Chapter 497: Each More Sinister and Vile Than the Next

A moment later, Gao Haisheng was pushed into a special care ward; after the doctors and nurses gave him an IV drip, they turned and left.

They knew that in this situation, staying was also inappropriate.

"Bureau Chief Lan, my head hurts a little right now; otherwise could we take a short break?"

"Shut up! I just told you, you have no chance at all; now you can only confess your problems! The principle of 'leniency for confession, severity for resistance'—you don't not understand it!"

"Moreover, what crime is it to plot against state officials? Do you need me to repeat it?"

Bureau Chief Lan's voice was icy to the bone; Gao Haisheng licked his lips, moved for a while but still didn't speak.

He certainly knew what the consequences were: plotting against state officials, and moreover against a political newcomer cultivated by the state with a future and prospects—this undoubtedly made his guilt even heavier.

"If you have any grievances against Director Su, just speak up; as long as you gain his forgiveness, it shouldn't be that serious—at most a severe warning or a major demerit."

"This also depends on your cooperation. Besides, if someone behind the scenes is directing you, then you are innocent. But you must never tell me you accidentally dropped a stone—such nonsense is just wasting time."

Yet Gao Haisheng still kept his mouth shut, mainly because he knew how serious the offense was; warnings and demerits were lies—if the charge stuck, the lightest outcome would be dismissal from public office.

At this moment, Su Yang pushed the door open from outside and came in; he glanced at Gao Haisheng and said, "If this were a formal interrogation setting, my coming in would be inappropriate. If it were an interrogation room with audio and video recording, whether you speak or not would not be up to you."

"So in this not-so-formal questioning setting, I want to come in to give you a heads-up: if it's your own intention, tell me a reason; if it makes sense, I can also consider forgiving you, but you still have to bear what you should—just a bit lighter."

"But if Bai Yutang is the one 'fanning the flames' for you, and he's the one who sent you up the mountain, then his purpose is obvious—he's using you as cannon fodder. When you end up in prison, he remains the vested-interest beneficiary. You are his political sacrifice; maybe you consider him a friend, but he treats you as a pawn."

Gao Haisheng, who had been backed into a corner and had no choice but to confess, heard this and suddenly understood: "Exactly, this whole thing was originally instigated by Bai Yutang!"

Back then he just had a brain spasm and went up directly, never considering what Bai Yutang's words really meant. Now thinking about it, that damn Bai Yutang wanted to use him as cannon fodder!

Hearing Su Yang say that, he hurriedly replied, "Exactly, exactly, exactly! It's Bai Yutang! Right after you went up the mountain, he found me and said that affairs of Xiushui Xiang should be decided by the people of Xiushui Xiang; you, an outsider, still want to act high and mighty there as a big boss—that's not allowed!"

"Then he also said, because I didn't hold my post today but instead drank and slept elsewhere, you said you would have Xiang Donglai hold a meeting to discipline me. Next he had me go up the mountain to pick up a stone to roll down and smash you to death; even if it didn't kill you, it would scare you so you wouldn't dare work in Xiushui Xiang again."

"He also said that when the investigation comes up, they'll call it an accident, since rolling stones down the mountain is sometimes normal. Once you leave, he, the Township Party Committee Secretary, will be secure and will even recommend me to become township head!"

"Oh right, he also met a mysterious person who said he had connections in the city and the province and could help him get all the joints cleared! Originally I heard you were to take over, but then the city people blocked you—part of the reason is the hypnotic liquor, and another part is because of him!"

Good grief, birds of a feather flock together. Everyone says Bai Yutang is somewhat scheming, but Gao Haisheng surpasses Bai Yutang in that regard—he's no less.

Some things Bai Yutang never actually said; even if he had that thought in his heart, by the time it reached him it had completely become Bai Yutang's meaning. Bai Yutang had him be cannon fodder, and he only acknowledges Bai Yutang as the behind-the-scenes instigator.

In short, neither of these two is easy to deal with. Of course, if we talk about ruthlessness and depth of scheming, Bai Yutang still has a slight edge; otherwise Gao Haisheng wouldn't have come to serve as someone's cannon fodder.

After hearing this, Su Yang couldn't help but shake his head: "These people are really crazy, exactly as I thought! Even after making this inference, he still doesn't want to believe it would actually happen; if he really met with some mishap, wouldn't those two have to be buried alongside him?"

Saying Qin Chuan is a master of grassroots power politics, but his methods are all out in the open, or at least not this kind of barbaric violence.

Back then he already thought that was quite despicable and disgusting, but when it came to Bai Yutang, Cui Mingjiu, and Gao Haisheng, it became completely lawless, to the point that the word 'despicable' cannot even describe it!

After hearing this, Bureau Chief Lan's face also turned extremely gloomy; he coldly shouted, "What's the difference between your behavior and plotting murder? People like you deserve to be shot a hundred times—it's not excessive!"

Then he said to the Discipline Inspection Commission staff beside him, "I think this matter should be reported separately to Secretary Fang; the issues involved still need your Commission to dig deeper. Director Su, should we report this now?"

Among those present, Bureau Chief Lan was absolutely the leader, but he still asked for Su Yang's opinion.

Su Yang said, "This is the work of public security and the Discipline Inspection Commission; I shouldn't interfere. Just follow your normal work procedures. By coming in to listen to your questioning, I've already possibly violated regulations. I still have other things to attend to these two days, so I won't be able to participate in the follow-up."

Bureau Chief Lan naturally understood Su Yang's meaning; he was just being polite earlier—Su Yang, as a party involved, should have recused himself, but given Su Yang's identity and background, this situation arose.

He said, "Alright, then we'll proceed according to legal procedure. If necessary later, we'll still need you to come over to make a statement; we'll go through the process."

While they were talking, Gao Haisheng's phone suddenly rang. Instantly everyone's eyes focused on his little handheld.

After seeing the number, Gao Haisheng instinctively wanted to answer directly, but seeing everyone staring at him, he didn't know what to do for a moment.

"Whose call is it? Is it Bai Yutang? If yes, put it on speakerphone." Su Yang instinctively asked, because besides them paying attention to this matter, Bai Yutang was even more concerned.

Gao Haisheng nodded and said, "Yes, it's Bai Yutang!"

Saying that, he then pressed the speakerphone button.