Submission

Xing Yue, you liar.

Because Bu Yao could not control her tail for reasons unique to her, she usually had either a tail or legs, never both.

Taking on legs while keeping her tail, as she had now, was usually a gesture of submission. It meant she was willing to yield to someone she believed was stronger than herself.

Xing Yue lowered her gaze. The matte sheen of the red scales was coldly beautiful, the tail full and rounded, its tip slender and delicate. Bu Yao had clearly been pampered.

It was the first time Xing Yue had seen the young lady like this.

Bu Yao did not even dare lift her face. Resting her chin on Xing Yue's shoulder, she whispered, "Don't look..."

Her voice was barely audible.

The nearby window stood wide open. They were high up, where it would be hard for anyone to spot them, but there was still a chance.

Xing Yue wrapped a long arm around her waist and back, holding her gently. "It's all right. I'm only petting your snake tail. We're not doing anything adults-only. It wouldn't matter if someone saw."

As she spoke, she gave the plump, rounded tail a firm slap. The sound rang clearly through the office, her rough action at odds with her soft, soothing voice.

"Xing Yue..." Bu Yao pushed at her and called her name in a huff.

Unfortunately, there was no force behind it. Her apparent refusal looked more like an enticing invitation.

Xing Yue caught the tender, sprout-like tip of Bu Yao's tail, distracted. She was stunned that Bu Yao had shown her such submission. This was Bu Yao, the young lady of the Bu Family, foremost among the prominent families. When had she ever behaved like this?

Worse, Xing Yue realized how strongly Bu Yao's submission affected her. Holding the upper hand brought her little satisfaction. Madam Bu's words echoed in her ears: "Having power over a woman who loves you doesn't make you impressive."

She felt ashamed, yet deep down, an indescribable excitement began to grow...

Xing Yue let out a long, heavy sigh. She did not want to meet Bu Yao's eyes. The woman was willful, a flower raised in a greenhouse, innocent in her thinking and sometimes downright naive. By comparison, Xing Yue had weighed her options and chosen to endure humiliation for her own ends. It felt almost as though she were deceiving Bu Yao, luring her into something.

By the time she had soothed the restless tail, thirty minutes had passed. Xing Yue drove them home.

At a traffic light, she rested one hand on the steering wheel, looking uneasy. A cloying sweetness filled the car, coming from Bu Yao's snake body.

Xing Yue knew that scent well enough. She could already guess what would happen when they got back. Her heart, usually still as a lake, stirred with waves that left her anxious and irritable.

"Why don't you... go home tonight?" Xing Yue remembered how strongly the Bu Family had opposed Bu Yao moving in with her. They had insisted she stay at home. "You haven't been back in two days. Your mother must be worried."

Just like the morning after Bu Yao had first stayed over, when Madam Bu had come to Xing Yue's home to pick her up.

Bu Yao froze. For Xing Yue to suddenly suggest taking her back was far too fickle. Just now, in the office, Xing Yue had held her like that and petted her tail.

Tomorrow was a day off. Neither of them had to work. Everything had seemed to follow so naturally... and now Xing Yue wanted to send her home?

Bu Yao tightened her grip on the clothes in her hands. Her voice was quiet, but every word rang clearly through the car. "Why? You don't want me?"

The blunt question left Xing Yue speechless.

It was not that she did not want Bu Yao. She just did not want to keep relieving her stress this way.

"It's not time yet." Xing Yue turned the wheel, changing direction. "We haven't remarried. If you stay out all night, it'll be bad for your reputation when word gets around."

It was the same concern Bu Yao had raised at the hospital. Adults might see nothing serious in it, but the Bu Family's standing was different. Too many people watched them, ready to seize on anything and gossip about their conduct.

As the familiar greenery along the road came into view, Bu Yao's answer seemed to matter little. Whether she agreed or not, Xing Yue was already driving toward the Bu Residence.

"Are you thinking of what's best for me, Xing Yue?" she asked suddenly, looking at the car window.

The glass reflected her face and Xing Yue's profile beside it.

Xing Yue's jaw tightened. She did not even open her mouth, giving a soft, noncommittal "Mm" through her nose.

The conversation ended with that single syllable. Bu Yao asked nothing more, and Xing Yue said nothing. All they heard was the noise of cars rushing past.

Feeling the atmosphere in the car turn icy, Xing Yue licked her lower lip. "Are you angry?"

Surely not. She had hardly said anything.

Bu Yao watched Xing Yue's changeable expression, her beautiful face cold with mockery. "Do you know what you look like right now? Like a woman who says things she doesn't mean, does things she doesn't want to do, then acts as though it's all for the other person's sake."

Perhaps the words had struck a nerve. Xing Yue's voice turned heated as she pulled into a deserted side street. "What kind of woman? Who are you calling a jerk? I'm taking you home, and somehow I'm the one at fault? What kind of jerk plays coy instead of sleeping with a woman? Does that sound like me?"

Now she was angry too. Bu Yao's words had been like a foot on her tail. One touch, and she exploded.

"All I said was that you shouldn't sleep with me tonight." Xing Yue turned to glare at the woman in the passenger seat, her eyes blazing. "If you insist on coming home with me, I won't refuse. Did you have to make me out to be so awful?"

Xing Yue's reaction was excessive. She had already been conflicted and under immense pressure, stretched tight as a balloon. Bu Yao's light prick had made her burst.

Her words were unpleasant too, leaving Bu Yao with no patience for her.

"Xing Yue, don't talk as if I'm throwing myself at you, as if I just love doing that with you." Anger filled Bu Yao's eyes, her chest rising and falling sharply. "What makes you so special? Who gets to twenty-eight without ever mating? Of all the things I could want, you think I'm after sex with you? How did you get that idea?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Bu Yao's expression changed. She looked shaken for several seconds before hiding it again, biting her lip so hard it nearly bled.

Xing Yue said nothing. Her breathing was slow, deep, and steady. The eyes behind her glasses were chillingly cold. After her fury a moment ago, her indifference was startling.

"Is that so?" she asked, almost mercilessly. "Then go find a female or male snake who can mate with you."

That was the final blow. After an argument like this, if Bu Yao still refused to leave, she really would be throwing herself at Xing Yue.

Bu Yao knew she had hurt Xing Yue and already regretted it. If Xing Yue had stayed silent for two more seconds, Bu Yao would have apologized first. Instead, Xing Yue told her to leave, to be with some other female or male snake.

"Why..." Her voice broke. Tears spilled down her cheeks, and her body shook uncontrollably. "Why are you gentle and kind to your fans, modest and patient with younger people, gracious to everyone else... but you treat me like this?"

Huge tears fell from her eyes, landing one by one on the backs of her hands.

When Bu Yao was sixteen, she had loved listening to Xing Yue sing on weekends. She often left song requests in the comments. Once, Xing Yue saw one and posted a cover. Bu Yao tipped her three hundred thousand in one go.

Overwhelmed, Xing Yue had even messaged Bu Yao privately to ask if she had truly meant to tip her. Had she mistaken her for another creator?

After that, they chatted now and then. Uneasy about accepting such a large tip, Xing Yue privately recorded covers of songs Bu Yao liked and sent her the audio files.

One day, Bu Yao said she was about to take her college entrance exams and would be away for a while. Xing Yue was shocked. She had not realized her wealthy supporter was a minor. She could not accept that money! She promptly refunded every gift Bu Yao had sent, even covering the platform's processing fees herself.

Even so, Xing Yue had not distanced herself from Bu Yao for being underage. She did not regret the private recordings she had made for her, either. She even recorded a message encouraging Bu Yao to do well on her exams.

Unfortunately, by the time Bu Yao returned after the exams, Xing Yue had signed with a company. Her account was managed by studio staff, and she no longer replied to private messages. Their contact naturally ended.

To Xing Yue, Bu Yao had been just one fan among many, and one of the younger ones at that. To Bu Yao, it had meant far more. Xing Yue's recordings had helped her through nearly all the hardships of preparing for the exams.

Even when Bu Yao openly used the same username on WeChat that she had used to interact with Xing Yue on the platform, Xing Yue had not recognized her. She had surely forgotten her long ago.

Xing Yue was a kind person. There was no doubt about it. She took care of fans, friends, and newcomers alike. She regularly went into the mountains to do charity work, making sure every donation and every item reached the children left behind there. She never used her influencer status, choosing instead to do what she believed in as an ordinary person offering what light she could.

Yet that same person spoke cruelly to a woman who loved her, impatient and quick to anger.

Bu Yao was heartbroken. Xing Yue was good to everyone but her. She snapped at Bu Yao at the slightest thing.

She wanted to get out, but the car door would not budge. Though she was sobbing, she forced herself to sound stern. "Open! The door!"

It was nearly two in the morning. Outside was pitch-black, and the few streetlights flickered ominously.

Listening to Bu Yao cry beside her, Xing Yue felt lost. She had only wanted to take Bu Yao home. She did not know how things had come to this.

"You insulted me, and now you're crying..." she said, without much conviction.

Bu Yao immediately raised her voice. "You started it! You have no idea how awful the things you say are. You make it sound like I'm the woman you despise most in the world! If you hate me so much, why did you say you'd consider remarrying me? I meant it... You liar. You clearly hate me..."

The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she felt. She had held back before, but now she could not. Tears poured down her face, her shoulders shaking with sobs.

Xing Yue was at a loss. "No. I don't hate you."

"Yes, you do! Bitch!"

Those jewel-like eyes were clouded from crying so hard, their brightness gone.

"I was overjoyed that you were willing to submit to me and lie beneath me. I was frightened too. I still don't know how to handle your feelings. It isn't what you think..." Xing Yue hurried to explain. She could not bear to see Bu Yao crying, and she no longer cared that Bu Yao had called her a bitch.

Those rubies were not hers, yet seeing them like this hurt her more than it seemed to hurt Bu Yao.

"I chose the wrong words. I'll do better." She spoke each word with complete sincerity.