12dz Chapter 886 Exiled to the Army
Chapter 886 Exiled to the Army
Inside the prison, Lin Ping sat holding his breath. Although he had not been subjected to severe torture, he had not eaten for three days.
To be honest, the jailer was somewhat afraid of Lin Ping's skills and dared not have close contact with him, so he wanted to starve him to death.
At the same time, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the old gate, followed by a series of kowtows.
"Greetings, Your Excellency the Prefect." The jailers all knelt on the ground in unison.
They knew that the prefect's aggressive approach was undoubtedly aimed at executing Lin Ping.
Many prison guards were already casting gloating glances at Lin Ping. Among them were Wang Peng's confidants, who wished they could tear Lin Ping to pieces themselves.
Once the prefect issues the execution order, dozens of people will vie to execute Lin Ping.
"Your Excellency, that boy is locked up here," a jailer said, pointing to Lin Ping's cell as if seeking credit.
The prefect, who was already anxious, was now running all the way. When he saw Lin Ping being firmly chained by a hundred-pound iron chain, his heart trembled.
"Your humble servant Chen Guang greets Your Excellency."
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the prefect suddenly knelt on the ground.
This action shocked, and even more so, terrified, all the prison guards.
Chen Guangke was the Prefect of Xi'an; he wouldn't kneel down to someone so easily.
In other words, Lin Ping's status was higher than that of the prefect, or even much higher.
"Sir, he's just a prisoner," a clueless jailer reminded him, mistakenly thinking the prefect had mistaken him for someone else.
"Shut up! Untie the magistrate! Don't you want to live?" the prefect said through gritted teeth, his words filled with murderous intent.
Chen Guang was, after all, a prefect, and had heard a little about what was happening in the capital. He knew that Lin Ping was a guest of honor of the emperor, and even if he did not hold any official position, he was still much more noble than himself.
If Lin Ping suffers humiliation on his own turf, he will be a sinner. Not to mention his future career, it will be hard to say whether he can even keep his life.
"I am but a commoner, Lord Chen, please do not stand on ceremony." Lin Ping's cold voice echoed from inside the prison cell.
Even when facing his back, Chen Guang could feel the invisible pressure emanating from him.
The jailers were completely dumbfounded; they never dreamed they had offended such an important person.
The man holding the cell key was trembling all over and it took him a long time to open the cell door.
After the chains binding him were removed, Lin Ping stretched his muscles and regained much of his strength.
"Rest assured, Your Excellency, none of these soldiers who have offended you will be let off lightly." The Prefect of Xi'an swept his murderous gaze over the surrounding jailers, as if to say: A bunch of blind lackeys who only know how to cause trouble for me.
Fortunately, Wang Peng had already been killed, otherwise he would have been severely beaten by Chen Guang.
Thinking of his indulgence of Wang Peng, Chen Guang was filled with remorse, like a sinner awaiting Lin Ping's judgment.
"They are acting in accordance with the law. After all, I was the one who killed people first. As long as they don't make things difficult for the people in the future, they can be treated leniently," Lin Ping said softly.
The prison guards felt as if they had been granted a pardon. Although they did not know Lin Ping's specific identity, they knew that he held the lives and deaths of everyone in his hands.
Before long, the guards around Chen Guang brought Lin Ping a long robe.
Lin Ping looked at his disheveled appearance and accepted Chen Guang's kindness. Chen Guang breathed a sigh of relief, but beads of sweat dripped from his forehead like raindrops.
It was as if he had walked through the gates of hell; the joy of surviving the ordeal filled him with awe and trepidation.
"Take me out the back door," Lin Ping said slowly, his right eye, fully X-rayed, staring at the cell door, a hint of sorrow in his eyes.
Lin Ping had long planned to leave in this way.
"The woman outside has been waiting for you for three days. Aren't you going to go out and see her?"
Chen Guang was a seasoned veteran in officialdom, and he could see right through Lin Ping's thoughts.
He hoped to play matchmaker, and if successful, he would surely gain Lin Ping's favor.
"Does Lord Chen not understand what I mean?" Lin Ping's voice was as cold as ice, serving as a final warning to Chen Guang.
"Your humble servant understands!" Chen Guang bowed his head and withdrew, clearly intending to act according to Lin Ping's wishes.
With his sharp eyes, how could he not see the helplessness in Lin Ping's heart? He could tell that Lin Ping had Zhang Yuelu in his heart and had a compelling reason to abandon her.
Lin Ping's words were ambiguous, which required Chen Guang to use his ability to read Lin Ping's mind.
He quickly came to Zhang Yuelu and surprisingly humbled himself to help her up.
Zhang Yuelu's expression faltered slightly. She glanced at Chen Guang sideways, but showed no gratitude and remained kneeling on the ground.
"Lin Wuqing has already left," Chen Guang said calmly. He knew that only the name Lin Wuqing could pique Zhang Yuelu's interest.
"Gone?" Zhang Yuelu's eyes flashed with murderous intent, mistakenly believing that Lin Ping had gone to the underworld.
Chen Guang was actually forced back several steps by this killing intent, as if death itself was approaching.
"That's right, we're on our way to the frontier," Chen Guang hurriedly explained.
Upon learning that Lin Ping was not dead, Zhang Yuelu's murderous intent indeed subsided somewhat, and she tried to slowly get up, but because her legs had gone numb from kneeling for too long, she almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Chen Guang caught her.
“Wang Peng is a corrupt official, he should have died long ago!” Zhang Yuelu was clearly defending Lin Ping.
Chen Guang seemed to sense a veiled criticism, and after composing himself, he replied, "Even so, he still killed someone. Being exiled to the frontier to serve in the army is already the greatest favor he could receive."
“You’re lying. I’ve been waiting here for three days and three nights, and I haven’t seen him leave,” Zhang Yuelu calmly analyzed.
"He left through the back door; it was his own idea. He didn't want you to see him in such a disheveled state." Chen Guang fully utilized his imagination, trying to fabricate a touching story.
Zhang Yuelu suddenly felt a lump in her throat, and tears uncontrollably streamed down her fair cheeks.
"Little brother, how could you be so foolish? So what if you're disheveled and miserable? Even if your face is ruined, you'll still be my most handsome little brother." Zhang Yuelu felt a pang of sadness, tears streaming into her mouth, bitter and astringent.
"Where did he go?" A glint suddenly appeared in Zhang Yuelu's eyes.
Clearly, she was going to rescue Lin Ping.
“He has words tattooed on his face, so he can never leave this place in his life, otherwise he’ll be considered a deserter and hunted down wherever he goes,” Chen Guang continued, fabricating a story. “If you go to find him, you’ll only get his corpse.”
Zhang Yuelu understood Lin Ping's meaning perfectly well. He didn't want her to go to her death. No matter how high her martial arts skills were, she couldn't possibly hold off an entire army on her own.
"ah!"
At this moment, the anger that had been building up in Zhang Yuelu's heart finally erupted, and a table placed next to the prison door was cleaved in two by the sharp sword energy.
Feeling the chilling sword energy pass by him, Chen Guang was terrified and broke out in a cold sweat.
He was glad that he had guessed Zhang Yuelu's thoughts, and he also knew that Lin Ping, who was eavesdropping in the dark, would develop feelings for him.