Women Wearing Men: The Growth Path of the Bastards of the Aristocratic Family

Chapter 290
The imperial prison is deep underground, cut off from the sound and light of the outside world, and it is as dark as hell.

The whip wound on Gu Yunji's chest was burning hot, and the cold sweat on his forehead flowed into his eyes, blurring his vision.He listened to Zhao Fan's casual description of how he tortured Bai Xingjia and how he was beaten to death, in such a relaxed and casual tone, as if he was talking about the weather.

Zhao Fan shrugged his shoulders indifferently: "Anyway, Bai Xingjia can't ask questions for the time being, so I have to ask you. You'd better put down those useless thoughts and tell me the truth, otherwise you will only suffer. There will be more."

Gu Yunji endured the pain, and said with difficulty: "What I said...is the truth. You say that I helped Bai Xingjia to cheat in the imperial examination, and you always have to show evidence that I accepted bribes. I haven't even taken a penny from him, no He may be recruited in violation of regulations at the risk of decapitation."

Zhao Fandao: "If you were someone else, you would definitely be willing to help others in order to get benefits. But you and Bai Xingjia are from the same town, and you were recruited in the same year. With this kind of fellowship, you don't charge any money. Then, wouldn't it make sense to give him a hand?"

"Besides, as far as we know, when Bai Xingjia first came to the capital three years ago, he was not acclimatized to the environment and his body was very weak. After learning that he would fail the exam, he fainted on the spot. It was you who took care of him and invited a doctor. It can be seen that you are very familiar with each other, this year you don't want to see him fail the exam and repeat the same mistakes, so you agreed with him to use the word 'study hard' in the exam so that you can recommend his papers to the assistant examiner, right?"

Gu Yunji gritted his teeth and said, "...No. These are just your speculations and conjectures, and it doesn't mean that they are facts."

Zhao Fan raised his eyebrows: "My guess is good, but don't you think the logic is smooth? Follow this logic slowly, and you will be able to figure out the facts."

"It's not smooth at all." Gu Yunji adjusted his breath, and said slowly, "First of all, it was true that Bai Xingjia fainted three years ago, but I didn't take care of him alone. My colleagues and I just helped It’s just a doctor. I only care about him because of my fellow countrymen, and the relationship is far from good enough for me to take the risk of cheating in the imperial examination.”

"Secondly, when I met Bai Xingjia at the fellowship meeting in the south of the Yangtze River that day, Cheng Yan and Su Qi were also present. They can all testify to me that I did not have any agreement with Bai Xingjia on the words of the exam."

"Finally..." Gu Yunji paused, the anger in his voice could not be concealed, "The word 'diligent and never slack' is so common, there is another question in this exam about academics, and candidates who used this word If there is no one hundred, there are eighty, and I am not stupid enough to use such a common word as the agreed word."

Zhao Fan glanced at him unexpectedly: "Hey, are you still angry? You said my logic is not smooth, but your own logic is not impeccable either."

"I don't know exactly how your relationship with Bai Xingjia is, and the fraudulent method of using special words to confirm the identity of the candidate is very hidden. Unless the candidate's level is extremely poor, it will be difficult for others to find the problem. Just like this time, if someone did not report it, we I won't doubt you and Bai Xingjia either. So the reason why you said you wouldn't take risks for him is not valid."

"When you went to Jiangnan to meet Bai Xingjia, Cheng Yan and Duke Ding of the Imperial Academy were indeed there, but they are your friends, and the three of you have known each other since Luxi Academy. It is very likely that they will turn to you and help you Hiding the facts, so their words cannot be counted as confessions."

With that said, Zhao Fan stood up, put the whip in his hand again, and said casually: "As for you saying 'study hard and never slack' is too common, but this is just our guess, is it really agreed between you and Bai Xingjia? The wording is still unknown."

Gu Yunji caught a glimpse of his movements, his eyes were fixed for a moment, and he paid more attention to his words: "It's useless to follow the logic with me, after all, this is an interrogation and investigation, not justification. If you have the ability, you can present evidence , let me argue beyond dispute."

"Take evidence? Okay."

Zhao Fan responded with a smile, but the smile collapsed in an instant, dipped the whip in cold water with his backhand, and slammed it on Gu Yunji, and said ferociously: "This is my proof!"

"what--"

Gu Yunji screamed, the power of the wet whip was even greater, especially when superimposed on the previous wound, his flesh was torn apart instantly, and the pain made him almost faint.

Gu Yunji was sweating profusely, his face was as white as paper, and he looked up at him with difficulty: "...I didn't... ask questions, and I didn't violate your rules..."

Why are you still hitting me?
Zhao Fan was extremely arrogant: "So what? This is a jail, and I can beat you whenever I want. You don't cooperate with my interrogation, and you have been refusing to tell the truth. Can I still beat you?"

Gu Yunji was speechless, and after a long silence, he said again: "...I am not uncooperative, everything I say is the truth."

Zhao Fan sneered: "In Imperial Prison, only what I want to hear is the truth."

Gu Yunji took a deep breath: "You came to the interrogation with the answer you want to hear. You are biased. It's strange if you can get it out of the interrogation."

Zhao Fan said: "You think I'm biased, but I think you're blunt. How many people are like you at the beginning, just shaking their heads and denying it, refusing to say anything, but I went down with two whips and immediately recruited."

Gu Yunji sneered, and looked at him sarcastically: "Are you sure you didn't use torture?"

"So what about torture? Isn't that still a trick? I just leave the final result to His Majesty. As for the process, is it important? Wait—"

As he said that, Zhao Fan suddenly realized something, and smiled coolly at Gu Yunji: "You just...did you ask a question? Asking a reverse question is also considered a question..."

Gu Yunji's pupils shrank violently, seeing that Zhao Fan was about to raise his whip again, he quickly said, "I'll do it! I'll do it!"

The whip stopped a few inches in front of him, and Zhao Fan patted his face with the whip: "Then say it quickly."

Gu Yunji followed suit, and said slowly: "Actually——I still have an accomplice."

-

Royal study.

Hearing the sound of Fei Yuwei coming in, Emperor Jing Feng, who was dozing off, opened his eyes: "Have you found out?"

Fei Yuwei said: "Return to Your Majesty, I have found out. The so-called exam questions in the test set are simply fake, and there is no leak of the exam questions. The reason why Rongfa Bookstore sells books under the names of Gu Yunji and others is to Using their fame, the main purpose is to attract more people to buy books."

"Dare to make publicity by leaking the information of the exam questions, and dare not to say it, it is really stupid." Emperor Jingfeng sneered, and turned his eyes to look at Feiyuwei, "Then who is the owner behind Rongfa Bookstore? "

Fei Yuwei hesitated: "Yes..."

Before he finished speaking, there was a howling sound from outside: "Your Majesty! The old minister is guilty! The old minister brought his dog Liu Jingnan to plead guilty to His Majesty!"

(End of this chapter)