Chapter 1187: Chapter 1023: Heavenly Prison

In fact, Gu Chengyu was not unwilling to go guard the border, but with his rank, going to the border would never allow him to become the main general.

If he becomes the deputy general, he’d be under someone’s control, and his actions would be inevitably restrained; what would be the point then?

Moreover, the Crown Prince was already wary of him and would never allow him to wield military power alone. The Crown Prince understood that he was not the one the Emperor ultimately chose, thus he remained anxious.

If Gu Chengyu obtained military power, and future situations turned unfavorable, he could assist others in overthrowing the throne, ending the Crown Prince’s regal days.

Understanding this, the Crown Prince absolutely wouldn’t allow Gu Chengyu to hold military power, hence Gu Chengyu had little interest in going to guard the border.

Furthermore, in the Dayan Dynasty, military officers were ranked lower than civil servants. Only a fool would go to such a harsh, cold place like the border to suffer.

The Crown Prince’s face stiffened; in truth, he was also considering the bigger picture. Gu Chengyu was both literate and martial, and there were no good generals to guard the border, so how could he be at ease?

But Gu Chengyu’s earlier refusal was already obvious, and it was inappropriate to bring up the matter again now.

He took a deep breath and then smiled, saying, "Let’s discuss this matter later! Right now, the most important thing is to interrogate those assassins and Zhou Congyuan. Let’s go meet Zhou Congyuan first."

The Crown Prince stood up from his armchair, flung his robe sleeve, and walked ahead.

Gu Chengyu watched the other’s back for a moment before following. As he walked, he pondered; initially, he had no plans to meet that person in the coming days, but now he changed his mind.

The Crown Prince led Gu Chengyu and the guards to the government office of Dali Temple. Seeing the heavily guarded gates, Gu Chengyu recalled the scene when he trespassed into Dali Temple at night.

Unfortunately, although he wasn’t implicated that time, Wan Xue Nian and Song Shuqing still perished.

These two indeed died unjustly, but they became sacrifices in the power struggles of superiors.

Even as third-rank officials, they were still in the palm of others. Being successfully maneuvered by others proved they weren’t strong enough.

Seeing the prison chief nod and bow to the Crown Prince respectfully before hastily unlocking the chains, Gu Chengyu couldn’t help but feel introspective.

Power is so important, solidifying his determination to climb higher.

After the chains were unlocked, Gu Chengyu entered the dark and damp prison with the Crown Prince.

Dark-red dried blood stains covered the prison bars, and the prisoners inside looked numb as they stared at the newly arrived Gu Chengyu and others, their eyes devoid of any spirit.

There weren’t many prisoners in the jail, as it housed offending officials. Even if related persons needed to be detained together, many cells remained unoccupied.

Looking at the disheveled, bloodstained, ragged prisoners, Gu Chengyu couldn’t help but lament. How many loyal ministers and fine generals perished in this Dali Temple? The officialdom has always been so brutal.

He took a step forward and suddenly noticed a slender figure, back facing them, in the right cell.

Hearing footsteps, that person hurriedly turned to look. Gu Chengyu squinted and found it to be Xia Qing.

The other was also startled to see them, but Gu Chengyu sized him up and thought this old man hadn’t suffered much in prison.

Upon entering prison, the official uniform must be removed, and the hat, needless to say, taken off long ago. His snow-white inner garment was slightly disheveled, with a few creases on the fine snow satin.

His usually meticulously groomed hairstyle seemed a bit unkempt, appearing somewhat disheveled, yet he was much better off compared to the prisoners, who were battered and bruised all over.

After all, he was a First-Grade Official; before conviction, the prison chief and guards wouldn’t dare offend him. Considering Xia Qing’s widespread faction in the court, if the Crown Prince didn’t pursue the matter afterward and released Xia Qing from prison, it would be the end for those people.

Seeing Gu Chengyu’s scrutinizing gaze, Xia Qing sneered, which Gu Chengyu perceived as a provocation.

Indeed! The Crown Prince’s unclear stance on how to deal with Xia Qing does give Xia Qing some confidence. However, it isn’t Gu Chengyu who’s imprisoned, so it’s unclear why Xia Qing has such confidence.

However, whether the price of his own disciple’s life brings guilt to his heart is unknown.

Suddenly, a figure in a white inner garment rushed over, only to be stopped by the iron bars halfway. The chains around his wrists clashed against the bars, creating a crisp sound.

"Your Highness! Please have mercy, spare me. I am truly innocent, I implore Your Highness to see clearly!"

A heartrending plea echoed in everyone’s ears. Gu Chengyu lowered his right hand, which was on his waist, and looked at the disheveled, panicked, yet pleading man.

"What are you doing? Still dare to collide with the Crown Prince? Behave yourself." The prison chief, seeing this scene, immediately trembled with fear and rushed forward to reprimand.

Gu Chengyu didn’t need a closer look to recognize the man as You Shaofeng, the Left Minister of Communication. The Crown Prince had imprisoned him in the Dali Temple due to his interceding for Xia Qing.

Tianji Taoist was recommended by Xia Qing and was close to him. He had interceded for Xia Qing when the Crown Prince was angry, so naturally, he was thrown into the prison together.

The You Mansion had already been searched, finding little evidence of treason, but there was plenty of gold and silver. Without saying, one could tell it was bribery.

It was said a lot of evidence of extortion was found yesterday, and subsequently, several wealthy merchants came to the government office to testify against him for coercing bribes. In any case, now that the wall is down, everyone pushes. If his political enemies don’t act at this time, then when?

Unless you live your whole life cleanly without any profligate descendants in your family dragging you down, it’s very easy to be caught on a fault. Even the tiniest matters of the inner courtyard could lead to a charge of failing to manage the household carefully.

Even if Xia Qing could emerge unscathed, You Shaofeng couldn’t escape the Heavenly Prison. At this time, those political enemies couldn’t touch Xia Qing but could surely deal with You Shaofeng.

And You Shaofeng’s loud cries of injustice probably stemmed from the fact that Kuang Zhao Ying of the Dali Temple had not yet had time to interrogate him.

If otherwise, his condition might not be much better than a dead dog.

You Shaofeng saw the prison chief angrily shouting at him with a whip, and he couldn’t help but feel bitter.

He had a Standard Fourth Rank official position; ordinarily, these lowest-ranking prison guards wouldn’t even have the right to look him in the eye.

But now they dared to shout at him; indeed, a tiger fallen into the plains is bullied by dogs, truly hateful.

These past few days, he had thought carefully; in prison, they weren’t treated like other offending officials, suffering daily tortures; instead, they were provided well-fed and well-looked after. It seemed the Crown Prince didn’t intend to delve deep into this matter.

So when he gets out, he must make these people pay.

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