"Xiao Shan."
Wang Yang pointed toward the passage. Xiao Shan understood, entered it, and stood watch at the entrance.
Wang Yang walked up to the iron bars, bent down, reached through them, and scooped out a handful of dry rice straw.
The Prince of Badong immediately grew agitated and jerked his chains:
"Hey! What are you doing!"
Wang Yang went on spreading the straw outside the bars, saying:
"You owe me so much money. Surely taking a little straw isn't too much?"
The Prince of Badong was stunned by how readily Wang Yang spun his nonsense:
"Don't you know perfectly well whether I owe you money? Have some shame, Wang Yang!"
Wang Yang sat down on the straw, gave the Prince of Badong a meaningful look, and drawled:
"Keeping your life matters more than keeping your dignity..."
The Prince of Badong's eyes grew wary:
"What do you mean?"
Wang Yang gestured casually, as though they were friends chatting:
"Sit down. Sit, and I'll tell you."
The Prince of Badong hesitated, then finally sat down.
Wang Yang looked at him and asked:
"Want to live?"
The Prince of Badong stiffened his neck:
"No."
"Really?"
"Really."
Wang Yang nodded:
"All right. Then let me ask another way-suppose you're already dead, and a powerful immortal happens to pass by and encounter your wandering soul. He says that if you give him your princely title, he'll bring you back to life. Would you accept?"
"Uh..."
"Could you be honest, Your Highness?"
"...Yes, but-"
"So you do want to live."
The Prince of Badong's face flushed. He was about to salvage his pride when Wang Yang said:
"If you want to live, do as I say. I'll have someone bring you paper and a brush in a moment. Write a Confession Memorial-"
The Prince of