"Let's go!" Li Ming called out with his hands behind his back, then led Tan Qingqing away from the factory area.
As they walked, Li Ming probed Tan Qingqing for information.
"If you don’t want to work, you should’ve gotten out sooner. Why haven’t your family made any moves? My phone hasn’t rung once—are the people you contacted really that powerful?"
After speaking, Li Ming observed Tan Qingqing’s expression. Though she looked troubled, there was no trace of despair in her eyes—clearly, she had full confidence in her so-called family.
"Warden, I’m considered a serious offender now. Of course, it’s not that easy to get me out. I’d love to leave sooner too. How about… we make a deal?" Tan Qingqing looked at Li Ming expectantly, waiting for his response.
"What kind of deal? What are you up to now?"
Li Ming smirked. He knew Tan Qingqing wouldn’t obediently work and would eventually beg him.
"Warden! I really can’t handle the labor here. After just an hour, my back aches, my legs cramp—I’m exhausted! How about… you name a price? Just tell me how much it’ll cost for me to stay here without working."
Tan Qingqing put on a flattering smile. At this point, she didn’t dare give Li Ming any attitude—the work was simply too grueling. She just wanted to get out of it for now.
"Oh? You want me to name a price? Then… one million?" Li Ming tested the waters.
"One million… Fine! It’s a deal. Until I get out, don’t make me work. I’ll stay quietly in the cell block—I swear!" Tan Qingqing quickly raised her hand in a vow, afraid Li Ming might change his mind.
"Oh? So obedient? Then… ten million!" Li Ming didn’t care about her vow. Without blinking or flinching, he raised the price.
"You—! Fine! Ten million it is! I’ll pay! But you have to promise me the conditions I just mentioned!" Tan Qingqing was furious. They’d agreed on one million, but this bastard Li Ming just upped the price without hesitation—no sense of honor at all!
"Oh-ho! Then… one hundred million!?" Seeing that Tan Qingqing had agreed to ten million, Li Ming realized this woman was no ordinary person—she clearly had money to burn. But since he held all the cards, he kept a straight face and raised the stakes again.
"You—! Li Ming!! Are you serious?! Are you messing with me?!" Tan Qingqing couldn’t hold back anymore. Li Ming was insatiable! Who negotiates like this, increasing the price tenfold each time? And going back on his word! Even if she agreed now, he’d probably demand a billion next!
"Hahaha, don’t get worked up! Calm down! Truth is, I’m not really short on money. If you tell me one thing, I’ll make sure you don’t have to work for the next two weeks—you can relax in the cell block. How’s that?" Li Ming winked, dangling the offer temptingly.
"Really? Then don’t go back on your word again! What do you want to know?" Tan Qingqing was desperate to avoid work. Right now, she just wanted to placate Li Ming, but money clearly didn’t sway him.
Instead of asking immediately, Li Ming led Tan Qingqing out of the cell block and into the prison yard.
The inmates were all working, and apart from a few guards on duty in the distance, only Li Ming and Tan Qingqing were present.
Li Ming found a bench meant for inmates during breaks and sat down with Tan Qingqing. The weather was lovely, the sunlight warming Li Ming’s face, making him drowsy.
Even Tan Qingqing relaxed on the bench, basking in the sun. But before long, she grew restless.
Li Ming, who had promised to ask her a question, seemed to have forgotten all about it. He ignored her, looking like he might doze off right there.
Watching his lazy demeanor, Tan Qingqing finally couldn’t take it anymore. She scooted closer to him, and when he still didn’t react, she gritted her teeth and tugged at his sleeve.
"Warden! Didn’t you say you had a question for me? Why aren’t you asking?"
Li Ming shifted, lying back on the bench with his hands behind his head, and lazily replied,
"I figured you wouldn’t tell me the truth, so I lost interest. Never mind. You can go back to work later—pretend I never said anything."
"You—! You’re going back on your word again! You—you’re the one who belongs in prison! I’m so mad!!" Tan Qingqing exploded, jumping up from the bench and pointing at Li Ming, too furious to even curse properly.
"I—I’m reporting you!! This is too much!"
Li Ming burst out laughing at Tan Qingqing’s outrage.
"Report me? To whom? I’m the highest authority in this prison. Are you going to complain to me about myself? Hahaha!" Li Ming couldn’t hold back his amusement. Tan Qingqing was actually kind of funny—after all that rage, the best she could come up with was "reporting" him. Adorable, really.
"Alright, fine. I’ll give you one more chance. I’ll ask once. If you lie, then forget it—go back to work and don’t bother me again. Our little deal didn’t include exempting you from labor." Li Ming sat up, crossing his legs and grinning at Tan Qingqing.
"Ask!"
Tan Qingqing’s chest heaved with anger, her face flushed red. In her mind, she wanted to chop Li Ming into pieces and feed him to dogs! How could such a detestable man exist? And to think he had such a handsome face—what a waste! His heart was black, ugly, and rotten!
If Li Ming were the last man on Earth, Tan Qingqing would rather die alone than spare him a single glance!
Though Li Ming didn’t know her exact thoughts, he could guess she was mentally cursing him up a storm. But he didn’t care—he held all the power. Her anger was just impotent rage.
Li Ming idly adjusted his sleeves, then retied his shoelaces, dragging it out until Tan Qingqing looked ready to combust. Finally, he spoke.
"You said your family will get you out. So, which big shot did they contact? Give me a name, and I’ll make sure you have a comfortable two weeks. Deal?"
Li Ming asked casually, but inwardly, he focused on sensing any shifts in his intuition.
But he underestimated Tan Qingqing.
One second ago, she had been fuming, looking like she might drop dead from sheer fury. But the moment Li Ming posed his question, she cooled down instantly, her eyes flashing with disdain.
"Warden… you really think so little of me? Reverse psychology? I know the difference between 15 days of hard labor and 25 years! You’re trying to trick me—are you scared of losing? I never said you’d lose anything. Just turn a blind eye, and when I’m out, I’ll make sure you get a generous gift!"
Now Tan Qingqing thought Li Ming wasn’t just annoying but also ridiculously naive. Did he really take her for a fool? If she weren’t at his mercy, did he think she’d be this accommodating?
...
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
