Chapter 382: Chapter 382 Visiting with a Bribe_1
Two days later, in the evening, in the Pingcheng District of Silvertown, Flandre, warden of the Rose Iron Prison Core Zone, got off the public carriage and turned into an alley flanked on both sides by residential buildings.
As a high-ranking prison guard in her forties, she rarely had to work shifts like the new guards who just started, working in the morning and off in the evening, with a few night shifts each month. Overall, her life was fairly regular.
She arrived at her own doorstep, took out her keys, inserted them into the lock, and turned—immediately frowning.
The door wasn’t locked.
Her children had their own families and had moved to other districts, leaving only her and her husband in the old house. Her husband was a cartographer for the city hall and had been incredibly busy with projects recently; he had also mentioned he would be working through the night today.
Why would he suddenly come back?
With such doubts, Flandre opened the door and entered her home.
She had just stepped past the entryway when she stopped, feeling all the hair on her body stand on end.
She saw a stranger in her living room. As she entered, the man rose from the sofa, a smile on his face as though he were the master of the house, welcoming her as a guest.
"Sorry to bother you, Mrs. Rogge," the man said politely, taking off his hat and bowing, "Ah, please don’t be so tense, there’s no need to call out for help. I have absolutely no intention of harming you or your husband, may I speak to you for a moment?"
Flandre was about to retreat to the entryway when she suddenly heard a "knock knock" sound outside the door—the sound of a cane tapping on the steps, which meant someone was blocking the entrance.
Flandre realized she had no way out—these people were well-prepared, they had come to ambush her. Outside her duty post, she was unarmed, and while she knew some combat skills, dealing with two able-bodied men might be difficult. Inside the prison, suppressing prisoners relied on the riot gear and the mobile riot team, and there was seldom need for someone in her position to actually engage in combat.
She quickly calmed down, having worked in the Rose Iron Prison Core Zone for nearly twenty years, dealing with many dangerous prisoners, and having gone through the most chaotic periods of the prison.
In the prison, she had faced even more desperate situations; a petty thief sneaking into her house wasn’t going to throw her off her game.
"Looking at you, you must have specifically targeted me to come to my house," Flandre said, staring at the intruder, "Who are you?"
"You really live up to being the second in command of the Rose Iron Prison Core Zone, surely someone who has seen the world," the man said, nodding with a smile.
"Just a woman of no significant ability, who has climbed the ranks by luck, and is nearly at retirement age. You know I am a police officer and yet dare to break into my house to threaten me? You want to intimidate me?" Flandre replied calmly, "The things in my safe aren’t worth the risk for a few robbers to take this chance, unless you’re here for revenge?"
"Not at all, you’ve misunderstood," the man hurriedly waved his hands, "We’ve come to give you money."
"Money?" Flandre frowned.
"We’re very sorry to approach you in this manner and to have alarmed you; this is a little token of our sincerity," the man said, stepping forward and presenting a check with great respect.
Flandre glanced at the amount on the check, her expression changed slightly, "What do you mean by this?"
"We would like to ask for your help, warden," the man said with a conciliatory smile, "This is just the deposit. The compensation upon completion will be double this amount."
"You want to bribe me?" Flandre caught on, "Your methods are surely stronger than slipping money into my shoe cabinet."
Coming into someone’s home like this was virtually a mix of threat and enticement. The instant fear of the strangers suddenly appearing at home would psychologically put one in a disadvantage, easily led by the nose.
"It’s just a transaction that benefits us both," the man explained with a smile, "We’re just an ordinary gang. Recently, we had a traitor in our midst who messed up our business. By the rules, we have to find a way to execute her. Otherwise, our standing on the streets will be diminished. Little did we expect, she sought refuge in prison."
"You want me to kill a prisoner in the prison?" Flandre’s eyes widened, "If that were to be discovered, that would be..."
"As long as you manage not to be detected, it should be alright. I believe our offer for a human life is quite generous. If you’re not satisfied with the price, we can still discuss it. However, I hope your counter-offer is not too unreasonable," the man said.
"In the prison, I have higher-ups to answer to. If you want to bribe someone, why not directly bribe the prison governor?" Flandre asked.
"We also judge that your position as administration might give you more opportunities to contact the prisoners," the man chuckled.
"..." Flandre fell silent for a moment, constantly looking at the check in the man’s hand.
"This deposit should be enough for you to live a carefree life for the rest of your days," the man said, seeing her seemingly hesitant, and started to urge her, "The work environment in Rose Iron Prison must be quite harsh, right? How long would it take for you to save up this much money working there? We’re only asking you to deal with a criminal, after all."
"This is no small matter," Flandre looked up.
"Are you going to refuse... or do you want more money?" The man was a bit unsure of her attitude from just that sentence.
"I need time to think," Flandre answered, "I’ll give you a response tomorrow, at this time, in the pub at the end of the alley, okay?"
"This..." the man seemed troubled.
"That’s not an unreasonable request, is it? Is this your attitude when asking for a favor?" Flandre showed displeasure.
"Please understand, if you were to call the police on us, wouldn’t that..." the man said with an awkward smile.
"I can’t make this decision right now anyway. What are you going to do?" Flandre crossed her arms, "Tie me up and threaten me?"
"No, no, of course not! How about this, if you are interested in this deal, come alone to the entrance of warehouse number seven at the old city dock tomorrow at this time. If you’re worried, you can bring this." The man took out a gun, removed the bullets, and placed it on the living room table, "If we don’t see you, we’ll take it as a refusal of the deal and will never bother you again."
"Fine," Flandre thought for a moment and replied, "Then please leave my house now."
"Alright," the man bowed once more, taking off his hat, "I apologize for the sudden intrusion, I assure you I haven’t touched anything else. Goodnight."
After speaking, he walked out the door.
