Shuangling: Braving the Rapids

On an otherwise ordinary weekend, the first cell of the Qinhan Road Detention Center was unusually lively.

"You little punk! You better put in some effort! If you lose again this time, you'll have to sleep next to the toilet again!" one of the prisoners shouted at the weak man who was lying face down on the ground.

This skinny man was none other than the habitual thief who had tripped up Cheng Dong before—Slap Face!

At this moment, the girl with the small face used all her strength to finally complete the push-up, while the drug addict next to her, who was handcuffed and whose forearms were covered with needle marks, was in no better shape. The "drug addict" had a flushed face and struggled for a while before finally managing to lift his belly off the ground.

Before the referee even blew the whistle, the outcome was already decided. The prisoners who had bet on the wrong "treasure" started cursing and swearing.

"You little brat! If I ever bet on you again, I'm a fucking pig!"

"Yeah! I'm not trying to be mean, but you're only fit to sleep in the toilet!"

"I've never seen anyone this weak! After training for so long, you're still not as good as an opium addict. If it weren't for the boss keeping us from fighting, I'd fucking beat you up!"

……

The inmates lingered, reluctant to leave. Then, a muscular man with eight-pack abs stood up and shouted, "Everyone, disperse! Anyone else have energy to burn? Let's have another match!"

This imposing-looking man was naturally Cheng Dong. After Geng Dacheng was transferred from the first cell, he "naturally" became the officially designated liaison. Now, under his assistance, the first cell has finally changed its rules—the previous rule of violently welcoming "new recruits" has been abolished, and now the sleeping positions of new recruits are determined by a push-up competition.

With the leader in charge speaking, who would dare to disobey? They all shut their mouths and obediently went about their business.

In the first cell, Cheng Dong was extremely respected.

His fellow inmates still remember the scene of him taking a cold shower on a winter night despite the cold, and they can't forget his "heroic act" of beating up "big warts" and confronting Geng Dacheng. It can be said that Cheng Dong single-handedly drove the "privileged class" led by Geng Dacheng off the stage!

After becoming the "head inmate," Cheng Dong distributed meals and shared bunks equally, abolishing the unspoken rules that had been in place, thus ensuring the basic rights of the prisoners. These measures were recognized by the vast majority of prisoners, including Master Ding, and from this perspective, Cheng Dong did have some commendable qualities.

Cheng Dong's rise to power was both expected and a result of his abilities. He did not treat the gloomy and cramped prison cells as a "small mountain" for tyranny, but instead used rules to restrain these social outcasts.

Unlike Geng Dacheng, Cheng Dong never established his authority through fighting and violence. Instead, he used effective methods to manage the prisoners, such as physical fitness competitions, which could both resolve disputes and release the prisoners' negative emotions. Whether it was legal or not is another matter, but it was at least more civilized than constantly threatening violence.

The inmates trusted Cheng Dong, and Warden Lu especially favored him. Otherwise, a difficult case like Hu Xiaozhen would never have been sent to the first cell.

In fact, the day before Hu Xiaozhen entered the first cell, Old Lu, with his gray hair, had a special talk with Cheng Dong.

"That 'poisonous seedling' Hu Xiaozhen is being sent here to you, so you'd better keep a close eye on her!" Guard Lu said solemnly.

"Old Lu, you're really something! You're cramming all the difficult prisoners into my cell. I heard from the people in the third cell that this guy is on a hunger strike and threatening suicide. It's true that this is a mobile cell, but you can't just keep picking on me!" Cheng Dong rolled his eyes and said.

Who is Hu Xiaozhen? On that day, he and Cheng Dong rode into the detention center in a police car. In the temporary detention cell, the poison capsule inside Hu Xiaozhen ruptured, causing him to lose control of his bladder and bowels. It was Cheng Dong who discovered this and reported it to the guards, thus saving his life. Oh, and by the way, even the pants he was wearing were borrowed from Cheng Dong.

"Sending you here means the higher-ups value you!" Warden Lu replied irritably, handing Cheng Dong a cigarette as he went. "His case is big. If nothing unexpected happens, he'll be on his way to execution in a few days after the verdict comes out. Keep a close eye on him these days, just make sure he doesn't cause any major trouble."

"Ah! He was sentenced to... to death?" Cheng Dong almost shouted.

"What's so strange about that? The 'February 2.12th Luoshan Expressway Exit Shooting Incident'—this gang smuggled over twenty kilograms of drugs in one go! They even killed two policemen. Why wouldn't they be allowed to live to celebrate the New Year?" said Warden Lu, flicking his cigarette ash.

Cheng Dong certainly remembered the case.

On February 12th, he was mistaken for a drug dealer, which is why he was stopped by armed police with a gun to his head. Afterwards, Cheng Dong reflected on the incident: if the drug dealers hadn't shot and killed the police officer, the highway entrance wouldn't have been taken over by the armed police, and if there hadn't been martial law, he probably would have escaped and gone home for the New Year. To put it bluntly, he really has to "thank" these drug dealers for what he has today.

"That makes sense, but I heard that the man surnamed Hu isn't the main culprit. The drug kingpin with the gun hasn't even been caught yet, and they're already going to execute an accomplice... This..."

Cheng Dong was interrupted by Warden Lu before he could finish speaking, "You heard? Who told you? You cell leaders were bragging again during exercise time?"

"No!" Cheng Dong scratched his head and immediately explained, "A few days ago, a narcotics officer talked to me about Hu Xiaozhen's case and asked if I had borrowed Hu Xiaozhen's pants. I also know a little bit about the situation from him."

Warden Lu's brows relaxed, and he lit another cigarette for Cheng Dong. He continued, "Actually, there were considerations above for putting Hu Xiaozhen under your supervision. You kindly lent him your pants back then, and he had a good impression of you. So, I'll assign you a job..." Warden Lu deliberately lowered his voice, and no one except him and Cheng Dong could hear what they were saying.

At this moment, Cheng Dong's head spun several times, and he exclaimed with wide eyes, "What? You want me to pry his accomplice out of a death row inmate? You're giving me way too much credit! All I'm doing is lending him a pair of pants. You don't actually think these ruthless drug dealers would believe me for a pair of pants, do you?"

Judging from his reaction, he's taken on a hot potato.

"What's the rush? This is your chance to redeem yourself!" Warden Lu blurted out, then realized his mistake and quickly tried to cover it up. "Do you know how many drug capsules that guy surnamed Hu swallowed? A whole 40! That's 320 grams of methamphetamine! That alone is enough to get him shot! Not to mention that the fugitive drug lord also shot two policemen. Letting this kind of scourge out there will harm so many people!"

"Can……"

Before Cheng Dong could say anything more, Warden Lu had already slapped the manila file folder into his hand.

Cheng Dong tore open the file folder marked "Confidential," pulled out a few sheets of A4 paper, and began to read them intently:

The suspect's information is as follows:

Hu Dabang, male, born in November 1966, from Youyang County, Chongqing, is the main fugitive in the "February 11th Luoshan Expressway Exit Shooting Case." He is the main planner and organizer of a drug trafficking gang and the murderer who killed two anti-drug police officers. He is currently fleeing to the southeast region with a replica Type 2.12 pistol…

Hu Xiaozhen, male, born in December 1970, is from Youyang County, Chongqing. He is a suspect in the "February 12th Shaanxi Southern Drug Trafficking Shooting Case" and is currently detained at the Qinhan Road Detention Center. He is the brother of the main perpetrator, Hu Dabang…

After reading the information, Cheng Dong stared at the photo in the upper right corner and clicked his tongue: "I have to say, these two brothers really do look alike."

"Old Lu, you're saying Hu Xiaozhen won't speak, could it be that she's protecting her brother?" Cheng Dong suddenly asked.

"Hey! You're not stupid, are you!" Warden Lu's eyes lit up, and he continued, "Their mother is still alive, so they're probably planning to leave a son to take care of them in their old age..."

"If that's really the case, I probably can't do this job. I'm just trying my luck, so don't blame me if I don't get any information out of you!" Cheng Dong said, scratching his head.

"Stop pretending! Do you think I don't know what you're capable of? You've dealt with Big Warts and Geng Dacheng, haven't you? Listen to me, just take this job. If you do well, you'll get out of jail early; if you mess it up, I won't make you take the blame!"

Having said all that, Cheng Dong had no choice but to reluctantly agree. But if so many criminal investigation experts couldn't get Hu Xiaozhen to talk, how could a criminal possibly do it?