Chapter 722: Needles Hidden in Cotton

After chatting nonsense with Master Gong, Chen Guanlou continued to inspect the cells.

He arrived in front of Gu Shanher's cell door.

Master Gu's life was truly comfortable; his father-in-law, the richest man, was truly good to him, and his wife was also wholeheartedly thinking of him, waiting for him to get out of prison and make a comeback.

There was a bed, a quilt, a small table, and a small chair, complete sets of books, and new cotton clothes made of fine cotton cloth produced in the South, which were warm and decent to wear.

Naturally, the things in the cell were all paid for by his father-in-law, the richest man, at a price more than ten times higher than outside.

The man wasn't short of money; he didn't even blink at a mere ten-fold premium and agreed immediately.

Such a client was truly a top-tier quality client.

Every time Chen Guanlou saw Gu Shanher, he had a smiling face.

A quality client naturally had the qualifications to receive his sincere smiling face. Tens of thousands of taels of real gold and silver could not be fake.

"The weather suddenly cooled down; Master Gu, you haven't frozen, have you?"

"Many thanks for your concern, Master Chen; everything is still fine!" Gu Shanher was quite polite and didn't show arrogance just because his father-in-law had taken care of everything. Instead, he was courteous, rising to bow.

This guy...

Chen Guanlou couldn't help but ponder: either he was a genuine gentleman who treated people with sincerity, or he was a person of great treachery and evil.

He had seen many people and rarely misjudged them.

Facing the one surnamed Gu, he was very certain every time, yet every time he overturned his own judgment. For a moment, he couldn't grasp whether he was a gentleman or a hidden treacherous villain.

How could a person not have a single flaw, not a single root of human inferiority?

If it was an act, who could get addicted to acting in the Heavenly Prison?

Even a saint would have three parts of temper, right?

"I heard that when Master Gu married your wife, you had already passed the imperial examination?"

Since he had already passed the examination, he had more choices. He could have completely chosen a girl from an official family as his wife; these were all standard choices for worldly people.

"Exactly!" Gu Shanher had regular features and a tall, straight figure; walking out, he would definitely attract the gaze of young ladies and wives, belonging to the category of quality son-in-law candidates.

With so many choices, yet he chose a merchant's daughter, and that was after passing the examination...

"I heard that the Gu family ancestors were also wealthy."

"That was all many years ago and not worth mentioning. By my generation, the Gu family had long since declined. We were just barely supporting ourselves by guarding a few dozen acres of land. If it weren't for my father-in-law and my wife, the Gu family would have already gone bankrupt to support my studies."

"Master Gu is joking. Once you pass the scholar examination, you can be exempted from corvée; it would only get better and better, how could you go bankrupt?"

"With a large population, even eating became a problem." Gu Shanher gave a self-deprecating laugh.

That was true.

Gu Shanher had seven or eight brothers and sisters; getting married, branching out, and adding children to the family were all good things to talk about. However, the land was only so much, and the annual output was fixed; because of the increase in the family population, life became more and more miserable.

It was also because of poverty that the brothers argued about dividing the family property. Once the family was divided, Gu Shanher, who had not yet passed the scholar examination, had a problem with his studies. He was studying full-time, and relying solely on his parents' labor to support him simply wouldn't work. He had no choice but to borrow money.

Fortunately, he had good luck in the examinations; he passed as a child scholar on his first attempt, and then successfully passed the scholar examination, so the family's economic situation improved.

Relying on a handsome face, sincere words and deeds, and his scholarly fame, he was fortunate enough to be chosen by the daughter of the richest man. After the engagement, his father-in-law, the richest man, began to help his in-laws. By the time they married, the Gu family, with the help of his father-in-law, was already a major local family.

The Gu family could have today because his father-in-law, the richest man, deserved the first credit.

When he was imprisoned, his father-in-law, the richest man, didn't even blink, throwing out tens of thousands of taels just to rescue his son-in-law. He would continue to spend money later, and the man didn't have a single complaint.

Chen Guanlou was truly curious: what charm did Gu Shanher have that could make his father-in-law, the richest man, pour out his heart and lungs? Even his own parents couldn't do such a thorough job.

As it stands, this guy's manners were very thorough, and he spoke of propriety anytime, anywhere. His speech was also sincere, and his smile was infectious...

A true gentleman?

"Master Gu must get along very harmoniously with his family."

"Master Chen is joking; even the upper and lower teeth have times when they knock against each other; it's inevitable that there will be quarrels when a family lives together."

When Gu Shanher smiled, it was as if there was a whole starry sky in his eyes, commonly known as: there was light in his eyes!

As the light flashed, Chen Guanlou suddenly realized something.

This guy's sincerity was real, but it depended on the person.

When the other spoke of his family, the light was not brilliant, but revealed a bit of gloom. It wasn't that the other didn't have a temper, but that he hadn't encountered someone who triggered his temper.

It seemed that the conflict between Gu Shanher and his brothers and sisters was quite deep.

This time he saw it clearly; the one surnamed Gu belonged to the type of person with needles hidden in cotton. It wasn't that he didn't have sharpness, but that he had hidden all his sharpness, and one couldn't feel it without deep contact.

Having seen the person clearly, Chen Guanlou casually pointed out: "Your father-in-law and your wife are truly good to you, good enough to pour out their hearts and lungs. Don't let them down! Life is long, and it's not easy to meet a few people who treat you sincerely. Even if there is something you seek, it should be giving first, rather than asking as soon as you open your mouth."

"It's about to seal the office for the New Year, when will His Majesty's edict come down? Is it before the New Year or after the New Year? Before the New Year, is it not wanting everyone in the Ministry of Justice to have a New Year? After the New Year, it proves that this matter is not urgent and not so serious. I guess His Majesty is still hesitating in his heart, temporarily unable to make up his mind. I ask you, who has been following His Majesty recently to serve more?"

"You are not sincere, although you appear sincere."

Chen Guanlou pointed out again.

Gu Shanher frowned slightly. "Is Master Chen worried that if I rise to prominence one day, I will abandon my wife and children and repay kindness with enmity?"

"Would you?" Chen Guanlou asked back. "Your wife is the daughter of a merchant, and she became an official's wife because of you. Do you despise her?"

"How could I! Master Chen has a misunderstanding about me; please do not judge a gentleman's belly with a villain's heart."

Chen Guanlou clicked his tongue twice. "You must remember, you were able to get out of the Imperial Prison entirely because of your father-in-law's 'money power.' If he hadn't been willing to spend money, you would already have broken arms and legs, your life hanging by a thread; let alone making a comeback and rising to prominence, you wouldn't even have the qualifications to be an official, and you might even have been carried out of the Imperial Prison horizontally."

To be an official, the primary condition is to have regular features and be healthy without disabilities.

A cripple cannot be an official.

Except for the Marquis of Pingjiang.

If one had the family background of the Marquis of Pingjiang, it would be impossible to end up in the Imperial Prison with broken arms and legs.

Decency!

Even if they entered the Imperial Prison, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would have to give enough decency to someone of the Marquis of Pingjiang's status.

Without the Emperor's word, the Embroidered Uniform Guard wouldn't even dare to use torture!

"Master Chen's words, this official will keep in mind. What I have today, I know better than anyone what I rely on. I am not arrogant enough to deny everything of others. Secondly, I consider myself to have regular features and not to have a face that would abandon my wife and children and be ungrateful. Master Chen's misunderstanding of me is so great that I truly don't understand."

Gu Shanher asked for instruction sincerely.

Chen Guanlou pondered for a moment and said: "Since your case broke and you were imprisoned, I haven't seen a single member of the Gu family. From beginning to end, it has been your father-in-law's family who has been taking care of things for you, running around. You Gu family members seem to have become invisible. Even if you don't have the ability or money, showing your face to visit the prison should be fine, right? You were all born of the same mother; between brothers and sisters, no matter how big the gap is, certain natures are still similar."

Hearing this, Gu Shanher gave a bitter laugh repeatedly. "The roots of the Gu family are not bad, just a bit selfish; they truly have no heart to harm others. When I had an accident and was imprisoned, they were afraid of being implicated, so naturally, they had to hide."

"They can't escape the extermination of the nine clans."

"Who says not! Unfortunately, some people have elm-wood heads..." ===== CHAPTER 723 =====