At nine-thirty in the evening.
Kang Ting walked into the master bedroom, her voice soft: 'The child is asleep.'
Kang Yuedong sat at the desk, his eyes fixed on the computer screen, but his mind was long gone from the documents on it. He responded, 'Oh, you go take a shower.'
As usual, Kang Ting walked to the wardrobe against the wall to change clothes. She took off her outerwear and bra one by one, putting on a thin nightgown. The mirror reflected her profile: thirty-six years old, her breasts not exceptionally full but still firm; her lower abdomen had a slight soft curve left from childbirth, but her waistline was well maintained. From behind, she looked almost no different from when she got married fourteen years ago.
Kang Yuedong watched all this from the mirror on the dressing table, suddenly feeling a tightness in his chest.
Fourteen years ago, Kang Ting was still a member of the university’s artistic gymnastics team. She wasn’t what you’d call a campus beauty, but her 165 cm height, the temperament left by years of physical training, her soft figure, and her always-smiling, easygoing personality made many male classmates look at her twice. Back then, Kang Yuedong chased her very hard, and the two moved step by step toward marriage, immigration, and having children, arriving at today.
He had originally been wondering whether to bring up that matter this weekend, but the instant he saw his wife's back, a long-lost urge suddenly rose in him.
Probably about two months.
After Kang Ting entered the bathroom, Kang Yuedong immediately got up and rummaged through a small box under the wardrobe. He first took out a bundle of long rope, hesitated for a few seconds, then swapped it for a short rope and a pair of standard police-issue leg irons. He stuffed both items under the pillow and then sat back down in front of the computer as if nothing had happened.
For the first seven years of marriage, the two didn't feel any 'itch.' They had just arrived in North America a few years prior, their child was still young, and life was tense. Routine sex had long lost its initial novelty. But ever since Kang Yuedong discovered those bondage websites, things changed. He began tying up his wife in various ways before getting to the main event. Although Kang Ting found it somewhat perverse, he was still her husband, and most of the ropes were just tied tightly, not particularly painful. She wasn't good at oral sex and didn't like overly intense variations, but she could barely accept bondage. Her husband worked hard outside; it wasn't a big deal for her to cooperate a little.
"I'm done washing. It's your turn."
Kang Ting's voice pulled Kang Yuedong back from his thoughts.
He turned around. His wife had just come out of the bath, wet hair draped over her fair neck, with a little fine wrinkle at the corners of her eyes, which instead gave her a more mature charm. The ten years of immigrant life seemed not to have left too heavy a mark on her.
Kang Yuedong stood up and walked towards the bathroom, pretending to be nonchalant. As he passed Kang Ting, she was combing her hair while looking in the mirror. He suddenly turned sharply, reached out, and pulled her nightgown completely down.
Before Kang Ting's exclamation could escape, she was already pinned down on the bed.
Kang Yuedong moved with practiced ease. He pinned his wife's hands behind her back with one hand, while the other pulled a short rope from under the pillow and swiftly wound it around her wrists. Kang Ting's body instinctively struggled twice before she understood and stopped resisting, only turning her head to ask, 'What's wrong with you today?'
Kang Yuedong didn't answer.
After tightening the rope, he took out the shackles, crossed Kangting's ankles and locked them together, then bent her legs back, fastening the other end of the shackles to her already bound hands. After doing all this, he picked up his wife and placed her kneeling on the bed.
The chain of the leg irons was very short. Kang Ting's feet were crossed and shackled; the kneeling position prevented her from lifting her knees, so she had to try hard to press her bound hands downward to reduce the metal's pull on her wrists. This forced her chest to thrust high and her head to tilt back slightly.
Probably because it had been too long since she was treated like this, Kang Ting herself sensed a strange excitement, and a soft moan inadvertently escaped her throat.
Kang Yuedong still didn't speak. He just pressed his already hardened part against his wife's raised breasts, holding her shoulders with both hands and rubbing back and forth. The nipples were cool, the sensation distinct.
“Can I use my mouth?” he asked.
Kang Ting didn't particularly enjoy oral sex and had never actually made him climax with her mouth. Perhaps because she was tied too tightly, or maybe it had been a long time since she experienced such foreplay, she hesitated for a moment but still nodded.
She lowered her head with difficulty, trying hard to comply. Before long, she couldn't help but start dry heaving. Kang Yuedong had to stop, thought for a moment, turned back to get the key, opened the shackles, carried her to the wardrobe against the wall, and reattached the clasp to the metal rod for hanging clothes.
Kang Ting was suspended upside down, her head toward the wall, her buttocks raised high. Kang Yuedong tried several times, but due to the height, he kept slipping out.
“Help me put on those purple high heels.” The wife hanging there suddenly said softly.
Kang Yuedong immediately remembered—those were the ones he bought for her during his business trip to Korea. He quickly helped her put them on. The height was just right. Holding his wife's slender waist, he could no longer hold back and began thrusting forcefully.
At first, Kang Ting was still gritting her teeth, trying to suppress her sounds, but before long, moans uncontrollably spilled out. Kang Yuedong saw her small fists, tied behind her back, clenching and unclenching, which stimulated him to work even harder. Soon, he reached the finish line.
Neither of them moved right away.
Kang Yuedong unlocked the ankle cuffs and hugged his wife, whose hands were still bound, into his arms. Kang Ting also followed his movement, burying her face in his chest. After a long while, she looked up and asked, 'What's wrong with you today? It's been a long time since you've been like this.'
“Nothing much, I just want it.”
"You're amazing today, just like when you first started." Kang Ting looked at her husband of fourteen years, a touch of gentle smile in her eyes.
Kang Yuedong suddenly spoke up: 'I feel like there's no love between us anymore.'
“Ah?”
“Now we’re just like family, I think there’s only family affection left.”
Kang Ting seemed puzzled: 'Isn't that good? Isn't that how everyone goes through it? I think it's quite good.'
Kang Yuedong whispered something. Kang Ting was taken aback for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh: 'I can't believe you thought of that.'
After laughing, she asked seriously, 'So, do you have any good ideas?'
In this matter, Kangting has always trusted her husband. There's a natural submissiveness in her character; she doesn't want to worry too much about such things. Just do your best to cooperate, that's all. What else can a woman do?
Seven years ago, when her husband first started tying her up, she also didn't quite understand why he could spend an hour tirelessly tying her up like a zongzi. Full-body bondage, Japanese-style bondage... as long as it didn't hurt too much, she had no objection. Sometimes after being tightly bound, a certain indescribable pleasure would indeed arise in her body. Every time her husband finished tying her up, he would praise her beauty. She half-believed it, yet also vaguely felt that the way she looked under the ropes might really be a little different.
She once indirectly asked her two close friends, Lü Ping and Liu Mei, if their husbands had any peculiarities in bed. They vaguely mentioned words like 'rope,' and she didn't dare to ask further.
But during this recent period, Kang Yuedong himself had begun to feel that he was starting to grow numb to bondage as well. No matter how fresh the tricks, no matter how beautiful the body, after a long time the initial thrill would always fade. That was probably a man’s nature.
He untied his wife’s hands. Kang Ting went to the bathroom to wash up again. Just then, the phone rang.
It was Liu Mei's husband, Liu Peize, calling.
"Bro, did I tell you or not?" Liu Peize asked.
“No, what about you?”
“Neither do I. I don’t know how to bring it up.”
“Talk to her a little later.”
"All right."
“I’d better just hold my wife and sleep.”
After hanging up the phone, Kang Yuedong sat on the edge of the bed, somewhat lost in thought.
A few years ago, by chance, he discovered faint marks on Liu Mei’s wrist from rope binding. He felt a stir in his heart and deliberately asked Liu Peize about it. Liu Peize was quite straightforward, saying that after so many years of marriage, the usual ways had long since become boring, and that being abroad made it inconvenient to find thrills the way one could in China, so he thought of some other methods to add a bit of spice to married life. He even sent Kang Yuedong some website addresses about bondage.
Actually, as for those websites, Kang Yuedong himself had already been lurking and reading them for years. From that day on, he instead felt a little more relaxed in his heart — so everyone was the same.
Later, Liu Peize introduced Zhu Jizhen, and Zhu Jizhen introduced Wang Xiaoming. The four men gradually became a circle that could talk about these things. The families would also get together occasionally, and the wives got along fairly well. Among the four, Zhu Jizhen’s wife was the most beautiful, and Kang Ting had the best temperament. Everyone felt these four women were all at that age, yet their figures were still kept quite well—probably because life overseas was relatively relaxed.
Thinking about these things, Kang Yuedong suddenly felt that tonight's words about 'only having familial affection left' might have truly hit a nerve somewhere.
The sound of water in the bathroom stopped. Kang Ting came out wiping her hair and saw that he was still sitting by the bed. She asked, 'Why aren't you asleep yet?'
Kang Yuedong looked up at his wife's face, slightly flushed from the steam, and suddenly felt some words were already on the tip of his tongue.
But in the end, he only reached out, pulled her onto the bed, and gently held her from behind.
“It’s nothing. Go to sleep.”
In the darkness, Kang Ting's breathing gradually steadied. Kang Yuedong, however, lay with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling.
The rope was still stored under the pillow. The cold metal feel of the shackles seemed to linger on his fingertips.
He knew that once some thresholds were seen, it was very hard to completely pretend they did not exist.
And this weekend might just be an opportunity.
Kang Yuedong slept restlessly all night.
Kang Ting beside him breathed evenly, occasionally moving slightly in her sleep. Lying in the darkness, his mind kept replaying the conversation from the phone call earlier, and the words he had blurted out: 'only family affection remains.' The words were out, irretrievable. His wife had just smiled then, not probing deeper, but he knew clearly that once some cracks are pointed out, they start to split further on their own.
The next day was Friday.
In the morning, the two got up as usual, prepared the child's things, and had breakfast. Kang Ting, while packing the child's water bottle, casually asked, 'Any plans for the weekend? Lü Ping sent a message yesterday, saying she wants to invite our families for a meal together.'
Kang Yuedong paused while cutting the bread. 'Which day?'
"Saturday night then, she said everyone hasn’t gotten together for a long time.",
“...Okay.” He agreed, but in his heart he had already begun calculating.
Liu Peize, Zhu Jizhen, Wang Xiaoming, plus himself—four men. The corresponding four women: Liu Mei, Zhu's wife (everyone called her Aya), Wang Xiaoming's wife Chen Qing, and Kang Ting. After several family gatherings, the women got along well, while the men found they had more and more in common on another level. Bondage, ropes, and the pleasure of a little control and being controlled—these secrets that had originally existed only in each person's own bedroom gradually became an unspoken topic within the four-person circle.
After breakfast, Kang Yuedong sent the child to school and went to the company by himself. He was distracted all day at work. Twice he picked up his phone, wanting to send Liu Peize a message, then put it back down. It was only at noon that Liu Peize sent a WeChat message first:
"Tonight, talk? Or in person?"
Kang Yuedong replied: 'Let's talk when we meet on Saturday. Let's each ask around some more first.'
Liu Peize quickly replied, 'Okay.'
When I came home in the evening, Kang Ting had already finished cooking. At the dinner table she brought up the weekend gathering, speaking very casually: “Aya says she’s learned a few new dishes recently and insists on showing off her skills. Chen Qing also seems like she’s going to bring some desserts she made herself.”
Kang Yuedong responded with an 'Mm,' his hand holding the chopsticks paused, and he swallowed back the words that had reached his lips.
At night, after the two finished washing up and got into bed. Kang Ting looked at him sideways and suddenly asked: "Those things you said yesterday... were you serious?"
Kang Yuedong was silent for a few seconds. 'A little. It's not that I don't love you, just... it feels like something is missing.'
Kang Ting didn't answer immediately. She reached out and turned off the bedside lamp, letting out a soft sigh in the darkness. 'I know. Actually, I also feel that sometimes when things become too familiar, they lose their excitement. But those things you want... ropes and such, I've cooperated with them, isn't that enough?'
“Enough.” Kang Yuedong turned around and pulled her into his arms, “Enough. It’s just that men sometimes have wild thoughts.”
Kang Ting leaned against his chest, her voice muffled: 'Then don't overthink it. Have a good meal over the weekend, don't spoil everyone's mood.'
Kang Yuedong acknowledged, but he knew clearly that things wouldn't just pass like this.
On Saturday afternoon, the two families first met up at Liu Peize's house.
The Liu family lived in a townhouse, and the basement was kept very clean. They usually played with ropes there themselves. As soon as Kang Ting and Liu Mei came in, they started chatting—from the children’s school to recent discount information—and quickly became familiar. Kang Yuedong and Liu Peize, using the excuse of getting wine, went into the kitchen.
"Did you say it?" Liu Peize lowered his voice.
“Raised it a little. She didn’t object and didn’t ask further.” Kang Yuedong twisted open the wine bottle. “And you?”
“Liu Mei is more open-minded than I thought. She said... we can talk about it, but everyone has to be willing, no forcing.” Liu Peize poured himself a glass of wine, then poured one for Kang Yuedong too. “Zhu Jizhen’s side is more proactive. Aya seems to have had some interest in this kind of thing already. Wang Xiaoming is still working on Chen Qing, so how far things can go tonight is hard to say.”
Kang Yuedong nodded, not asking further.
At six in the evening, Zhu Jizhen and Aya arrived. As soon as Aya came in, she greeted everyone with a smile; the simple cut of her dress highlighted her curves very well. Wang Xiaoming and Chen Qing arrived a little later, and Chen Qing looked somewhat reserved, though the corners of her mouth couldn’t quite suppress a smile when she did.
Dinner was arranged in the basement. The long table was fully set with a lavish spread of dishes. After three rounds of drinks, the conversation gradually relaxed. The women started chatting about recent TV dramas and shopping, while the men chimed in intermittently. Kang Yuedong sat next to Kang Ting, occasionally serving her food, but his wine glass never stayed empty.
After dinner, the children were sent upstairs to watch TV. The adults stayed in the basement. Liu Peize somehow produced a few bottles of fine wine and dimmed the lights a bit further. The atmosphere grew ambiguous.
Zhu Jizhen spoke first, his tone half-joking: 'We've known each other for years. The things we usually play... are actually quite similar. Have you ever thought about changing it up?'
The air was quiet for a few seconds.
Liu Mei glanced at her husband and said nothing. Aya rested her chin in her hand, her eyes lighting up a little. Chen Qing lowered her head and stirred the ice cubes in her cup. Kang Ting sat beside Kang Yuedong, her body slightly tense, but she did not immediately retort.
Kang Yuedong set down the wine glass, his voice steady: 'Be more specific.'
Zhu Jizhen also stopped beating around the bush: "It's about each person playing with their own lover while everyone else is present. Ropes, blindfolds—all are allowed. You can see, but you can't touch others. Let's start with this step and see what comes next."
Wang Xiaoming added: "It must be possible to stop at any time. Whoever is uncomfortable, stop immediately. Absolutely voluntary."
Liu Peize looked at his wife. Liu Mei was silent for a moment, then nodded. “We can try. But let’s leave it at this tonight; don’t go any deeper.”
A Ya smiled, leaning on Zhu Jizhen's shoulder: 'I have no objections.'
Chen Qing looked up, glanced at Wang Xiaoming, and said very softly: '...I'll listen to you.'
Everyone's gaze finally fell on Kang Ting.
Kang Ting didn't answer immediately. She turned to look at Kang Yuedong, her expression complex. Kang Yuedong didn't press her, just gently squeezed her hand.
“...Okay.” Kang Ting finally spoke, her voice not loud, but clear, “But the rules have to be set clearly. You can only watch, and you can't touch anyone else. Whoever crosses the line, it ends immediately.”
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Liu Peize stood up, took several rolls of rope, a few blindfolds, and two pairs of softer leather cuffs from the cabinet. The things were placed on the table, and the atmosphere changed all at once.
"Who goes first?" Zhu Jizhen asked.
Kang Yuedong glanced at Kang Ting. Kang Ting nodded slightly.
So Kang Yuedong made the first move.
He made Kang Ting sit in a chair with a backrest, used rope to fix her wrists behind the chair back, his movements practiced and careful. Then came her ankles, spread apart and tied to the chair legs. Kang Ting was wearing the dress she had specially chosen for tonight; after being tied up, the hem of the skirt slid up a little, revealing the skin above her knees. Kang Yuedong then covered her eyes with a blindfold, and finally planted a very light kiss behind her neck.
“If it hurts, say so.” He said in a low voice.
Kang Ting let out a soft 'Mm,' her breathing already somewhat uneven.
The other three couples also started acting.
Liu Peize tied Liu Mei face-to-face to another chair, the rope crossing over her chest and making her breasts look even more prominent. Zhu Jizhen had Aya kneel on a cushion, fixed her hands with leather cuffs, then connected her ankles and wrists, putting her into a puppy-like posture. Wang Xiaoming was comparatively more conservative; he only tied Chen Qing's hands behind her back, covered her eyes with a blindfold, and let her lean against his chest.
For a moment, only the subtle sound of rope friction and gradually intensifying breathing remained in the basement.
Kang Yuedong stood in front of Kang Ting and began unbuckling his belt. He wasn't in a hurry to enter, instead first sliding his fingers along the edge of the rope, occasionally touching his wife's exposed collarbone and the skin below. Deprived of sight by the blindfold, Kang Ting's bodily sensations were amplified, and she trembled slightly.
The situation next door was largely the same.
Liu Peize lowered his head and kissed Liu Mei's neck, his hands roaming over her body bound by ropes. Zhu Jizhen had Aya remain in a kneeling position, while he sat in front of her and spoke softly. Wang Xiaoming held Chen Qing, his movements gentler than the others', yet still clearly filled with desire.
No one crossed the line to touch someone else's partner. But the act of 'watching' itself was enough to make the air feel scorching.
Kang Yuedong finally unfastened his pants and pressed against Kang Ting's thighs. As he entered, Kang Ting let out a suppressed whimper. The completely restrained position left her unable to evade; each thrust was deep and direct. Kang Yuedong held onto the back of the chair, controlling the rhythm, but his eyes involuntarily scanned the other scenes in the room.
Liu Mei was tied to a chair, her body swaying gently back and forth with Liu Peize’s movements, small moans spilling from the corners of her mouth. Aya knelt on the floor; because of the posture, her body was pushed slightly forward, her long hair hanging down and covering part of her expression. Chen Qing buried her face in Wang Xiaoming’s shoulder hollow, her shoulders trembling slightly.
The visual stimulation is far stronger than imagined.
Kang Yuedong felt himself approaching the edge faster than usual. He lowered his head to kiss Kang Ting's lips, quickening his final thrusts. Kang Ting tensed her body beneath him, reaching climax. Immediately after, Kang Yuedong also released.
He didn’t withdraw immediately, but maintained the embedded position, panting as he untied Kang Ting’s blindfold. Kang Ting narrowed her eyes to adjust to the light; her cheeks were flushed, her gaze briefly bewildered, then quickly cleared.
The others also finished one after another.
For a moment, only heavy breathing remained in the basement. No one spoke. Ropes were untied one by one, blindfolds were removed, leather cuffs made slight metallic clinks. The women adjusted their clothes, while the men silently packed up the props.
Until Liu Peize spoke, his voice somewhat hoarse: '...Let's stop here for tonight.'
No one objected.
By the time the event ended, it was nearly midnight.
Kang Ting sat in the passenger seat without saying a word. Kang Yuedong drove, occasionally glancing at her profile from the corner of his eye. At a red light, he finally asked: 'Regrets?'
Kang Ting shook her head. 'No regrets. It's just... more intense than I imagined.'
"Do you still want it next time?"
Kang Ting was silent for a long time. As the car neared home, she softly replied: '...We can try again. But the same rules as before.'
Kang Yuedong responded with an 'Mm,' reaching out to cover her hand resting on her knee.
Back home, the two didn't go to sleep immediately. Kang Ting went to shower, while Kang Yuedong sat on the living room sofa, reminiscing about everything that had just happened. The feel of the rope, his wife's expression when restrained, and the scenes unfolding before them with the other three couples played over and over in his mind like a movie.
He knew that once some doors were opened, they were very hard to completely shut again.
But at this moment, he did not want to stop.
The bathroom door opened. Kang Ting walked out wrapped in a towel, her hair still dripping. She walked up to Kang Yuedong, looked down at him, and suddenly said, 'Your hands were shaking when you tied me up today.'
Kang Yuedong was taken aback, then chuckled softly. 'Is that so?'
“Yes.” Kang Ting reached out and pulled him up. “Back to the room. I want to be tied up by you again. This time... just the two of us.”
Kang Yuedong looked into his wife's eyes; there was fatigue, the lingering glow of pleasure, and a certain light he hadn't seen in a long time.
He nodded and pulled her into his arms.
“Good.”
The door to the master bedroom was quietly pulled closed.
The rope was taken out from the drawer again. This time, there were no spectators, no rules to emphasize. Only fourteen years of marriage, and a more complex desire rekindled tonight.
Kang Yuedong had Kang Ting lie face down on the bed and began winding the rope tightly around her wrists, coil by coil. Kang Ting didn't ask 'What's wrong with you today' again, just quietly cooperated, occasionally taking a light breath as the rope tightened.
When the last knot was tied, Kang Yuedong leaned down and whispered in her ear:
"It's still early tonight."
Kang Ting closed her eyes, a slight smile curling at the corner of her mouth.
“Then... don’t stop.”
The night outside the window is still deep.
And the game belonging to them had only just begun to sprout new branches from the words 'only family love remains.'
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