Chapter 314: Handsome, Well-Read — A Universal Killer!

Zhong the Prison Warden was said to have been a great handsome man in his youth — handsome to the point of being tragically inhuman.

With that face alone, he married his current wife, the legitimate daughter of the Zhang Zhang Yushi family.

Later, riding on his father-in-law's coattails, his official career flourished, and he soon took the position of River Inspector. He held the River Inspector post for a full twenty years, turning down several opportunities for promotion.

The River Inspector position is obscenely lucrative — anyone who has dealt with river transport, riverways, or river works knows this. The profits can no longer be measured in units of a hundred thousand; they must be measured in millions.

The Liu Daowen of back then was a great corrupt official, but the money he embezzled, compared to the riverway profits, really only qualified as carrying his shoes.

Why has Jiang Tu clung to the Ministry of Works and refused to budge, caring nothing for the Ministry of Personnel, Revenue, or Rites? Besides the various large and small construction projects, he could use the position to meddle in the riverways, and thereby meddle in river transport.

The river is the God of Wealth, a golden rice bowl. As long as river transport exists, silver flows in endlessly. A single word from him can shut down the entire river transport for three to five days — how much silver would that cost? How many great merchants are scrambling to find a way to deliver silver to Jiang Tu!

Nothing on the river's surface escapes the River Inspector's keen eyes. Zhong the Inspector dislikes Jiang Tu, but he doesn't mind making money alongside him.

On the surface, he, like other inspectors, shouted and hollered about taking down Jiang Tu, periodically submitting memorials to impeach him. In private, however, he exchanged flirtatious glances with Jiang Tu; their two camps colluded and nearly monopolized river transport.

He thought no one knew what he was doing, but in truth, had his father-in-law not been shielding him, his deeds would have long since come to light.

Until last year, when a riverway collapsed and the matter could no longer be concealed. Add to that his desperate, mad-dog-like scramble to deflect blame by biting at everyone around him, and the other inspectors in court began to pile on. Combined with the joint counterattack from local officials, and the fact that his flirtation with Jiang Tu was dug up — in the end, he was thoroughly done for.

His father-in-law couldn't protect him either, and was implicated, stripped of office, and is now idle at home.

The situation now is this: his father-in-law is doing everything in his power to fish out his wife. But as for his children, the old man says there's nothing he can do. No matter how his wife pleaded, the old man refused sternly.

Not pursuing Zhong the Inspector's responsibility, not hammering Zhong the Inspector dead with one blow — his father-in-law has already done more than his duty. Still expecting him to protect the entire Zhong household, old and young? Dream on!

Don't even think about it.

Zhong the Inspector has spent these years eating himself into a bloated, greasy mess — none of the handsome young man's grace remains, only a body slick with fat. After being held in the Heaven Prison for nearly a year, he's lost two layers of weight, and at last a hint of his former handsome looks has reappeared.

Chen Chen Guanlou stood before the cell door and studied him carefully. He had to admit that the slimmed-down Zhong the Inspector, despite his sleazy, greasy gaze, had regular features and was still quite pleasant to look at. If he lost another two layers of weight, one would probably see the tragically inhuman handsomeness of his youth — almost enough to rival Chen Chen Guanlou's own handsome rating.

"I heard my lord Zhong was looking for me?"

"Chen the Prison Warden, my daughter is very beautiful, believe me. My daughter looks like me — a true beauty."

Chen Chen Guanlou raised an eyebrow slightly. Zhong the Inspector was certainly direct.

"Other families are worried about their sons, yet you worry about your daughter — that's rare. Aren't you worried about your son? Carrying on the family line depends on a son, after all."

"How could I not worry? However, my daughter still has a slim chance of survival, while my son has absolutely no escape. Chen the Prison Warden, believe me, my daughter is both talented and gentle, absolutely a virtuous wife and good mother. If you look down on her status as the family of an accused official, taking her as a concubine would also be acceptable. I only ask that you save her — I Will Surely Have Weight in my gratitude."

"Your house has already been confiscated — where would your great reward come from?" Chen Chen Guanlou said with a grin.

Zhong the Inspector looked around, beckoned Chen Chen Guanlou closer, then whispered: "This is something I'll only tell you — before I was thrown into the Heaven Prison, I secretly hid away a stash. If Chen the Prison Warden can save my daughter, I'll tell you where the money is hidden. Deal?"

Chen Chen Guanlou narrowed his eyes slightly, studying Zhong the Inspector. The man was greedy, lecherous, and steeped in every kind of vice, with lives on his hands as well. The best outcome for him would be exile; the next would be immediate execution by beheading. Hiding silver — he was certainly capable of that.

But why?

Did he really treasure his daughter that much?

He found it hard to believe.

Setting his son aside and scheming every way to preserve his daughter — in later eras this might be believable, but in the present it was more than rare; it was like finding gold in a cesspit — one of a kind.

"I'll have to think about this."

"Please hurry, Chen the Prison Warden — my case will be sentenced soon. Once the verdict comes down, trying to fish in troubled waters will be a thousand times harder. While it hasn't been decided yet, there's still room to maneuver."

"Why are you so sure I can help you? I'm just a lowly prison warden."

"Chen the Prison Warden is too modest. You're a Chen family man, backed by Hou Fu — you must have connections and networks beyond others' reach. You're biding your time in the Heaven Prison because your ambitions are far greater than ordinary men. I believe Chen the Prison Warden has the ability to solve crises and aid the troubled!"

Chen Chen Guanlou laughed. The man certainly had a way with words. Relying on a handsome face alone to marry the Zhang Zhang Yushi family's Young Lady as his wife — he truly had some skill.

Not to mention, Zhong the Inspector's family background was modest — before his marriage lifted him up, his household had only about a hundred mu of land, making them minor landlords. Given his family background, even with a jinshi degree, under normal circumstances he could never have caught the eye of the Zhang Zhang Yushi lord.

The Zhang Zhang Yushi lord had plenty of well-matched choices.

In the end, it all came down to a handsome face, plus a silver tongue.

Good-looking, well-read — a universal killer!

The reason Chen Chen Guanlou agreed to the man for now was certainly not because the man spoke sweetly. He simply wanted to see what Zhong the Inspector was really up to.

Out of curiosity, he secretly went to look at the Zhong family girl — and indeed, she was as beautiful as flowers and the moon, a true beauty.

The Zhong family had dismissed most of their servants, keeping only two old retainers to attend them. The house had been sealed. The entire family of over twenty people was crammed into the rear courtyard's side wing, by the back gate — a total of only seven or eight rooms. Living conditions were extremely cramped.

Thanks to the father-in-law, the family was only placed under house arrest with surveillance, rather than the whole clan being thrown into the Heaven Prison.

Zhong the Inspector's wife, the Zhang Zhang Yushi lord's daughter, had already been taken back to her maiden home. Having a capable father meant an extra lifeline.

Lady Zhong couldn't set her mind at ease about her children, and occasionally sent people with some grain, oil, meat, and vegetables. That was all she could do — she herself was locked up by her own family and not allowed out.

Either die with the Zhong family, or stay at her maiden home and live out her days in comfort — Lady Zhong decisively chose the latter. She wasn't that old, after all, in her thirties, still with a chance to remarry and have children.

Zhong the Inspector had many sons, but only two were born of his legitimate wife, and neither had reached adulthood. His precious daughter was not Lady Zhong's child, but born to a concubine.

Now this was interesting.

Could it be that Zhong the Inspector truly loved his concubine, and was going to such lengths to find a home for his daughter in order to save her?