Chapter 718: Why Do You Look So Much Alike

"Are you Dong Yu?"

Inside the prison, Shen Yu saw Dong Yu, who had been suppressing his own power, though the scene was somewhat different from what he had imagined.

In Shen Yu's mind, Dong Yu at this time should have been mired in resentment and entanglement, or even cynical toward the world.

Anyone who had always tried their best to help others, only to be bitten back in the end, and even misunderstood, cursed, or humiliated by everyone they had once helped, would surely not feel very comfortable.

It would not be impossible for someone more extreme to have completely blackened at this point, falling into becoming an avenger who takes total revenge on others.

In Shen Yu's view, Dong Yu at this time should have been gloomy, with hatred flowing endlessly like a tide.

But when Shen Yu saw Dong Yu, he discovered that he was using weeds folded into a brush to practice calligraphy on the ground in the prison, completely absorbed and unaware of his surroundings.

Even though Shen Yu had been standing at the cell door for quite a while, he had not noticed, his entire mind immersed in the calligraphy.

The characters he wrote were vigorous and powerful, with iron strokes and silver hooks, and an invisible, clanging iron-like aura permeated through the handwriting on the ground.

Even in dirty, messy prison clothes, it could not cover the gentle and refined temperament on Dong Yu's body.

It was as if this was not some commoner, but a well-educated young nobleman.

On him, one could not see a hint of hatred, nor any anxiety or nervousness.

From the conversations of the jailers, Shen Yu understood that Dong Yu already knew his fate, and that his death was not far off.

To know that he had been sentenced to death by the Prefect and still remain calm—this temperament alone was something ordinary people could never reach.

"Who are you?" After finishing the characters, Dong Yu noticed Shen Yu standing outside the cell door, a look of surprise appearing on his face.

It was not just because he had never seen this person before, but he was even more surprised that someone had actually come to see him.

During this time, all he had received were insults and curses; even the friends, relatives, and neighbors who once regarded him as a brother or nephew cast malicious glares at him.

Yet from Shen Yu's eyes, he did not feel a hint of malice; instead, he seemed to see a trace of appreciation.

Heh, appreciation—what was there left about him now that was worth appreciating?

"Dong Yu, Xue Sha asked me to save you; she told me everything about your situation. Come with me, I will help you with your affairs!"

"Xue Sha? That little girl!" Upon hearing this name, a bitter smile appeared on Dong Yu's face, yet it also seemed to carry a touch of comfort.

There were still people in this world who worried about him; even if surrounded by curses and insults, there were still people behind the scenes thinking of him and caring for him.

It had to be said, this feeling was indeed quite good, making one's heart feel a bit warm.

"I'm not leaving!" After a long silence, the answer to Shen Yu was a refusal.

"You don't want to leave here?"

"I do want to leave, but there are some things I have not done; if I leave now without clearing them up, wouldn't that be a tacit admission of guilt?"

"Is it really that rigid?" For a moment, Shen Yu's impression of the Dong Yu before him dropped significantly; upon first meeting, he had felt the other party was steady and upright.

Yet now, after three sentences, he felt the other party was like a bookworm who only knows how to read. His life was about to end, so why couldn't he be flexible at a time like this?

Although it would only take a word for Shen Yu to save him, for some reason, Shen Yu suddenly felt interested in arguing with him; this bookworm would suffer later if he didn't know how to be flexible.

"If you're admitted, you're admitted; as the saying goes, as long as the green hills remain, there's no need to worry about firewood. Once you're out, as long as you clear your name, what's the harm in being flexible for now?"

"It's not the same!" Smiling and shaking his head, Dong Yu turned to pick up another weed from the side and began writing and drawing on the ground again.

"I can die, but my heart cannot have stains, cannot have cracks. A thousand-mile embankment is destroyed by an ant hole; being flexible is indeed easy, but some things have a first time, and there will be a second."

"If you are flexible for too long, you might even abandon the persistence in your own heart."

"Death is inevitable for everyone, but there are some things that cannot be lost and must not be lost!"

Raising his head to look at Shen Yu, a sense of determination shone in Dong Yu's eyes—a resolve that would not regret even if he died a hundred times.

At this moment, Shen Yu seemed to see that terrifying power hidden within his body, constantly crashing and trying to break through its restraints.

Although this power was terrifyingly strong, it was firmly suppressed within a small radius, trapped inside his flesh and blood without leaking a single bit.

The persistence in his heart was the strongest seal.

At this moment, Shen Yu understood: the person before him was no bookworm, nor was he unable to be flexible; he simply could not be.

Even knowing that staying meant death, he still refused to give up the slightest possibility, all to perfectly seal the power within his body.

Although this person had no strength to truss a chicken and had always been obscure, he was a true hero.

"Where is the prisoner Dong Yu? Has there been anything unusual about Dong Yu these past few days?"

Just at this moment, a voice suddenly reached Shen Yu's ears, followed by a burst of hurried footsteps.

"My Lord, Dong Yu is right inside the cell. If you ask about anything unusual these days, it's just that he spends every day writing on the ground with weeds; other than that, there's nothing."

"Oh? Still in the mood to practice calligraphy? Is this Dong Yu truly not afraid of death, or does he have some other reliance? Or perhaps he knows he won't die, or that someone will come to save him?"

"No, My Lord, rest assured; with me watching, not even a fly could fly in, let alone take someone away from me."

"My Lord, I have been a jailer since I was sixteen, nearly twenty years now. Since I have been guarding this place, there has never been the slightest... you, who are you?"

Just as the Jailer was boasting to the Prefect beside him, he looked up and saw Shen Yu talking to Dong Yu; sweat instantly poured down his forehead.

I had just finished bragging, and right in front of me, a living person was standing openly inside the prison; this slap to the face was enough to make it swell.

The most terrifying thing was the Prefect beside him, whose face had turned iron-blue, causing the Jailer to stumble over his words.

"Didn't you say not even a fly could fly in? What is this?"

"This, My Lord, this, I..."

"Shut up, go call for men, now!"

"Yes, yes, I'm going, I'm going right now!"

The Jailer beside him scrambled away, leaving the Prefect alone, and then he realized something.

This isn't right; didn't this just leave me here by myself?

Remaining calm, the Prefect was nonetheless imposing without anger, his face still carrying a bit of majesty.

"Who are you, daring to break into this restricted prison and meet privately with the death-row prisoner Dong Yu? You truly do not know what death is. Leave now and I might show mercy, otherwise...!"

"Otherwise what?" Turning back to look directly at the other party, the sharp gaze made the Prefect tremble.

Why did this gaze feel like a knife, scraping until it hurt all over?

"As a Prefect, you judge cases recklessly; have you ever tried the case, have you ever investigated the matter, and how is this any different from treating human lives like grass?"

"Absurd! This official handles cases with both human and material evidence present; is that something you can question at will? Be sensible and withdraw quickly; you should know that Lord Shen Yu, Shen Yu, is nearby. Lord Shen cannot tolerate even a grain of sand in his eyes, so do not ruin yourself!"

"Is that so? Knowing that Shen Yu cannot tolerate a grain of sand in his eyes, you still dare to act this way. Also, who told you that Shen Yu is nearby? Tell me, if Shen Yu knew about the things you have done, what would your end be?"

"You, I..." For a moment, the Prefect appeared somewhat stammering, not knowing how to respond.

Especially when looking at this face of Shen Yu, for some reason, the more he looked, the more familiar it felt, and he always felt as if he had seen it somewhere before.

"Hey, that's not right; why does this kid look so much like the portrait of Lord Shen?"