Chapter 42 – Prisoner

When Guan Heng entered the counseling room, Hong Rong was already seated on a chair, waiting. The female counselor followed him in and closed the door behind them, leaving the two men alone for their private conversation.

Over the past twenty years since Guan Heng had last seen him, Hong Rong had undergone significant changes. His thick black hair had turned white, and he was even balding in some spots. His once-obese body had shrunk down to a gaunt figure, and deep wrinkles marred his face. If not for the prison uniform he wore and the inmate number on his left chest, he could have passed for a regular man in his sixties. Yet, it was this unremarkable-looking man who had committed over a dozen cases of child abuse and sexual assault. Some of his victims didn’t live long enough to grow up, having been tortured to death. Others, despite surviving into adulthood, still suffered from the trauma of their childhood experiences, requiring long-term psychological treatment. Only a lucky few, like Guan Heng, managed to escape his clutches unscathed.

When Hong Rong was arrested, Guan Heng had been abroad. Although he didn’t handle the case himself, his theoretical framework played an indirect role in convicting Hong Rong. Like many other heinous criminals, Hong Rong attempted to feign illness to avoid punishment, a tactic that often contributed to the stigmatization of mental health issues. Fortunately, due to the precedent set by Guan Heng, the loopholes in mental testing were gradually being closed by the time Hong Rong was caught. He couldn’t escape his sentence, although he did manage to dodge execution due to the controversy surrounding capital punishment at the time, instead receiving a life sentence.

Upon hearing the news, Guan Heng immediately made arrangements to return home and actively sought to take on Hong Rong’s case. As a child, he had narrowly escaped Hong Rong’s grasp, but since he hadn’t suffered any physical harm, there was no official record of the incident. No one knew that Guan Heng was one of Hong Rong’s victims, but he never forgot the man’s face. However, Guan Heng had changed so much over the years, rapidly growing from a child into a man, that Hong Rong didn’t recognize him at first. This allowed Guan Heng to become Hong Rong’s counselor without raising suspicion.

For years, Guan Heng never gave up on seeking justice and waited patiently for an opportunity. He knew that a pedophile like Hong Rong, once he had tasted success, would be unable to resist the temptation again, just like a drug addict. Guan Heng seized this chance and confronted Hong Rong, who was locked away in prison, for over a decade.

This was why Zhan Hong said that Guan Heng wouldn’t let go of Hong Rong, nor could he let go of his own past.

Although a life sentence technically meant indefinite imprisonment, there was still a possibility of parole after serving ten to twenty years, or a pardon might be granted. Hong Rong had already spent more than a decade in prison, keeping a low profile and avoiding trouble. These recent years presented a good opportunity for him to seek parole, provided he maintained good behavior in prison and passed the psychological evaluation.

However, three years ago, Hong Rong accidentally discovered that Guan Heng had been one of his victims who managed to escape. Since then, his psychological evaluations had consistently failed.

The cruelest thing to do to someone wasn’t to make them feel hopeless from the start; it was to give them hope and then watch it shatter before their eyes. Hong Rong was convinced that Guan Heng was here to exact revenge, determined to keep him locked up forever.

The elderly Hong Rong slowly raised his gaze to meet Guan Heng’s, his eyes filled with a complex mix of emotions—resentment and a deeply hidden trace of fear. But the eyes of a killer were different; when he lifted his head, they flashed with a cold glint.

Guan Heng sat down calmly across from him and addressed him, “Mr. Hong.”

In prison, everyone referred to inmates by their inmate numbers, but counselors didn’t follow that practice. They called the inmates by their names, showing them respect as human beings. Yet, the more polite Guan Heng was, the more wary Hong Rong became. Cornered and powerless, he could only roar to scare off his enemy, “Guan Heng, there’s no one else here. You don’t need to pretend anymore.”

Guan Heng didn’t respond to this comment; he simply said, “If you don’t cooperate with the psychological counseling, I won’t know how to evaluate you.”

This response only served to further agitate Hong Rong, his emotions suddenly surging as he vented the injustices he felt he had endured during his time in prison. In prison, there were no secrets; everyone’s crimes were openly discussed. Someone like him, a perverted pedophile, was especially targeted, making his life in prison difficult. After realizing this, he blamed Guan Heng for all his troubles, yelling, “You abused your power! You’re settling personal scores! You deliberately made me fail my psychological evaluation! You fucking don’t want me to leave this place, you want me to rot here and die!”

This was a serious accusation. However, Guan Heng remained calm, merely looking at him silently for a moment before agreeing, “Yes.”

Hong Rong had wanted Guan Heng to admit it, but once he did, he fell silent, his blood turning to ice. He didn’t know what to say next: “You admitted it…you, you really…”

Guan Heng slowly smiled, “Isn’t this the answer you wanted to hear? Are you satisfied? Happy?”

In the battle of wits, Hong Rong was no match for Guan Heng. Guan Heng’s admission was like pouring fuel on the fire, informing Hong Rong of an unchangeable fact. He dared to sit here and speak these words because he had nothing to fear.

This made Hong Rong realize how ridiculous his desperate struggle appeared. He never expected Guan Heng to wield such immense power. Stunned, he stumbled over his words, “You, you defy the law, break the law… I’ll, I’ll report you…”

It was laughable to hear a criminal who tried to evade punishment demand justice, but people instinctively gravitated towards what benefited them.

Guan Heng didn’t hesitate to remind him, “Didn’t you want to change counselors? Do you think you succeeded?”

In just the past three years, Hong Rong had requested a change five times, but none of them had been successful. This only reinforced his belief that Guan Heng had established connections within the prison, possibly even holding his life in his hands.

Was there anything more terrifying than living without freedom? No.

As Hong Rong contemplated spending the rest of his life in prison, he seemed to lose the will to live. His frail, emaciated body began to tremble, almost mechanically repeating the same phrase, “What do you want…what will it take for you to let me go…what can I do? For you to let me go…”

Hong Rong’s pitiful appearance was indeed tragic and evoked sympathy. Perhaps only in moments of utter despair could one truly repent. But Guan Heng merely looked at him quietly, saying nothing. He had no right to forgive Hong Rong on behalf of any victim, as no one would dare seek forgiveness from the innocent children who had suffered and died at the hands of this criminal. Some of them would spend their entire lives trying to heal from the pain inflicted by this monster.

While Guan Heng seemed inclined to verbally guide and provoke Hong Rong, he could withstand any judicial investigation. He hadn’t interfered with the prison’s internal affairs through illegal means.

But as he had told Ye Zhou, from the moment he actively pursued Hong Rong’s case, he couldn’t deny that he was driven by personal desire. Perhaps subconsciously, he genuinely wanted to use his position to punish these criminals. Anyone observing the situation would find it hard to believe that he could handle matters impartially.

Yet, only Ye Zhou had told him that he always adhered to the boundaries of the law.

He had always believed that his controlling nature was incurable, even worsening when Hong Rong was caught. But unexpectedly, this flaw prevented him from crossing that line, making him a restrained and powerful individual. Whenever he aimed to control something, he was also restraining himself.

It was clear that Hong Rong was no longer in a stable state of mind, and today’s session had to end here.

Guan Heng gathered his documents and stood up, preparing to leave, when Hong Rong suddenly lost control of his emotions and lunged at Guan Heng, “You’re a devil, a devil in human skin!”

Guan Heng remained standing in place, and Hong Rong didn’t actually reach him. His handcuffs and leg shackles kept him tethered to the vicinity of the chair. The chains’ tugging triggered an alarm, and prison guards quickly rushed in to restrain Hong Rong and return him to his seat. The female counselor outside also came in.

Even while being held down on the chair, Hong Rong continued to struggle, glaring fiercely at Guan Heng and yelling, “You…you’re sick! You’re the real psychopath! You’re no different from those murderers. You’re just smarter and higher up. Don’t think you can imprison me in this hellhole for the rest of my life. You won’t get away with abusing your power. You’ll get what’s coming to you…”

Everyone present, as well as those passing by in the corridor, heard these words. Hong Rong continued to curse at Guan Heng, using vile language. The female counselor looked embarrassed, but Guan Heng’s expression remained unchanged, “Let’s talk outside.”

“Alright.”

Hong Rong was swiftly taken away, and silence returned once more.

Guan Heng appeared unaffected, merely jotting down notes on Hong Rong’s psychological assessment. In a matter-of-fact tone, he said, “His emotions are unstable, and he refuses to cooperate with counseling. I don’t think he’s fit for parole in his current state.”

The female counselor, having witnessed Hong Rong’s outburst, agreed, “His mental state has deteriorated significantly over the past few years. We can only continue monitoring him.”

Guan Heng signed his name on the evaluation form and handed it to the female counselor. She glanced over it, confirmed there were no issues, and signed her name as well.

Once this document was submitted, Hong Rong could forget about parole for the next few years. Back when he tried to evade punishment by feigning madness, he probably never imagined that he would fall victim to the very system he sought to manipulate.

Guan Heng looked around the empty counseling room, subconsciously moving his left hand as if to reach for a cigarette in his pocket. But for some reason, he stopped halfway. Suddenly, he didn’t want to touch a cigarette; he wanted to stroke Ye Zhou’s fluffy head instead.