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nYang Hong did not panic at all despite being thrown into prison. He was indifferent as he knew that Liu Biao did not dare to kill him. If Liu Biao were to kill him, there would be no chance of ‘reconciling’ with Yangzhou. Liu Mang would be forced to attack Yangzhou and even if he didn’t, Liu Biao would still lose face.

nThat was why Liu Biao also arranged for bodyguards to keep Yang Hong alive.

n“Sir!” One of the jailers greeted when Liu Pan’s subordinate brought Yang Hong over.

n“Open the gates.” Liu Pan’s subordinate said arrogantly. There was no one in Jingzhou that did not know of the Second Lord’s might. As the Second Lord’s subordinate, they could act as they like.

nThough the jailer’s position was higher than that of the Second Lord’s subordinate, he had no choice but to lower his head towards the subordinate.

n“Yes, yes!” The jailer replied and had his subordinates open the cell.

n“Who is this person?” The jailer asked as he pointed at Yang Hong.

n“I am just a guest. No need to worry about me.” Yang Hong replied indifferently.

nThe jailer was confused. A guest? Why would a guest be in prison?

n“Hmph!” Liu Pan’s guards wanted to kill Yang Hong but was unable to because of Liu Biao’s orders. Though he could not kill Yang Hong, he could still make life difficult for Yang Hong. By putting Yang Hong in prison for a few days, they could vent their General’s anger. “This person is a major criminal in Jingzhou personally convicted by the Lord. You must watch him closely. If anything happens, you will have to answer for it!” Liu Pan’s guards said as though he was the superior. The jailer felt angry at this but he did not dare show it.

n“Alright. Let’s go.” Liu Pan’s guards said as they left. The safety at Xiangyang’s prison was reassuring.

n“What kind of farce is this? They are simply following a good master! In the end, they are just Liu Pan’s dogs!” One prison guard said with disdain.

n“Sigh. Do not speak needlessly.” The older and more cautious one warned.

n“No boss. We will only say this behind their backs. We are complaining because it is unfair towards you as you are a military officer. Your rank is higher than bodyguards like them.” The prison guard said.

n“So what? You also said that he followed a good master!” The officer shook his head. Liu Pan was at the peak of his power. He replaced the Cai Family and now even the Kuai Family could not speak. The only ones in power now are Huang She and Liu Pan.

nYang Hong smiled indifferently as he heard the others talk. It would seem that Jingzhou was not as peaceful as it seems. “Generals. Which one is the cell I am going to?”

nThe officer could not help but stare at Yang Hong for a while after hearing that question. After many years of service, he has found two kinds of people that could act so indifferently when being sent to prison. The first were madmen. The second were those confident they would leave. Yang Hong himself had said that he was a guest.

n“Sir, who are you and where did you come from?” The officer asked while cupping his fist.

n“Just call me Yang Hong. I came from Yangzhou.” Yang Hong replied with a smile.

n“Yangzhou!” The officer took a deep breath. Everyone in Jingzhou knew the threat Yangzhou posed towards Jingzhou. This officer even knew some inside story. He looked at Yang Hong again and asked. “Are you here on a diplomatic mission?”

nYang Hong remained silent but the officer knew he had guessed correctly. It is no wonder Yang Hong was so indifferent when entering prison. Liu Pan’s men even told him to guarantee Yang Hong’s safety.

n“Sigh.” The officer smiled bitterly. Why would they send an envoy to prison? But despite that, the officer waved his hand and asked to have Yang Hong sent away.

n“Thank you for the trouble.” Yang Hong said as he followed the jailers away. The jails could not be too luxurious and was smelly.

n“General. Where do we take him?” One jailer asked.

nThe prison was not a nice place to be by any means. However, there was still a quality difference between the prison for commoners and the prison for nobles.

n“Take him to the elegant room.” The officer waved his hand.

n“Boss. The elegant rooms are already occupied.” The officer’s subordinate said.

n“Hm?” The officer furrowed his brows. There were a few of those rooms but those rooms were already occupied by the sacrificial victims of Liu Pan and Huang She’s power struggle. One of such people was Liu Pan’s deputy general that had wiped out the Wu Family. They were placed there out of consideration from their own masters and would be released once the winds favored them.

n“If we no longer have any more elegant rooms, then what should we do?”

n“Boss. How about we evict one of them out?” One person suggested.

n“Evict one of them out? Can we interfere with their fight?” The officer wanted to object. The ones imprisoned in those elegant rooms are all Liu Pan and Huang She’s men. Regardless of who they chose, they would offend either Liu Pan or Huang She.

n“Then we don’t have any more rooms. Do we send him to a normal prison cell?”

n“This person is from Yangzhou!” The people of Jingzhou feared Jiangdong because they had never won before. Yet, Yangzhou defeated Jiangdong so they feared Yangzhou even more. They did not dare treat an envoy from Yangzhou badly or they might suffer when the latter takes revenge.

n“Should we cram them in together?”

n“Would they be willing?” Huang She and Liu Pan both hated Liu Mang. An accident would inevitably occur, if they arrange for their subordinates to live together with Liu Mang’s envoy.

n“Then what should we do?” Just as everyone was feeling troubled, one of them suddenly shouted.

n“That’s right! There is still one place!”

n“Hm?”

n“He come from Yangzhou and the Lord told us to look after him properly. We can put him in together with that person.”

n“That person? Can we really do that?” The officer was unsure.

n“We won’t know unless we try.”

n***

n“Which room is mine?” Yang Hong asked.

n“Let’s go, sir!” The jailer took Yang Hong to a remote corner and then said, “Sir, this is your cell.”

nYang Hong furrowed his brows as he looked at the cell. It was a common cell that is gloomy and damp. There were even rats scurrying around. Yang Hong felt indignant. Though he believed that Liu Biao would be rude towards him as he was here demanding money. Yet, he did not think that Liu Biao would be impolite to this degree. Entering prison should be a consolation Liu Biao gave himself rather than a show of power towards Yang Hong.

n“Is this the way Jingzhou treats guests?” Yang Hong asked coldly.

n“Actually, we do not have anywhere else to put you. Please put up with it.” The officer said as he lowered his head.

n“Is it General Zuo?” A voice suddenly asked while Yang Hong was feeling uncomfortable.

n“A woman?” Yang Hong was stunned. Why would there be a woman here? Was this a prison for women?

nThey were indeed at the prison for women. It was relatively empty since women seldom entered prison. Most of them were either beaten to death on the spot or were sent away.

n“Milady. It is me. I’ve brought food for you.” The officer nodded. Yang Hong noticed the food in the officer’s hand.

n“General. Thank you for the trouble.” The woman replied.

n“Milady?” Yang Hong could not understand. Which family’s lady would be imprisoned?

nThe officer then introduced her to Yang Hong. “This is Lady Cai.”

n“Hm? Lady Cai?” Yang Hong’s eyes grew wide.

n“Milady. This man is Yang Hong. He came from Yangzhou!” The officer said.

nLady Cai immediately dropped the box of food and shuddered. “Yang… Yangzhou!”

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