Zheng Xiu headed back to his cell, taking two steps at a time, a look of pure satisfaction on his face.
Recalling Shi Wentong's expression before he left—like he was having a heart attack—made Zheng Xiu want to immediately drop a fortune, hire a famous Painter from the city, and have the scene immortalized as a masterpiece to be passed down in the Zheng Family.
He usually wore a mask, not wanting to offend anyone. But now that they'd all dropped the act, Zheng Xiu certainly wasn't going to be polite.
Of course, the way of business was all about one word: politeness! As a man of principle, he, Boss Zheng, couldn't just go around cursing people, could he?
Zheng Xiu felt he had been polite enough.
Scarface Liu was waiting at the entrance to the dungeons. When he learned that the person meeting with Zheng Xiu was Shi Wentong—a man who held a "wife-stealing grudge" against Boss Zheng—he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.
It wasn't so much that Scarface Liu was worried about Boss Zheng's safety; rather, he was more worried about getting dragged into it himself.
Seeing Boss Zheng return looking so triumphant and pleased with himself, he couldn't help but rub his hands together and sidle closer. "Boss Zheng, your... situation. Is it all taken care of?"
Scarface Liu seemed to have misunderstood the reason for Shi Wentong's visit.
He thought Shi Wentong had let bygones be bygones and was planning to get Zheng Xiu out.
Zheng Xiu glanced at him but offered no explanation. Scarface Liu's position was too low; saying too much would only harm him. So Zheng Xiu just gave a mysterious little shake of his head and a smile.
'It's all left unsaid!'
Scarface Liu "got it in a flash." As long as Zheng Xiu didn't fall from grace, once he got out of prison, with the way he, Scarface Liu, had been taking care of Boss Zheng these past two days...
Scarface Liu was overjoyed. Following behind Zheng Xiu, he thought about how he'd built a connection with the Imperial City's Richest Person. Today was practically enough to bring honor to his ancestors! The thought made Scarface Liu chuckle to himself. HEH HEH.
'The future looks bright!'
Zheng Xiu swaggered back to his cell door and heard the sound of someone wolfing down food next door.
"My lord, doesn't it smell good?"
Zheng Xiu peeked into the dark corner as he passed, nodded to himself, and asked with a smile.
The disheveled old official in the opposite cell looked up at Zheng Xiu's smiling face, his own expression stunned.
Zheng Xiu was actually hoping the man would reply, "It really is good." Having been transmigrated for twenty years, the feeling of no one getting his jokes was truly unbearable.
But he didn't tease the man. Instead, he clasped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute, his tone a mix of respect and apology. "My apologies. I meant no offense with my words. As the saying goes, 'Where there's life, there's hope.' No matter how much injustice or indignation you feel, only by leaving this place alive will you have the chance to fulfill your ambitions, my lord. If you're hungry, I'll have Sixth Brother bring you another lavish meal tomorrow."
Hearing this, Scarface Liu was about to instinctively say, "That's against the rules," but the heavy gold leaf in his pocket told him he shouldn't. So Scarface Liu smacked his lips and nodded, giving his consent.
"Thank you for your generosity, Sixth Brother."
'You're the one being generous, Master Zheng.'
Scarface Liu was both conflicted and relieved. He was conflicted because his job might be on the line if this continued, but relieved because with Boss Zheng's power, he probably wouldn't be in here for more than a few days. How could a place this small possibly contain a gold-plated Fierce Tiger like Zheng Xiu?
"HUMPH!"
The fellow prisoner wanted to throw his meal out in anger, but the dishes were just too fragrant. Besides, Zheng Xiu's last words had sounded sincere. The old man crawled to the bars and silently pushed out the exquisite tray without saying another word.
"Lord Jiang, you really don't know how to appreciate kindness."
Seeing the old official's attitude, Scarface Liu shot him a coolly sarcastic remark. Zheng Xiu, now back in his cell, waved his hand, signaling for Scarface Liu to watch his mouth. When Zheng Xiu held up his empty hands and smiled, motioning for Scarface Liu to lock him back up, Scarface Liu's eyes darted. He grinned, mimicking Zheng Xiu's calm and nonchalant air with a wave of his hand, and declared righteously, "I can lock anyone up, but not you, Master Zheng! Who in the Imperial City doesn't know of your integrity? There's no need, no need at all!"
"Thank you for your consideration, Sixth Brother."
Before stepping into the cell, Zheng Xiu suddenly remembered something and closed his eyes.
He quickly opened them again, his expression serious, and entered the cell.
Old Liu was about to close the door when, unexpectedly, Zheng Xiu walked back out.
"Zheng—"
"Hold on. I've been cooped up all day. Let me stretch my legs a bit."
Zheng Xiu came out, closed his eyes, went in, closed his eyes, came out again, and closed his eyes again.
He went back and forth like this five or six times.
Scarface Liu felt he couldn't just stand by and watch Boss Zheng trample the laws of Daqian with this silent protest.
So he quickly closed his eyes.
Seeing this guard and businessman enact such a blatant show of collusion right in front of him, Lord Jiang felt his recently calmed anger flare up again. He let out a cold snort.
"PHEW..."
After going in and out more than ten times, Boss Zheng finally seemed to have had enough. He walked into the cell on his own accord, though his expression was now tinged with frustration.
"CLICK."
The handcuffs and shackles could be left off, but the door had to be locked for appearances' sake. Scarface Liu locked the cell door securely. Zheng Xiu then beckoned Old Liu over and asked in a low voice, audible only to the two of them, about Lord Jiang's background.
Logically, having been here for so long, Scarface Liu must have a clear idea of who he could and couldn't afford to offend. Judging by his attitude toward Lord Jiang, it seemed he was certain the man was never getting out. Curious, Zheng Xiu decided to inquire about his identity.
"You don't recognize him, Master Zheng?" Scarface Liu asked, astonished. "That's Lord Jiang Gaoyi, the Governor of Yanzhou!"
'So it's him?' Zheng Xiu was momentarily stunned, thinking to himself that he really hadn't recognized him.
Zheng Xiu had seen Jiang Gaoyi from a distance once, three years ago. The Jiang Gaoyi of today was tan and gaunt, as if he'd shed a layer of skin; he looked completely different from before.
He remembered three years ago, when he had planned to open some branch businesses in Yanzhou. Everything had been arranged with the lower-level officials, but the permits for a few key plots of land were held up by Jiang Gaoyi. At the time, Zheng Xiu had the door slammed in his face, so to speak. The word was that Lord Jiang disliked rich merchants and simply refused to see him.
Later, Zheng Xiu had someone higher up apply a little pressure, and Jiang Gaoyi was forced to approve the permits. In the end, Zheng Xiu got what he wanted, having neither made an enemy of nor formed a connection with Jiang Gaoyi. However, judging by the man's current attitude, he probably still held a grudge over it.
Scarface Liu didn't hide anything and explained the reason for Jiang Gaoyi's imprisonment. Apparently, the Ministry of Industry wanted to build a bridge in Yanzhou, but Jiang Gaoyi suspected something fishy with the funding. He filed a memorial to the throne, accusing the Minister of Industry.
After that, he ended up in prison. He'd been rotting in this jail for three months now.
After sending Scarface Liu away, Zheng Xiu acted as if he were turning in for the night. A while later, when the cells were deathly silent, Zheng Xiu shifted his position and squinted toward Jiang Gaoyi's cell.
In the moonlight, Zheng Xiu could faintly make out the man's form facing the wall, sleeping on his side. Judging by his breathing, he should be fast asleep.
"Looks like I'll have to ask Sixth Brother to move Lord Jiang to another cell tomorrow. It'll make things more convenient for me."
Zheng Xiu's earlier antics of going in and out of the cell weren't really about trampling on the laws of Daqian in front of Scarface Liu.
He had unintentionally confirmed something.
Zheng Xiu's Heart Prison could only be entered from within a "prison."
In other words, he had accidentally triggered the Awakening of his Golden Finger's strange phenomenon by being imprisoned. As a "Prisoner," he had to be inside a prison cell to enter the Ghostly Realm.
If he had understood this before his Awakening of [Divine Travel], Zheng Xiu would have weighed the pros and cons and probably decided to let it go. The experiences of that one night hadn't brought him any tangible benefits, so it would have been better to focus on solving his current problems and getting out of jail.
But!
Things were different now!
He could get stronger just by being in prison!
Anyone else might find it stifling, but who was he? The Richest Person! At worst, he could just renovate the cell into a private villa. He could still do his time!
He had comprehended [Divine Travel] just by clearing the first scene. According to the text prompts, something called a "Path" was mentioned. What if he went deeper into this "Path"?
What other Abilities would he comprehend?
Thinking of this, Zheng Xiu decided he wasn't leaving.
At least, not in the short term.
Wait.
Zheng Xiu suddenly wondered, how exactly was this "prison" defined?
'Suppose I were to dig a basement in my own courtyard,'
'Stock it with some handcuffs, shackles, a wooden horse, leather whips, candles, incense, and all that for effect. Set the scene, and then just lie down inside.'
'Would that...'
'Count?'
...
...
...
Boss Zheng began to seriously consider the feasibility of this plan.