Chapter 471 Old Madam Zhu: I'm the kind of person who listens to advice the most.

The eldest brother of the Zhu family called just in time; Zhu Xiaoba didn't get beaten up, but...

Fang Meng squatted at the door with a smug look on his face, happily holding a bowl of fried food made by his aunts, while watching his brother-in-law in the yard with a porcelain basin full of water on his head and two red bricks on each arm.

Hehe, you got punished by your older brother!

Unexpectedly, the Zhu family also has the same tradition as theirs—the elder brother, as the heir to the head of the family, has absolute power to discipline his younger siblings.

Sure enough, after a phone call from his older brother, Zhu Xiaoba, who had been making a ruckus just moments before, had no choice but to obediently stand in the yard as punishment.

Hehe, hehe!

"Tone it down a bit, your expression is way too obvious."

Bai Nuo walked out with a glass of water, glancing helplessly at the gloating childish ghost squatting at the door.

It's just that I got into a fight with Zhu Xiaoba when I was a kid and got punished by my older brother when I got home. Is it really worth holding a grudge like this now?

When they were young, they belonged to two different circles from the Zhu brothers. Although they also came from the No. 1 compound, she, Fang Meng, An Yun, and the others mostly stayed in the government compound and the China Academy of Sciences compound to play, so they didn't interact much, and their interactions were limited to getting into fights among the kids.

Bai Nuo was mentally challenged as a child; she couldn't speak and was slow to react, so she preferred to resort to underhanded tactics. Whenever there was a public brawl, she was always protected by her brothers, and she was even less familiar with the Zhu family children.

but……

Bai Nuo silently turned her head to look at the second-floor window, and suddenly remembered...

When she was little, it seems that because one of the Zhu family's children punched her older brother, she stayed at the Fang family's house for a few days under the pretext of "missing Grandma Fang." Then, in the middle of the night, she secretly went to smash the window on the second floor of the Zhu family's house and was caught red-handed by Grandpa Zhu, who happened to be returning from headquarters in the middle of the night. In the end, Grandpa Zhu secretly sent her back to Grandpa Fang's house without disturbing anyone, and it seems that he even told her not to tell anyone.

Thinking of this, Bai Nuo couldn't help but chuckle softly. No wonder Grandpa Zhu was so happy even though she had smashed his window.

Fang Meng chuckled and took his girlfriend's soft, delicate hand, while feeding her a piece of pork crackling coated in sugar.

The little girl loves to mix pork cracklings with white sugar, and she can eat a small bowl of them at a time without getting tired of them. As a result, Fang Meng, who originally liked savory food, also started to like pork cracklings dipped in sugar.

"I'm telling you two, don't go too far! Can't we go inside and eat?" Zhu Guo looked at his two unscrupulous siblings with a wronged expression.

Not only did they not speak up for him, but now they're using food to provoke him—that's going too far!

Bai Nuo chuckled and walked over, holding the water glass to her bear-like brother's lips. Fang Meng followed closely, handing the small bowl to Bai Nuo's other hand, then easily lifted the enamel basin full of water above Zhu Guo's head, before quickly saying:

"Eat and drink quickly, or your fourth aunt will see you and probably call your eldest cousin to complain again."

That's right, the one who complained was Zhu Xiaoba's own mother. Just now, when she was complaining to Zhu Kai in the house, Fourth Aunt was the most enthusiastic and cheerful, followed by Zhu Xiaoba's half-brother Zhu Bao.

My aunt originally wanted to try to persuade her, since it was the Lunar New Year, and even if she wanted to discipline the child, she should wait until after the New Year.

Zhu Guo was raised by his elder brother Zhu, and could be considered a child who grew up under Xu Xiang's care. He was lively and sweet-talking from a young age, and was very protective of his grandmother and several aunts. If he heard anyone in the compound daring to speak ill of his grandmother and aunts, he would rush over like a little bull and knock them over, not caring who the other person was at all.

There was a gossipy old lady in the compound with a missing front tooth. That tooth was knocked out by Zhu Xiaoba when she was six or seven years old, simply because the other woman said that Xu Xiang was not virtuous and did not know how to be a wife. She should be like her daughter, staying at home to take care of her husband and children, not knowing anything about schooling or jobs. She said that Madam Zhu was blind and should have let her eldest son marry her daughter instead.

How could Xu Xiang not love such a nephew? Unfortunately... no matter how much she spoils her child, she can't surpass her own eldest son.

There's nothing we can do; that's just how things are in this family!

In the end, after being scolded by his older brother, Zhu Xiaoba obediently went to stand in the courtyard as punishment.

Zhu Guo was so moved that his eyes welled up with tears. He instantly forgot about the two brats' gloating just moments before, and ate his sweet soup and fried food with great relish.

"cough!"

A cough came from the living room. Bai Nuo took the water glass and bowl that Zhu Guo quickly handed over, and the next second Fang Meng steadily placed the basin of water back on Zhu Guo's head.

The two of them quickly took a big step back, smiling as they looked at Zhu Guo, as if nothing had happened.

Zhu Bao, who had just passed by the door, twitched his lips speechlessly, picked up a cleaned old hen, and walked into the kitchen.

The next second, Yu Hongxin, who was "worried" about her youngest son, came out. Seeing her son obediently accepting his punishment, she nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Bai Nuo and Fang Meng with a loving smile, her tone gentle, with the soft, gentle tone of a woman from a water town:

"Sweetie, Xiaomeng, you two don't need to stay outside with him. He's been punished countless times since he was little, he's used to it. Come in and sit down, it's so cold outside!"

Fang Meng almost burst out laughing; this was truly her mother!

"Cough, Fourth Aunt, we're fine, not cold at all. Besides, we're used to it from training in the army. Please go inside and rest, don't get cold."

Bai Nuo coughed lightly, suppressing the urge to laugh, and obediently coaxed her lively and gentle fourth aunt into the house.

If she didn't coax the person inside soon, she was afraid her unlucky myna bird would burst into tears.

After confirming that Fourth Aunt had happily gone inside to chat with the other three aunts, Bai Nuo and Fang Meng breathed a sigh of relief and glared helplessly at Zhu Guo.

"How about we find a tutor for my eighth cousin after the New Year?" Fang Meng pulled his girlfriend to sit on the steps next to him and made a suggestion that made Zhu Guo want to cry even more.

“My eldest cousin just said on the phone that he will arrange for someone to tutor my eighth cousin so that he can at least get his high school diploma. Then he will have my seventh cousin send him over so he can enlist in the army at the border. He happens to have a regular enlistment spot available.”

"Alright!"

Fang Meng nodded. The entire Zhu family were soldiers, with top-notch military skills. If their children joined the army, even to the most dangerous border regions, the elders in the family wouldn't object, as long as the children themselves were willing.

“I also have a spot on my end. It won’t be difficult for them to get into our military region. I can put it under Wei Sheng’s command.”

Bai Nuo nodded after listening: "Okay, after my eighth cousin graduates from high school, we'll discuss with my eldest cousin where to put him."

With so many family members serving in the military, they have no shortage of enlistment slots even without the help of their elders. Even Bai Nuo was able to secure a legitimate enlistment slot.

The two of them, oblivious to the fact that they were talking about their older brothers' decisions regarding their younger brother, discussed the matter at hand.

Zhu Guo: I dare not be angry, I dare not speak, I can only weep!