A Cruel Romance

Chao Hsiao-Hu stood inside a woodshed, before a wooden window.

The frame of the gla.s.sless window was black and decayed. Yellowed tissues of paper stretched over the frame; dried to crisps and torn off at places by mischievous youngsters, they flapped noisily in the rare gusts of wind.

The morning sun shone brightly through the cotton paper and its cracks, casting the room in radiant light. The interior of the shed was as crude and run-down as its wooden window. The ground was fashioned in dirt, the walls in mud. Lengthy strings of cobweb and dust hung from the ceiling and drifted softly in the air.

Commander Ho lay in a heap of straw on the ground. Hsiao-Hu considered the date, and realised that he had been separated from the man for nearly two years.

Two years was not a particularly long time, but it was long enough for a young man to go through a complete metamorphosis. In these two years Hsiao-Hu had grown from a boy to a man, an orderly to a bandit chieftain. But what about Commander Ho?

Hsiao-Hu squatted in front of the Commander, and studied his face carefully.

Commander Ho hadn’t changed. His face was still the same porcelain white, his features the same striking elegance. His sleeping state made little difference, since either way he would be equally expressionless.

He’d only given him light knock on the head. There was no need to stay unconscious for so long.

Hsiao-Hu fetched a bucket of water from the corner of the room, and emptied it in Commander Ho’s face.

The bone-chilling water had been drawn fresh out of a well. With a yelp, Commander Ho jumped into a sitting position and opened his eyes.

Hsiao-Hu dropped the bucket and advanced towards Commander Ho with the shadow of a smile on his face. “Rise and shine, Commander!”

Commander Ho stared at Hsiao-Hu dully. “You… How?” He said after a long stretch of silence.

Hsiao-Hu laughed. “Don’t be afraid, Commander, I’m no ghost,” he said. He caught Commander Ho’s hand and pressed it against his face. “It’s warm, isn’t it?”

Commander Ho s.n.a.t.c.hed his hand back. He rubbed his head with a scowl. “You hit me?”

Hsiao-Hu nodded. “Yes, so what? You want to cut me up again?”

Commander Ho lowered his hand and wiped a bit of water off his face. “Long time no see, Hsiao-Hu,” he said coolly, his face impa.s.sive.

“Have you missed me?” Hsiao-Hu said with a smile.

Commander Ho looked down. “No.”

Hsiao-Hu bent forward and stared into Commander Ho’s eyes. “But I’ve missed you.”

Commander Ho remained silent for a moment. Then he looked up, and broke into an abrupt smile. “Hsiao-Hu, I know you want revenge, but I did save your life once. I could also, if you were to release me, gift you with a very large sum money. Then we can call it even, can’t we?”

“Hey, I never said anything about revenge,” Hsiao-Hu shook his head with a smile. “I just missed you.”

No longer able to maintain his smile, Commander Ho put on a straight face instead. “Who is your leader? I’ll speak to him.”

Hsiao-Hu pointed a finger at his own nose playfully. “That’ll be me! This whole area is under my control.”

Commander Ho’s obsidian eyes shone for a moment, then dulled again.

“No bad,” he nodded at Hsiao-Hu. “You’ve got ambition.”

“All owing to your guidance.”

Commander Ho’s face was slightly pallid, and since it was wet, was reminiscent of the phrase “pear blossoms in the rain”. “Just tell me what you want, Hsiao-Hu. If you really want me dead, there’s nothing I can do to stop you right now. But once I die, Li Shih-Yao will never let you off.  You’ve managed to surprise me with your ambush, but you’re still no match for Li. A young man like you should to look at the bigger picture.”

Hsiao-Hu’s teeth glistened white in a laugh. “Li won’t let me off? I wouldn’t be so sure. He’d probably even thank me! I heard you’re in some big trouble this time, killing off those government men back in Hsian. Li has no choice but to go against the Central Government under your command, but with you out of the picture, he’d be able to seek his own fortune—and a much brighter one at that.”

Commander Ho stared at Hsiao-Hu with his head c.o.c.ked to one side. After a long moment, he smiled bitterly. “I only have one demand—don’t torture me needlessly. For the sake of our past acquaintance, grant me a clean death.”

Chao Hsia-Hu narrows his eyes, his gaze moving back and forth across Commander Ho’s face like a blade.

“Commander,” he began slowly. “I don’t remember saying anything about killing you! I’ve just missed you so much. I want to…”

He trailed off, snickering.

Commander Ho’s sensed danger instinctively. “What do you want?”

Hsiao-Hu advanced closer, reaching a hand to pat his face. “I want to…f.u.c.k you!”

Commander Ho slapped Hsiao-Hu’s hand away, leaping to his feet. “How dare you!” he spat.

Unabashed, Hsiao-Hu rose up as well. “Yell at me all you want, the louder the better, it adds to the excitement! Last time you stuck a knife in my guts, this time I’ll plow you in the a.s.s. Seems to me my methods are kinder—at least I’m not using a blade!”

Commander Ho reached behind his belt, only to find that his pistol has been long taken. He looked around the room, but there were nothing to defend himself with other than the straw on the floor. He took a step back and leaned against the damp mud wall. His eyes flickered as his expression wavered, a porcelain man on the verge of shattering.

Hsiao-Hu gazed at Commander Ho and searched his memory, feeling like he’d never seen him in such a state of panic.

The panic-stricken Commander appeared strangely frail. Stripped of his almost neurotic virility, he’d become a trapped beast, beautiful and helpless.

Hsiao-Hu’s excitement grew. The definitions of “f.u.c.k”, when a.s.sociated with Commander Ho, became vast and t.i.tillating. Before this day, who’d have dared to l.u.s.t after the high and mighty Commander Ho? Who’d have dared to f.u.c.k him like a wh.o.r.e?

Chao Hsiao-Hu became a starved tiger, and leapt at the Commander without warning.

Commander Ho was knocked flat on his back. He had tactfully chosen to halt his resistance.

Since he wasn’t resisting, Hsiao-Hu’s movements became much tamer. Methodically, he stripped down Commander Ho as he lay on the heap of stray, his pale body like jade among mire.

Hsiao-Hu kneeled by his side and took in Commander Ho’s naked form like a peepshow, looking like he was deeply astounded by the sight. After a moment of gaping, he mounted the Commander and took the two small red dots on his chest in his hands. Giving them a few rubs, he bent down and sucked on one firmly.

Commander Ho shut his eyes in disgust. He didn’t know what Hsiao-Hu was playing at, only that it hurt and tickled—he wasn’t a woman. It wasn’t like he’d start rutting once he got his t.i.ts played with!

He endured the proceedings with a deep frown for a while before he finally lost it. “Hsiao-Hu,” he began quietly.

Hsiao-Hu looked up at him with misty eyes.

Commander Ho’s eyes remained shut. “Careful with it.”

Hsiao-Hu paused for a moment, then let out a startled laugh. “You sure get squeamish! If you’re complaining about the pain already, what are you going to do later?”

Commander Ho opened his eyes and threw Hsiao-Hu a glance. “Don’t push me,” he said coolly, turning away and closing his eyes again.

Hsiao-Hu bent down and gave his chest a lick. “Don’t worry, I won’t break you,” he said as he got off Commander Ho, rustling around with something. A moment later, Commander Ho felt a coolness between his legs. A slick finger forced its way into him, applying some sort of strongly scented lubricant—it seemed to be a fragrans cream women favoured.

His legs were pulled wide apart as fingers rubbed his entrance in small circles, pushing in and pulling out in slow soft motions. The b.u.t.tery cream was pushed inside him, where it melted in the heat.

Commander Ho’s face remained tense and frigid, but his body was warm and soft.

Hsiao-Hu removed his own trousers. Pressing Commander Ho’s legs against his chest, he drove his large and long-swollen c.o.c.k slowly but steadily inside Commander Ho.

Commander Ho clenched his teeth, his breath hitching as he trembled. His fists convulsed around the straw on the ground, and m.u.f.fled sounds escaped his throat. Although Hsiao-Hu had used lubrication, he was in even more pain now than the time a bullet blasted through his arm.

The agony had been momentary that time, but the rape was a slow torture.  As Hsiao-Hu went in deeper, Commander Ho felt, to his terror, that his body was being split open. A satisfied sigh fluttered above him—it all seemed like retribution!

Hsiao-Hu was almost weeping with joy. How can there be a creature as exquisite as Commander Ho in this world? He flipped the Commander over on the heap of straw, grabbing and kneading his ample backside, and spread the cheeks apart forcefully. The small pucker was swollen red and slightly open. He pushed two fingers in for a few careless thrusts, and rammed his c.o.c.k in one violent motion. Commander Ho’s head jerked up, a weak wail tearing from his throat.

Hsiao-Hu f.u.c.ked him in this position for a while, and pulled out breathlessly. He dragged Commander Ho onto his back and pushed his knees hard against his chest, and plunged in once more. Commander Ho endured the ordeal with clenched teeth, but before long his resolved dulled, leaving his limp body to be arranged into all sorts of positions. Sharp pain radiated from the point of penetration and pierced into his brain like steel needles.

“No, no,” he murmured with his eyes squeezed shut, lifting his hands to shove off Hsiao-Hu. “Stop—stop.”

Hearing the defeated plea, Hsiao-Hu felt a new rush of excitement. He gripped Commander Ho’s shoulders, and pounded even harder.

Hsiao-Hu had come three times inside Commander Ho before he finally tired out at noon. Commander Ho lay on the ground silently, his white skin now disrupted by red and purple.

Hsiao-Hu sat down next to him, giving his body a sidelong glance. He let out a sudden laugh. “That’s a nice a.s.s you’ve got. Looks as great as it feels, ha!”

Commander Ho lay within an inch of his life, his eyes half open.

Hsiao-Hu gave his a.s.s a slap, and pushed two fingers into his burning hole. It felt thick and slick, full of his seed.

He pushed in one more finger with ease. “Tell me, Commander Ho,” he asked. “How many times do I deserved to die for f.u.c.king you today?”

He ran his nails lightly along the soft interior. “Dismembered by horses? Or burned alive?”

He pulled out his fingers and wiped them off on Commander Ho’s waist. “Commander, I’ve been waiting for this day for a very long time. They say that those who survive great adversities are bound to find great fortune—seems true enough for me!”

As he spoke, a cry went off outside. “Chieftain, are you done in there? News has arrived. We’re waiting for you!”

Hsiao-Hu threw on his clothes haphazardly and threw a coat over Commander Ho. “I got to run. See you in the evening!”

Commander Ho spent the entire afternoon on the ground.

When the lights went on for the evening, Hsiao-Hu returned.

He wrapped a blanket around Commander Ho and carried him to his own room. In its center sat a great wooden bathtub filled of hot water, clouding the room with steam.

Hsiao-Hu lowered Commander Ho into the bathtub. He couldn’t risk showering him with well water like he did this morning due to the Commander’s current state, so he proceeded to wet a towel and began to wipe his face gently. “Guess what, Commander,” he said as he cleaned. “Li Shih-Yao’s men have made camp near the tracks, but he’s never sent anyone to ask for you. I say he’s hesitating—once he figures everything out, he’d be off on his way!”

Slowly, Commander Ho opened his eyes. His eyes were soulless; only a tiny spark of severity glinted in their depth. “What will it take to release me?”

Hsiao-Hu grinned. “Awake now? What will it take? It won’t take anything, since I never plan to let you go.”

“You want to keep me here?” Commander Ho’s face had gained some colour in the steam. “What will you do with me?”

“What we just did, this morning.”

Commander Ho turned away from him, a sneer on his face. “So this is your ambition.”

Hsiao-Hu reached out and tilted Commander Ho’s chin, forcing him to meet his eyes. “It isn’t worth much, but it’s enough to screw you!”