"Xu Nian’an, no, Brother Xu, what are you, why are you chasing me? I was just taking a cold bath in the river," Gao Jianshe said with an ingratiating smile, the obsequiousness of his expression exceedingly servile.
Xu Nian’an didn’t say a word. He grabbed Gao’s foot and leaped out of the water. After getting onto the bank, he directly tore Gao Jianshe’s shirt open to reveal a conspicuous wound on his right abdomen, which appeared to have only recently healed.
Seeing Xu Nian’an looking at his wound, Gao Jianshe stuttered an explanation, "I accidentally knocked it."
No sooner had Gao Jianshe’s words fallen than Xu Nian’an’s fist had already come down, and Gao felt a pain in his abdomen so intense it seemed as if everything inside was about to be expelled.
Just then, Xu Nianji, who was hurrying over, twitched at the sight and quickly swam closer.
Xu Nian’an grabbed his collar and pushed him straight back into the water next to them.
"Xu Nian’an, what are you doing?"
Gao Jianshe only felt a chill run through him as he met Xu Nian’an’s gaze. Without understanding what Xu Nian’an was about to do, he suddenly felt the world spin around him, and the next moment, his entire head was pushed under the water.
"Gao Jianshe, I warned you last time not to bully my little sister, and not only did you do just that, you even thought about dishonoring her?"
After seeing Gao’s wound, Xu Nian’an confirmed that Gao Jianshe had indeed harmed Xu Nianhua.
It took many days for the last wound on little sister’s arm to heal. Had it not been for her quick thinking to climb the persimmon tree and make it to Pei Yicheng’s house, who knows what else Gao Jianshe would have done?
Gao Jianshe struggled, finding it excruciatingly difficult to breathe.
Xu Nianji, not knowing what had happened, but seeing Xu Nian’an holding someone under the water, his heart skipped a beat, fearing that something terrible had occurred, and he swam even faster.
"Be careful not to drown him..."
Xu Nianji reached the edge of the water and looked around. It was dusk, not quite dark, and there was no one else in sight.
"Big brother, don’t worry, I know when to stop," Xu Nian’an reassured him. He tossed Gao Jianshe around in the water a few times before warning, "If you think about hurting my little sister again, I will not let you off next time."
"Consider this a warning for today. Also, don’t even dream of telling anyone else about this. Remember what you did last time? If I really reported you, do you think you’d avoid prison?"
Xu Nianhua cautioned, right up against Gao Jianshe’s ear.
Gao Jianshe coughed awkwardly, the sensation of choking on water was just too unbearable. Xu Nian’an had timed it well, pulling him out just when he felt he could no longer breathe. Gao Jianshe did not want to experience that discomfort a second time.
"I, I won’t dare anymore," Gao Jianshe coughed out water as he insisted he wouldn’t dare do it again.
If he had known that coming back would lead to Xu Nian’an discovering him, he would never have returned, no matter what. He would have waited until his injuries were fully healed at the very least.
"He bullied little sister?" Upon learning that Gao Jianshe had bullied little sister, and knowing that the previous injury on her arm was caused by Gao Jianshe, Xu Nianji couldn’t contain his anger. He was eager to shove Gao Jianshe back under the water again!
Xu Nianji chose spots where others couldn’t see to hit him and after beating him, warned Gao Jianshe, "If you dare think about laying a hand on my little sister again, hmph..."
Though Xu Nianji only hummed coldly, the implication was crystal clear.