Transmigration: Space-Aided Rise to Power and Prosperity-Chapter 876 - 712: Being Hunted

"This time we really have to thank the fishermen, otherwise, injured as you were, who knows if you could have managed to swim ashore. And even if you did, those people wouldn’t have let us go."

Gu Chengyu sighed, this time was truly perilous. Although his martial arts were quite good, two fists could hardly fend off four hands; with so many people, there were always moments of exhaustion and negligence.

"You don’t seriously intend to take this boat back to the Capital, do you?" Lu Chen looked out at the vast river, also feeling somewhat grateful to have survived such danger.

They had already switched two boats, each one a small fishing vessel, and staying in such cramped quarters was quite suffocating.

Besides, he had fallen into the water injured before, already feeling miserable. He had a high fever the other day, though it had subsided a bit today.

Yet from morning till now, he had been vomiting continuously. His body hadn’t completely recovered, and now seasickness was also troubling him.

"Haven’t you had enough of these fishing boats? I can’t take it anymore."

All three of them were crammed into the small fishing boat. On the boat the other day, the fisherman had hauled up quite a few fish when they boarded.

The fishy smell nearly overwhelmed them to the point of fainting, even Gu Chengyu found it hard to endure.

"You do have moments when you can’t take it, I thought you savored all of it!"

Lu Chen, hearing they finally wouldn’t have to curl up in the boat any longer, relaxed a bit.

He had trained in martial arts since young and was not unused to hardship. But this time was different, in these few days, they had truly survived close calls, and he had experienced plenty of suffering.

Gu Chengyu glanced at Lu Chen’s fair, broad back and silently shifted his gaze away.

"If it weren’t for your recklessness, we wouldn’t have to return to the Capital so pathetically."

They had previously obtained evidence of Liao Cheng’s crimes from Qu Huaiyun, not expecting it to be a big fish.

There were many merchants and officials closely associated with Liao Cheng, some even involving two high-ranking officials in the Capital.

Gu Chengyu thought this matter was enormously significant; even though Lu Chen had allies among the officials in Hejian Prefecture, their rank was no higher than Liao Cheng’s.

Indeed, Lu Chen was part of Marquis Zhan’s Mansion, but their influence was far from the Capital, beyond reach!

Gu Chengyu felt the matter was too big, with too many involved; they alone would be insufficient to handle it.

So it’d be better to write back to the Capital for reinforcement. His credit might be lessened, but this was the most secure way.

After all, his purpose in coming to Hejian Prefecture wasn’t for matters like this; he feared the Emperor would think he was overstepping.

Exhibiting too much capability too quickly might increase the Emperor’s suspicion.

If he wrote a memorial, it probably wouldn’t reach the Emperor’s hands before those cunning people intercepted it.

Gu Chengyu thought that after returning to the Capital, he must persuade the Emperor to implement the secret memorial system immediately.

In this way, if something like this happened again, he could consult the Emperor.

Who knew that Lu Chen was somewhat anxious. He felt that if they didn’t take down Liao Cheng first, it might be too late in a few days.

Wanting to trace the source to the end, Lu Chen, behind Gu Chengyu’s back, began to scheme with his allies in Hejian Prefecture, which Gu Chengyu was aware of.

Yet he didn’t expect Lu Chen to ignore his advice and even thought of allying with the Assistant Prefect Yi Lanting and his forces to take down Liao Cheng first.

How sharp were those officials’ noses? Once they sensed something was wrong, to protect their own lives, they immediately acted against Lu Chen.

Being together with Lu Chen when coming to Hejian Prefecture, naturally, he also became a target for those people.

"If I don’t capture Liao Cheng first, Chief Minister Xia will surely beat us to solving the Liao Cheng affair."

Lu Chen was somewhat unreconciled; Liao Cheng was a crucial person. He had fairly close interactions with Xia Qing, especially in the last two years, accomplishing much on Xia Qing’s behalf.

Gu Chengyu sneered, "You still think Liao Cheng is truly aligned with Xia Qing?"

Lu Chen’s eyes focused, "What do you mean?"

"He’s probably already pledged allegiance to someone else, though this is just my guess."

Gu Chengyu waved his hand, speaking casually but inwardly convinced Liao Cheng must have sided with a certain Prince.

Of course, Gu Chengyu’s belief was also after some analysis.

If indeed serving Xia Qing, Liao Cheng wouldn’t have been so flamboyant.

Plus, the Qu Family was supposed to be his ally, yet Liao Cheng treated them as a stepping stone, indicating divided loyalties.

Liao Cheng, under Xia Qing’s name, covertly worked for a Prince.

If this reached Xia Qing’s ears, the first to not spare Liao Cheng would likely be Xia Qing.

So he already wrote a letter for Ming Yan to send back to the Capital, relying only on his senior brother currently.

By revealing this to Xia Qing, given Xia Qing’s character, he would surely involve himself.

Liao Cheng’s betrayal wouldn’t be something Xia Qing could stomach.

He also had his senior brother report this to the Emperor, so once the Emperor dispatched someone to investigate, he surely would gain some benefits.

Maybe even Xia Qing could be implicated. Even if nothing could be done to Xia Qing, causing him some inconvenience would still be satisfying.

Besides, he still held part of the evidence, having carefully selected some for Ming Mo to take back to the Capital. For him, the goal was already achieved, so it should end here.

He would not intervene further; the Emperor wouldn’t allow it anyway.

Of course, Lu Chen also possessed part of the evidence. Whom he would hand it to wasn’t Gu Chengyu’s concern.

They had agreed to split it half and half, so neither would steal the other’s credit.

Lu Chen agreed heartily, leaving Gu Chengyu relatively satisfied. Lu Chen behaved generously this time, without trying to monopolize the credit.

This was why he treated Lu Chen so politely now; otherwise, why should he care about Lu Chen’s pain and even provide medicine?

"Then who exactly is behind him?"

Lu Chen was thoughtful; in fact, his people had already discovered a connection between Liao Cheng and a mysterious figure in the Capital.

Though they hadn’t uncovered who it was, it certainly wasn’t Xia Qing.

What surprised him was that Gu Chengyu also realized this.

No wonder Gu Chengyu rose through the ranks so swiftly; it wasn’t without reason. Such meticulous and prudent individuals couldn’t remain obscure in the bureaucratic world.

Unfortunately, Gu Chengyu came from a farming family and had no connections in the bureaucracy.

He also had few usable people in his hands; otherwise, he could very well have brought the treasure map back to the Capital.

Gu Chengyu shook his head, "I don’t know. Liao Cheng should have just recently pledged to that person. You probably haven’t discovered whom he closely associates with, so I certainly wouldn’t know either."

Lu Chen fell silent, reflecting that without his family, he might not have discerned these things on intelligence alone.

"But you really intend to leave just like this? Our treasure map isn’t in hand, and we’re going back to the Capital already?"

Lu Chen suddenly thought about not yet obtaining the treasure map; returning to the Capital felt somewhat regrettable!