Chapter 197: Behind the Scenes
Who knew? Maybe that person would no longer continue working under him either?
Zhou Changwu suddenly found it rather tragic. The reputation he had accumulated over so many years had disappeared just like that...
However, there was one thing that bothered him greatly. Several of the people who had competed with him for this position really had encountered problems, but if he had not done something, then he had not done it. He would absolutely never admit to something he had not done. All the evidence the other side had produced was ambiguous and could never withstand scrutiny on a major stage, which was precisely why they had only dared to stir up trouble within a small circle.
What they had not expected was that after Yu Lanfeng came here, he did not truly help them and even nearly shattered their scheme in the process.
Moreover, over the next few days, who Yu Lanfeng would ultimately choose to believe and what decision he would make remained unknown. Even Zhou Changwu found it somewhat impossible to predict.
He could tell that Yu Lanfeng was currently standing on his side, but as time passed, no one knew exactly how this matter would develop.
He let out a long sigh. How had things become like this?
The scene of Zhou Teng's family begging him back then was still vivid in his mind, yet everything seemed to have changed in the blink of an eye.
He did not know whether this was Zhou Teng's idea alone or the intention of his entire family. If Zhou Teng had hidden everything from his family and done this entirely on his own...
Forget it. Even if that was the case, Zhou Changwu no longer wanted to have much contact with his brother's family. After all, his position within the legion was relatively high, and any relationship could potentially be exploited by others.
Just like this time...
That night, Yu Lanfeng simply slept beside Nan Yu. This also allowed him to observe and protect Nan Yu at close range. After what had happened the previous night, he somehow felt uneasy if they did not sleep together.
The first thing he did after waking in the morning was check Nan Yu's condition.
He found that Nan Yu actually seemed a little better?
But the improvement was extremely subtle. It was like a cup of water that had originally been on the verge of overflowing. Although the water would no longer spill over now, the cup was still filled to the brim.
Even the slightest touch would not do.
Still, Nan Yu's condition really had improved somewhat, which allowed Yu Lanfeng to relax considerably. He then took a nutritional injection from his spatial button and injected it into Nan Yu.
Afterward, he looked somewhat unhappily at the tiny needle mark.
Continuing to give him nutritional injections like this was not a solution. He hoped Nan Yu would regain consciousness soon so that he could eat something.
It was not that Yu Lanfeng could not forcibly feed him, but he was unwilling to use such a method because it would be relatively painful. If it caused unnecessary fluctuations in Nan Yu's Mental Power and created even greater trouble, that would be terrible.
So he ultimately decided against it.
"Xiaoyu... when are you going to wake up..."
Nan Yu still showed no reaction as he lay on the bed, almost like someone in a vegetative state.
Yu Lanfeng massaged some of the muscles on his body before opening his optical computer and receiving the information that had been sent to his mailbox before dawn.
The team over there had worked overtime to finish all of it.
Yu Lanfeng slowly went through the methods used to process the so-called evidence, including traces of compositing and other alterations, and discovered that the person Zhou Teng had recruited really was quite skilled.
There was even a sentence attached at the end of the report:
Marshal, when are you going to introduce this person to us? If his character is crooked, just hand him over to us and we'll straighten him out!
Yu Lanfeng actually thought that was feasible.
For such a talented person to have remained here for so many years without being discovered and given focused training was indeed an oversight on the legion's part.
It was simply that this person had most likely been fooled by Zhou Teng until something had gone wrong with his head. Or perhaps, like many geniuses, he was extremely capable in the field he specialized in but remarkably naive once interpersonal matters were involved.
In other words, he was very easy to deceive.
Hopefully, he could still be set straight. Naturally, it would be best if he could contribute to the Empire. But if he stubbornly believed every word Zhou Teng said and refused to see reason, then he could not blame Yu Lanfeng for using special methods.
It was just that he still did not know exactly who that person was.
Seeing that everything was more or less ready, Yu Lanfeng opened the door and headed toward the room next door.
By this point, everyone had already arrived, and the door over there was open.
Yu Lanfeng stood at the doorway without entering. He simply remained there and looked at the people inside.
"I'm giving every one of you a chance to confess now. If you decide you want to confess later, you won't have another opportunity. Remember, I'm only giving you this one chance to freely confess. Understood?"
He had barely finished speaking when Zhou Teng spoke.
"Marshal, is that true?"
Yu Lanfeng glanced at him, then nodded to indicate that it was.
A trace of conflict flashed across Zhou Teng's face, but in the end, he let out a long breath.
"I'm sorry, Marshal. I genuinely didn't mean to frame him... He personally did all of these things. I had only just arrived at the time and didn't know much, but afterward, whenever he casually chatted with me, he would always mention these things. At first, I didn't take it seriously, but later..."
"Maybe he noticed that even though he kept rambling to me about it, I never told anyone else. I didn't even tell my closest friends. So after that, he kept telling me things related to all of this. The first part was about how, before he became a general, he killed so many of the people competing with him for the position and what kinds of methods he used. Later, his descriptions became increasingly detailed. For example, what methods he used, what schemes he devised, how he ultimately decided whether to kill or cripple someone, and he also taught me many techniques for avoiding detection. Anyway, I learned all sorts of miscellaneous things..."
As Yu Lanfeng listened, it almost sounded as though Zhou Changwu had been training his own successor.
Generally speaking, however, what Zhou Teng was describing was actually the kind of special training that any soldier who wanted to rise through the ranks would need to undergo.
Of course, the only thing that matched was the content of the later training.
As for the secret Zhou Teng claimed Zhou Changwu had revealed to him, no one else had ever known about it.
In other words, from beginning to end, the only person who had supposedly heard Zhou Changwu admit to his own crimes was Zhou Teng himself.
Yet Zhou Teng seemed not to have noticed this problem at all. He was still talking endlessly, as though everyone were listening to him with complete seriousness.
But it was exactly the opposite.
Rather than listening to what Zhou Teng was saying, everyone was paying attention to Zhou Changwu.
Watching Zhou Teng speak so eloquently, Zhou Changwu felt increasingly reassured.
Before, Zhou Teng's performance had still been passable.
But now...
It was completely hopeless.
They had barely begun, and he was already exposing flaws.
Zhou Teng spoke to his heart's content. It had been a very long time since he had been able to talk this freely.
In short, according to him, Zhou Changwu had constantly rambled in his ear about what crimes he had committed and what evil deeds he had done. Zhou Teng had suffered from having no evidence, yet he also wanted to stop Zhou Changwu from continuing and prevent more innocent people from being harmed, so he had come up with this method.
"I admit that my method really was somewhat wrong, and it was also a little extreme and one-sided, but my intentions were good. I had no other choice. Without evidence, even if I reported him, no one would pay attention. And if word of the report reached his ears, then I'd really be finished. He's a general. How easy would it be for him to deal with a little nobody like me inside a military base under his control? Who knows how long I'd survive afterward?"
"Maybe I'd end up like those people who competed with him in the past, those who refused to listen to him, and those who refused to work under him. The best possible outcome would be that, because I'm his relative, he'd spare my life, throw me out of the legion, keep me under supervision back home, and absolutely forbid me from ever leaving that planet."
Yu Lanfeng watched as Zhou Teng finally finished speaking through tears and snot.
At the doorway, he noticed another figure, but everyone pretended not to see them.
Since that was the case, Yu Lanfeng also pretended not to notice.
In any case, that person absolutely had to stay and be dealt with later.
Once Zhou Teng had finished, Yu Lanfeng said, "Since that's the case, I'll let all of you take a look at the information I've obtained first."
He quickly brought up the files and temporarily shared them with everyone present.
Everyone managed to flip through one or two pages before the allotted time expired and the files automatically closed.
Although they had not finished reading everything, they had seen enough to understand the general situation.
So the original evidence really had been fabricated.
If that was the case, then...
There were still many purely textual explanatory pieces of evidence in that report, but most of those were probably fabricated as well.
However, one thing was certainly true.
There was no way Zhou Teng could have orchestrated all of this alone.
In other words, there had to be someone directing him from behind the scenes.
After all, even if Zhou Changwu really were convicted and the position of general became vacant, the person who took that position certainly would not be Zhou Teng himself.
Which meant Zhou Teng had probably formed a cooperative relationship with whoever had the greatest chance of becoming general.
That person must have promised him many benefits, so Zhou Teng had meticulously begun carrying out that person's plan. It was very possible that he had even stopped trusting many of the people around him.
At first, even Zhou Changwu had been deceived.
From this, it could be seen that there had definitely been nothing wrong with Zhou Teng when he first arrived at the base.
Someone must have secretly observed him for a period after his arrival before deciding to choose him.
Most importantly, someone as careless and simple-minded as Zhou Teng was perfectly suited to their purposes!
And so the unlucky Zhou Teng had ended up like this...
But Zhou Teng was already an informed participant. That meant everything had long since gone from temptation to voluntary agreement, and he had begun willingly colluding with them.
As for the people Zhou Teng had deceived into joining his side and helping him carry out this plan, there was no telling how many knew the truth and how many did not.
Yu Lanfeng said, "Since you've finished speaking, let someone else talk."
Zhou Changwu said, "Marshal, all of these accusations are completely fabricated. Whenever anyone goes out, they're equipped with specialized devices. Many aircraft and pieces of equipment also have video-recording functions. When casualties occur, there are recordings of the moments when they died..."
Zhou Teng could not resist interrupting.
"Of course there are recordings of their deaths, but just as you said, many schemes and conspiracies can't possibly be captured on video. If all you have is footage of someone dying, how can that prove they weren't murdered?"
Zhou Changwu did not show any particular reaction, nor did he interrupt him.
In any case, everyone could more or less guess what Zhou Teng was going to say, and sure enough, this time was no exception.
Only after Zhou Teng finished did Zhou Changwu look at him and softly ask, "Are you finished?"
Zhou Teng froze. "What do you mean, am I finished?"
Zhou Changwu said, "I'm asking whether you're finished speaking. If there's still something you haven't said, then continue. If you're finished, then please don't casually interrupt me while I'm speaking from now on. If you have something you want to say, you can wait until I'm finished. You'll have plenty of time to continue afterward."
Zhou Teng was just about to mock him with a few words, but when he noticed the people around him silently observing him, his heart skipped a beat.
It really did seem that he could not casually interrupt someone while they were speaking. Otherwise, people would think he had no manners.
Zhou Teng had thoroughly embarrassed himself this time.
Once he realized that, his expression became extremely ugly.
Even Hu Fei, who was hiding behind the door, was so anxious he could hardly stand it.
This performance was completely different from what they had discussed last night!
And just now, if no one had stopped you, were you really going to say it?
Zhou Teng snorted coldly and stopped speaking.
Only then did Zhou Changwu continue.
"These devices record everything they experience. Many of their personal belongings and other things are also gathered together. Once the strict garrison period ends, those belongings are sent to their families together with their compensation."
"This is a principle our legion has always upheld. We absolutely must give the families of fallen soldiers enough credits to support them for at least several decades, so they won't need to worry about their future lives."
Yu Lanfeng nodded.
That was indeed true.
But did this have anything to do with the previous matter?
It did not seem particularly relevant.
However, judging from Zhou Changwu's expression, he had not finished.
"Everyone should have seen how I've conducted myself all these years. You've also seen the results of every development order and requirement I've issued. The current environment of this military base is something I created. Do all of you really think someone like me could be the kind of person Zhou Teng describes?"
"I believe that since the evidence they've produced is all fake, then not a single word they say can be trusted. Without evidence to support those words, it's all empty talk."
"Don't tell me you've all been swept along by what he said and started thinking he's right? Pair a piece of fabricated evidence with a heartfelt speech moving enough to bring people to tears, and you believe him?"
Only then did everyone slowly come back to their senses.
It seemed they really had nearly believed him.
Now that they had regained their composure, everyone began to feel that Zhou Teng genuinely did possess some ability to sway people's hearts.
Still, no one thought too deeply about it.
Perhaps it was simply because Zhou Teng had spoken with such passion and conviction that most people had chosen to believe him.
After all, compared with Zhou Changwu, Zhou Teng was unquestionably the weaker party.
After saying this, Zhou Changwu took out a report of his own and handed it to Yu Lanfeng.
Yu Lanfeng accepted it and looked through it, only to discover that the evidence inside was actually...
Yu Lanfeng carefully flipped through the information.
"Can this data still be recovered? If it can be restored..."
Zhou Teng watched them speak cryptically and felt somewhat confused.
For the moment, however, he could not figure anything out, because the evidence Zhou Changwu had produced was clearly extremely important.
Without another word, Yu Lanfeng directly ordered Zhou Changwu, "Arrest Zhou Teng for now. Once I've confirmed whether this material is genuine, I'll come back and discuss how to deal with him."
Zhou Changwu said, "Yes, Marshal!"
He then took out the chip he carried with him and handed it to Yu Lanfeng.
Yu Lanfeng put it away and immediately announced that everyone was dismissed.
Before leaving, he deliberately glanced toward the door.
Zhou Changwu immediately understood.
He directly ordered his men to rush inside and drag out the person hiding there.
The two were locked in separate cells.
The soundproofing here was exceptionally good. Even if they screamed themselves hoarse, no one would ever come to rescue them.
So all they could do was quietly shrink into the innermost corners of their respective cells.
"Hu Fei... Hu Fei?"
On the way here, Zhou Teng had seen Hu Fei.
Hu Fei had been arrested just like him and dragged in this direction as well.
He had instinctively wanted to find Hu Fei and discuss what they should do, but after calling his name several times, he suddenly remembered just how powerful the soundproofing here was.
Even if Hu Fei were locked in the cell next door or directly across from him, he still would not hear Zhou Teng calling.
So Zhou Teng quickly gave up.
What he was thinking about now was the information Zhou Changwu had taken out and handed to Yu Lanfeng earlier.
What exactly was it?
Why had even Marshal Yu Lanfeng looked so shocked when he saw it?
Could Zhou Changwu have firm control over some major matter, forcing Yu Lanfeng to compromise?
But would Marshal Yu Lanfeng really be threatened so easily?
No matter how hard Zhou Teng racked his brain, he could not figure out what it was.
When he had presented his own evidence before, both sides had simply returned to rest and agreed to continue the matter the following day.
But what was this supposed to mean?
This time, Zhou Changwu handed over something, and Marshal Yu immediately ordered Zhou Teng to be imprisoned while Zhou Changwu remained completely free!
It was infuriating.
Absolutely infuriating!
Zhou Teng was so angry that his chest heaved violently and even his breathing became rapid.
"This is simply going too far!"
Then he punched the wall.
Bang!
The sound was extremely loud.
Unfortunately, no one outside could hear it.
Worse still, his hand hurt terribly.
The walls here were constructed from special materials, so attacks were useless against them. If someone tried to destroy them using nothing but their physical body, the only result would be an aching hand while the wall itself remained completely unharmed.
After causing a commotion for several hours, Zhou Teng grew bored and simply lay down on the floor and fell sound asleep.
In any case, he had a feeling that after a few hours, once Zhou Changwu's evidence had been examined and confirmed to be genuine, he would definitely be taken out for questioning again.
When that happened, all he needed to do was cry miserably, admit his mistake, and curry favor with Zhou Changwu.
Then there definitely would not be any problem.
Whenever he had made mistakes in the past, Zhou Changwu had always forgiven him when he acted this way.
This time...
Surely there would not be an exception this time either!
Yu Lanfeng asked, "Well? Are the contents of this chip genuine?"
"Of course they're genuine, Marshal. I didn't expect so much of it to actually be real. I thought it'd be fake again. But who exactly is this Zhou Teng? Is he really someone from your legion?"
"He's got every vice imaginable. Eating, drinking, prostitution, gambling, pornography, gambling, drugs—he's involved in all of it. Hurry up and throw him out before he offends everyone's eyes. And this guy really is something. Right under your nose, he actually managed to get involved with the Bai family. So he joined the military because he wanted to cooperate with the Bai family?"
Yu Lanfeng frowned slightly but said nothing.
"Organize this information and send it to me in a little while. I have a use for it... Also, don't talk too much. Don't go spreading this around."
"Don't worry. Don't you know what kind of person I am? I absolutely won't let anyone else find out. All right, I'll organize everything and send it to you in a little while. Just be ready to receive it. And don't forget my bonus when the time comes. Every time my schedule gets disrupted, it's because you suddenly assign me some temporary task. I didn't sleep last night, and I've barely slept these past few days either. I'm going to sleep for a while. If you can't reach me, contact my apprentice. He's very capable now too."
Yu Lanfeng nodded.
He had not overlooked the dark circles beneath the man's eyes or the exhaustion in his gaze.
He ended the communication.
About two minutes later, he received the complete version of the information.
In truth, when he first saw this evidence, he really had been startled.
What shocked him even more was that there was actually someone named Zhou Yun in this military base!
This person named Zhou Yun genuinely existed, and judging from his identity records, he was Zhou Teng's biological younger brother.
However, Zhou Teng's biological younger brother, Zhou Yun, looked remarkably similar to Bai Zhouyun.
Their appearances were similar.
Their temperaments were similar.
Even their heights and builds were extremely similar.
They looked as though they had been carved from the same mold.
It was truly astonishing...
Yu Lanfeng immediately wanted to meet this Zhou Yun.
He contacted Zhou Changwu at once.
"Bring Zhou Yun here. I want to meet him personally."
Zhou Changwu said, "No problem, Marshal. I'll notify him right away."
About ten minutes later, Yu Lanfeng met Zhou Yun, whom Zhou Changwu had personally brought over.
Zhou Yun looked somewhat nervous, but his eyes were shining brightly as he stared unblinkingly at Yu Lanfeng, as though he were looking at some incredibly rare and precious treasure.
"You're Zhou Yun?"
Zhou Yun nodded. "Yes, Marshal. My name is Zhou Yun. I'm Zhou Teng's biological younger brother, but I didn't participate in anything he did before. I don't believe the General would do something like that."
"And everything he said at the beginning came from him alone. Aside from his own words, he didn't have any other evidence supporting what he said. So I thought there was something wrong and kept refusing to cooperate with him."
"After that, he started ignoring me. Even when I went to find him, every time he'd ask whether I'd thought it through. Whenever I said I still wouldn't join him, he'd continue giving me the cold shoulder. Eventually, I got angry too and stopped paying attention to him."
Zhou Changwu said, "That's right, Marshal. Xiaoyun really is a good kid. He's always stood on my side."
Yu Lanfeng shook his head. "That's not what I want to talk about. It's something else. First, tell me whether you recognize this person."
He displayed an image of Bai Zhouyun on the screen.
Both of them exclaimed in surprise after seeing it.
Zhou Changwu said, "I remember this person. He's Bai Zhouyun, the one from the Bai family who was wanted before. He looks so much like Xiaoyun!"
Zhou Yun also stared at the image in complete shock.
"How could this be?"
Then he seemed to realize something and hurriedly said, "That's not me! I'm not this person. I really have nothing to do with him. You have to believe me! I admire you more than anyone, Marshal!"
Looking at his pitiful expression, Yu Lanfeng instantly became somewhat awkward, but he did not say much.
"I know. I only called you here to ask about the situation. I wasn't suspecting you."