# 288
Chapter 288
The New Prisoner
Lin Qiye shut the door behind him, led Li Yifei into the courtyard, and finally released his hand.
“Qiye, why wouldn’t you let me speak?” Li Yifei blurted.
“That’s what you call ‘subtle probing’?” Lin Qiye sighed in exasperation. “Bragi’s situation is more complicated than I thought. I believe the real problem lies with that female personality that appears at night. If we tell Bragi now, it might trigger subconscious resistance…”
“Oh…” Li Yifei nodded vaguely. “So what do we do next?”
Lin Qiye pondered. “Tonight I’ll try to communicate with the female personality. We’ll decide the rest afterward. Until we’re sure what’s wrong with him, don’t mention the night incidents again.”
“All right.”
…
Purification Chamber, prison block.
Clang-clang-clang-clang…
In a narrow, gloomy corridor, a teenager in black-and-white stripes shuffled forward, barefoot, heavy chains dragging behind him. Four armed guards followed; ahead strode a man in a black windbreaker.
On both sides, black metal bars fenced off individual cells. Prisoners stood up one after another, sizing up the newcomer.
The boy lifted his lowered head slightly; a faint gray glint flashed in his eyes as he swept his gaze around.
At last the man in black stopped. He glanced at the file in his hand and said coldly:
“Number 07293, An Qingyu—this is your cell.”
A guard unlocked the fetters on An Qingyu’s wrists and ankles, then jerked his chin toward the open door.
An Qingyu gave the cell a cursory look, walked in, and stood motionless while the guard slammed the door and followed the black-coated man away.
He stood in the center, gray eyes cataloging every inch of space like a statue.
“Hey, kid!” a shrill voice called from the opposite cell. “What’re you in for?”
The gray faded from An Qingyu’s eyes. He turned to the one-eyed man opposite and answered calmly, “Stole something.”
“Stealing? Heh, rare to meet someone jailed here for that.” The one-eyed man studied An Qingyu’s gentle face; lust crept into his single eye.
“Didn’t expect such a pretty boy. Not as sickly-pale as yesterday’s newbie, but I like the delicate type. Stick with me from now on, heh-heh…”
An Qingyu’s eyes narrowed. He stared as though dissecting the man inside and out.
After a moment he shook his head.
“I have no interest in a waste body.”
The one-eyed man’s face froze; fury flared in his eye. “Kid, you really don’t know how high the sky is… Just stay in that cell forever, or else—”
An Qingyu ignored the threat, sat in a corner, closed his eyes, and seemed to think.
Hours later a uniform click echoed as every cell door opened simultaneously.
“Free period begins…”
The announcement boomed from ceiling speakers. Most prisoners filed out under guard supervision, forming orderly lines toward the yard.
An Qingyu stood, dusted himself off, and joined the queue.
A familiar voice drifted behind him.
“Kid, you’ve got guts…”
He didn’t need to turn; he knew it was the one-eyed man. He kept walking as if the man didn’t exist.
Outside, they reached the exercise ground. An Qingyu was about to scout the layout when a powerful hand grabbed his collar and an arm hooked his neck, dragging him sideways.
“Let’s find a quiet place—I’ll teach you the rules…” the one-eyed man sneered.
An Qingyu looked up at the sky, offered no resistance, only a trace of resignation in his eyes.
The man hauled him into a cramped, filthy toilet, shoved him inside, locked the door, then pulled out a handful of sticky sludge—rotten rice mixed with dirt—and smeared it over the lone camera’s lens, covering the blind spot.
An Qingyu watched patiently, curious. “You do this often?”
“Snipers watch the yard, cameras and guards fill the cells—no blind spots anywhere in the Purification Chamber except here. Block this lens and nobody knows what happens—for a while.”
He finished washing his hands, flicked water droplets away, and advanced on An Qingyu with a cold grin.
“Plenty of unlucky bastards have died here. Cooperate, or… heh.”
An Qingyu mused aloud, “And if I refuse—will you kill me?”
The man shut off the tap, sauntered closer, and said grimly, “Absolutely.”
“I don’t believe you.” An Qingyu shook his head.
The one-eyed man frowned.
“You kill me—then what? There’s nowhere to hide a body; they’ll find it sooner or later.” An Qingyu spoke as if discussing the weather.
“Still wet behind the ears.” The man laughed. “Chop you into mince, flush the pieces down that hole—gone without a trace.”
He yanked a cord above the cistern; a torrent swept all waste into a large black pipe wider than a volleyball, its depths unseen.
An Qingyu stared at the opening, thoughtful.