Chapter 240: Unexpected Encounters

Yanchuan stood up and accidentally knocked a pen off the desk, bending down to pick it up.

“Creek.”

The sound of the door bolt being compressed echoed, a sharp noise that made one cringe.

Footsteps followed, the sound of leather boots striking the floor in a rhythm that was neither heavy nor light, finally stopping in front of the desk.

Yanchuan froze while squatting down to retrieve his fountain pen.

Leo was back?

Fortunately, he had already organized the files in advance.

Yanchuan thought to himself that sitting in the office for a while waiting for Leo wasn’t a big deal; Leo wouldn’t suspect anything.

As he pondered, Yanchuan suddenly felt that something was amiss.

Was Leo’s clothing… like that?

Underneath the desk, there was no partition, and Yanchuan could see that the person standing in front of the desk was wearing a neatly pressed uniform.

The material was stiff, not a single wrinkle to be seen.

Yanchuan realized something.

Didn’t Leo used to wear this kind of outfit?

Why was he standing there silently when he saw Yanchuan?

A feeling of unease washed over Yanchuan.

He had intentionally left the door open so that he could explain when Leo returned; after all, the key was given to him willingly.

With the door open, anyone could come in.

But who was the person that just entered?

The author has something to say:
Caught!

Yanchuan saw a strange, handsome face.

Almost silver platinum hair, with light eyebrows and lashes. The features were deep and well-defined, with deep-set eyes and a hint of deep purple in the pupils. His thin lips formed a cold curve at the corners. Ignoring the overly chilling aura, he could indeed be called handsome.

But this face wasn’t entirely unfamiliar.
It was the warden of the prison on Isolation Island that Yanchuan had seen in a photo not long ago.

Yanchuan remembered that his name was Ariel.

This was the office of guard Leo.

The person staring at him was the prison warden, while he was a prisoner at Isolation Island, a small thief from the East.

Yanchuan remained squatting with most of his body hidden behind the desk, only raising his face.

Originally, he had peeked out to observe the outside world, but upon meeting those unfathomable eyes, he immediately shrank back.

His slender figure was concealed behind the desk, revealing his pale and beautiful face.

His expression was somewhat dazed, with wide eyes and dark lashes gently trembling, nervously blinking.

His soft black hair fell down, making his face appear even smaller, hiding part of his snowy cheeks.

His eyes were slightly rounded, with the corners upwards just a little, and a slight upward glance revealed the red corners and the misty look in his eyes.

He wore loose-fitting prison attire that didn’t match his figure, with a hint of delicate collarbone peeking out and a long, graceful neck.

He looked beautifully out of place in Isolation Island’s prison.

He seemed extraordinarily slender, fragile, and delicate, making one hesitant to speak loudly to him.

His frozen state showed he was trying to conceal his actions, appearing guilty as if he had been caught in the act.

Indeed, he was a little thief, albeit a strikingly beautiful and endearing one.

“Why are you here?” After what seemed like forever, just as Yanchuan’s legs began to numb from squatting, he finally heard the warden speak.

“Why are you here…” Yanchuan nervously glanced at the key still clenched in his hand, unsure how to answer.

Of course, it was because he wanted to perform a task and had coincidentally obtained the key to Leo’s office from the kind-hearted guard.

But Yanchuan didn’t dare to say that.

He lowered his eyes, trying to ignore Ariel’s overly focused gaze.

However, that man’s presence was overpowering; even standing there, Yanchuan felt as though he were being scrutinized and evaluated.

It felt like being pushed onto an operating table, an exposed and pitiful specimen under the spotlight, while Ariel was the doctor who could decide his fate.

Yanchuan felt a chill run down his spine.

But Ariel was still waiting for his answer.

The tall, cold, detached man didn’t move an inch. There was a desk between them, yet Yanchuan felt inexplicably captured.

Now was not the time for wild thoughts.

Yanchuan shook his head and answered Ariel’s question softly, “I wanted to find Mr. Leo…” The slender, beautiful Eastern youth lowered his head, appearing even more fragile in his curled posture, his lips slightly pale: “But he wasn’t here, so I thought I would wait for him.”

Ariel acknowledged this and then asked, “Do you have his key? It doesn’t seem to be the time for prisoners to be wandering around freely.”

This was not a place where prisoners could come freely.

Yanchuan silently filled in the warden’s unfinished statement in his mind.
Just a small complaint—he still had to answer Ariel’s questions.

Even under the cold gaze, Yanchuan quietly explained, “I do. Mr. Leo is very kind and told me that if I needed anything, I could come find him; he gave me the key.”

His slender fingers extended, placing a key on the desk.

He could answer the first part—after all, Leo had given him the key willingly, but for the latter… Yanchuan didn’t know how to respond.

At this moment, it wasn’t the time for prisoners to roam freely, and they were all still undergoing inspections by the guards.

Naturally, the guard’s office wasn’t a place where prisoners could casually enter; even if Leo had willingly given him the key, he needed a valid reason to be there.

Otherwise, how could he explain to the warden, “Sorry, I wanted to complete a task, so I took advantage of the guard giving me special access”?

Yanchuan couldn’t even say he came to check if there was an inmate named “Lion” in the prison.

“I just wanted to see Mr. Leo,” Yanchuan downplayed the situation, skillfully stating his purpose, “but he wasn’t here, so I was waiting in the office for a while.”