of seven.

Becoming the youngest attendee in the camp.

Yet, he graduated at the absolute top of his class!

This caused Gu Hao—who had attended that damn camp previously and learned absolutely nothing—to endure another severe scolding from his mother—

“Who said I sent you just for my own pride? I spent all that money to groom you just for face?!”

Gu Hao’s mother flatly refused to acknowledge what she had said two years ago.

…Two years ago, his mother had been playing mahjong while casually telling him that as long as he went, it was fine. He didn’t need to care about his grades, since nobody cared anyway.

But now, her attitude had flipped: “Fine, next time you have to go again! Go to the advanced class, and if you don’t bring back first place, Gu Hao, don’t you dare call me Mom!”

Gu Hao: …

This made Gu Hao hate Gu Duo to the absolute core all over again!

Because his parents told him, “You must accomplish what Gu Duo can accomplish! Otherwise, we could have just raised Gu Duo and Gu Ao instead. What’s the point of raising you?!”

!

Thinking about this made Gu Hao even angrier!

His mother had said those exact words the last time she added extra classes for him.

Gu Hao was simply overwhelmed with grievance and resentment.

Hearing it again this time, even though Gu Hao was angry and felt wronged, and resented his parents as well…

Ultimately, he still chose to vent all his anger onto Gu Duo.

Just like back when the brothers were living under their roof and he bullied them endlessly.

“Don’t think that just because you two were adopted by Sixth Uncle, you’re not orphans anymore.”

Facing the utterly composed Gu Duo, Gu Hao thought long and hard and decided this was the only thing that could truly hurt him.

He sneered, “You used to be an orphan, now you aren’t, but you’ll soon be one again. Everyone knows Sixth Uncle is dying.”

“Hey, kid, watch your mouth!”

Hearing this, Tian Yi was the first to lose it. “Is this how your adults taught you? What kind of young child speaks like that?!”

Tian Yi was packed with solid muscle; when he got serious, he was quite intimidating.

Some of the kids around Gu Hao were scared by him, but Gu Hao wasn’t afraid. Instead, he felt that being scolded by a servant in front of his lackeys was a massive blow to his ego.

Gu Hao instantly retorted, “What the hell are you?!”

“Gu Hao, what the hell do you think you are.”

A cold voice rang out. The volume wasn’t loud, but it cut through Gu Hao’s words with pinpoint accuracy.

Right after, Gu Duo stepped forward slowly, all by himself.

He wasn’t wearing a small suit. For such an occasion, Gu Duo’s attire even seemed casual—black straight-leg trousers, classic white skate shoes, and an unbranded short-sleeved T-shirt that looked like a custom piece from some exclusive designer. It was the kind of outfit where the ignorant wouldn’t see its value, but those who knew their stuff would be shocked by a single glance.

Because generally, very few people would be willing to waste such high-end custom tailoring on a growing child…

Clearly, the middle-aged man beside Xiao Miao knew his stuff.

When he saw Gu Duo’s clothes, cracks briefly appeared on his tight, expressionless face.

The seemingly low-key but actually exorbitant outfit made Gu Duo look even more slender and upright. This was especially true because of his habitual posture: back straight, shoulders pressed down, and neck extended. His gait was also exceptionally proper and formal: unlike many kids his age who still couldn’t regulate their walking and sitting postures, he walked with a commanding presence.

Seeing Gu Duo like this, Gu Hao immediately stood up from his chair: “What did you say?”

Gu Duo was already standing right in front of him.

After not seeing him properly for over half a year, Gu Hao realized Gu Duo had grown a lot taller.

Perhaps because boys hit their growth spurts later, Gu Hao hadn’t grown much recently, while Gu Duo had shot up from below his shoulder to just half a head shorter than him.

Seeing the taller Gu Duo, Gu Hao’s eyes held shock, followed by a displeased up-and-down once-over.

But this time, the normally silent Gu Duo looked him straight in the eyes and stated with unwavering conviction:

“My Big Dad isn’t going to die. He has already recovered. If you can’t even get that straight, Gu Hao, your information is way too outdated.”

—Gu Duo had already heard the gist of what happened when Big Dad went to the front garden to find Little Dad.

He had proactively sent someone to find out.

Little Dad had told him that all the bodyguard uncles following him could work for him.

Gu Duo knew that his Little Dad cared deeply about Big Dad’s safety and didn’t like people bringing up his health outside, so Gu Duo never mentioned it in public before either.

But after seeing Big Dad appear standing on his own two feet in front of everyone, and walking away hand-in-hand with Little Dad, Gu Duo knew they no longer had to hide Big Dad’s health condition.

So he directly revealed to the others that his Big Dad had fully recovered.

Clearly, Gu Hao was completely in the dark.

…To a great extent, Gu Hao’s information was indeed severely outdated.

Gu Duo couldn’t help but shoot him a look of contempt mixed with bewilderment: He’s already eleven, how is he still so incredibly naive?

Beside them, Tian Yi, who somewhat understood the young master’s thoughts: …Even though he also disliked Gu Hao, he still wanted to point out that eleven is an age for playing around; not everyone is as smart as you, Young Master!

Suddenly despised, Gu Hao angrily retorted, “How the hell am I outdated?!”

Evidently, he hadn’t caught any useful information from Gu Duo’s words.

Tian Yi: …

Okay, it was rare to find someone as simple-minded as Young Master Gu Hao.

Too lazy to deal with him, Gu Duo said flatly, “Besides, my Big Dad isn’t your ‘Sixth Uncle’.”

Not anymore.

He had heard the Gu family deeply angered Big Dad earlier, and Big Dad said he was going to sue them.

In Gu Duo’s eyes, this was the ultimate sign of Big Dad breaking ties with the Gu family.

So Big Dad would no longer be Gu Hao’s Sixth Uncle.

Clearly, Gu Hao didn’t know this either, and no adult had informed him yet.

It wasn’t entirely Gu Hao’s fault for being obtuse. Some adults easily ignored the existence of children, at least in the Gu family mansion.

Gu Duo had never experienced any respect, education, or guidance from the adults there, not even for a “legitimate eldest grandson” like Gu Hao.

Conversely, if an uninformed child caused trouble outside, the adults wouldn’t blame their own poor parenting or failure to inform the child. They would just blame the child for being bad.

Concluding this, Gu Duo’s gaze toward Gu Hao took on a hint of pity.

“Gu Hao, you really are too reckless. All brawn and no brains.”

…

Gu Duo’s voice was very light.

It sounded like he was making an objective assessment.

The other party: “…”

Even when arguing, Gu Duo hardly showed any emotional fluctuations, a fact Xiao Miao had just experienced firsthand.

But the other Gu family children, who knew Gu Duo better, were stunned. Never mind that Gu Duo used to rarely speak up to argue with anyone; even if he did, he wouldn’t blatantly launch a verbal attack with such sarcastic words!

Gu Jie, who was always smart, obediently followed Gu Hao, but never stopped thinking for herself, frowned. In her memory, the number of times Gu Duo physically fought Gu Hao outnumbered the times he verbally argued.

Moreover, looking at Gu Duo’s expression, it seemed he genuinely believed Gu Hao was stupid and felt sorry for him…

It felt as if… Gu Duo knew something they didn’t…

Gu Jie subconsciously furrowed her brows.

But the reckless Gu Hao couldn’t listen anymore. “What did you say?! I haven’t taught you a lesson in a few days and you’ve forgotten your place, haven’t you, Gu Duo?! How dare you mock me?!”

Before finishing his last word, Gu Hao uncontrollably lunged forward and shoved Gu Duo.

That shove did the trick. The seemingly frail Gu Duo’s expression shifted instantly. After stumbling back a step from the push, he suddenly charged forward and punched Gu Hao.

The technique was the exact same as when he hit Xiao Miao.

He hit Xiao Miao because the boy bit Uncle Tian.

He hit Gu Hao because his mouth was filthy!

The back garden was beautifully decorated, surrounded by colorful string lights.

The organizers had specially prepared a play area for the children attending the banquet. But right now, under the bright lights, several children were engaged in a chaotic brawl.

Gu Hao pushed Gu Duo, Gu Duo retaliated, and after taking a hard punch, Gu Hao went crazy. He called for the kids around him to attack together while he himself lunged forward to choke Gu Duo.

Unfortunately for him, back when they lived with the Gu family, Gu Duo and Gu Ao were often underfed, allowing Gu Hao to easily handle the two of them single-handedly.

Lately, however, Gu Duo had been eating well, getting proper nutrition, and even receiving physical training. Coupled with the rapidly shrinking height difference between them, Gu Hao’s attempt to choke Gu Duo not only failed, but his arms were forcefully twisted behind his back by Gu Duo, who then landed a swift kick on him.

Beside Gu Hao, Xiao Miao, who had been harboring malicious intentions, charged forward the moment he heard Gu Hao yell to attack together. He wanted to ambush Gu Duo, but he was spotted by Ao-zai, who had been anxiously tailing his older brother. Like a little cannonball, Ao-zai slammed into the charging Xiao Miao!

Xiao Miao was knocked to the ground, landing hard on his butt. Surprisingly, he didn’t cry out in pain. Biting his lip, he charged straight back at Ao-zai.

Yet, the four-year-old Ao-zai didn’t lose an inch against the five-year-old Xiao Miao. Who would have thought that this cute, soft, and squishy little chubby cub was actually a trained fighter? Ao-zai’s moves could only be described as fast, accurate, and ruthless.

If Shen Qing had been watching, he probably would have sighed and told anyone underestimating Ao-zai, Why mess with him? My little cub is an absolute OP protagonist!

Seeing Gu Hao and Xiao Miao taking hits, the group of kids following Gu Hao exchanged looks and prepared to rush in and help.

To them, Gu Hao’s word was law; they had never considered disobeying. Plus, they had the numbers advantage. No matter how tough Gu Duo and Gu Ao were, they couldn’t fight so many at once.

But just as they were about to charge, Song Yuke, who had been playing with Gu Duo’s group, suddenly shouted, “Wow, you aren’t going to gang up on them, are you? That’s so embarrassing.”

The other side: “…”

Aside from Gu You and Gu Jie, the rest of the opposing group were boys. Looking at Song Yuke, who was dressed in a pure white dress like a little princess, the young boys suddenly hesitated…

Ganging up was indeed embarrassing, especially when pointed out by a girl…

While some boys hesitated, five-year-old Gu Ming, who lacked such awareness, didn’t care. He sneakily darted forward.

Gu Ming was even more vicious. He was holding a toy gun, and seeing Gu Duo’s back turned to him, he rushed up to use it to ambush Gu Duo.

Spotting his movement, Song Yuke screamed, “Gu Duo, watch out!”

However, she was too far away to do anything. Then she realized she didn’t need to—before Gu Ming could get close, another boy suddenly dashed out from behind and kicked Gu Ming right over.

The boy also shouted, “Gu Duo, watch out!”

Hearing the voices, Gu Duo turned around. He saw Song Yuke, who had warned him, and Qian Jing, who had just kicked Gu Ming away.

Qian Jing was Gu Duo’s classmate from the training camp.

And Qian Jing had known Gu Hao for quite a while. His parents frequently brought him to these kinds of banquets, and over time, he got to know Gu Hao.

Qian Jing neither liked nor disliked Gu Hao, knowing that while Gu Hao was domineering, he wasn’t very smart. When they met, he’d say a few nice words, play together, and then go their separate ways with no real impact.

But Qian Jing never expected to run into Gu Duo here, and right off the bat, he witnessed the epic scene of Gu Duo directly confronting Gu Hao!

…Back in the training camp, he had assumed Gu Duo knew nothing but studying and training.

After all, Gu Duo rarely responded when others talked about him.

Who knew that people just hadn’t hit Young Master Gu Duo’s real sore spots!

Though he didn’t know their history, Qian Jing figured that if someone said his dad was going to die, he’d be furious too.

When he first spotted Gu Duo, Qian Jing was debating whether to go say hi, unsure if Gu Duo even remembered him… After all, Young Master Duo was a busy and important person.

But seeing Gu Duo and Gu Hao arguing like sworn enemies, Qian Jing hesitated again, thinking that since Gu Duo hadn’t noticed him anyway, he might as well pretend he didn’t exist.

But when he saw Gu Ming trying to ambush Gu Duo, and with a weapon in hand, Qian Jing didn’t have time to overthink.

He just sprinted up and kicked Gu Ming.

By the time Qian Jing processed what he had done, he was stunned. He swore he didn’t do this to curry favor with Young Master Gu Duo; he just couldn’t accept seeing someone as excellent as Gu Duo get hurt by a sneak attack…

But what else could he do now that he had made his move?

Qian Jing had no choice but to join the fray.

He actually hadn’t used much force when kicking Gu Ming, but who knew Gu Ming was such a weakling? The young master fell down and never got back up, unable to even hold his toy gun as he sat there crying for his mom.

Seeing this guy was no longer a threat, Qian Jing turned around and intercepted another kid charging alongside Gu Ming.

Hearing the commotion and seeing Qian Jing step in to help, Gu Duo was momentarily stunned.

Gu Hao wasn’t actually that easy to deal with. He was heavily built, and Gu Duo had been handling him with careful vigilance. Logically, Gu Duo shouldn’t have been distracted at such a critical moment.

But clear astonishment appeared on his face.

His memories of fighting Gu Hao in the past were too deeply ingrained, but back then, it was mostly him and Ao-zai being pinned down and beaten.

The two of them combined weren’t as old as Gu Hao.

Their combined frames couldn’t match Gu Hao’s either.

On top of that, Gu Hao always had plenty of people helping him “teach them a lesson.”

No one had ever stood on the same side as him and Ao-zai before.

So Gu Duo never imagined a day would come when someone would help them fight Gu Hao and his gang.

But now, looking at Song Yuke, who had run into the fray in her pretty princess dress, and Qian Jing, who was fighting for him…

This scene, this feeling, was completely foreign.

So foreign that it severely shocked Gu Duo.

At the same time, a strange sensation seemed to flow through his heart—something warm, moving, making his nose tingle…

Little Dad had said that he and Ao-zai would have many friends in the future.

At that time, Gu Duo didn’t understand why he needed friends.

But now…

After a split second of shock, Gu Duo snapped back to reality and sidestepped.

Gu Hao, who had been lunging at him while screaming, grasped thin air. This enraged Gu Hao even further. Barely catching his balance, he scrambled back up and charged at Gu Duo again.

However, the Gu Duo that turned back to face him had resolute eyes, and his movements seemed much sharper than before.

Since Qian Jing joined the brawl, the other kids who had wanted to help were bewildered by his defection and hesitated to get involved.

Gu Hao’s sister, Gu You, wanted to help, but was blocked by Song Yuke in her princess dress.

Despite her gentle attire, Song Yuke’s grandfather was a top-tier national actor. She had grown up practicing on film sets and had seen a lot of people. Compared to her, Gu You, who was accustomed to relying on her older brother, lost entirely on pure aura alone.

Gu You didn’t dare cross Song Yuke, and Gu Jie had absolutely no intention of getting involved.

She looked at Gu Ming crying on the ground, suddenly rolled her eyes, and ran off to find her mother.

So the field remained a 3v3.

Off to the side, Tian Yi: …

Seeing the overwhelming victory of his young masters in the “arena”, Tian Yi hurriedly led his men forward to intervene.

…To block the opposing adults, that is.

Originally, Tian Yi had wanted to break up the fight and separate the kids.

But seeing Gu Hao’s gang, who held absolute advantages in age and size, getting completely steamrolled—even chased and beaten—by his young masters’ group, Tian Yi almost laughed out loud as he charged forward. His attempts to break up the fight became a bit half-hearted… Cough, no! Fighting is wrong! They still need to be separated!

But hearing Young Master Gu Hao’s thuds and Young Master Ming’s wails, and looking at his young masters’ agile footwork and determined expressions, Tian Yi decided to be even more half-hearted… ah, no, to let them play around a little longer.

They’re just kids, after all!

He conveniently blocked the opposing servants who were trying to break up the fight.

Anyway, if the opposing parents complained later and made a fuss, they couldn’t say Tian Yi and his men didn’t try to break it up.

…Clearly, it was the people brought by Young Master Gu Hao who got in the way and prevented them from pulling the kids apart!

Besides, Young Master Gu Hao threw the first punch.

“Stop, stop! What are you doing?!” A shrill female voice pierced the air. It was Gu Huaixiang.

Gu Ming was still sitting on the ground, crying his lungs out for his mom. Seeing her son like this, Ms. Gu sprinted over in her high heels. Upon discovering that the ones fighting her son were Gu Duo and Gu Ao, Gu Huaixiang exploded, “What do you two think you’re doing?!”

With the opposing parent present, Tian Yi could no longer let the young masters “freestyle.” Gu Hao, Gu Ming, and Xiao Miao, who were being thoroughly beaten, were pulled away by Gu Huaixiang’s people.

Gu Huaiyao and Xiao Hangying arrived shortly after.

Thanks to Gu Huaixiang’s loud voice, the people who hadn’t gotten enough drama earlier were now traversing the corridor to gather here.

By this point, Gu Hao was practically beaten black and blue. He was panting heavily, cursing with extremely ugly and vulgar words—who knows who taught him those.

Xiao Miao didn’t know how to curse. Seeing his uncle walking toward him step by step, he stubbornly stood his ground, refusing to speak or cry.

Xiao Hangying actually approved of Xiao Miao’s demeanor. As he took large strides forward, he glanced at the two boys on the other side with a dismissive look.

He asked Xiao Miao, “What happened? Did you get into a fight?”

Because he was in a bad mood, the Movie Emperor’s voice was extremely low.

Xiao Miao shrank back slightly, not daring to admit he started the trouble. He merely said, “They teamed up to bully Brother Hao.”

“…”

Hearing this, Xiao Hangying looked at the group of kids behind Gu Hao and couldn’t help but curl his lip.

He knew exactly what kind of piece of work Gu Hao was—the “legitimate eldest grandson” spoiled to the heavens by the Gu family, yet utterly lacking in manners, cut from the exact same cloth as Gu Huaiyu back in the day.

Him, getting bullied?

More like he tried to bully others and got taught a lesson instead!

However, with things escalating to this point, Xiao Hangying really had nothing left to say to the Gu family. Seeing more media swarming around, he was too exhausted to deal with it and couldn’t be bothered with the Gu family’s drama. He simply grabbed Xiao Miao to pull him away.

Unexpectedly, Gu Huaixiang, unable to stand her son being bullied, started cursing loudly: “Gu Duo, Gu Ao! You two are still as ill-bred as ever! Why are you fighting? Why are you bullying your younger brother?! Is this how Shen Qing… how your aunt usually raises you?!”

Hearing this, Xiao Hangying stopped dead in his tracks, looking back at the two children in shock.

—These two were Shen Qing and Gu Huaiyu’s children?!

Gu Huaixiang knew Gu Huaiyu had adopted Gu Duo and Gu Ao, but she had only heard of the arrangement. She never believed Gu Huaiyu could raise these two properly, nor had she ever taken it to heart.

In her mind, she automatically assumed the two kids called Gu Huaiyu “Uncle” and Shen Qing “Aunt.”

Now that Gu Huaiyu wasn’t going to die, her mind was a mess, and she hadn’t given it much thought.

To her surprise, the moment she spoke, Ao-zai, standing next to Gu Duo, immediately retorted, “Shen Qing isn’t our aunt.”

Gu Huaixiang: ?

Ao-zai: “He’s our Dad!”

“Little Dad, Big Dad, me, and Gege!” The tiny human cub declared with a booming voice, spinning in a circle on the spot as if the fight hadn’t tired him out at all.

Ao-zai proclaimed, “We are a family of four.”

Gu Huaixiang: …?

Gu Huaixiang felt something was very weird and frowned. “Who taught you to say that?”

Her daughter, Gu Jie, pointed out exactly what was weird: “A family of four? Gu Ao actually said… he and Uncle are a family of four… I remember Ao-zai never used to say things like this.”

…In the minds of everyone in the Gu family, Gu Duo and Gu Ao were just two eccentric, weird kids. They often huddled together for warmth, were extremely reclusive, rarely spoke, and never compromised or said sweet things to please adults. They were the kind of stubborn kids who refused to listen to reason.

Gu Huaixiang wasn’t sure how she had formed this impression. Perhaps it was when Gu Hao told them that Gu Duo and Gu Ao always ignored them and refused to play with them.

Or maybe when her own son said Gu Duo and Gu Ao often locked themselves in their room, refusing to come out or let anyone in to play.

At the time, Gu Huaixiang impatiently told Gu Ming, “If they don’t play with you, you don’t play with them.”

Or maybe it was when Gu Duo and Gu Ao frequently fought with Gu Jie over a bite of food. She had casually remarked, “It’s just a bite of cake. If your sister wants it, why can’t you yield to her? Don’t you know the story of Kong Rong giving up the bigger pear? Besides, it’s not like our family can’t afford more.”

After that, that kid Gu Duo suddenly snapped and threw the piece of cake away!

In short, Gu Huaixiang always thought the brothers had very withdrawn personalities.

But these supposed withdrawn children were now beaming with happiness, even joyfully spinning in circles and announcing they were a family of four…

It went without saying who their Big Dad and Little Dad were.

…

So, could kids raised by Gu Huaiyu really be this happy??

And for kids so reclusive to now step up and emphasize that Shen Qing was their Dad, not their aunt…

Could these two kids really be this close to the adults?!

Gu Huaixiang’s eyes widened in sheer astonishment.

This completely upended her understanding of them yet again tonight.

Just then, Shen Qing and Gu Huaiyu arrived at the back garden.

“Duoduo, Ao-zai.”

Seeing a large crowd gathered over there, and spotting the slender figure of Gu Huaixiang from a distance, Shen Qing knew Gu Hao must have come to give their cubs trouble. His voice arrived before he did. Regardless of the situation, he needed to boost his babies’ morale first.

So he shouted directly, “Your Dads are here!”

“Aye!” Ao-zai, who had just finished spinning, immediately turned around to look for his dads the moment he heard Shen Qing’s voice.

Not spotting them right away, Ao-zai tilted his head in confusion. “Huh? Dads, where are you?”

Gu Duo, being taller, quickly noticed the parting crowd and pulled Ao-zai toward it.

Everyone else also followed Shen Qing’s voice and looked over.

Right as the crowd parted, Shen Qing and Gu Huaiyu, both very tall, made their appearance.

Seeing his dads, Ao-zai trotted over. He intended to smack right into his dad’s thigh and rub his chubby cheek against it affectionately, just like he always did.

But this time, the two dads were walking side by side. Halfway there, Ao-zai got confused—Which dad’s thigh should I hug first?

Ao-the-cub, who was learning from his Little Dad how to be a master of balancing both sides, stopped right in his tracks upon reaching them. He looked up with his big head, gazing at one and then the other. Finally, his smart little brain clicked: How about me and Gege hug one each!

But Gege has never done the thigh-hug before. I don’t know if he’s used to it…

A highly concerned Ao-zai looked back at his older brother.

Then, Ao-zai felt a sudden tightness around his small body. The next second, his little feet left the ground, his field of vision elevated, and the older brother in his sight also got taller!

—Ao-zai and his brother had each been scooped up into the arms of one of their dads!