Elio’s Notes: We’ve posted all the translated chapters for this novel so we’re now posting real time, like we’ll post the chapter right after it’s translated. We’ll post two chapters at most a day for this.
After getting dressed, the Third Prince pulled Mu Xueshi up and walked straight toward the kitchen. Along the way, all the servants were still present. Seeing the fierce expression on the Third Prince’s face, their hearts trembled.
“Young Master Xue, you are rather biased. Now that I, the Third Prince, am personally asking you to cook me a meal, would you be so kind as to grant me that favor?”
After being handled so roughly just now, Mu Xueshi’s mouth was sore to the point he could barely speak. Hearing the Third Prince’s words, he quickly nodded to show his willingness.
His eyes were swollen and red, and his heart ached as if being stabbed repeatedly. Mu Xueshi didn’t understand why he was still willing to cook for the Third Prince. It was as if, as long as the Third Prince was by his side, he could no longer find himself.
“Why not… cook yourself as well?” the Third Prince suddenly whispered into Mu Xueshi’s ear.
Mu Xueshi’s hands froze. He turned to look at the Third Prince, fear evident in his eyes. He didn’t know what the Prince meant by “cook”—whether it meant being thrown into a pot and boiled alive, or being completely consumed in another sense.
Before he could find an answer in the Prince’s eyes, he was suddenly pulled forward. In the blink of an eye, his clothes were stripped away completely.
The Third Prince tossed those clothes into the stove, where embers still glowed. Instantly, flames flared up.
“Now, I want you to cook for me.”
His tone was calm, but it carried an unmistakable command.
Mu Xueshi looked at the burning clothes, then at his own bare body. His pale lips trembled uncontrollably.
In the end, shame overtook everything. He quickly retreated into a corner, curling into himself in a futile attempt to avoid the Prince’s gaze.
In the Third Prince’s eyes, Mu Xueshi looked like a small snow figure—his long black hair falling to his knees, perfectly accentuating his dazzlingly pale skin.
“With a single command from me, everyone outside will come in.”
Mu Xueshi’s swollen lips twitched. Bending forward to cover himself, he hurried to the stove.
All his life, though he had been bullied, he had never suffered humiliation like this. Compared to this, even being thrown into a pot would have felt easier.
His body was strikingly beautiful—standing in that crude kitchen, holding cooking utensils, his presence only became more captivating. The Third Prince couldn’t take his eyes off him. In truth, he was only threatening him—there was no way he would let anyone else see this body.
He stepped closer, grabbing Mu Xueshi and teasing him deliberately.
Mu Xueshi’s hands nearly crushed the vegetables he was holding. When he tried to push the Prince away, he heard the cold command:
“Cook.”
“How am I supposed to cook like this?” Mu Xueshi said helplessly, his voice already trembling.
“That depends on how focused you are.”
Who could possibly focus in such a situation… Mu Xueshi clenched his teeth and said nothing more, forcing his attention onto the vegetables before him—washing, cutting, arranging, lighting the fire…
His body trembled slightly. Under the Prince’s gaze, even his ears turned red. Yet his face remained stubbornly composed as he continued his movements.
The Third Prince narrowed his eyes, deliberately distracting him further. Mu Xueshi’s movements became increasingly unsteady, his embarrassment deepening as his body reacted involuntarily.
“Take your hand away…” Mu Xueshi finally couldn’t bear it anymore.
“You’re already reacting like this, and you still want me to stop?”
The Third Prince deliberately raised his voice. Those outside could hear clearly, their faces flushing as they realized what was happening.
“Don’t… they can hear…” Mu Xueshi wished he could disappear into the ground.
“That’s exactly why I want them to hear—especially your master.”
Mu Xueshi’s legs tensed as he struggled to suppress any sound. His grip on the stove tightened as he fought to maintain control.
At last, unable to endure it any longer, his composure collapsed.
“Don’t…” he gasped, his voice trembling.
The atmosphere outside grew tense and charged. Even the servants, though embarrassed, could not leave, forced to endure the sounds within.
Inside the kitchen, Mu Xueshi leaned against the stove, barely able to remain standing. His entire body trembled under the overwhelming pressure.
At this point, he could no longer think of anything else—only the suffocating mix of humiliation and helplessness.
“Whose body is being controlled?” the Third Prince asked coldly, stopping his movements.
Mu Xueshi tried to remain silent, but he couldn’t hold out.
“Yours…”
“That’s not right.”
Mu Xueshi trembled, his voice breaking. “Yours… it’s yours…”
“And does it feel good?”
“…Yes…”
“Then who do you belong to?”
“I… belong to you.”
When Mu Xueshi said those words, there was no affection in them—only surrender and exhaustion. He belonged to the Third Prince… but who did the Third Prince belong to? Why could he be forced to answer, yet never ask in return?
Not long after, his strength gave out completely.
The Third Prince lifted Mu Xueshi into his arms, wrapping part of his robe around him to cover him, and carried him out of the kitchen.
Mu Xueshi buried his face in the Prince’s chest, unwilling to look at anyone. He feared their gazes—feared even his master might look at him with disgust.
“Hey, stop looking—you’ll get caught by the Third Prince,” Qingya whispered to Qingzhu, who was craning her neck.
Qingzhu looked excited. “Do you think His Highness is taking Young Master Xue back? Will we be going back too…?”
“I don’t know… but that would be nice.”
“Exactly! What they were saying earlier—it all sounded so… emotional…”
“You actually listened?” Qingya looked shocked.
Qingzhu’s face flushed red. “If I say I didn’t, would you believe me?”
“……”
In the entire room, only Su Ruhan remained completely composed. He looked out the window as if none of this concerned him. Even when the Third Prince carried Mu Xueshi out, he did not turn his head. No one could see the expression on his face.
Futile Devices Scans 
Leave a comment