For the next three days, whenever Zhou Gu was present, Li Ban wouldn't bring any wine jars back to his room. But if Zhou Gu was absent, Li Ban would always carry several jars back.
On the fourth day, Li Ban glanced at the desk again. After counting the jars on it, he let out a soft sigh and began tidying up while saying, "Sir, these jars have been used multiple times and have cracks along their edges from being knocked around. Should we purchase a new batch?"
Zhou Gu was observing some insects he'd been cultivating and didn't even look up. "Handle it as you see fit."
"Understood. I'll procure some new ones then." Li Ban started selecting the damaged jars from the desk, but his movements gradually slowed. "Hmm?"
The sound was quiet, but still noticeable to a jailer's trained ears.
Zhou Gu put away his insects. "What is it?"
Instead of answering immediately, Li Ban began counting the jars one by one.
Seeing this, Zhou Gu stood and approached. "Is there a problem?" He cared deeply about the distillation equipment.
"No, no problem. It's just... the total number of jars doesn't match." Li Ban rubbed his neck from prolonged bending. "Perhaps I miscounted."
"Yes." Li Ban stopped worrying about the jar count and wrapped the selected damaged ones in cloth. "Sir, I plan to clean these jars thoroughly and sell them in the black and white markets. This way we can recoup some costs."
The equipment and jars were purchased with Zhou Gu's personal funds, so every bit saved mattered.
Zhou Gu nodded. As Li Ban prepared to leave, he added, "Wash them multiple times."
"Rest assured, sir. I'll use soapberries and tea leaves to scrub them repeatedly until no trace of alcohol remains."
These jars had contained alcohol, especially the high-proof liquor Li Ban and Zhou Gu produced together. Even when empty, uncorking them still released an intoxicating aroma. Li Ban always wrapped them securely when transporting them.
After Li Ban left, Zhou Gu changed clothes to go out. Before departing, he glanced at the rearranged desk, feeling inexplicably unsettled though he couldn't pinpoint why. He pushed the feeling aside and headed to the fourth level to relieve Zhang Baishan.
Zhang Baishan sat drinking tea as usual—he never meditated while on prisoner duty. Seeing Zhou Gu arrive, he picked up his saber from the table. "No abnormalities."
Zhou Gu nodded but still meticulously inspected the shackles binding prisoners Lin Han and Zhai Liu before accepting responsibility.
While signing the log, Zhang Baishan mentioned, "Zhao Yu is next in rotation. If he has Huo Jiang substitute again, inform me."
Zhou Gu nodded. As he set down the brush, his nostrils twitched.
"I'm leaving."
Zhang Baishan didn't notice Zhou Gu's reaction and departed.
Zhou Gu quietly inhaled. Amid the ink's pungency, he detected... a faint trace of alcohol. Not the mellow aroma of market liquor, but the sharp, unpleasant scent of their own distilled high-proof alcohol—a smell he'd become intimately familiar with recently.
His first thought was that Li Ban had leaked their liquor. But Li Ban knew how to eliminate the scent;
if he'd given alcohol to Zhang Baishan, he would have warned him. Those missing jars...
Zhou Gu closed his eyes briefly before reopening them.
"You look terrible."
Zhai Liu's voice came from the cell. Zhou Gu turned to see the prisoner drooling again.
"Do you hate Zhang Baishan?"
Zhou Gu's expression darkened. "No, I respect Officer Zhang deeply."
Zhai Liu swallowed saliva. "I hate Zhang Baishan. He won't let me eat."
Zhou Gu ignored him and returned to his bench. Zhai Liu could eat—just not meat. Du An had personally ordered that anyone giving him even a speck of meat would be skinned alive.
...
After six agonizing hours, Zhou Gu was relieved by the timid Huo Jiang. Despite serving as a jailer for a year, Huo Jiang still acted so meekly.
"Covering for Zhao Yu again?"
Huo Jiang smiled bitterly. "Just saving up for better elemental equipment."
Zhou Gu left without another word, offering no warning to Huo Jiang. Returning to his room, his gaze fell upon the wine jars again.
Abruptly, he entered the inner chamber to inspect all marked locations. "No one's entered here." He relaxed slightly before his expression darkened again. "But they've breached the outer area. Reaching the inner chamber is only a matter of time."
He left again, heading straight for Death Prison's second level.
By coincidence or design, he encountered Tree-Person A along the way, who appeared in high spirits with water droplets still clinging to him as if freshly washed.
Tree-Person A greeted Zhou Gu as usual, but his lingering smile unsettled Zhou Gu—it felt mocking.
"You haven't been bothering Li Ban recently?"
The smile vanished instantly. "No, Officer Zhou. I've been assisting Officer Zhang lately."
Assisting Zhang Baishan? With what?
As Tree-Person A bowed and moved to pass by, Zhou Gu caught the faintest whiff of alcohol—so subtle he might have missed it without suspicion. That same harsh, unpalatable scent of their distilled liquor.
Their liquor!
But Zhou Gu didn't stop Tree-Person A, continuing forward stone-faced.
The missing jars... Tree-Person A's harassment of Li Ban... The alcohol scent on both Zhang Baishan and Tree-Person A...
Zhou Gu ascended to Death Prison's second level—not to find Li Ban, who was absent, but to approach a certain prisoner. He rapped the iron bars.
The prisoner turned weakly, expecting Li Ban with food, but froze upon seeing Zhou Gu. His single remaining eye widened in terror as he desperately scrambled backward with his limited mobility, managing only minimal distance before gaping in fright.
Zhou Gu examined the prisoner's mouth before slowly straightening up. "Almost mature."
Zhou Gu's secret... was never in the alcohol. But the liquor remained an important tool.
He didn't fear their investigations into the alcohol, but couldn't allow them to continue probing. He left with icy determination.
...
The next day, Tree-Person A disappeared.
Li Ban wasn't the first to know—he couldn't show overt interest in Tree-Person A's whereabouts. To make Zhou Gu suspect Tree-Person A of spying on his secrets, Li Ban had dropped hints three times, both obvious and subtle.
The scheme had required leaving some unnatural traces, necessitating Li Ban's complete dissociation from Tree-Person A—even avoiding Zhou Gu temporarily to prevent unwanted connections.
He learned the news from Wang Hua, who unusually summoned all menial workers to their quarters, including the rarely seen Lü Qinghe.
Wang Hua, who'd once helped Tree-Person A monitor Li Ban, showed none of the unease Li Ban expected.
"Tree-Person A's gone. Turned to charcoal."
Once assembled, Wang Hua delivered the news with forced solemnity, though the slight crinkling at his eyes betrayed suppressed satisfaction.
The room fell silent as reactions varied.
Li Ban first feigned surprise, then concealed his inner triumph.
He'd succeeded!
While elevating his importance to Zhou Gu, he'd simultaneously cultivated Zhou Gu's resentment toward Tree-Person A. Through careful hints, he'd sown suspicion until Zhou Gu eliminated Tree-Person A to protect his secret.
The entire scheme of killing with a borrowed knife had been painstakingly slow—any haste might have revealed his intentions and ruined everything.
Fortunately, he'd prevailed.
Li Ban lowered his head as his initial elation faded.
He seemed... to be adapting increasingly well to life in the Witch World.