Chapter 95: Are You Trying to Scam Someone?

“Young lady, did you really come for Captain Li?”

“Is this for a matchmaking meeting?”

For a young woman to take the initiative to seek someone out, it was almost certainly the case.

And she wasn’t disappointed.

Shen Yi’an’s response was equally direct, “Yes, I came for him.”

“Once we’ve settled on a date for the banquet, I’ll make sure to invite you, Auntie, to share our joy.”

“Absolutely, absolutely!” The fashionable auntie was instantly delighted by these words.

As she left, she swaggered away, her posture even more confident than the average man.

Watching her depart, watching her merge back into the chattering crowd, it wasn’t long before glances started drifting in their direction.

Shen Yi’an knew then that this move had been the right one.

Seeing the smile on her face, Chen Rongying, who had been silent for a while, finally spoke.

“Happy now?”

“So, did that auntie meet your expectations?”

Hearing this, Shen Yi’an nodded with a smile, “Yes, she did.”

“I was originally thinking about how to steer the conversation toward that group of aunties over there, but I didn’t expect the fashionable auntie to be so helpful.”

“Not only did she take on the mission of helping to clarify things, but she also got some of the parents involved.”

“Though I wonder what those Female Comrades who showed up are about to face.”

“Who cares!” Chen Rongying waved her hand dismissively with a laugh.

“If they had the nerve to help others show off, they should be prepared to take a beating.”

“Once you step outside your home, not everyone is going to indulge you.”

Just as their conversation was about to delve deeper, a sharp, childish voice pierced the air.

“What are you doing?”

“Why did you break my clay figurine?”

“You have to pay for it! If you don’t, I’ll beat you to death!”

Hearing the noise, Shen Yi’an and Chen Rongying quickly turned their heads.

They saw that the carousel, which should have been spinning, had now stopped, and five or six boys had gathered nearby.

If it were just that, it wouldn’t have drawn much attention.

The key was that the five or six boys had stopped right beside Song Yao and his sister.

From a distance, it looked more like the siblings were facing off against a group of children.

Not knowing what had happened, Shen Yi’an and Chen Rongying hurried over.

They were mainly concerned about a group of children getting into a fight.

After all, children don’t hold back when they fight.

Mouths, teeth, fists, nails—anything they can use becomes a weapon.

Torn clothes are one thing, and pulled hair can be tolerated, but scratching faces is another matter.

With these thoughts, the two had already approached the two groups of children in their standoff.

Before they could speak, the sharp voice rang out again.

“You think staying silent will make this go away?”

“I’m telling you, no way!”

“That clay figurine was the best one I’ve made after working on it for so long. If you don’t compensate me an identical one, don’t even think about leaving here today.”

From a distance earlier, Shen Yi’an hadn’t been able to see the child’s face clearly.

Now that they were closer, she realized the loud-mouthed child was a little chubby boy.

How to describe him?

It was as if a pair of eyes had grown on a ball of flesh, with the rest of his features squeezed into what little space remained.

Perhaps because of this, he had a few thin, small boys following him.

It gave off the vibe of a boss and his lackeys.

Since his repeated questions had gone unanswered, there was a growing sense that things might turn physical.

Seeing this, Shen Yi’an was about to step forward to ask what had happened when Song Yao, who had remained silent until then, offered an explanation.

“The ones at fault should be you!”

“You clearly saw someone on the merry-go-round, yet you insisted on using a stone to stop it from spinning.”

“All I did was remove the stone—what did I do wrong?”

Hearing this, the chubby kid grew even angrier.

“Are you blind?!”

“Didn’t you see the clay figure I just made placed on the stone?”

“I don’t care—you broke my clay figure, so you have to pay for it! Otherwise, don’t even think about leaving here!”

Seeing their “boss” take charge, the other children immediately chimed in to support him.

“That’s right! If you don’t pay, you can’t leave!”

“That spot was reserved by us a long time ago—you’re the ones who took our place!”

“Pay for the clay figure! If you don’t, you’re not going anywhere!”

Encouraged by his friends’ backing, the chubby kid grew even more smug, his eyes gleaming with a cockiness that was truly asking for a beating.

Though the exchange was brief, Shen Yi’an and Chen Rongying had already pieced together what had happened.

Song Yao and his sister were playing on the merry-go-round when a group of children from who-knows-where acted as if they weren’t there.

Not only did they use a stone to block the rotating axis, but they also brazenly left a clay figure to dry on the stone.

Unable to stomach it, Song Yao walked over and removed the stone, but in doing so, he broke the clay figure on it.

Thus, the two groups of children found themselves in this standoff.

Not wanting the situation to escalate, Chen Rongying exchanged a glance with Shen Yi’an and prepared to step in and mediate.

She thought to herself that they were just children—it wasn’t worth arguing over such a trivial matter.

But not everyone felt the same.

Take Song Yao, for instance.

Faced with the chubby kid’s constant provocation, his originally calm expression gradually darkened.

Not only that, but the veins at his temples began to bulge.

His clenched fists and tightly pressed lips betrayed his unusual emotional state.

Just as Chen Rongying was about to reach them, he dashed forward and punched the chubby kid in the face.

Then, as the boy fell to the ground, Song Yao quickly pinned him down and began punching and kicking him repeatedly.

The entire sequence happened in the blink of an eye, yet he didn’t utter a single word throughout.

“Waaah!”

The chubby kid’s cries, as he covered his head and tried to dodge the blows, snapped everyone out of their stunned silence.

Then, everyone sprang into action.

Some of the chubby kid’s lackeys rushed to break up the fight, while others ran to fetch their parents for help.

But not a single one fled in fear.

It was clear that the children’s sense of “loyalty” was genuinely strong.

As for Chen Rongying, she had rushed over to intervene the moment the crying started.

Of course, her focus was entirely on Song Yao.

“A Yao! A Yao, it’s me, your mom!”

“A Yao, be good, stop fighting now. Listen to me, be good!”

“Mom’s here, Mom’s right here, A Yao!”

Her gentle, soothing words gradually caused Song Yao, who had been mindlessly throwing punches, to slow his movements.

At one point, it was as if he suddenly regained his senses.

He first looked at his own fists, then turned to glance at Chen Rongying beside him.

After a long pause, he spoke hesitantly.

“Mom?”

“What was I doing?”

His gaze then fell on the chubby kid pinned beneath him. After a moment of silence, he jolted and immediately jumped up.

“Who are you? Why were you under me?”

“Tell me—are you trying to scam me?”

Faced with this version of Song Yao, the chubby kid felt like bursting into tears.

After all, he had ruled the Family Compound for so long and even gathered a group of similarly aged followers.

After strutting around for so long, he had now been pinned down and beaten for what felt like an eternity.

Whimpering, it was truly humiliating.

But thinking of the pretty older sister who had just signaled him to stay quiet, helping him escape the beating.

The chubby kid struggled to get up from the ground, shot a wary Song Yao a glare, and said nothing. He wiped his tears with his sleeve and walked over to Shen Yi’an.

“Sister, is he crazy?”

“He was the one who rushed over and hit me, and now he’s acting like he doesn’t know anything.”

“How could there be a kid like this in our Family Compound?”

Before Shen Yi’an could respond, the chubby kid’s mother, standing beside her, slapped him.

“You brat, if you don’t know how to talk, just shut up!”

“If you hadn’t started trouble, would that kid have hit you?”

“Look, look, they’re both kids, but how come he’s all neat and tidy while you’re covered in mud like a little monkey?”

As she spoke, she vigorously brushed the dirt off the chubby kid’s clothes.

When she felt it was enough, she nodded to Shen Yi’an in thanks.

“Thank you, dear!”

“If it weren’t for you, my troublemaker might have been beaten even longer.”

After saying this, she glanced at Song Yao, who was still on high alert, and softly reassured him.

“All kids are like this in unfamiliar places.”

“Don’t worry, he’ll get better once he gets used to the environment.”

“My kid is the same. Every time we visit relatives, he acts so well-behaved that people ask me how I raised him.”

“Hah, I wish I really had raised such an obedient son.”

After a few more casual remarks.

Knowing it wasn’t the right time, the chubby kid’s mom grabbed her son by the ear and left.

Along with them went the chubby kid’s loyal buddies and the scattered residents who had come to watch the commotion.

Only when everyone had left, and only Shen Yi’an, Chen Rongying, and the siblings Song Yao and Song Shu remained, did the ever-vigilant Song Yao gradually relax.

Then he looked at his mother with a suspicious expression.