Lin Zhilan put down her book and reached out to pull him into her arms.
Su Li was stiff at first, but as Lin Zhilan gently patted his back, the little guy buried his face in the crook of his mother's neck and started to sob quietly.
Su Lang was quick to react; he placed a towel on his wife's shoulder, and Su Li obediently shifted his face onto it.
Lin Zhilan found it both amusing and heartbreaking. She let him cry for a while.
Once he had cried enough, she picked him up, wiped his face, and said softly, "Today, Mom and your Big Brother spanked you because you went to pick up those little firecrackers. That was very dangerous, you know?"
"Mm-hmm," Su Li nodded.
Lin Zhilan could tell he wasn't really taking it to heart. She pointed at his palm and said, "If the firecracker had exploded, you would have lost your little hand."
Su Li was startled. He tucked his hands into his chest and pressed closer to Lin Zhilan.
"Will you still pick up firecrackers anymore?"
"No."
Lin Zhilan held him and made him look into her eyes. "Also, did Mom tell you before that you can't just hit people?"
"No..." Su Li glanced cautiously at his mother. "Mom hit me."
Lin Zhilan didn't argue. She pressed her forehead against his. "That's because you did something wrong. When you haven't made a mistake, has Mom ever hit you?"
"Yes."
Lin Zhilan: ???
Su Li was a little troublemaker, but Lin Zhilan rarely actually struck him. She usually just made him stand in a corner or scared him a little.
Hitting him today was because she was genuinely furious about him picking up dud firecrackers.
Seeing his mother's eyes widen, Su Li giggled.
What a little rascal!
Lin Zhilan tapped his nose and set him down. "Today, your Big Brother saved you. What do you need to say to him?"
Su Li turned around and called out to Jiang Chengzhou, "Big Brother, I'm sorry!"
Lin Zhilan couldn't help but smack his bottom lightly. "Say thank you."
Su Li looked at her pitifully, then shouted at Jiang Chengzhou, "Sank you!"
"Say it properly!"
"Sank' oo properly!"
Forget it, Lin Zhilan gave up.
Jiang Chengzhou just rolled his eyes.
But Su Li wasn't done. He whimpered and rubbed against her again.
"What's wrong now, Crybaby?"
Su Li put his hands behind his back and whined, "My butt hurts!"
Lin Zhilan swore she hadn't hit him hard at all. But her youngest son was being clingy, so she had no choice but to ask helplessly, "What should we do? Should Mommy rub it for you?"
Su Li shook his head, turned his back to her, and arched his little bottom up. He even adjusted his position to make sure his bottom was aimed right at Lin Zhilan. Then he turned his head and looked at her with those big, watery eyes, shyly. "Mommy blow on it~"
Lin Zhilan: "………………"
Everyone else was holding back their laughter. Lin Zhilan was silent for a few seconds, then poked his chubby little bottom. "Have your Dad blow on it. He has bigger lungs."
Su Li's mouth drooped. He looked at his mother's expression, confirmed she was serious, then turned around and trudged on his short little legs, reluctantly walking over to Su Lang.
Silence spoke volumes.
Su Lang said, "Son, since your Second Uncle can help you blow on it, and he's been taking supplements lately, his blowing will probably be better than Dad's."
Su Li froze, then turned to look at his Second Uncle.
Su Jue was sitting quietly in the corner, sipping tea. He looked up just in time to meet Su Li's sparkling eyes.
He immediately stood up. "Li Li, Second Uncle has some things to take care of. I'll be off."
Before he could finish, Deng Jing grabbed his sleeve.
"Your little nephew's bottom hurts. What's wrong with blowing on it?"
"Xiao Jing..." Su Jue was caught between laughter and tears.
Deng Jing looked at him, her gaze clearly indicating that she was doing this on purpose, just wanting to see him make a fool of himself.
Su Jue had no choice. He bent down and quickly blew on Su Li's bottom.
Su Li was finally satisfied. He ran back into his mother's arms.
Lin Zhilan looked down and smiled. "Son, you need to say thank you to your Second Uncle."
"I'm sorry!" Su Li shouted loudly.
Su Jue quickly responded, "It's okay, it's okay."
Well, Lin Zhilan thought helplessly. He wasn't entirely wrong; he did owe his Second Uncle an apology.
That evening, Xu Yueyun, Su Bingcheng, and the three girls came back and had dinner together at the family compound.
Su Li was especially clingy with his mom that day and insisted on sitting next to her while eating.
Su Bingcheng finished his meal quickly and wanted to take over feeding Su Li from Su Lang. Just as he approached, he noticed his little grandson's eyes were a bit red.
Su Bingcheng frowned and asked, "Zhilan, Li Li's eyes seem a bit off. Looks a little swollen to me."
Lin Zhilan looked down. "He was crying. It'll be fine after he sleeps."
"Why was he crying again?"
Before Lin Zhilan could answer, Su Li stretched out his chubby little hand and covered her mouth. "Mom, don't—don't say."
The little guy had gotten into trouble today, been spanked, lost face, and even had a little mini runaway episode. He felt a bit embarrassed about it and didn't want Grandpa and Grandma to know.
Su Bingcheng quickly coaxed him, "Alright, alright. Grandpa won't ask anymore. Eat your food now."
Su Li took his hand off Lin Zhilan's mouth and focused on eating.
Su Li had been causing trouble all afternoon and had used up a lot of energy. As soon as he finished eating, he completely wilted.
Su Lang wanted to pick him up, but Su Li wouldn't let him. He insisted on burrowing into Lin Zhilan's arms. Lin Zhilan had no choice but to hold him.
Seeing this, Su Lang could only pick out some ribs to feed his wife and reached out to take the bones she spit out.
Xu Yueyun and Su Bingcheng were used to this.
Linlin and Jiang Chengzhou were also unfazed.
Only Deng Jing felt a bit uncomfortable, while Su Pei and Su Yao blushed as they secretly watched their uncle and aunt, giggling quietly to themselves.
Su Jue swallowed hard and made up his mind. Using his chopsticks, he picked up a piece of rib and held it to Deng Jing's mouth. "Xiao Jing, let me feed you."
Deng Jing was startled. She glanced quickly at her in-laws and hurriedly pushed his hand down. "I don't need to hold a child. I can eat by myself."
A flicker of disappointment passed through Su Jue's eyes. He put the rib in her bowl and said nothing more.
Deng Jing ignored him, lowered her head, and ate in silence.
Su Li was exhausted. He fell asleep within moments, his little mouth slightly open, almost drooling.
Su Lang quickly took him from Lin Zhilan so she could eat properly.
Once Su Bingcheng confirmed Su Li was sound asleep, he lowered his voice and asked, "What happened to Li Li today? His eyes are swollen from crying."
Su Li was usually all thunder and no rain—the kind of kid who cried loudly fake tears. Swollen eyes were something Su Bingcheng had never seen before.
Su Lang covered his son's eyes with his big hand and said helplessly, "He got into trouble today and got spanked."
"You really hit him?" Su Bingcheng frowned, a note of disapproval creeping into his tone.
Su Lang said, "Yeah."
Su Bingcheng reached out and smacked Su Lang on the arm. "He's so young—what does he understand? You should teach him properly. Why hit him?"
Su Lang's mouth twitched. He looked at his father in disbelief.
