Chapter Twenty-Two: Negotiation

“Ah!” The jailer suddenly felt a sharp tightness and searing pain in his nether regions, which made him leap up with a heart-rending scream. The other inmates, who had been waiting to see Qi Jun humiliated, were all dumbfounded. None of them had expected this frail, scholarly young man with such a refined appearance to use such a devious move.

“You! You actually…” The jailer, clutching his backside with one hand, turned to point at Qi Jun, but his voice trembled so much he couldn’t finish his curse. He gingerly touched his wounded area and, when he withdrew his fingers, found them stained with traces of blood—a testament to the force behind that sudden attack.

“It’s just a minor injury. Rest for a few days and you’ll be fine,” Qi Jun said coolly, wiping his hand with a look of distaste, not even sparing the jailer a glance. He had put his full strength into that strike, and the jailer, completely unprepared, had been caught off guard—not only was he left writhing in pain, but even the foul gas he was about to release was forced back into his belly.

Seeing the jailer’s predicament, the inmates slowly recovered from their shock, each desperately suppressing their laughter. They’d all witnessed his arrogance and cruelty in bullying other prisoners, but this was the first time they’d seen him get his comeuppance at the hands of a bookish youth.

Finally, someone couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst into laughter, which set off the rest of the inmates—the cell filled with hearty, exu