Chapter 79

Serving in the Heavenly Prison, day after day.

Master Jin and his family had already embarked on the road of exile. Cell 72 was left empty.

However, it wasn't empty for two days before a new prisoner was locked in, a poor capital official. So poor that his official robes were patched, and he lived by borrowing money.

Why was such a person locked in?

It is said it was because he signed the memorial impeaching Jiang Tu.

The old Emperor had been in a bad temper recently, and there were more and more people in the court opposing Jiang. Even officials from the "clear water" yamen came out to join the fun.

In a fit of rage, the old Emperor pulled out the memorial that scolded him the most severely and had all the officials who signed it thrown into the big prison to vent his hatred.

Wasn't it just asking local governments for money, exotic flowers, strange stones, and beauties in the name of building palace gardens for Jiang Tu? Jiang Tu was sharing the worries for the Holy Monarch; not only was there no fault, but there was merit. Yet the courtiers seized on a small flaw and scolded him endlessly, even using innuendo to scold the old Emperor.

The old Emperor had lost his temper several times, but he couldn't suppress the courtiers' fighting passion. Added to this was the tax resistance case in Jiangnan that had been making a lot of noise recently, which also involved Jiang Tu. Even the rebellion in Jinzhou in the north could be linked to Jiang Tu.

The old Emperor was desperate and furious; he would first arrest a batch of officials to see the situation. If the courtiers still didn't know what was good for them, he would start chopping off heads.

The new prisoner in Cell 72, surnamed Jiang, Master Jiang, was locked in under these circumstances. He just signed his name, and then he was grabbed and thrown into the big prison by the fierce Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Because he was a poor capital official with no "oil and water," and the prison cells on the Embroidered Uniform Guard's side were a bit tight, Master Jiang was very luckily sent to the Heavenly Prison to be locked up.

The Heavenly Prison also has its own rules; poverty is no excuse.

Qian Fugui and the others complained to Chen Guanlou, "Chen Tou, the higher-ups are urging us urgently, demanding we collect money according to the established rules. But that man surnamed Jiang can't even squeeze out a drop of oil; what should we do?"

"That man surnamed Jiang also owes others dozens of taels of silver that he hasn't paid back."

"His family is so poor they're clinking, and we can't find a single valuable item."

"Even his meals are bought with borrowed money."

"I heard the yamen hasn't paid salaries for half a year. For a poor capital official like him, it's a miracle he hasn't starved to death."

"According to the established rules, it's at least six hundred taels. Even if we sold that man surnamed Jiang, he wouldn't be worth that much money."

Several prison guards spoke all at once; on one side were the rules of the Heavenly Prison, and on the other was a poor capital official who couldn't squeeze out a drop of oil. It was truly difficult for them, the prison guards, to be caught in the middle.

Chen Guanlou was also annoyed.

He even suspected that Prison Wan Zhang Yuli had deliberately arranged for Master Jiang to be in his jurisdiction just to disgust him.

He simply said, "Let that man surnamed Jiang go borrow usury. The rules of the Heavenly Prison cannot be broken."

"That man surnamed Jiang said that even if you kill him, he won't go borrow usury. Even if he borrows it, he can't pay it back. Anyway, it's death sooner or later, so it's better to die in the Heavenly Prison; maybe he can even win a reputation after death."

"This bunch of officials, they want their reputation but not their lives. Chen Tou, what do you say we should do?"

Chen Guanlou rolled his eyes and snorted coldly, "He must know a few rich guys, right? With so many classmates and colleagues, make him find a way to borrow money."

"That man surnamed Jiang is like a stone in a latrine, both smelly and hard. Most of the people he associates with are just like him, all poor capital officials. It seems there's no one who can lend him six hundred taels of silver in one breath."

Chen Guanlou was suddenly furious, "This won't work, that won't work, what do you say we should do?"

"Why not take him to the torture room for a trip."

"Let's do that." Chen Guanlou made the final decision. The rules of the Heavenly Prison must be followed, the silver must be handed over, and even if they have to smash pots and sell iron, it must be handed over.

Unfortunately, Prison Wan Zhang Yuli sent someone to urge them again.

Chen Guanlou went to the office to see Prison Wan Zhang Yuli and asked him for a few days' grace, saying his subordinates were working hard to get the money.

Prison Wan Zhang Yuli chuckled coldly, "Don't bring the broken rules of the C-grade prison to the A-grade prison. The people locked up here are all criminal officials of the imperial court. As long as the court hasn't convicted them for a day, they are still officials. Without a superior's order, where did you get the guts to dare to extort money? Chen Guanlou, can you use your brain a little?"

Chen Guanlou was currently filled with anger, and he tried hard to suppress it, "That man surnamed Jiang is just a poor capital official who won't eat soft or hard. If we don't show him a little bit of severity, it's impossible for him to borrow money to pay. Why doesn't Wan Zhang Yuli grant a few more days of grace? Perhaps we can come up with a way to get money without extorting it."

"You are presumptuous! Are you questioning my decision? I tell you, don't think that just because Prison Warden Fan thinks highly of you, you have a backer. I have the final say in the A-grade prison. I tell you to collect money, you must collect money; this is the rule. Don't give me this difficulty or that difficulty, and don't think about using heavy torture. Three days, I'll give you three days. After three days, if you can't get the money, I'll remove you from your post, and then you can get lost back to the C-grade prison."

At this moment, Chen Guanlou could be completely certain that Prison Wan Zhang Yuli was playing a "sunny plot" this time, playing with open cards, deliberately arranging for the man surnamed Jiang to be in his jurisdiction to force him to raise money.

Everyone knew the man surnamed Jiang was a poor capital official. Yet Prison Wan Zhang Yuli only gave him three days, clearly trying to disgust him and make things difficult for him, wanting to take the opportunity to get rid of him.

Since that was the case, there was no point in saying more.

Chen Guanlou returned to his duty room, thought for a while, and decided to see the man surnamed Jiang in person.

Master Jiang was thin and gaunt, with no fat on his cheeks, which made his eyes particularly prominent and large. But his eyelids were wrinkled, making him look old. Only after reading the case file did he know that this person was actually only in his thirties, not yet forty. But his appearance looked like he was fifty.

He was not tall, of medium-to-short height, and probably hadn't reached the average height for men of this era. Chen Guanlou, at 1.80 meters tall, stood in front of the other person, a proper big man, carrying an inherent sense of oppression.

He held a water-fire stick and tapped the fence lightly, "Master Jiang is new here, is there anything you're not used to?"

Jiang Fengyu looked at Chen Guanlou in front of the cell door, his reaction a bit slow, "Oh, you, you are the Chen Tou they talked about. Many thanks to Chen Tou for visiting this official; this official is doing fine."

Chen Guanlou pursed his lips, his expression becoming more serious, "They told Master Jiang the rules, right?"

"I know, no loud noises, no..."

"Is Master Jiang joking with me?" Chen Guanlou stared at the other person with unkind eyes, "The rules of the Heavenly Prison: upon entering the prison, one must pay six hundred taels."

"Ah, this..." Jiang Fengyu was stunned, and he said very innocently, "I don't have it. I really don't have it." After saying that, he even turned out his sleeves and pockets; there wasn't even a single copper coin.

"Whether you have it or not is not our concern; we only care about collecting money. Only with money can you have food to eat. The higher-ups haven't paid salaries or rice money for several months. If you don't pay, so many prisoners in the Heavenly Prison will have to drink the northwest wind. Master Jiang, you wouldn't want everyone to starve to death because of you, would you?"

"But I really don't have any money."

"Then go borrow it."

"I can't borrow it." Jiang Fengyu remained innocent throughout.

Chen Guanlou finally understood; this person deserved to have no money.