Chapter 32.1

The next morning, Jiang Rou and Li Xiao went to the hospital.

They first inquired about the situation from the doctor. After knowing that they were the family members of the girl who had been admitted the previous night, the doctor frowned and said, “The child is in very poor condition. She has been starved and overworked for a long time; this led to malnutrition and poor physical health. There are also signs of physical abuse. She will need to be carefully rehabilitated.”

Jiang Rou took the list from the doctor and examined it. What was written on the documents was unsettling.

The injury report alone showed dozens of wounds, including both recent and old injuries. Jiang Rou could hardly imagine what her little sister had endured.

Li Xiao stepped closer and gently held her slightly trembling hand. “Let’s go to the ward first.”

Jiang Rou glanced at him and gave a soft nod.

The two went to the ward.

As they opened the door, they saw the fourteen-year-old girl lying quietly on the bed. She was staring blankly at the ceiling with a blank expression.

When Jiang Rou approached, she saw that the girl was extremely thin, her hair disheveled and unevenly cut as if she had been chewed by an animal, with some parts sticking to her scalp. Her face was bruised, and there was a red handprint.

Hearing their footsteps, the girl turned her eyes toward them, then closed them again.

In a cold and hoarse voice, she said, “Since none of you want me, why are you here?”

Jiang Rou’s eyes instantly filled with tears. She sat by the bed and said seriously, “They may not want you, but Third Sister wants you.”

For some reason, this statement touched the girl deeply. Her closed eyes quivered, and tears began to fall from the corners of her eyes.

She pulled the blanket over her head, starting to sob quietly, and eventually choked as she cried.

Her loud cries were truly heartbreaking.

She had been terrified over the past few days. She couldn’t return to her adoptive mother’s house; she was even rejected by her biological parents, and the old man even wanted to harass her. She was truly scared.

She couldn’t even end her own life.

Li Xiao picked up An An and took her out of the ward.

In the ward, Jiang Rou learned the full story.

It turned out that after her adoptive mother had her own child, she began to resent the girl as an extra burden—a waste of food. However, she was afraid to send her away, thinking she might have brought misfortune to her own child and worried that her son might also disappear if she left. So, she used her for labor, making her do a lot of work every day.

Once, when the girl could no longer bear it, she secretly ran back to the Jiang family.

She knew she was from the Jiang family, but when she arrived there, she was scolded by Zhang Yan. After being rejected, she never wanted to return to the Jiang family again.

This time, when her adoptive parents planned to give her to an old man, she was desperate and ran back to the Jiang family once more.

However, Father Jiang personally sent her back and even asked her adoptive mother for twenty yuan to return her.

Fearing she might commit suicide, her adoptive family kept a close watch on her.

The day before she was sent to the old bachelor, she deliberately cut her hair with a rusty knife, which led to the man paying a hundred yuan less. Her adoptive mother was so mad that she slapped her on the spot.

The more Jiang Rou listened, the more her face grew somber, but when the girl spoke of these events, her voice was flat and emotionless.

In the morning, Jiang Rou brought some light duck meat porridge, fed it to her, and said, “Today you stay in the hospital. I’ll go back and arrange a place for you. I’ll come see you again at noon.”

Before leaving, the girl asked anxiously, “Will you really take care of me?”

She looked at Jiang Rou with a trace of panic and uneasiness.

Jiang Rou smiled gently and said, “Hmm, I won’t abandon you.”

The girl watched her leave and started crying again, covering herself with the blanket.

She actually knew Jiang Rou. When she was living with her adoptive mother, she had secretly inquired about the Jiang family. She knew she had three older sisters and a fraternal twin brother. Because she was a girl, she had been sent away.

At that time, she didn’t hate her biological parents. The countryside was poor, and many girls were given away. Her parents probably didn’t know how miserable her life was with her foster parents, which was why they never came to find her. She had imagined many times that when her biological parents and siblings learned about the life she had been leading, they would be heartbroken and take her back.

But she never expected that her biological mother would berate her harshly and tell her to get as far away as possible.

Her biological father had sold her for a second time.

Third sister….

She thought: It turns out that only her third sister actually wanted her.

—o—o—o—

On the way back, Li Xiao recounted what had happened the previous night. He and Zhou Jian first went to the house of Jiang Rou’s younger sister’s adoptive parents.

After asking the neighbors, they learned that the girl had been sent away the day before. So the two of them turned back and went to that old bachelor village.

Worried that the sound of their motorcycle might wake the villagers, they parked it at the entrance of the village and hid it before sneaking in under the cover of darkness.

They first went to find their friend to get the exact location of the old bachelor’s house. After confirming it, the three of them went together and finally found Jiang Rou’s younger sister tied up in the kitchen.

They didn’t stay long; after finding her, they hurriedly left. The people in the village were united, and if they had been discovered, they probably wouldn’t have been able to leave.

Fortunately, having contact there had made the whole operation smoother.

After hearing this, Jiang Rou fell into silence.

At noon, she made four dishes—all relatively light dishes.

Jiang Rou took the child to deliver the dish to the hospital.

When she returned, she found Li Xiao cleaning out the storage room at home.

When Li Xiao met her gaze, he said calmly, “There’s an old bed at home with some damaged legs. I’ll fix it this afternoon.”

Jiang Rou nodded.

During their lunch break, they lay in bed. Jiang Rou didn’t know how to start the conversation with Li Xiao. Over the next six months, she had to focus entirely on preparing for the college entrance exam, and all household expenses would rely on Li Xiao’s income.

But she couldn’t ignore the child. If she did, the child would have no way to survive.

She tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep, wondering how to start the conversation.

Suddenly, Li Xiao, who was lying beside her, said, “Isn’t it just raising a child? If you want to take care of her, then we will take care of her; now go to sleep.”

“……”

Jiang Rou was taken aback, and then her heart softened. She didn’t know what to say.

Overcome with emotion, she turned over and hugged him tightly.

Now, it was the man’s turn to be speechless.

His body slightly stiffened.

Usually, he would take the initiative to hold her hand or put his arm around her shoulders, but she rarely initiated such close contact.

Li Xiao remained silent for a while before lowering his voice to ask, “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Rou buried her face in his neck, shook her head, and whispered, “Nothing; I just think you’re really wonderful.”

Really, really wonderful.

She had never been in love before and didn’t know much about how men and women should interact.

Her mother told her to be a bit tougher and to learn more from her sister-in-law; otherwise, she would be easily bullied after marriage.

Her sister-in-law, on the other hand, advised her to be a bit lazier when looking for a partner, and not to do everything herself, because men wouldn’t feel sorry for her.

But after spending so much time with Li Xiao, Jiang Rou hadn’t deliberately changed herself. She remained easygoing and tried to keep the house clean and tidy.

Yet, Li Xiao didn’t take advantage of her good temper, nor did he neglect his duties because she could cook. He would take the initiative to cook and wash clothes, play with An An, and buy her gifts…

Jiang Rou didn’t know what love was, but she thought that if she had to live with someone for the rest of her life, she hoped that person would be Li Xiao.

Li Xiao cleared his throat a little unnaturally. Although Jiang Rou hadn’t said anything, he felt a bit warm in his face.

He couldn’t help but put his hands around her waist and said softly, “It’s nothing; she’s your sister.”

He wouldn’t have cared about such matters if it had been someone else.

Jiang Rou didn’t say anything and buried her face on his neck a little deeper.

When the tip of her nose touched the man’s neck, Jiang Rou seemed to catch a whiff of the clean, fresh scent of soap on him. She couldn’t help but inhale it a couple of times.

Li Xiao felt a bit ticklish but didn’t want to move, so he just held her tighter.

The quiet room was filled with a touch of warmth.

At this moment, a soft “wuwu” sound came from between them.

Jiang Rou just remembered something at this moment and hurriedly stepped back, revealing the little girl sandwiched between the two of them.

The little girl must have been squeezed by them. She was crying pitifully with her mouth open.

She looked at them while crying—her little face flushed.

Jiang Rou was a little embarrassed and hurriedly picked her up to comfort her.

Fortunately, the little girl was easy to comfort. After a couple of pats, she stopped crying, resting her head on Jiang Rou’s shoulder and sniffing quietly. However, every time Jiang Rou tried to put her down, the girl would start crying again, as if she had developed a bit of a fear.

Li Xiao stood up and moved the cradle outside. “Let her sleep here.”

Jiang Rou felt concerned. “Won’t it be cold? ”

Li Xiao replied calmly, “Just add a couple more quilts.”

Jiang Rou didn’t say anything more.

Li Xiao folded two small blankets to place underneath and then covered them with two more. He also folded a clean small towel into a square to use as a pillow.

“Give me the child.”

He took the little girl from Jiang Rou’s arms, then walked around the room, then took a pen, and waved it gently in front of the child.

The little girl’s attention was indeed diverted. Her head followed the movement of the pen, and as she followed it with her eyes, she gradually drifted off to sleep.

Li Xiao carefully placed the now-sleeping girl into the cradle, covered her with a quilt, and then returned to the bed.

Seeing him come over, Jiang Rou felt a bit embarrassed and moved further into the bed.

Without the little girl, the bed suddenly felt a lot emptier.

Li Xiao didn’t say anything but moved closer to her when lying down.
placing one hand on her waist.

Jiang Rou was about to remove his hand but then heard him say from behind, “This matter with your sister won’t be easy to resolve. If her adoptive parents find out, they’ll definitely come to trouble you, and that old bachelor won’t give up easily.”

Jiang Rou frowned and turned to look at him. “She’s not of age yet. What they’re doing is illegal. I’ll report it to the police.”

Li Xiao shifted even closer, pressing against her back. “Then report it to the police. Also, transfer her household registration here. That way, even if someone comes knocking, we’ll have a basis for our claims. I heard your sister used to be very good at studying. Let her continue studying. Didn’t you say studying is important? ”

Jiang Rou felt a little uncomfortable with how close he was, but his words made her pause and fall into thought.

Transferring the household registration seemed like a good idea, though it might be a bit challenging to manage. Just as she was about to voice her concerns, she heard Li Xiao’s tired voice from behind her, “Go to sleep.”

Remembering that he had been busy until the early hours of the morning and had only just returned, she chose not to say anything. She didn’t remove his hand from her waist either.

—o—o—o—