Ying Wutu was in the woodshed, admiring the paper bird when the sudden opening of the door startled him.
“The young lady wants to see you.”
Ying Wutu quickly got up, his heart filled with anxiety.
What could the wicked woman want now?
It was still broad daylight. Was she planning something indecent during the day?
As he entered the room, he saw not just the wicked woman but also a man.
Jiang Shouzhuo gestured.
The renowned male physician hesitated, surprised to see Ying Wutu chained. However, he didn’t dare to ask questions and quickly began taking his pulse.
Ying Wutu cautiously observed, knowing he wasn’t ill.
After checking the pulse, the physician pondered for a moment before asking, “Since when has the young master been impotent?”
Ying Wutu blushed deeply, realizing what the wicked woman was planning, and remained silent.
Jiang Shouzhuo answered for him, “He was fine nine days ago.”
Nine days ago was the night of the examination; she had seen it herself.
The physician nodded, “That makes sense. The young master has taken an impotence-inducing drug. Given his constitution, he should be quite capable. Does the general wish for him to be treated?”
Jiang Shouzhuo frowned, “Impotence-inducing drug?”
Ying Wutu lowered his already flushed face further, afraid to respond.
Jiang Shouzhuo gripped the chair’s armrest tightly, suppressing her emotions. She instructed the physician, “Treat him. Use the best medicine.”
Sensing the tension, the physician quickly left with the housekeeper to prepare the prescription.
Once the door closed, Jiang Shouzhuo coldly ordered, “Come here.”
Ying Wutu shuffled over and knelt before her.
“Explain,” Jiang Shouzhuo demanded.
Ying Wutu had nothing to explain. It was just the Fifth Prince’s doing, giving him the medicine.
“Silent again!” Jiang Shouzhuo grabbed his ear and pulled him close. “I’ve been too kind to you, and you dare secretly take medicine? Just to upset me, right? You’re despicable, saying you want to offer yourself to me but doing this in secret? Are you playing hard to get?”
Ying Wutu remained silent, letting the wicked woman twist his ear.
“Wait.” Jiang Shouzhuo suddenly let go. She remembered that apart from the scars she gave, he had nothing on him since being captured. He had only a dagger, which she had confiscated. So, where did he get the medicine, especially such a strange one?
Ying Wutu’s ear was released, and he rubbed it weakly, feeling wronged. The wicked woman was so unpredictable.
“Where did you get the medicine?” Jiang Shouzhuo grabbed his chin, forcing him to look up.
Ying Wutu averted his gaze, refusing to speak or look at her.
“I can guess. Did you get it from the Fifth Prince?” Jiang Shouzhuo easily deduced, knowing the Fifth Prince had all sorts of strange medicines.
That Ying Xiaowu had a whole medicine chest.
Ying Wutu remained silent.
“Fine! Don’t want to speak? Kneel outside until you want to explain,” Jiang Shouzhuo said, kicking his shoulder lightly.
The kick wasn’t too hard, as she remembered nearly killing him with one last time.
Ying Wutu fell to the ground, groaning, then slowly got up and walked outside.
He found a smooth stone to kneel on in the yard.
Feeling wronged.
What could he say?
He didn’t want to implicate the Fifth Prince.
He believed the army had returned to the capital, and the Fifth Prince should be at Jin’s palace.
Capturing the Fifth Prince alive was to present him to the Jin Emperor.
He hoped the Fifth Prince was doing well and didn’t want to cause him trouble.
Whether he spoke or not, the wicked woman would be angry.
Since he would be tortured anyway, he chose not to speak.
After half an hour, the housekeeper brought a bowl of black medicine and placed it before Ying Wutu, saying, “Drink it.”
Ying Wutu knew what the medicine was and, unable to resist, obediently drank it.
By noon, Jiang Shouzhuo came out and saw him still kneeling in the yard. Passing by, she asked, “Thought it through?”
Ying Wutu remained silent, staring at the stone ground.
“Suit yourself.” Jiang Shouzhuo walked past him, “Keep kneeling then!”
She went to Junshi Courtyard for lunch.
The four young servants had been dressing up all morning, not even playing mahjong.
At the square table, Jiang Shouzhuo sat at the head, with the four others in order of their entry into the mansion.
Jiang Shouzhuo ate silently, while the four young servants were nervous.
Their mistress rarely ate with them. What was special today?
They heard from the kitchen staff that a famous male physician had come and prepared some medicine.
None of them had any signs of pregnancy, so it must be for their mistress’s new favorite.
Could the newcomer be pregnant with their mistress’s child already?
Jiang Shouzhuo finished eating and noticed they hadn’t eaten much. “Why aren’t you eating? Didn’t I say you’re all too thin, not pleasing to touch? Eat more!”
She got up and left.
Now they had even less appetite.
“She dislikes me.”
“Our mistress dislikes me.”
The four of them cried together again. The white kitten in the corner, disturbed by the noise, rolled over and continued sleeping.
Ying Wutu had been kneeling for almost two hours, and his body was swaying, unable to maintain the position.
Jiang Shouzhuo came over and dragged a chair from the room, sitting in front of Ying Wutu, asking, “Have you thought it through?”
Ying Wutu’s face was pale, his lips bloodless, and he shook his head.
Jiang Shouzhuo couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t admit it was the Fifth Prince’s medicine.
What was he being stubborn about?
She wouldn’t let this go.
Jiang Shouzhuo went inside, opened a small box under the table, and took out a whip, returning to the yard to threaten him. “I’ll sit here and watch you. If you fall, I’ll whip you.”
Ying Wutu clenched his teeth, his body swaying. He couldn’t hold on much longer.
“You’re really despicable. Why not just tell me? Even if you admit it’s from the Fifth Prince, so what? Do you have to make me angry? Do you need to be punished daily to feel better?” Jiang Shouzhuo placed the whip on his head, making him hold it up.
Ying Wutu thought she had a point. His worries were unnecessary. Even if he admitted the Fifth Prince gave him the medicine, it wouldn’t affect the prince. Those were just excuses.
The truth was, the wicked woman thought he took the medicine willingly, not under the Fifth Prince’s coercion. Let her misunderstand; he didn’t want to explain. Explaining would lead to more questions.
Resisting meant more torment, which he was accustomed to.
He didn’t want to face his heart or desires.
Last night, serving the wicked woman, he felt a burning urge to participate, but he couldn’t allow it. She was his enemy, how could he feel such things?
He had to honor his fallen people.
So, he let her torment him, finding solace in the punishment.
Ying Wutu was about to collapse, barely feeling his legs, swaying more.
“Fall, and I’ll whip you hard.”
Jiang Shouzhuo’s words were barely out when Ying Wutu fainted.
Jiang Shouzhuo sighed. She didn’t follow through on her threat but carried him inside.
When Ying Wutu awoke, it was evening.
He had slept throught the afternoon.
He looked around, recognizing the wicked woman’s room.
But he was alone.
He tried sitting up, his legs in pain.
Lifting the blanket, he saw his pants were gone, his knees bandaged, feeling cool.
Had medicine been applied?
Did the wicked woman do it?
The door opened.
Ying Wutu quickly lay back, pretending to sleep.
But Jiang Shouzhuo had seen him move.
“Don’t pretend,” she said, locking the door.
Locking was unnecessary; with injured legs, he couldn’t leave the bed, let alone escape.
Walking to the bed, she undid her clothes.
By the time she reached the bed, she was undressed.
Ying Wutu couldn’t keep pretending. He shifted painfully to the bed’s edge, repeatedly saying, “No…”
“You have no choice,” Jiang Shouzhuo said, straddling him, pressing on his bandaged knees.
“Ugh…”
Though his knees were treated, the prolonged kneeling had bruised them. Her weight made him gasp in pain.
“I’ll wait for you, and once you’re ready, I’ll let you go.” Jiang Shouzhuo wasn’t in a hurry. The little rabbit was in her grasp, and tonight she intended to savor him thoroughly.
“No…” Ying Wutu covered himself with his hands, not wanting to be consumed by her.
He feared he might genuinely fall for her.
Though he already liked her a lot.
But he was afraid that once she completely possessed him, his liking would turn into something deeper.
He was also scared of carrying her child.
“Stubborn.” Jiang Shouzhuo didn’t want to hurt the little rabbit’s legs further, so she moved up a bit. Seeing that he still wasn’t ready, she didn’t slap him this time. Instead, she suddenly grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him up, immediately kissing him.
The stubborn little rabbit had to be kissed thoroughly to see how long he could remain stubborn.
Ying Wutu was stunned by the kiss. Feeling the softness on his lips and the wicked woman’s breath so close, he forgot to breathe, blink, or think—he forgot everything, including himself.
Being kissed by her felt so comfortable.
Jiang Shouzhuo rarely kissed, usually going straight to the point and stopping once satisfied. But tonight, she was in high spirits and wanted to taste the lips she had never managed to open before.
They were sweet.
Not satisfied with just a kiss, she parted the little rabbit’s teeth with her tongue and invaded his mouth, stirring vigorously.
Ying Wutu finally remembered to breathe but was almost suffocating under her kiss. He tried to resist by biting her tongue.
“Ah—”
Jiang Shouzhuo withdrew her tongue, tasting blood from where he had bitten her.
“You really are disobedient.” She stopped kissing and pressed Ying Wutu’s shoulders down.
This time, she succeeded immediately.
Because Ying Wutu, having been kissed, was already…
“No…”
Ying Wutu’s words of refusal were cut off, as he couldn’t make a sound anymore.
So, this is…
His voice was quickly drowned out.
Jiang Shouzhuo was enjoying him thoroughly while touching the character “Jiang.”
The wound had healed long ago, leaving a pale pink scar.
She repeatedly stroked that character.
“Let go… Let go of me… No…” Ying Wutu had already surrendered once, but he continued to stubbornly mutter.
Yet the feeling he had just experienced was real; he had felt unprecedented pleasure. This made him even sadder, and he cried more pitifully.
“We can’t do this… You’re my enemy… How can I…”
How could he feel pleasure under his enemy?
This was clearly being forced by the wicked woman, being bullied and tortured by her, but how could this wretched body feel pleasure?
“What are you muttering?” Jiang Shouzhuo leaned down and kissed his lips, then bit hard, breaking the skin and drawing blood. This time, she was satisfied. “We’re even.”
Jiang Shouzhuo let him recover a bit, then continued.
Ying Wutu was in pain from the bite, but before he could dwell on it, pleasure overwhelmed him again.
He wanted to resist, to escape, but he couldn’t even struggle. Instead… he found himself involuntarily trying to match her movements.
Why was this happening?
He shouldn’t be cooperating, he shouldn’t be accommodating her!
But Ying Wutu’s body didn’t obey him. It only responded to her commands, moving as she directed.
Throughout the night, they were together nine times. As dawn approached, Jiang Shouzhuo finally stopped.
In the end, she held the trembling little rabbit in her arms, whispering in his ear, “You were great tonight, and very obedient.” Then they fell asleep together.
During the night, Ying Wutu fainted from either pleasure or tears twice, and both times Jiang Shouzhuo pinched him awake.
She had never cared whether the men beneath her fainted or not, but now she did.
She wanted the little rabbit awake, to see his expressions, to watch him shift from reluctance to fawning, from pain to pleasure, to hear him say “no” and then beg, “faster.”
The little rabbit was truly contradictory.
But this made it all the more interesting for her.
This was a kind of fun she had never experienced before.
If dawn weren’t approaching and she didn’t have to get up early for court, she would have loved to keep playing until the end of time.
——
When Jiang Shouzhuo got up, she glanced at the little rabbit.
She couldn’t tell which bruises on him were from her pinching and which ones he had caused himself.
But…
Why did the little rabbit seem even weaker?
She hoped she hadn’t actually played him to death.
She paused while dressing and extended two fingers to check the little rabbit’s breath.
Luckily, he was still breathing, but it was very faint.
Jiang Shouzhuo: “…”
She had been quite restrained, but she liked him too much to blame herself.
As she reached the main door, she encountered the housekeeper who had been waiting for her. Jiang Shouzhuo said, “No need to assign him any tasks today.”
Because the little rabbit probably wouldn’t be able to get out of bed today.
——
Ying Wutu woke up but couldn’t get up. His whole body felt like it had been taken apart and put back together, especially in certain areas.
The wicked woman had boundless energy; she had nearly exhausted him. Last night, he thought she would play him to death, and it was a miracle he was still alive.
Ying Wutu closed his eyes again, involuntarily recalling last night.
The first thought was that he was now unclean, his body completely possessed by the wicked woman.
Secondly…
He struggled to lift his hand and rubbed his lower abdomen.
There were more bruises, not just from carrying water, but also from the wicked woman’s pinches.
She would grip his waist tightly to keep him from moving, controlling him completely.
And…
At the peak of pleasure, even his lower abdomen trembled.
Ying Wutu stroked his lower abdomen and seemed to be able to feel warmth, not just the warmth from her palm.
He didn’t dare think about it anymore.
The wicked woman forcibly took him.
Why was she so skilled, and why did this bring so much pleasure?
He found it hard to face and accept himself.
His relatives, connected by blood, were all killed by her. His comrades, who shielded him on the battlefield, were also slain by her. The king, who entrusted him with great responsibilities, was captured by her.
And what about him?
He was now yielding to his enemy!
He remembered his incoherent words from the previous night. Did he beg her for more, for faster? Did he ask her to do it again?
He wanted to die.
There was no one worse than the wicked woman in this world.
If only he could be continually tormented by the wicked woman. He should be whipped and slapped by her.
That way, there would only be pain and humiliation, not the conflicting feelings he had now.
After several attempts, he finally managed to sit up slowly by holding onto the bed rail.
He looked at the bruises and scars all over his body, all marks left by her.
Whether it was punishment or being beaten, the most prominent marks were those left from the previous night.
They all indicated that Ying Wutu was a lowly libertine, someone who enjoyed being with the enemy who destroyed his clan.
He felt that such a despicable person didn’t deserve to live. It would have been better if he had died last night.
Ying Wutu picked up a belt from the corner of the bed and threw it three times before it caught on the bed’s railing.
He tied a knot in the belt and slowly put it around his neck.
As he let go, he licked his lips, recalling the sensation of her kisses and bites from the previous night.
Better not think about it anymore.
Ying Wutu tightened the belt around his neck, preparing to hang himself…
However, the belt was too long, and the railing on top of the bed was too close. Lying on the bed, there wasn’t enough distance to hang himself. So, he tried to untie the knot and make a shorter one.
But his fingers lacked strength. He could tie knots but couldn’t untie them. Frustrated, he discarded the belt and picked up a rope that tied the bed curtains, making a shorter knot this time.
Now, he was ready to die.
He closed his eyes, muttering, “I am a defeated criminal, a despicable person who loves his enemy. I deserve to die…”
Just as the rope tightened around his neck, the door opened.
Jiang Shouzhuo returned from court, having instructed the kitchen to send an extra breakfast to her room. She planned to have breakfast with the little rabbit. As she opened the door, she saw him trying to hang himself on the bed.
Jiang Shouzhuo rushed over and saved him.
Ying Wutu had been choking for a moment, determined to die, and now had a red mark on his neck. He started coughing.
Furious, Jiang Shouzhuo raised her hand to slap him but stopped at the last moment.
“What are you doing now!” Jiang Shouzhuo pushed him onto the bed and threw the rope to the ground.
Ying Wutu kept coughing, not answering her. He didn’t want to respond.
“What? Wasn’t last night enough for you? Your moans were heard in the neighboring courtyard. You wake up wanting to die? Did I give you permission to die?” Jiang Shouzhuo wanted to hit him but decided against it, noting his weakness. She decided to note it down and deal with him later.
“Kill me…” Ying Wutu pleaded between coughs.
“Kill you? Fine. Have you forgotten you’re never alone? If you dare hang yourself today, I’ll make you pay.” Jiang Shouzhuo fetched a lock, chaining his wrists to the bed. “Let’s see how you try to die now. Just wait.”
Ying Wutu suddenly remembered that she had leverage over him. He called out to her back, but she didn’t respond and left the room.
She didn’t go far, just to the dining hall to have breakfast herself and instructed that breakfast didn’t need to be sent to her room.
By the time she finished breakfast, the Ministry of Household had delivered ten Ying prisoners to her residence.
The army had arrived in the capital late last night, with a thousand Ying prisoners placed in the Ministry of Household. The ministry didn’t want to manage the provisions for these thousand people, so they worked overtime through the night to allocate the prisoners to various locations: those to the mines, to the borders, and to various residences. Everything was sorted out before dawn.
Jiang Shouzhuo brought the ten Ying prisoners back to her room. As she entered, the ten prisoners knelt in a row on the floor. She looked at the little rabbit on the bed who was still crying and coldly said, “Your comrades are here, aren’t you going to look?”
Although Ying Wutu was chained to the bed, he could still move his head. He turned to look at the prisoners and said hoarsely, “It’s not them.”
“Right, it’s not them.” Jiang Shouzhuo waved her hand, signaling the housekeeper to take the ten prisoners away. She then closed the door, sat by the bed, and coldly said, “Originally, it was the ten people on your list who were in the residence. But because you made me unhappy this morning, I personally went and killed those ten people and had the Ministry of Household send me ten more.”
“Jiang! Shou! Zhuo!” Ying Wutu shouted hoarsely and began to cough more violently from anger.
“Their deaths are because of you. If you hadn’t tried to hang yourself, the ten people on that list would still be alive. You did something wrong, you made me unhappy, and someone had to pay the price. Now do you understand the consequences?” Jiang Shouzhuo said, unlocking the chains on the bed to free Ying Wutu’s hands. “Of course, you can continue to hang yourself now, and I’ll go kill these ten too. There are a thousand of them, you can try to hang yourself a hundred times. Want to keep playing? The choice is yours. I’ve never forced you.”
Ying Wutu felt utterly drained of all his strength, and he didn’t have much to begin with.
He closed his eyes, but tears continued to flow from the corners, soaking the pillow.
He blamed himself for being selfish, for only thinking about himself, and forgetting that his comrades were still in her hands.
They didn’t deserve to die…
They arrived at the residence, never even met her, and they were killed because of him.
“Don’t kill anyone anymore. I don’t dare to die again… cough…”
“Just think it through. In that case, save your tears and cry at night. You fainted twice last night, and I was very unhappy. But since it’s your first time, I’ll give you a chance. When we do it tonight, every time you faint, someone will pay the price. Guess who it will be?” Jiang Shouzhu said, and touched the little rabbit’s head, smoothed its fur, and said, “Don’t cry. If you keep crying, I’ll want to continue now. Or, are you crying just to invite me?”
