7:00 PM. Aiden once again met Anne Drake, now in shackles, in the interrogation room.
"Well, you've finally settled down," Aiden nodded at her with approval. "The inmates here have been getting more and more obedient lately. While that's a good thing... it's also become rather dull. Thanks to you, I've had some long-awaited fun."
"Mmph mmph mmph..." Anne made muffled sounds.
"You got beaten up pretty badly, huh? Your face is all swollen. I thought Ophelia wasn't good at hand-to-hand combat... But compared to those beaten by Carmilla, you're actually quite lucky. Many of them had their jaws broken."
"Mmph mmph..." Anne continued her muffled sounds.
"Do you want to speak?" Aiden asked.
"Mmph!"
Anne couldn't speak, only emit muffled "mmph" sounds, because a piece of tape sealed her mouth.
This measure was taken mainly because Anne had started cursing Aiden the moment she saw him, constantly trying to drown out his questions with her voice. Eventually, Aiden simply had Veronica tape her mouth shut.
"If you stop wasting our time with curses, I'd be quite willing to let you say a few words. I don't want it to seem like I've kidnapped you," Aiden shrugged. "After I remove the tape, I advise you to learn some manners. My bodyguard here isn't in a good mood today."
Veronica, standing behind Aiden with a dark face, shot Anne a threatening glare.
Aiden stared at Anne for a moment, then waved his hand. "Tear it off."
Veronica stepped forward and ripped the tape off Anne's mouth.
"You—" Anne immediately glared at Aiden and opened her mouth.
Veronica suddenly slammed her baton on the iron table, cutting off her voice. "Want to lose your teeth?"
Anne immediately shut her mouth.
"Still want to curse?" Aiden looked at Anne, chuckling. "Are you that scared?"
"Who said I'm scared!?" Anne instantly raised her voice like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Aiden looked directly into Anne's eyes. Anne held his gaze for a few seconds before looking away.
"You talk tough now, but you can't even maintain eye contact for long. Veronica scares you a little, and your body tenses up. And you still dare say you're not scared?" Aiden stared at her, speaking slowly. "Actually, I understand you. With your father captured, you've lost your backing. On your own, forget escaping prison, even causing trouble is difficult. 'Second-generation gangsters' like you, in the end, only amount to this much."
"What exactly do you want? Want to administer private punishment?" Anne couldn't hold back anymore. Constantly thinking about what awaited her after the failed escape attempt sent shivers down her spine. Rather than continue living in fear, it was better to let him get it over with.
"No need to be tense. I don't plan on doing anything. The court will naturally pass judgment for the crime of escaping prison. Tomorrow, you and your father will probably be sent to the courthouse. Of course, your past crimes of arson, murder, and plunder on the Empire's seas have nothing to do with the Autonomous Prefecture; they won't be counted here. What will be judged here are only the crimes of jailbreaking and escaping," Aiden explained calmly. "However, after you serve your time here, the Empire will settle accounts with you sooner or later... But for the Empire, only your father likely has extradition value. As for you, the transfer procedures are already completed; you'll most likely continue serving your sentence here."
"What are you trying to say?"
"As the primary instigator of the riotous escape, you'll get at least ten years added to your sentence. Plus your previous sentence... Congratulations, you've become a long-term inmate with over twenty years. No matter how well you behave, unless you achieve significant meritorious service, you'll probably stay here for at least ten years. Since we'll be spending a long time together, I think it's best to admonish you a little," Aiden raised a hand and pointed at Anne.
"Admonish?"
"If you follow the rules here, you might have a slightly better time," Aiden stated calmly.
"Are you trying to make me obey?" Anne's eyes showed defiance.
"I don't care either way. If you don't follow the rules, it's no great loss to me; I even get some entertainment," Aiden shrugged. "The only one who suffers is you. Forget me, you couldn't even outwit that succubus in your cell. You'd best watch yourself."
"..." Anne fell silent.
"After you escapees are tried and return, you should normally be placed in restraint confinement for a while. But on second thought, forget it."
Hearing this, Anne frowned suspiciously.
"The textile workshop has too many orders to process lately. Locking you up would be too much of a waste of labor," Aiden continued. "For the next three-month observation period, everyone involved in the escape will have their privilege level reduced to the minimum, and all rest days are canceled. Additionally, mandatory overtime every evening."
The sanitary napkins and diapers produced by the textile workshop were selling so well they couldn't keep up with demand; basically, everything produced could be sold. Aiden really wanted the inmates to work overtime every day, but prison regulations had limits.
Conveniently, this group of female inmates, led by Anne, pulled this stunt, giving Aiden the perfect reason to increase their labor duties.
Facing a group of unruly, vicious criminals, Aiden could play the role of Zhou Bapi without any psychological burden.
(TN: 周扒皮 (Zhōu Bāpí) - Zhou Bapi, a notorious landlord character from Chinese literature known for cruel exploitation of peasants, specifically waking them up early for work by mimicking a rooster's crow. Represents extreme exploitation.)
"Is this... treating us like slave labor?" Anne asked.
"This is slave labor? Some unscrupulous companies out there are much harsher on their workers," Aiden chuckled. "However, your allowances will have to be deducted."
"What if I refuse to work?"
"Working in the workshop is still better than restraint confinement. You don't want to spend your days with your hands tied behind your back, having to eat from a tray like a dog, unable to even wipe yourself after using the toilet, do you?" Aiden raised an eyebrow.
Anne finally quieted down.
"That's settled then. You can stay in the solitary cell tonight," Aiden waved his hand, preparing to have Veronica take her away.
But just then, Anne suddenly spoke: "My father... what will happen to him?"
"Who knows? I'm not familiar with the Empire's laws. Once he's extradited to the Empire, whatever crime he's convicted of will determine his sentence. If his crimes warrant the death penalty, being hanged is just deserved punishment," Aiden said slowly. "However, I hear you pirates hide treasure to use as bargaining chips for sentence reduction if captured. Maybe he has a chance to survive... But I imagine, in the luckiest scenario, he'll probably spend the rest of his life in prison."
Anne lowered her head after hearing this and said no more.
"If he's executed, you probably won't get a chance to see him one last time. Even if he survives, you'll have to wait until you finish your sentence to see him... Who knows if he'll even last that long," Aiden glanced at Anne. "But neither of you deserves sympathy. Experience the price of crime properly here in prison."
Comments
Post a Comment