Chapter 44 Stubborn Stone: What is vulgarity?
As dusk settled, the bright moon hung high in the sky.
The orchestral music was deafening, and only then did Ningxuelou truly begin to do business.
Mingying and Jinkui were tuning their instruments in the room.
Because Xiao Yuanyan had visited yesterday, Madam Zhou received a benefit and was also instructed not to force Jin Kui to entertain guests. At most, she would only be asked to keep Jin Kui company with drinks and play some music.
The two of them sat together and tuned a few zithers, and also found some loosely packaged spices.
Mingying had previously run a spice shop and was extremely skilled in perfume making. She wanted to make some sachets with Jin Kui, both to pass the time and to distribute them to the other girls as little amusement toys.
As the incense was being ground, the faint sound of a woman sobbing could be heard outside the door, clearer and more piercing than the decadent music that had long since numbed people.
Jin Kui recognized the crying sound and got up to open the door. She saw that it was Li Yun passing by and asked her, "Li Yun, why are you crying? What's wrong?"
Mingying also followed Jin Kui out.
The girl in front of me, named Liyun, was not very old. Her eyes were red from crying, and her delicate features were scrunched up, filled with deep resentment.
“That Young Master Zhao is here again!” Li Yun twisted her handkerchief, not holding back at all, her tone indignant and filled with great disgust. “He called me, Guan Chun, and Xing’er to play gambling games with him. That scoundrel is filthy and despicable. When he loses a bet, he makes people drink alcohol and even puts dirty drugs in the alcohol. After falling for his tricks once, I dare not go anymore.”
But she couldn't not go.
Jin Kui had heard of Young Master Zhao's wicked deeds and knew that Li Yun had been badly harmed by the drugged wine last time, so she patted her shoulder and comforted her softly.
Mingying stared in astonishment, yet found it unsurprising. She exhaled a breath of hot, slightly astringent air, her chest heaving as she listened quietly to Liyun's words.
She knew the rules; whatever the visitors wanted to do, they couldn't refuse.
Even if, as Li Yun said, someone put something in their drinks, as long as they were paid enough money and no one was killed, the establishment wouldn't investigate, and they would just have to accept their bad luck.
But she was no longer the frail little girl she was back in Mianyue Tower.
Her starry eyes brightened slightly, and a hint of unyielding stubbornness rose in them.
Pei Xiaoyun sent her here just to make her behave. If she behaves, he will have his way. Why should he?
He was no different from the vulgar and despicable men that Li Yun described.
Who deserves to be bullied like this?
During the three years she worked as a musician in Bailiqing, she would sit down with her friends to play games in her spare time. Although she was not very skilled, she did learn some "unorthodox methods".
“Liyun, I’ll go with you and teach him how to play.”
They went downstairs and indeed saw that the salt merchant, Young Master Zhao, had summoned three or four girls, one in each arm and one sitting on his lap, to play gambling games with him.
This man, named Zhao Dong, had some spare money at home. He looked down on the numerous concubines and preferred to frequent brothels.
He had drunk some wine, his face was flushed, he burped, pushed away the girl next to him, pointed at the late-arriving Li Yun and laughed, "Why are you so late? Don't you want to play with me?"
"How could that be, Young Master Zhao?" Li Yun gritted her teeth and endured the intense chill as she stepped forward. "I heard you were coming, so I specially went to change my clothes."
"You even brought two beauties to keep me company?" Chairman Zhao's arrogance subsided. He lifted Li Yun's chin, slightly drunk and dazed, and then looked at Ming Ying and Jin Kui.
Mingying frowned slightly. Even though she held her breath, she couldn't resist the overwhelming smell of alcohol and couldn't help but take two steps back.
"What, what are you pretending to be so high and mighty for?" Chairman Zhao saw her reluctance, slammed his hand on the table and sneered, "Don't want to accompany me? I paid for it!"
Mingying's lips curled into a cold smile: "Young Master Zhao, don't you play gambling games? It just so happens that I also love gambling games. How about we have a match? There will be winners and losers, and we can also set up punishments."
Chairman Zhao clapped his hands and laughed, thinking that this young woman was ignorant of her own limitations. He laughed loudly and said, "If you lose, drink three cups of wine and take off a piece of clothing. If you lose again, you have to take off more clothes until you are naked."
He pointed to the murky wine in the pot, and then his malicious gaze swept over Mingying.
The other women watched in silence, all knowing that he had already slipped something into the drinks.
"What if you lose?"
Mingying was disgusted by his behavior and demeanor. She patiently raised her voice and said firmly, "If you lose, I'll drink three cups, and you'll drink ten."
Mr. Zhao was already drunk, and in his hazy state, he saw that the woman in front of him was somewhat aloof. He even found a strange pleasure in bumping into her, so he was willing to give her face and said, "It's a deal."
When Mingying saw the dice on the table, she knew that the game Zhao Dong mentioned was a dice game where the two of them took turns rolling the dice, and if one of them lost or the other won, they had to drink.
The dice have six sides, and each side makes a different sound when they collide. This was something a musician from Bailiqing had taught her.
After spending a lot of time with them, she could sense something was off.
While Chairman Zhao was rolling the dice, Mingying and Jinkui exchanged a silent glance. Jinkui understood perfectly and, under the cover of Guan Chun and the others, switched the two jugs of wine.
One pot contained ordinary wine, while the other contained a potent drug that Zhao Dong had added, harming both himself and others.
In the first round, Mingying realized it should be a larger number, but deliberately guessed a smaller number.
Losing this round will make the other side complacent.
Sure enough, when the dice were lifted, there were five large dots on the six sides.
Mingying lost, but she lost with confidence and composure.
"Playing games with me? I'll make you strip naked today! Quickly take off your clothes and drink!" Chairman Zhao laughed heartily, took the wine pot in front of him, and personally poured wine for her, his eyes never leaving the water, waiting for her to drink.
Having lost the bet, Mingying had nothing to say. She downed three cups of wine in one gulp. The strong liquor choked her, causing her eyes to redden. Then, she calmly pulled out a hairpin from her hair and threw it on the ground.
Chairman Zhao frowned: "That doesn't count. I told you to take off your clothes, are you kidding me? Who are you trying to fool by pulling out a hairpin?"
“Why doesn’t it count?” Mingying looked at him, speaking with conviction. “From head to toe, everything is clothing. If Young Master Zhao is capable, he can make me strip me completely naked from head to toe.”
As soon as she said this, all the male guests present, whether they were listening to music or looking for fun, rushed over, gathered around the table to watch the excitement, and chattered incessantly.
"Could it be that Young Master Zhao is afraid that he is not as skilled as others and can only win one round against me?" Mingying provoked him in front of everyone.
There were many people present, and they were all joking and making a fuss.
Chairman Zhao's face turned ashen. He had fallen for her provocation and immediately became furious. He waved his hand dismissively and said he wanted to start a second round.
In this round, Mingying rolled the dice for him.
There's an art to rolling dice; you can continue to rely on listening to the sound, and by adding direction, speed, and technique, you can control the final number.
She could detect the clues, and the man opposite her might well have noticed them too.
Therefore, she picked up the dice plate, recalled the unique technique she had learned, shook it twice, and then hurriedly put it down, a glimmer of light appearing in her eyes.
Even the ordinary drinks were strong liquor. She couldn't hold her liquor, and after three cups, her face turned red and she started sweating, perhaps also due to nervousness.
This method is a gamble.
Chairman Zhao assumed she was completely clueless, not even knowing how to roll dice properly, and that her carelessness suggested she hadn't even scattered the dice. He laughed and said, "You're done already? Are your little hands too weak? I can give you another chance."
“No need.” Mingying ignored his intimacy and urged him, gesturing for him to guess.
Chairman Zhao sneered, "Isn't this just that the pieces from the last round haven't been moved?"
This time, we'll teach that sharp-tongued young lady a lesson.
He slammed his hand on the table, guessing it was big.
Several people held their breath, their eyes fixed on the dice plate.
The men who come here seeking pleasure must want to see Zhao Dongying win so they can use despicable means to amuse themselves.
The girls at Ningxue Tower must have wanted him to lose; they were clutching their handkerchiefs or the hems of their clothes, their hearts pounding in their throats.
Mingying uncovered the dice plate; four small and two large, she won.
She exhaled, a smile spreading across her face.
A burst of laughter erupted from the audience. Chairman Zhao, feeling somewhat embarrassed, looked left and right, his lips twitching. True to his word, he shouted, "Pour me some wine! Let's continue!"
Li Yun quickly poured him ten cups, brought them to his lips, and eagerly poured them down his throat. Her expression was jubilant, full of the joy of having avenged her great grudge.
Mingying watched him drink ten cups in a row, his pupils bright and clear, like jade after being washed, a feeling of relief and comfort lingering in her heart.
Chairman Zhao thought it was just ordinary alcohol and boasted about his high alcohol tolerance. After drinking ten cups, he was unwilling to accept defeat and wanted to grab the dice plate to start a new game.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he stood up, he felt dizzy and almost fell onto the table. Then he felt a burning sensation all over his body, and his body was burning unbearably. He reached out to undo his clothes.
"You, you dare to play me for fools!" He realized the wine had been switched and reached out to hug Li Yun.
Li Yun loathed him to the extreme. She turned around and made him crash into a pillar with a dull thud, not forgetting to laugh at him.
"I thought Young Master Zhao had a high alcohol tolerance and could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk. How come he's already this drunk after only ten cups?"
Zhao Dong's vision blurred as he was engulfed in flames. In no time, he was stripped naked, his chest exposed, and he cursed incoherently.
The men and women present all thought he was drunk and acting crazy, and they surrounded him like they were watching a red-faced monkey in a circus, laughing uproariously.
Suddenly, a person burst in, accompanied by a biting night wind.
Wherever they went, there was complete silence; everyone was speechless, as if someone had a hand choking them.
The man, dressed in a magnificent black robe, with broad shoulders and long legs, strode in with a powerful and imposing presence, exuding a silent undercurrent of power and an innate sense of authority.
The scene was a mess, with decadent music playing, wine glasses lying haphazardly, clothes scattered all over the floor, and a shirtless man standing there.
Mingying, looking at the man, smiled broadly, clapped her hands and cheered, laughing so hard she almost fell over.
"Anyone who lingers will be killed without exception."
The words were like a series of cold knives hanging overhead, and both men and women fled in panic.
A chilling glint flashed in Pei Xiaoyun's eyes as he coldly swept his gaze over Ming Ying. Her every smile and gesture, her absurd and unrestrained behavior behind his back, ignited the fuse of his anger.
He rushed over after hearing the news.
It's said that she gambles with men, and if she loses, she has to take off her clothes and drink alcohol.
He looked her over; apart from her slightly disheveled hair, her clothes were fairly neat. Otherwise, he really would have killed her with a single blow.
When Mingying saw him, her smile froze instantly, the joy in her eyes vanished, replaced by a still, stagnant pool.
After drinking ten cups of wine, Chairman Zhao was drugged and his whole body turned as red as a shrimp. He stumbled and tried to pounce on Mingying.
Pei Xiaoyun pursed her cold lips, raised her sword and brought it down, a splash of bright red blood splattering onto Mingying's skirt, body, and eyes.
Mingying stiffened her neck, trembling, her fingertips frosty.
"What? You're quite bold, aren't you? Taking off your clothes and drinking with others?" Pei Xiaoyun laughed coldly, the laughter stuck in her throat sending chills down one's spine. She pinned her against the pillar and casually stripped off a piece of her clothing, revealing her snow-white, slender arms. "You take off your clothes when others tell you to, you drink when they tell you to. Do you really not know what kind of people they are? You really can't shake your filthy nature?"
He was still angry at her words, angry at her repeated acts of self-degradation.
Mingying felt a chill run down her spine, panting heavily, and glared at him: "You're the one who's despicable! Of course I know what kind of person he is, he's just as filthy as you!"
She did nothing; she was simply helping someone seek justice.
Does that mean Li Yun and the others should be bullied like that?
She glared at him angrily, her gaze towards Pei Xiaoyun filled with nothing but coldness and indifference.
But he wouldn't understand.
He sent her here to intimidate and frighten her with the suffering of others. He looked down on everyone, considering himself the only noble one in the world, and the rest were just dust and mud that he could trample on at will.
Pei Xiaoyun's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. He ignored her and, disregarding her struggles, reached a large, strong hand under her skirt.
So what if he's vulgar?
She still cried and begged for mercy in the hands of this despicable man.
When wasn't it?
"Let me go!" Mingying's cheeks flushed, and she shouted tremblingly and angrily, "I misspoke, you're even more despicable than them, you're a beast in human form, a shameless and corrupt official!"
Pei Xiaoyun was so angry that his teeth were chattering, but he wouldn't fall for her tricks or let her words sway his emotions.
Enraged to the extreme, he spoke without restraint, and instead whispered a sinister laugh in her ear: "So what? Since you consider yourself a prostitute, what difference does it make who you serve? Why pretend to be so high and mighty?"
Although she was fully clothed, his words shattered her spirit, as if a layer of her flesh had been scraped away.
Hot tears streamed down his face and dripped onto his wrist, as despair and resentment surged together like a tidal wave.
Pei Xiaoyun's wrist was wet with her tears. He glanced at her lightly; her face was stained with other people's blood, making her look extremely pitiful.
His eyes were slightly clouded. He let go of her, carried her back to the room, kicked open the door, and ordered hot water for her to bathe.
Mingying was being held horizontally, and as she struggled, she kept falling down. Because his hand was on the back of her neck, she was about to suffocate and couldn't breathe. Before she could react, she felt a heat in her body and sank into the gurgling water.
She tried to climb up by clinging to the edge of the bathtub, but he pressed her back down. He wiped the blood off her face with his fingertips, his words carrying a thousand needles: "You'd better wash yourself properly. I'm not that kind of person. Wash yourself clean before you serve me."
Mingying was caught off guard and choked on a mouthful of water. She slapped his hand away, creating a splash that soaked him completely.
Pei Xiaoyun's robes were soaked, and water droplets clung to his sharp, high-bridged brows. He lowered his face and watched her rise and fall in the water, his lust burning.
He was still bothered by her words, and with a smirk, he said, "I'll teach you what vulgarity and baseness are."
Two figures intertwined in the bathtub, water stains everywhere.
Mingying used her elbow to block his slamming chest, turning her head to avoid his almost violent kiss.
Pei Xiaoyun held her hand, and with each recollection of her words, he tightened his grip, his wandering hand finally resting on her beating heart. "This is my last warning to you, don't you dare hang out with those people."
He held Mingying by the waist to keep her from sinking into the water. She opened her mouth, and tiny bubbles burst in the water as she spoke through gritted teeth.
"Then why...why did you send me here?"
He was the starting point for everything.
Only a selfish and ruthless person would constantly suck the blood of others to fill their own belly.
"Ask yourself honestly." Pei Xiaoyun traced the shape of her heart on her chest with his finger. If he could, he really wanted to take it out and see why her heart had changed.
"Why did I send you here?"
It was all because of her disobedience.
If she behaves well, or even if he pretends to coax her as before, even if the tricks are clumsy and stupid, he will still indulge her and let her have her way.
Ever since she thought Lin Xian was dead, she had never given him a kind look.
"I'll make you reflect on your actions..." He pressed his face against her sticky cheeks, one side calm, the other turbulent. "Can't you just admit your mistake? Can't you say it? You can play the pipa for those people, drink with them, and even agree to take off your clothes in front of everyone, but you can't say those three words?"
Mingying convulsed all over, water flooded her face, and all her tears disappeared. She collapsed in his arms, laughing "ho ho".
"I did nothing wrong, why should I admit it? You've never known what I want or what I want to do!"
As she spoke, everything went black before her eyes...
When I woke up again, the surroundings were gray, and the window curtains were brightly lit by white light.
The sky was not quite light yet, the sunlight was not fully revealed, it seemed like early morning.
She lay in bed, changed into dry and clean clothes, and felt much better except for the burning discomfort in her lower body.
"Awake?" A hoarse yet penetrating male voice sounded in my ear.
She shrank back, and in the darkness, she met a pair of deep, strangely bright eyes beside her.
That darkness was unfathomable, as if falling into it would mean entering an abyss of no return.
Pei Xiaoyun calmly gazed at her pale, terrified face.
Even after she fainted, she kept shouting that she was right.
At that moment, his mind was jolted.
Her stubborn words made the veins on his forehead throb. He thought to himself, since such an unruly woman can't be changed, I might as well cut the weeds and kill her.
When he inexplicably let go, she lost all strength and was about to sink underwater when he pulled her up again, the second half of her words flashing through his mind.
"You have no idea what I want, what I want to do..."
His pupils contracted slightly.
He recalled how, in a fit of anger, he had deliberately called her a prostitute; and that she had indeed been playing gambling games with others simply to stand up for them.
When he saw her open her eyes again, his heart softened a little. "Is that your business? Don't you know that everyone has their own destiny? Who are they, and who are you? You're not allowed to associate with them."
He also wanted to say that if she apologized to him now, even if it was just to lie to him, he would take her away from here immediately and pursue the matter later.
Mingying sighed, a hint of coldness and mockery creeping into her eyes.
"And what about me? Who am I?"
What difference is there between her fate and theirs?
He still looked down on her, and still wanted her to obey him, just like before, to be his pet.
This is the same question again.
Pei Xiaoyun choked again, her throat bobbing, but she remained silent.
Who is she?
His concubine? His maidservant? His servant girl who ordered him around?
He didn't say anything.
Mingying turned over, not wanting to see him at all.
Pei Xiaoyun's lingering bitterness vanished the moment she turned away.
She shouldn't have asked him that question.
He has been good enough to her.
He won't treat anyone else like that, isn't that enough? What else does she want? Does she think he'll never be as good as Lin Xian?
The bed stirred slightly as he got up, casually threw on a robe, and gently opened his eyes, warning her, "If you want to go back, don't make me angry. Think about what you can and can't do."
"I don't want to go back." Mingying's voice was somewhat muffled. His attempt to appease her was silently crushed by her, like a heavy stone falling on him.
She really was like an object; he could put her wherever he wanted and play with her however he pleased.
"It's good here, at least better than being by your side. It would be even better if you didn't come."
Mingying was telling the truth; she felt better when she couldn't see him.
Pei Xiaoyun stared intently at her retreating figure, a chilling smile playing on his lips. His words were icy cold: "Letting you off easy is no punishment at all. Tonight, I'll come to pick you up."
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Author's Note: Requesting nutrient solution [kissing emoji]
Everything is currently proceeding according to the outline, which is complete. It will be tough on the male characters, so don't worry.
My resilience isn't particularly strong, and sometimes seeing some of the comments makes me a little overwhelmed. I know they're all genuine feelings, but it's just a story. If you're not enjoying it, you can stop here and not let it affect your mood [pat on the head]. If you're still interested, feel free to continue reading. No matter what, I'll try my best to finish it.
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