Chapter 74: Envy

“You, aren’t you afraid?”

Su Ling’s body stiffened slightly at the question. He gripped the cold, damp sheets beneath him, his knuckles turning a faint shade of white.

He looked up at Lu Yu. His eyes were still red, but they held a stubbornness Lu Yu had never seen before.

That look lacked the familiar, calculated flattery and fear. It was a stubborn, glowing expression he had never encountered!

“Afraid? How could I not be?”

His voice trembled slightly, but every word was clear.

“When she choked me, I was shaking all over. But I just didn’t want to follow her lead. I didn’t want her to think she could bully me just because I’m afraid of her.”

“You have no idea. That person is a total villain. She has been controlling my life since I was a child, driving away every friend I had. She wanted me to have no one to rely on but her.”

“She’s a lunatic, a pervert—a total pervert.”

As Su Ling spoke, he clenched his fists and swung them hard two times through the air.

“The moment I find a chance, I’m going to punch her in the face a few times and show her what I’m made of!”

Lu Yu froze, his pupils shrinking as if he had heard something that overturned his entire worldview.

More than ten years of indoctrination at the Young Slave Pavilion and day after day of submission at Qin Siyu’s side had been carved into his blood and bones.

Bowing one’s head in fear, enduring grievances, and remaining obedient through pain—these were the only rules for survival.

Resistance, complaining, and refusing to yield would only lead to harsher torture, abandonment, or destruction!

He subconsciously leaned forward half a step. His voice was hushed and urgent, driven by a primal survival instinct that forced him to speak.

“You can’t say that… and you can’t think that either.”

Lu Yu’s voice shook violently as he cast a panicked glance toward the dark entrance of the passage, as if Ye Moran might appear at any second.

“We do whatever Master says. Whether she’s right or wrong, we can’t talk back, we can’t hate her, and we certainly can’t resist… Otherwise, you’ll be beaten miserably. You’ll be thrown away.”

“And if you’re thrown away, you won’t survive.”

He spoke with absolute earnestness. This was survival experience bought with countless beatings and bouts of terror. It was the only truth he knew in the entire world.

Seeing the deep-seated cowardice and fear in Lu Yu’s eyes, Su Ling suddenly felt that the person in front of him was a bit pitiful.

He moved to the edge of the bed and reached out to lightly touch Lu Yu’s arm. The movement was gentle, without a hint of malice.

“Are you hit often?”

“I…”

Lu Yu was dazed, looking down at his own body. Yes, he was hit often, but wasn’t that normal?

‘If I’m disobedient, shouldn’t I be hit?’

“Your body is shaking. Are you afraid?”

“Don’t be afraid.”

Su Ling immediately hopped off the bed and carefully helped him onto it.

“Thank you…”

“It’s fine. No one will hit you here. That person is a bit detestable, but she rarely hits me. She only chokes me or pinches my chin…”

Su Ling’s voice trailed off. He looked at the other man and hesitated for a long time before asking a question he had been curious about.

“Can you tell me what you’ve been through?”

“I feel like you’re in a lot of pain. If I can, I want to help you…”

Lu Yu looked up at Su Ling with a dazed expression. Help him? Su Ling was a prisoner himself; how could he help?

He couldn’t imagine it. Moreover, he couldn’t conceive of what kind of help could ever liberate him from this. Would it involve killing him?

He gave a bitter laugh. This guy in front of him had no idea what he had endured. How could he talk about helping?

They were both clearly just toys for others to play with. Why was it that this guy hadn’t been beaten?

Choking and pinching? Did that even count as being hit? It was more like flirting!

An inexplicable emotion sprouted within him, making him extremely uncomfortable. He didn’t understand what it was, but it made the person in front of him seem hypocritical and irritating.

But he didn’t dare show it. He couldn’t afford to offend Su Ling, and he certainly couldn’t afford to offend the person standing behind him!

Even his own Master was just a subordinate to that woman. If he dared to show even a hint of his true feelings, it might even implicate his Master!

If Master got angry, he would surely be punished again!

Maybe she would even kick him out. He didn’t want to be kicked out. If he were, he would be nothing. He would really die!

But why? Why did this guy get to be so naive while he had to be treated like this? It was unfair!

‘It’s so unfair.’

In Lu Yu’s eyes, the pity in Su Ling’s gaze and his offer to “help” became sharp irony, like needles stabbing into his most painful spots.

This person didn’t understand what a real hell was like. He was just a little plaything who was being pampered and indulged, yet he insisted on pretending to empathize. It was nauseatingly hypocritical.

He shouldn’t be like this. He shouldn’t live such an “easy” life. He shouldn’t have any resentment, any sharp edges, or even a shred of self!

He should be just like me—shaking with fear, humbly obedient, kneeling until numb, with his entire personality devoured by terror until he became nothing but an object that only knew how to obey and please, a thing without a soul!

Only then would it be fair!

A frantic envy grew wild in his heart, gradually giving birth to a terrifying and daring idea in his mind.

Lu Yu slowly raised his head. The daze and fragility in his eyes vanished, replaced by a layer of carefully crafted cowardice and grievance.

It looked exactly as before, but the light hidden deep in his eyes had turned into a cold, dark glint of revenge!

“I… I haven’t been through much.”

He lowered his head, his voice trembling even more as he intentionally acted as though he were afraid to speak lest he be punished. His fingertips nervously picked at the sheets.

“It’s all because I’m disobedient that Master punishes me. I deserve it…”

“Don’t ask anymore, and don’t think about helping me. I’m not worth it, and I can’t accept it…”

He intentionally hunched his shoulders, looking like someone who had been beaten into submission and was too afraid to mention the past. He perfectly replicated the humble obedience he showed before Qin Siyu. Seeing this, Su Ling felt even more distressed, assuming the man was simply too traumatized to remember.

Su Ling opened his mouth, wanting to say more to comfort him, but Lu Yu cut him off. His voice was soft and gentle, carrying a calculated sense of reliance and submission. Every word was wrapped in a meticulously woven lie.

“Actually… the things you said just now are very dangerous.” Lu Yu looked up timidly toward the passage entrance before quickly lowering his head again. He whispered as if giving a secret warning.

“CEO Ye might seem like she isn’t watching you, but she knows everything. If she heard you cursing her and saying you wanted to hit her, you would receive a very heavy punishment.”

“A punishment one hundred times more terrifying than choking or pinching your chin.”

He intentionally emphasized his tone, a flash of malice crossing his eyes as he watched Su Ling’s profile stiffen. He continued to coax and deceive with a soft voice, pouring fear into Su Ling’s heart with every word.

“I’ve seen people who were disobedient. They were locked in a place without light for a few days without food or water. When they came out, they couldn’t even walk. Others who dared to talk back were beaten so badly they couldn’t get out of bed. It didn’t matter how much they cried and begged for mercy…”

“Stop being so stubborn. Don’t hate her or say bad things about her anymore, okay?”

“Just follow her lead a bit. Be a little more obedient. Don’t resist or talk back, and she won’t be mean to you anymore. She won’t bully you… Truly, I’ve tried it. Only by being obedient can you suffer less.”

He spoke with absolute sincerity, his tone full of “concern” for Su Ling’s well-being!

“I won’t. I refuse to just go along with her. What right does she have to treat me like this? I won’t do it!”

“You shouldn’t be afraid either. That Qin Siyu person treating you like that—she’s no good either!”

“That’s not true! Master is very good!”

Lu Yu hadn’t expected Su Ling to speak ill of Qin Siyu. He immediately became flustered, terrified that the woman might hear and punish him. At the same time, he began to resent Su Ling.

‘Why did he have to bring up my Master? What an idiot. A complete fool!’