Volume One, Chapter Two: My Brothers Have Lost Their Minds

At this moment, Little West Ravine was bustling with activity.

Three strikingly handsome men had arrived in the village, their tall and upright figures reminiscent of celebrities on television, instantly stirring up a commotion. Yang Qixiu, Yang Boyu, and Yang Junjie—the three brothers—headed straight to the village after disembarking from their flight. After asking around, they confirmed the residence of Zhao Guihua and Gou Dashan.

Zhao Guihua and Gou Dashan were infamous in the village: the man addicted to gambling, the woman lazy and gluttonous, sharp-tongued and bitter. Even the dogs passing by the couple would bark at them.

As soon as the Yang brothers asked for directions, the villagers began chattering amongst themselves.

"My goodness, did these people just fly in on a plane?"

"I think these boys are strikingly handsome. Their features look a bit like that child, Tuantuan. Could they be her biological family, here to claim her?"

"That poor child—she’s never warm or well-fed, and Zhao Guihua and Gou Dashan torment her every day. I saw her kneeling outside the door this morning. On such a cold day, she might have frozen to death by now."

"Tuantuan is a strange child. Do you remember what happened before? Would she really have family looking for her?"

An old woman, sharp-faced and harsh, sneered disdainfully.

"Who’s looking for girls these days? If you have a son, that’s enough. What use is a girl, just some outsider’s goods."

Second Brother, Yang Qixiu, halted his steps. The fourth and fifth brothers turned their gaze, sharp as blades, toward the old woman. She bolted away as if chased by demons.

Yang Qixiu, hearing the words "might have frozen to death," quickened his pace, fearing that a moment’s delay would mean he would never see his sister again.

When the three brothers arrived at Zhao Guihua’s door and saw the small, thin figure kneeling outside, a murderous intent instantly flared in their eyes.

Inside, Zhao Guihua still hadn’t found her money. Anger needed an outlet, so she flung open the door and shouted at Tuantuan, "You little wretch! If you don’t tell me where my money is today, I’ll skin you alive!"

Zhao Guihua raised her arm and struck fiercely at Tuantuan.

A scream tore from Zhao Guihua’s throat. Her raised right hand was pierced by a sharp blade, blood streaming down.

"You even dare lay a hand on a child. I’ll make you regret it!" Fourth Brother, Yang Boyu, had trained in martial arts since childhood—his moves were precise and deadly.

Ruthlessness showed in his eyes; he only regretted that his knife hadn’t struck Zhao Guihua’s heart.

Tuantuan was startled by the sudden chaos. Before she could make sense of what was happening, her sight was blocked.

Second Brother, Yang Qixiu, knelt down, took off his black down jacket, and wrapped Tuantuan in it.

His tall figure shielded her from the bloody scene, worried the violence would frighten his little sister.

Though Tuantuan at three and a half looked somewhat different from her childhood photos, her features still bore traces of her younger self—especially her eyes, which so closely resembled their mother’s.

Most importantly, Tuantuan looked exactly as she had in their dreams!

That strange dream—the sister in the dream was precisely before them now.

At this moment, Yang Qixiu was certain: this was the sister they had searched for over the past two years!

Just then, two luxury cars pulled up outside Zhao Guihua’s house, and Yang Chengze and Yang Suiyi rushed out.

They had also arrived by helicopter, arranged for a car at the village entrance, and hurried over as fast as they could.

"Second Brother, is it her? Have we found our sister?" Yang Suiyi asked anxiously as he walked.

He was eager to confirm the reality of that dream.

Yang Chengze strode forward. Tuantuan, wrapped in Second Brother's jacket, appeared even smaller, her little face bruised and pale.

Big Brother Yang Chengze’s eyes reddened with grief as he gently picked his sister up.

Suddenly embraced so tenderly, Tuantuan’s large, dark eyes filled with surprise.

This warmth was something she had never felt before.

Yang Chengze, eyes bloodshot, struggled to control his emotions. "Sister, why did she make you kneel outside?"

Seeing so many people crowding around, Tuantuan trembled and shrank back, frightened. "Who are you?"

Fourth Brother, Yang Boyu, looked at Tuantuan, his eyes red. "Sister, we’re your brothers. We’ve searched for you for so many years, and at last, we’ve found you."

Brothers?

Tuantuan had seen that Goudan and Xiaohua in the village had brothers. Could it be she had brothers too?

She could hardly believe it, for in her memories, there were no brothers.

Yang Chengze noticed Tuantuan’s unease mixed with curiosity. He took out childhood photos from his pocket and showed them to her.

"Tuantuan, you really are our sister. Look, we brought these photos—this is you as a newborn, this is you at one year, this is you at one and a half."

Three-and-a-half-year-old Tuantuan remembered a photo taken at one and a half, a picture Zhao Guihua and Gou Dashan had staged to prove to others they cared for the child, claiming she was their adopted cousin.

The photos the brothers brought matched exactly the ones hanging on the wall—the same girl.

Tuantuan’s eyes widened, still unable to believe it. "Are you really my brothers?"

"Of course. We traveled thousands of miles to find you and bring you home. Why are you outside the door? What happened?"

Though Tuantuan hadn’t fully processed the fact that her brothers had come for her, she answered honestly, "Mama said I stole money, but I didn’t—I really didn’t. Mama made me kneel outside to think it over."

Tuantuan’s pitiful, helpless look made all five brothers clench their fists in anger.

Yang Boyu flexed his fists, fury rising. "Damn it! That’s not your mother!"

This was a wretched human trafficker!

Yang Chengze glared at Yang Boyu, as did the other brothers—he was frightening their sister!

Tuantuan, terrified, let tears fall and choked out, "Tuantuan didn’t steal any money. Tuantuan isn’t a bad child."

With that one sentence, the five brothers understood what had happened.

Zhao Guihua had falsely accused their sister of stealing!

Yang Chengze struggled to control his emotions, forcing himself to speak gently. "Did Zhao Guihua say you stole money, but our Tuantuan didn’t? Isn’t that right?"

Tuantuan nodded vigorously—she would never admit to something she hadn’t done!

Yang Chengze looked tenderly at the trembling child in his arms. Her large, watery eyes brimmed with grief, yet her gaze remained resolute.

Tuantuan looked at the unfamiliar brothers, her expression full of hurt. "Tuantuan really didn’t steal any money!"

"Big Brother believes you. Tuantuan didn’t steal money!"

Yang Chengze’s eyes filled with tears of anguish. To see the child so wronged—Zhao Guihua truly deserved punishment!

Tuantuan blinked, crystalline tears spilling over. She looked timidly at Yang Chengze. Why would these people choose to believe her?

"Why do you believe me?" she asked, still afraid of these strangers.

If her legs hadn’t been numb from kneeling too long, she would have run away already.

Yang Chengze held Tuantuan, gazing at his frail sister, his voice soft. "Because you are our sister. When you were very little, we cared for you. We know you could never be a thief—you are the most honest, good child."

At that moment, Zhao Guihua, clutching her injured hand, cursed loudly, "Who are you? Is there no law anymore? How I discipline my child is none of your business!"

Yang Qixiu stood and walked toward Zhao Guihua, his eyes cold as a death god’s.

"Lay a hand on my sister, and you court death!"

Second Brother Yang Qixiu stomped on Zhao Guihua’s uninjured hand, his shoe grinding mercilessly. Zhao Guihua couldn’t even scream from the pain.

Crack.

The bones in her fingers broke under his heel.

Yang Qixiu had lost his mind, driven by the events of that haunting dream!