A Tangled Web

When Vera came to she was being helped to her feet by two of the housemaids. She was allowed a drink of water and then she was told to stand and wait while Mei-Xing and Madam Yang continued their conversation. Vera, fearing further retribution, tried her best to attain the stance she had been taught by the beautician, her head bowed, her back straight and her arms crossed in front of her. Madam Yang gave her an indulgent look as if a young child had performed some simple but amusing trick. Sighing internally, Vera realised that keeping Madam Yang happy was going to be hard and relentless.

Eventually the two women completed their bargaining and Madam Yang called for her coach. Then she got up and went over to stand in front of Vera.

"Your name is Guizi-Nui, ghost girl, if you answer to anything else you will be punished. Now, what is your name?" She asked.

"Guizi-Nui, Mistress." Vera replied.

"Very good, don't you forget it. Do as you're told and you won't come to too  much harm. Now, follow me."

As Madam Yang headed for the door Mei-Xing got up from the couch and walked beside her. Vera followed behind out into the courtyard where Madam Yang's coach stood waiting. The coachman got down from his seat and went round to open the door. Vera, somewhat to her surprise, was also helped into the coach. For the first time in ages she was being treated with some respect but, once she had sat down, the coachman reached inside and she felt a shackle being attached to her ankle. Madam Yang smiled at Vera's surprise.

"Just to make sure there are no accidents." She laughed. "Some girls get some very silly ideas about running away. They don't get far, of course, but it's best if they don't start in the first place, don't you agree."

"Yes, Mistress," Vera replied.

"Now, settle back, there's quite a way to go," Madam Yang said as the coachman closed the door. Heavy curtains blocked the windows but a small candle in a glass jar provided a glimmer of light in the stuffy confines.

There was, indeed, quite a way to go and, as the coach rattled its way along the rutted tracks Vera wondered idly if she would be able to tackle Madam Yang but, even if she did so, she would still be shackled to the coach and Madam Yang's relaxed attitude spoke volumes about how much of a threat Madam Yang thought she was. Once again she had no option but to take whatever was coming to her, however unpleasant that might be. In the meantime she could relax and enjoy the journey.

Eventually the rattle of wheels over cobbles spoke of metalled streets and Vera guessed they had arrived at a town of some size. It wasn't long thereafter that the coach drew to a halt and there was the sound of voices outside. There was the creak of a gate, the unmistakable echoes as the coach went through a covered archway, and then they halted . The coach gave a lurch as the driver descended and, moments later, the door was opened. It was not, however, the coachman who opened it but a matronly woman who, having opened the door, stood back to let Madam Yang out.

"Lian, this is Guizi-Nui, who will be joining us. I believe Jia-Li is not working tonight, is that so."

"Yes, Madam," Lian replied. "Jia-Li is helping in the kitchen."

"Well, she can help get this one ready instead," Madam Yang stated flatly. "I won't use her for a day or so but she's got a lot to learn. Jia-Li can show her worth by teaching her."

"Certainly, Madam. I'll see to it right away." And, as Madam Yang bustled off Lian reached into the coach and undid the shackle around Vera's ankle.

"Come with me," Lian said, and set off across the courtyard. For a moment Vera just sat there but she knew better than to upset anyone right away so she jumped down from the coach and followed Lian across the courtyard towards a door from which came light and music. She had just time to glance around and, although it was mostly dark, she could see that there was no easy escape route. The gateway to the courtyard was locked and guarded. Seeing that Lian was getting ahead she rushed to keep up. Whatever was awaiting her would not be improved if she were to dawdle.

Once they were through the door they entered a large room, luxuriously furnished and well lit. Three girls were playing Chinese music on a small stage, which, to Vera's western ears was a difficult sound to love. Although it must have been quite late business was obviously brisk; there were several men, evidently customers, lounging around, drinking and chatting. Various girls were waiting on them, or simply waiting, and, as one refreshed a customer's glass, Vera saw him reach up under her kimono and the serving girl gave a little start. However, she did not noticeably object; evidently this was acceptable behaviour.  One of the other customers made some sort of comment and the serving girl, still wriggling from the effect of whatever was being done to her under her kimono, gave him a lively smile.

"Come along, this way," Lian said rather impatiently, and Vera, with a start, realised she had been so engrossed with what was going on that she had stopped and was staring with her mouth open. She hurried over and followed Lian through a door at the opposite side of the room. Here Vera was led down a long corridor with doors at either side. Before they had reached the end one of the doors opened and a man swaggered out, still buttoning his britches.

"I hope you have been fully satisfied, Sir," Lian said obsequiously.

"Yeah, the little vixen won't walk right for a week," he leered. "Nice bit of ass, just how I like it."

"I'm so glad, Sir," Lian continued. "Maybe you'd like to show your appreciation with a tip?"

"Ha! The only 'tip' that little huli jing will get is the tip of my jiba!" And with that he swaggered off.

As soon as he had gone a young woman appeared from the same door. Her hair and clothes were awry and she leant against the doorjamb, obviously exhausted.

"Well, don't stand around waiting; get yourself washed and back up out there. There are plenty more customers ready to be served," Lian said.

"Please, Mistress, I need an extra five minutes, time to get changed. Five minutes and I'll be back out there. Look, he's ripped my kimono."

Lian gave the young woman a long hard look.

"You girls, you never take care of your clothes. OK, five minutes then." And the three of them set off down the corridor. Vera noticed that the young woman was walking with a bit of a limp and, a couple of times, she had to stop and gather herself.

At the end of the corridor was a curtain, which Lian drew aside to reveal a door. They went through and, as if by magic, the luxury stopped. Here it was all plain and functional, a large grey room with a row of low beds along one wall, a long bench along the other dotted with mirrors and makeup, and a washing area set aside at one end. Vera was reminded of her school dormitories; there had been no luxury there either. The young woman shrugged off her kimono and set off for the washing area. Vera was told sharply to wait and Lian bustled away again. Vera wandered over to the window. The outside was covered with an arrangement of intricate metal work, which at first glance looked purely decorative but on closer inspection acted as effective security though whether for those trying to get in or those trying to get out was not clear.

"Don't even think about it. Just looking at the bars can be a flogging offence if Madam Yang is in the wrong mood. Hi, I'm Jia-Li, you must be the new girl, Guizi-Nui. Are you really British, we've not had one of those before."

Vera turned to see a woman approaching. She was petit and very pretty but, unlike the other girls, she was wearing the peasant pyjamas instead of a kimono.

"Yes, yes I'm Guizi-Nui," Vera replied. "And yes, I'm British."

"Well, let's get you sorted out then. The bunk down the end is free, you can take that one. It's next to mine which will be nice. We're not supposed to talk after lights out but if we're quiet nobody minds too much." Jia-Li led Vera to the end of the row and showed her which bunk was now hers.

"This locker is yours," Jia-Li went on, indicating a chest next to the bed. "I guess you don't have much to put in it at the moment, well, Madam Yang provides for most of our needs. That's a pretty kimono by the way but you had best take it off and leave it for work time. I'll sort you out a pair of pyjamas from the stores."

Vera just followed Jia-Li around It was almost restful listening to her chatter; at least she didn't have to make conversation. At Jia-Li's prompting she took off her kimono and passed it over, whereupon Jia-Li hung it in the locker.

"What a lot of bruising," Jia-Li commented as she looked at Vera's naked body. "You've been beaten pretty badly. Were you raped as well?"

Vera merely nodded.

"Well, you'll soon get better; we've got a couple of days before you start work; that's plenty of time."

"Why aren't you working?" Vera asked. "I mean, you're obviously one of the girls but you're back here and wearing plain pyjamas, not a kimono. Why's that?"

"Because it's that time of the month, silly," Jia-Li laughed. "Four whole days without having to service one of those stinking... Well, let's just say I like my time off, even if it does mean kitchen duty.”

At that point the young woman who had entered the dormitory at the same time as Vera approached with her kimono folded over her arm. Neither she nor Jia-Li showed any concern that two out of the three of them were naked; apparently this was quite normal behaviour.

"Hi there, Jia-Li. Lend me your kimono, will you. That fei-wu Chen-Bao was so clumsy he ripped mine. I can sew it up before tomorrow but if I go back out there with it ripped I'll be beaten for sure."

"Of course, Fei-Yen, it's in my locker. That Chen-Bao is such a shi dan; he thinks he's the world's greatest lover but he's just a clumsy oaf. I'm glad I didn't have to look after him."

Vera looked on. Her Mandarin was good but these girls were using words she hadn't been taught in the nursery; she could only guess at their meaning. Fei-yen went over to the lockers where she hung up her kimono and swapped it for Jia-Li's.

"Thanks, I owe you. I guess I had best get back to work; there's quite a crowd in tonight." And with a sigh Fei-Yen returned to the main body of the brothel.

"Come along, I'll show you the rest of our quarters," Jia-Li said. "Not that there's much to show. We'll find you a pair of pyjamas and, whilst we're at it, I'll show you the kitchens. Have you eaten?"

"No, I haven't had a chance."

"Well come along then." Jia-Li led Vera to the end of the dormitory and through a door which led to a long thin passageway. At regular intervals there were little curtains hung on the wall at roughly head height. Jia-Li pulled one or two aside, glancing through before finding what she wanted and signalling Vera to join her. With the curtain pulled back Vera could see that it concealed a metal grille, which allowed them to see through to the other side of the wall. Although the view was restricted it was plenty clear enough to see, and to some extent hear, what was happening on the other side without disturbing the occupants. One of the girls, one Vera hadn't met yet, was on her hands and knees, her buttocks high in the air, whilst one of the customers was busy thrusting himself inside her.

"Yes, yes, big boy!" The girl moaned. "That feels so good, fuck me, fuck my ass!"

"She's... she's enjoying it," Vera said in amazement.

"Shh... Not so loud, they'll hear you and, no, she's not enjoying it, she's just pretending," Jia-Li replied in a whisper.

"Pretending?"

"Oh, you have so much to learn. Our job is to make the customer come as quickly as possible so that he's back to the lounge ordering more overpriced rice wine," Jia-Li explained. "You've got to be the girl the customer wants, play the slut, the tart or little miss innocent as the occasion demands. Basically there are two types of customer, those who want to be told that they're the greatest lover ever, who want to be reassured that their needle dicks are all a girl could possibly want, and then there are those for whom we are trash, who get their kicks from using us as foully as they can. Then it's all 'Please, Master, please don't hurt me!' and sometimes you're pretending and sometimes you're not. Let's get you fed and clothed and then we'll look at some more."

Jia-Li led Vera to the far end of the corridor, which opened out into the kitchens. Three other girls were working there, all dressed in the peasant pyjamas. Standing over the kitchen range was a big, burly woman, evidently the cook, and Vera noticed that her orders were obeyed immediately. She looked up and noticed Jia-Li and Vera approaching.

"Please, Mistress. This is the new girl, Guizi-Nui," Jia-Li explained after she had given a little bow.

"New girl, eh. Come here, come and stand where I can see you," the cook ordered.

After a little nudge from Jia-Li Vera went over and stood in front of the cook, bowing her head respectfully as Jia-Li had done.

"Do you know who runs this place?" the cook asked.

"Madam Yang, Mistress?"

"Madam Yang! She owns it but she surely doesn't run it. Tell her girls, tell her who's in charge."

"You are, Mistress," came the chorused reply. Vera realised that this was some sort of litany.

"Yes, indeed, I run this place," the cook continued. "If you need anything it's me you ask. If you're sick you come to me, if you're hurt you come to me and if you miss your flow you definitely come to me. What's the number one rule, girls?"

"No babies!" Again the chorus.

"Indeed, no babies. From now on I'm your mother, your father, your best friend and your priest. If you have any confessions to make you make them to me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Mistress," Vera replied. The cook reminded her of the Sergeant Major back at the barracks. She wondered whether, like the Sergeant Major, the cook's bark was worse than her bite. She was certainly not in any hurry to find out.

"Now, have you eaten?"

"No, Mistress."

"Well there's pork and rice over there. Help yourself and sit over there whilst you're eating." The cook indicated a long table with benches either side. The kitchen obviously doubled as the canteen.

Vera and Jia-Li went over and each filled a bowl with pork and rice. The warm aromatic smells that came from the dishes reminded Vera of just how long it had been since she last ate and she was ravenous. They went over to the table and tucked in. Whilst Vera shovelled down the meal she glanced about her. Here, behind scenes, so to speak, the brothel was a curious mixture of the barracks and her old school. There were rules that had to be obeyed and a strict chain of command but beyond that, it was just people getting on with it. They were still eating when one of the girls arrived carrying a pair of  pyjamas.

"Cook says you're to put these on," she said, "and if you don't both hurry up and get on with it there will be trouble."

"OK, OK,"  Jua-Li replied. "We get the message. Come along, let's get out of here before cookie has us scrubbing out the latrines."

Gulping down the last of their meals, the two girls got up from the table and, whilst Vera put on the pyjamas, Jua-Li took the dishes to the sink. Then it was back to the long corridor with all the grilles in the wall. Again Jua-Li pulled back the curtains and peeped through until she found what she wanted.

"Here, have a look at Mei-Zhen, she's an artist," Jua-Li said, half joking.

Vera looked through the grille. The customer was lying on a couch, his britches around his knees, as Mei-Zhen knelt before him, kissing the tip of his penis, teasing it with her tongue. Then she took it in her mouth and, bobbing her head up and down, ran her lips up and down the length of his shaft. Vera wondered how she could take so much of it without gagging but Mei-Zhen didn't seem to mind. It wasn't long before the customer gave an almighty groan and, arching his back, actively thrust himself forward as if trying to get even deeper. Three, maybe four times he thrust himself at her before collapsing back, exhausted. Gently, almost tenderly, Mei-Zhen withdrew and, reaching for a damp cloth, wiped the customer down.

"Do you see that?" Jua-Li whispered excitedly. "She took his complete length in her mouth. I don't know how she does it but I know it drives the boys wild. She gets all sorts of tips."

"Tips?" queried Vera. "What do you mean?"

"Sometimes, if they're feeling generous and we've done a good job, the customers pay a little extra, a sort of 'thank you'."

"Sure, I know what a tip is but are you saying we get the money?"

"Us! Of course not!" Jua-Li gave a little laugh. "No, it all goes straight into Madam Yang's pocket but extra cash makes her look kindly on us; maybe she'll choose someone else for the harder assignments."

"Harder assignments?" Vera did not like the sound of that.

"Not all our customers are as easy to please as that one. Sometimes... Well, let's see what else is happening."

Once again Jua-Li went from grille to grille, checking out what was happening on the other side. Eventually she found what she was looking for and called Vera over.

"Here, Guizi-Nui, it's not all easy. Have a look at what Xiao-Ping has got to put up with."

Jua-Li stepped back allowing Vera full access to the grille. Inside the room was one of the girls attached to an X shaped cross, her body held tightly by numerous straps. The customer was repeatedly slashing her back and buttocks using a length of bamboo and only a gag held back the obvious screams of his victim. As Vera watched, horrified, he put down the cane, unbuttoned his britches and came up behind Xiao-Ping. He leant forward and snarled something into her ear before taking his penis in his hand and positioning it between her buttocks.

As Xiao-Ping's body tensed, as every stretched sinew spoke of the agony she was going through, so Vera's body cried out in sympathy. Her own memories of her treatment in the cell were far too fresh and she knew only too well the pain of anal rape. Even so she couldn't look away, horrified she had to watch, right to the end. Deeply shocked she turned to Jua-Li.

"Will I have to...." She couldn't bring herself to say the words.

Jua-Li nodded solemnly. "We all do, it gets easier but you never get completely used to it."

"I can't see how it gets easier," Vera said. "I could never get used to that."

"Well, for a start we need to open you up a bit, stretch your juhua so that you're not so tight, so they slip in a bit easier. That and one of cookie's special lotions and some girls actually like taking it that way. As for the caning... well, there's no way of getting used to that."

Once again Vera was slightly flummoxed by the slang. Jujua, that meant chrysanthemum but there was no way Jua-Li was referring to the flower. Then she put two and two together and realised what Jua-Li was referring to.

"Stretch me? How does that work?" she asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"Come and find out," Jua-Li said and set off back towards the kitchens with Vera trailing behind.

Once they got there, Jua-Li went straight over to the cook and waited until she was noticed. Then she gave a little bow. Vera tried her best to copy her.

"Please, Mistress, I was told to make this one ready for work," Jua-Li started.

"And what of it?" The cook replied.

"She'll need to be opened. I thought maybe a jiba, if she wore that for a day or so, might help."

"Wait here," the cook said and set off briskly. Vera was still wondering what this was all about when the cook returned with a bottle and a short wooden object. She took Vera by the hand led her over to the main table. "Take off your pants and bend over," she said, curtly.

For half a second Vera just stared in disbelief but the stony look upon the cook's face showed that she expected to be obeyed so she did as she was told. Jua-Li was told to 'grease her up' and Vera felt the cold, slimy feel as the lotion from the bottle was worked into the crease of her buttocks and then into her anus, Jua-Li working it in as far as her fingers could reach. Vera's sphincter was still torn from the mistreatment the previous day and, even though Jua-Li was trying to be gentle it still hurt. However a swift word from the cook told her to stop complaining so she stifled back her cries as best she could.

If Jua-Li's fingers were painful they were nothing compared with what came next. Vera felt the rounded tip of the wooden object, evidently the 'jiba', being pushed against her. Even with the generous application of oil she wasn't built to be spread this wide and she couldn't suppress a cry of agony until, suddenly, the widest part was inside and her sphincter clamped hard around the neck, holding it tight within her. Panting heavily Vera felt the pain subside a bit but this was never going to be comfortable.

"Stand up," the cook ordered. "Stand up and stop snivelling."

Vera did as she was told, facing the cook with tears filling her eyes.

"That stays inside until I say otherwise. If you want the latrines you come and ask me. Understood?"

"Yes, Mistress," Vera sniffed.

"Very well. Come to me tomorrow after supper and we'll see how you're getting on. Now Jua-Li, I think this one has had enough for one day," the cook continued. "Take her back to the dormitory and, when you've washed her down you can both settle down for the night."

"Yes, Mistress. Thank you, Mistress." Jua-Li replied and taking Vera by the hand she led her back to the dormitory.

As Vera waddled along behind her she was beginning to realise that wearing the jiba, whilst very uncomfortable, was not going to be quite as bad as having it fitted. She felt full, as if she badly wanted to use the latrines or as if she had a case of constipation but, for all that, it had stopped hurting quite so much. Anyway, there was nothing she could do about it. Although the cook had not specified what her punishment would be if she took it out she had no doubt that it would be a painful one and that she would still be forced to wear the damn thing.

When they got to the washing area Jua-Li took a soapy sponge and gently wiped off all the excess oil from between Vera's buttocks. Then, together, they did more general ablutions before heading off to bed. Vera had to lower herself down gently; she didn't dare sit heavily for fear of setting off more agonising pain. Jua-Li sat down beside her and gently stroked her hair.

Suddenly, now that she finally had time to stop and think, the enormity of her circumstances came home to Vera with a huge enveloping wave of emotion. Sure, she had escaped the firing squad but in many ways this seemed worse. She was a slave, a whore, trapped in a world where her only prospect was a life of pain and humiliation. She felt so tired, so all alone, so lost, so helpless and she couldn't help it, she couldn't do anything about it. Tears streamed down her face and her whole body shook with sobbing. Jua-Li held her tight as she lowered her down onto the bed before cuddling up next to her. She had seen enough girls in this situation to know that words were never enough; indeed it wasn't that long ago that she had been 'the new girl', so she understood the pain and understood that Vera needed mothering more than anything else. Curled up in Jua-Li's arms, exhausted from all she had been through, Vera finally managed to sleep.