Chapter 47

Chen Guanlou had basically figured out Yu Zhaoan's situation after spending two days. The harvest over these two days was quite large; he had established a connection with Secretary Li by Prison Warden Fan's side, and they could interact frequently in the future.

Li Dahong had accepted his wine and was also willing to provide convenience. If anything came up, they would look out for each other.

As for this fellow Yu Zhaoan, the crime he committed, in the final analysis, was simply lèse-majesté, which had enraged the old Emperor.

The old Emperor had finally attended a morning court session, and Yu Zhaoan, not knowing the value of his life, ignored the opposition of others and jumped out to point at the old Emperor's nose, cursing him for being obsessed with alchemy and Daoist cultivation, ignoring state affairs, watching as the government deteriorated day by day, and failing his ancestors. He was one step away from calling the old Emperor incompetent and a great tyrant.

The old Emperor was so angry his face turned blue. He lashed out on the spot, first having Yu Zhaoan beaten with boards, then throwing him into the Heavenly Prison. He also rebuked Yu Zhaoan for having no respect for his sovereign or father, acting recklessly, and surely being instigated by someone, clearly harboring malicious intent. He ordered the relevant departments to investigate the matter strictly, without fail.

According to the old Emperor's intentions, he wanted to expand the scope of Yu Zhaoan's case, turn it into a conspiracy, and wipe out a group of officials he found displeasing.

However, Yu Zhaoan was, after all, a man of the Censorate, and the Censorate did not want this case to expand at all.

The Censorate was taking action, and the old Emperor's men were also taking action; both sides began to struggle over Yu Zhaoan.

The Heavenly Prison suddenly became the center of this case, and the central figure was Yu Zhaoan.

Chen Guanlou arrived at Room 69. "Lord Yu, are you getting used to living here?"

Yu Zhaoan sat upright on the bed board and let out a cold snort, not even giving Chen Guanlou a straight look. In the eyes of the man surnamed Yu, a lowly prison guard like Chen Guanlou was not qualified to speak to him at all.

Chen Guanlou immediately sneered, "It seems Lord Yu is living quite well; you can remain calm even in the Heavenly Prison. You are truly worthy of being an official from the Jixia Academy."

Moreover, Yu Zhaoan was also a third-rank martial artist.

Third rank!

It was Chen Guanlou's first time witnessing the arrogance of a third-rank martial artist; it was arrogant to the heavens.

He instructed the prison guards, "Tell the ones serving the food: for cell 69, let him starve for a few meals first. Only give him slop to drink!"

Whether he likes it or not, if he doesn't drink it, he can die of thirst.

Playing it cool after arriving at the Heavenly Prison—does he really think the Heavenly Prison is a vacation resort for officials?

"Chief Chen, is this appropriate? That is the Jixia Academy, after all."

"That's right, Chen Tou. This is the A-block prison, after all."

"The man surnamed Yu is a fourth-rank Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief; his classmates, peers, and fellow townsmen are all over the court. Moreover, this subordinate heard that Yu Zhaoan's wife seems to be a relative of the Marquis Pingjiang's Prefecture."

"Chief Chen, think twice! Dealing with one Yu Zhaoan is simple. The fear is offending the Jixia Academy. People from the Jixia Academy are the most clannish and the most vengeful."

"Exactly, exactly. You can offend anyone, but you cannot offend people from the Jixia Academy. There are people from the Jixia Academy in the Ministry of Justice too. If they find out we humiliated Yu Zhaoan and hold us accountable, we will all be in deep trouble."

The four prison guards spoke one after another, trying to persuade Chen Guanlou to change his decision. Yu Zhaoan was aloof and tactless, so let him be. In any case, the Yu family was still sensible and knew to send silver in. They had asked for eight hundred taels, and the other party had already agreed and would send the money soon.

Chen Guanlou gritted his teeth; he truly couldn't stand Yu Zhaoan's attitude, putting on airs even in the Heavenly Prison.

However, offending a third-rank martial artist was indeed unwise.

He had been quite temperamental these days and hadn't adapted to the methods of the A-block prison. No wonder everyone said that the A-block prison was nothing but money. Being a prison guard here was damn frustrating.

It was nothing like the C-block prison, where life was so satisfying; if a prisoner dared to go against the prison guard, they would just wait to enter the torture room, and broken hands and feet were considered light.

He was used to the days in the C-block prison where the prison guard's word was law. Suddenly arriving at the A-block prison as a Company Commander, it was inevitable that his temper would be a bit high, and he brought out the habits he had cultivated before, wanting to discipline these disobedient prisoners.

What a pity!

These prisoners all had backgrounds bigger than the last, and the prison guards still had to serve them with a pleasant face, fearing that they might make a comeback one day, or that their students and former subordinates outside would use connections to retaliate.

When an official wants to deal with a tiny prison guard, it's like pinching an ant to death.

Seeing the four prison guards looking at him expectantly, he snorted coldly, "Fine, fine, maintain his treatment for now. Remember to urge the Yu family to send the money quickly. The Heavenly Prison doesn't have enough money to spend lately, and I can't guarantee whose food might be cut."

Seeing Chen Guanlou listen to reason, the prison guards all breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a heavy burden lifted. Thank heavens, he was a leader who listened to reason.

During the inspection, he couldn't help but look after Lord Jin, lest the other party lose the will to live and die.

Lord Jin, in turn, tried to persuade Chen Guanlou, "I heard that Yu Zhaoan of the Censorate has been locked in."

"Yes, a few cells away from you."

Lord Jin stood against the wall; in just a few days, a lot of white hair had appeared on his head.

He said softly, "Do not offend this person."

"Because he comes from the Jixia Academy?" Chen Guanlou asked in return.

Lord Jin nodded, "Not just because of the Jixia Academy. Yu Zhaoan and Prince Jin are fellow disciples; they studied under the same master. Prince Jin's influence in the court is rising, and the Right Minister is Prince Jin's father-in-law. Understand now!"

Chen Guanlou clicked his tongue in admiration, "The powerful and noble!"

"More than just powerful and noble, they have reached the very top." Lord Jin smiled self-deprecatingly.

"With such a strong background, now that Yu Zhaoan is in the Heavenly Prison, why haven't I seen Prince Jin and the others exert effort to get him out?"

"You, although you've read books for a few years, you don't understand the light and dark rules of the officialdom. Even a Prince of the Blood must be particular about timing when trying to rescue someone; how can one act entirely on whim? Yu Zhaoan offended His Majesty, so he must wait for His Majesty to calm down."

"If His Majesty refuses to calm down, what then?"

Lord Jin laughed, "Then Yu Zhaoan will die even if he doesn't want to. Sacrificing one Yu Zhaoan to protect everyone else—I believe Prince Jin can accept this deal."

Tsk!

Chen Guanlou gasped.

"Lord Jin, your tone seems to suggest you have a grudge against Yu Zhaoan?"

"Hmph! My imprisonment this time is all thanks to the man surnamed Yu." Lord Jin gritted his teeth, wishing he could kill his enemy with his own hands.

It turned out that the reason the man surnamed Jin was imprisoned was because Yu Zhaoan had led the impeachment.

Between the two, it could be called a life-and-death feud.

Chen Guanlou casually complained, "What were they thinking up there, actually locking the two of you together?"

"If I could get out, the first person I would deal with is Yu Zhaoan." Lord Jin did not hide his inner hatred at all.

"You just advised me that Yu Zhaoan has a deep background and shouldn't be offended. Why are you so impulsive yourself? Old Jin, saving your life is the priority; you can't act on impulse. We are precious porcelain, not worth colliding with a piece of iron."

Chen Guanlou, in turn, tried to persuade Lord Jin.

Lord Jin laughed when he heard this.

"Sometimes I think, rather than being precious porcelain, it would be better to be a piece of iron, impervious to swords and spears."

"Even if you want to be a piece of iron, wait until you get out before saying that."