Chapter 1710

After the former Prince Shuncheng's Mansion was raided, it was sealed with paper strips; idlers wouldn't dare enter, let alone approach. Anyone passing by would avoid this ominous place.

Chen Guanlou sat on the roof of the Prince Shuncheng Mansion in the middle of the night, catching the wind!

Any movement in the surroundings could not escape his eyes and ears.

The person he had waited for for a long time finally arrived.

Chunxiang Sao's eldest son, Qian Dawang, now renamed Jin Youde, climbed over the wall into the Prince Shuncheng Mansion and headed straight for a certain courtyard in the back garden, familiar with the path.

It was very clear that this was not his first time coming to the Prince's Mansion.

"Why are you here?"

A plain, unremarkable question scared Dawang so much that his soul nearly left his body; he was almost frightened to death.

His heart had already jumped to his throat.

He widened his eyes and, by the bright moonlight, finally saw clearly the person standing on the steps.

"Lou, Brother Lou!"

A momentary panic gripped his heart, and for a moment, he couldn't even breathe.

Unbelievable!

Subconsciously, he wanted to flee!

Just as he lifted his feet, his mind snapped back to reality.

He was muddled!

Brother Lou was a Ninth-Rank warrior; how could he possibly escape? He couldn't even muster the slightest bit of resistance.

"Why are you here? Why did you come to the capital, and why are you appearing at the Prince Shuncheng Mansion?"

Chen Guanlou walked down the steps, step by step, closing in on Dawang.

Dawang was trembling all over from nervousness; he wanted to retreat but didn't dare, lacking the courage.

Finally, he sat down on the ground, in a wretched state.

"Brother Lou, I, I can explain."

Dawang tried hard to find his voice and a shred of luck.

He did not doubt for a moment that if he couldn't produce a decent reason, Brother Lou might kill him.

"Oh, let's hear it?" Chen Guanlou's expression was calm, "Don't try to deceive me; I have plenty of ways to distinguish truth from falsehood."

"Brother Lou, I had no choice! I am simply not cut out to be a soldier. I don't want to die; I just want to live. Is that a mistake? You often say that even ants cling to life, let alone humans. Wanting to live is not shameful. I have always kept the words you said in my heart."

"How did you have no choice? Letting you serve before the army was giving you an opportunity. How did it become having no choice! If you had any difficulties, you could have gone to the Chen family. I had already arranged everything for you; why do you still have so many complaints?"

"I did go!" Dawang clamored, crying out his grievances; these years had been too hard for him.

He didn't want to be like this either, but what could he do?

"I went to the Chen family, but they ignored me and only told me to perform my duties honestly and earn merit as soon as possible. Once I earned merit, I could shed the status of an exiled convict. But serving before the army, how difficult is it to earn merit?

We exiled convicts are all cannon fodder. On ordinary days, we eat the least and do the most. When fighting a war, we don't even have a handy weapon; we are all used as cannon fodder and foot soldiers, the first batch to charge at the enemy. When attacking a city, we are also the ones charging at the very front. If we die, it's deserved; if we survive, there's another round of charging. In any case, it's just risking our lives!

But I, I can't do it! I only know a few fake moves; I don't know how to fight. Even when fleeing, I'm not as fast as others. I can't do anything; I'm simply not cut out to be a soldier. Even doing hard labor, I can't compare to those manual laborers. In the army, I am a piece of trash; I only know how to be glib and how to slack off. Trash like me dies the fastest! I went to the Chen family several times, but they refused to give me a chance and instead despised me as trash. Brother Lou, I just want to live; is that a mistake?"

Dawang looked on eagerly, hoping to get even a shred of agreement from the other party's eyes.

He was disappointed.

There was no agreement, only disdain.

"Wanting to live is not a mistake," Chen Guanlou said with a calm expression.

Upon hearing this, Dawang was overjoyed! He knew Brother Lou would definitely understand him.

"One eats according to one's ability. Your status is that of an exiled convict; you haven't earned a single merit, nor have you shown any particularly useful talent. The Chen family telling you to settle down and perform your duties well was essentially giving you an opportunity. As long as you didn't let your mind wander and honestly completed your duties, your situation would soon improve.

I thought you were smart and would understand this logic without me saying it. Clearly, I overestimated you. The Chen family didn't help you immediately and left a probation period, which made you dissatisfied and complain in private. Relying on my influence, you surely didn't perform your duties well either. Let alone being a charging foot soldier, you truly aren't worthy. I suspect that even for the most basic manual labor, you slacked off whenever you could, and you probably didn't do less of things like framing others. After all, what you are best at is bullying others by relying on influence, acting like a fox assuming the tiger's might, and becoming arrogant once you gain power.

Experiencing a prison life didn't teach you how to hide your light and plan before acting. You just assumed that with my name, you could act tyrannically! It's a pity; you went to the military camp, the Marquis's territory. For a descendant of a retainer, ruining my reputation is one thing, but you dared to ruin the atmosphere in the camp. If I don't discipline you, who will? Dawang, am I right?"

"No, it's not like that."

Dawang denied it vehemently, his heart filled with terror.

Who was it?

Who exactly betrayed him?

Why was Brother Lou so clear about the things he did in the Northwest Camp, as if he had seen them with his own eyes?

It must be that bunch of lowly people from the Chen family reporting him.

Bastards, they didn't like him and wanted his life.

He absolutely could not admit it!

Even if beaten to death, he couldn't admit it!

He had a premonition that once he admitted it, he might never have another chance.

"Brother Lou, I just want to live! Is wanting to live a mistake? If trash like me doesn't take advantage of opportunities in the army, I will definitely die. Either I die at the construction site, or I die on the road of hard labor, or I die in the process of charging into battle. If I didn't plan for myself, I wouldn't be able to see Brother Lou today. I indeed didn't do any good things, but I didn't do anything to harm the Chen family, let alone harm the Marquis's Mansion. I can swear to heaven! My family relies on the Marquis's Mansion to have today; how would I dare to be treacherous? Brother Lou, please believe me, okay?"

Chen Guanlou looked at Dawang, who was screaming hoarsely and struggling to survive, and a sense of absurdity actually arose in his heart.

Time was indeed the greatest killer, capable of turning a clever and interesting youth into a hideous and despicable person. Where exactly did things go wrong?

He stared into Dawang's eyes and saw not only fear but also luck, ambition, and greed as black as ink.

That's right, it was greed!

It was greed that guided Dawang step by step to become what he was today.

In fact, when Dawang was imprisoned back then, the essence was also greed, bullying others by relying on influence!

From the time Dawang was a helper at the Yamen as a youth, he had been doing heartless things. He thought Dawang would be different and would keep to his bottom line.

It was his neighbor filter that was too thick, overestimating Dawang's character. With little education and having mixed in the marketplace since childhood, he hadn't done many conscientious things. Added to the environmental guidance, wanting to keep to his bottom line was harder than a woman keeping her panties on.