Chapter 177 8 Years Old Part 2

"Shang Jing… Please don't make a scene, we are guests here. Your father…" Mrs Wu said helplessly, casting a frightened anxious look at Jingwei's family and at her own husband. The thunderous look on her spouse did not bode well for her or Shang Jing. She still had bruises on her face and body that she had to conceal with makeup before they visited the Sun family.

She had to do some damage control, or both her and Shang Jing would have a terrible time!

"Ah, he's usually not like this, he's just tired from the car ride. He's really - "

"Stop telling lies and don't tell me what to do!" Shang Jing yelled, and before Mrs Wu could say anything more, a heavy hand struck him on his cheek with a loud slap!

The driveway was silent. The servants had their mouths clamped shut, while Jingwei's mouth fell open in shock.

Mr Wu had struck his son in public! With so much force too! The poor boy's cheek was already reddening, the palm print clearly visible on his pale skin. It was starting to swell up, and Jingwei could only wince in sympathy.

That must have hurt a lot, but Wu Shang Jing didn't cry. He merely glared at his father hotly, as though daring him to give him another slap. Jingwei didn't know whether to be amazed or appalled. If it happened to him, he would have cried a fountain of tears and left home with his knapsack and his dogs!

"Don't disrespect your Mother," Wu Lei Zhe scolded. "And how dare you show such an attitude in front of our hosts!"

,m "No harm done, it's alright," Mrs Sun Bi Yu reassured hastily, smiling as she tried to dispel the heavy yet awkward atmosphere. Clearly the Wu family had incredibly strange and twisted family dynamics, and if she had a choice she would leave them outside and send them home far, far away from her sons.

Especially Jingwei. Her youngest still had a look of horrified shock on his face when he saw the violence. He gave his father a wary look, and Bi Yu's heart ached.

She watched the other father-son pair. Wu Lei Zhe wasn't even apologetic in the slightest - he was still standing proudly, and his son glared at everything but him.

That poor boy. She couldn't in good conscience leave him to the tender mercies of his father. His new mom was probably going to get hit too, judging by the way she was trying not to tremble or meet his eyes.

"He's just a spirited young boy!" Bi Yu began, clapping cheerfully as though the earlier slap didn't happen. She was just going to steamroll over it with positivity, that was how she survived this long, and that was how she would survive this too.

"We're glad to have you here Shang Jing. And I heard that you've just started Primary 3 too - just like Jingwei here!" His mom gave Jingwei a look, expecting Jingwei to engage this poor boy in conversation, and Jingwei could only give an awkward laugh.

How could he talk to this boy with both parents present? What if he said something wrong and his father decided to take a leaf out of this other man's book and slap him too?!

What if he talked to the boy, and then that boy said something wrong and got slapped again?!

Both options were terrible. He chanced a look around for a conversation topic that wasn't about him getting slapped, and saw an older teenage boy standing attentively a few steps behind the Wu family. Did Wu Shang Jing have an older brother?

Only one way to find out.

"Hi," Jingwei began cautiously. "Do you have an older brother?"

Wu Shang Jing gave him a blistering cold look, as though Jingwei was an idiot. Beside him, Tianwei wanted to facepalm.

Of course he didn't have any older brothers! If he did, why would the couple only introduce him alone!

Jingwei internally despaired. He was initially hoping that maybe, just maybe, this new boy wouldn't be bad news for him.

But now he knew better! This new kid looked like trouble! He took a painful slap from his father without crying, so even if Jingwei were to fight him, his punches probably won't do anything to him. Jingwei might end up being the one that cried in the end - and wouldn't that be even more embarrassing?

"I mean, then who's that guy standing behind you?" Jingwei continued to ask. If this boy wanted to punch him, he'd hide behind Tianwei. "Is he your cousin or something? He's really tall."

To his surprise, the icy look in Wu Shang Jing's eyes defrosted slightly.

"This is Zi Long. He is my bodyguard."

"Oh, that's cool," Jingwei said, meaning every word. Wu Shang Jing was the same age as him and already got a bodyguard! Then where was his own bodyguard? But wait, why didn't he stop him from getting smacked by his father then?

Thankfully, before Jingwei could open his mouth and blurt out the worst question to ask, Mrs Sun opened hers first, delighted that Jingwei was making some effort to play nice.

"Oh, what horrid hosts we are, still leaving all of you to stand outside. Come in, come in!" She eagerly said, waving them inside. The servants quickly stepped aside in a single file, and the grand oak doors opened to welcome their guests.

Mrs Sun quickly looped her arm through Mrs Wu's, determined to lead her away. Some part of her felt pity for this poor young girl, who was caught between a turbulent relationship between father and son. Perhaps she could befriend her for companionship, at least before her eventual divorce.

(It wasn't as though she had any friends with her now. Yue Niang and her husband had left to lands unknown to start a family, and she was helpless to stop them in the midst of her husband's wrath.)

"Thank you," Mrs Wu replied shakily, mentally thanking her lucky stars that Mrs Sun didn't make a big fuss and instead diffused the situation.

"Now, let's let the men talk business shall we?" She asked, giving her husband a meaningful look. Sun Haowei nodded, seeing that it was the main point of this gathering. "We shall spend some bonding time together to get to know each other better!"

"We should?" Mrs Wu asked in confusion.

"Of course," Mrs Sun said. "But let's get an ice pack for little Shang Jing first, and then we can let the kids play on their own."

Both Shang Jing and Jingwei looked up in surprise. Shang Jing, because he truly didn't expect anyone to care about him getting hit, and Jingwei, because he didn't think his mother was insane enough to leave him alone with this kid and his bodyguard! Didn't she see how bad the slap was? Jingwei didn't want to be next!

What if this Wu Shang Jing got his bodyguard to beat him up? He'd be dead! Tianwei wouldn't be able to save him - he was a book nerd!

He gave his mom a pleading look, begging her to reconsider, but he was cheerfully ignored. "Try and become good friends okay?" She said, giving Jingwei a pointed glance at the end.

Jingwei hastily stifled a whimper.

"Of course Mother," Tianwei replied easily, shifting his glasses. "I'm sure we will get along swimmingly."

"I'm sure we'll get along swimmingly," Jingwei echoed doubtfully in a high whining voice. Beside him, Tianwei's eyebrow twitched.

"Stop copying me," Tianwei demanded.

"Stop copying me," Jingwei copied, making sure to sound as annoying as possible.

"You're being immature, stupid" Tianwei continued.

"You're being immature, stupid" Jingwei copied. Riling up his older brother was always fun, especially if there were guests. Tianwei wanted to look good in front of them, so he couldn't retaliate fully.

And if Jingwei was going to be forced to spend time with some sulky kid that got smacked, he could at least have some fun annoying his older brother.

"I'm not dealing with this now," Tianwei said imperiously, turning away from him. "I'm going to get an ice pack for our guest."

Jingwei followed suit, turning around the other way, only to come face to face with Wu Shang Jing's amused eyes. He paused. Was there a hint of a smile on his lips?

Yes it was! Jingwei mentally cheered, before he thought more deeply into it and started worrying.

Was that smile a 'hahaha you're so funny let's be friends' smile, or was it a 'hahhaha you're like an idiotic clown that I would love to beat up smile'?

If it was the second option, he was doomed! Tianwei definitely wasn't going to save him now, after he annoyed him. He always said that he found Jingwei at the dog kennels and then they were forced to take him in because he was making too much noise. If Jingwei cried after getting punched, Tianwei would bring in all the dogs and leave him at the dog kennels instead!