His smile was truly wicked, devoid of genuine joy; it resembled a beast’s smugness upon finding its prey, causing the prisoners who were eavesdropping nearby to shudder in fear.
This young man was a newcomer, but right upon his arrival, he had challenged the most fearsome inmate in the prison and left him battered and begging for mercy. As expected, he became the new A-class inmate on Isolation Island, the “uncrowned king” of the prison.
The Eastern beauty, however, remained unaware of these developments. He merely furrowed his delicate brows, pressed his lips together, and said unhappily, “I have a name; I’m not called ‘Hey’… what does ‘following’ mean?”
Was he inquiring whether he had sought help from anyone in the prison?
Yan Chuan pondered this and found the newcomer’s eyes filled with even more confusion. Wasn’t he sent for treatment? How could he be thought to be “following” someone?
The Eastern beauty’s gaze made the young man laugh heartily.
He seemed to have heard an immensely amusing joke, his lips curving upward uncontrollably, on the verge of bursting into laughter. Yet he simply exhaled and wore a smile that remained ambiguous.
“Remember this,” the young man leaned in closer, edging toward the bewildered Eastern beauty who was trapped on the bed: “I’m Hesse— the new A-class in the prison. Think about it; do you want to follow me?”
Hesse’s smile was wicked, his eyes gleaming with an inscrutable light as he stared at the helpless Eastern beauty like a predator watching its prey. He added, “You can’t survive here, can you?” He chuckled, “Let me guess what crime brought you here… Did you refuse some high-ranking official, angering him so greatly that he sent you here, or did you offend someone?”
The Eastern beauty’s lips turned pale as he tried to say something but couldn’t.
“Such a pity,” Hesse understood and made his ultimate goal clear. “Are you sure you don’t want to find a protector?”
The author has something to say:
This is a no-prize quiz; several plot twists appear in it.
The prison cell was cramped, with two sets of bunk beds against the wall and a row of unpainted metal lockers in the corner. It was a four-person room. The furnishings were shockingly sparse, with only thin sheets and blankets on the beds. If it were winter, the night temperature would likely be life-threatening.
Yan Chuan found himself wedged into the lower bunk near the back of the cell.
Hesse leaned in closer to him, and to evade his almost tangible gaze, he subconsciously shrank back. However, the bunk was quite narrow—less than a meter wide—making it too cramped for an adult. As Yan Chuan shifted slightly back, he ran out of space.
His back pressed against the cold wall, the delicate and beautiful Eastern beauty finally snapped out of his daze. He had nowhere else to retreat.
His finely shaped brows furrowed like distant mountains, a hint of helpless melancholy swirling between them. His eyes held a clear pool of water, dark and glistening.
His thick eyelashes fluttered urgently like butterflies that might take flight at any moment, rising and falling with the gentle curve of his upturned eyelids.
His cheeks were a pale, almost transparent shade, and his lips, a very light rose color, were tightly pressed together, leaving him speechless.
He was a picture of confusion and helplessness.
He wore a rough prison uniform, inside it a loose shirt that didn’t fit his slender form at all, starched crisp and hidden underneath the baggy clothing. When the prison guards had brought him in, he was still clutching a neatly folded uniform jacket.
Hesse remembered that when the frail Eastern beauty had fainted, he wasn’t even wearing this shirt; it was the prison guard who had undressed him to take him to the medical room.
Having entered Isolation Island less than an hour ago, he was already wearing two men’s garments over his own.
Yet he still wore that bewildered and innocent expression.
Hesse’s smile grew even more mischievous.
“Hmm?” His gaze roamed unabashedly, sizing up the fragile Eastern beauty: “Are you unwilling to agree with me?”
“Or,” Hesse’s smile faded, his expression hardening, “have you already found a protector? A doctor or that prison guard?”
“The doctor gave you his clothes… and the guard wrapped you up and dressed you when he took you away… hmm? Which one are you going to choose?”
“Ah, doesn’t he want that wife?”
“Such a scary scenario… poor Yan Bao who encountered so many bad people right after entering!”
“This kind of shared dorm really makes me think of some unsettling things.”
“Even if our baby has been through many people, he remains a blank slate, confused when he meets someone with ill intentions.”
Until Hesse’s expression turned cold, Yan Chuan remained somewhat bewildered.
With the medication taking effect, he felt a little dizzy, his eyelids heavy—a sign of impending sleep.
Having taken the medicine, he desperately needed sleep to clear his foggy head.
In truth, Yan Chuan had no strength to ponder what Hesse had just said.
What was he talking about?
His sluggish brain labored to comprehend, and Yan Chuan slowly came to realize what Hesse was stating.
He mentioned feeling weak and unable to protect himself in prison… so he needed to find a protector…
No, Yan Chuan propped himself up.
“No,” the Eastern beauty finally spoke, his voice a bit hoarse, “I didn’t come in for that…”
That?
Hesse realized that the Eastern beauty was responding to his question about how he had ended up in prison.
He raised an eyebrow.
“There’s no official involved,” the Eastern beauty corrected him seriously, “I was sent to Isolation Island for stealing jewelry and damaging property.”
He frowned, “No one forced me.”
The seriousness in the Eastern beauty’s tone suggested that Hesse’s previous point about why he was sent to this prison was irrelevant.