Chapter 385: Must be disciplined

The original ending, which was certain death, was stirred up by Yu Zhaoan, which instead brought a glimmer of life to Prince Zhong.

By the time the old Emperor realized it, the matter was already a foregone conclusion.

He cared about his reputation; he had put on too much of a show defending Prince Zhong earlier, and now he couldn't just recklessly frame Prince Zhong to get him killed. Even if it was just for show, he had to properly discuss and deliberate with the court officials.

Should Prince Zhong be the scapegoat?

He should!

Should Prince Zhong die?

He should not!

After all, the one who started all of this was the old Emperor himself.

Although the court officials didn't say it out loud, everyone had a tacit understanding. Some things didn't need to be spoken; those who understood, understood.

The old Emperor understood better than anyone.

Precisely because he understood, he became even more irritated, his anger rising uncontrollably. The more he looked at Yu Zhaoan, the more displeased he became.

The old Emperor suspected that from the very beginning, Yu Zhaoan had done it on purpose—deliberately impeaching Prince Zhong to save him. He never doubted the intelligence of his subordinates; they were all clever people, not a single fool among them. The key was just how they used their cleverness.

Clearly, Yu Zhaoan had used his cleverness in the wrong place.

Anyone with eyes could see that during this period, Yu Zhaoan had fallen out of favor and had been scolded by the old Emperor several times. Every proposal he made was rejected by the old Emperor without any reason. Yet, if someone else made the exact same proposal, the old Emperor would nod and agree with a very good mood.

Differential treatment indeed!

Jiang Tu grinned from ear to ear. Sometimes, being slow-witted had its own blessings. Reading less and reacting a beat slower had its advantages. Reading too much and having too many schemes was Yu Zhaoan's fate.

However, Yu Zhaoan was a simple man who took things in stride and didn't take these things to heart at all. Instead, after the old Emperor had vented his anger for a while, he requested a private audience and said to the old Emperor in all seriousness: "Anyone can die, but Prince Zhong cannot. Even if Prince Zhong must die, it cannot be while Your Majesty is still alive."

These words were abrupt and lacked context. Qiu Defu stood to the side, wondering what kind of trick Yu Zhaoan was playing. Had he grown the guts of a bear and a leopard?

But the old Emperor understood the deeper meaning in Yu Zhaoan's words.

The matter of the deposed Crown Prince had already damaged his reputation, and the whole world was cursing him. Even the common folk had been influenced by the scholars, repeating what they heard and calling him a muddled ruler.

The old Emperor had cared about his reputation his whole life, yet in his old age, he was being called a muddled ruler. He spent countless nights so angry he couldn't sleep, wishing he could go mad and kill everyone who dared to call him that. During the day, he had to suppress this foul anger and continue to act as a wise monarch and a loving father, caring for Prince Zhong and suppressing those officials who slandered him.

He was completely split in two.

If he took this opportunity to kill Prince Zhong, he didn't know how foul his reputation would become, and he feared that even more people in the world would rebel in the name of the deposed Crown Prince.

The banner of the deposed Crown Prince was too useful and too capable of bewitching people's hearts.

Therefore...

Prince Zhong truly could not die.

Even if he were to be placed under house arrest, he could not die. Within ten years, he absolutely could not die.

After ten years, it would depend on the situation.

The old Emperor narrowed his eyes and stared at Yu Zhaoan, guessing his motive.

Yu Zhaoan knew the time for the test had come, and he took the opportunity to say: "This humble official is Your Majesty's subject; I only serve Your Majesty! Everyone else, including Prince Zhong, is merely a pawn in Your Majesty's hands."

"You had better mean what you say."

Afterward, the court officials discovered that Yu Zhaoan, who had been cold-shouldered for a time, had once again gained the old Emperor's favor, to the point where sometimes even the Left Minister Li Liangcheng had to step aside. Yu Zhaoan had firmly established himself in the court, and his influence gradually strengthened.

Xie Changling was imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, but he was very well-informed and kept a constant watch on the movements in the court. Upon learning that Yu Zhaoan had survived the crisis and regained favor, he had someone send a message to Yu Zhaoan again.

This time, he didn't seek out Chen Guanlou, knowing the other party wouldn't agree. He secretly found a prison guard to help him pass the message.

Chen Guanlou had always turned a blind eye to these things; he couldn't stop them. A sieve was a sieve, and there were loopholes everywhere.

What was unfortunate was that two prison guards died in the Heavenly Prison one after another—one choked to death, the other drowned. Both were accidental deaths. The coroner examined the bodies and found no signs of foul play.

Chen Guanlou didn't believe it and asked Old Zhang Tou to step in.

Old Zhang Tou shook his head. "There is no doubt about the cause of death; no signs of foul play can be seen. Such accidents happen every year. Your paranoia is too severe."

Chen Guanlou kept a straight face. "I don't think my paranoia is severe. You really didn't see any problems? Not even the slightest bit?"

Seeing him persist, Old Zhang Tou re-examined them. "If I really have to point out a suspicious point, the fingernails of the two bodies are too clean. You know better than I do what kind of people prison guards are. Not everyone is as particular about hygiene as you are."

Following Old Zhang Tou's guidance, Chen Guanlou endured his discomfort, covered his nose and mouth with a handkerchief, and checked the fingernails of the two bodies.

Were they clean?

By his standards, the fingernails were dirty and needed a thorough cleaning.

"You call this clean?" Chen Guanlou questioned Old Zhang Tou.

Old Zhang Tou rolled his eyes. "Just find any two prison guards to compare them with, and you'll know if they're clean or not."

No sooner said than done. Chen Guanlou returned to the Heavenly Prison, gathered the prison guards, and checked their fingernails one by one.

Damn it, it was simply too unsightly to look at.

Did this bunch of people never pay attention to the cleanliness and hygiene of their fingers when they washed up?

Old Zhang Tou wasn't wrong; the fingernails of the two dead guards were slightly clean, which didn't quite fit their status as prison guards.

He asked Old Zhang Tou, "What does this mean?"

Old Zhang Tou told him, "It means that before the yamen runners discovered the two bodies, someone had touched them. The fingernails had been wiped clean. It's possible that something was stained under the fingernails that wasn't suitable for others to see, so it was wiped away."

"Foul play?"

"You can't determine it's foul play based solely on the fingernails. You can only say there are suspicious points. Give it up, you won't find out. For so many years, whenever a prison guard has died, the truth has never been found."

Chen Guanlou understood Old Zhang Tou's implication.

If there were any real interests involved in the prison guard profession, it was nothing more than the prisoners in the cells. The death of a prison guard usually involved the prisoners in the cells and the cases behind them. Any one of those imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison could be pulled out as a major, serious case; the death of a mere prison guard wasn't worth mentioning.

Even if they were killed by prisoners in the cells in collusion with outsiders, it wasn't worth investigating further; there was no need to create extra trouble. The death of a mere prison guard wouldn't get the attention of the Ministry of Justice, let alone qualify for the Six Shanmen to waste manpower and martial force on an investigation.

In the end, it was always the same result: accidental death, case closed!

Chen Guanlou slammed his fist against the wooden board.

This time, he didn't intend to remain silent; he was going to discipline the prisoners in the cells.

He had Xiao Jin secretly investigate which imprisoned officials had been secretly contacting the outside world recently and which prison guards had participated in it.

It was a sieve, but if one really wanted to investigate, one could still find something.

Soon, Xie Changling's name appeared on the list.

Chen Guanlou slowly arrived in front of the cell door, holding a water-fire staff and tapping on the cell bars. "Lord Xie, what do you take my Heavenly Prison guards for?" ===== CHAPTER 386 =====