"But if the prison's still standing by the time I get back, it'll be a miracle."
He turned on his heel and stalked off toward Block C, mind already racing. He'd get back as soon as he could. But in the meantime, he prayed the boss didn't find out about Miao Ruiming's presence the hard way.
Chang Xiao followed the young guard briskly, but his jaw set tight, mind still racing, the tension in his shoulders hadn't eased since hearing Warden Liu's message. Miao Ruiming. Of all the people Warden Liu could've sent—it had to be him.
'I need to get the message to the boss. Right now. Damn, if only Boss Dong's phone battery didn't die…'
They rounded a corner toward the recreation area, and there—amid the echo of laughter and casual banter—was Chen Bo. Bright-eyed and cheerfully flushed, the man was crouched beside a table, playing some kind of fast-paced card game with a few guards and a few low-level inmates.
His sleeves were rolled up, posture loose, face lit with mirth. A worn deck of cards was spread out before them, along with a pile of cigarettes and contraband snacks acting as betting chips.
'Typical.'
Chang Xiao thought sourly. He marched over, brushing past the escorting guard.
"Chen Bo!"
He barked.
Chen Bo perked up and waved his cards.
"Brother Chang! You here to play a round? I just lost three in a row—must be a cursed day, huh?"
An inmate across from him snickered quietly. Chen Bo didn't miss it.
"Drop the act."
Chang Xiao stepped forward and loomed over the table.
"Forget the game. I've got something important for you to do."
Chen Bo cocked his head, still smiling.
"Don't tell me the Warden's dog needs a walk?"
"Go find the boss. Now. Tell him Warden Liu approved Miao Ruiming as Yao Ziyang's assigned physician."
Chen Bo blinked.
"Eh? Really?"
Then his face brightened.
"Well, that's great! The little prince's getting pampered by his own private doctor now! His Highness deserves it!"
"The little prince?"
Chang Xiao echoed dryly.
Chen Bo beamed.
"That's what I call him now. Doesn't he look like a little royal? Especially when I saw him from the window, all dainty and dressed in white. I think the nickname suits him."
Chang Xiao didn't laugh.
"…You idiot."
He muttered under his breath.
"Listen—Warden Liu just assigned Miao Ruiming to Yao Ziyang. He's on his way here. I have something else to do and can't get in contact with the boss. You need to go tell the boss. Now."
Chen Bo blinked again.
"Miao Ruiming? The famous doctor guy with the face?"
"Yes. And you need to watch your wording. I don't know how he'll react, but if you just go blurting it out—"
Chen Bo interrupted. Oblivious.
"He's okay then? Guessing by the lack of collapsed buildings and bodies strewn across the corridor, the boss must be in a good mood. So he's really fine? Completely recovered?"
"Clearly…"
Chang Xiao growled.
"You'd be dead already if he wasn't since he collapsed under your watch. Be grateful Dr. Miao arrived when he did."
As Chang Xiao spoke, one of the inmates took advantage of Chen Bo's distraction and subtly slid a card out of his sleeve. It was smooth—nearly invisible.
Chang Xiao noticed instantly.
So did Chen Bo. But he only tilted his head and smiled, wide and unbothered as he returned his attention back towards the game.
"Aiyo, I really am unlucky…"
He said with exaggerated cheer, throwing down his cards.
"Guess I lose again~!"
The others laughed, and the cheater smirked a little too confidently.
Chang Xiao, already tense, had no patience left.
"Cheating, huh?"
He muttered, voice ice-cold now.
The inmate tried to look innocent. Too slow.
In one fluid motion, Chang Xiao grabbed the cheating inmate by the front of his shirt, yanked him up and slammed him against the table. Guards and inmates scrambled back, startled.
"Let me guess…"
Chang Xiao snarled, throwing a punch into the inmate's gut.
"You thought I wouldn't notice?"
The inmate coughed, wheezing, but didn't dare respond. Another blow landed on his ribs.
"Well, I saw it, you greasy little worm."
The inmate stammered.
"I-I didn't—!"
Chang Xiao drove his knee into the guy's gut, then backhanded him across the face with enough force to send him sprawling. The laughter died instantly. No one dared intervene.
Chen Bo watched with calm detachment as Chang Xiao delivered a swift, brutal beatdown—nothing fatal, just enough to make sure the inmate would think twice about pulling that stunt again. Then, without a word, Chen Bo stood up, scooping the winnings with ease off the ground with one hand and brushing off his pants with the other.
"This is why I never gamble with amateurs."
He said casually. Chen Bo looked back once, still all sunshine and good humor.
"Brother Chang, you always take things so seriously. You'll get wrinkles."
Then he waved.
"I'll go find the boss now, don't worry!"
He turned on his heel and sauntered off, humming to himself, already heading toward Block A.
Chang Xiao didn't answer. He glanced down at the wheezing inmate, then wiped his hands on his shirt with a satisfied grunt. A few seconds passed. He rolled his shoulders, feeling lighter after the small release of frustration.
'Better. Much better.'
Then it hit him.
"Shit—wait—I forgot to tell him not to just say it to the boss… Does he even know where they are heading?"
He turned sharply. But Chen Bo was already gone, cheerfully whistling his way down the opposite corridor—already too far down to call after.
"…Ah, hell."
Chen Bo, completely unaware of the volatile tension he was walking into, cheerfully pocketed a few candies from the stash while snacking on the rest as he made his way to Block A—smiling the whole time, happily going to inform the boss that his favorite little "prince" was about to be under the care of one of his least favorite man in the world.
"Vice Warden Chang, we really need to go, before—"
The escorting guard said, already sweating from how long they'd been delayed, before getting cut off.
"You!"
Growled a prison officer marching toward Chang Xiao and the young escorting guard—an older man with a scarred lip and a limp in his right leg.
"Stop stalling, Vice Warden Chang. Warden wants you downstairs."
"I know!"
Chang Xiao snapped, but the irritation wasn't directed at the guard—it was at the trail of chaos Chen Bo was likely about to leave behind.
He glanced once more at the corridor Chen Bo had disappeared down, jaw clenched.
'Damn it all.'
He had no choice.
"Fine…"
He muttered, turning sharply.
"Let's get this over with."
But even as he followed the two guards toward Block C, Chang Xiao's brows furrowed deeper than the creases in his pressed uniform.
Chen Bo, that cheerful demon in human skin, had just marched off to deliver a volatile message to a man already irrationally possessive, with no finesse, no tact—and to the wrong place, no less.
The older escort gave a grunt and started walking ahead of them.
Chang Xiao ignored him but still followed reluctantly, glancing once over his shoulder. His thoughts trailed behind him like smoke—whispering under his breath like a silent prayer:
"Please… let it be just an argument this time. Just words. Just stares. Not blood."
…
Elsewhere in the prison, Chen Bo hummed a happy, mindless tune as he strolled through the echoing corridors of First Prison. A few inmates greeted him with polite nods—they knew better than to interrupt his good mood. His steps bounced, cheerful, as if he wasn't about to just drop a metaphorical grenade into an emotional minefield.
The cold walls and flickering fluorescent lights didn't faze him—he'd walked them too many times. He passed by lower-ranking guards and some orderlies and casually called out as he went.
"Hey. You seen the boss?"
Most didn't dare meet his eyes. One of them mumbled something about the upper floors, but nothing concrete. Another thought they were headed toward the old Warden's wing—but again, just a guess.
'Find the boss. Find the boss. Where would the boss go?'
He peeked into the infirmary—empty.
He passed the north stairwell—nothing.
"Tch!"
Chen Bo clicked his tongue.
"Can't find anyone when you need them. Where the heck did they go…maybe I should've asked Chang Xiao…"
He muttered aloud, squinting toward the upper floors.
"Yo! Old guy with the teardrop tattoo!"
He called to a cleaning staff member coming down the stairs.
"Seen the boss?"
The cleaner just blinked and shook his head, too scared to say anything else.
Chen Bo strolled down the corridor, hands in his pockets, perfectly at ease despite not knowing exactly where to look. He passed through the lower wings without spotting a hint of the boss's long coat or imposing figure.
'Maybe they stopped by the cafeteria? Or maybe the armory? No… the boss wouldn't take the little prince through that kind of crowd.'
"Tch…"
Chen Bo clicked his tongue again.
"How hard is it to find two very aesthetically distinctive people? One looks like a caramel god, the other like a doll prince."
As he reached the stairwell leading toward the upper floors, he paused.
Then it clicked.
'The luxury floor. Of course.'
"Ah…"
Chen Bo whispered, grinning to himself.
"I should've known. He's probably already laid out red carpets and golden pillows for him…"
Unaware of the tension building up behind the scenes—or the tightrope he was now walking—Chen Bo quickened his pace, humming lightly as he headed straight toward the top floor, oblivious to the powder keg his presence might ignite.
He rounded a corner and then paused, blinking at the sight ahead.
Wei Jiang.
He was walking down the opposite end of the corridor, his gait stiff, his posture rigid. His right arm was secured in a black sling, and though the bruising on his face had faded to a sickly yellow-green, a fresh square medical patch was now affixed to his left cheek. His hair was slightly disheveled, his expression sour.
Chen Bo's smile returned like the flip of a switch.
"Well, well—look who's still alive."
Wei Jiang's head snapped up.
Chen Bo sauntered up to him with a grin.
"Wei Jiang! Or should I say… Zombie Jiang? What, did someone dig you out of the hospital dumpster?"
Wei Jiang's entire body stiffened. Then his brows drew together immediately. His dark chocolate eyes sharpened.
"Chen Bo."
"Damn, you look awful. Yao Ziyang's heart's gonna break when he sees you like this."
At first, he was too angry to speak. His nostrils flared, eyes narrowing as if he might swing his one good arm. But then—
"You saw him?"
Wei Jiang rasped, his voice cracking slightly.
"Yao Ziyang? He's back?"
Chen Bo blinked, taken off guard by the sudden intensity. That wiped the grin off his face for just a beat.
"…Yeah. He made it through whatever made him sick it seems. Came back just this morning."
Wei Jiang's face had changed. All that rage had bled out in an instant, replaced by something softer—something hungry. Desperate, even.
"I… hacked into the system this morning…"
He admitted, chest heaving slightly. Wei Jiang's breath left him like a blow to the chest. For a split second, all the exhaustion and pain vanished behind raw relief.
"I saw a feed from the east gate—he was being carried in. I thought I was imagining it. I thought—he couldn't be…He's really okay now?"
"Well…"
Chen Bo scratched his head with a sheepish grin.
"Okay enough to come back and sparkle like a koi in spring rain, so yeah."
He paused, then laughed softly. An exciting plan began to form.
"Yeah! He's back and a-okay now! Boss picked him up from the hospital himself. Carried him like a princess."
That earned a dark flash in Wei Jiang's eyes, making them gleam under the harsh light. He turned instinctively toward the stairwell, ready to bolt.
"He carried him?"
"Like a bride…"
Chen Bo confirmed lightly.
"It was cute, honestly. I almost clapped."
Wei Jiang gritted his teeth, hand clenching uselessly at his side.
"Where is he now?"
Chen Bo shrugged.
"No idea. I was supposed to tell the boss something important—Chang Xiao shoved it at me like it was life-or-death—but he forgot to tell me where they were going. So I'm just wandering."
Wei Jiang looked like he was about to shove past Chen Bo and run off when the cheerfully forgetful guard snapped his fingers.
"Wait, wait!"
He then reached into his pocket, slapping his other hand onto Wei Jiang's shoulder to hold him back.
"I said wait! Actually, you wanna see him too, right? Before you run off, lemme deliver Chang Xiao's oh-so-important message… though I kinda forgot how he worded it…"
Wei Jiang turned, eyes narrowing.
Chen Bo tapped his chin thoughtfully. He squinted, thinking hard.
"Now, let's see…Chang Xiao said something about that pretty famous doctor. The one with the too-perfect hair and that totally handsome unmarred face."
Wei Jiang's stomach dropped.
Chen Bo waved a hand.
"Tell the Boss…oh, right! Miao Ruiming or whatever. Supposedly, he's coming for the prince—yeah. That Miao Ruiming is coming for the prince."
Wei Jiang's entire body locked.
"…The what?"
He repeated slowly, voice dangerously low.
Chen Bo smiled easily.
"The prince…"
He repeated, as if it were obvious.
"You know, the little one? All delicate face, dreamy eyes, hair like the night sky? All pale skin and those long lashes? Prince! I call him that. Don't you think it fits? He even looked like royalty the way Boss wrapped him in a white blanket."
Wei Jiang grabbed him by the collar.
"Why are you giving him pet names?!"
Chen Bo held up his hands, amused and not even remotely afraid.
"I call him what he looks like. It's a compliment!"
Wei Jiang's eye twitched.
"Don't call him that."
Chen Bo arched a brow.
"Touchy."
"And who the hell is Miao Ruiming? Why the hell is Miao Ruiming coming? What does he want with—"
Wei Jiang caught himself. His mouth clamped shut before the words my Ziyang could escape. He corrected stiffly.
"—with Yao Ziyang?"
Chen Bo shrugged again. Though his eyes held absolute mockery as if he'd just found a new toy to play with. His boredom will finally be relieved after so many years.
He knew Chen Bo for years, knew he liked to play 'games' and would withhold information just to see the outcome. If it weren't for the fact he was injured at the moment, he wouldn't have needed to ask twice, which was twice too many. Wei Jiang's voice dropped low, dangerously low.
"Why is he coming for Yao Ziyang?"
"I dunno, man, I just pass the messages. Something about him being assigned or transferred or whatever. I think he's that fancy doctor that Boss Dong had Chang Xiao get for the…Yao Ziyang. You know, I bet the doc has fallen head over heels for the pretty sick boy. I mean who wouldn't, he's prettier than most girls?"
Wei Jiang's expression turned thunderous. Doctor. A man who'd touched Yao Ziyang and got no 'punishment'. Someone else who can stand too close. He ground his teeth, jaw flexing so hard it ached.
"I'm gonna kill him."
Chen Bo blinked in surprise.
"Wow. Calm down, killer. He's just doing his job. You're not even—uh…"
He stopped himself just short of saying 'you're not even his boyfriend.'
Wei Jiang's fists clenched.
"…Speaking of which—your gonna tell the boss for me, right? I've got other things to do."
Chen Bo added brightly, already backing away from the stairwell.
"Good luck playing messenger! I'm off to flirt with the new nurses!"
Wei Jiang blinked.
"You're… leaving?"
"Of course!"
Chen Bo grinned.
"I've heard the new batch of nurses came in today. I'm overdue for some introductions."
He turned on his heel, completely unbothered by the absolute chaos he'd just left in his wake.
"Give my regards!"
And just like that, he called back over his shoulder, hands behind his head, already whistling as he rounded the corner. He skipped off down the corridor, leaving Wei Jiang rooted in place with adrenaline in his blood and an explosion blooming in his chest.
Miao Ruiming was coming.
Dong Yingming had Yao Ziyang.
And no one knew where they were.
That combination was a spark on dry tinder.
Without wasting another second, Wei Jiang turned and ran.
"Coming for the prince…"
'Not if I get to him first!'
Wei Jiang thought, racing up the stairs—injuries be damned.