Li Ming paid no attention to Wang Xin's peculiar gaze. He waited until the second officer and Wang Xin had placed Tan Qingqing's bedding and personal belongings into her cell before addressing the second officer.
"Second Officer, you may go rest now. I’d like to speak with them alone. I’ll call for you when I’m ready to leave."
"Yes, Warden! I’ll return to the guardroom then." The second officer saluted and walked back down the corridor.
Li Ming waited until the second officer was out of sight before stepping back into the cell.
Tan Qingqing had already collapsed onto the bed, having been dragged there by the second officer and Wang Xin.
Leaning closer, Li Ming saw that Tan Qingqing had cried herself to sleep, overwhelmed by grief from the earlier ordeal and exhausted from the day’s labor.
He shook his head, pitying her. She was at the prime of her life—she should have been outside, enjoying freedom and living fully. Instead, she lay in a gloomy prison cell, facing a staggering 25-year sentence.
No amount of money could change her circumstances. In this sunless prison, wealth was as worthless as scrap paper.
A flicker of guilt crossed Li Ming’s mind, but he quickly dismissed it. She had brought this upon herself.
Wang Xin, having finished arranging her own bedding, sidled up to Li Ming and nudged him with a finger as she gazed at the pitiable Tan Qingqing.
"What happened to her? Did our dear warden bully this pretty girl into such a state?" Wang Xin whispered with a playful grin.
"She’s struggling to accept reality. I didn’t do anything to her. Keep an eye on her these next few days, and notify the officers if anything seems off. I’m worried she might do something drastic," Li Ming replied with a wry smile.
"Aye-aye, Warden! Your orders shall be carried out!" Wang Xin blinked mischievously, her fingers trailing up to his shoulder.
Li Ming tensed, quickly glancing toward the cell door.
Tan Qingqing was fast asleep, but if the second officer suddenly returned and caught them, it would be disastrous.
"Hey, cut it out!" Li Ming hissed cautiously.
"Huh? You called me here, and it wasn’t for this? You really just wanted me to watch over her?" Wang Xin feigned surprise. Had she misunderstood him again?
"Ahem! Of course not… There are too many people in the block right now! If anything gets out, the whole prison will know by tomorrow. Do I look that reckless?" Li Ming lowered his voice, leaning closer to her ear.
"Tch! What’s there to fear? Just keep quiet… She’s dead asleep—she won’t wake up! Don’t men like you love this kind of thrill? Don’t say I never gave you a chance~"
"Hey, no—ahem!" Li Ming scrambled back, putting distance between them before he lost control and made an irreversible mistake.
Wang Xin giggled at his flustered reaction.
She hadn’t planned on doing anything serious—just teasing him. But seeing him so shy and nervous only stoked her interest further.
Instead of backing off, she pressed closer, resting against his shoulder.
The faint fragrance wafting from Wang Xin made Li Ming sigh inwardly. A mature woman truly was something else—impossible to resist!
But he hadn’t forgotten his original purpose. Finally, he pulled out a small pill from his pocket—emergency contraception—and handed it to Wang Xin under her curious gaze.
"You recognize this, right? I went out of my way to get it for you. We were too caught up last time and didn’t use protection. Take it now, and you won’t have to worry."
As he spoke, he popped the pill from its packaging and offered it to her.
But instead of taking it, Wang Xin gave him a reproachful look, then parted her lips slightly with a soft "Ah~"
Suppressing a sigh, Li Ming placed the pill directly into her mouth.
She swallowed it with a slight movement of her lips, then licked them, still staring at him expectantly.
Their eyes met, and the ever-perceptive Wang Xin broke the silence in a hushed voice.
"Now that I’ve taken the pill you went through so much trouble to get… let’s not waste it, okay~?"
Li Ming gulped before answering in a commanding whisper.
"Then… you’re not allowed to make a sound."
Wang Xin nodded with a sultry smile.
"Yes, Warden!"
……
The cell fell into silence.
Stimulated by the thrill of their surroundings, their encounter reached its conclusion swiftly. Li Ming remained wary of Tan Qingqing suddenly waking up.
Once satisfied, he calmly exited the cell.
Wang Xin felt no reluctance—only contentment. In over a decade, today had been her happiest day.
Li Ming passed the guard post, exchanging a casual nod with the officer on duty before stepping out of the block with an unreadable expression.
All his earlier worries had vanished, replaced by a deep, indulgent satisfaction.
Returning to his office, he freshened up thoroughly.
Now lying in bed, Li Ming mulled over his next steps when his phone buzzed with a message.
He picked it up casually, only to freeze at the familiar name on the screen.
Tan Chengcheng!
Opening the message, he found only a brief line:
"Warden, let’s meet. You choose the time. I’ll be waiting at Tianyi Villa. No matter how long it takes."
……
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?
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
't think I'm that capable, I'm just trying my best to stay alive. I've been kind all my life, never did anything bad, yet worldly suffering spared me not one bit. The human world is a nice place, but I won't come back in my next life. A kind young man, who wanted to just get by singing, but through repeated deceits and betrayals, has gone down an irredeemable path.
