The Double-Chapter 321 - 119 Father_4

Ah Shun stood at the doorway and, together with Butcher Zhang, lit a torch to peer inside. The prison was eerily dark; all the torches had been extinguished, and visibility was poor. Afraid that Jiang Li might not see the steps on the ground and stumble, Ah Shun was about to remind her to be careful when he saw that Jiang Li didn’t even take the torch and walked down on her own.

Ah Shun: "..."

As a child, Xue Huaiyuan forbade him and Xue Zhao from entering the prison. But every time, Xue Zhao would take him along sneakily; the jailer knew they were the children of Xue Huaiyuan, and understanding that kids are playful and wouldn’t do any harm, he’d turn a blind eye. Jiang Li was not unfamiliar with the prison. Among those imprisoned, there were indeed those who had committed heinous crimes out of sheer wickedness, while others were driven by desperate circumstances to break the law. But they had one thing in common: they were all branded with sin.

Every time Xue Huaiyuan came, he would be dressed in his official uniform that had been washed until it turned white. He had rescued Butcher Zhang who had been wrongly imprisoned and had also brought true criminals who had been evading the law to justice.

Jiang Li had never imagined she would one day see a shadow of her father among those wearing prison garb.

She was grateful that the torches inside the prison were extinguished, and the torches held by Butcher Zhang and Ah Shun were not bright enough for anyone to see the blur over her eyes. She took each step slowly; it looked as if she was being careful not to fall, but only Jiang Li knew that her hands were trembling ever so slightly.

She was afraid.

She feared seeing her father in such a state, the father who had been her and Xue Zhao’s sky from childhood, their towering tree, an upright figure – curled up, losing clarity and memory in the darkness.

Ah Shun’s torch illuminated the faces of the prisoners cell by cell, and cries of injustice suddenly rose one after another. It was unknown how many wrongful cases Feng Yutang had handled, but once a stranger appeared, the cries for justice in the prison would rise in unison. Yet many others merely lifted their eyes indifferently for a glance, as if they had lost all zest for the future – these were people tortured to the point of no longer believing in hope.

No, no, no. As Jiang Li looked at each face, she would breathe a small sigh of relief upon seeing they were not her father, which would immediately be followed by an even more frantic urgency – why hadn’t she found him yet?

Until the last cell.

Ah Shun’s torch had reached the front of the cell, but the person inside huddled in the corner, not knowing whether they were asleep or lying down, adamant in turning their back to Jiang Li without looking back. Ah Shun instinctively glanced at Jiang Li. He had never seen Xue Huaiyuan and didn’t know what he looked like; Butcher Zhang did. But before Butcher Zhang could recognize him, Jiang Li would shake her head even faster.

No one would doubt Jiang Li’s recognition of Xue Huaiyuan. She was even more familiar with Xue Huaiyuan than Butcher Zhang, which is why she could determine if the person inside was Xue Huaiyuan at the first glance.

Ah Shun looked at Jiang Li and saw her suddenly gripping the prison door, her expression turning hazy.

He was invigorated, realizing that with Jiang Li’s expression, the person was undoubtedly Xue Huaiyuan and quickly pulled out the cell key – also found at the doorway.

The cell door swung open at once.

Butcher Zhang was still hesitating; although he recognized Xue Huaiyuan, without seeing the person’s face as they hadn’t turned around, he couldn’t be certain. Though unsure why Ah Shun opened the cell door just after one look at Miss Jiang the Second, Butcher Zhang was about to go in first to check, so as to spare Miss Jiang the Second from potential hurt if it wasn’t Xue Huaiyuan. That’s when he saw the young lady almost unable to contain herself, rushing inside quickly.

Butcher Zhang and Ah Shun both were startled, and Ah Shun called out, "Hey, Miss Biao, your torch..."

Under the dim torchlight, Jiang Li saw that lone figure sitting forlornly in a corner by the cell door, head knocking against the stone wall, hair disheveled. That majestic, tall figure, when did it become so bent, a tiny, thin bundle? Her head buzzed, her knees gave way, and she knelt down.

Ah Shun was shocked and nearly cried out, but Butcher Zhang at his side pulled him back, forcing Ah Shun to swallow his exclamation. His mind was still perplexed; it is said that beneath a man’s knees is gold, Miss Biao wasn’t a man, so kneeling needn’t be so precious, yet no matter the past friendship between Xue Huaiyuan and Miss Biao, or any other connection, Miss Biao’s kneeling like that was somewhat inconceivable.