Chapter 226

The atmosphere inside the office was slightly oppressive.

Qin Liang thought left and right, but in the end still did not reveal to Qian Huan the matter of Feng Mu investigating his home address.

On one hand, Qin Liang had grown wary of Feng Mu; he planned to first go listen to what exactly Feng Mu wanted to do, then make his calculations.

On the other hand, Qin Liang also had to be on guard against Qian Huan; he was also afraid that if he wasn't careful, in the blink of an eye he would be used as a discarded pawn by this scheming Prison Warden.

Qin Liang only mentioned that Feng Mu invited colleagues for a gathering, and incidentally invited him as well.

This news couldn't be concealed, and there was no need to conceal it.

Qian Huan obviously already knew this news from elsewhere; there wasn't the slightest surprise in his expression, he merely said in a bland tone:

"Surviving a disaster, treating everyone to a meal is only right and proper. Since Feng Mu has already extended the invitation to you, Forensic Doctor Qin, you go attend it."

Qin Liang nodded, then aptly expressed his loyalty: "I will watch Feng Mu's every word and deed at the wine table, and upon returning will certainly report to you in detail."

Qian Huan felt very satisfied with Qin Liang's attitude; a trace of approval flashed in his eyes.

Qin Liang sensed that Qian Huan's attitude was still fairly amiable, so he cautiously probed:

"Since Feng Mu didn't die, what does the Prison Warden plan to do about Feng Mu next, and what about Li Bashan's side…"

Qian Huan originally planned to use a discarded pawn to activate Li Bashan and take him for his own use, turning him into a knife in his hand.

But now the pawn didn't die, step one of the plan aborted, and Qian Huan also felt a bit of a headache, forced to rethink a new strategy.

He contemplated for a long time, then suddenly changed the subject and asked: "Forensic Doctor Qin, have you ever played Xiangqi?"

Qin Liang was momentarily at a loss for words, somewhat surprised: "Xiangqi?"

Qian Huan: "A game that was popular for a time in the previous era, it also swept through Upper City for a period before, but in our Lower City, there are indeed not many who play it."

Qin Liang nodded: "I've vaguely heard of it, seems a bit similar to Martial Combat Chess?"

Qian Huan smiled, not caring whether Qin Liang could understand, and simply explained: "The Xiangqi board consists of nine vertical and ten horizontal lines, with a horizontal line in the middle separating them, signifying the river boundary between enemy and us."

"There are seven types of pieces on the board: General, Advisor, Elephant, Horse, Chariot, Cannon, and Soldier, each with corresponding characteristics and uses."

Qin Liang didn't understand the significance, merely nodding along in agreement.

Qian Huan continued: "Li Bashan is the Chariot I selected; he can hold off a thousand men alone, charge horizontally and vertically, and when killing people, he is most devastating."

Qian Huan sighed: "And on this board there is yet another piece, named Soldier."

"Before crossing the river, the Soldier can only move straight forward, rigid and stiff like a string-pulled puppet, hence often serving as forward bait or launching suicidal charges to trade pieces."

Qin Liang now understood; isn't this exactly the value of a discarded pawn? He played along: "So, Feng Mu is that Soldier?!"

Qian Huan first nodded, then shook his head, and said in a deep voice: "He originally should have been, but since he has forged a path to survival, it is as if the Soldier has crossed the river boundary. In Xiangqi terminology, this is called 'a Soldier that has crossed the river'."

Although Qin Liang didn't fully grasp the deeper meaning, he couldn't help but repeat: "A Soldier that has crossed the river?"

Qian Huan explained: "Once the Soldier crosses the river, surviving the first round of trading pieces, its usage changes; it can not only advance bravely, but also move horizontally."

Qian Huan paused and said faintly: "Therefore, there is also a saying in Xiangqi — 'A Soldier that has crossed the river can serve as half a Chariot'."

Qin Liang looked at Qian Huan in surprise; he originally thought Qian Huan would continue plotting how to get rid of Feng Mu, but on second thought, he realized he might have thought wrong.

The Prison Warden bore no deep hatred toward Feng Mu; wanting to eliminate the other party was merely for another scheme. Since the plan failed, there was indeed no need to be overly obsessed or frustrated.

He asked: "So, Warden Qian, you plan to bring Feng Mu under your command?"

Qian Huan smiled faintly, confirming Qin Liang's guess: "With no Chariot in hand, using half a Chariot to make do isn't bad."

Qin Liang: "Will Feng Mu be obedient?"

Qian Huan said matter-of-factly: "Promise heavy appointment, lure with great profit; this method may not work on Li Bashan, but it will certainly work on Feng Mu."

Although Qian Huan couldn't deduce and reconstruct how Feng Mu broke the deadlock, analyzing from the result, Feng Mu's mind should be very agile, and he is ambitious.

Qin Liang accepted Qian Huan's judgment; he merely harbored a doubt: "However, Warden Qian, regarding the matter of the hallucinogen, aren't you worried Feng Mu will therefore hold a grudge?"

Qian Huan said quite indifferently: "Feng Mu didn't die, did he? Since he didn't die, if he's smart enough, he won't resent me, this Prison Warden."

Qian Huan grinned: "And if he's not smart enough, that's even better. The poisoner is Wang Cong, the buyer is Tian Tao, the instigators behind the scenes are Chang Wei and Zhou Hu — it won't reach my head even with eight pole-lengths."

Qin Liang looked at Qian Huan's confident smile, and couldn't help feeling a chill in his heart: "The meaning in these words is that you're ready to push Wang Cong out as a scapegoat at any time."

Recalling that just a moment ago he had praised Wang Cong's bright and boundless future, Qin Liang felt his teeth ache with cold:

"So it turns out, Warden Qian, your daily work in the office is just observing who in Second Prison is more suitable to be a discarded pawn? First Feng Mu, then Wang Cong, who will be next?"

Perhaps the explosion-proof glass was too thick, preventing him from clearly seeing the sweat beading on Qin Liang's forehead; Qian Huan didn't pay much attention to the insecurity rising in Qin Liang's heart.

He bent down and pulled out a crumpled resume from the bottom of the drawer, revealing Feng Mu's one-inch photo that appeared calm and composed.

Qian Huan's gaze lingered on the photo for a moment, then he muttered to himself:

"Just don't know if this knife held in hand is sharp enough, how many heads it can sever?"

…..

Meanwhile, Tian Tao tightly grabbed Wang Cong's collar, forcefully pressing his head against the wall, a fierce light flashing in his eyes, gnashing his teeth as he interrogated:

"Speak! Was it you who sold us out?"

Wang Cong's forehead was scraped raw, bleeding skin sticking to the wall plaster; he struggled in pain, eyes wide open, bloodshot, voice hoarse yet firm:

"I didn't."

Tian Tao obviously didn't believe his quibbling, burning with rage, he said:

"You didn't? Then how do you explain Feng Mu not dying? He doesn't look at all like someone who took hallucinogen. Did you not drug him, or did he simply not eat it?"

Tian Tao had taken hallucinogen himself and seen others take it; he knew what the awakened state was like; in short, it absolutely could not be the state Feng Mu was in just now.

Wang Cong felt wronged and resentful in his heart; he also wanted to know why. He roared in a low voice: "He ate it, I saw his insulated bucket was empty."

Tian Tao sneered: "Oh, he ate it, then it can only be that you didn't put the drug in."

Outside the corridor, two prison guards stood watch at the office door, intermittent roars and screams coming from inside.

Suddenly, a howl of pain different from before tore through the air; that sound was sharp and distorted, startling the two prison guards; they immediately pushed open the office door.

The scene behind the door shocked the two prison guards so much they could barely breathe — Tian Tao lay on the ground, one hand tightly covering his cheek, blood slowly seeping through the gaps of his fingers, drop by drop staining the cold floor red.

Wang Cong lay to the side, his clothes covered in chaotic footprints, obviously having suffered a round of kicking and stomping.

The corner of his mouth twisted, swollen and bruised, the smile stretched neurotically to the roots of his ears, emitting bursts of hysterical laughter, spitting out large chunks of blood meat and two blood-stained broken teeth from his mouth.

Tian Tao looked at the blood meat spat onto the ground, he shrieked in shock and anger: "You dare fight back, you dare bite me?"

The pupils of the two prison guards contracted sharply, they watched with their own eyes as Tian Tao reached out to grab those scattered rotten meat, then exposed that shocking left side of his face.

That half of the face was covered in deep bite marks, blood meat blurred, nearly revealing bone, they could even clearly see through the bite marks the blood meat blurred tongue and teeth in his mouth, that scene, enough to make one never forget for a lifetime.

Wang Cong stood up trembling, looking down from above at Tian Tao crouched on the ground picking up rotten meat, laughing like a madman: "Dare bully me anymore, I'll bite you to death!"

End of Chapter