Chapter 7

3,102 inmates, some are now toying with the new arrivals, some are hanging out in the entertainment area, and a small number are working out in the fitness equipment area. It seems that not many are interested in reading.

This makes Li Shuhong, Lin Xiaoxiao, and Ye Wan stand out even more.

Lin Xiaoxiao squatted on a chair with a playful smile, barefoot, his shoes scattered nearby.

Ye Wan stood upright behind Li Shuhong, occasionally glancing around.

Lin Xiaoxiao, with his clear and bright eyes, looked particularly sharp, while Ye Wan was more robust, with a more resolute face.

One seemed more like a book boy, and the other more like a bodyguard.

After seeing Li Shuhong finish reading the news, Lin Xiaoxiao said, "Boss, that young man didn't help the other new arrivals."

Li Shuhong nodded, "It's normal for him not to help. He was decisive in chess, willing to cut off his own arm to survive, let alone help others."

"Chess is one thing, I would dare to sacrifice a piece on the board... So, Boss, are you going to continue playing chess with him tomorrow?" Lin Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and asked.

"Of course," Li Shuhong smiled, "Who else would I play with, you two bad players?"

In the reading area, Li Shuhong was sitting at a long wooden table, holding a brand new reader and reading the various news of the morning.

The large cat was lying on the table again, as if the meaning of a cat's life was to sleep in different places.

This reading area was like a small library, but the "shelves" here didn't have paper books; instead, they had readers charging in slots.

In the middle of the shelves were dozens of long tables, enough to accommodate nearly a thousand people, but they were now empty.

Ye Wan said in a deep voice, "I'm a bit stronger than Lin Xiaoxiao."

"But not by much," Li Shuhong looked at Ye Wan and pointed to the news on the reader, "Do you remember that Guo Huchan the Chen Group caught? The trial process is over, and he should be transferred to this 18th prison in a few days. When he arrives, you can interact with him."

Ye Wan nodded, "I've dealt with him before. He's not easy to get along with, but at least he can communicate."

"Right," Li Shuhong nodded and then turned to Lin Xiaoxiao, "What do you think about the young man's breakdown this morning?"

"I observed him for a long time and felt something was off," Lin Xiaoxiao analyzed, "He seemed to be rambling after the breakdown, but when he mentioned Luocheng and Yongli Group, he was very certain, as if it were true."

"His identity?" Li Shuhong asked.

"I checked. Outside, he was just a high school dropout, a common unemployed person. He worked with the Black Tiger organization in the 18th city, dealing in mechanical prosthetics, suspected of illegal seizure of mechanical prosthetics but without evidence. He was eventually sent here for tax evasion. All his past experiences can be verified, but the Luocheng and Yongli Group he mentioned, I couldn't find any information on," Lin Xiaoxiao said.

No one saw Lin Xiaoxiao do any research, but it seemed he had thoroughly investigated the young man in just an hour.

That was the most amazing part.

Li Shuhong said, "Keep an eye on him. There must be something else about this young man. Also, what about the one I'm playing chess with?"

Lin Xiaoxiao said, "You just finished this game, I haven't had time to check. I'll give you an answer before lunch."

"Alright," Li Shuhong nodded and continued reading the news on the reader.

Lin Xiaoxiao glanced at Li Shuhong and suddenly realized that his boss was interested in the young man.

Just as he was about to say something, Lin Xiaoxiao turned to look outside the reading area. Qingchen was slowly walking in, carefully observing the surroundings.

Qingchen first looked at Li Shuhong's side, then tried to gently pull out a reader from the "shelf" and pressed the power button.

Qingchen stared at the screen.

If there was a way to quickly understand this world, it was by reading its books.

He didn't expect that this world had eliminated paper books, leaving only electronic devices.

However, when the reader turned on, it wasn't an operation interface but a login screen.

Lin Xiaoxiao walked over and smiled, "First time in prison, right? To use this reader, you need to register an account with your inmate number. Once you log in, it will show your recent reading history, bookmarks, and set reading habits, font size, etc."

Qingchen thought it was quite user-friendly.

"By the way, it has built-in AI voice. You can call its name to find what you want, like this," Lin Xiaoxiao also pulled out a reader and said, "One."

"I'm here," a pleasant female voice responded from the reader. Qingchen remembered this voice; it was the same as the one announcing meal times in the prison.

The formal tone didn't feel stiff.

Lin Xiaoxiao said to the reader, "Find the book 'Brown.'"

"Okay, I've found 'Brown,'" the AI 'One' responded.

"See," Lin Xiaoxiao handed his reader to Qingchen, and the book 'Brown' was already open.

Qingchen looked at his prisoner uniform, number 010101.

After registering, Qingchen looked at Lin Xiaoxiao, "Where can I read the news, like what he has?"

Lin Xiaoxiao glanced at his boss's reader and laughed, "Don't even think about it. Your reader account doesn't have internet access, even I don't."

Qingchen understood. It seemed Li Shuhong's status in the prison was indeed unique.

Just like how he could keep a cat in prison.

He didn't say anything more, thanked Lin Xiaoxiao, and then lowered his head to read the content on his reader.

Lin Xiaoxiao returned to Li Shuhong's side, glancing at Qingchen.

But he suddenly noticed that Qingchen was flipping pages extremely fast!

Under normal circumstances, a reader page has 800 words, and it would take at least a minute for a normal person to read. However, Qingchen was flipping pages every two seconds!

Lin Xiaoxiao whispered to Li Shuhong, "Boss, he's not really reading the reader. He might just want to get closer to you for a chance to interact."

"Don't meddle," Li Shuhong said without looking up, "Don't underestimate others' will to survive. If you were in his position, you would be even more desperate. Xiaoxiao, learn to put yourself in others' shoes."

"I know, I know," Lin Xiaoxiao said with a playful smile.

Qingchen found a seat and kept taking notes from the reader, flipping pages quickly. He did this for over three hours without changing his posture.

For others, reading might be a leisurely pastime, but for him, it was a way to understand this world and survive.

The content on the reader was clearly carefully selected, with almost no important information. 95% of the content was philosophy and inspirational quotes...

But it didn't matter; any information was important to him now.

Qingchen was always someone who cherished opportunities.

As lunchtime approached, Li Shuhong finally put down his reader and logged out of his account.

Ye Wan, understanding, took the reader and placed it back in the slot on the shelf.

Ye Wan and Lin Xiaoxiao were like Li Shuhong's closest attendants.

When Li Shuhong stood up, he glanced at Qingchen. He felt something was off. The young man was so focused on reading that he didn't even notice Li Shuhong standing up, which didn't seem like an act.

He suddenly asked, "What was the third line of the previous page?"

His voice was smooth and gentle, like being in an ancient teahouse, listening to the wise words of an elder.

"When order becomes chaos, chaos must be used to maintain order and save the law," Qingchen looked up and said.

Ye Wan took the reader from Qingchen and flipped back to the previous page, "Boss, that's correct."

At that moment, Qingchen suddenly saw the large cat on the table open its eyes. He clearly felt that the cat was looking at him with surprise.

As if... the cat had understood all the conversations and was amazed by Qingchen's memory.

Li Shuhong was stunned for a moment after hearing Ye Wan's confirmation, then he smiled and called the cat, "More interesting. Let's go, it's time for lunch."

For some reason, Qingchen always felt that Li Shuhong had a unique aura when he walked, his light white practice clothes fluttering as if he were walking on clouds.