Li Yun'er took a bath in the bathroom and came out wrapped in a bathrobe after a long time.
Han Junyan was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, smoking a cigarette. Li Yun'er glanced at a brand new set of clothes placed on the bedside table.
Her eyes flickered, and she said softly, "Brother Junyan, you're not allowed to look."
The man heard her, turned his head, and saw Li Yun'er in a bathrobe. Her face was bare, her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, revealing a neck like a swan's and delicate, alluring collarbones. Her chest was proudly presented, a perfect beauty.
Han Junyan recalled the line from the Ode to the Luo River, "Stretching her neck, showing her elegant nape, her pure skin revealed, untouched by fragrant oils, unadorned by makeup."
He had to admit, Li Yun'er and Meng Jingwei, the two sisters, were truly at the pinnacle of beauty. Even without makeup, they were breathtakingly stunning.
However, Meng Jingwei was the goddess in his heart, unattainable.
She was even a bit proud, not as unrestrained as Li Yun'er.
One was a wild girl from the countryside, and the other was a pampered socialite from a prestigious family in the capital, yet their personalities were poles apart.
It was truly ironic.
How could Han Junyan not know about Li Yun'er's "seduction"?
He stubbed out his cigarette, walked up to Li Yun'er, put his arm around her waist, and pulled her closer. "What's wrong? I'm your man, I can't look?"
His domineering words were in stark contrast to Han Junyan's usually gentle demeanor.
For a moment, Li Yun'er could see a trace of danger in his eyes, a dangerous aura that enveloped her, refusing to leave.
Li Yun'er lightly pursed her red lips, her face flushed with shy allure. "Brother... Brother Junyan, I... I'm not ready yet."
She covered her chest with one hand, holding them apart, and murmured with her head bowed.
"Silly girl."
Han Junyan leaned down and kissed her lips, the kiss hot and passionate.
Before long, Li Yun'er's bathrobe fell to the floor, and the two of them were already entwined passionately in bed.
...
The next day.
Han Junyan asked Meng Jingwei to go home with him, claiming his car was being repaired and he wanted to hitch a ride with her.
Meng Jingwei readily agreed.
Meng Jingwei picked up Han Junyan, and they drove home together.
On the way, Meng Jingwei tentatively asked, "Do you... like Li Yun'er a lot?"
Han Junyan's mind flashed back to Li Yun'er's unrestrained appearance yesterday, comparable to a nightclub princess, with none of the dignity and self-respect of a socialite.
A hint of contempt and coldness flickered in his eyes.
"She's... alright," Han Junyan replied against his conscience.
Hearing Han Junyan's words, Meng Jingwei leaned back in her seat, tilting her head to look out the window.
She knew everything that had happened to Li Yun'er, from her initial crush on Qing Muye, to her desire to marry Qing Muye, having an affair with another man, and getting pregnant.
Then she was violated by people sent by Xiao Meiyan, and after the miscarriage, she became infertile.
Since then, Li Yun'er had been severely hit, disheartened, and had even started to engage in promiscuity with Xiao Cheng.
Although Meng Jingwei knew that Li Yun'er had fallen to her current state due to the severe blow she had suffered, leading her to lose her self-respect.
While she detested it, she could also understand Li Yun'er's despair in the 'darkness.'
Even though she had brought it upon herself, the violation by people sent by Xiao Meiyan and her inability to conceive after the miscarriage were two things that most women could not bear.
Pitiable, and tragic.
Every time she thought of this, Meng Jingwei felt a certain sympathy for Li Yun'er.
It was just a shame that she didn't deserve it!
"You've probably heard about her affairs, haven't you?" Meng Jingwei asked tentatively, wanting to understand Han Junyan's thoughts.
"I know about Yun'er and Qing Muye's matters. But as a girl, daring to take responsibility is quite commendable. These things are not important. As long as she repents and turns over a new leaf in the future, I think it's fine. After all, no one is perfect. And we are still young, haven't we all made mistakes?"
Han Junyan replied.
Hearing Han Junyan's words, Meng Jingwei was at a loss for words for a moment.
She also didn't know whether to tell Han Junyan about the things that happened between Li Yun'er and Xiao Cheng.
But Meng Jingwei ultimately couldn't bear to shatter Han Junyan's expectations for Li Yun'er, and decided to observe for a while longer.
After driving for several hours, they finally reached Xuancheng at eleven o'clock in the morning.
Meng Jingwei couldn't refuse Han Junyan's enthusiasm, so they had lunch in Xuancheng before she drove back to Zhutang Town in the countryside.
An hour later, they finally arrived at her old home.
Meng Jingwei parked the car at the entrance of the courtyard. Upon hearing the sound, Meng Tianhua and Du Juan immediately ran out of the house, their faces beaming as they walked to the car.
"Dad, Mom, I'm back."
Meng Jingwei got out of the car and hugged Meng Tianhua and Du Juan. "How are you both doing?"
"Your father and I are doing great," Du Juan said, beaming.
Meng Tianhua sighed, "You're finally back. I don't have to listen to your mother's nagging alone anymore. She can be quite talkative."
"What's wrong? Is our daughter back just to back you up?" Du Juan shot Meng Tianhua a look.
Meng Jingwei, accustomed to their bickering, couldn't help but smile.
Then she said, "Dad, Mom, can you help me carry my things?"
She walked to the back of the car, opened the trunk, and took out the items one by one. "Dad, Mom, these are clothes and shoes for you, and some nutritional supplements. Take them inside first. These few items are for my Shifu, I'll go deliver them to her."
"Okay, sure. You go quickly to Old Chen's place and tell him to come down. We'll have a family reunion dinner," Du Juan instructed Meng Jingwei.
"Okay, Mom."
Meng Jingwei nodded with a smile, picked up a few things, and headed straight to the back mountain to find Old Chen.
In winter, the cold wind was biting, especially on the mountain where the wind howled, making one's face sting.
Meng Jingwei couldn't help but mutter to herself, "That old man, he insists on living on the mountain all year round, doesn't he get cold?"
Shivering from the cold, she quickened her pace up the mountain.
But when she rounded the small pond and reached the entrance to Old Chen's courtyard, the door was locked.
Meng Jingwei put down her things and looked around the house, but there was no sign of Old Chen.
She took out her phone to call Old Chen, but there was no signal.
Helpless, she sat down on the milk crate she was carrying and waited quietly for Old Chen to return.
Sitting by the door, bored, she looked around and suddenly noticed many footprints on the ground in front of Old Chen's door.
Since it had snowed, the snow on the ground had been trampled flat, but the shoe prints were still visible.
Judging by the patterns and sizes of those footprints, there were at least four or five people.
Old Chen's house was in the back mountain, and he was usually aloof, not liking to strike up conversations with people, so few people came to find him.
Old Chen, like her father, was not tall, wearing size 41 shoes. However, these footprints on the ground were at least size 42 or 43.
The people who made these footprints were at least 1.78 to 1.83 meters tall.
Meng Jingwei's pupils narrowed slightly. She got up, walked forward, and squatted down to examine the footprints closely. She discovered that there were at least three different shoe sole patterns, and all of them were size 42 or larger.