Taming the Fierce Hound | Chapter 20 | To Please | Novela.app

Zong Yan closed her eyes, lying on the sofa bed. Usually, she could fall asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, but tonight, sleep eluded her. Perhaps she had been too agitated during the day, and the feeling had yet to subside. Sharp, dark thoughts paced within her chest; it took nearly all her strength to suppress her impulses. Zong Yan had endured many such restless nights. As long as she was given time, any emotion would eventually burn down to cold ash, no longer affecting her in the slightest. Therefore, she needed silence. However, someone was not cooperating. He kept tossing and turning, making small, restless noises. Exhausted, Zong Yan turned on her side and buried her head in the pillow. She didn't want to lose control. She didn't want to be pushed. "Did I do something wrong?" The man on the floor rolled over and sat up. Finally unable to help himself, he leaned against the sofa and asked. His voice was thick with suppressed emotion. His eyes, filled with both resentment and hope, stared at her back in the darkness. "If you just tell me, I’ll change," Si Jiang swore earnestly. "Sometimes I’m not sensible enough. You can teach me. If you teach me, I’ll know." To be Zong Yan’s good pet, to avoid being discarded, he had long ago abandoned his dignity. He viewed himself as a special kind of pet; only by pleasing his master could he secure a safe life. Thus, he could say any humble thing. He could curl up at Zong Yan’s feet like a pet dog, waiting for a merciful, condescending stroke. But even a pet had needs; he could not be treated coldly without reason. Like now. Zong Yan remained like a cold stone, lying there motionless. If not for her faint breathing, she would have been no different from a corpse. "Say something." Si Jiang’s voice remained soft, but his expression began to twist. "Master, even a pet should have some rights, shouldn't he? If you don't tell me anything, I won't know how to make you happy. If it’s not because I did something wrong, but because something happened outside and you’re taking your anger out on me, isn't that unfair?" Fair? Zong Yan had never understood the meaning of that word. Her breathing gradually quickened, and her eyelids trembled. Si Jiang wanted fairness? Then where was her fairness? Just as Si Jiang was about to talk himself hoarse, and just as his anger was about to break through his "pet" shell, Zong Yan suddenly sat up. The dim light of the desk lamp hit her face. Si Jiang snapped his mouth shut, looking at her with a hint of fear. He had never seen Zong Yan with such an expression. It was as if a beast, locked deep in her heart for a long time, had found a gap and escaped, ready to devour everything. Zong Yan’s eyes, usually like stagnant water, now glinted with a strange light. She frowned as if in confusion, yet the corners of her mouth curled up as if something were utterly hilarious. With her face split between these two conflicting expressions, she said to Si Jiang, "You say... it’s unfair for me to take my anger out on you?" "What did I do?" "You... you won't talk to me." "Not talking to you is unfair?" "I..." Si Jiang found himself unable to refute that. "Don't you want to know what happened?" Zong Yan began to laugh silently, her shoulders shaking. Si Jiang was stunned, completely unprepared for this reaction. "I wanted to know, but if you don't want to say..." "No, I think you're right. A pet does have the right to know," Zong Yan interrupted coldly. She reached out and turned the lamp to its maximum brightness. Before Si Jiang’s widening eyes, she pulled off her top, leaving only a small camisole. The room suddenly fell silent. In the darkness, the final veil of decency was torn away. "Guess who I ran into today?" She nonchalantly examined the new injuries on her body: her cheek, chin, elbows, and knees. *["Oh, look who we ran into."]* *As soon as Bai Mao finished speaking, a malicious voice came from behind. He turned around to see four or five men, looking the part of gentlemen but acting like thugs, blocking the entrance.* "Here," Zong Yan touched the bruises on her face and chin with her knuckles. "This happened when I tried to leave. Someone grabbed my hair and slammed me against the railing." "After I broke free, someone else threw a punch." *["Why act so cold and noble? Don't we already know what kind of trash you are? Why weren't you like this at the bar?"]* "Here," she pointed to her elbow. "When I pinned the guy who grabbed my hair to the ground to fight back, his companion ambushed me from behind and dragged me across the pavement." *[Bai Mao was being held back to the side, fruitlessly trying to stop the sudden violence. The man scrambled up from the ground, his face full of humiliation. He raised his arm to slap the restrained Zong Yan.]* *["Bitch, you actually dare to hit me? You're nothing but a piece of used goods that's already been broken by others."]* *["You really think you're some virtuous woman? Did Young Master Si not pour enough booze down your throat back then to make you realize your place?"]* *A place of debauchery, suggestive clothing, being forced into a stupor, and clinging to a member of the opposite sex. These details were enough for these men to grind a woman into the dirt, turning her into a plaything that anyone could bully.* Zong Yan recalled the scene; everything was still vivid, playing out in her mind with startling clarity. Si Jiang’s face had already begun to turn ghastly. "Who was it?" "There's no need for that expression, Si Jiang." The sound of screams echoed in Zong Yan’s ears. "The one you should be worried about isn't me. It’s them—your former friends." The blood drained from her pet’s face instantly, leaving only a deathly pallor. "The one who touched my hair probably has a broken hand." "The two who grabbed me and tried to drag me into the woods are likely lying in a hospital with concussions." She had driven her right elbow into one man's temple while simultaneously smashing her laptop over another's head. The remaining two were left to scuffle with Bai Mao. Bai Mao looked harmless, but he had actually grown up learning Tai Chi from his elders. "There were two others left. You’ll definitely find one of their names familiar. 'Young Master Si'." A sense of foreboding surged in Si Jiang’s heart. He wanted to shake his head; he didn't want to hear it. The consequences were more than he could bear. "His name is Li Jie. He said he came to vent his anger for the 'dead' you. He asked why a great young master like Si Jiang is missing, presumed dead, while I—a rat whom Young Master Si looked down upon and targeted for years—can take a scholarship, win a competition through 'god knows what' foul means, and live so glamorously." *["You're lying! Senior Zong isn't that kind of person! She won that award through her own strength!"]* *Bai Mao’s face was bruised, but he continued to fight back against the two men.* *["Heh, little brother, how would you know what kind of person she is? Let me tell you, this woman is the type in the clubs that anyone can—AAAGH!!"]* *Zong Yan’s toe kicked into the back of his knee, and while he was defenseless, she stomped hard between his legs. Li Jie’s features twisted in agony as he let out a scream like a slaughtered pig.* *Finally, the school security arrived late and took them all to the Dean’s office. If not for Bai Mao’s testimony, those rich boys would have likely pinned all the blame on Zong Yan. Regardless, because the others were significantly injured, Zong Yan was given a warning and a demerit. Even her recent competition prize was subject to being revoked.* When Zong Yan walked out of the Dean’s office, she intended to part ways with Bai Mao. She figured that after this farce, the junior would never want to be near her again. To her surprise, Bai Mao followed her, cursing those men the whole way while carefully trying to comfort her, terrified that her feelings had been hurt. "Senior Zong, I believe in you. I only trust my own eyes, not the filth coming out of those villains' mouths." "They’re so low. Using those kinds of insults against women is cliché and outdated even for a TV drama." The two of them left the school gates together. Zong Yan bought some medicine, briefly tended to Bai Mao’s wounds, and sent him back to school. Then, she went to a crude roadside barbershop and cut off her long hair. As the strands hit the floor, her scalp still throbbed with pain. If long hair was only a weakness for others to exploit, it was better to discard it. "Now, Young Master Si, what do you think is fair?" Zong Yan finished and moved to put her clothes back on. "Don't call me Young Master Si." Si Jiang shook his head in agony. He covered his ears. "I'm not Young Master Si. I'm not that person." "I am Zong Yan’s pet. I don't know that person!" A long-overdue fire finally began to scorch Si Jiang’s once-arrogant soul. He finally understood what it felt like to hurt others. It was this very pain, the sensation of being incinerated by flames. A pain ten times greater than what the victim endured. Past sins and mistakes do not vanish; they are not covered up. One day, they return with a sword of vengeance, piercing the heart when one is least prepared. Zong Yan watched his breakdown with no ripples in her heart. "Yes, you are my pet. That’s why I don't blame you." That was why, no matter how turbulent her inner world was, she hadn't laid a hand on Si Jiang. The pet was the pet; Si Jiang was Si Jiang. She could distinguish between them clearly. Si Jiang looked up at her, his eyes so red they looked ready to bleed, as if he were weeping for the person who should have been crying. He placed the glass jar on the coffee table, knelt at Zong Yan’s feet, and bowed his head. "I am your pet. I am not Young Master Si." Starting from her knees, his cold, trembling lips pressed against the edges of her burning wounds with endless regret and tenderness. Because he was so close for the first time, he saw even more old scars. Cuts, falls, burns—all types. They were like heavy, decaying pages of the past, a corner blown up by the wind, unfolding before an outsider for the first time. Si Jiang didn't know what he was feeling; he only knew he had an impulse to use his kisses to smooth over every scar on this person’s body. From her legs to her hands, and then meticulously upward until he reached her chin. His kisses were as light as a tattered, dried butterfly, carefully landing on the red furrows of her skin. They were face to face, close enough to feel each other’s breath. Si Jiang’s face had become wet at some point. With eyes full of swirling guilt and confusion, he lowered his head, wanting to touch Zong Yan’s cheek. Zong Yan blocked his mouth. "Dirty." Si Jiang understood. She thought he was dirty. "I... Si Jiang rarely kissed others in the past." His private life had been a mess, but he had found those who threw themselves at him to be unclean, so he never kissed them. Could his kiss be the only somewhat clean thing about him? Zong Yan watched him silently. This man, who had kissed nearly every scar on her body, no longer possessed his former arrogance; he had become fragile and soft. She said nothing. Si Jiang closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, they were filled with determination. "I'm sorry, Zong Yan." For everything Si Jiang had ever done. "I'm sorry, Master." As a pet, he was still inadequate. The man’s chin was suddenly gripped by fingers covered in calluses. Like a predator seizing a vital point, she pulled him toward her. Zong Yan leaned down and bit into those dry lips. Their kiss was less of a kiss and more like Si Jiang being unilaterally mauled by a wild beast. Zong Yan did not know how to control her strength. Her teeth ground against his, biting wound after wound into his lower lip. A salty, metallic liquid filled their mouths and trickled down Si Jiang’s chin. Si Jiang let out small whimpers of pain, yet he made no move to pull away. His expression was one of both agony and pleasure. In his handsome features, there was only submission. It was a long time before the blood-scented kiss ended. Both were breathing raggedly. Zong Yan, pressed against Si Jiang, noticed his physical reaction. She paused, then stood up and sat to the side. Embarrassed, Si Jiang pressed his legs together and explained, "I... I didn't mean that. This is just a physiological phenomenon." Zong Yan nodded. "Mhm." They sat side by side in a daze. The night was long, but neither felt the slightest bit sleepy. After a long silence, Zong Yan broke the quiet. "Do you want to watch a movie?" When she had returned, she had passed a group of middle schoolers happily discussing the latest films. Zong Yan realized she had never actually been to a cinema. The number of movies she had seen could be counted on one hand. Si Jiang was startled. He said honestly, "I do. Is that okay?" Zong Yan pulled her laptop from her bag, then remembered it was broken and stuffed it back in. She took out her phone instead and opened the browser to search. "You need to download a video app first. Also, watching videos uses a lot of data. Do you have an unlimited plan, Master?" Si Jiang watched her clumsy movements and couldn't help but speak up. He was met with Zong Yan’s confused expression. The corners of his mouth twitched; he almost wanted to laugh. But knowing he absolutely couldn't laugh right now, he suppressed it and took his own phone from the coffee table. "Use mine." He remembered he had downloaded quite a few movies; he should be able to find something watchable. Zong Yan let him choose. She had simply felt like doing this on a whim; she wasn't particularly interested in the content. A thin layer of sweat had broken out on her skin, so she went to wash up briefly, changed into a nightgown, and brought two glasses of water from the kitchen to the coffee table. Si Jiang was still scrolling through folders of countless resources. He didn't even know where all these unfamiliar movies had come from. Zong Yan said, "Don't bother picking. Just this one." She pointed randomly at a title. "Okay." Si Jiang obediently clicked the movie and propped the phone up against the glass jar. He leaned back against the sofa, sitting very close to Zong Yan. Their skin touched, exchanging heat that felt exceptionally hot. The movie started normally enough—a young couple going on a trip, some funny mishaps, and finally arriving at a hotel. Then, the plot took a very wrong turn. Zong Yan hadn't noticed anything yet, but Si Jiang immediately realized that this wasn't a "normal" movie—it was porn! When the hell had Chen Bai downloaded this onto his phone? "This..." Zong Yan was a bit confused. Was such explicit content allowed on screen? Seeing that private parts were about to appear, Si Jiang hurriedly slammed the phone face down. Only the suggestive sounds continued to echo in the room. Even though he was far from a virgin, he felt an inexplicable heat, just like the first time he had ever seen such a film. "That... Master, this... I didn't download this... I'm sorry for polluting your eyes." "I've seen it before." "It was my mistake in choosing... Huh?! You've seen it?" Si Jiang couldn't believe his ears. Compared to his shock, Zong Yan was remarkably calm. "Yes, I've seen some. Though they weren't quite like this one." *Some?!* That meant it wasn't an accident; Zong Yan had actively sought them out. Si Jiang was floored. He had never imagined that Zong Yan, who carried an aura of asceticism like a monastic, would watch such things. Seeing his expression, Zong Yan explained, "I had some questions in the past, so I looked up a few online. They were... alright." After Wang Yao started dating, she never treated Zong Yan like an ignorant child; she was willing to discuss any topic. Thus, Zong Yan’s sexual awakening had been quite unique. She had watched them, but that was all. She had confirmed those matters and decided they wouldn't have much impact on her life. She was always facing the most fundamental problem of survival. Romance? Intimacy? Sex? Those things were too far away from her. As if possessed, Si Jiang blurted out a question: "Master, have you ever had... needs?" Zong Yan shook her head. The lingering, sticky sounds continued from the phone as the two actors passionately performed their roles. Si Jiang thought he had found something he could do. Wasn't a pet’s task to please the master? He knelt down. Under Zong Yan’s scrutinizing gaze, he took hold of one of her legs and began to kiss her from the ankle upward. Zong Yan did not stop him. He continued upward. When his head was about to disappear under her skirt, a hand blocked him. "What are you doing?" Zong Yan asked. "Master, I want... to make you feel good." The hand on his head hesitated for a few seconds before slowly letting go. Si Jiang’s nose soon brushed against the flesh of her inner thigh. The fresh scent of body wash enveloped him. He blinked, and without hesitation, he moistened his lips and pressed them down. In the crude, desolate unfinished building, there should have been no sign of human life. Yet, at some point, more and more daily necessities had appeared, and clothes belonging to more than one person hung by the window. In the deep of the night, under the dim light, the sounds of wet intimacy and heavy breathing intertwined. The once-insufferable favorite of heaven now lay prostrate at the feet of the woman he once looked down upon. His high nose was stained with crystalline moisture as he focused entirely on pleasing his master with his lips and tongue. He only hoped that when dawn came again, he might have made up for some of his past mistakes. He hoped he might carry a little more weight in his taciturn master's heart. Perhaps then, as a pet, he might receive a little more love.