Chapter 86: The Person Suddenly Died

"I didn't mean to deliberately embarrass you; I absolutely had no such intention."

Li Dahong defended himself, but unfortunately, his defense was too pale and weak, without even half a cent of persuasiveness. It only made people feel hypocritical and stupid, truly treating people like fools.

Chen Guanlou laughed twice; he didn't want to waste his breath continuing to say meaningless things.

But he had to force Li Dahong to hand over the money, so he couldn't let the scene cool down.

So he said, "Whether you did or not, you know it in your heart."

"You really won't help me?" Li Dahong stared at him.

Chen Guanlou raised his eyebrows. "Help? How to help? Let me take money to fill your hole? You're not my dead father; why should I?"

"How can you have no money? Li Tou, let's not speak in riddles. When Warden Wan was here before, he always took good care of you, giving you prisoners who weren't short of money. You've been in the position of head constable for so many years; with your habits, you should have saved quite a bit of silver. I know you are reluctant to part with the silver you got, but this is caused by yourself, and you must hand over the missing silver."

"I have no money."

Despite Chen Guanlou's earnest and well-meaning advice, Li Dahong still bit his teeth and wouldn't let go, only saying he had no money.

Chen Guanlou was completely angry. "If you want to be like this, then you are forcing me to report the matter to the higher-ups. Don't blame me for not caring about brotherly feelings; what consequences this matter will have if reported, you bear it yourself."

"I didn't lie to you. I was cheated." Li Dahong wiped his face; forced into a corner, he finally was willing to put down his face and spit out two truths. "There was a business, buying and selling goods from the north and south, very profitable. I kept an eye on it for more than a year before deciding to invest money in it. It was fine at first; I really made money.

But the last order, when a boat of goods passed through the customs, it was detained by the local tax soldiers. The money was given, but the goods couldn't be retrieved. I lost! All my money was lost. Why did I have a deficit? Because I also borrowed money from others. The debt collectors came to the door, and I was forced to reach out because I had no other way. I thought I wouldn't be discovered, but I didn't expect..."

He grabbed his head, looking like he regretted the beginning.

Chen Guanlou frowned deeply and didn't speak for a long time.

Seeing he didn't react, Li Dahong raised his head abruptly and questioned, "You don't believe me?"

Chen Guanlou coughed lightly. "Why don't you say what you just said in front of Warden Fan? Maybe Warden Fan will see that you are in trouble and give you some days of grace."

"Why won't you believe me? What do you want me to do for you to believe me? Chen Tou, tell me, for so long, how have I treated you? Is it worth it for you to force a brother to death? Lu Datou borrows money from you, tens of taels at a time, and you don't even ask him to pay it back; why do you have to be so calculating with me?"

"Oh!" Chen Guanlou raised his eyebrows. "It's rare, after pulling for so long, Li Tou, you finally said a truth. It turns out you treat me as a sucker, wanting me to take out money to help you fill the deficit. Who do you think you are?"

"Don't go too far. Lu Datou he..."

"Stop mentioning Lu Datou. No matter how bad Lu Datou is, he won't pit me. But you, from the beginning, you were thinking about how to pit my money. Li Tou, I am young and have shallow knowledge, but that doesn't mean I am a fool. I'll give you one day; if the money isn't made up by this time tomorrow, I will definitely report the matter. Bear the consequences yourself."

Chen Guanlou patted the table.

He really hadn't misjudged Li Dahong; being stingy wasn't a problem, but wanting to take advantage was a character problem. This guy wasn't a good thing. He wanted to pit the guards' money, and now he even dreamed of pitting his money.

Dream on!

What's there to fear about turning against each other? He flipped the table directly.

"Chen Guanlou, good, good, good, you are very good! Brothers for so long, I must have misjudged you. Let's wait and see."

"Remember, at this time tomorrow, if I don't see the money, don't blame me for not caring about old feelings." Chen Guanlou didn't take the other party's threat to heart at all.

He could even hard-resist a Third-Rank martial artist now. Would he be afraid of a Li Dahong? Hmph!

He expected Li Dahong wouldn't dare to make trouble, but he underestimated human nature.

That night, after drinking, he went home. A group of energetic social group members blocked his way. One by one, they were fierce and evil, waving knives and sticks, scaring the vendors setting up stalls on the side of the road out of their wits, and the vendors ran away in a panic.

In the blink of an eye, the alley emptied, leaving a mess on the ground.

"Kid, someone doesn't like you, so they called us to teach you a lesson, so you know what's good for you."

"Li Dahong called you here?"

"Don't care who called; in short, you got in someone's way, you deserve what you get today. Brothers, all come up, just don't beat him to death."

Coming up, they beat him with many against one, not even talking about basic Jianghu morality.

Good!

Very good!

He originally thought about leaving Li Dahong a little room. Since he did the first day, don't blame himself for doing the fifteenth day.

Bang!

The battle ended.

Chen Guanlou looked at the only small leader still standing.

The small leader was still blinking, his head full of doubts: What happened just now? Why did all the brothers fall to the ground?

"You, you, you, don't come over! This is under the feet of the Son of Heaven; killing is against the law."

"So you also know it's against the law!"

Chen Guanlou took a step out and kicked the small leader away directly.

"I'll leave you a dog's life; go back and tell Li Dahong, don't be a coward!"

After saying that, Chen Guanlou disappeared slowly at the end of the alley step by step.

The next day, he went to work as usual, and didn't see Li Dahong all morning.

When the time came, he took the account book and went to the office to see Warden Fan to report the recent money and grain accounts, as well as Li Dahong's deficit.

However, as soon as he entered the office, he saw Warden Fan sighing. "Little Chen is here. Let me tell you one thing; I just received notice from the county yamen below that Li Dahong is dead. His body was discovered early this morning, and his identity has just been confirmed."

What?

Chen Guanlou was stunned.

He could be sure that he didn't kill Li Dahong, and didn't even move a finger of the other party. He also didn't have the habit of sleepwalking and killing people. He wasn't Cao Mengde, who liked to kill people in his dreams.

"Confirmed?"

Warden Fan nodded. "Just now, someone from the county yamen below came, hoping we could send someone over, first to confirm the identity again to ensure no mistakes. Second, to help notify the family and comfort the family's emotions. You have a good relationship with Li Dahong, so you go for the Heavenly Prison. If there is any need for the funeral, just report it."

"How did he die?" Chen Guanlou only cared about this.

"Seems like he fell into the water while drunk." ===== CHAPTER 87 =====

He could be certain that he had not killed Li Dahong; he hadn't even moved a single finger of the other party. He also did not have the habit of sleepwalking and killing people in the middle of the night. He was not Cao Mengde, who liked to kill people in his dreams.

"Confirmed?"

Prison Clerk Fan nodded, "Just now, someone from the county yamen below came, hoping we could send someone to go over. Firstly, to reconfirm the identity and ensure there are no mistakes. Secondly, to help notify the family and soothe their emotions. Since you have a good relationship with Li Dahong, you go on behalf of the Heavenly Prison. If there is anything needed for the funeral rites, just report it."

"How did he die?" Chen Guanlou was only concerned about this.

"It seems to be drowning while drunk."