Chapter 028: Bathing My Younger Sister

Page (1/3)

“That's right, your granduncle slipped on the snow. Your father and I need to hurry over and check on him! The weather's warm today—if you don't bathe your sister now, who knows when the next warm day will be!” Li Xiuying hurriedly gave these instructions and then left with Yang Bao.

“Oh!” Yang Tian replied helplessly. In the countryside at this time, there were no water heaters, not even a bathtub; people bathed in large basins. Adults didn't mind, but for children, bathing in winter had to wait for a sunny day when the temperature was high enough to avoid catching a cold.

“Brother, will you help me take a bath?” Yang Xueling ran over cheerfully. She had played a lot over the New Year, and while her little face was still clean, her clothes were already so dirty they could barely be looked at.

“All right, wait here. I'll go boil some water!” Yang Tian gently patted Yang Xueling’s cheek before hurrying to the kitchen. It was noon, the sun was high, and the temperature was warm—but once the sun slipped behind the clouds, it would drop quickly. To prevent Yang Xueling from catching a chill, Yang Tian had to act quickly.

At home, water was still boiled in a stove. He filled the pot with water, piled firewood beneath, and set it alight.

Yang Xueling was very obedient. She took off her outerwear, imitating the grown-ups, and lugged the large plastic basin toward Yang Tian’s room.

“Let me help you, little sister!” Yang Tian hurried over—those plastic basins were heavy, and she could barely carry it.

“Then I'll go get undressed!” Yang Xueling beamed.

“Wait until the water's ready before you take your clothes off, or you'll catch a cold!” Yang Tian smiled and shook his head.

“Oh! Then hurry up and boil the water. I'll wait in your room!” Yang Xueling was obedient—she didn’t undress, but she did take off her shoes and ran barefoot in slippers between the kitchen and Yang Tian’s room.

“Be good, little sister, put your socks back on or I’ll get mad!” Yang Tian called out, pretending to be stern.

“Okay, don’t be angry, I’ll put them on!” Yang Xueling grinned, her growing teeth revealing two new front teeth—milky white and irresistibly cute.

Page (2/3)

Yang Tian smiled knowingly. Half an hour later, the water was finally ready—a bit hot, but better hot than cold, to keep Yang Xueling from catching a chill.

He carried the water to his room with a bucket, poured it into the large basin, and fetched a towel and soap. In those days, there was no body wash in the countryside—soap and medicated bars were the most common.

“Come, take off your clothes,” he said as he adjusted the water temperature, calling to Yang Xueling, who was bouncing on his bed.

“Okay!” Yang Xueling replied sweetly and began undressing herself.

The outer layers came off easily, but her inner shirt was tight. She tugged at her pink undershirt several times but couldn’t get it off.

By now, she was nearly undressed except for her long underwear. Yang Tian, worried she’d catch cold, had to help.

As he pulled off her shirt, her pale skin was revealed. Even at her young age, Yang Tian remembered she had always been fair-skinned, almost as if she were made of porcelain.

Looking at her upper body didn’t stir much in him, but when he realized he’d have to remove her pants as well, he froze.

Even though they were still just children, Yang Xueling wasn’t his biological sister. Having received higher education in his previous life, Yang Tian was somewhat traditional at heart and believed that once the boundary between boys and girls was crossed, there would be nothing left to restrain.

“Ugh, Yang Tian, you’re being disgusting,” he scolded himself inwardly. Even if Yang Xueling wasn’t his sister by blood, he ought to treat her as one, since they’d grown up together. How could he entertain such unsavory thoughts?

“Brother, what’s wrong? Hurry and help me, I’m freezing!” Yang Xueling hugged herself and shivered with a smile.

“Oh, right away!” Yang Tian reached out and swiftly pulled down her pants.

With that, Yang Xueling’s little figure was laid bare before him. He pressed his lips together, quickly picked up the towel, adjusted the water, and began to wash her.

“Ow, that’s hot—but it feels good!” Yang Xueling alternated between yelping at the heat and giggling, her little hands splashing water everywhere.

“Bear with it, it’ll be over soon.” Yang Tian washed her gently, forcing himself to treat the matter naturally—looking where he should, averting his eyes where he shouldn’t.

Page (3/3)

“Brother, here—and here too!” Yang Xueling curled up, pointing to her little armpits and then her knees, asking him to wash there.

“All right, I know!” Yang Tian squinted and smiled. Under the warmth of the hot water, both their faces were flushed, especially Yang Xueling’s.

The weather was cold, so to keep her from catching cold, he washed her quickly, carefully wiped her dry, and helped her into a clean jersey, then a sweater and her coat.

Soon, Yang Xueling was bouncing around the room, clean and exuding a faint scent of soap.

Yang Tian shook his head with a smile, then sighed deeply. Truthfully, seeing her body didn’t arouse any improper thoughts in him—but that didn’t mean he felt nothing at all; after all, he was a normal man.

In the blink of an eye, the winter holiday ended and school began. Yang Xueling had half a year left before starting middle school, and she had set herself a goal: to get into Victory Middle School and be with Yang Tian and Huang Juan.

Yang Tian and Huang Juan also returned to school. Before leaving, Yang Tian finalized the greenhouse vegetable project. After half a month of seedling cultivation, the tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and cucumbers sprouted smoothly, though the pumpkins and loofahs failed.

It didn’t matter, though—the greenhouse wasn’t large, and the remaining seedlings were enough to fill it.

Eggplants and peppers were easy, but tomatoes and cucumbers needed trellises, which didn’t worry Yang Tian since Yang Bao and his wife were experienced in this regard.

As for greenhouse management, Yang Tian, after many late-night discussions and hands-on work with Yang Bao, taught him techniques for keeping the greenhouse warm and dry, increasing sunlight, and reducing pests and diseases. The countryside had its own practical methods, which Yang Bao picked up easily.

Back at school, Yang Tian took care of various matters, then quietly went to Zhang Xinyu’s house. He had never given up his tutoring job with her—not for the money, but because her parents had repeatedly asked him to continue, hoping she would excel in the primary-to-secondary school entrance exams.

Finding Zhang Xinyu as adorable as Yang Xueling, he treated her like a little sister as well. He didn’t give up the tutoring, though he visited less frequently.

Before the winter holiday, Zhang Xinyu’s parents had reminded him countless times to come by during the break and help her with her homework. So, when the new term began, Yang Tian went to their house as promised.