Chapter 15

Xue Ming was already dressed lightly, with a gauzy dress softly draped over her body and without any underwear. With one pull, most of her leg was exposed from under the skirt, shining white. She struggled to sit up, tugging at the hem of her dress to cover herself a bit. “I heard it’s because the Ghost King likes it.”

Yu He did not deny it. Instead, his fingers slowly slid up along her ankle as he leaned in closer, asking in a low voice, “You’ve heard that I like it, but haven’t you heard why I like it?”

Xue Ming turned her head to avoid him, her cheeks flushing red. Remembering what the maid had said earlier, she pretended to be calm and said, “I’ve only known the Ghost King for a few days, so naturally, I can’t understand so much. I don’t know your preferences.”

Yu He seemed to have a faint smile on his face. He tightened his grip on her calf and brought his head closer to her slender neck, pressing his shoulder against hers and pushing her onto the bed. His voice came from beside her ear, “I’ll let you know now.”

Xue Ming felt a cold touch on her neck, like Yu He’s gentle peck. He usually wasn’t this gentle; it was often a prelude to biting. She hurriedly cried out, “Wait, wait, wait! Lord Yu He, you know I’m a living person and can’t stay in the Rakshasa Ghost Market for long. I took a risk coming here for you. The time of the three rooster crows has already passed. Can you send me back first, and we can discuss anything else later?”

Yu He indeed raised his head slightly after hearing this, his gaze falling on her face. “For me?”

Xue Ming hurriedly said, “Yes, yes. I provide you with yang energy, don’t I? To let you absorb purer and more vigorous yang energy, I had to come here to find the Yang Gathering Talisman under the guidance of a master. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come to this ghostly place.”

It seemed her persuasion was working. Although Yu He didn’t respond, he didn’t make any further moves. His gaze slid down from her face to a specific spot on her neck. Xue Ming thought she had convinced him and quickly continued, “Moreover, this ghostly place is filled with too much yin energy, which greatly affects me. I’m now feeling weak all over, dizzy and lightheaded. If I don’t leave soon, my body won’t be able to hold up. If I die, you won’t be able to absorb my yang energy!”

Her words were sincere. Xue Ming thought Yu He should be swayed, but he unexpectedly spoke slowly, “What a fragrant scent.”

Xue Ming was confused, “Huh?”

“What powder did you apply to your body?” Yu He leaned down again and gently bit her neck.

The slight pain from the sharp teeth made Xue Ming realize that Yu He hadn’t heard a word she said! Her arms still firmly supported her body on the bed, showing her defiant and indignant attitude, but she was overpowered entirely in less than a second.

Xue Ming’s collar was easily torn apart, revealing her rounded shoulders and a crimson dudou. She stubbornly struggled, but her waist was tightly pinned by his knees, making it impossible to escape and causing her clothes to fall off even faster. In no time, she was panting heavily.

Failing to stop him, Xue Ming’s ears turned red with embarrassment, and she cried out, “Lord Ghost King, don’t you have many concubines? Any one of them is a hundred times more beautiful than me. Why are you fixated on me?” She felt that cold hand was like a damp snake, clinging to her skin and moving slowly, causing her body to tremble uncontrollably.

Yu He straightened up, looking down at her from above, his tone very light, “The dead don’t have such a burning temperature.”

Before Xue Ming could retort, she saw him unbuttoning his clothes. Yu He was attending a banquet today and dressed quite formally. He looked decent with three layers of clothes but was talking nonsense with a pretty face.

Seeing this, Xue Ming seized the opportunity to quickly turn over and climb up to break free from the restraints. Unexpectedly, before she climbed off the bed, an arm came across her waist and pulled her back, and then his hard and solid chest pressed against her back. Yu He was much bigger than her, and he was able to cover her whole body in his arms when he covered her from behind. He completely encircled her with his long legs, bitting the bellyband straps tied behind her neck, and tore the whole bellyband aside from the bottom, leaving Xue Ming with nothing inside. She hugged her arms and tried to curl up her body, but she still couldn’t avoid Yu He’s pressing her into his arms and kneading her. It didn’t take long for her limbs to become soft, and her breathing became louder.

Because they were too close, Yu He’s changes were easily noticed by her. Xue Ming tried to twist her waist to dodge, but she was still hit a few times. Feeling a little angry in her fatigue, she turned her head and growled, “Don’t push me!”

Yu He held her in his arms and played with her for a long time. Seeing that she was already out of breath and still struggling hard, he sniffed along the back of her neck and then said, “Do you still want the Yang Gathering Talisman?”

Xue Ming’s body froze, and she turned to look at him in astonishment.

Yu He seemed to understand the question in her eyes and continued, “You don’t have it on you. Either you haven’t found it yet, or it was taken from you. You have too much yin energy; staying in the ghost realm for too long has allowed ghost energy to invade your body. The Yang Gathering Talisman would indeed be very beneficial for you.”

“It was indeed taken! That damned old man, I had already completed the transaction with him, but he betrayed me!” Xue Ming was angry at the mention of the old man, grabbing Yu He’s arm. “Can you help me get it back?”

Yu He looked at her, his eyes clouded with desire. She was cowardly and easily deceived, yet she had a very appealing face and eyes that could captivate anyone. Yu He pressed her down and responded in a low voice, “Yes.”

Regarding matters of life and death, Xue Ming became much more compliant, lying softly on the bed. Even at this moment, she made a final weak protest, “Lord Ghost King, can we discuss this further?”

The silent hall was filled with the scent of incense, light smoke curling in the air. Occasionally, soft moans broke the quiet of the long night, and the light cast the intertwined shadows of two figures on the wall. She and Yu He eventually reached an agreement, ensuring her safety, though she still had to sacrifice a part of herself.

Yu He didn’t seem to be in a hurry to possess her, or perhaps his desire wasn’t that strong. This time, he focused on something else and played for a long time. Even though she gritted her teeth and endured it again and again, she still let out one or two unbearable moans from her lips. In a daze, Xue Ming was still wondering why she was not called back after the cock crowed. Could it be that Chun Ye and Qiu Sheng did not light the fire before her door?

In the night’s second half, Yu He had enough fun and kept his promise. He just turned her over and grabbed her feet. Xue Ming’s feet were washed cleanly, and her toes and heels were slightly red and dazzlingly white. Yu He rubbed the soles of her feet and then put her feet together. Then the bells made a rhythmic and crisp sound, ding-ding-ding non-stop, sometimes rapid, sometimes slow, like weaving lewd music, but it was particularly impacting.

Xue Ming hugged the quilt and buried her red face in it. She felt a strange touch on the soles of her feet. The friction brought waves of itchiness that made her shrink instinctively. However, her ankles were firmly grasped. She could not break free and could only curl up her toes. However, Yu He had a lot of bad intentions. He deliberately pushed her curled toes apart and smeared the sticky and cold liquid into every gap.

The strange debauchery made Xue Ming sink into it uncontrollably. Her body burned with heat and trembled faintly. She despised her own petty character of “corrupted by wealth, moved by poverty, and being humble when forced.” Still, she comforted herself that this was all for survival. What else could she do?

T/N: This is the opposite of Mencius’s principle 富贵不能淫，贫贱不能移，威武不能屈 which means: “One should not be corrupted by wealth and status, should not waver in poverty and lowliness, and should not be subdued by force.”

She regretted it deeply, thinking that she would never have ventured in if she had known she would encounter such a lustful ghost. But then again, if she hadn’t entered Yu He’s territory that night, being torn apart by the Yaksha ghosts wouldn’t have been a good ending either.

Although Yu He was driven by lust, he was much better than the ghost king who eats human heads. If she had encountered Hundred Crow Ghost King that night, her head would have been chewed up by now. The sound of bells in the hall began to become urgent as if they were shaking back and forth rapidly. The crisp sound was full of ambiguous allure, and the gurgling sound of water drilled straight into people’s ears. It continued for a long time before stopping, and the hall returned to silence, merging into the long night, becoming quiet and peaceful.

Xue Ming lay down for a while before lifting her head from the blanket, her face still flushed. Turning her head, she saw Yu He had already gotten out of bed. Except for removing an outer layer of clothing, he was neatly dressed. She didn’t dare to look at what state her feet were in after being tormented. Sitting up, she quickly fastened her clothes, feeling the sticky and slippery sensation on the soles of her feet. She hurriedly rubbed them clean on the blanket.

As soon as her foot moved, the bell rang, and Xue Ming couldn’t help but recall what had just happened. She tried to pull the red string off her foot a few times but couldn’t break it. While she was busy with that, the hall doors opened, and several maids floated in, carrying a white jade bucket filled with water and some new clothes.

Xue Ming didn’t expect such service and was pleasantly surprised. She immediately left the bed and directed the maids to place the jade bucket behind the large screen. Standing behind it, she used the water to wash her body, discovering that her chest was covered with red marks and bite marks, with a few faint finger imprints still visible. It was a mess she couldn’t bear to look at. She washed thoroughly, especially scrubbing her feet for a long time. Finally, exhausted from washing, she stopped.

After wearing her new clothes and walking out, Xue Ming found Yu He lounging lazily in a soft chair. The table in front of him was filled with a variety of sumptuous dishes, and the aroma of the food filled the air.

As soon as Xue Ming smelled it, her stomach growled loudly. She then realized that her dizziness and weakness were not due to ghostly energy but because she had only eaten one meal that day, and that was in the morning. She was a living person, and not eating would lead to starvation.

Xue Ming walked over and sat cross-legged at the table. While picking up chopsticks, she asked, “Can I eat?”

Before waiting for an answer, she had already stuffed a mouthful. Yu He, looking satisfied and harmless at the moment, did not stop her.

Yu He’s voice was a bit lazy, “What should we use next time?”

Xue Ming: …

She pretended not to hear and buried her head in her meal.

“Who took the Gathering Yang Talisman?” Yu He asked again.

Shoveling food into her mouth with her cheeks bulging, Xue Ming couldn’t hide her anger and said, “It was an old man who runs a shop called ‘Heaven and Earth’ in the Rakshasa Ghost Market. Ghost King, I was looking for the Gathering Yang Talisman to help you absorb purer yang energy, but I didn’t expect to be tricked by that cunning old ghost. Hurting me is hurting you, so you must teach him a good lesson!”