By the time Yang Haoran snapped back to reality, he was standing in a straight corridor, right in front of a door marked Room 501.
The midday sun poured through the corridor’s glass panels, its glare a bit sharp. Yang Haoran rubbed his eyes until they adjusted.
He paced a few steps down the hall and peered out the window. Below lay the apartment complex’s communal area, where a winding cobblestone path twisted like a serpent through lush green lawns. Sunlight danced off the fountain, sending dazzling reflections everywhere—almost too bright, yet utterly lifelike.
A closer look revealed clusters of residents chatting idly under the shady trees, with the occasional figure strolling by.
Breathing in the fresh air and feeling the sun’s warm tingle on his arms, Yang Haoran was stunned. It felt too real, like stepping into an actual world.
Click… A door opened behind him. Yang Haoran turned to see an ordinary-looking middle-aged woman in a floral dress, carrying a black trash bag as if she were heading out to dump it.
“Who are you? What are you doing here?” The woman eyed Yang Haoran suspiciously—he looked a bit shifty—but relaxed slightly upon noticing he was just a young man.
Yang Haoran glanced at her door. She lived in Room 502, directly across from 501.
He knew Room 501 was the home of the heroine from Bitch and Master. As for the resident of 502, the story world had briefly described her: a housewife named Sun Ying.
In the original tale, Sun Ying was the suspicious type. The girl across the hall was so stunningly beautiful, with a figure to match, that Sun Ying called her a vixen. She constantly suspected her husband of having an affair with the heroine.
Ever since her family moved in, her husband had grown cold toward her after laying eyes on the heroine. He often berated Sun Ying as an old hag, but she didn’t dare confront him. Instead, her resentment festered toward the heroine, fueling intense jealousy. She was the picture of a bitter housewife.
Worst of all, she’d once caught her husband beaming at the heroine in greeting—a smile so radiant it stung, a stark contrast to the sneer he wore when calling Sun Ying names.
Sun Ying’s backstory flashed through Yang Haoran’s mind. She was a side character in the First Training Episode, set to appear later in the plot. He hadn’t expected to run into her first.
“Auntie, I’m looking for the people in Room 501,” Yang Haoran said with an innocent, harmless smile.
“Are you that vixen’s… what are you to her?” Sun Ying blurted out, nearly cursing before catching herself.
She eyed him doubtfully. At his age, could he be the vixen’s son?
“You’ll find out soon enough, Auntie,” Yang Haoran replied, careful not to spoil anything. He had to let the plot unfold naturally.
Click… The door to Room 501 swung open, as if its occupant had heard the commotion in the hall. The three of them stared at one another.
“Aunt Shen?” Yang Haoran blinked in shock as he took in the heroine’s face. She was breathtakingly alluring, her raven hair cascading like a waterfall. She leaned lazily against the doorframe, her amber eyes smoldering with seductive charm. Her delicate nose and full, rosy lips gleamed softly in the light, utterly captivating.
This was Shen Devil—Aunt Shen? She was the heroine of Bitch and Master?
A huge question mark popped up in Yang Haoran’s mind.
“Little Ranran, you’re here?” Shen Qing’s enchanting eyes sparkled as she greeted him with a playful smile.
“Vixen,” Sun Ying muttered under her breath at the sight of Shen Qing’s provocative pose.
“Oh… oh, right.” Yang Haoran’s brain short-circuited. He’d come for a taste of the story’s pleasures, but he never imagined the heroine would be Shen Devil—Aunt Shen, the woman who’d watched him grow up. It was completely out of left field.
Shen Qing found his dazed, foolish expression amusing. “Come on in, Little Ranran. The food’s all ready—I was just waiting for you to dig in.” She lingered on the word “dig,” her tone loaded with innuendo. Her tongue flicked out to lick her plump lips, like a succubus craving essence.
Sun Ying couldn’t stomach it. Cursing her silently as a slut, she slammed her door shut with a bang and stormed off with her trash bag.
Still in a fog, Yang Haoran let Shen Qing pull him inside. It was a three-bedroom, two-living-room apartment, simply yet elegantly furnished. The living room was spotless. Aunt Shen guided him to the sofa and sat him down.
Then he watched as she bustled about, bringing out platters of dishes from the kitchen and setting them on the coffee table.
In Bitch and Master, the original heroine was an erotic manga artist who made her living from commissions. It bore some intriguing parallels to Aunt Shen’s real-life gig writing smutty novels.
The plot of the First Training Episode replayed in Yang Haoran’s head. This scene matched it somewhat, but there were differences. In the story, the protagonist went straight to the door of 501 without bumping into Sun Ying. Yang Haoran had lingered and met her instead, which meant the plot wasn’t set in stone.
Choices and directions could branch into alternate paths. Bitch and Master seemed to provide only a loose framework.
Once Shen Qing had carried out the five dishes and soup from the kitchen and settled across from him, Yang Haoran got an even closer look. Aunt Shen’s beauty was mesmerizing up close—those seductive eyes, sensual red lips, perfectly sculpted nose like polished jade. Her flawless features seemed meticulously crafted, every inch a masterpiece from an artist’s brush. Staring at her gorgeous face, he ventured, “Aunt Shen, do you know Liu Ruoxi?”
He wanted to test the waters: Was this just a character who looked like Aunt Shen, or the real Shen Devil?
“Have you lost your mind, Little Ranran? Isn’t she your mom?” Shen Qing rolled her enchanting eyes at him.
“Then what about us right now…” Yang Haoran trailed off.
“You know the plot, right, Little Ranran? Just follow it. Don’t you want Aunt Shen to acknowledge you as her Master and become the Bitch under your command? Or do you feel bad for me and want to change the story?” Shen Qing smiled teasingly. She knew Yang Haoran wouldn’t retain these memories afterward, so she had no reservations.
She figured he was like her—plugged into the plot, aware of its progression.
In the First Training Episode, the gist was this: Once the moment was ripe, the heroine invited the protagonist home for the Master Acknowledgment ceremony and her first round of exposure training.
This segment marked a pivotal turning point and climax in the story.
It symbolized the heroine shedding her human status and dignity before the protagonist, reduced to a mere Bitch.
Of course, in the original, it was all the heroine’s doing—her careful orchestration to indulge her masochistic urges and dive into all sorts of depraved, kinky sex games.
