Chapter 224

A happy event makes one feel refreshed.

Chen Guanlou was happy for several days in a row, and the upturned corners of his mouth couldn't be pressed down.

Others teased him, "If you like children so much, have one yourself!"

"I'm not in a hurry."

Others found it hard to understand why Chen Guanlou didn't care about having a woman to warm his bed? Could it be that he had some special hobby? That's not right; this kid goes to brothels every few days, his preferences are very normal. It looks like he doesn't like the flowers at home, only wild flowers.

Tsk!

This hobby is also quite special.

Before he could be happy for a few days, the Heavenly Prison welcomed an old acquaintance: Yu Zhaoan.

Yu Zhaoan was carried into the Heavenly Prison, and it was still in Chen Guanlou's jurisdiction, still in that familiar cell.

His legs had been broken by the Embroidered Uniform Guard's agents; whether they could recover was still unclear.

This matter caused a stir, and Chen Guanlou ran to find Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu to inquire about the situation.

Since Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan was promoted and Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu took office, young Master Fan had accurately grasped his status; from then on, he basically didn't manage anything and only took money. The daily affairs of the A-grade cell block were all pushed to Chen Guanlou to be responsible for.

At the moment, Chen Guanlou didn't have the title of prison clerk, but he had the reality of one.

Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu seemed not yet accustomed to hiring a private secretary; he had tried two or three, but none were to his liking. He simply stopped looking. Whatever happened, he handled it personally.

When Chen Guanlou met with him, they first chatted about daily work, and then he turned the topic to Yu Zhaoan.

"Master, is there any inside story about Yu Zhaoan's matter? He was originally a prisoner in the Imperial Prison; why did he return to the Heavenly Prison?"

"You should be clear about Yu Zhaoan's background; he suffered a lot in the Imperial Prison, and his legs were broken. According to what I understand, Prince Jin pleaded for him before His Majesty, allowing him to return to the Heavenly Prison. There is also a rumor that the Jixia Academy learned that Yu Zhaoan's legs were broken and was so angry that they wanted to jointly submit a petition to impeach the Embroidered Uniform Guard for lawlessness, but were finally stopped by Prince Jin. Prince Jin sympathized with Yu Zhaoan's encounter and reportedly even cried."

Chen Guanlou let out an 'ah,' "Since Prince Jin came forward, why not release Yu Zhaoan directly? Why let him return to the Heavenly Prison to squat in jail?"

"Naturally, because His Majesty did not agree. Being able to let Yu Zhaoan return to the Heavenly Prison to squat in jail is already His Majesty showing mercy. Release is impossible."

His Majesty actually hated Yu Zhaoan so much! No wonder the court officials privately said that the old Emperor was mean and ungrateful, narrow-minded, and vengeful.

Yu Zhaoan just scolded the old Emperor as a foolish ruler on the spot, and the old Emperor has held a grudge until now; even if the Jixia Academy came forward to plead, he refused to loosen his mouth.

This time, the court officials and Jiang Tu were fighting internally, and Yu Zhaoan clearly became the abandoned pawn. If it weren't for his surname being Yu and his origin from the powerful Yu clan, it wouldn't just be two broken legs; his head would have fallen long ago.

Tsk!

The factional struggle in the imperial court is indeed both bloody and cruel. Without some background or backing, don't get involved, and it's best to stay away from the capital.

After several months of observation, Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu had recognized Chen Guanlou's ability to handle matters. Plus, Chen Guanlou was exceptionally sensible; as soon as he took office, he presented a generous gift, and every month thereafter he was the most active in submitting account books and silver, considering all aspects very thoughtfully, so Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu dispelled his initial decision to transfer Chen Guanlou away.

Under his command, he must have one or two people he can use.

Xu Fugui, Zhang the prison clerk, and their ilk were all old oil-slicked slippery characters. Other prison clerks, prison guards, and squad leaders were either foolish, greedy, or had rough methods that easily left behind handles and hidden dangers. The person with the strongest comprehensive ability, counting back and forth, was still Chen Guanlou, and he also came from a famous family in the capital, backed by the Hou Fu.

He didn't need to put aside a ready-made talent to cultivate someone else.

Of course, he planned to take two steps. On the Heavenly Prison side, he wanted to keep Chen Guanlou in his hands because he needed a capable person who could handle matters and share his worries.

The second step, he decided to transfer a confidant from the county office where he previously worked to balance Chen Guanlou. Just like the Li private secretary who was by Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan's side in the past, for matters that were inconvenient to come forward, he would let his confidant handle them.

Chen Guanlou could be used, but he was ultimately not his own person. He also never thought about completely winning over Chen Guanlou; the man was surnamed Chen, the Chen of the Marquis of Pingjiang.

Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu, as a native of the capital, understood the significance of the Marquis of Pingjiang's brand far better than Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan, and understood the capabilities of the capital's natives even better.

Delusionally trying to win over a collateral clansman of the Hou Fu, even though they were already outside the five degrees of mourning, hehe, even if it were a third-rank capital official, it was a delusion. If they wanted to find a backing, was the Hou Fu's brand not hard enough, or was the rank not high enough? Why mix with a tiny prison warden? Even if it were a prime minister holding the first rank, delusionally trying to bribe a noble clansman would require checking if their face was big enough.

The ecology of the capital is not something where one can do whatever one wants just because one is a high official, covering the sky with one hand.

Jiang Tu is favored enough by the old Emperor, right? He also doesn't dare to stretch his hand into the territory of the nobles. As for that land dispute the year before last, it could only be counted as an accident.

The Marquis of Pingjiang slapped Jiang Tu's face hard; look, did Jiang Tu retaliate? Did he dare to retaliate? He had already offended the civil official group; offending the noble group again and stretching his hand into the noble group's territory, he was really not far from death.

When the civil officials and nobles truly unite to do something, even the old Emperor has to weigh whether he can withstand the pressure.

Jiang Jiang Yucheng Niu had already thought it through: Chen Guanlou could be used and could be trusted, but he must be limited within a frame. Beyond the scope of the frame, it was absolutely not allowed. The only people he could truly trust were the confidants who had followed him for many years.

After figuring out the ins and outs of the matter, Chen Guanlou went to see Yu Zhaoan.

Yu Zhaoan sat in a corner of the cell, leaning against the wall, his body stained with blood, his eyes having long lost their luster, both weak and embarrassed, looking very disheveled. He was no longer that spirited, arrogant, looking down on everyone, eyes on top of his head, extremely smart and exceptionally sharp Master Yu of the past.

"Master Yu, old Yu, I have invited the medical official. Let him check your injuries first. Someone, open the cell door, and bring two basins of hot water to wash Master Yu. Also, send someone to notify the Yu family to quickly send over a change of clothes and bedding, and send a batch of top-quality medicinal herbs. Don't forget to remind the Yu family that Master Yu is being locked in the Heavenly Prison this time, and according to the rules, he still has to pay silver. If they want us to take good care of Master Yu, the silver cannot be less."

Xiao Jin accepted the order on the spot and hurried to make arrangements.

Chen Guanxin took the initiative to take on the task of notifying the Yu family; he smiled and said, "I am the most skilled at asking for silver." He gestured with his fingers, not less than a thousand taels.

Xiao Jin said, "Too little! Master Yu's injuries are so severe, he needs long-term medication and needs people to serve him carefully. Without two thousand taels, this matter cannot be done. The Yu family is a great clan; you speak well. Even if the Yu family has already abandoned Yu Zhaoan, they will still pay this bit of silver, otherwise, it won't sound good if it spreads out."

"Will the Yu family really abandon Yu Zhaoan?" Chen Guanxin was very curious; he had little experience and hadn't realized how cruel officialdom struggles were, and how cold-blooded wealthy families were.

Xiao Jin was an old oil-slicked character, situated in the Heavenly Prison, having seen too much of the warmth and coldness of human feelings, joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.

"It depends on whether Master Yu can turn things around. If he can turn things around, he is still the pride of the Yu family, a talent the family focuses on cultivating. If he cannot turn things around, he is 'Cripple Yu,' 'Waste Yu,' and at most they will give him some food and drink to keep him alive."

Xiao Jin's words revealed extreme coldness.

Chen Guanxin shivered, "It shouldn't be that bad."

Xiao Jin snorted coldly, "What I said is still considered polite; only families with upright family styles would keep a waste. Truly cold-blooded families, humph, with Yu Zhaoan's situation, maybe he will die tomorrow."