Chapter 110: He is Different

“Do you remember the punishment?”

Su Ling nodded slightly, his body leaning against her, unwilling to pull away.

“Then the punishment continues. There are two strokes left! Once it’s over, I’ll give you what you want. How does that sound?”

Gu Qingyuan’s finger traced the little thing’s chin, tilting his face up. Staring at that alluring face, she couldn’t help but swallow hard. Su Ling’s breathing was ragged; his eyes were half-lidded as he looked at her and gave a soft nod.

“Then be a good boy and crawl into position, alright?”

Su Ling watched her for a moment before reluctantly moving to the carpet and bending over. Gu Qingyuan smiled. As expected, if one pill wasn’t enough, she’d feed him a second; if a second didn’t work, a third. Eventually, she would succeed. She gripped the whip, cracking it twice in the air—a sharp snap echoing through the room—before bringing it down with force.

This time, Su Ling only recoiled in pain for a moment before enduring it. He didn’t clutch his backside in agony like before. In fact, it felt strange; the searing pain of the first strike was gone, replaced by a different, peculiar sensation.

Snap!

Another strike. This time, Su Ling’s body only trembled slightly before returning to normal. He even gave a small wiggle—was he… actually expecting a third?

“Hmm? Do you want more?”

Hearing her question, Su Ling thought for a moment and shook his head. He crawled back to her side and rubbed his head against her, looking very much like a submissive kitten.

“Heh. Little thing, do you have any idea how shameless you look right now?”

Su Ling looked at her in confusion, not understanding what she meant. Had he done something wrong? But his body felt so restless and uncomfortable.

“Tsk. Fine, since you’re in such a hurry, then…”

Su Ling lay on the bed, nestled in her arms. The room was thick with the scent of blood mixed with a strange, lingering fragrance. His breathing was steady and his eyes were tightly shut; he appeared to be fast asleep. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say he had passed out.

Gu Qingyuan gently stroked the little thing’s hair, a tender gesture that stood in stark contrast to her usual image. Her body was relaxed as she lay back on the bed, a satisfied smile playing on her lips. In this moment, she finally felt alive—not like some puppet hidden in the shadows.

Everyone believed she was the real Gu Qingyuan, and she had grown up believing it too. After all, she was the one who stayed by their parents’ side; she was the one they showered with gentle love. Since childhood, she had everything she wanted. If she wanted to live abroad, she lived abroad—she even had this massive estate in a foreign country.

But was this spoiling really love? No… It wasn’t until she saw that so-called “double” that she understood. Honestly, she couldn’t even tell who the double was anymore. Was she the one? Or was it the other?

Everyone knew the other girl was the double, yet that double used that identity to complete a high-level education, inherit the company, and seize absolute power within the organization. Meanwhile, she—the “real” one—knew nothing. She had no degree, no knowledge of finance, and no management skills. She had learned nothing. Although everyone said the other girl was just a stand-in and everything would eventually belong to her, could that ever be true? How could any of it truly be hers?

Perhaps the so-called “double” was the real Gu Qingyuan, and she was the actual double—a puppet raised to be useless. As a child, many assassination attempts aimed at her had directly affected her. In contrast, the “double” remained safe precisely because of her status. There were so many times she wanted to scream at her parents: Who is the real double?

But she was afraid of shattering her own illusion. Her parents’ love felt real; the care they showed her growing up wasn’t a lie.

“Nngh…”

In his sleep, Su Ling let out a pained whimper. Tears leaked from his closed eyes as if he were trapped in a nightmare.

Gu Qingyuan snapped out of her thoughts, her brow furrowing slightly. Was this little thing having a nightmare about her? Come to think of it, she was probably the only one who could give him nightmares. But to dare cast his owner as the villain in a dream… it seemed he was asking for more punishment.

A smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth. For her, tormenting the little thing and seeing the pain on his face was the best stimulant. It allowed her to momentarily forget all her frustrations and focus solely on training him. Back when she was feeling miserable, she used to work as a part-time dominatrix at a fetish club; during that time, she vented all her pent-up resentment.

She didn’t know why she was like this. She only knew that this “little thing” was different from the others. Seeing his pained, aggrieved expressions filled her with satisfaction. But it was never enough. The others couldn’t satisfy her; only the boy in front of her could.

“Nngh!~”

Su Ling finally forced his eyes open. His body felt heavy, aching with an exhaustion that made it feel as though he had worked for days without rest. He didn’t want to move; he just wanted to lie there in silence. Why did he feel like this?

He closed his eyes, trying to piece his memories back together. Fragments of images flashed through his mind, and in an instant, he understood what had happened. He had been through this many times before, but this time was far too much! She had actually used that kind of drug to control him. She knew he was incoherent at the time, yet she had manipulated him into being beaten. If he could move right now, he really wanted to punch her—to let her know just how much of a monster she was being!

“Your tears ran down onto my stomach. It’s sticky and uncomfortable. Get up and lick it clean, now!”

Hearing her words, Su Ling bit his lip hard. How could she say something so cruel? He had already been bullied to this extent, and now she wanted him to lick away his own tears? It was too much.

“Faster, or I’ll use the whip again!”

Su Ling’s body jolted. He could already feel the phantom sting on his backside. He didn’t want to be hit; he didn’t want the whip. Trembling, he lifted his head, stuck out his tongue, and closed his eyes, slowly licking away the moisture.

“Open your eyes. Who told you to close them? You look like you’re being so wronged. Open them and lick properly. How can you get it clean with your eyes shut?”

Su Ling looked up at her, his mouth pouting in anger. He desperately wanted to scream at her, but his voice had been stolen by her drugs; he couldn’t speak.

“I really don’t like that look in your eyes. If you look at me like that again, I won’t mind gouging your eyes out.”

“Heh, heh, heh!!!”

Su Ling was livid. He forgot he couldn’t speak and tried to curse her out. Although no sound came out, Gu Qingyuan could tell he was saying something foul. Her face darkened instantly. She reached out and pinched his lips shut, stifling even the sound of his breath.