Chapter 977: No next time

"No, no, no..."

Meng Laoda shook his head like a rattle-drum, terrified that if he were a second too slow, he would be killed.

"I'm not reluctant! It was just too sudden, I hadn't reacted yet. Ma Liu deserved to die; Brother Chen killed him well, killed him brilliantly!"

Meng Laoda reacted quickly, hurriedly changing his stance and correcting his words.

Chen Guanlou nodded with satisfaction and patted the other man on the shoulder.

Upon being patted like this, Meng Laoda instantly seemed to shrink a head shorter, consciously hunching his back and bowing slightly. He assumed a posture of submission.

"Brother Meng, rest assured. The Heavenly Prison and the Six Shanmen are brothers of the same family. I never make things difficult for my own brothers; you can sleep soundly."

Meng Laoda forced a smile, a smile that was exceptionally strained. "Everything will be as Brother Chen says. I truly didn't know those little rabbits below could stir up such a huge disaster."

Chen Guanlou gave a soft laugh. "Stirring up a disaster is no matter; the key is to clean up the beginning and the end, leaving no handle behind. It's a pity, though, that the brothers at the Six Shanmen handled things too crudely. Perhaps they didn't hold the brothers of the Heavenly Prison in their eyes, or perhaps they were reluctant to spend the silver to grease every joint and rewrite the case file. Tsk tsk..."

A single case file passes through at least ten or twenty pairs of hands, all with their respective signatures and thumbprints for the sake of traceability.

If one wanted to replace a case file and ensure every detail was in place, leaving no handle behind, it would be equivalent to greasing the palms of everyone who had handled the file. How much money would that take?

Clearly, someone valued money more than their life and was reluctant!

They simply muddled through, thinking they could slip past. Even if the matter came to light, there would be Heavenly Prison guards to take the fall!

The plan was beautiful, but reality was cruel.

Fortunately, Chen Guanlou hadn't been lazy and had chosen to patrol the cells. Otherwise, if they had waited until they reached the execution ground only to discover the prisoner didn't match the records, the scene would have been unimaginable. Under the gaze of the public, how could it be covered up? By then, even if those above wanted to show mercy and turn a major issue into a minor one, there would be no way to start.

Some things can be done and said, but only in private, and one must ensure every detail is flawless, leaving no handle behind.

Once laid out in the sunlight, with dirty dealings exposed, in order to appease public anger and restore the reputation of the yamen, even if they were unwilling, they would have to kill the chicken to warn the monkeys, killing one to warn a hundred. How many heads would roll by then was impossible to predict!

When all is said and done, the Six Shanmen truly committed a major taboo this time.

Chen Guanlou didn't care that the Six Shanmen had swapped the prisoner to save their own skin. He only cared that they hadn't done it thoroughly, leaving a handle behind and making the Heavenly Prison take the blame. This kind of behavior had to be severely struck down.

Seeing Meng Laoda covered in cold sweat, his whole body trembling, he asked with a smile, "What are you afraid of? I'm not going to kill you."

Meng Laoda let out an "Ah," only then coming back to his senses.

"Many thanks to Brother Chen for the grace of not killing me! But, but... how should Ma Liu's corpse be disposed of?"

"The prisoner Ma Liu died suddenly in prison; how do you feel about that reason?" Chen Guanlou asked with a smile.

Meng Laoda nodded immediately. "Good! That reason is too good! Brother Chen truly has great talent."

This flattery had absolutely no level to it. Seeing the other man was overly nervous, Chen Guanlou reluctantly forgave him.

"For the subsequent matters, I'll have to trouble the brothers at the Six Shanmen to work hard."

"It's only right, it's only right."

"Brother Meng, it's late tonight; I'll find you for a drink next time. However, similar mistakes must not be made again! I'll let it slide this time, but if I know you've done it again and are still delusional enough to make the brothers of the Heavenly Prison take the fall, don't blame me for disregarding brotherly sentiment and turning against you!"

"I wouldn't dare! There will absolutely not be a next time! Brother Chen, rest assured, I will clean up those little rabbits when I go back. Each and every one of them is lawless and ignores the laws of the state; they simply deserve to die!" Meng Laoda promised, patting his chest.

Chen Guanlou then said with a smile, "I'll take your word for it. If there's a next time, you can all go die!"

Having said that, he carried Ma Liu's corpse and left the building.

Meng Laoda collapsed onto the ground, his entire body soaked through with cold sweat, his clothes covered in sweat stains.

He didn't feel hot; instead, he shivered, his body trembling a few times.

Thank heavens, he had finally managed to save his life.

He had almost been unable to withstand the pressure of a Ninth Rank martial artist and had nearly wet his pants on the spot.

Fortunately, that scourge Ma Liu was dead through and through, which could be considered the resolution of a troublesome matter.

Chen Guanlou carried the corpse through the dark night and returned to the Heavenly Prison.

He threw the corpse directly in front of Xu Fugui and told him, "This is the real Ma Liu! Your life is saved."

Xu Fugui jumped up violently, his face a mix of pale and white.

For the past two days, he had been living in fear, with no heart to go home, and had been resting in the Heavenly Prison.

In the middle of the night, a corpse suddenly appeared before his eyes, and his heart was both shocked and joyful.

"Is this person truly Ma Liu?"

"You can compare the physical characteristics in the case file to see if they match."

"They definitely match! With the Master taking action, there is guaranteed to be no mistake."

After passing the worst of the panic, Xu Fugui was overcome with joy. With the real Ma Liu caught, all crises were completely resolved.

He was happy!

He wept with joy!

On the spot, he knelt before Chen Guanlou; the grace of saving his life could not be repaid. Only by continuing to shine and heat up in his position as a prison clerk in the C-grade prison could he repay the Master's kindness!

Chen Guanlou looked at his shameless posture and kicked him directly.

"Less nonsense. Hurry up and throw the corpse into the cell and clean it up properly."

"Yes, yes, yes, the Master's lesson is correct. This corpse is too clean; it indeed needs to be cleaned up a bit. However, what should be done with the Ma Liu locked inside the cell? Should we..."

As he spoke, Xu Fugui made a throat-slitting gesture.

Chen Guanlou kicked him again, too lazy for nonsense, and ordered directly, "As soon as the sky brightens, let the person go. Give him two taels of silver for travel expenses and let him go home. If you are unwilling to pay the silver, go ask the Six Shanmen for it."

"Out! I must pay this silver! I have responsibility for this matter; it was my poor handling of the case. I received the prisoner into custody without carefully checking the case files. I will cover that person's travel expenses!"

Xu Fugui knew when to bow and when to discard money. A mere few taels of silver didn't hurt his heart. Compared to his life and future, a few taels of silver were not even worth mentioning.

"If there's a next time..."

"There won't be a next time, I guarantee there won't be a next time." Xu Fugui waved his hands repeatedly, wishing he could dig out his heart to show his determination.

Chen Guanlou smiled without smiling and asked again, "I'm fining you half a year's bonus; do you accept?"

Huh?

Half a year, actually!

This, this, this...

Nowadays, everyone in the Heavenly Prison relied on their monthly bonus to live. To be fined half a year's worth was to take his old life.

"Master, could you be a little lenient?"

"I can! I'll just remove you from your position as a prison clerk, and let someone capable take it, how about that?"

"I'd rather be fined half a year's bonus!" Xu Fugui looked dejected, listless, as if mourning his parents. He could distinguish what was light and what was heavy; money was important, but compared to the position of a prison clerk, that money didn't count for much.

As long as he continued to work in the position of a prison clerk, money would eventually come.

At worst, he would just live frugally for the next half year. ===== CHAPTER 978 =====