Chapter 143: Must Be Led by Chen Guanlou

As long as the relationships are properly handled, matters become easy to resolve.

With Master Li's help, after a few days, there was feedback on the matter.

Shi Hong was summoned to the official office, where Fan Yucheng berated him harshly—very cruelly. This wasn't entirely Fan Yucheng's fault; Shi Hong was a crude man, and if spoken to with refined subtlety, he wouldn't understand. He might even mistake it for praise.

Only blunt, direct anger—making him feel the true fury—would have any effect.

Sure enough, after returning from the official office, Shi Hong was completely deflated, no longer the arrogant, boastful man he had been. In the dead of winter, in the cold, damp prison, he broke out in a cold sweat. He canceled all his drinking and meal packages.

Throughout, Chen Guanlou never directly interacted with Shi Hong. To deal with a blunt fool, you must crush him with authority. Let someone with power suppress him—he'll then rein himself in. No need to explain why; just tell him what he must do, and the matter resolves perfectly. A peer's reminder? He'll think you're an idiot.

Master Li took the money and actually delivered.

Soon, Fan Yucheng and Fan Yuli jointly issued a statement: any major move in the Jia-cell prison must first receive unanimous approval from a group of squad leaders headed by Chen Guanlou before being reported and implemented. No more arbitrary decisions.

This statement heavily emphasized the phrase "headed by Chen Guanlou"—those five words carried immense weight, openly declaring Chen Guanlou as the top among the four squad leaders. The opinions of the other squad leaders were implicitly expected to be approved by Chen Guanlou before being submitted.

Upon this statement's release, the prison guards below didn't react much—not everyone could sense its implications. But the other three squad leaders felt a mix of emotions, deeply complicated.

When they gathered, Wu Squad Leader muttered sourly, "Old, old. Spent a lifetime in the Tianlao, yet still can't match your young minds—sharp, clever. All that experience? Useless. Can't even carry your shoes."

Wang Squad Leader smoked his pipe in silence, his feelings hard to express. He occasionally looked up at the group but said nothing.

Wu Squad Leader suddenly turned on him: "Smoke, smoke, smoke yourself to death. The duty room's already airless—now you're smoking pipe tobacco in here? You trying to choke us all?"

Wang Squad Leader visibly startled, clearly surprised the anger had turned toward him. He silently tapped his pipe against the table edge to clear the ash, then quietly slipped it back into his belt, sipped strong tea, cleared his throat, and said, "The smell in the duty room is indeed foul. But compared to someone's halitosis, it's nothing."

Wu Squad Leader's eyes widened. "You—"

Wang Squad Leader met his gaze without flinching. "We entered the Tianlao around the same time, shared the same experiences, the same seniority. Do you think you can tower over me?"

These words struck Wu Squad Leader's face like slaps—loud, clear, not a shred of face left.

"Fine, fine! What did Chen Guanlou give you to make you so loyal to him?"

"I follow merit, not favoritism. Whoever has ability, I respect." Wang Squad Leader shot back.

"He just read two more years of books," Wu Squad Leader fumed helplessly.

Wang Squad Leader chuckled. "If you've got the ability, go read two years yourself. I doubt you'd last two days."

Reading requires talent.

Those without it—two days is torture. Two hours? A death sentence. They all know reading brings benefits. They all have money. Yet not a single person in the Tianlao has the drive to learn. Not even to open a register or do basic writing—they all flee. To the guards, a brush seems more terrifying than a sword.

Shi Hong was still stewing in anger, not joining the argument. He couldn't understand: he'd given his cousin to Fan Yucheng, secured the power of the pillow wind—so why was Fan Yucheng still siding with Chen Guanlou? Why?

Isn't he, his own uncle-by-marriage, more valuable?

He swore: if Fan Yucheng told him to go east, he'd never dare go west. Chen Guanlou looked honest, but had no loyalty whatsoever—always did as he pleased.

He just couldn't figure it out.

"Shi Hong, what do you say?" Wu Squad Leader suddenly shifted focus, dragging Shi Hong into the fight, aiming for chaos.

Shi Hong snapped back to reality, furious. "What am I supposed to say? What do you want me to say? Master Fan berated me hard—he said I acted recklessly, ignored the bigger picture, chased petty profits, and constantly caused trouble."

"I just don't get it. Same packages—his get full support from above, mine are called irresponsible. I still don't understand the difference. In experience, in methods—where am I worse than that brat Chen Guanlou?"

Wang Squad Leader burst out laughing upon hearing this.

Shi Hong glared. "Laugh it up, huh? Did I say something wrong?"

Wang Squad Leader grinned. "Want to know the difference? You still don't get it? No wonder Fan Yucheng yelled at you."

"Wang Head, explain clearly. If you understand, tell me." Shi Hong was defiant.

Wu Squad Leader sipped tea, delighted by the scene. The tactic of diverting blame? Delicious.

Wang Squad Leader sneered. "Fine, I'll be kind today. One thing: Chen Tou's packages didn't provoke complaints from the imprisoned officials. Buy or not—it doesn't affect daily prison life. At most, others just envy the rich inmates next door. The higher-ups gain benefits without fearing exposure or being caught with evidence. Of course Fan my lord supports it."

"Your packages? In modern terms—it's called 'draining the pond to catch fish.' Yes, that's it. You killed all the fish. Now no one has anything left to eat, and you've stunk up the whole place. Fan my lord hasn't punished you yet? That's only because of your cousin. Don't be ungrateful."

Shi Hong tilted his head, still confused. "Chen Guanlou's packages cost dozens or even hundreds of taels. Mine are two taels, at most five. Why do the imprisoned officials rage at me and not him?"

Even Wu Squad Leader couldn't take it anymore. Shi Hong's brain—if not for his cousin—he'd never have become a squad leader. A complete fool.

He cleared his throat. "Those officials paid money when they first entered prison. Your packages are double-charging. Chen Guanlou's packages offer extra services. Totally different."

"Hahahaha… double-charging? That's a good term. Wasn't that phrase first coined by Chen Tou? See? Educated people are different—four words, and the whole problem's clear." Wang Squad Leader teased, smirking.

"Everyone's here!"

At that moment, the door opened, and Chen Guanlou walked in.

"Perfect timing. Tonight, I'm treating everyone. What, not willing to accept my invitation?" Chen Guanlou looked at the three with a sly expression.