Chapter 582: About to Die, About to Die

"Where can I find this big-beard?"

"The report didn't say. If Lord Chen wishes to know, this old one can arrange for someone to inquire." Old Lao Chaofeng was all politeness, not even mentioning silver—the information came bundled and free.

Chen Chen Guanlou shook his head. "No need for now."

The trouble Wei Wei Laosan stirred up, the revenge that followed—that was Wei Wei Laosan's problem. He wasn't Wei Wei Laosan's father; it wasn't his job to wipe anyone's behind.

As for Zhang Wu and Wang Si in this affair, if not big-beard then little-beard would come along… those two bastards would eventually cause trouble. Kicking them out of the jailer squad was no more than they deserved.

If he were serving in the Six Doors, he'd surely chase this all the way down until he found big-beard. But his position was Prison Deputy, responsible for guarding prisoners—anything outside his duties had nothing to do with him, and he had no desire to do it. The old saying: better one less matter than one more. With time to spare worrying about others, he might as well lie flat at home.

The real reason, in fact, was that he had no curiosity about Wei Wei Laosan's affairs. If he had even a shred of curiosity, he'd have chased it down.

The gambling house shopkeepers, upon receiving the notice, arrived one after another.

Old Lao Chaofeng's territory, which had looked fairly spacious before, grew cramped once the crowd swelled.

This lot of gambling house shopkeepers, learning that Chen Chen Guanlou had come knocking and already killed several men—some felt their courage fail, some cursed and grumbled, some sat with calm faces. But none of them delayed.

The assassination's failure meant they had underestimated Chen Chen Guanlou's martial cultivation. No one wished to offend a martial artist of profound cultivation, especially one who kept himself veiled, his depths unreadable.

Every gambling house shopkeeper of note in Jingcheng gathered in one hall. As for the smaller gambling dens, their shopkeepers naturally had no right to set foot in Old Lao Chaofeng's territory.

Small gambling dens lacked the means to hire high-ranked martial artists as assassins. Only the big gambling houses had that kind of foundation.

Upon learning Chen Chen Guanlou's purpose, the crowd's expressions turned solemn, exchanging glances with one another.

"Lord Chen suffering an assassin is truly outrageous. However, without proof, on what grounds does Lord Chen pin this on our gambling houses? We gambling houses open our doors to do business, we value harmony bringing wealth—we absolutely could not do anything so horrifying."

"Yes, yes, harmony brings wealth."

"Assassinate Lord Chen? Have we lost our minds? This matter has absolutely nothing to do with me."

"Keeping a high-ranked martial artist is no easy matter—it costs a pretty sum every year. How could it be spent on an assassination? Could there be some misunderstanding here?"

"The highest cultivation among the martial artists our gambling house keeps is only sixth-rank, and that's just stepping into sixth-rank, the realm not yet consolidated, currently in closed-door training. This matter has absolutely nothing to do with our gambling house—we beg Lord Chen to see clearly."

"Nothing to do with ours either. Our house does business clean as a whistle, welcoming guests from all quarters. Jailers are only a small part of our clientele. We'd never oppose the Heaven Prison over a single notice."

"Our house is innocent too…"

"This matter has nothing to do with me…"

Every gambling house shopkeeper cried grievance; not one admitted a thing, each washing his hands of the assassination completely clean.

Chen Chen Guanlou, half-smiling, listened to their cries of grievance, then said with a smile: "Do you all think I really came empty-handed, without a shred of proof?"

"Lord Chen means to say—there is evidence?" Old Lao Chaofeng voiced the question every shopkeeper most wanted answered.

Chen Chen Guanlou smiled and said: "Three waves of assassins in all—you lot really weren't stingy with the investment. The highest cultivation among them was seventh-rank, named Mad Blade One Slash. Pity his skill wasn't up to snuff; he didn't last a single move in my hands. The corpse is at the mortuary. Now, gentlemen, whose man Mad Blade One Slash was—that won't be hard to trace. I need only drop a word to my brothers at the Six Doors, and every one of you here— whether your gambling houses can open normally for the next month will depend on my mood."

"Th-this…"

Every shopkeeper present exchanged glances, faces exceedingly ugly.

They found it hard to believe Mad Blade One Slash couldn't last a single move. But the corpse was at the mortuary—one glance would tell true from false. Such a thing couldn't easily be lied about.

At once, every one of them drew a sharp breath.

A seventh-rank martial artist couldn't last a single move—how deep did Chen Chen Guanlou's cultivation run? Had he reached ninth-rank?

They had actually tried to assassinate a ninth-rank martial artist?

Actually picked a fight with a ninth-rank martial artist.

For a moment, several shopkeepers felt as though there were nails beneath their seats, faces ashen as corpses. They were not far from death themselves.

As for the Six Doors coming to make trouble and disrupt business—they could no longer spare the thought.

The few shopkeepers who hadn't taken part in the assassination, by contrast, appeared quite composed.

"Mad Blade One Slash isn't one of ours."

"A seventh-rank martial artist—our gambling house couldn't afford to keep one."

"We beg Lord Chen to see clearly—this matter has nothing whatsoever to do with our gambling house. We beg Lord Chen to pursue the proper debtor and not take revenge on the wrong man."

Chen Chen Guanlou gave a contemptuous laugh. "Whether you're innocent or not, an investigation will tell. I came today to give you all one chance: confess on your own, and everything can be discussed. If you clamp your jaws shut and won't let go, once my side digs it out—every last one of you, without exception, will die!"

"Chen Prison Deputy, this matter… is there any room for discussion?"

"Chen Prison Deputy, heaven watches over the fortunate—you were not harmed, thank the heavens. Might this matter allow us to offer some small compensation? After all, Chen Prison Deputy suffered a fright; we ought to show something."

"Yes, yes, do let us offer some small compensation."

"Chen Prison Deputy, name your terms—we'll do our best to satisfy them."

"So eager to compensate me—does that mean you have guilty consciences?" Chen Chen Guanlou asked with a smile.

"Chen Prison Deputy jests."

"We admire Chen Prison Deputy from the bottom of our hearts. Learning of the assassination, we were furious. We wish to offer a token of our regard—please don't disdain it, Chen Prison Deputy."

Chen Chen Guanlou gave a contemptuous laugh and said in a clear voice: "Compensation I will take, the case I will investigate, the gambling houses will be sealed, the culprits I will not let go, those who deserve to die must die. You lot figure it out."

"We beg Chen Prison Deputy to show some leniency."

"We're only acting on our employer's behalf—look at the Buddha if not the monk. Sealing the gambling houses will affect our employer's profits; this will be hard to explain."

"Even with Marquis Pingjiang's backing, once the matter blows up, it may work against Chen Prison Deputy."

"Are you threatening me?" Chen Chen Guanlou swept his gaze, smiling, over every one of them.

"We wouldn't dare! We're merely speaking reason, hoping for harmony bringing wealth."

"Is it that I don't want to count harmony bringing wealth? This official politely sent word to you all, asking that in future you do business with a bit more decency, not push people to the wall. And what happened? Over a single notice, you sent assassins after this official. Killing an official is tantamount to rebellion—are you lot trying to rebel?" Chen Chen Guanlou pressed them line by line.

"What kind of official are you?" Someone flared up!

"Even a sesame-seed, green-bean official is still an official of the court." Chen Chen Guanlou slapped the table—wood splinters flew, embedding themselves straight into every shopkeeper present.

For a moment, blood spurted everywhere!

Old Lao Chaofeng's chest ached; he wished he could drop dead on the spot and be done with it!