I, A Loyal Dog, Awaken to My Fate as Cannon Fodder - Chapter 16

“Tell me, what punishment do you think you deserve?”

Looking down at Shen Yinan with a sidelong glance, Cheng Wanqiu closed the manga book that was an affront to refined sensibilities.

She lifted her gaze, her icy eyes fixed on Shen Yinan like those of a strict teacher.

Shen Yinan was much taller than Cheng Wanqiu, but in terms of sheer presence, she was completely suppressed. She didn’t dare look Cheng Wanqiu in the eye; she knew without looking just how terrifying that gaze would be.

“I don’t know, Miss… I won’t do it again next time.”

The silence from the eldest miss stretched on, and Cheng Wanqiu’s current demeanor frightened Shen Yinan.

It was just like…

The “Miss” in that Yuri manga the young lady was holding.

“Shen Yinan…”

Hearing her name, Shen Yinan immediately looked up, her expression a mix of guilt and a desperate desire to make amends.

Cheng Wanqiu smiled inadvertently.

It was a playful, mocking smirk.

“How about I punish you by making you read the contents of this manga aloud, with full emotion?”

Everyone knew Shen Yinan was notoriously introverted; making her do something like this was harder than killing her.

As Cheng Wanqiu expected, Shen Yinan immediately recoiled, shaking her head frantically in refusal.

“No… Miss… I, I can’t do it…”

Cheng Wanqiu shook her head, speaking with a certainty that brooked no argument:

“You can do it, Shen Yinan.”

That smile hid a blade, and her cat-like eyes narrowed slightly.

“You’ll even do it well. You are so ‘excellent,’ after all.”

Shen Yinan didn’t think she was excellent at all. She was simply too introverted and poor with words; she had only worked hard to disguise herself as “excellent” to avoid unnecessary trouble.

“Miss, I really can’t…”

With a “swish,” the manga book was tossed at her feet.

There was no choice left. Cheng Wanqiu didn’t want to hear Shen Yinan’s explanations.

Shen Yinan closed her eyes; she had no room to refuse.

“Since the Young Lady insists, then I shall make a fool of myself.”

Shen Yinan slowly opened her eyes. Her ink-black pupils seemed to shimmer with tears, and she bit her lower lip hard to keep from crying out.

Truly, she would have done anything else, but she simply could not handle tasks that required her to show herself or perform.

Her voice wasn’t pleasant—it was deeper than that of most girls, sounding almost masculine. She hated her own voice. In her middle school music class, when the teacher required everyone to sing a song, she had been so nervous she couldn’t make a sound. It was the only subject where her grade barely reached a 60.

“Sit down and tell the story. Standing is no good,” Cheng Wanqiu said nonchalantly, habitually twirling a lock of her hair around her finger.

Shen Yinan glanced at Cheng Wanqiu and cautiously sat cross-legged in front of her.

Under that blatant, unshielded gaze, she felt a sense of shame as if she were being seen completely naked. Everything about her was clear to the Young Lady’s eyes.

“Start,” Cheng Wanqiu said in a sharp tone.

Shen Yinan hesitated for a long time, quietly clearing her throat.

When she spoke, it wasn’t as ugly as she had imagined. A magnetic voice emerged from her throat, word by word.

The plot was similar: the “Miss” in the manga had also called her “dog” to her room. The “dog” had been personally fitted with a lip ring by the Miss—dressed like a trendsetter, yet the word “insecure” was written all over the little dog’s body.

It was exactly like Shen Yinan.

The Miss flicked the dog’s lip ring, the silver ring flashing.

【Does it still hurt? It’s not inflamed, is it?】

The dog shook its head, looking timid and cowardly.

“…”

Only the tightly shut eyes betrayed everything. The Miss’s face showed a hint of anger.

【I’m asking you one more time: does it still hurt?】

It was a very indifferent tone, and there was no terrifying expression on the Miss’s face. Yet, the dog’s body visibly shuddered, looking as though she were about to cry.

If it were Shen Yinan, she would have done the same.

【It… it still hurts. Miss, please don’t bully me anymore.】

The dog sobbed, her teeth chattering.

The eldest miss was incredibly cruel. She had everything and lacked nothing, so she didn’t know how to cherish things. She liked the “dog,” but she didn’t know how to respect her.

Similarly, Cheng Wanqiu had never lacked for material things since childhood. If one thing was gone, there was always a replacement.

The ordinary, even slightly dowdy “dog” had been turned into a trendsetter by the Miss; earrings and lip rings had all been forced upon her. While these additions made the dog look “cool,” they only deepened the self-consciousness of an already insecure girl.

Had she wanted the piercings? No, the Miss had forced them upon her step by step.

【Come, let me apply some medicine. Be good.】

Dabbing a cotton swab with rubbing alcohol, the Miss’s slender fingers gently tapped the swab against the dog’s lips.

It was light, like a dragonfly skimming the water.

It was a perfectly normal scene, yet it looked as erotic as if the two were kissing.

Shen Yinan read every word while facing the manga. She could see the illustrations, and under the dual impact of the visual and the auditory, the tips of her ears turned red.

Reading it alone was one thing, but with two people…

And she was being forced to read it. She felt shame—utter, absolute shame.

Shen Yinan put down the manga, her eyes brimming with mist. Her eyes could speak, seemingly pleading with Cheng Wanqiu.

Is Miss going to treat the dog like this? The dog is sad.

This was Shen Yinan’s usual trick. It was worn out, but she kept using it because Cheng Wanqiu always fell for it.

Even though she didn’t speak, looking into her eyes, one could hear her weak murmur, which made one’s heart ache.

The punishment was over. Shen Yinan could guess that the Miss’s anger had dissipated, or perhaps she had just been playing with her from the start.

Cheng Wanqiu picked up the discarded manga. She looked at the erotic illustrations and arched an eyebrow with a smile.

“Shen Yinan, do you know what kind of book you’re reading?”

Cheng Wanqiu closed the manga, uncrossed her legs, and stared straight at Shen Yinan with her alluring, upturned eyes.

“Or is it that you like me, so you’re reading this?”

???

Shen Yinan immediately became alert. Realizing what was implied, she shook her head. “No, no, no, that’s not it. I know what I was reading. Miss, there won’t be a next time.”

She tried her best to keep her facial muscles neutral, but the muscles around her eyes were taut.

She didn’t want to be a dog. Not at all.

The things the Miss said to her felt like she was just teasing a pet; there was no truth in them. They sounded fake.

But Shen Yinan had to desperately maintain her persona as a “good little dog,” because that was her way of surviving in the Cheng family.

“Miss, please stop toying with me. It’s not fun at all,” she murmured, sitting on her heels with a pitiful expression, her head lowered.

All that could be seen was her fluffy, slightly curly hair, which brought to mind a dog’s fur. Her downcast eyelashes were heart-tugging; it would be worth a thousand gold pieces just to have her look up once.

Those peach-blossom eyes were never tiring to look at. While staring directly into someone’s eyes is usually impolite, Cheng Wanqiu always loved to watch Shen Yinan, staring straight into her gaze.

“Lift your head.”

The voice, neither loud nor soft, came from above. A superior doesn’t need to point fingers and throw a tantrum to be terrifying; knowing how to play with people’s hearts is enough.

The silence, the seeming calm—that was what was truly frightening.

Shen Yinan lifted her head.

The thin air entered her nasal cavity, stinging as if she had been punched in the nose. She felt as though she couldn’t breathe, as if she might suffocate.

“Miss…”

How many people knew that the person Shen Yinan feared most was Cheng Wanqiu? They were master and servant, inseparable and seemingly close.

“Shen Yinan, I’ll ask you one more time: do you like me?”

Cheng Wanqiu looked very serious now, no longer twirling her hair or looking distracted. Her hands rested on her thighs, her fingers gripping her pale nightgown.

The answer that followed nearly made her lose consciousness.

“No. Never.”

Shen Yinan saw the Young Lady’s fingers tighten on the nightgown, as if in the next moment, those clenching fingers would wrap around her throat instead.

“Miss is the master. I am the dog.”

Those simple, light words felt like a knife stabbing into Shen Yinan’s own heart. This wasn’t the first time she had said it, admitting she was a dog. Her dignity was crushed into fragments and rubbed into the dirt.

Clatter.

A book was thrown at her. The manga fell open exactly to the page Shen Yinan had just read aloud.

She looked down at the book that brought her such humiliation. The eldest miss in the story was so similar to her real-life Miss.

“I’m going back. You get some rest.”

Cheng Wanqiu suppressed her rage as she left Shen Yinan’s side.

What kind of person was Cheng Wanqiu? Her suitors were countless. She believed she had never truly viewed Shen Yinan as a dog; calling her “little dog” was merely a joke between intimates.

“Goodnight, Miss.”

Shen Yinan remained in her kneeling position, her head lowered, not looking up again. From the corner of her eye, she watched Cheng Wanqiu’s feet pass by, the draft from her movement ruffling Shen Yinan’s hair.

She didn’t understand. She hadn’t said anything wrong. The Miss is the Miss, and the dog is the dog. When the Miss said she liked her, wasn’t she just making fun of her?

Near the door, Cheng Wanqiu stopped and spoke intentionally for Shen Yinan to hear.

“Next week, I’m taking Luo Yejun to the aquarium for a date. Don’t come and disturb us.”

How could Cheng Wanqiu say such icy words?

The air grew silent for a few seconds, as if they were atop a snowy mountain peak. Every breath was filled with a freezing chill that pierced through the lungs, as if her organs were about to go on strike.

Shen Yinan could only take large, ragged breaths, feeling like she might pass out. Why was it like this again? Last time, she used Senior Hu Ying to spite her, and Shen Yinan had found a clumsy excuse. What about this time?

“Miss, I…”

“Just stay at home,” Cheng Wanqiu’s heart felt like it was bleeding, yet her stubborn mouth continued to wound Shen Yinan. “Aren’t you a dog? Be obedient.”

The door closed with a “bang,” leaving behind nothing but the wreckage of their mutual hurt.

“Haha,” a tear fell from the corner of Shen Yinan’s eye, followed by more until her vision was blurred. It was a laugh of despair and self-mockery; she didn’t know what she was supposed to do next.

Shen Yinan had her dignity, and Cheng Wanqiu had her pride.

When Shen Yinan said she was a dog, it hurt Cheng Wanqiu; so Cheng Wanqiu deliberately used the “dog” label to strike back. Shen Yinan clearly liked Cheng Wanqiu, and Cheng Wanqiu could feel it.

One said “I don’t like you,” while the other said “I’m going on a date with someone else.”

Was this not the definition of mutual destruction?

Rising from the floor, Shen Yinan stumbled like the walking dead and collapsed onto the cold bed. She buried her face in the pillow and wept silently and uncontrollably.

On the floor, the book flipped a page, showing the weak little dog revealing a “vicious” side, pinning the teasing Miss onto the bed to bully her.