The glass doors slid open to the sides, and the crowd filed in.
"Shift change, shift change."
Qi Heng bellowed.
Only then did Wan Lei see that this Thirteenth Division prison was arranged in rows, with a guard standing at the entrance to each row.
Upon hearing Qi Heng's shout, the guards' rigid, standing postures immediately relaxed. They hurried over, greeting each other as they went.
"Off duty, off duty."
"Time to go cultivate."
"I'm heading to the bar, anyone wanna team up?"
"Hey, who's this? A newcomer?"
Qi Heng smiled proudly at the question.
"This is a big shot. Take a good, close look, everyone."
The night shift guards all looked at Wan Lei with curiosity. Although they were on duty when he was fighting, they had watched the videos later.
Finally, someone recognized Wan Lei.
"Holy crap, it's Wan Lei?"
"For real? How did someone like him end up in our rat's nest?"
"A big shot."
"What a shame. You were on duty when we were off, and off when we're on. Can't even share a drink."
After a brief chat, the night shift left.
Just then, people from the mess hall pushed in with food carts.
Ten people, pushing ten carts. Each cart had ten shelves, stacked with food trays containing vegetables, staple foods, and fruits.
After handing over the carts to the guards, the mess hall staff turned and left.
Seeing this, Qi Heng explained,
"Our inmates are provided with three meals a day, at nine in the morning, three in the afternoon, and nine at night. The day shift guards are responsible for distribution, so their work is a bit more tiring."
Qi Heng waved, and the other nine guards gathered around. He then took out a bunch of keys, distributing one set to each person.
He handed the last set of keys to Wan Lei.
Wan Lei pushed a food cart and followed Qi Heng toward the tenth row.
Upon reaching the tenth row, Wan Lei looked inside. It was a corridor with two rows of cells on either side.
The side of the cells facing the corridor had no walls, only glass. The guards could clearly see the situation inside through the glass, preventing any mischief by the inmates.
Each glass panel had a glass door, and the glass door had a small window.
"These keys are for opening the small windows. The small windows are for delivering food. Generally, inmates will come to collect it themselves. If they don't cooperate, you can use your spiritual energy to slide it to the table inside.
They have one hour to eat. After eating, collect the trays and put them back on the cart, then push it to the main entrance of our division. The mess hall staff will come to collect them.
To open the small window, you'll need facial recognition, identification, and the key – all three are indispensable.
I will hand you these keys during meal distribution, and you return them to me after you're done.
You don't have the keys to open the main cell doors; only I do. If you need to open a door, come to me and apply.
Wan Lei summarized. To enter the prison gate and the Class B prison corridor, his own identification was sufficient. To enter the Thirteenth Division gate, Qi Heng's ID, key, and facial recognition were required, all indispensable.
To open each individual cell door, one needed their own facial recognition and ID, along with Qi Heng's key.
"And in what situations would I need to ask you for the key to open a door?"
Wan Lei asked.
"For example, if someone inside is shouting loudly, causing trouble, or deliberately damaging property, you can open the door and go in to beat them up."
Qi Heng said.
"Uh... aren't we a civilized prison and not allowed to hit people?"
Wan Lei was shocked. Qi Heng hadn't said this before.
"Oh, of course, we can't hit people without reason. But if they're causing trouble, we can't hit them? It's not that rigid. They're here to serve time, not on vacation."
As Qi Heng spoke, he had Wan Lei open the small window of the first cell on the right and pass the food tray inside.
"In Class D and Class C prisons, these keys are held by the guards themselves. The likelihood of escape there is small.
But Class B is different. Most inmates are serving life sentences, so a few individuals here still yearn to escape. It's life or freedom, gambling with their lives.
Because of this, our Class B prison management is extremely strict. These keys, except for meal delivery, can only be kept by me. This is to prevent some inmates from bribing guards to help them escape."
As he said this, Qi Heng gave Wan Lei a knowing look.
Wan Lei's forehead was covered in black lines. You might as well just state my ID number directly.
"Don't overthink it. I'm not talking about you."
Big brother, there's no need to cover it up so poorly.
Wan Lei picked up the key again, opened the small window of the second cell, and passed the food tray inside.
"Brother Qi, if someone needs to open the cultivation inhibitor around the prisoner's neck, is it also done with a key?"
Qi Heng was startled. Brother, can you be a little more discreet? Does it need to be this obvious?
"Uh... I'm just curious. If an inmate is released after serving their sentence, surely they have to open it, right?"
Qi Heng gave Wan Lei a meaningful glance.
"The switch for the cultivation inhibitor is not handled by us; it's controlled by the staff in the central system backend.
If someone is released after serving their sentence, you take them out of the cell and to the outside. After the personnel in the office confirm, the system will open it directly."
Qi Heng paused here, then continued,
"However, that inhibitor isn't very strong. Someone with cultivation can break it with a bit of force. Someone without cultivation cannot break it with their own strength."
Wan Lei nodded and didn't ask further questions.
"Brother, I know you have your capabilities, but you must understand that this is the Five Elements Hall."
"Don't worry, Brother Qi. I know what I'm doing. I won't give up on vindicating her, but I also won't do anything foolish like breaking her out, which would ultimately harm both her and me."
Wan Lei spoke very earnestly.
"Alright, I know you're eager. I'll handle the breakfast distribution today. You go and see your beloved."
Qi Heng smiled, took a key from the bunch, and handed it to Wan Lei.
"It's near the end of the corridor, number eighty-nine."
"Thank you, Brother Qi."
Wan Lei was overjoyed. He took the key and was about to leave when he suddenly turned back, took a food tray from the cart, and dashed toward the end of the corridor.
As he approached eighty-nine, Wan Lei's speed gradually decreased. He hadn't seen his wife for nearly half a year, and he felt a bit nervous.
With this nervous and anxious feeling, Wan Lei finally arrived outside cell eighty-nine and saw the person inside.
Long time no see, my Xiao Yu.