Forbidden to Bully the Storybook’s Heroine – Chapter 106
by Little PandaExtra 1: The Original Female Lead is Reborn (10)
The moment Song Muyun thought of Jiang Yao visiting Yue Shang Fang, her heart ached terribly. She herself had come from Yue Shang Fang; she knew exactly what kind of place it was.
It was called a Music House, but in truth, it was little different from a brothel. As long as you had money, you could indulge in any pleasure you wished.
And Jiang Yao happened to have money. She also happened to have a free-spirited nature, never bound by worldly conventions. She had always done whatever she pleased.
The young woman, her eyes brimming with tears, collapsed into Jiang Yao’s arms. She tried to stand up straight, tried to muster the strength to argue, but for some reason, her body had lost all its energy. She could only lean limply against her.
Her face was burning hot. She opened her mouth to snap, “You—you let go of me! You came to Yue Shang Fang to drink with other people. I don’t want you to hold me!”
Though her words were fierce, her body showed no intention of leaving. Jiang Yao took it as her saying one thing and meaning another and held her even tighter, frowning. “Didn’t I already tell you? It was just my friends who wanted to come. I was only accompanying them. They’ve all gone out now. When I have time, I’ll take you to meet them and let them explain. Don’t be angry anymore.”
“Who said I’m angry? I’m not angry at all! Let go of me!”
Her eyes were practically misting over with rage, yet she still claimed she wasn’t angry. She looked like she was about to die from it.
Jiang Yao sighed helplessly and pulled her in closer. “You’re the one leaning on me.”
She tried to step back a little, but Song Muyun’s body, as if devoid of a single ounce of strength, immediately fell against her again.
Jiang Yao sensed something was wrong. Holding her by the shoulders, she asked with concern, “Are you feeling unwell somewhere? Tell me if you are. Can we stop being angry for a bit, please?”
She tried to coax her. Seeing her flushed cheeks, she assumed Song Muyun was drunk and gestured to Cui Zhu, who immediately handed over a bowl of sobering-up soup.1
“Could it be you’re drunk? Have some sobering-up soup first.”
Song Muyun also felt that something was off. Her whole body was intensely hot, but it wasn’t the heat of drunkenness. It was… another kind of heat.
She couldn’t describe it. When Jiang Yao brought the bowl to her lips, although she was still in a standoff with her, she obediently opened her mouth and drank.
After finishing, her eyes were once again teary, and her small, fair hands pushed insistently at Jiang Yao.
Jiang Yao held her firmly in her arms and shot Cui Zhu a look. Cui Zhu scurried away without a moment’s hesitation.
Only she and Song Muyun were left in the private room.
Song Muyun lowered her head, sobbing softly. Jiang Yao asked directly, “What will it take for you to stop being angry? Should I buy you a sugar figurine? How many? Just say the word.”
This attitude only made her more furious. Song Muyun pushed her away, preferring to curl up in a ball on the floor rather than be infuriated to death in her arms.
“You came to a Music House, and you think you’re in the right.”
The woman’s voice was hoarse and aggrieved, thick with accusation.
Jiang Yao was speechless.
She was silent for a moment before she couldn’t help but ask, “But why can’t I come to a Music House? I didn’t do anything. I just ate and drank here. Why can’t I come?”
Her eyes were filled with pure bewilderment.
She was on the verge of understanding something, yet it felt like she still didn’t.
It wasn’t until Song Muyun glared at her with red-rimmed eyes and cried, “Jiang Yao! You said you liked me! You clearly said you liked me! If you like me, you can’t come to a Music House, and you can’t look at other people!”
She was incredibly domineering. Her possessive nature had always been strong, and after everything she had been through, she had finally found this small bit of sweetness. She was terrified that one day she would lose it.
So scared she couldn’t sleep at night, so scared her whole body trembled.
Jiang Yao didn’t understand why saying she liked her meant she couldn’t come to a Music House. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Song Muyun give a desolate smile. “You absolutely must come to this Music House, is that it?”
Of course not. It was they who insisted on coming; she just wanted to be a good host.
But just as she was about to explain again, Song Muyun continued, her eyes looking utterly heartbroken, but her words were, “Since you insist on amusing yourself here, then help me find a few men to drink with me as well. I’ll join you. That should be fine, right?”
The moment she said it, Jiang Yao refused without a second thought. “No way! Find them for what? Those men reek of more rouge and powder than you do. What would you want with them?”
Song Muyun watched her quietly. When they had both calmed down a little, she finally asked, “Then why is it okay for you, but not for me?”
Jiang Yao froze. She didn’t know why either…
Just the thought of Muyun drinking and laughing with that group of men made her deeply unhappy. It wasn’t just them, either. She didn’t want Yun’er drinking and laughing with anyone but her. She wouldn’t like it.
Jiang Yao’s eyelashes trembled. She didn’t understand where such a thought came from, but she firmly refused Song Muyun’s request.
Song Muyun looked into her eyes, searching and searching, until she finally found a trace of an indefensible guilt. She was happy. Jiang Yao wasn’t completely without feelings for her. She still liked her a lot, didn’t she?
Jiang Yao couldn’t explain why, so she could only mumble, “It’s just not okay. My reputation has never been good, so it’s nothing for me to visit a Music House and drink with men. But you’re different…”
She wanted to say that Yun’er was a well-bred maiden from a prominent family, unlike her. But Song Muyun lifted a pair of calm, steady eyes to meet hers. Her red lips parted, and she said, “But my family fell from grace. I was reduced to working in a Music House and served as Jiang Huai’s maidservant. No one thinks I’m clean.”
Once you entered a place like a Music House, how could you ever leave completely untainted?
Even if she knew she was clean, others would never believe it.
Song Muyun’s eyelashes trembled, and a string of crystalline tears rolled down her cheeks. She looked at Jiang Yao and asked again, “Is it okay now? Can I drink with them now?”
Jiang Yao’s breath caught, and a dense, sharp pain spread through her chest. In the end, she gritted her teeth and said, “Still no. I don’t like it.”
She didn’t like Song Muyun drinking with other people, but she didn’t know why. In short… she just didn’t like it.
Jiang Yao’s brow furrowed, and her expression grew colder at the thought.
Song Muyun stared at her blankly, then suddenly smiled again.
On her pale face, a smile as pure and stunning as a snow lotus bloomed. She said, “You’re not entirely without feelings for me, are you?”
The words came too suddenly. Before Jiang Yao could think, the woman had already leaned softly back into her arms, letting out a low sob. “Jiang Yao, I feel awful. Help me. My body feels so awful.”
At her sudden embrace, Jiang Yao hastily caught her, her voice laced with concern. “What’s wrong? Do you feel very unwell? I’ll take you to a physician.”
She was about to lift her, but the woman pushed her away in protest.
She hugged her knees, and only upon closer inspection could one see that her body was trembling slightly.
“It’s no use. Seeing a physician is useless. I just remembered. The wine at Yue Shang Fang contains something to heighten the spirits.2 If it’s not released, seeing a physician won’t help.”
It was a lie. As long as she endured this period, it would be fine even if she didn’t release it. But she wasn’t going to tell Jiang Yao that.
She looked up at Jiang Yao with a pair of shimmering, watery eyes, looking utterly pitiful.
Jiang Yao was dumbfounded. Her thoughts seemed to freeze in that instant. It took a long while for her to recover, and she asked blankly, “Then… then why did you drink it?”
Song Muyun shot her a glare, huffing, “Didn’t I say I just remembered? I was too angry when I saw you drinking with other men.”
The young woman pouted, as if recalling the infuriating scene, and couldn’t help but glare at Jiang Yao again.
Jiang Yao wanted to ask why she got so angry just because she was drinking with some men, but in the end, she didn’t. The whole commotion today had cleared some of the fog in her mind, giving rise to a few suspicions, but she couldn’t be certain…
She asked in a heavy voice, “Then what do we do now? You’re not well.”
The thought of Yun’er being unwell was like a dull knife grinding away at her heart,3 and she felt just as miserable.
Song Muyun looked at her with those pitiful eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, though it was impossible to tell if it was from heat or shyness. She boldly said, “I want you to help me. If you help me, I’ll be fine.”
Jiang Yao seemed to grasp something. She was a little shocked but still couldn’t be sure. She needed Song Muyun to say it plainly before she would believe it. “Help you with what?”
The voice before her had, at some point, become low and hoarse, tinged with an inexplicable lust.
Song Muyun’s long eyelashes fluttered like a butterfly’s wings. A blush crept up the tips of her jade-white ears. She mustered her courage and said everything she was thinking. “Jiang Yao, help me. I’m begging you.”
She said, “I feel awful, Jiang Yao.”
And finally, she said, “Help me release it. My whole body feels so awful…”
The woman’s head was tilted back slightly, revealing a long, snow-white neck. The corners of her eyes were red, her gaze tearful. She looked utterly pitiful.
But Jiang Yao was profoundly shaken by her words.
What did she mean, help her release it?
Did she… did she mean that?
Having looked through little yellow storybooks4 with Yun’er, Jiang Yao understood Song Muyun’s meaning completely. Her eyes were filled with shock, but not a hint of repulsion.
Song Muyun saw it. She suddenly pinched her own thigh hard, and tears began to fall in streams. Her voice was choked with pain. “Will you… will you go close the door and help me, please? I feel so awful. Cherish me. Can you just cherish me this once, please?”
She had never been cherished by anyone. She longed for it, yearned for it.
Jiang Yao’s fingers were stiff. She could only rest them tentatively on Song Muyun’s waist as she asked uncertainly, “Are… are you serious?”
Song Muyun could wait no longer. The cushion beneath her was soaked through. Why… why was this happening…
Her vision was gradually blurring. The drug was at its peak. She could barely make out what Jiang Yao was saying. A whimper escaped her throat, and she nodded through her tears. “I’m serious. Please help me. I’m going to die, wuwuwu.”
Jiang Yao couldn’t bear to see her suffer. She scrambled to her feet and went to lock the door. When she turned back, Song Muyun was already lying on the floor in discomfort.
She rushed over in a few steps and gathered her into her arms, her eyes full of tenderness. “How are you feeling?” she asked.
Amidst the agonizing lust, Song Muyun spared a sliver of her mind to curse Jiang Yao. I’m about to die from discomfort, and she’s still asking! All she knows is how to ask! No wonder she couldn’t find a wife at her age without me!
On the surface, however, she maintained a pained and fragile expression, as if she were on the verge of death, begging Jiang Yao to help her, to save her.
Jiang Yao was a complete novice in this area, but as it happened, the two of them had just read some very improper storybooks. She might not be an expert now, but at least she knew what to do.
Seeing her in such distress also made Jiang Yao worry that holding it in for too long would harm her body.
The floor was cold. Unwilling to let her suffer on the cold ground, Jiang Yao lifted her up first.
And then…
Her gaze fell on the puddle on the floor, and she fell into a strange silence.
Wait, what was this?
The woman in her arms was so overwhelmed she was barely coherent. Jiang Yao subconsciously reached a hand behind her and, sure enough, it was wet there too.
This…
She didn’t know what to say. A blush suddenly crept up her cheeks, and she carried her to the canopied bed without a word.
The male and female musicians who had been hired to play had clearly left, yet the sound of a wooden bed shaking still echoed in the private room, accompanied by the woman’s occasional seductive moans, which stirred Jiang Yao’s very soul.
An unknown amount of time passed. It could have been a quarter-hour, or it could have been half a shichen.5 Finally, Jiang Yao withdrew her aching hand and walked to the table of half-eaten dishes. She used the wine as water to wash the stickiness from her fingers.
The woman inside, having experienced this for the first time, was completely exhausted. Before she could even come out, she had drifted into a deep sleep.
Tears still clung to the corners of her eyes, a heart-wrenching sight.
Jiang Yao opened the door and had someone clear away the cold dishes, bring a few light ones with some tea, and fetch a basin of water.
The person nodded and left, and Jiang Yao went back inside.
Song Muyun was still sleeping soundly. Jiang Yao didn’t dare to leave, afraid the matter wasn’t resolved. So she sat obediently on the edge of the bed, waiting for her to wake up.
The newly delivered dishes were all carefully covered to keep them from cooling too quickly.
After using a damp cloth to give the woman a quick wipe-down, Jiang Yao lowered her head and played with her own fingers while she waited.
When Song Muyun awoke from her dark, sweet dream, the first thing she saw was Jiang Yao sitting beside her.
Her drowsy eyes immediately flew wide open. Memories from before she fell asleep came flooding back, including the sore, aching feeling below her waist. Everything told her what had happened between them.
They had finally… done that. Jiang Yao would never leave her now.
Although they had known each other for less than a year, Song Muyun just knew. Now that they had done it, Jiang Yao wouldn’t let anyone else protect her. She would protect her herself.
The young woman’s eyes filled with tears, but they were no longer tears of grievance. They were tears of excitement!
Jiang Yao noticed the movement beside her and quickly looked over, just in time to meet the woman’s tear-filled, pitiful gaze.
She immediately sat up straight, her expression tense. After a long moment, she actually opened her mouth and apologized.
“I’m sorry.”
Song Muyun was taken aback. Seeing her anxious expression, she suddenly broke into a smile. “What is there to be sorry about? It was a matter of mutual consent.”
She rubbed her teary eyes on Jiang Yao’s clothes and leaned against her shoulder.
Jiang Yao instinctively wrapped an arm around her, but her voice was a little shrill with surprise. “Mutual consent?”
She looked like she couldn’t believe it. What a dense block of wood.
Song Muyun’s heart tickled. She was no longer willing to bury her feelings deep inside. She looked up at Jiang Yao’s beautiful face, which couldn’t hide its shock, and smiled faintly. She said bluntly, “That’s right. I’ve been in love with you all along. No matter what you do to me, I am willing.”
At this, Jiang Yao’s eyes couldn’t help but drift to the woman’s snow-white chest. Then, she fumbled to pull up the quilt and wrap her up completely. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief and find the capacity to process what Song Muyun had said.
She had used up a lifetime’s worth of shock today. Still in disbelief, she asked, “Yun’er, you… you’re in love with me?”
She didn’t think there was anything about her to love, so she had never imagined Yun’er would like her.
She had thought… that a proper, polite, and peerlessly beautiful woman like Yun’er should be with a gentle, refined, and elegant young master.
Afraid that Jiang Yao would run away, Song Muyun reached a hand out from under the quilt and gripped her arm tightly, holding her in place. Her eyes were fixed on her, earnest and serious. “Yes, Jiang Yao. I’m in love with you. And you said you liked me, didn’t you? You weren’t lying to me, were you?”
Jiang Yao was speechless.
No, at the time, I thought it was the ‘like’ between friends…
How could I have known you had such thoughts…
Thinking about the other’s intentions, Jiang Yao’s face turned red for no reason. But she was surprised to find that she wasn’t repulsed at all.
It seemed that ever since that day she had mistakenly stumbled into Hengwu Courtyard, she had never been repulsed by her. On the contrary, she couldn’t stop the countless feelings of pity and tenderness that rose in her heart.
That was why she had punished Jiang Huai in private.
Normally, she would have just reported the matter to her father and let him handle it.
Could it be that she was also a ‘mirror polisher’?6
A flicker of panic appeared on Jiang Yao’s face. Seeing this, Song Muyun’s eyes darkened, thinking that Jiang Yao didn’t like her.
But the next moment, a warm embrace leaned over and enveloped her.
The person’s lips moved several times, but no words came out. Song Muyun bit her lip, waiting for the final verdict. She bit down until her thin, rosy lips bled, and she tasted the metallic tang of blood. Suddenly, her chin was held in place by a hand.
Jiang Yao was extremely sensitive to the smell of blood. She frantically tried to pry her mouth open, shouting, “Hey, what are you doing? Why are you biting yourself so hard? Let go!”
After finally separating her pearly teeth from her lip, she was met with the woman’s tear-filled, pitiful eyes.
Jiang Yao paused. She didn’t withdraw her hand. Instead, she let her fingers rest on those white teeth, caressing them gently.
Although her hand had been washed with wine, a faint scent still lingered. Mixed with the strong aroma of wine, Song Muyun felt as if she would pass out from just a small lick from the tip of her tongue.
She looked at Jiang Yao with watery eyes, neither rejecting nor stopping the woman from touching her teeth. Instead, she accepted it with extreme obedience.
Jiang Yao’s heart melted. She had finally figured out what to say.
“I said I liked you. Although it wasn’t the same kind of ‘like’ I’m talking about now, at the very least, I don’t dislike you. Even after what happened today, I still don’t dislike you.”
Song Muyun’s eyes gradually brightened.
Jiang Yao hesitated for a moment, then decided to ask, “Then… you won’t be getting married in the future?”
She had to ask clearly to make plans.
The hand was removed. Song Muyun lowered her head slightly, leaving only her snow-white neck exposed to Jiang Yao. Having just been satisfied, her temper seemed exceptionally good. She shook her head obediently. “Mm, I just want to stay by your side forever.”
Jiang Yao breathed a sigh of relief. She took her hand, which had grown a little rough but was still very soft, and said seriously, “Since you have no plans to marry, and… and you like me, then stay by my side from now on. I won’t get married either.”
At that moment, Song Muyun’s eyes shone brighter than the sun, moon, and stars. Her slender body was trembling slightly, and her voice was filled with unconcealable joy. “You… you agree?”
Everything she had done was for the simple luxury of staying by her side. A person as good as Jiang Yao, having taken her body, would surely not cast her out. She would definitely take responsibility for her. She hadn’t been wrong.
The only thing she hadn’t expected was that Jiang Yao’s words seemed to hint at a bit of affection for her.
If she didn’t like her, after what happened today, she should have wanted to never see her again. How could she…
Song Muyun lowered her head, hiding the faint smile that curved her lips.
Suddenly, someone poked her ear. Jiang Yao didn’t answer her question, but her voice was rather delighted. “Hey, your ear is red.”
It was just an honest observation, yet it made Song Muyun’s entire body flush pink.
Her clothes had been stripped off earlier. Now, only her snow-white body, tinged with faint bruises, was visible, also glowing with a light pink hue.
Those marks were from where Jiang Yao had inadvertently squeezed her.
Jiang Yao deeply regretted it. She had no idea her skin was so delicate that a slight touch would leave a bruise.
Next time, she would be careful, more careful, and even more careful.
She didn’t even realize that though the first time had just passed, she was already planning the next.
Completely red, Song Muyun pushed Jiang Yao’s hand down, uncharacteristically shy. “You… don’t touch me randomly.”
“Oh, got it. Do you want to get dressed and come have something to eat?”
The dishes and a pot of clear tea were all ready. Song Muyun nodded lightly and tugged on Jiang Yao’s sleeve, ready to get down.
Only then did she realize how sore and weak she felt, and there was some pain too. It was Jiang Yao’s first time, after all. She had no experience and hadn’t known how to be gentle.
The young woman frowned slightly but said nothing. She just shooed Jiang Yao out first while she changed inside the bed curtains.
It was Jiang Yao’s first time, and she had been so uncharacteristically passionate. What if she said she was uncomfortable and Jiang Yao refused to do it next time?
That would not do.
Song Muyun pressed her lips together, enduring the discomfort, and got dressed. The back of her skirt was still a little damp, but thankfully Jiang Yao had moved it far away during the act. It had dried a little now and wasn’t very noticeable.
Outside the door, someone knocked loudly. A rough voice called out, “Jiang Yao, what shady business are you up to? I’m done here. Open up and let me come in for a bit.”
Song Muyun was still changing. Of course, she wouldn’t let anyone in.
So Jiang Yao called out to the door, “I’m busy. You guys go play somewhere else. Don’t bother me here.”
The voices at the door immediately quieted, but Jiang Yao could faintly hear them muttering. “What’s so secret that we can’t see? Don’t tell me she really hooked up with those male entertainers?7 If she was going to, she should’ve at least found some clean ones.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. If she hears you, see if she doesn’t beat you up.”
A vein throbbed on Jiang Yao’s temple, but she didn’t rush out to beat them up. She only glanced cautiously behind her.
Song Muyun had just finished changing and came out. Her expression was normal, even intimate, as if she hadn’t heard a thing.
Right. She didn’t know martial arts; her hearing wasn’t that sharp.
Jiang Yao beckoned to her. Song Muyun’s eyes lit up, and she immediately went over obediently.
Jiang Yao had used the clear tea on the table to wash her hands. She lifted the lids off the dishes and told Song Muyun to sit and eat.
After all that exertion, Song Muyun was already hungry. She obediently took the chopsticks Jiang Yao gave her and began to eat.
She complained softly about how she had gone out to buy the storybooks they wanted to read, only to learn that Jiang Yao was having fun with people at the Music House, and how angry it had made her.
Jiang Yao felt guilty. Their relationship was completely different from what it had been half a shichen ago. The current Yun’er was allowed to mind these things.
She hurriedly apologized and promised never to come again, which finally made her expression soften a little.
Just as she was feeling a bit relieved and had even put a piece of vegetable in Song Muyun’s bowl, a sudden clamor arose outside. Her hearing was sharp, and she faintly heard someone shout “Seventh Prince.” Her brow immediately furrowed. She stood up instinctively. Song Muyun looked at her with confusion. Jiang Yao forced her expression to relax and soothed her, “It seems like something happened outside. I’m going to go take a look. You wait here for me, okay?”
Song Muyun’s face turned cold, and she stood up as well. “I’ll go with you.”
She really didn’t feel at ease letting Jiang Yao run around Yue Shang Fang alone.
Jiang Yao paused. In the end, not wanting to worry her, she agreed.
Neither of them expected to see such a scene when they went out.
The door to a private room not far away was broken. A man holding a whip was groaning on the ground. A closer look revealed it was Murong Qing. A large crowd of onlookers had gathered, and standing frantically in front of Murong Qing were the very friends she had brought with her.
The author has something to say:
Tomorrow the last chapter.
After this extra is finished, I’ll write a story about the two of them falling in love before Yun’er’s family had their accident~
Footnotes
- A soup or broth intended to alleviate the effects of alcohol.
- Literally ‘an item to heighten spirits’ (zhùxìng zhī wù), a common euphemism for an aphrodisiac or a substance believed to increase arousal.
- An idiom, ‘dùn dāozi mó ròu’, which literally means ‘to grind meat with a dull knife’. It describes a slow, agonizing, and painful process.
- A colloquial term for pornographic or erotic storybooks. The color yellow is associated with pornography in modern Chinese.
- A shichen is a traditional Chinese unit of time equal to two hours. Half a shichen is about one hour.
- A classical and literary euphemism for female homosexuality, literally meaning ‘mirror polishing’ (mó jìng).
- Original: xiǎo guān’er. A term for young male entertainers in pleasure houses, who might also provide companionship or sexual services.
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