Proofreaders: m@o, Marcia
Not wishing to get involved with Jenny Wang, Shen
Liangsheng did not call and arrange a date with her. However, Miss Jenny was
more open than expected and rang the Shen manor first.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
More on the poem:
This is a line from a poem called “行路難” (lit. walking the path is hard) by Wu Jun (469 – 520). The title has no meaning as it is used regardless of its content, as long as the rhyme and structure follows those of the original poem.
The entire poem tells of the story of a dead wutong tree being made into an exquisite pipa (music instrument) and discovered by the emperor. From then on, it forgets about its lowly origins as it is showered with splendours by the side of the emperor. It is political satire on the gentry class who appear grand and elegant but are actually dead wood on the inside.
The line that Ch’in Ching quotes can be misunderstood as a statement of love, but the “him” actually refers to the emperor in the original context.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ayszhang: Yet another chapter of smut :'D Don't get me wrong, I love reading smut, just not translating it... I really forgot how much smut was in this story >_<
Previous chapter
Although he
did not wish to establish any kind of relationship with her, he had to put on a
proper act for the sake of Old Man Wang. He never rejected any of her
proposals, but his behaviour was mild, not too close and not too distant. It
was polite enough so that not one fault could be found but still made the lady
hot around the collar from frustration.
After a few days,
though, it became clear to Jenny that the man most likely had no interest in
her. His mask of kindness was only to avoid creating hostility between the two
families. All he was waiting for was for her to become bored or annoyed and just leave him alone.
If she were
another girl, perhaps one with a soft disposition, she might have sighed, “I
shall leave you be if you haven’t the heart for me.” If she were a stubborn one,
she probably would keep fighting, pushing harder after each failure until she
came to a dead end. If she were a sassy diva, she would go right up to Shen
Liangsheng with her finger in his face demanding, “Yes or no, you better lay
it out right this instant!”
However, Miss
Jenny Wang was in fact a roguish mischief-maker. Once the dreamy eyes
disappeared, she saw through Shen Liangsheng’s calm facade. When she guessed his true
intentions, she could not believe that he had been constantly living his life under that disguise.
Thus, Miss Wang
finally gave her old man a break and instead bugged Shen Liangsheng in her free
time. As though playing with a dog or cat, she used Mr. Shen Jr. to combat her
boredom while wondering how long this masquerade would last.
On the other hand, Shen Liangsheng eventually
understood the situation at hand. He was eighty percent sure that Jenny Wang
was no longer romantically interested in him and that she simply wanted
someone to play a game with her to relieve her boredom. Hence, he dropped some of his
act and even mocked her once when she got on his nerves.
“Our chef must be terribly talented for Miss Wang to
be here for dinner all the time.”
“Well, the grass is always greener on the other side.”
Jenny acted crass and graceless, exactly like her dad. She sported a tomboy cut
and on this occasion even wore men’s fashion. She sat unladylike in the lounge in Shen
Liangsheng’s home asking, as she ate sunflower seeds, “Is my dear
Ch’in-keke coming
tonight?”
“Since when was he your brother?” At the
end of the day, this was what bothered Shen Liangsheng the most. As Jenny often came to his house and most of the time without an invitation, running into
Ch’in Ching became inevitable. She knew that he was the businessman’s close
friend. The first time they exchanged names, the second time they got to know
each other, and somehow by the third time, “Mr. Ch’in” had become “my dear
Ch’in-keke.”
The reason for this was Ch’in Ching’s
friendliness. First of all, Ch’in Ching thought that Jenny didn’t like Shen
Liangsheng in that way, and secondly, even if she did, he didn’t think it would be right for him to bully a girl.
Jenny was not stupid; she realized that
Ch’in Ching was an honest, straightforward person, unlike that ambiguous, half-hearted Shen Liangsheng. She didn’t care that
he was not a son of wealth and wanted to be his friend in spite of that. During
their chat, she found out that he was a crosstalker and began to pester him
with requests to become his pupil. She claimed that she had artistic talent and
could do a perfect imitation of Chaplin. She then performed an act, and it was
not half bad.
The Wangs were native to Tientsin.
Jenny was abroad for two years but was nonetheless a Tientsiner born and bred.
When she and Ch’in Ching came together, nothing could stop their banter. Shen
Liangsheng could have sworn that he was a bear with a sore head when he overheard
their ridiculous chitchat in the Tientsin dialect. In addition, he had to stay
wary in case Miss Wang decided to give up on him and instead go for Ch’in
Ching. Out of the three, he was the only one troubled and constantly
worried. He wished he could go on strike and force Old Man Wang to keep a
stricter watch on his baby daughter so that she would stop invading his peace and
quiet.
December
came to a trouble-free end. From Christmas to New Year’s Day, anyone who was
anyone held gatherings. Naturally, Shen Liangsheng could not escape the
tradition. He picked a date, sent out the invitation cards and waited for the guests to
show up, have fun and leave.
Sheng Kung was considered a Christian
school since the investors of Sheng Kung were mostly priests and devote members
of the Church. Thus, the school was closed for Christmas. Shen Liangsheng was
annoyed that Jenny had been getting in the way of his spending time with Ch’in
Ching and so was keeping the schoolmaster in his manor from the beginning of the holidays until the
new year.
The party was set for New Year’s Eve. Jenny
regretfully announced that she already had plans that night. Shen Liangsheng
nodded, agreeing that it was a shame, while thinking secretly that it really
was a shame she didn’t hurry up and get back to America and her education.
Without Jenny, there was no one to keep
Ch’in Ching busy although he liked the peace and quiet, too. Disregarding the party
downstairs, he stayed in the bedroom reading. He did not know any of Shen
Liangsheng’s friends or acquaintances anyway, nor did he want to. Shen
Liangsheng never introduced him to anyone, either. It was as though a line were drawn with Shen Liangsheng standing at the top; to the left was a crowd – his
social connections – and to the right was one person – his secret, taboo love.
“Have they
all gone home?”
“Not yet.”
“Then what’re you doing here?”
Ch’in Ching was sitting on the bed reading
some book he had brought over. He looked up when Shen Liangsheng came into the
room before quickly returning to his page.
Shen Liangsheng approached the bed and sat
down, but he did not speak.
After Ch’in Ching read a few more lines, he
noticed that the man still had not said anything and kept staring at him, so he
put the book down and stared back. Only then did he find that the man’s
composed face was a bit pink. “Did you have too much to drink? Want to lie down
for a bit?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“If so, then go downstairs,” Ch’in Ching
said as he massaged his forehead for him. “What’s the host doing leaving his
guests unattended?”
Shen Liangsheng grabbed his hand and pulled
the man into his arms. He replied in a slightly drunk voice while softly
nuzzling his hair with his chin, “I missed you, wanted to see what you’re up
to.”
This took Ch’in Ching by surprise, but he
quickly recovered and began to bask in his own glory. The taller man was acting
so adorably that he couldn’t help but be wooed. He immediately took the
opportunity to hug the man close and tease him. “If only I’d known that Young Master Shen would be so endearing after a few drinks….”
Tired of the schoolmaster’s pointless
quips, Shen Liangsheng went straight for the kiss and pushed the man down onto
the bed. Ch’in Ching could taste some alcohol and tobacco from the kiss as he
licked the other man’s tongue. When Shen Liangsheng teased him back, he
returned the favour.
They kept toying with each other, back and
forth, and before it got out of hand, Ch’in Ching pushed the other man
and urged in a whisper, “You should go downstairs, leave this for later.”
“It’s pretty late now.” Shen Liangsheng actually was
not going to do anything. He backed away and gathered his breath but
still returned with banter.
“True.” Ch’in Ching sat up straight and
looked at his watch. “Maybe I should go to bed.”
Shen Liangsheng stood up and shot a look at
the man while he fixed his clothes.
“If you want me to wait for you, just say
it. What are you rolling your eyes at me for?” Ch’in Ching snickered as he
burst his bubble without hesitation. Noticing the crooked Windsor knot around
the man’s neck, he got up as well and adjusted it for him.
Looking down at the man fixing his tie for
him and hearing the faint music coming from downstairs, Shen Liangsheng hooked
an arm around the man’s waist and spun him around in an improvised dance.
The heater was turned high in the room.
Ch’in Ching was wearing a shirt and dress pants but only satin slippers on his
feet. On the other hand, Shen Liangsheng was clad formally like the
second time he met Ch’in Ching – the full white suit made his hair appear
especially dark and his eyes mysterious.
The schoolmaster had
started out smiling as he let the man sway him. He had underestimated how
romantic this man could be despite his usual stern and cool appearance. But slowly he began to feel dazed as though he had become drunk as well, and the
smile faded from his face.
Ch’in Ching looked into those bottomless eyes, and all the sounds of
the people and of the music slipped far away. All that was left was the pair of
eyes, deep like a well undisturbed for centuries awaiting that one person in
dire need of water.
He couldn’t stop himself
from initiating a passionate kiss with the taller man. He stretched out for his
tongue and swallowed his fluid in hope of becoming that thirsty person.
Shen Liangsheng’s ears buzzed
as the lust he had just managed to put out began to burn stronger than before.
He returned the frantic kiss while rushing to unfasten his own belt. He pushed
his pants and underwear down and sat down on the bed, pulling Ch’in Ching down
to his knees. “Suck it. Take it in deep.”
Ch’in Ching knelt on the
floor and ducked down to take the man deep into his mouth until he felt the
hairs tickling his face. His nose was filled with his scent and his ears his
muffled moans. This made him suck harder so that he could perhaps hear the man
lose control. The thought drove blood into his own member and wetted the fabric wrapped around its head.
Shen Liangsheng was mostly
self-possessed in bed. He would not lose his last line of self-restraint no
matter how mad he drove Ch’in Ching. However, perhaps because he really had had too
much to drink tonight, he recalled that euphoric night long ago as he
drowned in the ecstatic stimulation. He had also gotten drunk on the night he
first met him and had an intense wet dream.
Now, the person in his
dreams was kneeling between his legs, sucking him hard and loud as if his life
depended on it. The satisfaction and excitement of his dream becoming reality
eventually hit him with an impact large enough that his mental barricade
collapsed. The waves once trapped pushed through the broken dam with no signs
of stopping. He felt like his member was going to melt in the man’s mouth. The
warm flesh and nimble tongue tended to his manhood, stimulating each sensitive
spot, and soon, he let his voice go just as Ch’in Ching had wished.
Shen Liangsheng had a
nice voice, deep and chilled like a glass of amber spirit on the rocks,
cool but extremely easy to get drunk on. Ch’in Ching pressed his tongue along
the length and licked down to swirl his tongue on the perineum. He sealed his
lips around the bulging sac and sucked as seductive moans escaped from the man
above. Hearing them made his own abdomen tighten and his erection harden even
more – he almost wanted to come right then and there.
“Suck it…ah….” Shen
Liangsheng could feel his release upon him and pushed his hips forward as he
teased breathlessly, “Do you like it?”
“Mhm, I do,” Ch’in Ching
purred before taking the head in again, hollowing his cheeks and sucking. He
felt the shaft shudder from the imminent climax and began playing with his balls
in rhythm.
Shen Liangsheng couldn’t
hold back any longer. With a blissful cry, he exploded in the man’s mouth. By
the time he was himself again, he realized the man had swallowed all his cum
save for the smudge by his lips that was evidence of his loss of self-control.
“Why are you
so well-behaved lately?” Shen Liangsheng pulled him up by the hand and sat him
down on his lap. He kissed the remaining traces of him from his lips while
rubbing the bulge in his pants. “You must really like it to be this hard just
from blowing me.”
“Shut up.” Ch’in Ching was able to say
those things because the man’s sultry voice made him lose his mind, but now
that he was back to normal, his cheeks flushed from the very thought of having
admitted that he liked the man’s member. He quickly changed the topic. “Just go
back downstairs and tend to your business already.”
“What’re you going to do if I leave?” Shen
Liangsheng moved backwards and pushed Ch’in Ching into the spot between his
legs before reaching to undo his belt.
“Stop it already. Someone might come looking.”
Ch’in Ching lay in his arms and warned softly, but it was not a real refusal
since he was yearning for release as well.
“I just want to see if your knees are red.
What did you think I was going to do?” The taller man pushed his bottoms down
past the knees and massaged the kneecaps as a reward for kneeling for so long.
“Does it hurt?”
“No.” Ch’in Ching was sitting between the
man’s legs half-naked with his erection in plain sight. The thought of the man
staring at it aroused him so much that the head started to ooze more juices.
“Does it hurt here?” Shen Liangsheng
finally put his hands on his member and began stroking it.
“Yeah, it’s swollen.” Ch’in Ching couldn’t
resist anymore and relaxed into the man’s embrace. He breathed, “But it’ll stop
hurting if you touch it for me.”
“If I just touch it?” Shen Liangsheng
teased softly in his ear as he reached out for the lamp and brought it closer
to shine on the schoolmaster’s manhood. “I’d better take a closer look. We
can’t have it developing further complications, now can we?”
Under the soft glow of the lamp, Ch’in
Ching watched as the man’s slender digits slid along his shaft. He tried to
thrust his hips up but he had no strength in his waist as if all the bones in
his body disappeared, the only thing left still strong was his erection.
“Does it hurt here?” Shen Liangsheng was
carefully examining his member, poking the slit on top with his finger.
“No…oh….”
“What are you groaning for then?”
Ch’in Ching held his tongue.
“How would I know what’s wrong if you don’t
tell me?”
“Nothing’s wrong.” Ch’in Ching couldn’t
take the teasing anymore and grabbed his hand. “You have to finish what you
started. You were the one who was making such sexy sounds.”
“It appears there is no problem. See for
yourself, it’s hot and wet….” Shen Liangsheng ignored the man’s complaint and
grabbed the man’s hand to continue stroking together. All the meanwhile he
whispered sweet-nothings in his ear. “You’re so cute, baby, even this little
guy….”
“Mhm…faster….” Ch’in Ching wasn’t in the
mood for any of his embarrassing nonsense and instead immersed himself in the
pleasure. However, at the last moment right before his release, he felt
something blocking it. He buckled in discomfort, “Don’t…ah…hurts….”
“Does it really?” Shen Liangsheng sped up
with his hand while pressing on the slit. The length in his hand pulsated, but
his words were cruel, “Hang in there a bit longer.”
“No….” Ch’in Ching was too weak to dislodge
his hand. Then, from out of nowhere, he heard someone speaking on the other side of
the door and remembered that it had not been locked. He stiffened from fright
and bit hard on his lip to hold in any noises.
“Tell them I’ll be down momentarily.” Unlike
the man, Shen Liangsheng had heard clearly. He did not stop his hands and only
let go after he had dismissed the intruder. He watched as the man shook in his
arms and climaxed with a cry. Quickly, he dipped down and kissed the teary
corner of his eye, comforting, “It was someone from the house. Nothing to be afraid of.”
“Shen Liangsheng….” Ch’in Ching sat, panting. He realized
that the person had been one of the servants, and their relationship had long been
an open secret in the Shen manor. However, he was still annoyed that the man
tormented him at a time like that. “Get out of here. I don’t want to see your
face.”
“I just cured you, and now you want me to leave?” Shen
Liangsheng caressed his half-hard member while kissing his crimson earlobes. “Burning
the bridge after you cross; tossing me away like a used rag. Tell
me, Mister Ch’in, did I use them correctly?”
Ignoring the
question, Ch’in Ching climbed out of the taller man’s embrace and into the
blankets. He pulled the sheets over his head and played dead.
“All right, you don’t have to wait for me if
you’re tired.” Shen Liangsheng stood up and straightened his clothes before
patting the man’s head through the blanket. He still joked with him, “My baby has
everything in the world anyways, well, except for a caring heart.”
“I’m not sleeping.” Ch’in Ching not only
was missing a heart, his shame was nowhere to be found either. He had just told
the man to leave, but now he poked his head out from under the covers and made
a silly face at Shen Liangsheng. “I’m going to wait for my dear Shen-keke to come to bed.”
The origin
of “Shen-keke” came from Jenny Wang’s
“Ch’in-keke.” Shen Liangsheng warned
her against creating familial relations when there previously were none, but
Ch’in Ching and Jenny in turn began to bully the businessman.
“Do you see what I’m seeing, Ch’in-keke? There’s a big green-eyed monster
stomping around.”
“I’ll be damned, you’re right!”
“The poor fellow probably just wants to be
called keke, too.”
“Yeah, I bet.”
“But if he wants people to call him keke, he shouldn’t act like he’s a tough
bloke all the time. I mean, who’d have the courage to do it to a face like that?”
“Hah, stop it already. He’s on the verge of
tears!”
“Oh, there, there. Don’t cry. We’ll call
you Shen-keke if it makes you happy,
all right?”
“C’mon, Shen-keke. Show us those pearly whites.”
Of course, the so-called green-eyed monster
did not bother to retort, or perhaps he was too frustrated to.
Now, Shen
Liangsheng was watching by the bed as Ch’in Ching wrapped himself up like a spring
roll with only his head poking out. Seeing his hair flying wild and hearing the
playful tone when he called him keke,
he almost didn’t want to leave him.
Sadly, even so, he had to go. Tientsin was not
quite China but not quite foreign, either. They were celebrating the
Gregorian New Year, but the customs were more or less Chinese. The guests were
all waiting downstairs for Shen Liangsheng to make the New Year toast in
celebration of another smooth year in business and in anticipation of more wealth and
prosperity in the year to come.
“Ch’in Ching,”
Shen Liangsheng reached forward to flatten the messy hair. “It’ll be next year
when I see you again.”
“What?” Ch’in Ching faltered, but after he
thought about it, he chuckled, “Oh yeah, you’re right.”
“See you next year.”
“Yeah, see you next year.”
After Shen
Liangsheng left, Ch’in Ching lay on the bed, and soon drowsiness threatened to
take him. In order to stay awake, he began to look for things to think about.
In the end, all he could think of was Shen Liangsheng
– he was lying on his bed, wrapped in his blankets, smelling his scent – every
thought revolved around him.
He was still half-naked and the sheer
friction against the soft sheets made him hard again.
While he reprimanded himself, he flipped
over and hugged the blankets that smelled like the man. He thought of the man
as he lay amidst his scent, grinding his hips with frustration from his new
erection but refusing to use his hands to relieve it.
He wanted to wait for his return, for his
hands and for the feeling of his manhood deep inside him….
Ch’in Ching sighed with his face red with
embarrassment as he ducked back under the covers again. He was really becoming
shameless, and there was no helping him.
The
countdown might have passed already as it became very noisy downstairs with
celebratory cheers and screams that seemed both strange and distant for some
reason.
Ch’in Ching looked up and out the window.
It was like a picture framed behind icy glass, one of the silent night with
faint stars and a waning moon.
Then, flowers bloomed from between the
lonely celestial bodies – someone probably lit up fireworks in the garden. A
few exploded high by the window, illuminating the night.
The flowers of fire budded, bloomed and withered
within mere seconds of existence in the night and in his eyes. When he thought
back to this scene later, it seemed as short as everything they had had between
them, and as long as the rest of their lives.
However, in
the moment, he could only think of what Shen Liangsheng had said earlier: See
you next year.
For some reason, his eyes felt sore and he
wanted to cry, but in the end a smile appeared on his face.
As he smiled, he was reminded of a classic
poem.
The ancients died long ago, but their poetry had a new ring to it every time it was read. Every letter and every word
just seemed to fit perfectly.
Being with him month after month, year
after year
The long night seems even longer yet.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
More on the poem:
This is a line from a poem called “行路難” (lit. walking the path is hard) by Wu Jun (469 – 520). The title has no meaning as it is used regardless of its content, as long as the rhyme and structure follows those of the original poem.
The entire poem tells of the story of a dead wutong tree being made into an exquisite pipa (music instrument) and discovered by the emperor. From then on, it forgets about its lowly origins as it is showered with splendours by the side of the emperor. It is political satire on the gentry class who appear grand and elegant but are actually dead wood on the inside.
The line that Ch’in Ching quotes can be misunderstood as a statement of love, but the “him” actually refers to the emperor in the original context.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ayszhang: Yet another chapter of smut :'D Don't get me wrong, I love reading smut, just not translating it... I really forgot how much smut was in this story >_<
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Till Death Do Us Part - English Translation by ayszhang is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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