Meanwhile, inside the room.
A middle-aged man wearing a blue padded jacket and an army-green hat pinned a girl beneath him, tearing at her clothes.
"You little bitch! I offered you ten thousand yuan for one night, and you still refused. A widow out there would only charge me a hundred!"
As he spoke, he held both her arms with one hand and undid his belt with the other.
"Please, Lame Yang, let me go! Let me go!"
Tears covered the girl's delicate face. Her red, swollen cheeks showed that she had been struck.
She fought with all her strength, but how could a frail girl overpower a grown man?
"Stop struggling. You live so far out here that not a soul ever comes by. You could scream your throat raw, and it wouldn't help!"
"Just keep me happy, and I'll let you go. I'll even give you some money..."
As Lame Yang spoke, he pulled off his gray trousers, revealing the red long johns underneath.
The girl lay on the bed, tears streaming endlessly down her face.
She knew there was no escaping her fate tonight.
Remembering everything she had endured over the years, she closed her eyes in anguish.
Her brother had been missing for ten years, and no one knew whether he was alive or dead. Her parents were ill but still insisted on working away from home. She had spent years alone in the house, often going hungry to save money for her tuition.
She was already exhausted in body and spirit, and now she had to suffer this violation!
At that moment, despair overwhelmed her, as though her heart were bleeding.
Heaven, must you be so cruel?
Overcome by grief and fury, the girl fainted.
Seeing that she had passed out from fear,
Lame Yang grew even more brazen. Just as he reached out to tear away her clothes, a sudden crash came from the door.
Bang!
Someone kicked open the house's front door from outside.
Jiang Tian rushed into the room like a bolt of lightning!
At the sight before him, his eyes widened with fury and swiftly turned bloodshot.
"You're dead!"
Jiang Tian roared and lashed out with a slap from across the room.
Boom!
Before Lame Yang could even see what the newcomer looked like, the slap blasted him into a cloud of blood.
After dealing with that scum, Jiang Tian turned toward the tearstained girl on the bed, her clothes in disarray.
"Wan'er!"
He rushed forward and gathered her tightly into his arms.
Finding that his sister had fainted, he hurriedly channeled spiritual energy into her to wake her.
A little while later,
The girl slowly regained consciousness. When she found herself in a strange man's arms, she trembled like a startled bird, then began struggling violently.
"Don't touch me! Don't touch me!"
The more she struggled, the more Jiang Tian's heart ached with pain and guilt.
"Don't be afraid. It's me, your brother. I'm back! No one will hurt you again!"
Jiang Tian held Jiang Wan'er tightly, comforting her over and over.
At the word "brother," Jiang Wan'er stiffened and slowly opened her eyes.
She looked at Jiang Tian in confusion.
The unfamiliarity in her gaze made Jiang Tian's heart clench. His voice was bitter as he said, "Wan'er, it's your brother. Don't you recognize me?"
"My... brother?"
Jiang Wan'er stared blankly at Jiang Tian's face, which seemed both familiar and strange.
The man before her was handsome, but she had never seen him before.
Yet she did have a vague feeling that he looked familiar.
Seeing her stunned expression, Jiang Tian hurriedly said, "Wan'er, have you forgotten? I promised I would protect you for the rest of your life."
"I'm sorry I failed you all these years. But now I'm back, and I swear no one will ever hurt you again!"
Jiang Wan'er stared at him without saying a word.
Jiang Tian felt a little dejected. His sister had been so young when he disappeared. It seemed she truly didn't recognize him.
Just as he was trying to think of a way to prove who he was, Jiang Wan'er threw herself into his arms, laughing and sobbing at once. "You finally came back! I thought you were dead!"
Looking at his weeping sister in his arms, Jiang Tian was overwhelmed by conflicting emotions. He hugged her shoulders tightly and gently patted her. "Don't cry. I'm back. Your brother's back."
She cried for a long, long time, until her tears had soaked the front of Jiang Tian's clothes, before finally calming down.
"Wait, where's Lame Yang?"
Suddenly, as though remembering something, she pushed Jiang Tian away again and looked around.
"Oh, he... I beat him up and chased him off!"
Jiang Tian scratched his head. He didn't dare tell her he had killed Lame Yang.
After all, Jiang Wan'er was still an ordinary person. If she knew he had killed someone, she would surely be frightened.
Jiang Wan'er believed him. Wiping away her tears, she said, "Thank you!"
Jiang Tian ruffled her hair. "What are you talking about? You don't need to thank your own brother."
Then he gazed at her tenderly.
Ten years!
Ten whole years!
The little girl had changed so much. The tiny child who used to trail after him had grown into a beautiful young woman!
Jiang Wan'er had only been nine when he left. Now, in the blink of an eye, she was nearly twenty!
With fair skin, lovely features, and a tall, slender figure, she had truly blossomed into a beauty!
Jiang Wan'er seemed a little embarrassed by his gaze. Lowering her head, she asked, "Are you hungry? Shall I make you something to eat?"
"No..."
Grrr.
Jiang Tian was about to refuse, but his stomach betrayed him with a rumble.
With his current cultivation, he could go a month or so without food or water, but he could still feel hungry. He might cultivate the Dao, but he had yet to become an immortal.
Hearing his stomach growl, Jiang Wan'er covered her mouth and giggled.
Jiang Tian scratched his head awkwardly. Making a fool of himself in front of his little sister was rather embarrassing.
"Wait here. I'll boil some water and make you noodles!"
With that, Jiang Wan'er headed outside.
Jiang Tian hurried after her. "I'll help!"
In the little kitchen beside the courtyard, Jiang Wan'er deftly began cooking dried noodles. Worried that Jiang Tian might not get enough to eat, she even added two poached eggs for him.
Jiang Tian sat opposite her, feeding the stove's fire.
"Wan'er, where are Mom and Dad? Why are you home alone?"
Jiang Tian finally couldn't help asking.
While expertly chopping vegetables, Jiang Wan'er said, "Mom and Dad went to work in the city. I'm here on my own, attending high school in town."
"You're already in high school?"
Jiang Tian was a little surprised. He remembered that Jiang Wan'er had only been in first grade when he left. Since she had started school later than other children her age, she hadn't entered high school until she was seventeen.
"Yes, I'm in my final year now. There's only half a semester left before the college entrance exam."
Jiang Wan'er nodded, then tossed the vegetables into the pot.
Jiang Tian rubbed his hair. "Time really flies. You're already in your final year of high school."
"I'm nineteen already. Lots of people my age are in college, you know."
Jiang Wan'er pouted.
Jiang Tian nodded repeatedly with a smile. "Right, right. I remembered wrong. So, are Mom and Dad in good health?"
Jiang Tian had always been deeply grateful to his parents. They had never achieved anything grand and were only ordinary farmers, but throughout his and Jiang Wan'er's childhoods, they had never let them down. They had always worked hard to give the siblings the best life they could.
But at his question, Jiang Wan'er's expression visibly faltered, and she fell silent.
Noticing the change in his sister's expression, Jiang Tian hurriedly asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Jiang Wan'er took a deep breath. "They haven't been doing well. After you went missing, they spent everything they had searching everywhere for you."
"They still hadn't given up a few years ago. One day, while they were out handing out missing-person notices, a car ran over Dad's leg and broke it. The driver only paid twenty thousand yuan in compensation, but Dad's leg was left permanently disabled. He works as a security guard now."
"And Mom became ill from missing you. She cried so much she nearly went blind, and eventually the textile factory fired her. After her eyes got a little better, she started working as a nanny in the city..."
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