Chapter Sixty-One: Wrongfully Imprisoned (Part 3)

Seeing Jian Liang sitting aside and paying her no more heed, Princess Lanling naturally felt a bitter taste in her mouth. She awkwardly prompted, "Hey! Do you... do you find it cold sitting on the ground?" Closing his eyes and leaning against the base of the wall, Jian Liang sneered, "This is hardly like being outside; whether it's cold or warm is not up to me. Having a princess of the Prince of Hanyang's estate honor me by inquiring about my comfort is truly this humble commoner's great fortune." By now, Princess Lanling had reached the limit of her endurance. Blazing with anger, she snapped, "You ungrateful wretch of a Jian Liang! Since you refuse to appreciate this princess's goodwill, this princess will have you sit in this prison for the rest of your life." With that, she flicked her sleeves and stormed off.

Lu Fang, the Prefect of Wuchang, along with Dong Shouyi, Tai Xiben, and several others, were waiting outside the door of the dungeon. Seeing Princess Lanling emerge, Lu Fang hurried forward and asked, "Reporting to the Princess, when should we release Jian Liang?" "Release him?" Princess Lanling's anger had not yet subsided as she spat, "Dream on! Lock him up for the rest of his life and let's see who is truly formidable!"

Princess Lanling turned to leave, but suddenly remembering something, she spun back and instructed Lu Fang, "Prefect Lu, the dungeon of your Wuchang Prefecture is far too damp. Have someone bring a bed for that Jian Liang. Furthermore, wine and meat must not be lacking for his three daily meals." Upon hearing this, Lu Fang felt his mind reel with bafflement. Secretly astonished, he thought, "This Princess Lanling is truly capricious and bizarre. Is she asking our Wuchang Prefecture to arrest someone, or is she treating an honored guest?" Inwardly shaking his head, he could only respectfully acknowledge the order on the surface.

Seeing Princess Lanling depart, Jian Liang shook his head with a sigh, regretting that he had ever made the acquaintance of someone from a noble household, and inwardly upbraiding himself without end. Before long, the cell door unlocked, and two prison guards carried in a wooden bed complete with a brand-new set of bedding. They opened the cell where Jian Liang was kept and set it up off to the side. Seeing this, Jian Liang was quite taken aback.

At that moment, one of the guards respectfully said, "Master Jian, my name is Niu Jiang, and this is Tang Qiang. We are the managers of this dungeon, and we have long heard of the Chess God's great name, holding you in the utmost reverence. Just now, Prefect Lu ordered the two of us to bring a bed for Master Jian and instructed us to attend to you with the utmost care. This shows that your lawsuit is of no great consequence." Hearing this, Jian Liang was inwardly astonished and expressed his thanks. Niu Jiang and Tang Qiang then brought over some wine and meat. Seeing this, Jian Liang felt even more perplexed, so he asked, "May I ask you two brothers, why is that Prefect Lu treating me with such care?"

Niu Jiang replied, "The two of us find it strange as well. Such treatment has never been seen before in this prison. Perhaps Prefect Lu simply respects Master Jian's exceptional skill at chess." Upon hearing this, Jian Liang shook his head and thought to himself, "It must be that Second Master Min has pulled some strings to let me suffer less." He then partook of the wine and food.

Meanwhile, outside a skylight, Princess Lanling observed the scene inside the cell and grew vexed, muttering angrily, "Ungrateful wretch! My kindness has actually been mistaken by him as someone else's favor. Tomorrow I'll have you starve for a whole day." Dong Shouyi and Tai Xiben, standing nearby, looked at each other in blank dismay, shaking their heads endlessly. As it was already late, Princess Lanling did not return to the Prince of Hanyang's estate, choosing instead to stay in a heavily guarded multi-story building within the back garden of the Wuchang Prefectural Yamen.

That night, Jian Liang lay awake for a long time in the Wuchang Prefecture dungeon, unable to fall asleep. He simply sat up and felt inside his robe; the chess pieces used for wielding the Formless Chess technique were still there and had not been confiscated during the body search. His heart settling somewhat, Jian Liang pondered, "Tomorrow I will likely be brought up for interrogation. If the official is a reasonable man, once the matter is clarified, that will be the end of it. But if he fears Princess Lanling and tries to impose a false charge upon me, I will simply use my chess pieces to fight my way out of the Yamen and seek out the Princess to demand an explanation."

Just then, the cell door clinked, and Tang Qiang and Niu Jiang entered with lanterns to make their midnight rounds. Seeing that Jian Liang had not yet fallen asleep, Tang Qiang consoled him, "Master Jian need not worry too much. With Prefect Lu showing you such consideration, tomorrow's trial will surely have a favorable outcome. Who could fail to respect Master Jian's immense fame in chess! You should rest early." After exchanging a few more casual remarks, Niu Jiang and Tang Qiang turned to leave.

At that exact moment, a masked figure flashed in from outside the cell door. Before Tang Qiang and Niu Jiang could even cry out, the intruder swiftly struck their pressure points, sending them collapsing unconscious to the side. Startled, Jian Liang hurriedly concealed a chess piece between his fingers to gauge whether the newcomer was friend or foe.

The masked figure picked up the discarded lantern from the ground, strode briskly to the wooden bars of the cell, and with a single stretch of the arm, snapped the heavy iron lock clean in half. Tearing off his face covering, he stepped inside and asked, "Grandmaster Jian, are you unharmed?" The person was none other than Huang Yan.

Jian Liang was pleasantly surprised and blurted out, "Old Hero Huang!" Huang Yan hung the lantern aside, turned around, and asked, "Grandmaster Jian, why are you suffering injustice here? Why didn't you just use your skills and walk out?"

Jian Liang gave a wry smile and replied, "I do not possess Old Hero Huang's ability to come and go as effortlessly as through an open door. Otherwise, I would have gone to find that Princess Lanling and demanded an explanation." Hearing this, Huang Yan was startled and said, "What? It was that princess who caused this?"

Jian Liang sighed, "If not her, who else could it be? Who else would mobilize the official troops of Wuchang Prefecture just to capture a mere commoner like myself?" Enraged, Huang Yan declared, "This little girl is far too vicious! Because her face was slighted once, she resorts to such malicious frame-ups. Wait a moment, Grandmaster Jian; if that princess hasn't left yet, this old man will go capture her and demand a full explanation." With that, Huang Yan turned and strode out of the cell door.

Faintly, he heard Huang Lan's voice asking, "Is Brother Jian alright?" It was clear that the Huang siblings had also come and were standing guard outside to keep watch. Fearing that Huang Yan might encounter complications while attempting to capture Princess Lanling, Jian Liang intended to speak up and dissuade him, but the Huang father and daughter had already walked far away.

Though Huang Yan had come and gone, Jian Liang remained deeply worried, waiting anxiously in the cell. Catching sight of the iron lock that Huang Yan had snapped in half with a single pull upon entering, Jian Liang thought in astonishment, "Old Hero Huang possesses such immense physical strength! To actually snap an iron lock by pulling it—his internal energy is truly profound!" Remembering their accidental clash at the Suizhou inn, a lingering fear gripped him: "If I hadn't moved my chess pieces with such speed back then, I wouldn't have been able to block even a single finger of Old Hero Huang's."

About half an hour later, the cell door opened. Huang Yan shouldered a roll of brocade quilt as he slipped back inside, turning around to whisper softly, "You two siblings keep a proper watch outside." With that, he walked over to Jian Liang's cell, tossed the roll of quilt onto the bed, and turned back to laugh at Jian Liang, "That little girl was truly troublesome to capture. If I hadn't brought her two siblings along to lure away her two elite guards, it would have taken quite a bit of effort."

Astonished, Jian Liang asked, "Did Old Hero Huang really kidnap Princess Lanling and bring her here?" Huang Yan chuckled, "Naturally!" With that, he stepped forward, grabbed the edge of the rolled quilt, and unrolled a young woman clad in sleepwear from within. In the candlelight, she opened a pair of terrified, wide eyes, staring in shock at Jian Liang and Huang Yan. It was none other than Princess Lanling. Evidently, she had been struck by Huang Yan's pressure points while fast asleep, rolled up in the quilt, and carried over.

Seeing Princess Lanling's panic-stricken expression, her dark hair in disarray, and her eyes gazing at him with piteous pleading as if seeking help, Jian Liang's natural sympathy stirred. Noticing that she was still wrapped only in her nightgown, he stepped forward, pulled the quilt over, and covered her body. Gratitude instantly flickered in Princess Lanling's eyes.

At this moment, Huang Yan spoke up, "Today we must demand a clear explanation from this little princess as to why she bullies others with her power, thinking we have no methods of our own?" Anxious, Jian Liang said, "Old Hero Huang, why did you drag her here? Isn't that dangerous?" Huang Yan laughed, "The most dangerous place is also the safest place. The people of the Wuchang Yamen and the girl's two master bodyguards would never dream in their wildest dreams that this old man would interrogate their princess right inside their own dungeon." Huang Yan then stepped forward and released Princess Lanling's pressure points.

The moment her limbs felt loose, Princess Lanling scrambled up in a panic. She grabbed the arm of Jian Liang, who was standing beside the bed, and hid behind his back, crying out, "Master Jian, save me!" With an expression of annoyance, Jian Liang flicked his arm away and said, "Stay away from me!" Seeming to hold a profound dread of Huang Yan, Princess Lanling clung stubbornly to Jian Liang's arm, refusing to let go, and began to sob in fright, "Brother Jian, please save me!"

Seeing that Princess Lanling had been frightened out of her wits, her lovely face drained of color, Jian Liang's heart softened. He moderated his tone and comforted her, "Don't worry, no one is going to eat you." Seeing that Princess Lanling, upon having her pressure points unsealed, kept hiding behind Jian Liang's back, Huang Yan found the scene amusing. He tilted his head, glared, and said, "You have quite a temper, yet you're afraid of trouble?"

Seeing Huang Yan's fierce appearance, Princess Lanling dared not look at him, keeping her face turned behind Jian Liang without daring to utter a sound. Jian Liang shook his head and said, "Old Hero Huang, stop terrifying her, or she will just keep tangling herself around me and won't let go."

Huang Yan suddenly chuckled and remarked, "This young woman genuinely likes you, otherwise why would she keep hiding behind your back?" Deeply embarrassed, Jian Liang shoved Princess Lanling firmly toward the bed and snapped, "Get away from me! Haven't you caused me enough trouble already?" Princess Lanling then curled up in the corner of the bed, clutching the quilt as her body trembled slightly, not daring to speak.

At this, Huang Yan spoke in a stern voice, "You little girl! How can you be so overbearing? Sending official troops to capture Grandmaster Jian from the Yellow Crane Tower for no reason—what was your intention? Throwing your weight around like this, do you think there will be any good fruit for you to eat? Setting aside the fact that you're a princess of the Prince of Hanyang's estate, even if you were the Emperor's own daughter, this old man would still nab you just the same. Speak up: what crime did my Grandmaster Jian commit that you had him dragged before the official courts to face charges?" Terrified, Princess Lanling did not dare to answer, looking pleadingly toward Jian Liang.

Seeing the pitiful sight of Princess Lanling, Jian Liang sighed softly and said, "If you knew it would come to this, why act so willfully in the first place? Did you think you could just arrest people on a whim and face no consequences?" Remorsefully lowering her head, Princess Lanling whimpered, "Brother Jian, I... I didn't mean to. I'm sorry!" She looked as though she was about to burst into loud wails. Glaring fiercely, Huang Yan barked, "You didn't mean to? If you had meant to, you would have had his head chopped off on the spot! And you still dare to cry?" Frightened, Princess Lanling hurriedly clamped her hands over her mouth, forcefully choking back her sobs.

Seeing that Princess Lanling, a mere princess, had been frightened to the point of crying uncontrollably, Jian Liang felt his heart soften. He softened his tone once more and consoled her, "Princess Lan, whether you are a princess or your father is the Prince of Hanyang, what you did was truly inappropriate. Do not be afraid either; we are not going to harm people the way you do."

Upon hearing this, Princess Lanling's terror diminished slightly, and she apologetically murmured, "Brother Jian, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done this."