Chapter 102: Damn, are you even a woman!

Just as Xu An’an was contemplating giving up, she suddenly felt a slight breeze. She closed her eyes and savored the sensation, then followed the wind’s direction.

After walking for about half an hour, Xu An’an actually found an exit!

But she needed to locate a mechanism to open the stone door. Xu An’an groped around, and fortunately, the mechanism wasn’t complicated. When she pressed a brick on the left, the stone door slowly began to open.

But where did this passage lead? Xu An’an couldn’t worry about that now; she didn’t want to spend another moment in that filthy, pitch-black place. Only by getting out could she find someone to help her.

“I didn’t expect you to be so capable, actually finding the exit here. Good thing I was waiting.”

A man suddenly appeared, his face twisted with malice, a fresh bruise on his forehead where he’d been struck.

He was the one who had kidnapped Xu An’an.

Earlier, Xu An’an had given him a beating, but he hadn’t dared make a sound for fear Jiang Li’s people would discover them. Now, he no longer cared.

“To be honest, you’d have been better off hiding inside; I didn’t dare bring you out. But you’ve just done me a huge favor.”

Xu An’an’s panic lasted only a moment before she steadied herself. She wasn’t a martial arts master, but she could handle herself.

She retreated two steps, adopting a stance ready for combat at any moment.

“Enough talk. If you’ve got the guts, come at me.”

The man seemed surprised by Xu An’an’s professional posture and hesitated. As a man, he couldn’t let himself be outdone by a woman. He assumed Xu An’an was bluffing, merely striking a pose to scare him.

“Fine. I hope you don’t disappoint me.”

Bang!

Xu An’an launched the first attack—a swift and stylish flying kick, landing squarely on his chest. The blow left him grimacing in pain, staggering back, barely staying on his feet.

But Xu An’an didn’t stop, pressing the attack relentlessly!

Each move was fierce and aggressive!

Unable to defend himself, the man was chased and pummeled. “Damn it! Are you even a woman?!”

“Stop right there!”

Xu An’an hadn’t expected this tall, lanky man to be so weak, yet he’d dared to drag her out of Jiang Li’s room after knocking her out.

Suddenly, in a moment of distraction, Xu An’an tripped over a stone at her feet.

She tumbled to the ground.

The man, battered and breathless, stopped, sensing his chance. He flexed his fists and leered, a lascivious grin spreading across his face. “Ha! Come on, then!”

“For all your talk, you went down without me so much as touching you!”

“Now it’s my turn to have some fun!”

Xu An’an had twisted her ankle and couldn’t get up right away, but she’d already grabbed a handful of sand. If the man dared come closer, she’d throw it in his face.

That would buy her some time to escape.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, an arrow whistled through the air!

“Ah!!”

The arrow plunged straight into the man’s shoulder. He screamed in agony, his face draining of color. He looked up sharply to see Jiang Li arriving with his men.

He didn’t dare to run—Jiang Li was aiming a crossbow at his head.

“Tie him up!” Jiang Li commanded, then hurried to Xu An’an’s side, helping her up, his eyes filled with worry. “Are you hurt? Where does it hurt?”

Xu An’an was momentarily stunned, surprised by Jiang Li’s anxiety.

Seeing her silent, Jiang Li assumed she was frightened and quickly scooped her up in his arms. “Don’t be afraid, it’s over now. I’m taking you back.”

He ordered his people to have a doctor waiting.

Then, holding Xu An’an tightly, he dashed all the way back, steady and sure.

Nestled in Jiang Li’s arms, Xu An’an felt a deep sense of security. She couldn’t help but reach up and gently wipe the sweat from his brow. “Slow down, I’m fine.”

“How could you be fine? You’re a woman—how could you fight a man? Did he hit you? I’ll make him pay!” Jiang Li gritted his teeth, as if he wished he could cut the man into pieces and feed him to the dogs.

Xu An’an was touched in a way she couldn’t describe.

Apart from her mother, it seemed only Jiang Li had ever worried about her so much.

“Actually, I just twisted my ankle. He didn’t hit me—I hit him.”

“You hit him?”

Jiang Li was skeptical. He handed Xu An’an over to the doctor for her injury to be bandaged and soon learned from his subordinates that Xu An’an had indeed beaten the man badly.

The man wept bitterly, insisting he hadn’t even touched a single finger of Xu An’an’s, yet ended up being thrashed and then shot by Jiang Li. It was all so unfair!

Jiang Li snorted coldly, “He brought it upon himself. Hand him over to the police.”

“Yes, sir!”

Xu An’an’s ankle was not badly injured; she only needed a little rest. Glancing at the full-length mirror nearby, she realized just how filthy she looked.

Yet Jiang Li, notorious for his cleanliness, hadn’t minded at all—he’d carried her all the way back without complaint.

A surge of gratitude welled up inside her again.

“Where’s Second Master?” she asked.

“Second Master had something to take care of. Would you like to shower first?” A female staff member had already prepared clean clothes for her.

At that moment, Xu An’an truly needed a bath.

She took the clothes and went into the bathroom.

Jiang Li was in the next room, having had the kidnapper interrogated, finally learning the whole story. It turned out the man hated Jiang Li because Jiang Li had bankrupted the company he worked for, leaving him jobless and unable to find good work, forced to labor on construction sites.

He had gotten his position through connections and had done nothing at the company while others constantly tried to curry favor with gifts.

Occasionally, he would exploit his position to take advantage of young, attractive female colleagues.

Life had been easy and pleasurable.

But because of Jiang Li, everything vanished into thin air.

While working, he overheard that Jiang Li had brought a woman to visit, and immediately decided to teach Jiang Li a lesson.

He didn’t dare confront Jiang Li directly, so he hid in the room, waiting to ambush Xu An’an.

As luck would have it, Xu An’an entered alone, and he seized his chance.

Jiang Li was at a loss for words.

He hadn’t expected things to be so simple.

“How is she now?”

“Miss Xu only twisted her ankle; she’s freshening up,” Assistant Wang replied.

Jiang Li nodded lightly. “Prepare some food for her. She must be hungry after being locked up for so long.”

At that moment, Xu An’an stood outside the door. Hearing Jiang Li’s words, her heart pounded faster. Could it be that Jiang Li really liked her?

She was about to knock when she heard Assistant Wang say, “Second Master, the Old Madam just called. She’ll be back in the country soon to arrange your marriage.”

Jiang Li’s expression darkened.

That Old Madam had once fiercely opposed his mother and had done much to harm her. After his mother’s death, she had someone bring him back to the Jiang family.

She cared only for his abilities, hiding behind a veneer of guilt, using everything as compensation.

He found it all laughable and ironic.

“The Old Master also thinks it’s time for you to start a family. He’s already been in contact with the Murong family,” Assistant Wang continued.

Xu An’an recalled that the actress who’d just completed a grand slam in the entertainment industry was none other than the Murong family’s eldest daughter.

The Murong family’s influence was formidable.

Xu An’an involuntarily took a step back.

She forgot about her injured ankle, and the pain made her suck in a sharp breath.