Jiang Yanyan was crying so hard she could barely breathe.
Tian Guilan, both angry and worried, rushed forward and slapped her on the back.
“You still can’t go causing this kind of catastrophe, you reckless girl! Honestly, I should just beat you to death. Now go apologize to your second brother!”
Even at a time like this, she was still thinking about lightly covering it up.
Jiang Chengbei’s eyes darkened. With his iron grip, he hauled Jiang Yanyan outside.
He didn’t say a word, but everyone watching knew Jiang Yanyan was finished. Judging by Jiang Chengbei’s merciless expression, it wouldn’t be surprising if he sent her straight to prison.
Cao Xinrou turned pale in fright.
She had never seen Jiang Chengbei so ruthless. His gaze seemed as if he could flay a person limb by limb. She slightly regretted hiding Jiang Yanyan, but on the bright side, Ning Xi was in real trouble.
Falling into the hands of human traffickers what hope could there be?
Perhaps she had already been violated by multiple men.
Even if rescued, what would it matter? A woman’s reputation is everything; once ruined, living has little meaning.
Jiang Chengbei might love her, but could he guarantee he wouldn’t care at all? That he’d continue to love her like before, for life?
At that point… Jiang Chengbei, so young yet already a battalion commander with a brilliant future, would only ever deserve to stand beside her pure and untainted.
With Jiang Yanyan as a guide, Jiang Chengbei quickly found the old warehouse.
“Th-this is it…”
Jiang Yanyan froze, her face pale with terror.
She didn’t want to go in. Once inside, she would remember that horrific day. She clutched the rusty iron gate tightly, eyes full of pleading.
“Second Brother, I know I was wrong… please let me go.”
Jiang Chengbei never hit women, especially his own sister. Yet now, he raised his long leg clad in a military boot and kicked her mercilessly.
“If anything happens to Ning Xi, I’ll flay you alive!”
“Ah!”
Jiang Yanyan flew across the ground, rolling like a rag doll, unable to get up for a long while.
Jiang Chengbei didn’t even glance at her. Striding forward, he stormed into the warehouse.
Meanwhile, Ning Xi had just knocked out Qiao An.
Fearing other accomplices, she didn’t dare relax. Gripping the wooden stick tightly, she cautiously stepped out of the small room and immediately heard soft sobbing from the neighboring room.
It sounded like someone crying.
Like a woman’s voice.
Could there be other girls kidnapped here?
“Wuwuwu…”
The closer she got, the clearer the sobbing became.
Inside the dim little room, four or five young girls were curled up.
When they saw a beautiful woman standing at the door, their eyes brightened for a moment, then quickly dimmed again like two extinguished flames.
“You… were all kidnapped?”
Ning Xi couldn’t believe it.
This was the traffickers’ hideout. Qiao An had truly dared to do anything.
“Trying to run?”
A weak, bitter laugh rang out, filled with the helplessness of one who had seen everything.
“Stop dreaming. No one who comes here ever escapes. Everyone who tried was caught.”
Those who tried were beaten badly. If you didn’t want to suffer, if you wanted to keep your pretty face intact, you had to obey… otherwise.
The voice shook its head, eyes flicking toward a corner.
“She’s your warning.”
Following the gaze, Ning Xi saw a frail figure lying motionless in the corner. After a long while, the chest rose faintly already teetering on the brink of death.
No time to think.
Her only thought: save them. Get them out.
The door was locked with an iron padlock. Thinking the key might be on Qiao An, Ning Xi ran back to him, retrieved a bunch of keys, and quickly unlocked the neighboring room, calling the girls to run.
“Quick! I knocked out those two traffickers!”
The mention of traffickers being unconscious reignited the hope in their eyes.
The girls shakily got up, cautiously stepping out of the small room that had held them captive for days and nights. Seeing no one chasing them, they bolted toward the warehouse gate.
They were saved they really were!
Ning Xi went to drag out the unconscious girl.
It took all her strength, but she managed to get her out. Glancing up, she saw that the girls who had run ahead were now returning in unison.
“Why are you back?”
“There were… footsteps outside. The trafficker gang must have returned!”
“We can’t run. If they catch us, they’ll beat us to death! Go back, quick!”
Ning Xi didn’t know what to say.
She understood the girls were simply terrified.
Like birds long caged, they had lost the courage to fly.
She paused briefly, instructing them to watch over the unconscious girl, gripping her wooden stick, and moved toward the warehouse gate.
Voices called out behind her:
“Come back! Don’t run!”
“Running means death!”
Ning Xi ignored them, her slender figure carrying determination.
Running offered a chance at life; staying meant losing everything.
Heavy footsteps approached outside. Just as the intruder pushed open the door, Ning Xi, hiding at the side, swung her wooden stick with all her strength.
It should have struck but didn’t.
The stick was firmly grabbed by a long, strong hand and easily wrenched from her grip.
Clang! It hit the cement floor, snapping in two.
Ning Xi stepped back in shock.
In the next moment, a tall figure stepped in. Backlit, his face was obscured, yet strangely familiar.
Jiang Chengbei’s face was tense, jaw hard. But the aura of lethal anger around him dissipated almost instantly as he saw her.
All the rage transformed into the joy of finding what was lost.
“Xixi!”
He dashed forward in one stride, no questions asked, and scooped Ning Xi into his arms.
Ning Xi pressed against his solid chest, inhaling the familiar scent. Her tense nerves finally relaxed, and her legs went weak.
“Jiang Chengbei… you finally came.”
Her trembling, choked voice broke his heart. Jiang Chengbei held her firmly, his black eyes scanning her from head to toe.
“Sorry I’m late… are you hurt?”
“Mm.”
Ning Xi nodded lightly.
Even after drinking the spring water, her lower abdomen still ached from the kick. But now wasn’t the time for complaints. She wriggled free from his embrace and pointed to the other girls.
“They were kidnapped too.”
“Jiang Yanyan’s boyfriend, Qiao An, is a trafficker. I knocked him and his accomplices out.”
Jiang Chengbei’s brow twitched.
Though spoken simply, the danger implied was far greater than a few words could convey.
His little girl her beauty was only a minor trait. Far more important was her courage, determination, and resourcefulness.