Transmigration: Space-Aided Rise to Power and Prosperity-Chapter 444 - 280: Negotiated

Hu Maoshen was a little surprised, not knowing what was inside, he unfolded the paper and started to read.

Just after reading the beginning, he was extremely shocked. Was this a confession? And it was Guo Shi’s confession. How did Gu Chengyu get his hands on the confession? Why would Guo Shi retract his previous statement and give such a confession to Gu Chengyu?

Suddenly, he thought of a possibility, "Did you capture Guo Shi?"

Gu Chengyu shook his head, "I didn’t capture him; I saved him."

Hu Maoshen examined the words carefully. It was almost as he had guessed, but for Guo Shi to actually confess to Gu Chengyu?

"Did you torture him? Otherwise, how could he confess to you? You said you saved him; who wanted to kill him? The Eldest Prince?" The only person Hu Maoshen thought would silence someone was the Eldest Prince.

He had heard that Guo Shi was Xia Qing’s man, but he never really believed it. If he was under the Eldest Prince, that would make sense.

Gu Chengyu thought for a moment and gave a punch, which shouldn’t be considered torture, right?

"Naturally, it was the Eldest Prince who wanted to kill him. My people saved him and hid him. As for the confession, Mr. Hu, don’t worry about how it was obtained. So, what do you think? Do I seem sincere enough?"

Gu Chengyu always knew that people only help you when you have value. Those who help you without expecting any return are the closest to you.

Guo Shi put down the confession and glanced at Gu Chengyu. Although he was tempted, just this confession wasn’t enough.

"You know, Guo Shi has already falsely accused two officials before. Now that he’s retracting, do you think the Emperor will believe it? Will the Dali Temple believe it? Unless you can provide more evidence, otherwise, this is all in vain."

Guo Shi picked up a tea bowl, a political achievement of this magnitude, would be foolish not to be tempted. However, is this achievement easy to secure? One might end up stealing no fish, but instead, create a mess.

"I have more than just this evidence on hand; this is merely a touchstone. Mr. Hu, if you are willing to cooperate with me, I will present the evidence. There are two key figures involved here, one is a hidden guard from the Wan Mansion, and the other is an adviser who imitates handwriting. With these two people, and by following the clues, I believe we can get ample evidence of the crime."

Gu Chengyu didn’t have these two people in hand yet, but when he spoke, he wasn’t timid at all. He had already sent people to capture them, even if the Eldest Prince hid them well, he would dig three feet into the ground to find them.

"Oh? It seems Mr. Gu is fully prepared. But have you thought about while you’re busy outside, if Wan Xue Nian and Song Shuqing are in prison and identify the bribery list, it might be too late before I can present any evidence; the Minister of the Ministry of Justice will present their confession to the Emperor."

Hu Maoshen admired Gu Chengyu a bit. Gathering three witness testimonies in such a short time was truly not easy. As far as he knew, Gu Chengyu was merely a farmer’s son.

Hu Maoqing continued, "As far as I know, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Kuang Zhao Ying, has already requested the list of Imperial Examination candidates, especially those who ranked at the top. Although I haven’t been able to get the list, I have received some information that Mr. Gu’s ranking in the Imperial Examination is among the top."

Hu Maoshen was not anxious at this moment; it was Gu Chengyu who should be anxious. Gu Chengyu must have more cards up his sleeve; getting more useful information from him would be the best outcome.

Gu Chengyu was silent for a moment; he didn’t reveal the official behind Guo Shi, nor was it written in the confession. Even if it were written, it would have little connection to the current case but would relate to the power struggle at court, something he wasn’t ready to hand over to Hu Maoshen yet.

"Just where the remaining silver belonging to the Eldest Prince is hidden is unknown. If known, it would be very beneficial to the case." Hu Maoshen couldn’t help but probe Gu Chengyu; perhaps Gu Chengyu knew where the silver was hidden.

The last time Hui An went to the Eldest Prince’s villa, it had already alerted them. Now, that villa is empty, with only some furnishings. The Eldest Prince occasionally resides there. Finding the hiding place of the silver is not easy.

This Gu Chengyu indeed did not know; he hadn’t been paying attention to the Eldest Prince’s matters earlier. If it weren’t for the night Hui An broke into the Eldest Prince’s villa, he might not have even seen the Eldest Prince.

Gu Chengyu shook his head, "I don’t know that. Mr. Hu shouldn’t just think about picking up ready-made things. I have some matters to arrange; Mr. Hu, just say whether or not we’ll cooperate. If the magistrate isn’t sincere, I can only look for someone else."

Gu Chengyu didn’t have time to play official speak with him; time was tight, and he needed to return to his mansion to instruct Ming Mo and others on some matters.

Hu Maoshen also knew that Gu Chengyu was in a hurry. The Inspectorate was not just him as an officer. If it weren’t for some previous acquaintance between him and Gu Chengyu, Gu Chengyu wouldn’t have come to him.

"I’ll take on this matter, but to topple the Eldest Prince this time is quite impossible; we can only make him suffer a little. However, in case the two officials in prison are wrongfully forced to confess, I still need to make some preparations, which may not be in time!"

Hu Maoshen thought it over; 200,000 taels of silver is not a small amount. The Emperor will certainly begin to doubt the Eldest Prince. As long as he presents part of the evidence, then even without the complete list or the seized silver, the Emperor will believe a bit.

Since ancient times, which Emperor isn’t skeptical? As long as the Emperor loosens his grip on power, he could realize his ambitions and not be so restrained as before when investigating.

But the two officials in prison, who have been accustomed to their noble and luxurious lives, it’s hard to say how long they’ll endure.

Gu Chengyu knew that Hu Maoshen was already tempted and wouldn’t miss this opportunity, he just wanted to squeeze some more information from him!

"In that case, I leave it to Mr. Hu. As for those two officials, Mr. Hu need not worry; I have my ways."

Gu Chengyu had already thought it through. Faced with such a big accusation, the two would certainly not plead guilty. Even if tortured, they’d hold out for two days. Tonight, he would infiltrate the Dali Temple at night, explaining the pros and cons, enough for those two to endure for another two or three days.

Two or three days would be enough. Now, as long as he captures those two individuals, extracting a confession won’t be difficult.

The people at the Dali Temple likely won’t arrest candidates today. They might lose patience after a day or two. Also, arresting candidates for the Imperial Examination requires the Emperor’s approval. These are Imperial Scholars. Once they pass the Imperial Examination, they can be appointed as officials.

The Emperor wouldn’t allow Kuang Zhao Ying to act recklessly. What he treasures most now is time.

After reaching an agreement with Hu Maoshen and promising to deliver the witnesses before the day’s end, Gu Chengyu hurried to Xi Yan’s courtyard.

"Thank you, miss, for today’s help!" Gu Chengyu sat at the table, listening to Xi Yan play the guqin.

"No need to thank me, sir, it was just a small matter. I heard there’s a bribery issue with the Imperial Examination, could it implicate you?"

Xi Yan observed Gu Chengyu’s expression, finding him very calm. She couldn’t tell if he had a plan in mind.

Xi Yan often dealt with officials, possessing considerable insight. She worried that Gu Chengyu might also be implicated, considering Gu Chengyu was the provincial examination’s top scorer, and his results in the Imperial Examination shouldn’t be poor.