Peerless Dancer

Chapter 5: Prisoner

My vision blurred as I saw the man on the bed lying motionless—unconscious.

I... I also lost consciousness! There was no choice. In short, we both passed out!

I don't know how much time passed before I was awakened by cold water splashing on my face. Opening my eyes, I found myself tied to a pillar, with Long Dan, now a man, bound to the pillar opposite, staring at me in shock and disbelief.

Both of us were drenched, our wet clothes clinging to our bodies, revealing every masculine feature. I was surprised to find myself staring intently at him without blushing, while he probably felt the same.

Long Dan, even as a man, was stunningly beautiful—his face as fair as jade, lips red as cinnabar, skin smooth as cream. His beauty was almost criminal, reminiscent of the legendary Pan An, with an appearance that could make any woman want to sin.

Around us were braziers with glowing red-hot irons.

The dimly lit, damp basement was filled with t*****e instruments, presumably for dealing with prisoners. Several burly men in familiar armor from the Zhi Kingdom of the Shen Zhui ancient era were drinking at a wooden table.

We could understand their conversation; they were talking about women.

Wait! Shen Zhui Kingdom? Had we traveled to the Shen Zhui Kingdom? A time warp! And we ended up as prisoners?

My mind was a blank. Long Dan, tired of staring at me, began to look around, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"Long Dan, are you Long Dan?" I whispered, thankful we weren't far apart.

She (or he? I was confused.) could hear me, though the men were too engrossed in their conversation to notice.

"Yes! I’m Long Dan. Are you Wu Lan?" The voice was rough. I heard my own voice was also rough, filling me with terror.

I nodded. "How did we end up here? And why are we men?"

Long Dan replied, "Isn’t it obvious? That mysterious female corpse brought us here. How we turned into men, I don’t know. What do we do now?"

I was at a loss. "Take it one step at a time. How did we become prisoners?"

Suddenly, a woman walked in from the basement entrance. She was very seductive, dressed flamboyantly. I immediately recognized her as a madam from the Zhi Kingdom of the Shen Zhui era.

The madam, smiling coyly, lifted my chin, speaking in a sickeningly sweet voice, "Young master!"

I was disgusted to my core.

"Do you agree?" She drew out her words, making me want to vomit.

"What do you mean agree?" I quickly asked, not wanting to hear her voice any longer.

"The performance! You forgot? Last time I..."

Her voice was unbearable. I caught a glimmer of hope and turned my head, speaking loudly, "Get someone else to talk to us. We might consider it."

Long Dan gave me an appreciative look.

The madam called out, "Old Seven, come and talk to these young masters!"

A dark-skinned man responded, approaching us. Before leaving, the madam gave my face a hard pinch, then did the same to Long Dan, muttering, "Both are absolute beauties!"

I felt my heart race as Long Dan closed his eyes.

Old Seven barked, "Speak up, what do you want?"

Long Dan signaled for me to get information. I nodded, addressing the man, "Ahem, I’ve forgotten what you mentioned earlier. Could you repeat it?"

Old Seven grumbled, "You fool, can’t remember anything but women. Performing on stage, is it that hard? Fine, I’ll tell you. Listen carefully, or I’ll beat you!"

He brandished a hot iron from the brazier, pointing it at us threateningly.

"If this touches your tender skin, it won’t be fun! Obey Madam Hua’s orders. Stop pretending to be so high and mighty!"

Long Dan and I exchanged glances, understanding clearly: if we didn’t agree to their demands, we would be branded. That was unacceptable!

"Alright! We’ll consider it," I said nervously.

Old Seven snorted, "You just have to perform!"

Just a few words explained it all. We were baffled. Perform? We had been in many performances.

Though I lacked Long Dan’s artistic talent, I could dance and sing passably. Long Dan excelled in Latin dance, and though I was amateurish, I could follow along. She also sang beautifully, from folk to classical styles, and I could hum along.

"No problem. Tell us what to do," I said, intrigued.

"Do what you’re best at. Entertain the audience."

"Easy! Why didn’t you say so earlier?" I was pleased and winked at Long Dan. She seemed deep in thought, not understanding my excitement.

"Good, you can rest now. Perform tonight."

Old Seven efficiently untied us, and another man led us out of the basement.

I felt a surge of joy and hinted to Long Dan to escape at the first chance.

Long Dan, however, seemed troubled, deep in thought. I marveled at her beauty, even as a man. She looked stunning, even when worried.

I wondered what I looked like now. Though our genders had changed, our heights hadn’t.

Long Dan, now a man, was as graceful and handsome as ever. I, however, must have looked like a short, skinny boy—a typical errand runner.

The thought made me miserable, tears welling up in my eyes.

Alas! Unable to marry as a woman, and too short to wed as a man. Heaven must hate me!

Outside, the sun felt warm, but I couldn’t be happy, surrounded by armed guards.