Chapter 954

Wang Defa pondered Xie Changling's words.

It was very clear that Xie Changling disliked the pills presented to the Emperor by the Jade Spring Palace because their effects were too good. The Emperor was so full of energy that, having nowhere to vent it, he caused trouble every single day.

His actions were becoming increasingly insane.

Since he had excess energy, they should add a few beauties to the inner palace, letting the Emperor vent his surplus energy on the women there.

When it came down to it, the pills from the Jade Spring Palace were just an excuse.

The real purpose was to use beauty to attract the Emperor, making him lose interest in attending to state affairs, as the Secretariat would suffice for everything! The Emperor's style of conduct was detrimental to the administration and the overall situation of the world; it was time to take measures to impose restrictions.

Having figured everything out, Wang Defa secretly cursed; Xie Changling's reach was long enough.

However...

The palace indeed needed to add some beauties.

Adding beauties was simple; the difficulty lay in how to evade Xiao Changsheng's eyes and ears, and how to evade Imperial Consort Xiao's eyes and ears.

His Majesty had not yet named a Crown Prince.

Everyone could see that His Majesty favored Imperial Consort Xiao the most, and by extension, her three children were also quite favored and held in high regard by His Majesty. Perhaps the future heir was among these three children.

Wang Defa was caught in a dilemma for a moment.

The weather was bad, with several days of continuous rain, and the temperature fluctuated between hot and cold; one moment people wore summer clothes, the next they wore autumn attire.

Chen Guanlou sat in his office, flipping through documents.

Because of the weather, many prisoners in the cells had fallen ill; coughing was like an infection, one after another.

Several prison clerks were very worried, fearing an epidemic, and hoped to take measures to prevent it.

This was necessary.

Chen Guanlou was also worried about too many deaths, so he instructed Medical Official Mu to do his utmost to prevent the epidemic, so as not to end up with a situation where people were dying in droves.

The C-block cells had the worst conditions, housing all sorts of people, with varying states of health. Those already ill were all quarantined; life and death are fated, and wealth is determined by heaven. If they could pull through, it was their good fortune.

The B-block cells housed people from noble families; one couldn't say their health was great, but at least it was much better than in the C-block, and the illnesses could still be controlled.

On the A-block side, officials were housed, each one pampered and spoiled. Even in prison, they could eat and drink their fill every day, so their physical condition was the best, just a bit weak!

Weakness was nothing to fear!

With one dose of medicine from Medical Official Mu, it was guaranteed to cure the ailment.

Medical Official Mu was so busy he couldn't even touch the ground, and he said the medicinal materials were insufficient and needed to be replenished.

Chen Guanlou spread his hands, "This matter isn't under my jurisdiction; you have to find the logistics department and have them procure the materials. The most I can do is report the situation in the Heavenly Prison to the Ministry of Justice and urge them to hurry."

Medical Official Mu sipped his tea, "In these past few days, five or six people have already died in the C-block cells, which is over the limit. Xu Fugui complains to me whenever he sees me; even I can't stand him. My lord, you should at least soothe him."

"If I don't deduct his money, what else is he dissatisfied about?" Chen Guanlou snorted coldly, "He complains to you merely to use your mouth to plead for mercy in front of me, seeking some compensation for the C-block cells. He spends all day obsessed with money, constantly pondering how to make more. That concubine of his is also too spendthrift."

Medical Official Mu chuckled; he knew these gossips better than Chen Guanlou and added, "It's not that his concubine is spendthrift, it's that her brother is.

I heard that his concubine's younger brother, under the pretext of doing business, got several sums of money from him. Most of it was taken to gamble. The remaining money was used for business, but he ended up being swindled. He's just a useless wastrel.

It's just Xu Fugui, who dotes on his concubine as if she were everything, specifically setting up a residence outside to keep her, just to separate his wife from the concubine, fearing the concubine might suffer any grievance."

"Increasingly absurd!"

Chen Guanlou was very disgusted and looked down on such people.

He continued, "I have always believed that even if one dotes on a concubine, one must not neglect the wife at home. The wife bears children, manages the household, honors the parents-in-law, and maintains relationships with relatives and neighbors.

Aside from saying a few flirtatious words and acting wanton, what use is a concubine? She can't shoulder the heavy responsibility of managing the family business, nor can she handle social duties. Aside from spending money, it's just spending money.

For such women, just give them some money to support them. Xu Fugui, on the other hand, moves mountains of gold and silver into the concubine's room. One by one, they are so bewitched by beauty that they lose their sense of direction; sooner or later, they will learn their lesson."

"My lord, you're speaking from a position of comfort. Not everyone is like you, passing through a thousand flowers without a single leaf sticking to you. You have to understand the 'old house catching fire' intensity of Prison Clerk Xu."

Chen Guanlou snorted, "How he dotes on his concubine is none of my business. But if he neglects his proper duties because of family affairs and messes things up, I will definitely deal with him. When he has no money left, I want to see if that concubine will continue to stay with him. The bastard!"

"He should be given a warning. I've heard Qian Fugui mention several times that the accounts for the C-block cells are always unclear, dragging on and on..."

This one sentence was enough.

What is most important in the Heavenly Prison?

Of course, it's money!

And it can only be money!

If there is a problem with money, that is the biggest problem.

Chen Guanlou took advantage of his free time to inspect the C-block cells and, incidentally, to visit Zhuang Yifei, who had actively and proactively requested to be imprisoned.

The situation was not looking good!

As soon as he entered the prison, coughing sounds were heard one after another.

"Didn't you say there was a quarantine? How did it turn out like this?"

He covered his nose and mouth with a handkerchief; the smell inside the cells was truly nauseating.

"Reporting to my lord, the cells used for quarantine are already full of sick prisoners. There is no extra space, so Prison Clerk Xu ordered these prisoners to endure it themselves. If they can pull through, it's their good fortune; if they can't, it's their own fault."

Chen Guanlou frowned slightly, "Have they all been given medicine?"

"Yes, yes! As Medical Official Mu instructed, two doses of medicine a day, we didn't dare to skimp!"

"Where is Prison Clerk Xu?"

"He was here earlier."

"It seems he went out."

"He must have gone home to sleep with his beautiful concubine."

The prison guards joked.

Chen Guanlou didn't scold them; he inspected the area, and the situation was not optimistic.

Among the prisoners in the C-block, there were those who were physically strong, but also no shortage of those who were weak. With so many people having colds and coughs, if it continued to spread like this, I'm afraid the entire prison block wouldn't be spared.

He asked Zhuang Yifei, "Do you want to be transferred? The illness in the C-block cells is spreading too fast, and more people will die later."

"Many thanks for your concern, Prison Warden Chen, I am a martial artist, no need to worry about me."

Chen Guanlou nodded in understanding, "If you don't want to be transferred, I won't force you. If you need to take medicine for prevention, just say the word. The prison guards will distribute the decoction every day. The prescription was written by Medical Official Mu himself; although the materials aren't top-tier, they are still effective."

"I understand!" Zhuang Yifei was not afraid of the illness spreading in the C-block cells. As an eighth-rank martial artist, he wouldn't say he was beyond the mortal realm, but he didn't fear ordinary illnesses. A mere cold or cough had no effect on him.

Chen Guanlou needed to continue understanding the situation and left quickly.

The situation in the C-block cells was not optimistic, so he decisively ordered a major cleaning and disinfection of the cells.

At the same time, he sent someone to invite Xu Fugui over.

"Tell Xu Fugui, next time, if I can't find him in the Heavenly Prison during duty hours, he doesn't need to come at all."