Chapter 11

Qin Xiao saw an empty wine jar lying by the bed and knew the old man had no more wine to drink. He coughed and said, "Mr. Shen, do you have any more wine?"

The old drunkard's snoring abruptly stopped, and he immediately sat up. Seeing Qin Xiao standing outside the door, he grinned and said, "Bring the wine, bring the wine. I ran out last night. WatermarkGG test WatermarkGG test"

He was over fifty, with dark skin and a face covered in dirt, as if he hadn't washed for days.

"Of course, I can bring you wine," Qin Xiao said with a smile. "But since the day before yesterday, you've had no money in your account. I've been covering the cost of the last two days' wine, but I can't keep doing that."

The old drunkard stretched and said, "If you had no money, you should have said so earlier. I wouldn't owe you for the wine."

"That's good to hear," Qin Xiao said. "The higher-ups have decided that if Mr. Shen can pay for the wine today, everything will be fine. If not, you'll have to be moved to the C Ward."

"What do you mean by 'higher-ups'? Do you think I don't know that the A Ward is under your control?" the old drunkard said irritably. "You're so young, yet you're so calculating and value money so much."

Qin Xiao put on a pained expression and said, "You know, bringing wine into the A Ward isn't easy. I need to take care of the brothers. It's no problem for me to go without money, but they're not easy to deal with."

The old drunkard got out of bed, his feet covered in dirt, and walked to the cell door, looking rather shabby. He grinned and said, "Go get a jar of wine first, and I won't owe you for it."

Qin Xiao shook his head without saying a word.

The old drunkard said irritably, "I've been here for two months, and we've developed some rapport. Are you going to be so unfeeling?"

"Mr. Shen, if it weren't for our rapport, you would have been moved out of the A Ward a few days ago," Qin Xiao sighed. "It's not that I don't want to help, but I really can't."

"Fine, fine," the old drunkard said helplessly. "These days, without money, there's no rapport. I see through it all." He leaned in close to Qin Xiao and whispered, "There's a place where you can get a hundred taels of silver. Go there tomorrow night and pick it up."

"A hundred taels?" Qin Xiao was surprised. If it weren't for the fact that he had indeed received a dozen taels last time, he wouldn't have believed the old man could come up with a hundred taels. He frowned and said, "Mr. Shen, are you joking?"

The old drunkard smiled mysteriously and said, "I'm not joking. Do you know the land temple in the western part of the city?"

Qin Xiao had lived in Guicheng for years and was familiar with every street and alley. There were two land temples in Guicheng, one in the east and one in the west, but neither had much incense. The western land temple was in a remote area and had long been abandoned. He nodded and said, "I know. The silver is at the land temple?"

The old drunkard chuckled and said, "At midnight tomorrow, go to the land temple, and you'll get a hundred taels of silver. Twenty taels will be your running fee, and the rest will be credited to my account, which will be enough for my future expenses."

"Wait a moment," Qin Xiao said immediately. "You want me to go to the land temple at midnight tomorrow? Isn't that in the middle of the night?" He smiled bitterly and said, "Mr. Shen, you know the land temple is quite desolate. If I go there in the middle of the night and there's a ghost, won't I be scared to death?"

"The Master does not speak of strange forces and spirits," the old drunkard rolled his eyes and said, "I don't have a single copper coin on me. If you want the silver, you have to go to the land temple."

Qin Xiao smiled and said, "Mr. Shen, don't be angry. My point is, since the silver is at the land temple, you could tell me where it's hidden, and I could go get it during the day."

"Do you think that hundred taels is hidden in some corner like last time?" the old drunkard rolled his eyes and said, "I'll tell you the truth. That hundred taels is a debt owed to me. I'm the creditor. Tomorrow night, the debtor will go to the land temple to repay the debt."

"Someone owes you a debt?" Qin Xiao was even more surprised. "Mr. Shen, you're not joking, are you?"

"You have the same narrow-minded eyes as those common people," the old drunkard said, looking like he was teaching a hopeless student. "If I don't get the silver tomorrow night, you can kick me out of the A Ward. I won't have any complaints."

Qin Xiao smiled and said, "Mr. Shen, is it really that coincidental that your account runs out of money just when someone is about to give you silver?"

"It's not a coincidence; I planned it," the old drunkard said. "Today is the fourth day of the third month. I agreed with the debtor that no matter what, by midnight on the fifth day of the third month, the debt must be repaid at the land temple in the western part of the city. The debtor is trustworthy and won't break the promise. You can go there and tell him that Shen Yishi sent you to collect the silver, and he'll give it to you."

Qin Xiao was still hesitant, but the old drunkard stretched and said, "I know that working in the government, you earn at most two taels of silver a month. If you get the silver tomorrow night and take twenty taels as your fee, it will almost equal your annual salary. If you don't want to, you can kick me out now, and the hundred taels will be lost."

Over the years, Qin Xiao had come to understand that silver was a good thing. Even heroes needed it.

Although the A Ward was profitable, the money had to be shared among the brothers, so not much ended up in Qin Xiao's hands. Twenty taels of silver was very attractive to him.

The bailiff, Meng, had once advised Qin Xiao to save any money he earned, as he would need it to get married in a few years and have children. There were many expenses, and his current residence in Moutou Alley was quite simple. If he saved enough, he could move to a better place.

If he went to the land temple tomorrow night and got the twenty taels of silver, it would be a windfall.

"Mr. Shen, will it be dangerous?" Qin Xiao thought for a moment and then lowered his voice. "Is there a trap?"

The old drunkard stared into Qin Xiao's eyes and suddenly smiled. "A trap? Who do you think you are, that someone would set a trap for you? I'm still in the prison. If something happens to you, I won't have a good life either." He yawned, glanced at the wine gourd on Qin Xiao's waist, and licked his lips. "I'm going to sleep. Bring me a jar of wine later." He swayed to the bed, lay down, and said no more.

Guicheng was a key location in Xiling, a place that all travelers had to pass through.

A thousand ridges, the sun sets, and the city gates close.

Xiling was vast and sparsely populated, with harsh sandstorms, but this did not stop the flow of travelers.

Utu people from the west, Tushun people from the north, and Tang people from the west of Jiayuguan could all be seen in Guicheng. Fugitives who had committed serious crimes came to Xiling to seek refuge, and many wandering knights rested here. The city, though not as grand as the Xiling Prefecture, had a population of over ten thousand.

As the lanterns lit up, the city was bustling with people, dressed in various styles, a lively and vibrant scene.

If the most bustling place in the city was not the brothels, it had to be the gambling dens scattered throughout the city.

The gambling den was a microcosm of the world. At the gambling table, whether you were a wealthy merchant or a wandering knight, a nobleman or a commoner, you had only one identity: a gambler. No one cared about your status outside; the only thought was to win the silver in your opponent's pocket.

The Golden Hook Gambling Den was one of the largest in Guicheng. After dark, it was packed with people.

Qin Xiao was dressed casually, standing in front of a teahouse opposite the Golden Hook Gambling Den, watching the people coming and going, deep in thought.

The gambling master, Wen Budao, was to be escorted to the Xiling Prefecture in a few days. The situation was suspicious, and the person behind it might be Qiao Leshan, who now managed the Golden Hook Gambling Den. For some reason, Qin Xiao felt that Wen Budao was in grave danger, though he couldn't explain why.

Not to mention that he was just a prison guard, even Captain Han had no authority to inquire about the details of the case.

The governor of Zhen Prefecture was stationed in Guicheng, and the governor's office had six departments. Apart from the criminal department, which had some power, the others were virtually non-functional. Many local affairs were actually controlled by the Zhen Prefecture.

Criminal cases in Zhen Prefecture were handled by the criminal department, and the duties of the garrison included maintaining the city's security and assisting the criminal department in capturing and guarding criminals.

A single document from the criminal department could transfer a prisoner from the prison at any time, and the garrison had no authority to stop it.

Qin Xiao had been in charge of the A Ward for over two years. Once a prisoner was sentenced and sent to the A Ward, they were rarely transferred unless their sentence was completed.

Captain Han had repeatedly instructed Qin Xiao to guard the prisoners diligently but not to inquire about their crimes or get involved in their affairs.

Qin Xiao understood the deeper meaning behind Captain Han's words.

The Zhen Prefecture was always watching the garrison, hoping to find a handle to use against it. If the garrison got involved in a case, it would be accused of overstepping its authority, causing significant trouble.

The case of Wen Budao was suspicious, and Qin Xiao knew that even if he uncovered the truth, he might not be able to help and could even bring trouble to the garrison.

Having worked in the Guicheng prison for several years, Qin Xiao had become adept at dealing with people, but he also remained simple and honest. He couldn't ignore the fact that Wen Budao was in danger.

He only hoped to understand the situation and do what he could to help.

Guicheng was a melting pot, and many things happened every day, becoming topics of conversation in the streets and alleys. Wen Budao had once been a well-known figure in Guicheng, and his transfer to the Xiling Prefecture for re-examination was a significant event, often discussed in teahouses and taverns.

However, after visiting several teahouses, he heard no one talking about Wen Budao.

Qin Xiao realized that although the A Ward had received the order to transfer Wen Budao, the news had not spread, and few people in the city knew about it.

Standing in front of the teahouse, he was deep in thought when he heard a commotion from the opposite side. He looked up and saw a figure fly out of the Golden Hook Gambling Den, landing with a thud on the street. Then several men rushed out of the gambling den, and two of them kicked the person on the ground, who was hugging his head and screaming in pain.