Chapter 527: Inspecting the B-grade Prison

Last night's wine pulled closer the relationship between Chen Guanlou and other prison clerks, but also made some people lose some awe.

So, early in the morning, he called everyone to the office, calling it chatting, understanding everyone's needs.

"Official Chen is particular. You know our needs."

Chen Guanlou had a shallow smile on his face, not reaching the bottom of his eyes.

Those who are clever have already seen that Chen Guanlou is newly appointed, and today it is estimated that he will burn the first fire. Whoever doesn't have eyes and hits the muzzle, just wait to be pulled out as a typical example.

"In the past, when I was in the A-grade prison, I always emphasized that the Heavenly Prison is a big family, and we must unify cognition and unify goals. Everyone works hard for one goal, money will be there, everything will be there, and the environment will be improved. Calling everyone over to chat today is to hear your thoughts, is there any place that needs improvement?"

Chen Guanlou had a smiling face.

The prison clerks looked at each other, not understanding what fire he was burning, and for a while, no one dared to come out rashly.

Chen Guanlou's eyes swept across everyone's faces, seeing a lot of content.

"The first step of unifying cognition is to determine that everyone listens to my instructions. Whoever is not convinced by me, can put it forward now, and we will solve it one by one."

"Official Chen is joking, no one is unconvinced, everyone is very convinced."

"Yes! Everyone is very convinced."

Chen Guanlou specifically swept his eyes at Prison Clerk Zhang, seeing that the other party didn't move, so he didn't name him.

In fact, he didn't intend to kill today.

He does things without haste, step by step. He has plenty of time.

"Fine, since everyone is convinced, I am relieved. B-grade prison, and C-grade prison, hand in the account books before noon."

"Is the Official going to check the accounts?"

"Want to make money? I don't understand your account situation, how can I make targeted improvements and help everyone get rich? Could it be that Prison Clerk Xu has other ideas?"

"No no no, no. You are the Prison Warden, checking accounts is a matter of course. It's just... it hasn't been checked for a long time, and the accounts are a bit chaotic."

"Chaos is not afraid. I have an accounting master here, and even the most chaotic accounts can be straightened out. You don't have to worry too much, I only check the accounts, not pursue responsibility. The previous accounts don't matter, I only manage the later accounts. Once

"My lord, you really won't hold past accounts against us?" Xu Fugui widened his eyes, looking at Chen Guanlou with anticipation.

Chen Guanlou nodded, "I have always kept my word. My reputation—everyone will understand once we interact more in the future. My word is my bond. You all cooperate with me and do your jobs well, and if something happens, I will naturally cover for you. However, whoever acts one way to my face and another behind my back, or looks down on me because I'm young, then don't blame me for turning hostile."

"My lord, rest assured, we will definitely cooperate!"

"My lord is joking; who would be so blind as to dare to bully you."

"Fine, everyone disperse. Prison Clerk Zhang, accompany me to the Grade-B prison. Having served in the Heavenly Prison for many years, I haven't taken a proper look yet."

Prison Clerk Zhang was clearly stunned for a moment, then nodded, "I would not dare to refuse your request, my lord."

Chen Guanlou had been to the Grade-B prison twice, both times coming and going in a hurry. He didn't know much about the specific situation inside.

Choosing to start with the Grade-B prison today was also because he wanted to get a handle on things as soon as possible.

The two of them, one after the other, went down to the Grade-B prison.

Chen Guanlou chatted casually, "If you have any difficulties, Prison Clerk Zhang, feel free to bring them up; I will definitely find a way to solve them for you. Are there any important figures imprisoned here recently?"

Prison Clerk Zhang was professional, not exactly respectful, but there was nothing improper. He said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Thank you for your concern, my lord. As for important figures, the relatives of the Imperial Son-in-Law committed a crime; the Imperial Son-in-Law and the Princess's mansion were targeted by the censors, and the case reached the Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice didn't dare to show favoritism, and the Imperial Son-in-Law and the Princess didn't dare to intervene for fear of the censors making a scene. So, the relatives of the Imperial Son-in-Law were thrown into prison a few days ago."

Upon hearing this, Chen Guanlou was immediately curious, "Which Imperial Son-in-Law, which Princess?"

"The Imperial Son-in-Law of Princess Qingyang."

"You mean the Zhu family."

"Exactly, the mansion of Count Cheng'en, the Zhu family."

"Tell me about what crime they specifically committed."

It was just idle chatter anyway, so talking about the case was just right.

The structure of the Grade-B prison was about the same as the Grade-C prison. After going down, there was first a row of duty rooms for the prison guards to rest and stand guard. Outside the duty rooms was a spacious corridor, and the corridor connected to seven or eight vertical corridors. Inside the corridors were individual prison cells.

In the Grade-B prison, the cells were divided into zones—Zone One, Zone Two... a total of seven zones were set up, with seven squad leaders. The prison cells maintained an occupancy rate of about eighty percent year-round. There were quite a lot of people committing crimes.

The external structure of the prison was the same, half underground and half above ground. Inside, it was dark and damp.

The environment of the Grade-B prison was clearly worse than the Grade-A prison, and the peculiar smell unique to the Heavenly Prison was exceptionally strong, but it was better than the Grade-C prison. After all, the Grade-A prison had undergone rectification, and the environment had been greatly improved.

Chen Guanlou said casually, "You must disinfect and clean regularly; don't save those few coins on laborers. Think of a way, and the money will be there."

"As you say, my lord." Prison Clerk Zhang was noncommittal.

Chen Guanlou didn't dwell on this matter; take it slow, no need to rush. It was the prisoners who suffered, not him. He earned his money and took his share. Even if he didn't ask about anything, no one would dare short his money.

Prison Clerk Zhang led him to the duty room, took the register, and introduced the situation of the prisoners, "This Zhu Huhai can be said to be a man of evil deeds. He operates human trafficking under his hands, often arranging for people to go to the countryside, either buying, deceiving, or kidnapping; many boys, girls, young women, and wives have suffered. During this period, the imperial court has been raiding officials' mansions on a large scale, and the Zhu family's business has become even more prosperous."

"Has this business become linked to the case?"

"Exactly. When raiding the officials' mansions, they discovered some unregistered households. According to confessions, these people were all sold to them by the Zhu family. The Three Judicial Offices followed the clues and discovered more unregistered households, involving a large amount of human trafficking, as well as many unsolved murder cases and extermination cases. Therefore, the Three Judicial Offices ordered the arrest of Zhu Huhai, who was in charge of this business for the Zhu family. The Ministry of Justice took the case, and thus Zhu Huhai was locked in here."

Prison Clerk Zhang handed the register to Chen Guanlou for review; it simply recorded the prisoner's crimes.

"Are there any other charges?"

"As for bullying men and women, forcibly occupying fertile land, and forcing good people into prostitution or theft, these are not worth mentioning compared to the unregistered household case. My lord, what is your plan for this person?" Prison Clerk Zhang threw the question back.

Chen Guanlou closed the register and asked an unrelated question, "If I remember correctly, the standard fee for the Grade-B prison is one hundred taels?"