Chapter 209: Misunderstanding, it

The steward of Liu Fu arrived at the Heavenly Prison early in the morning, but his path was blocked by the prison guard keeping watch at the main gate.

"Who are you? Do you know what place this is? This is the Heavenly Prison. You think you can just walk in whenever you want? Who do you think you are?"

The Liu Fu steward looked astonished.

"Little brother, it's me, I'm the steward of Liu Fu."

"I don't care whose steward you are; in any case, you are not allowed in."

"Why can't I go in?"

"Why should I tell you?"

Just at this moment, someone else wanted to enter the Heavenly Prison to visit, and the gatekeeper guard took the money and decisively let them pass.

"Him, him, him, how come he can go in? I gave money too."

"So what if you gave money? I said you can't go in, so you can't. Get lost quickly, or I'll whip you." The guard brandished his water-fire staff, his expression fierce and menacing.

The Liu Fu steward hurriedly retreated, speculating in his heart.

Afterward, he spent money to find out that Chen Guanlou had issued an order forbidding him from entering the Heavenly Prison.

Upon hearing this, the Liu Fu steward knew immediately: the matter had been exposed!

These past few days had been peaceful, and he had thought no one knew about him secretly playing tricks. It turned out that it wasn't that they didn't know, but that they wanted to block him off on the most critical matter.

Oh my, what should be done now?

If he can't enter the Heavenly Prison and cannot exchange messages with the Master, what is to be done?

He must find a way to resolve this.

"Chen Tou, per your instructions, we didn't let the Liu Fu steward in."

"Well done, there's a reward!"

Chen Guanlou was generous with his money, and the prison guards were all very willing to handle matters for him.

"If Chen Tou has any other requests, just give the word."

"The Liu Fu steward is bold enough to defy heaven, actually daring to offend Chen Tou. We might as well put a sack over his head, throw him into the drainage canal, and give him a good wash."

"If there are matters that are inconvenient for Chen Tou to handle personally, you can also order us. We are experts at this kind of thing!"

Chen Guanlou was left between laughter and tears.

He knew the Heavenly Prison guards were ruthless and proficient in all eighteen martial arts, and sure enough, they were.

He waved his hand, "Alright, take the money and disperse. If there is a need, I will instruct you."

"Understood! You go ahead and get busy, Chen Tou!"

The prison guards retreated.

Chen Guanlou propped his feet up on the desk and closed his eyes to rest.

Shi Hong walked in from outside, "I heard someone offended you, and you want to find someone to deal with them?"

Chen Guanlou opened his eyes, "You're done with your work, Hong Tou! Where did you hear such rumors? I'm just a lowly prison guard, who could I possibly deal with? I only instructed the prison guards below to handle everything according to the rules. Especially for certain people, they must strictly follow the rules."

"Your words are vague and mysterious; whoever offended you is in for bad luck. I'm leaving my shift early as there is something at home; you keep an eye on things for me. If anything happens, have someone notify me at my home."

"Go on, go on, I'll keep an eye on things for you."

After resting for a while, Chen Guanlou called over the prison guards under his command and asked, "Has there been any movement from Liu Daowen these past few days?"

"Reporting to Chief Chen, Liu Daowen is very quiet. Every day, besides eating and drinking, he ignores everyone and doesn't speak."

"Doesn't speak?"

"That's right! He must have resigned himself to his fate."

Is Liu Daowen so easily resigned to his fate?

Chen Guanlou carried his water-fire staff and headed toward the cell block to inspect.

Arriving in front of Liu Daowen's cell door, he knocked on the bars. Liu Daowen raised his head to glance at him, then buried his head to continue his self-imposed isolation; he truly didn't say a single word.

"Lord Liu, how have you been lately?" he asked politely.

Liu Daowen clearly hesitated for a moment, waved his hand, and made a gesture indicating he didn't want to talk, completely lacking his previous talkative state. His entire spirit seemed to have been drained away, appearing listless and dazed.

"Lord Liu, why go to such lengths? You need to let go of your worries!"

Liu Daowen gave a bitter laugh, still not wanting to talk, leaning against the corner of the wall with a depressed expression.

"Your steward has been secretly plotting to harm me; you are aware of this, right? Let's chat about it today; what do you say we should do about this? You all conspired to harm me; harming me is harming the Hou Fu, and harming the Hou Fu is harming the entire Chen clan. This grudge has grown quite large!"

Once these words were spoken, Liu Daowen could no longer sit still.

"Chen Tou, don't talk nonsense! Who harmed you, who could harm you? Is there a misunderstanding in this? I still have requests for you, how could I harm you? Think about it, isn't that so?"

Chen Guanlou sneered, "Lord Liu, have you stopped practicing your vow of silence?"

Liu Daowen lowered his head, sighed, feeling very dejected and also a bit embarrassed, "I'm miserable! My whole body is uncomfortably dying, my heart is pounding, as if it's about to jump out. These past few days, my steward hasn't come to visit, and I truly don't know what exactly happened. Tell me about it! I still stand by what I said: I have requests for you, it is absolutely impossible for me to harm you. There must be a misunderstanding in this."

Chen Guanlou wore a half-smile; he didn't believe a single word the other party said.

However, he still followed the other party's lead and offered a reminder, "Does Lord Liu remember that your residence collected a 'Painting of Ladies among Plum Blossoms,' a court painting from the previous dynasty?"

Liu Daowen first let out an 'ah,' then revealed an expression of disbelief, appearing very shocked, "This painting is in your hands?"

"What do you think?" Chen Guanlou chuckled coldly.

"That's not right!" Liu Daowen came to the cell door, looked left and right, and then lowered his voice to say: "I previously instructed the steward to quickly dispose of this painting, burn it or throw it away, it didn't matter. How... how could it be in your hands? This, this, this... it must be the steward acting on his own initiative; I was completely unaware of this matter. If Head Chen doesn't believe me, I can confront the steward face-to-face."

Chen Guanlou snorted coldly, "Lord Liu, do I look like a three-year-old child to you?"

"I really didn't lie to you; every word I said is true. Chen Tou, you must believe me. I have absolutely no intention to harm you, and even less intention to harm the Hou Fu. Burn the painting quickly, burn it, and let this painting be as if it never existed. Can we do that?"

Liu Daowen was very decisive; he demanded the destruction of the evidence, eliminating any trace of the painting's existence.

Chen Guanlou scrutinized him for a few moments, "You truly don't know?"

"I truly don't know; the steward acted on his own behind my back. These past few months, I have been a prisoner, and all matters, big and small, in the residence were handled by the steward. It seems he harbored other intentions. Sigh... it is my failure in judging people."

"Never mind your steward for now; tell me about the origin of this painting." Chen Guanlou made the request as if they were just chatting casually.

Liu Daowen was clearly hesitant, "This... just burning the painting is enough, there's no need to inquire about its origin, right?"

Chen Guanlou laughed, "This painting has already been seen by the Grand Duke, Lord Liu, do you understand?"

Liu Daowen's expression stiffened, his eyes darted around, and finally, he asked in a low voice: "What did the Marquis say?"

"That depends on your performance." Chen Guanlou kicked the cell bars, "Death also has many ways: a dignified death, a death by torture, or the death of your entire family. Lord Liu, you had better think clearly."

"This, this, this..."

"Don't harbor any delusions. The Grand Duke of the Hou Fu has no obligation to clean up your mess. Even if you don't say it, with the Grand Duke's capabilities, he will know sooner or later. It's just that you must surely understand the difference in treatment here."

"I'll tell you. Please convey to the Marquis that I have absolutely no intention to harm him. That painting was taken from the Jiang residence. Master Jiang saw that I liked it and gifted it to me. At first, I truly didn't see the origin of this painting. Later, by accident, I went to the Lantai Temple to check the archives and realized that this painting was actually a hot potato. However, I couldn't return it, and I didn't dare to destroy it, so I could only hide it at home. If I hadn't met with trouble, this painting would never have seen the light of day. After I was thrown into the Heavenly Prison, I instructed the steward to quickly dispose of this painting. I didn't expect him to delay until now, and even give this painting to you. Sigh..."