A delicate beauty takes a place in a marriage, while a cold, rough man seduces her every night.

"Did your dad do this?" Qingyan stared, her face full of shock and astonishment.

Li Jun cried out in pain, tears streaming down his face, and urged in his childish voice, "Teacher Qiao, you go first, I'm fine."

Qingyan reached out and helped the child up, putting her arm around his thin shoulder, then turned to glare angrily at the man in front of her:

"He's your son! He's only seven or eight years old, how could you beat him like this?"

Li Guodong tilted his head and spat on the ground: "It's only natural for a father to beat his son!"

Li Jun's crying ignited his anger, and he yanked his belt out, yelling, "Cry, cry, cry! I'll teach you to cry, you son of a bitch!"

As he spoke, the belt, carrying a strong gust of wind, lashed straight at the thin Li Jun.

Qingyan didn't have time to think and instinctively stepped aside to shield the child.

A heavy whip lashed down on her back.

Even through the thick cotton clothes, the pain was still clearly felt, and she frowned slightly.

Li Jun was trembling with fear, never expecting that his drunken father would dare to lay a hand on his teacher.

Before Li Guodong could put his belt back in, a tall and imposing figure suddenly burst into the courtyard.

The man strode up to him in two quick steps, and before he could even see the other man's face clearly, he was kicked several meters away with a heavy force.

Li Guodong fell heavily onto the icy snow-covered surface, howling in pain.

Qingyan turned around and suddenly met Xiao Jingye's angry eyes.

He cursed, stepped forward, and grabbed her hand, his voice filled with suppressed anger and heartache:

"If I don't keep an eye on you for a day, you'll get bullied by someone else."

Xiao Jingye had been busy in the city for the past two days and finally came back today. He was thinking of picking her up from school after get off work, but he didn't see her. Instead, he ran into her colleague, who said that she was visiting the village.

Fortunately, he arrived in time, but he was still a step too late. When he got to the door, he just happened to see the leather belt, like a whip, striking her back fiercely.

It felt like a whipping blow to Xiao Jingye's heart.

"Does it hurt?" Xiao Jingye asked.

Qingyan shook her head. The sight of him filled her with a surge of resentment: "If I hadn't come, Li Jun would have been beaten to death by his father!"

Xiao Jingye glanced at the child who was crying with tears in his eyes, then looked at the drunkard who was sprawled on the ground and making a scene. Unable to contain his anger, he stepped forward and kicked the man several times.

He picked up the belt from the ground and whipped it hard against Li Guodong, then slammed the belt into the man's face.

With a gloomy expression, he gripped Qingyan's wrist: "Let's go home first."

Qingyan turned to look at Li Jun, who was standing alone in the same spot, and looked at Xiao Jingye with pleading eyes.

"Damn it." Xiao Jingye muttered another curse under his breath, then touched Qingyan's cheek with his large hand. "Take him with you."

Qingyan's lips immediately curved into a smile, and she extended her hand to Li Jun: "Li Jun, you come with the teacher. I'll ask someone to find your mother tomorrow."

Li Jun glanced warily at his drunken father, who was cursing and swearing to himself, then took Qingyan's hand and left with them.

On the way, Xiao Jingye saw that Li Jun was walking with a limp, so he simply bent down and steadily held the child in his arms with one hand.

The ground was slippery, and fearing that Qingyan might fall, another large hand reached out to take hers, but Qingyan calmly waved it away, refusing to let him hold her hand.

The next second, he firmly gripped her palm and rebuked her in a deep voice:

"Can't you ever worry about your own safety before doing good deeds? I might save you once or twice, but I can't possibly be there in time every time..."

"What if something happens? Are you trying to make me worry to death?"

Qingyan pursed her lips and remained silent.

Xiao Jingye only said a few words, and considering that there was a child beside him, he could only slowly extinguish the lonely fire in his chest.

Midway through their journey, the two visited a relative of Li Jun's and asked the relative to pass on a message to his mother, asking her to come to Teacher Qiao's house in Nanjiaping Village to pick him up the next day.

It was nearly dark when they got home. Zeng Yumei was surprised to see the two of them bring back a little boy who was about the same age as Duoduo. She asked what was going on.

After listening to Qingyan's story, Zeng Yumei hugged Li Jun tightly, feeling sorry for him: "What a good child! How could his father bear to beat him?"

Duoduo was a little unfamiliar and scared of the little boy she was meeting for the first time. She hid behind the adults and observed for a long time before she dared to stick her head out and look at him openly.

Qingyan lifted Li Jun's clothes and saw that his waist was also covered with bruises.

"Does your father often beat you?"

"Yes," Li Jun replied truthfully.

Qingyan asked again, "Was your leg injured by him?"

The child nodded silently again.

The air was silent for a few seconds. The three adults looked at the wounds on the child's legs and felt a heavy weight in their hearts.

During dinner, Zeng Yumei served the child a large bowl of porridge and boiled two extra eggs.

Li Jun held the bowl and ate the rice until it was completely clean.

Qingyan asked him many questions in a gentle and gradual manner, and only then did she learn the true situation of his family.

Li Jun's mother left his father a long time ago and married someone from another village. She only comes back to visit him occasionally.

The father, Li Guodong, was an alcoholic. Every time he got drunk, he would become violent and out of control, venting all his anger on young Li Jun.

The child usually lives with his father, often going hungry and cold, and is frequently beaten and scolded.

The blood that Qiao Qingyan saw while correcting homework was from when he was doing his homework and his father slapped him several times, causing his nose to bleed and stain his homework.

Two days ago, Li Guodong returned home drunk late at night and started punching and kicking Li Jun without warning. The child fell heavily to the ground, injured his leg, and was bedridden for two whole days due to the pain, making it impossible for him to go to school.

If Qingyan hadn't gone to his house today, he might have been beaten to death by his father at home and no one would have known.

The child looked pitiful, yet sensible and heartbreaking.

After dinner, Qingyan noticed that he was all dirty and wanted to give him a hot bath.

Considering that he is already a seven or eight-year-old boy, it is not very convenient for him to wash himself.

So Qingyan looked pleadingly at the only man in the house.

Xiao Jingye cleared the dishes and took them to the kitchen, and Qingyan followed him happily, also carrying a plate inside.

"What are you doing?" He still seemed angry, his expression cold and indifferent.

Qiao Qingyan gently put down the plate in her hand, blinked her bright eyes, looked up at him, and pleaded softly:

"I'll boil some water later, could you please help Li Jun take a bath?"

"No. I don't serve others." Xiao Jingye refused decisively.

"Please, just do it as a good deed..." Qingyan clasped her hands together and pleaded.

"I don't like doing good deeds." Xiao Jingye stared straight at her with his dark eyes. "Tell me, what benefits can you offer me?"

Qingyan's eyelids drooped: "Fine, if he doesn't want to, I'll wash him myself later."

As she turned to leave, her wrist was suddenly grabbed tightly—

A force pulled her back directly.

She was caught off guard and bumped into a broad, warm embrace.

"You're patient with everyone else, but not with me, right?" Xiao Jingye pinched her chin with one hand and looked down into her eyes.

Qingyan struggled uncomfortably for a moment: "Since you're unwilling to help, I won't force you..."

Before she could finish speaking, her lips were sealed by someone's.

The man leaned down and kissed her forcefully, demanding his reward.

His arms bound her like iron chains, his large hands gripping her waist tightly, no matter how Qingyan twisted, she couldn't break free.

The two had a height difference of several tens of centimeters. He had broad shoulders and a thick back, and his figure was strong and burly, like a majestic alpha wolf on the grassland. In his arms, Qingyan seemed like a weak and petite ram, as if she could only be devoured.

The man's aura was strong and domineering as he captured the girl's lips, his frenzied and passionate embrace leaving her no chance to escape.

The kitchen is very close to the main room, so there's a chance someone might bump into it at any time.

Qiao Qingyan's heart suddenly raced, and her cheeks quickly flushed red. She felt ashamed, embarrassed, and angry all at the same time.

He kissed her again. Why did he kiss her again? This guy's lewd behavior is endless.

He kissed her for several dozen seconds, until her lips were red and rosy, before turning his head slightly and slowly releasing her with heavy breathing.

"You little troublemaker, you're always causing me trouble, I really owe you something!"

He muttered a scolding under his breath, but his thumb gently wiped away the drool that lingered at the corner of her mouth.

Staring intently at her lips, his tone softened, his voice deep and husky: "Why are your lips so soft?"

"What's that stuff on your lips? It's so alluring, it's driving me crazy."

"You're making me want to eat you all the time."

Qingyan was so dizzy from the kisses that she felt oxygen-deprived, her chest heaving slightly, and she couldn't speak.

After a moment, she remembered to raise her hand and hit him: "Xiao Jingye, you bastard..."

Xiao Jingye grabbed her wrist, his dark eyes deep, and kissed her soft lips a few more times, coaxing her:

"Honey, don't be angry. I'll boil some water and give the child a bath later."

Qingyan's ears turned red, she puffed out her cheeks, and glared at him: "Let go of me, what if someone sees us..."

Xiao Jingye obediently let go of her hand, and she immediately fled the kitchen in a panic.

Watching the girl's retreating figure, Xiao Jingye pondered for a moment, then belatedly cursed under his breath.

So what if we get seen?

I am legal.