Chapter 27: Misguided Success

The bystander, questioned for watching the commotion, saw the two men emerge from the inner city, looking as though they had been dealt with. Unsure of the situation, he spoke cautiously, only mentioning offhandedly, "They say someone was stealing in the inner city and was personally executed by the Prison Lord."

"Another thief?" Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang exchanged uneasy glances, a shiver running down their spines. They themselves had been arrested on trumped-up charges of theft.

Most people, focused on the mystery surrounding the female corpse's death, paid little attention to the two emerging from the inner city.

People in Zhixu City were constantly moving in and out. Those who had witnessed the two men's arrest had long since departed in successive waves. Few remained to specifically wait for their release, and those who were present were not there on their account.

"Oh, Boss Shi is out! Are you alright?"

Someone asked with surprise and a seemingly concerned expression.

Shi Chun found the face familiar but couldn't place it. He gave a helpless shrug and led a similarly disheveled Wu Jinliang away from the area.

He spotted Lan Qiaoyan in the crowd.

Lan Qiaoyan, who was observing the commotion while protected by several members of Bowang Tower, also saw them. She turned and led her group away, and Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang followed.

After they left, someone remarked to a companion, "They actually made it out alive! Good thing we didn't gloat to their faces earlier, otherwise, knowing those two, they'd surely come looking for trouble."

The companion replied, "Since they're fine, we probably won't see them again. They won't return to Dongjiuyuan, will they? Once Zhixu City is unsealed, they'll likely leave the Land of Exile for good."

The first speaker stroked his chin and nodded, "True."

At Bowang Tower, Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang followed closely behind Lan Qiaoyan's group as they entered.

As they passed through the hall, a young man sitting in a corner, idly guarding a pile of ledgers, looked up, his eyes brightening. He quickly stood up and rushed over to them, examining them from head to toe.

Wu Jinliang chuckled, "Sugar, did you miss us?"

As he spoke, he unslung his satchel, rummaged inside, and pulled out a distinctly layered, colorful stone, which he handed to the young man.

This was an old habit of theirs: whenever they came to see Miss Miao, they would collect unique stones as gifts for the young man.

Their initial access to Miss Miao had been secured by "bribing" the young man.

"Sugar" was a nickname Miss Miao had given the young man because his surname was Sha and he loved sweets; Shi Chun and the others had simply adopted it.

The young man, delighted with the visually striking stone with its distinct layers of color, held it in his hand and then looked at them again. "It's good that you're alright," he said. "I knew you'd be fine once the Boss Lady entered the inner city."

At these words, Shi Chun's eyes flickered. He had sensed a change in the interrogation's tone earlier and had suspected the Boss Lady might have intervened. After all, when they were arrested, he had cried out for "Mother" with Wu Jinliang, holding onto that very hope.

This now all but confirmed his suspicion.

"Little Sha," Old Tan's voice called out.

The others looked over to see Old Tan, who had already entered the back hall, turn and reappear. He fixed the young man with a warning gaze, clearly admonishing him for speaking out of turn.

For Bowang Tower, it was an unwritten rule: they would not interfere in any affairs of the Land of Exile beyond their own business.

The young man seemed to realize his slip of the tongue. He stuck out his tongue but didn't appear particularly afraid of Old Tan, instead quickly scurrying back behind the counter to flip through the ledgers.

Shi Chun quickly approached Old Tan. Just as he was about to request an announcement, Old Tan gave a slight nod and said, "Come in."

Shi Chun quickly bowed in gratitude. Wu Jinliang hesitated for a moment but ultimately braced himself and followed.

They went through the back hall and up the stairs, where they found Lan Qiaoyan gracefully seated, preparing tea in a second-floor hall. Her air of elegant enjoyment was something people in the Land of Exile could only envy.

"Thank you, Boss Lady, for saving our lives," Shi Chun said, stepping forward to bow with cupped hands.

Lan Qiaoyan made a dismissive gesture, an invisible force preventing him from bowing further. "I don't understand what you're saying," she stated. "Has the theft been cleared up?"

Realizing she wouldn't accept the gesture, and perhaps guessing her reasons, he understood that the gratitude should simply be remembered. He relented immediately, shaking his head. "It hasn't been cleared up," he said.

His words stunned both Lan Qiaoyan and Old Tan.

Old Tan interjected, "If it hasn't been cleared up, then how were you released?"

"Ah," Shi Chun sighed helplessly. He then maintained his composed demeanor and explained, "I killed the accuser."

He believed that Lan Qiaoyan's willingness to help him was partly due to his consistently refined demeanor, which clearly distinguished him from the common ruffians. Otherwise, she wouldn't have shown him special consideration all this time.

"What?" Wu Jinliang blurted out, dumbfounded. "That happened? How come I didn't know?"

But now he finally understood what the city guard, who had filed their report, meant when he said the "owner" had died.

The other two were also stunned. Old Tan asked in disbelief, "You killed the alleged victim inside the inner city?"

There was a clear unspoken question in his tone: *Given your reckless actions, why didn't the inner city authorities beat you to death?*

Shi Chun immediately clarified, "It wasn't like that. It was a duel. They said the higher-ups couldn't be bothered with such a minor issue, so they arranged a duel between me and the accuser. The loser would be executed, and the winner set free. I won, and then we were released."

Silence. The hall was so quiet that a pin drop would have been audible. Lan Qiaoyan frowned and muttered, "Are they really that arbitrary?"

She also thought to herself that, in the end, her intervention hadn't been very effective; they had fought their own way out.

Shi Chun's tone then turned melancholic. "However, the case isn't closed," he added. "They said because I killed the accuser, the case couldn't be fully resolved. So, they released us for now, but if any new clues emerge in the future, they'll bring us back from the outside for further interrogation."

At this point, he couldn't help but sigh, lamenting his fate. Others left the Land of Exile to gain freedom, but he was leaving with a loose end, which was tantamount to a hidden danger. Who knew when it might resurface?

It also left him with a lingering worry, preventing him from feeling happy about his impending departure.

"Something like that can happen?" Lan Qiaoyan was surprised. She turned to Old Tan again. "Old Tan, can the Life Prison really release people under such conditions?"

Old Tan shook his head in astonished disbelief, clearly having never heard or seen anything like it.

After another moment of silence in the hall, the matter was temporarily dropped. Any remaining questions would have to be clarified later.

Lan Qiaoyan changed the subject, asking, "What's the story about Qi Yueru being beaten to death by the Prison Lord for stealing?"

Although Shi Chun was somewhat sensitive to the surname Qi, he had no idea who Qi Yueru was. He only grasped the context from the mention of the "Prison Lord" and countered, "Is that the person hanging at the city gate?"

"She's Shen Youkun's mother. Didn't you know?" Lan Qiaoyan said meaningfully.

"What?" Wu Jinliang blurted out first, and the two brothers exchanged glances once more.

This time, Shi Chun questioned in disbelief, "How could Shen Youkun's mother possibly have gone into the inner city to steal?"

Realizing they weren't feigning ignorance and genuinely seemed unaware, Lan Qiaoyan ceased questioning. She picked up her tea, took a sip, and then slowly set the cup down. "The story about Qi Yueru going to Zhixu City and being personally beaten to death by the high-ranking Prison Lord for stealing—I don't believe it," she stated. "Something else must have angered the Prison Lord.

"Her son is dead, her brother is dead, and now Qi Yueru herself is dead. That entire group might have engaged in some illicit activities within the Land of Exile. I don't know how deeply you two are involved or what exactly transpired, but the Qi family surely knows.

"It's no secret that you two offended Shen Youkun. Now, with the Prison Lord personally killing Qi Yueru, those who are aware understand what he's investigating. The Qi family, knowing their guilt, will only dare to seek superficial justice and will certainly avoid any visible connection to that illicit affair.

"Especially since the details of your recent arrest and release are somewhat unclear, the Qi family will likely be too afraid to have any further association with you. I'm not sure if you fully grasp what I'm saying, but in essence, the Prison Lord's decisive action this time was an unexpected boon for you, effectively solving a major problem."