Chapter 81: The Case Has Broken

Every night, Chen Guanlou would disguise himself and head out, not returning home until the dead of night.

His post at the Heavenly Prison was quite stable. Wan Zhang Yuli had transferred another prisoner to him—a man beaten to a cripple whose home had already been raided, leaving him without a single tael of silver. Still, he was required to hand over the silver as per the rules.

This time, Chen Guanlou did not clash head-on with the other party; he only requested a few days' grace.

Wan Zhang Yuli gave him a deep look. "Fine, I'll give you five days. If you can't pay up by then and the higher-ups ask, I'll have no choice but to hand you over. Don't blame me for being heartless; these are the rules! In the Heavenly Prison, everyone must abide by the rules."

"Many thanks for the reminder, Wan Zhang Yuli. I will certainly abide by the Heavenly Prison's rules."

Qian Fugui and the others all felt indignant on Chen Guanlou's behalf. This was clearly a deliberate targeting.

Money was the bottom line of the Heavenly Prison. If he couldn't produce the money, even Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan wouldn't protect him. Wan Zhang Yuli had made up his mind to use legitimate means—a public conspiracy—to force Chen Guanlou to leave the Jia-block prison.

Everyone was deeply worried. If Chen Tou left and another head constable who was "greedy enough to swallow an elephant" came in, they would all be back to living miserable lives.

"Chen Tou, should we find Private Secretary Li and think of a way?"

"We can't go to Private Secretary Li every time we encounter an issue. Human favors should be saved for the critical moment. If I can't even resolve this small problem, how will Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan view me?"

Chen Guanlou's expression was calm, his mind made up. The other prison guards only assumed he was forcing a smile and pretending nothing was wrong. How could one be fine when being deliberately made difficult by a superior?

Li Dahong also came to join the fray, draping an arm over Chen Guanlou's shoulder. "Chen Tou, do you want me to step in and put in a few good words for you in front of Wan Zhang Yuli?"

"Many thanks, Brother Li. Let me try to think of a way to solve it myself first. If I truly have no options left, I'll ask Brother Li to step in. You mustn't push back or stall when that time comes."

"Hahaha... rest assured. Just say the word, and I guarantee I'll handle it for you. I still have a bit of face in front of Wan Zhang Yuli, after all."

He had about as much face as a fart.

Everyone knew everyone else's true colors!

Chen Guanlou didn't take the man's words to heart. Li Dahong was purely blowing hot air to boost his own sense of importance. With his stingy nature, he would calculate for half a day just to spend money on drinks for Wan Zhang Yuli; what kind of face could he possibly have?

Among the head constables of the Jia-block prison, Li Dahong was the stingiest and most calculating, wishing he could hollow out every last cent from the guards under him. The guards were full of complaints about him but could do nothing.

Private Secretary Li had been waiting for Chen Guanlou to ask for help, but there had been no movement.

He muttered to himself, "This kid is quite patient. Let's see how long he can hold out. Wan Zhang Yuli has also improved; he knows how to use the rules to make things difficult for people. Either poor or crippled—tricky!"

He worried for Chen Guanlou for two seconds, but instead of the main character coming to beg for help, he waited for a massive piece of gossip.

Wan Zhang Yuli's brother-in-law had killed someone.

Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!

It was the brother-in-law of Wan Zhang Yuli's mistress who had killed someone, and Wan Zhang Yuli was also implicated because the body was discovered in a residence under Wan Zhang Yuli's name.

When Wan Zhang Yuli's wife received the notice from the government, she was completely bewildered. Her own brothers were either busy with official duties or lying sick in bed; there was no way they were out chasing women, let alone causing a death.

After much back and forth, she finally figured it out: it wasn't her own brother, but the brother-in-law of Wan Zhang Yuli's mistress.

His wife was instantly consumed by rage. She gathered her maternal family and charged straight into the Heavenly Prison, intending to offer Wan Zhang Yuli up as a sacrifice to Heaven.

At that scene, the prison guards all ran out to eat melons and watch the spectacle.

Wan Zhang Yuli's wife was a shrew. If a prison guard's wife wasn't fierce, life would be impossible.

She grabbed Wan Zhang Yuli by the collar, demanding an explanation. She had worked herself to the bone managing the household, yet Wan Zhang Yuli was keeping a mistress outside. Now that a homicide case had occurred, their whole family had to bear the consequences.

Just thinking about it made her furious!

"You thousand-cut bastard, I serve your parents at home, I see them to their graves, I bear your children—where have I ever wronged you? You craved beauty, so I let you take a concubine. You still weren't satisfied and had to keep a mistress. This life is impossible to live!"

The couple tore at each other inside the yamen, the maternal family cheered them on, and the guards watched the show.

Chen Guanlou watched with great relish.

Lu Datou arrived silently by his side, leaned into his ear, and whispered, "Did you do this?"

"Brother Datou, don't talk nonsense. You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. Besides, I don't have that kind of ability." Chen Guanlou denied it flatly, not admitting to a single word.

Lu Datou was half-believing.

He might be rotten, but he wasn't stupid.

A while back, Chen Guanlou had specifically sought him out to ask about Wan Zhang Yuli. Today, Wan Zhang Yuli's mistress was exposed, and the brother-in-law was suspected of murder. If nothing went wrong, Wan Zhang Yuli would also become a person of interest in this case.

Seeing the other party didn't believe him, Chen Guanlou emphasized again, "It really has nothing to do with me. This is divine retribution. Even Heaven couldn't stand it anymore and sent down a heavenly punishment."

Heh!

If Heaven really had a spirit, why did it lose every time? Lu Datou didn't believe a word of Chen Guanlou's talk. However, he couldn't figure out how Chen Guanlou had managed it.

Could it be that he spent money to hire someone to do it? Wasn't he afraid of leaving behind evidence?

"You'd better hope you have nothing to do with this. The people from the Six Shanmen are like dogs; their noses are sharp. Be careful!"

"Many thanks for the reminder, Brother Datou. I walk straight and sit upright; I'm not afraid of being investigated."

Chen Guanlou was righteous and awe-inspiring.

Lu Datou briefly doubted his own judgment. Could it really not be Chen Guanlou's doing? Then why did he ask about Wan Zhang Yuli earlier?

The scene was truly too unsightly. Jiang Jiang Yucheng Fan stepped in to control the situation. He called the couple into the office for a talk. Afterward, he arranged for Wan Zhang Yuli to take leave to handle the mistress's brother-in-law's case cleanly, so as not to affect the Heavenly Prison's duties.

Wan Zhang Yuli requested three days of leave.

Before the leave was even over, new melons arrived.

It was said that new clues had appeared in the case. This time, it wasn't just the house implicating Wan Zhang Yuli; there was evidence proving Wan Zhang Yuli had participated in the murder.

The yamen constables didn't give him any face at all and threw Wan Zhang Yuli straight into the prison—the County Magistrate's prison, not the Heavenly Prison.

At this, the guards were all stunned.

"Wan Zhang Yuli has money; was it worth killing someone?"

"I heard the woman who died was a famous shrew. Wan Zhang Yuli is truly unrefined; he'll take anything, sweet or foul."

"How come I heard the one who died was a maiden?"

"Wan Zhang Yuli's mistress's brother-in-law has a reputation; he already had a record of molesting decent women. He definitely won't escape this case."

"Beauty ruins people!"

"A wife is still best when she's the original one. When trouble hit, Sister Wan ran around pulling strings and thinking of ways to get him out. That mistress of his, on the other hand, hasn't been seen."

"Now that Wan Zhang Yuli has been arrested, can his position be saved?"

Finally, someone hit the key point.

For a moment, everyone went silent, and thoughts began to stir in their hearts.

If Wan Zhang Yuli's position couldn't be saved, who would replace him? Could it be their turn!

What's the point of chatting! Hurry up and pull strings.

This was a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity! ===== CHAPTER 82 =====