Chapter 447

The dishes were Li Ji's braised pork knuckle from Front Street, Zhang Dàsǎo's beef shop's boiled white beef, tripe with three flowers, four-joy pork skin puffs, a plate of peanuts, and a plate of sweet and sour radish.

The wine was Wang Family Wine Shop's "Drunken Immortal Old Man".

It was set down hastily before Heng Xian.

Three jailers went out.

Heng Xian took a bite of dish, a sip of wine, looked at the surroundings, which were truly unique, making him feel refreshed and delighted.

The old man looked at him eagerly: "You actually have money?"

Heng Xian said: "When I came in, they didn't search my person!"

The old man said: "Then you must have some status!"

Heng Xian said: "Not bad, my fiancée is Princess Taiping, and I hold the title of Champion Marquis!"

The old man blinked: "Royal kin and nobility plus a marquis?"

Heng Xian nodded: "Yes!"

The old man asked curiously: "Is Champion Marquis the one who is brave above all armies, invincibly courageous marquis?"

Heng Xian said: "I made it up, I think it sounds nice, it's what I want!"

The old man grinned and gave a thumbs-up: "Interesting!"

"Passable!" Heng Xian ate a peanut.

The old man said: "Even if you have money, how dare you bribe the jailers? How do you know they're greedy for wealth?"

Heng Xian said slowly: "Carriage, boat, shop, and runners—innocent people also deserve death; what do these little clerks and runners seek? Nothing but wealth!"

The capital's eight great prisons, the other seven are rich in profits, only here there is none—do you know why? Because this is a prison for major criminals, outsiders cannot approach; it's rare to see someone like me giving money, how could they not want it?

The old man laughed: "Marquis, you're quite particular!"

"I accept!" Heng Xian scrutinized him: he was small and slight, his cultivation vague, possibly Qi Hai Realm or Primordial Dan Realm, his essence scattered, not like a reclusive master; could such a person help him break out of prison? And what Fate Opportunity remained?

At this point, the old man seemed to lose interest in conversation, yawned, turned over and went to sleep!

From beginning to end, he was only interested in Heng Xian's behavior, having no interest in the food and drink at all!

This was quite beyond Heng Xian's expectation!

A guy who's been locked up for over a hundred years, eating rats and bugs daily to supplement nutrition, actually doesn't like food and wine?

The idea of using food and drink to bribe him seems still open to discussion!

"How do you find this table of food and wine?" Heng Xian asked deliberately.

"Not great!" the old man pouted his buttocks, still quite oval.

Heng Xian said: "Seems tastier than rat meat!"

The old man said: "No! Eating rat meat doesn't incur punishment!"

Heng Xian said: "You mean... eating food and wine will bring punishment?"

The old man sneered: "The prison's chief is named Sun Ajiu, famous for being impartial, especially hostile to wealth and power; when he encounters prisoners who bribe jailers, he tortures them to death immediately—you're out of luck!"

Heng Xian laughed: "Nothing is certain!"

The old man insisted: "Certain!"

Heng Xian said: "Shall we make a bet?"

The old man said: "Bet on what?"

Heng Xian said: "I bet that the chief Sun Ajiu you speak of will not only not punish me, but will kneel before me!"

The old man sneered: "Pure nonsense!"

Heng Xian drank on his own: "Just watch!"

……

After the food and wine were finished, the tray had already been taken away.

In the cell it was pitch black, wails came and went from nearby, and the foul sour smell in the air never dissipated.

Heng Xian didn't remember how long he'd been inside—perhaps seven or eight hours, maybe a day.

Along the way he used a little favor, bribed a jailer who seemed slightly higher in rank, and asked him about the outside situation.

The situation was dire—

The Imperial City Guard and the Xiāoqí Wèi, along with the Black Riders, fought for several hours; the Xiāoqí Wèi suffered heavy casualties, while the Black Riders lost over half their number!

In the palace, something major happened—rumor has it a consort was poisoned by the Empress! His Majesty the Emperor has vanished!

The Crown Prince and the Prince of Wu escaped the capital!

The Prince of Qin is preparing to proclaim himself emperor!

The Chang Gongzhu rode the Nine Xi carriage, proclaiming herself Imperial Princess!

Even a lowly jailer knows only limited things, yet he's heard all this—so the true inside story must be even more shocking!

But there's no news of Ji Yaoyue!

Perhaps in this palace coup, a powerless princess like her is no longer noticed!

Heng Xian felt a bit anxious, yet the Heavenly Hexagram gave him only two options: surrender or rely on the neighboring old man!

He leaned more toward the old man's path, but that road required subduing the old man, and subduing the old man first meant dealing with the chief Sun Ajiu the old man mentioned!

He suddenly eagerly awaited the arrival of Chief Sun Ajiu!

So he walked to the cell door, looked outside, and shouted loudly: "I'm filthy rich, yet so lonely!"

The neighboring old man glanced up, cursed, and lay down again!

That shout seemed effective; not long after, hurried footsteps came from outside, and soon over a dozen fierce-looking jailers escorted the three who had brought Heng Xian food yesterday, under the leadership of a big-bearded chief, rushing over!

The group seemed like emissaries from hell; wherever they passed, all fell silent, as if the air had turned cold.

The neighboring old man shrank his whole body into the hay pile!

A group of prison guards and the ward chief finally stopped in front of Heng Xian's cell, the poor-quality torch casting an especially sinister light on the ward chief's big-bearded face!

"I am Prison Overseer Sun Ajiu; is it really Heng Xian in there?" the big-bearded man said coldly.

Heng Xian sat upright, unmoving: "It's your father!"

Sun Ajiu flew into a rage: "Utterly outrageous! Yesterday you bribed the prison guards, and today, seeing me, you still dare to speak insolently! Come on! Open the cell door and prepare the torture!"

Yes!

Five prison guards opened the cell door and laid out five sets of torture instruments:

a nail-pulling mechanism, three hundred and sixty fine needles, three hundred poisonous bees, three flesh-slicing knives, and ten-finger clamps!

Each of these things can make life worse than death!

The old man next door glanced over cautiously, his body shrinking even smaller.

Heng Xian remained calm and composed. Seeing several guards preparing to unleash the torture devices and rush at him, he inexplicably said: "Dear wife, dear wife, utterly helpless, among the three unfilial acts, having no offspring is the greatest; in prison we have fate, withered wood meets spring!"

The group of prison guards, including the old man next door, were all stunned, not knowing what kind of madness had overcome him.

Only Sun Ajiu stood frozen, his body trembling slightly, his face uncertain, silent for five breaths, then he waved his hand and said: "You all, retreat!"

The prison guards looked at each other, then turned and left.

When no one was nearby, Sun Ajiu took a couple of steps into the cell, thudded to his knees before Heng Xian, and said: "Poetry Sage sir, help me!"

"No problem!" Heng Xian took out a packet of something and handed it to him, then whispered a few words in his ear.

Sun Ajiu widened his eyes: "Does it really work?"

Heng Xian said: "Gone is the 'ma' character!"

Sun Ajiu kowtowed again, turned and left, quickly disappearing down the prison passage.

The torch was still there, the oil sizzling, its light illuminating the old man next door's wide-eyed old face.

He looked at Heng Xian, as if seeing a ghost: "He really knelt before you! How did you manage that? This Sun Ajiu is famous for his inflexible integrity, and he's also a person of Tianhou!"

Heng Xian said leisurely: "Everyone who is human has a weakness!"

The old man next door swallowed his saliva: "What is his weakness?"

Heng Xian said: "His wife is beautiful inside and out, gorgeous to the point of bubbling over, and skilled in the art of seduction; his two concubines are all top courtesans, gorgeous girls, wildly wanton!"

Unfortunately, he messed up his cultivation early on, his breath went chaotic and his meridians snapped, rendering him impotent; he hasn't been able to lift his head to see the sunrise for ten years! This is practically his fatal weakness!

The old man next door widened his eyes: "This is more than a weakness—it's an utter waste of heavenly gifts!"

Heng Xian said: "So, if you were him, and you met someone who could help him solve his problem, what would you do?"

The old man next door snarled: "Kowtow! Beg for help!"

Heng Xian nodded: "Hmm, the young can be taught!"

The old man next door said: "But... how do you know his secret?"

Heng Xian said: "I can calculate!"

Just as his words fell, Sun Ajiu came running back from outside, laughing wildly: "Benefactor! It works, it works! Hahaha..."

Heng Xian and the old man next door looked over, and involuntarily exclaimed in unison: "Not small at all!"

(End of chapter)