Chapter 44

On New Year’s night, the prison broke routine and didn’t conduct its usual study session. Instead, they extended the free activity period to four hours, a rare New Year’s treat for the inmates. Most chose to watch TV, enjoying the privilege of picking their own programs for the evening. In the nearly isolated world of prison, this simple pleasure felt like an immense blessing.

The audiovisual room was packed, with all eyes fixed on a small black-and-white television. The room was quiet, everyone absorbed in the screen. The inmates settled on watching a Hong Kong and Taiwan pop music awards show. An Xiaohai joined the crowd, forgoing his usual workout for the night. After all, even the hardest worker needs rest—stringing oneself too tight can lead to snapping.

This period was the height of the golden age of pop music from Hong Kong and Taiwan, with one iconic singer after another performing live. Songs like Boundless Oceans Vast Skies, Goodbye Kiss, The Sea, Love as Deep as the Ocean, A Cloud of Rain in the Wind, and Love like a Tide filled the air. An Xiaohai watched and listened intently.

In another life, An Xiaohai had lived in constant suffering, missing out on all the beauty the world had to offer. He was determined not to let this happen again. But when the song The Fish That Swims All Day Long came on, he was almost overwhelmed with emotion. The lyrics struck a personal chord.

Lin Xuan’er, whom he missed deeply, was enrolled in a strictly managed boarding school where students weren’t allowed to go home except during summer and winter breaks. Even writing letters was prohibited. He sometimes thought that her school wasn’t so different from First Prison itself.

At that moment, a wave of loneliness washed over him. Unbidden, the image of Xu Tianyou’s annoying face appeared in his mind. He realized that, ever since Xu Tianyou had escaped, he hadn’t had anyone to talk to among the inmates. Then again, he’d prefer to never see Xu Tianyou again if he could help it.

The next day, Yang Yuanbing, a rarely seen officer, approached An Xiaohai with a new air of satisfaction. It seemed he had gained some advantage in the latest round of personnel changes. “Just a heads-up,” Yang said, lighting a cigarette and offering one to An Xiaohai, who took it and lit up. “You probably won’t be staying in cell 232 for much longer.”

An Xiaohai waited for Yang to continue, knowing there was more. Yang explained that the new Deputy Warden Li had decided to consolidate the inmates into larger cells to make management easier, canceling the smaller cells entirely. The little single cells would now be used for something else, and all those held in them would have to move into bigger, shared cells.

When asked if he had a preference for his new cell, An Xiaohai responded casually, “Anywhere’s fine. I don’t know many people here, but I’d prefer somewhere quiet.”

A few days later, the transfer orders arrived, and cell 232 began packing up. Hu Jianming, putting on his usual false politeness, advised An Xiaohai and Yang Bo to stay low-profile in their new cell. Yang Bo didn’t respond, continuing to pack in silence; An Xiaohai knew Yang was a repeat offender and wouldn’t buy into Hu’s act. Neither would An Xiaohai, but Hu continued to play his role convincingly.

The larger cells, known as the “big dorms,” resembled classrooms filled with bunk beds instead of desks. These dorms typically held thirty inmates, sometimes even seventy to eighty. With no dividers between the bunks, privacy was nearly nonexistent, especially for those closest to the windows. The cells were numbered randomly to prevent outsiders from estimating the prison’s capacity.

Hu Jianming was assigned to the largest dorm, notorious for its chaotic environment with nearly a hundred inmates. An Xiaohai and Yang Bo, however, were moved to Cell 27, one of the smaller dorms, holding just under thirty inmates. An Xiaohai silently thanked Yang Yuanbing for finding him a quieter cell, just as he had requested.

As they entered Cell 27, the other inmates rose and stood in a line at attention. When the metal door clanged shut behind them, An Xiaohai spotted a face among the group that he’d hoped never to see again: Gui Zhilun, a.k.a. Ghost Six, Xu Tianyou’s sworn enemy.