Against the Current - Chapter 209

Chapter 209 - Pleasure Ground

Lin Jinlou was long since fed up. Lu Shaotang had spent the entire evening playing Tai Chi with him. This fellow harbored wild ambitions and was by no means a good sort; he had been heavily suppressed by Lin Jinlou over the years, and nowadays two-thirds of the military forces in this region were under Lin Jinlou's control, destroying the foundations laid by the old marquis during his lifetime by more than half. Yet Lu Shaotang had given him his share of disgust as well; whenever Lin Jinlou earned military merits, that fellow would demand a share of the spoils without contributing a single soldier or horse, evidently driven mad by poverty. The last time he had given that scoundrel a severe thrashing and plucked out two of his most useful lackeys, the two of them were already as hostile as bitter enemies at first sight. Right now, who the hell had the patience to chat about romantic moonlight with this fellow?

With utter boredom, Lin Jinlou picked up a mouthful of side dish with his chopsticks. In the dead of winter, eating a bite of green vegetables was rarer than eating meat; he half-squinted his eyes as he chewed slowly, listening to those fellows nearby chatter about idle matters—which opera singer was good, who had taken in a stunning little concubine, whose household had received goods from overseas, or who owned a fine horse. Lin Jinlou let out a yawn. If he were going to chat about such romantic trifles, he would rather go home and hold his delicate, jade-like little beauty—even though that little beauty was as pedantic as an old scholar in a schoolroom, blushing the moment he spoke a couple of off-color words, her charming little face flushed pink like a layer of rouge, pleasant to the eyes, and amusing to tease, making a person simply yearn to steal a kiss. But then, a sudden thought struck him: Xianglan had gone to the temple with Lady Qin today and wouldn't be back until tomorrow. On the night before her departure, he had pinned Xianglan down on the couch and tossed and turned with her for a long time, nearly shaking the bed apart, and the memory of that sensation still felt soul-stirring now.

Lost in his thoughts, he heard a soft, gentle voice by his ear murmur, "Is the lord feeling overloaded with wine? There is osmanthus hangover soup in the back kitchen; would the Eldest Young Master care for a bowl?"

Lin Jinlou turned his head to look—Yunzhu was blinking a pair of watery eyes at him. Waving a hand, Lin Jinlou stood up to relieve himself, and Yunzhu hurried behind him to serve. When they reached the adjacent alcove behind the screen, Yunzhu knelt on the floor, reached out to untie Lin Jinlou's outer robe, unfastened the sweat-towel tied around his waist, loosened his trousers, and drew out his manhood, holding it up to wait upon Lin Jinlou as he relieved himself, her face inevitably flushing red with a racing heartbeat.

When he finished, she knelt again to straighten his clothes, and as she massaged and stroked the thick organ back and forth in an accidental-yet-deliberate manner, the heavy shaft grew half-hard. Having rolled through the brothels and hedonistic haunts, Lin Jinlou understood everything at a glance. Chuckling softly, he pinched Yunzhu's chin and said with flippancy, "Little hussy, are you trying to seduce me?"

With a softened voice and a tremor, Yunzhu pleaded, "I only beg the Eldest Young Master to have mercy on this humble servant's devoted heart..."

Watching her pair of affectionate, watery apricot eyes and her bright red, delicate mouth, Lin Jinlou felt a stirring of desire. Although Yunzhu possessed a fine appearance, she ultimately fell short of Xianglan's looks, and even more so lacked Xianglan's spirited, gentle, and tender charm. Taking advantage of her now was nothing more than treating her like a casual snack to sample. A few days prior, Chu Dapeng and the others had dragged him out to drink wine to thank him for investing their silver into the salt merchants' guild, plying him with a couple of extra cups at the banquet and calling over Yunzhu, an extremely alluring young courtesan, to strum and sing. Having consumed too much wine and fallen into a daze, he had felt a pair of hands massaging his lower body to stoke the fire, and he had simply enjoyed the indulgence. The next day, upon waking up to find Yunzhu sleeping beside him, he realized those fellows had intentionally offered up a virgin to curry favor with him. It was merely a dew-match romance, and he had returned home the next day. However, because Yunzhu had served him once, and Chu Dapeng and the others couldn't quite gauge this master's true intentions, they spent silver to keep Yunzhu exclusively bound to him.

This Yunzhu also knew how to read the room and suit her actions to the occasion—she was docile, obedient, perceptive, and possessed a clear, bright voice. Whenever Lin Jinlou had occasional social engagements, he would have her come out to accompany him, adding considerable color to the banquets. Through back-and-forth interactions, everyone came to know that Yunzhu was Lin Jinlou's new favorite at the Yihong Courtyard.

Seeing Lin Jinlou stare at her without a word, Yunzhu bit down hard on her lower lip inwardly. Ever since the very first night Lin Jinlou deflowered her, he had never stayed the night. On the rare occasions he drank too much wine, he merely instructed others not to make a noise, crashed straight to sleep, and left before daybreak, appearing fewer than two times a month. Yet even the madam of the brothel kept telling her she had incredible luck to land such a client right upon her debut—such a distinguished figure would likely be impossible to encounter ever again. Finding Lin Jinlou handsome, formidable, and remarkably lavish with his spending, she harbored seven or eight parts deeper affection for him, and this time she was determined to pull out all the stops to keep him tethered to her side every moment. Emboldened, she extended slender, delicate fingers and reached them inside Lin Jinlou's robes.

Desire suddenly flaring up, Lin Jinlou reached out, hauled Yunzhu up by her arms, leaned in, and planted a kiss on her little mouth. At this kiss, the heavy scent of facial powder wafted over her—it bore no resemblance to the faint, elusive, and refreshing fragrance that clung to Xianglan. Pulling open her clothes and lifting her dudou to take a look, he saw her breasts were sharp-tipped and splayed outward, paired with a long waist and short legs, which instantly killed his appetite. When Lin Jinlou thought back to Xianglan's graceful figure, her pair of round and upturned breasts, her wasp waist and long legs, and her snow-white, silky-soft skin, the person in his arms lost all appeal. Shrugging her off, he said, "Go back; there are still guests out front." He straightened his clothes of his own accord and returned.

Expecting to receive his favors with a blushing face, Yunzhu was stunned to suddenly hear these words. Watching Lin Jinlou walk away, a surge of resentment welled up within her, and she had no choice but to adjust her attire and follow him back.

Lin Jinlou ordered a cup of tea and took a sip. Sitting to his left, Chu Dapeng leaned in close and whispered with a sly chuckle, "Where did brother just go? I thought it would take a while, but I never imagined it would be over so fast... Tsk, this younger brother has a jar of tiger penis wine at home; shall I have it sent over to brother tomorrow?"

Lin Jinlou cursed, "Get lost! Your lord went to take a piss."

Chu Dapeng laughed mischievously: "You're still trying to fool me? Brother, if you just went to take a piss, where did that trace of rouge on your neck come from?"

Reaching out to touch his neck, Lin Jinlou indeed found a smudge of red. Glancing at Yunzhu, he said to Chu Dapeng, "There's no need to keep her exclusively bound anymore. Since she served me once, reward her handsomely on my behalf later."

Chu Dapeng understood instantly, thinking to himself that Yunzhu must have offended this master in some way. He immediately straightened up in his seat and smiled, "Since brother doesn't usually frequent these pleasure quarters, you wouldn't know—even before Yunzhu debuted, her reputation was already quite prominent. A salt merchant surnamed Guo had long wanted to keep her exclusively and even spoke of buying her back. Who knows, if Yunzhu has good fortune, she might get redeemed and turned into a concubine someday."

Before his voice had even faded, a rapid sequence of thudding footsteps echoed up the stairs, followed by the heavy bang of the door being shoved open. Lin Jinlou's personal soldier Hu Lai strode in, looking travel-worn and dusty, and cupped his fists in salute. "General, this subordinate has an urgent matter to report."

Seeing the anxious look on Hu Lai's face, Lin Jinlou stood up and followed him out the door. Hu Lai muttered a few words into Lin Jinlou's ear, causing Lin Jinlou's heart to violently jolt. His expression changed drastically in an instant, and grabbing Hu Lai by the collar, he barked furiously, "What! Did! You! Say!"

When Lin Jinlou flew into a rage, it was like a violent storm. With a miserable expression, Hu Lai thought to himself how terribly unlucky he was to draw such an errand, while having to make sure no one else overheard these words, he spoke in a low voice: "General, every word this subordinate spoke is the absolute truth! If I dared utter a single falsehood, let military law deal with me!"