Volume One: First Scroll
Allergy
Do you know that acting like this will just make me more and more audacious?
Lin Yan leaned against the wall outside the restroom door, listening to the sounds coming from inside, a trace of regret creeping in. Damn it, how was she supposed to know Song Yuhang couldn’t hold her liquor like that? It was mixed entirely with strong spirits1; surely it wouldn’t kill her, right?
Just as she was thinking this, the sound of flushing came from inside, and the door was pushed open. Song Yuhang stumbled out, looking like she was about to collapse onto the floor. Lin Yan quickly caught her and helped her up.
“Are you… are you feeling any better?”
Song Yuhang was heavy. Lin Yan had to use some strength. Hooking an arm around Lin Yan’s neck, Song Yuhang struggled to stand, her eyes hazy, thoroughly drunk.
The two staggered back the way they came. That faint, elusive scent of perfume kept drifting towards Lin Yan. Song Yuhang sniffed, then let out an alcohol-tinged burp: “Lin… Lin Yan…”
Lin Yan turned her face away, pinching her nose, only to have her head forcefully turned back, forcing her to meet Song Yuhang’s gaze.
Perhaps it was the alcohol; the usually reserved woman had opened up2. Song Yuhang’s mind was a complete muddle3, her tongue also tied: “Don’t… don’t be angry anymore… In the sparring ring… I didn’t… didn’t do it on purpose… S… s-s-s… sorry…”
Lin Yan was both annoyed and amused listening to the first half, a smile not yet fully forming on her face.
Song Yuhang cupped her face, looking left and right: “B-but… they weren’t wrong… Y-your figure really… really is good…”
Veins bulged4 on Lin Yan’s temple. She shoved the other woman away. “F%ck your mother, Song Yuhang! Walk yourself back, I’m5 done with you!”
Song Yuhang, already unsteady, stumbled from the push and bent over coughing.
Lin Yan bit her lower lip hard. Seeing Song Yuhang’s miserable state, she still hardened her heart and turned to leave.
Damn it, Song Yuhang, always pushing your luck, give you an inch, you take a mile.
But, since she had already apologized, what exactly was she still angry about?
Seeing her and Lin Ge going out as a couple6 just made her feel incredibly uncomfortable, stifled. She was used to having everything under her control; had she become so domineering that she even had to interfere with someone else’s love life?
That was truly terrifying.
As Lin Yan was thinking this, her wrist was suddenly grabbed. Song Yuhang staggered up to her and asked the same question.
“What… what exactly are you angry about?” As she spoke, unsteady on her feet, she subconsciously leaned against Lin Yan, her chin resting on Lin Yan’s shoulder, nuzzling inward, following that fragrance.
She really liked the scent on Lin Yan; it both cleared her head and intoxicated her.
Lin Yan was caught off guard, stumbling back several steps until her back hit the hard wall.
The restless head on her neck was still burrowing in. Lin Yan couldn’t bear it anymore. She grabbed the back of Song Yuhang’s neck, lifting her up like a large cat, gritting her teeth: “Song Yuhang, are you done yet?!”
“Not done! Not done!” The person in her arms suddenly raised her voice, attracting glances from passersby, their looks suggesting Lin Yan had done something utterly heinous, like abandoning a wife and child.
“If you don’t tell me what you’re angry about, this isn’t over!” Song Yuhang was breathing heavily, her eyes like myriad stars. Perhaps due to the alcohol surging up, the rims of her eyes were moist.
She rarely showed this kind of expression. To Lin Yan, she looked exceptionally fragile, and with the lingering injuries on her face, even more haggard.
Lin Yan knew how hard she had hit her; those blows must have hurt badly, yet Song Yuhang hadn’t made a sound.
She had mixed that drink herself; its alcohol content far exceeded a normal cocktail. Song Yuhang, who clearly couldn’t handle even one glass, had still gritted her teeth and drunk it.
Song Yuhang, oh Song Yuhang, how can you tolerate my willfulness to this extent?
Do you know that acting like this will just make me more and more audacious?
Thinking this, Lin Yan averted her gaze and asked softly, “Does it hurt?”
Her answer was irrelevant to the question, but Song Yuhang froze. Muddled with drink, she thought Lin Yan was the one saying it hurt. Reaching out, she pulled Lin Yan into an embrace, gently patting her back.
“It doesn’t hurt, it doesn’t hurt… I’m sorry… I hit too hard… I won’t fight with you again… Even if you ask me to fight, I won’t…”
She spoke incoherently, patting Lin Yan’s back as if comforting a child, her words topsy-turvy7: “It doesn’t hurt, it doesn’t hurt… You suffered in the detention center… I know, I know everything… Lin Yan, ah… it doesn’t hurt anymore…”
Her repeated “it doesn’t hurt” struck Lin Yan’s heart like a heavy hammer. If before it was just a tightness in her chest, now it was a sour, astringent ache.
Coupled with that softly murmured “Lin Yan, ah,” a wave of heat instantly rushed to her eyes.
In the hardships of the first half of her life, apart from Chunan, no one had ever called her name so gently, patting her back and saying: It doesn’t hurt anymore.
Never, not once.
Battling wits and courage with her family, fighting life-and-death struggles against outsiders, her growth had been full of ups and downs, her life hanging by a thread several times.
Lin Yan felt that ever since she could remember, she had been walking an invisible tightrope over a bottomless abyss8. She had proceeded with extreme caution, as if treading on thin ice.
Until this moment, held in Song Yuhang’s arms, warmed by the other woman’s body heat, her head pressed against Song Yuhang, who patted her back and stroked her hair, her voice low but gentle, murmuring incessantly.
Lin Yan suddenly felt like she had landed.
She was standing firmly on the ground, standing beside her, being treated with tenderness. Although she couldn’t quite define her feelings for Song Yuhang, just as Song Yuhang likely didn’t understand her own feelings for Lin Yan at this moment.
But undoubtedly, this feeling of being moved was tangible, and this emotion was real and beautiful.
Taking advantage of the position Song Yuhang held her in, as their sleeves brushed, Lin Yan wiped the tears spilling from her eyes onto Song Yuhang’s jacket.
A man standing not far away slowly finished the wine in his glass. He had been standing there for a while, witnessing the entire process after they came out of the restroom.
Lin Yan wasn’t usually this unguarded. They were both too absorbed, completely failing to notice his presence.
A meaningful look appeared in the man’s eyes. Holding the empty glass, he turned and went back into the venue.
“I’ll take her home first. There’s no way she can hail a cab herself like this.” Lin Yan stuffed Song Yuhang into the car, tossing her backpack in after her. Lin Ge held the car door for them.
“What about you? Are you okay? You drank quite a bit too.”
Lin Yan smiled. “Hah, I’m used to it. Don’t you know my tolerance? I9 can drink a thousand cups without falling.”
“Don’t push yourself. You might get so drunk you become unconscious and can’t even find your own home. Maybe I should find someone to drive you both?” Lin Ge was still worried.
Lin Yan clicked her tongue. “Tsk, you’re worried about her, aren’t you? Not me. Relax, I won’t eat her. Or are you thinking…”
There was a hint of teasing in her expression.
Lin Ge looked helpless, as if wanting to reach out and pat her head, but stopping halfway, feeling it inappropriate. Instead, he gently ruffled the top of her hair, like when they were children.
“What are you talking about? Am I, your brother, the type to take advantage of someone’s vulnerability? Your surname is Lin; you’ll always be my little sister. Even if I marry and have children, that fact won’t change.”
The moonlight was gentle, his expression open and sincere. For Lin Yan, Lin Ge represented a unique warmth from her childhood.
Adding flowers to brocade10 goes unnoticed, but sending charcoal in snowy weather11 builds deep friendship.
She would forever hold this kindness engraved in her heart.
“Aiya, alright, alright, you’re giving me goosebumps all over12.” The car was stopped on the main road, the driver honking to urge them. Lin Yan rubbed her arms and got into the car, waving goodbye to him.
“See ya, I’ll treat you to drinks again next time there’s a chance.”
Before Lin Ge could finish speaking, the car door locked, and the vehicle sped away.
“Hey—do you even know where she lives?”
Sure enough.
The driver asked her, “Miss, where to?”
Lin Yan frowned. Damn it, she forgot to ask Song Yuhang where she lived.
She patted the face of the person slumped in the back seat. “Song Yuhang, Song Yuhang, wake up, where do you live?”
Song Yuhang whimpered twice, sat up, slapped her hand away, and then collapsed headfirst into Lin Yan’s lap. No matter how much Lin Yan called her, she couldn’t get a coherent answer.
She was truly dead drunk.
Lin Yan gritted her teeth and started searching her clothes. In her stupor, Song Yuhang only felt someone fumbling in her pockets and instinctively tried to wrench the hand away.
“Ow, ow, ow… Let go!”
Lin Yan cried out in pain, her wrist numb from the grip.
Hearing the familiar voice, Song Yuhang finally released her hold, muttering, “Touching… touching… Let Forensic Doctor Lin touch… Can’t… can’t hit her…”
Lin Yan found it amusing. “Why can’t you hit her?”
Song Yuhang wailed loudly from her lap, “Cannot! Just cannot! If… if I hurt her… I have to be good to her… Yes… be good to her!”
A warmth spread through Lin Yan’s chest, her ears turning red. The driver was still listening up front. She gritted her teeth and clamped a hand over Song Yuhang’s mouth, muffling the noisy sounds. “Alright, shut up already! Shifu13, head to Qingshan Villa14.”
Song Yuhang probably didn’t know that she wasn’t just the first guest at Secret Base No. 03, but also the first guest at Qingshan Villa.
Lin Yan helped her out of the car. As soon as the car stopped, Song Yuhang started retching violently over the roadside flowerbed.
She hadn’t eaten much in total; only sour bile came up, making her feel extremely wretched.
Lin Yan watched her with disgust but still placed a hand on her back, gently rubbing it to help her breathe.
After about five or six minutes, Song Yuhang finally stopped vomiting and recovered slightly. Lin Yan supported her as they walked inside.
Song Yuhang opened her eyes weakly and glanced at the surroundings. “Where is this?”
“My home.”
Song Yuhang was tall and long-legged, and heavy. Lin Yan had to use some strength to support her shoulder and hold her waist tightly. Walking in high heels herself, she stumbled along.
“Oh.” Song Yuhang responded, then closed her eyes again in a daze.
Lin Yan turned on the lights and surveyed the villa. It was large but lacked a lived-in atmosphere because she didn’t allow servants to stay overnight and there were no guest rooms, only the master bedroom—her room.
The thought of this person lying reeking on her bed made Lin Yan’s scalp tingle.
No, no way, absolutely not.
She glanced at the living room downstairs, barely able to hold Song Yuhang up any longer, and gritted her teeth as she dragged the person towards the sofa.
Forget it, let her make do here for the night. Song Yuhang didn’t seem like the type to be picky anyway.
“Bag… bag… my bag…” As they moved, Song Yuhang’s backpack fell to the floor. Lin Yan had no idea what important things were inside that she insisted on carrying with her.
Lin Yan rolled her eyes, released one of Song Yuhang’s arms, and bent down to pick it up. But she didn’t anticipate that Song Yuhang, already unsteady, would lose her balance. With all her weight pressing down, the world spun, and both of them tumbled onto the sofa.
Lin Yan was dizzy from being crushed. Song Yuhang’s head was lying across her chest, and the woman was already breathing evenly.
Lin Yan felt that tonight’s Song Yuhang was constantly testing her limits. Was this karma for getting her drunk?
Without thinking, she tugged at Song Yuhang’s ear. “Wake up, wake up, get up, hey!”
Song Yuhang slapped her hand away. “Don’t… don’t be noisy…”
After saying that, she smacked her lips a couple of times and buried her head into Lin Yan’s…
Lin Yan couldn’t stand it anymore and slapped her across the face. Song Yuhang seemed to sense it, turned her face, but still held onto Lin Yan tightly, refusing to let go.
Lin Yan pushed a few times, but Song Yuhang remained absolutely still. Damn it, she was dead heavy; what did she eat growing up?
In her current state, Lin Yan couldn’t possibly use force on her. If she struck Song Yuhang while she was completely defenseless, she’d be crippled.
Lin Yan endured and restrained herself. “Did I f%cking owe you in a past life?”
The answer was quiet breathing.
Song Yuhang slept soundly, her head buried against Lin Yan, as if she had found a warm harbor. The pillow was fragrant and soft; she couldn’t help herself, hugging the person tighter and tighter.
Lin Yan felt like she was about to be suffocated. Moreover, she wasn’t entirely indifferent. As the warmth gently brushed against her skin, her toes curled from the tingling sensation.
Her fingers gripped the sofa tightly, her breathing somewhat labored. She wanted to move Song Yuhang’s head aside. Just as she lifted the head, she saw Song Yuhang frown, seeming uncomfortable, reaching up to scratch at her own collar.
“What’s wrong?”
Lin Yan asked her.
Song Yuhang kept her eyes closed, pulling her collar open and scratching her neck. “Itchy…”
Visibly, a large patch of red rash had appeared on her neck.
She seemed uncomfortable all over, twisting and turning, scratching vigorously, soon leaving several bloody marks.
Lin Yan grabbed her hands. “Don’t move!”
Song Yuhang was very obedient. Still whimpering, she docilely let Lin Yan pull open her clothes. Seeing the large area of red spots, Lin Yan sobered up instantly from the shock.
“Damn it, why didn’t you say earlier you have an alcohol allergy?! Get up!”
Perhaps she was truly very uncomfortable; Song Yuhang’s body was limp and weak. She fell back from Lin Yan’s forceful push. Lin Yan helped her lie down properly, lifting her feet onto the sofa.
“Don’t you know alcohol allergies can kill people? And you still drank? Huh?” Lin Yan scolded as she turned on the desk lamp, lifted Song Yuhang’s eyelids to check. Okay, okay, pupillary light reflex was normal.
“Where else does it itch?”
Song Yuhang pointed to her neck, too uncomfortable to speak, wanting to scratch again.
Lin Yan slapped the back of her hand. “No scratching!”
Song Yuhang looked somewhat aggrieved, mostly sober now. “Itchy…”
“Endure it!” Lin Yan said, lifting Song Yuhang’s arm, rolling up the sleeve to check if there were rashes elsewhere.
“Turn over, let me see your back.”
Song Yuhang was reluctant, but meeting Lin Yan’s gaze, she wisely shut up and obediently let herself be turned over to face the sofa as if in punishment.
As Lin Yan performed the palpation, Song Yuhang bit her lower lip slightly. Lin Yan’s touch was light; her pinching and pressing felt more like a gentle massage. The itching subsided, but another sensation emerged.
Especially as Lin Yan’s fingers traced up her spine.
Song Yuhang suddenly clenched the sofa fabric tightly, nearly biting her lip until it bled. The short minute felt like a century to her.
“Alright, lie properly. Luckily it’s not serious. I’ll go find medicine for you.”
Saying this, Lin Yan had already run upstairs with quick steps, diving into her lab.
“Xisimin15, Xisimin…” she muttered, rummaging through the neatly arranged cabinets, finding rows of disinfectant and external use medications but no sign of allergy medicine.
Lin Yan turned her head, searching the drawers under the desk, emptying them completely, but still couldn’t find what she needed.
“Damn it, where did I put it?” Lin Yan cursed under her breath, fine beads of sweat forming on her forehead from anxiety. She turned and ran towards the study.
When she returned, she was slightly out of breath, pressing a box of pills and a glass of water into Song Yuhang’s hand.
“Here, take it quickly.”
Song Yuhang paused, holding the warm glass, and looked up at her. She saw the sweat on Lin Yan’s forehead, her hair messy. A warmth spread through her heart.
“I never knew Forensic Doctor Lin had such a gentle side.”
“Get lost. Isn’t it… isn’t it…” Lin Yan started to retort, showing her true colors, but being praised as “gentle” to her face made her tongue-tied for a moment. She turned away, originally wanting to say “because I got you drunk,” but what came out was: “You brought it on yourself.”
Song Yuhang smiled, not holding it against her. She opened the medicine packet, popped a pill into her mouth, and gulped down the glass of water.
Her head was spinning, utterly exhausted.
In the time it took Lin Yan to turn around and throw away some trash, she had fallen asleep again.
Under the orange lamplight, Song Yuhang slept deeply, her eyelashes trembling slightly. Her lips, moist from drinking water, looked full and wet.
Her jacket was open, and the short-sleeved shirt underneath had been pulled askew from the earlier scratching, revealing a hint of her slender collarbone and graceful curves.
Her skin wasn’t Lin Yan’s sickly pale, but the normal complexion of an Asian person, somewhere between wheat and bronze.
Combined with her regular fitness, she was tall, long-legged, and sturdy—a different kind of feminine beauty from Lin Yan.
As Lin Yan watched, she felt it was better if Song Yuhang didn’t dress up, lest she bring disaster upon others. She reached out, tidied Song Yuhang’s clothes, took the glass from her hand, dimmed the desk lamp, and brought a blanket down from upstairs to cover her.
She intended to go upstairs to sleep, but seeing Song Yuhang’s still somewhat flushed face, Lin Yan touched her forehead again. Still a bit hot.
An alcohol allergy could be minor or major, especially for someone like Song Yuhang who doesn’t touch a drop. After thinking for a moment, she sat down leaning against the sofa, letting out a weary yawn.
That night, Lin Yan woke up startled several times, getting up to check on Song Yuhang, especially when she saw her unconsciously scratching her neck in her sleep, breaking the skin.
She brought iodine, dampened some gauze, and gently dabbed at the scratches until things quieted down near dawn.
Song Yuhang had a dreamless night. Her phone vibrated repeatedly in her backpack until it finally died from lack of battery.
When she woke up in the early morning, the first thing she saw was a fluffy head. Lin Yan’s curly hair was spread across her body; she had fallen asleep leaning against the edge of the sofa, her hand still resting on Song Yuhang’s waist.
Song Yuhang gently moved her arm away, sat up, and tucked the stray strands of hair from Lin Yan’s forehead behind her ear.
Lin Yan’s face was somewhat pale, likely from lack of rest, with dark circles under her eyes.
She… had stayed lying here all night watching over her?
A pang of tenderness surged in Song Yuhang’s heart. She carefully got off the sofa, wanting to wake Lin Yan but unable to bear it. Instead, she reached down and lifted her horizontally into her arms.
Lin Yan woke with a start, the feeling of weightlessness hitting her, unable to speak clearly. “Wh-what are you doing?!”
Song Yuhang hadn’t fully recovered from her hangover and still lacked strength. Carrying Lin Yan up the stairs, a thin layer of sweat beaded on her forehead. “Don’t move. Where’s your room? Go back and sleep.”
“Damn16 you, Song Yuhang! If you dare drop me, you’re dead, I’m telling you!” Lin Yan cursed. Just as the words left her mouth, Song Yuhang’s grip loosened, and Lin Yan suddenly dipped downwards.
Lin Yan shrieked, tightening her arms around Song Yuhang’s neck and squeezing her eyes shut.
The expected pain didn’t come. Song Yuhang let out a soft chuckle. “Weren’t you unafraid?”
Lin Yan, still clinging to her neck, cursed loudly, “F%ck—”
Song Yuhang became serious. “Alright, quickly tell me where it is, or I really won’t be able to hold you.”
“Straight ahead, the innermost room.”
Song Yuhang strode forward, carrying her. Lin Yan continued her merciless taunting, “You’re so useless. I don’t even weigh 110 lbs17 and you can’t carry me. Last time, some naked guy carried me up and down the stairs.”
Song Yuhang forced a smile, her blood boiling at the provocation. She twisted the doorknob and tossed Lin Yan onto the bed. “Whose fault is it? Whose fault is it that I had an allergic reaction? You just wait until I recover and see.”
Lin Yan was thrown onto the bed, feeling knocked silly. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at Song Yuhang. “It’s your fault! All your fault! If you hadn’t pissed me off, would I have gotten you drunk?!”
“Forensic Doctor Lin, you’re full of tricks. Even if you didn’t mess with me this time, there would have been a next time,” Song Yuhang caught the pillow calmly, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
“Then how come I feel like you’re always willingly letting yourself be messed with, willingly taking the slaps?” Lin Yan said, gritting her teeth, as if testing something.
Song Yuhang avoided her gaze, somewhat unnaturally touching her nose.
Lin Yan pushed further. “Do you know what you said to me last night when you were drunk?”
“No idea.” Song Yuhang shook her head honestly. “No memory of it.”
Lin Yan hugged a pillow, looking at her, a slyness entering her smile. “You said~ Let Forensic Doctor Lin touch~”
The first sentence alone made Song Yuhang’s embarrassment level explode. Her face flushed red instantly, all the way to her ears.
“You also said~ Can’t hit Forensic Doctor Lin~ It’ll break her~ Have to be good to her…”
Before Lin Yan could finish, Song Yuhang clamped a hand over her mouth and dragged her under the covers. “Shut up.”
One struggled, the other tried to subdue. In the end, somehow, when Song Yuhang came back to her senses, she was already pressing down on Lin Yan, their eyes meeting, both breathing heavily.
The place her head had rested last night was pressed against Lin Yan’s chest; the softness instantly recalled the memory. Her brain had forgotten, but her body remembered.
Song Yuhang’s throat felt dry. There was a fire of things wanting to be said but held back in both their eyes. Lin Yan was exuding her allure constantly.
Her expressive eyes, the slight redness at their corners, her gently furrowed brow, her long neck and…
She was almost unconsciously swallowing. Regardless of whether Lin Yan’s words were true or false, she seemed to understand a little now why that man would carry her up and down the stairs, and why so many people wanted to get close to her, possess her.
Neither spoke. Invisible sparks seemed to crackle in the air, raising the temperature along with them.
Song Yuhang didn’t dare move. She just swallowed frantically, trying to alleviate the dryness in her throat. She felt that if she didn’t drink some water soon, she might go crazy, might die in Lin Yan’s gaze.
Finally, Lin Yan reached out and closed Song Yuhang’s eyes, saying softly, “Get up.”
Though her voice was soft, it held a hint of allowing no objection.
Granted a moment of respite, Song Yuhang scrambled up in one motion, her heart pounding like a drum. Only then did she belatedly flush red.
What did she want to do, what did she want to do, just now!
How could she have had that kind of thought about Lin Yan?
She wished she could slap herself hard a couple of times to wake up.
She urgently wanted to escape this place, not daring to look at Lin Yan. “Um… I’ll borrow some clothes from you.”
“The walk-in closet is downstairs.” Lin Yan’s voice betrayed no emotion.
Song Yuhang had already burst out the door. “Thanks.”
Lin Yan sighed softly at the empty room. Unable to sleep now, she also began to get up and get ready.
LP: Re-translated on April 17, 2025
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