Repayment

"Okay, okay, three minutes!"

Li Ming turned and dashed into the bathroom, quickly washing up.

They say tall, fair, and handsome people look good even without clothes! Li Ming gave his face a quick rinse, and once again, his looks dominated.

Lin Xi was stunned—how could someone go into the bathroom for two minutes and come out looking like a completely different person? The disheveled mess from before was gone, replaced by a striking man.

Not dwelling on her surprise, Lin Xi led Li Ming toward the counseling room.

On the way, Li Ming asked curiously, "Why does this inmate want to see me? What's going on?"

Lin Xi glanced back at him with an exasperated look but answered anyway.

"She says you look like her dead husband. She’s been hysterical, demanding to see you—threatening to kill herself if she doesn’t. Earlier, she smashed her head against the wall in her cell. The guards couldn’t handle her, so they reported it to me. You need to calm her down. Don’t let her get too worked up. She’s got three years left on her sentence, and she’s been a model inmate. We can’t let her do something stupid now."

"Huh? I look like her dead husband? That’s ridiculous!" Li Ming rubbed his forehead, his expression twisted in disbelief.

"Ridiculous or not, if an inmate commits suicide in prison, you, as the warden, will be held responsible! Be smart about this—don’t make things worse!"

With that, Lin Xi pushed open the door to the counseling room.

Li Ming followed closely behind. Inside, a female inmate sat waiting.

To his surprise, the woman wasn’t old at all—far from the elderly figure he’d imagined.

Years without sunlight had left her skin pale but still firm. The thin prison uniform couldn’t hide her curvaceous figure. Her posture was straight, her face delicate, and for a moment, Li Ming almost forgot where he was.

She didn’t look like a prisoner. She looked like a lady of refinement.

The moment Li Ming entered, the woman’s eyes locked onto him.

He saw a flicker of joy in her gaze, but Lin Xi paid no mind, stepping forward to unlock the woman’s handcuffs so she could move freely.

Then the inmate spoke.

"Deputy Warden Lin, could you step outside for a moment? I’d like to speak with him alone."

Lin Xi didn’t seem surprised. She nodded, then leaned closer to Li Ming and whispered, "There’s no surveillance in here. I’ll be right outside. If anything happens, shout."

Li Ming waved her off without a word.

What could possibly happen to him, a grown man?

Once Lin Xi left, Li Ming sat across from the woman.

"I heard you asked for me because I look like your late husband? Do I really?" he asked, curious.

The woman slowly shook her head and lowered her voice.

"Warden, I lied to them. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have let me see you."

"Wait, what? Then why did you want to see me?" Li Ming was even more confused now. He couldn’t think of any connection between them.

"I… I need your help, Warden. I won’t ask for free—I’ll repay you. Anything you want. If you’re willing… you can even have me." Her voice trembled as she reached across the table and grabbed his hand.

"Hey, calm down. Tell me what you need first." Li Ming was taken aback. Her bold words left him scrambling for composure.

"Warden… I’m 35 now. When I was 14, my late husband kidnapped me. He forced me to bear his child. He was a drug dealer. When I was arrested, he was shot dead on the spot. I was involved too—not by choice—but I still got 15 years. Now, I have less than three years left. I just wanted to serve my time quietly and start over when I got out. But…"

"But last month, my older sister came to visit. She told me my daughter is running around with shady men. She’s even set a date to marry some lowlife! My daughter hates me. She’s never visited in all these years. The only news I get is from my sister. I’m terrified for her! But I’m stuck here! I have no choice but to beg you, Warden!"

"Please… could you go see her? Find out how she’s really doing. See if the man she’s marrying is good to her. I don’t want her ruined, walking the same path I did! Please, Warden! I’ll get on my knees! I’ll do anything you ask!"

Her grip on his hand tightened, and suddenly, she dropped to the floor with a thud, kneeling before him.

Li Ming lunged forward, pulling her up in alarm. "Stop this! Get up!" He forced her back into the chair, afraid she might hurt herself in her desperation.

"Warden! The only person I care about in this world is my daughter! Even though she never visits me, not a single day goes by that I don’t think of her. It’s all my fault for failing to protect her. I don’t blame her for hating me—I just want her to be happy, even if she never acknowledges me as her mother for the rest of her life. Please, Warden! You’re a good man, please help me!" Tears streamed down the woman’s face, enhancing her delicate features.

"It’s just checking on how she’s doing, right? Fine, no problem, I’ll help you! Stop crying, though. You’ll have to tell me where she lives, how old she is, and what her name is." Li Ming couldn’t stand seeing women cry. Watching her weep so pitifully twisted his heart.

Her circumstances were already tragic enough, earning his sympathy, and now with her like this, Li Ming couldn’t bring himself to refuse.

Besides, his system reward—his intuition—hadn’t given him any warning, meaning this prisoner wasn’t lying. Everything she said was true, so he had even less reason to turn her down.

"Thank you, Warden! Thank you so much! You’re truly a good person! There are no cameras here—let me help you! Don’t worry, I’m clean! The prison does regular checkups, I’m disease-free!" Overjoyed that Li Ming had agreed, the female prisoner beamed. With nothing else to offer in gratitude, she lowered herself…

"Hey! No, no! That’s not necessary! Stop! I said I’d help you, so I will—what are you doing?!" Li Ming shot a nervous glance toward the door.

The counseling room indeed had no surveillance. Prison psychological sessions had to account for inmates’ emotions—if cameras were present, they’d never lower their guards enough to open up.

But just because there were no cameras didn’t mean the room was soundproof! Lin Xi was right outside the door, and she’d even said to call if anything happened. For all he knew, she might be pressing her ear against the door right now!

He wouldn’t dare do something like this in broad daylight even if he had twice the courage!

"Relax, Warden! I’ve been in this prison for over a decade. Unless someone’s shouting, no sound gets out of this counseling room. I have nothing else to repay you with except myself. Please don’t look down on me, Warden. Aside from my late husband, I’ve never been with another man."