Chapter 38

A prison is typically designed without major flaws; the real vulnerabilities lie in human nature.

Two prisoners have escaped, and one of them is none other than the infamous Xu Tianyou! This incident at Shenhai City’s First Prison could not be concealed, and it sent shockwaves through the city’s prison system. Almost all police forces in Shenhai were mobilized, setting up both overt and covert checkpoints in a massive effort to recapture Xu Tianyou and his accomplice. Due to the sensitivity of the case, however, the public was not informed. Xu Tianyou was simply too dangerous, and public involvement might lead to unnecessary harm.

The other escaped prisoner, Luo Ji, was the one who had initially filed down the steel bars on the bathroom window. Luo Ji originally planned his escape for two days later, but it seemed that when he returned to the bathroom to continue working on the bars, he found they had already been broken by someone else. Realizing that his secret had been discovered, Luo Ji had no choice but to immediately attempt his own escape.

In a stroke of fortune that may have rubbed off from Xu Tianyou, Luo Ji’s escape was also successful. Like Xu, he managed to vanish without detection. An Xiao Hai guessed that Luo Ji must have found an opportunity to slip away en route, but that detail hardly mattered anymore. What was important was that Xu Tianyou had successfully made it out.

An Xiao Hai couldn’t predict the long-term consequences of this event, for either himself or the city. For now, he would just have to see how things unfolded. As one of Xu Tianyou’s cellmates, An and the two others in Cell 232 were immediately subjected to intense questioning. However, all three—An included—pleaded total ignorance. The prison authorities had no concrete evidence against them, and since the conflict between An Xiao Hai and Xu Tianyou was well-known, An was not considered a prime suspect. Investigators generally assumed that Xu Tianyou and Luo Ji had planned and executed the escape together.

Luo Ji, being a low-level drug dealer, seemed like a plausible accomplice for Xu. To outside observers, it made sense that the two would break out together. One could only imagine Luo Ji’s reaction when he heard about the full extent of the case.

Later that afternoon, Captain Wang Tiejun arrived. Since both fugitives were drug dealers he had previously apprehended, his presence was required.

“Are you really uninvolved in all this?” Wang asked An Xiao Hai, his expression laced with doubt.

“Why would I help Xu Tianyou escape?” An Xiao Hai retorted, trying to sound impatient.

Although his tone suggested irritation, An was careful to display just enough frustration to appear believable as an innocent young man wrongly accused. If he seemed too calm, Wang might grow even more suspicious. An understood the importance of maintaining a functional relationship with Wang; otherwise, the safety net he had cultivated with him could collapse entirely.

“If you hear or know anything, you need to tell me. Xu Tianyou is dangerous, and you know that better than anyone,” Wang warned.

Wang had been monitoring An Xiao Hai for some time. He knew of the physical altercations and apparent hostilities between An and Xu, which could either be genuine or a ploy. If Xu’s escape truly surprised An, then their animosity was real, and Xu’s newfound freedom could endanger An. If, however, An had known about the escape, their hostility was an act designed to reduce suspicion on An after Xu’s escape. In either case, An was now in serious danger—whether of harm or of further criminal entanglement.

Wang studied An for a long moment but couldn’t detect any clues. Eventually, he sighed, perhaps relieved. After all, catching one escaped criminal was a challenge, but he could still do it. But if a young man were to completely lose his way, he might be lost forever.

“Fine, we’ll leave it there. Any other news you’ve heard recently?”

“I picked up some talk, but I can’t say if it’s true,” An replied.

“Let’s hear it.”

“I heard some people at the Moonlight International Club are dealing drugs, and in significant quantities. A small-time pusher mentioned it in passing, but he could’ve just been venting.”

This particular drug dealer did operate out of Moonlight International, though this detail would not come to light until a year later. An couldn’t confirm if the dealer was active yet, but he shared the rumor anyway. By giving Wang a fresh lead, An could divert Wang’s focus from himself. If Wang made any arrests, it would serve as a small favor in return for An’s help.

“Got it. Anything else?”

“No, there’s not much I can pick up with such limited yard time.”

“Well, you’ve done well. Your intel has been very reliable. Oh, and…was that project with Tian Qiaoguang your idea?”

An replied with a faint smile, “Mutually beneficial, I’d say. He gets to earn recognition, and I get the chance to reduce my sentence. Besides, I really need the money. You know that.”

“If you really want your sentence reduced, I can help with that.”

“I appreciate it, Captain, but no thanks. For reasons I don’t want to go into, I’ll pass for now.”

“Fine, as you wish. You can go now—it’s better not to stay too long and risk arousing suspicion.”

“Goodbye, Captain.”

After An Xiao Hai left, Wang furrowed his brow. His instincts told him that An might not be as uninvolved as he seemed. “I hope the kid doesn’t take the wrong path…” he muttered.

An Xiao Hai, too, felt a flicker of caution. Wang was exceptionally well-informed about the prison’s happenings, which suggested he had a source on the inside—possibly another inmate or even a guard. This was both a blessing and a threat, depending on how things played out. An realized he would need to be more careful in the future.

A week passed, and it was as if Xu Tianyou had vanished into thin air, with no trace of him or Luo Ji, who had escaped on the same day. The officials involved in the manhunt knew that the two had likely gotten far away by now. The chances of recapturing them were slim.

On the eighth day, the restrictions on Cell 232 were lifted, and the inmates returned to their normal routines. When An Xiao Hai returned to the cafeteria, the first person he noticed was Qiu Peng, sporting dark circles under his eyes—clear evidence that he had not reported Xu Tianyou’s escape.

“Poor guy,” An thought, smiling slightly to himself. “But this works in my favor.”

At that very moment, in a remote fishing village called Sha Tau Kok Village, a sleek new Mercedes W126 pulled up in front of a modest fisherman’s home, drawing the attention of the local villagers. A man in a suit, white gloves, and an air of polished professionalism exited the car and quickly opened the back door, performing each movement with precision.

A young man, his hair slicked back, stepped out. He wore a tailored suit, slim black-framed glasses, and had a refined air about him. After retrieving a bundle of neatly wrapped gifts from the car’s trunk, he approached the fisherman’s house, inhaling deeply and straightening his attire as he walked.

The villagers looked on with a mix of curiosity and trepidation. This visitor was clearly here to see Chen Shuifen, who lived with her elderly father in this humble home. But arriving at this time might cause trouble for him, they murmured among themselves.

Had An Xiao Hai been there, he would have been stunned, because the visitor was none other than Xu Tianyou, who had escaped First Prison eight days ago.