Shadow Empire

Chapter 1247 Confession
Power, when used gently, is like a mother's embrace—warm and comforting.

But once it becomes violent, it can be as unpredictable as a monster, making it impossible to stay calm.

The president and vice president considered that their fraternity might betray them... Actually, the word "betray" is not accurate; it should be "confess to what they have done."

They just didn't expect things to happen so quickly.

This is thanks to the outstanding contributions made by the Department of Justice and Congress in advancing the investigation of the case, and it can also be seen as preserving a "way out" for the powerful and wealthy.

In fact, the laws of any country are like this: on the one hand, they tell people that it is not allowed, and on the other hand, they set some harsh conditions to tell people that it is permissible in certain circumstances.

It's like... the law tells you that you can't kill others, but the law also tells you that when your life is threatened, you can kill the enemy first to avoid being harmed later.

As for whether your life was threatened, your opinion doesn't count, nor do the opinions of the defendant's family and lawyers; only the judicial interpretation counts.

There are many similar loopholes in the federal justice system, which has become something that prominent lawyers must study.

They need to figure out how to more effectively exploit loopholes to secure legal victories for their employers, thereby gaining more attention, prestige, and status.

It's not just lawyers who are exploiting loopholes; prosecutors are too. However, some people are exploiting loopholes to get out, while others are exploiting them to get in.

The prosecutors got them to confess to these things on the condition that they would "confess to all the facts of the crimes to reduce or even help the judge pardon their sentences."

In the words of the prosecutors, people like the chairman's brother are just puppets in the spotlight. They don't actually profit through unfair competition; they're just helping others amass wealth.

If he takes at least half the responsibility himself, he will face huge fines and several years in prison, and the prosecutor privately told him that there were actually powerful figures behind this.

They will have a terrible time in prison. There will be no chance of early release, and even visits will be rare. They may even die inside!

The prosecutors used a combination of coaxing and deception, and the chairman's brother quickly succumbed to their charms and confessed about his brother.

With these testimonies, evidence, and witnesses, the prosecutor's office went directly to the suspect's home with an arrest warrant, and simultaneously announced the matter to the local media...

When the prosecutors appeared before the chairman with the police, he sat slumped in his office chair, watching the two arrogant prosecutors push open the door and show him the arrest warrant.

He just watched, without saying a word.

One of the tall prosecutors put the arrest warrant away again. "You can hire a lawyer, but you have to leave with us now," he said, gesturing to the police officers behind him.

The police officers behind them came over with handcuffs.

Perhaps it was the light reflected from the handcuffs that pierced the chairman's eyes, for his expression changed slightly. "Could we... not wear handcuffs?" he asked, looking at the two prosecutors.

He has served as the president of the state construction workers' union for thirty years and was one of the first presidents of the state's Zhou Union.

He was originally a project manager, but in the second year after the establishment of the Labour Federation, the federation called on all workers to form a trade union to ensure the rights of workers in the industry.

Seeing the potential for development here, the chairman immediately stepped forward. For ordinary workers, it was simply impossible to get them to do this.

Aside from selling their physical labor on construction sites, they have absolutely no idea how to register for a union or run one!

The president's emergence and active promotion of the local construction workers' union were recognized by the labor federation, and with their cooperation, the president gained a firm foothold.

He originally had the opportunity to go to the General Union, but he felt that the power and benefits he could gain from going to the General Union were not as good as his position in the State Council.

The composition of the trade union is very complex, and the core members are not necessarily ordinary people. If someone like him, who has no background, goes there, he can only become someone else's echo, an ordinary staff member.

But if he stays here, he will be the highest-ranking and most powerful person in the entire state guild.

He did this for thirty years, and he did a lot of practical things for the union, helping workers fight for their due rights from the capitalists. To some extent, he did a lot of things that helped the workers, and in the eyes of the workers, he was a very positive union president.

But now... he has to leave here in handcuffs, and he can already imagine the strange thoughts that will arise in the minds of those people at the door when they see him in handcuffs.

The prosecutor looked at him for a moment, then said, "If you're willing to cooperate with us, no problem."

The president breathed a sigh of relief, "I will cooperate with you in buying it."

The tall prosecutor told the police not to handcuff him, but to stand behind him and leave with him.

As soon as I stepped outside, a number of union staff members had already gathered there, and each of them looked at the president with a different expression.

Some people looked incredulous, some scrutinized, and others had mockery in their eyes.

Looking into those different gazes, the complexity of human nature was revealed to him for the first time in such a vivid, clear, and profound way!
Not everyone was worried about him; the barely concealed elation hidden behind their fake expressions made him feel a tightness in his chest.

Seeing the concerned looks, the chairman forced a smile. "I need to go and cooperate with the investigation. I'll be back soon."

"Please move aside."

The staff members made way for him, and someone helped the chairman up. As he walked out of the union's gate, he heard all sorts of comments behind him.

The area outside the union gate was packed with people, including many workers and reporters who were frantically snapping photos, causing magnesium powder to explode continuously to provide sufficient brightness.

Several elderly workers approached them, and the oldest of them asked, "Is what they're saying true?"

Looking at the old man's frail appearance, the chairman took a deep breath and said, "I have never done anything to wrong my fellow workers."

He did not answer the question, using an irrelevant statement to evade it, but this did not satisfy the workers.

The old worker's tone became much sterner. "So what they're saying is true?"

The chairman remained silent, and the prosecutor did not urge them to continue, seemingly anticipating what would happen next.

Seeing that the chairman had no further response, the old construction worker suddenly spat on the ground, "Pah, I thought you were different from those people!" The people around him also spat on the ground, which made the chairman feel very uncomfortable. He had indeed made a lot of money by using these people, but he had not really harmed the workers' interests.

Their benefits have improved, their working hours have been shortened, and their wages have increased every year. What did he do wrong?
He didn't quite understand this.

The prosecutor was pleased with the scene. He tilted his head slightly, and the police pushed through the crowd, took the chairman back to the car, and then left under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

When they returned to the prosecutor's office, he was placed in an interrogation room where two prosecutors sat opposite him.

“According to procedure, I should ask you if you need to wait for your lawyer to arrive,” the tall prosecutor said, pouring the chairman a cup of coffee.

The president picked up his coffee and took a sip. He really needed to eat or drink something to calm his nerves.

He seemed to understand the other meaning behind those words, and looked up at the tall prosecutor. "Do I need a lawyer?"

This question made another prosecutor, who was not very tall, laugh. The tall prosecutor poured himself and his partner a cup of coffee and laughed along with them.

After he sat down, he looked at the chairman and breathed a sigh of relief. "Actually, from a work perspective, I suggest you have your lawyer come over. That way, you can be sure you won't give random answers on certain questions."

"But from my personal perspective, having a lawyer or not doesn't really make much difference. In fact, having a lawyer might even have the opposite effect."

He held the coffee cup in his hand but didn't lift it or drink from it, just kept holding it. "This matter is actually not complicated. To put it more bluntly, you've offended someone, and now they're going to deal with you. It's that simple."

"A lawyer will definitely advise you to fight to the end."

"I apologize for using the word 'resistance,' but it doesn't accurately reflect the understanding we're trying to achieve. It should be called 'resistance'!"

“The lawyer will want you to keep resisting so that he can seem more valuable, you know… you can only get more money if you are valuable.”

“We’ve handled many cases, and in many of them, the facts weren’t as bad as the clients imagined. But sometimes lawyers would give them bad advice, for example…”

The other prosecutor, who was not very tall, continued, "For example, we hope that you will plead guilty quickly, admit to all the charges, so that this case can pass the trial as quickly as possible. This is also... you know, God's will."

"The benefit of doing this is that we will sign an agreement that, as long as you plead guilty and do not appeal, we will keep your sentence to around one year and allow you to be released on parole."

"However, some lawyers believe that if you fight for it in court, you can reduce your sentence to one year and help you regain more of your moral and reputational rights in the lawsuit."

"It can reduce your losses in other areas and encourage you to oppose us."

“Doing this usually doesn’t end well. Once you lose the opportunity to sign a plea, it means we will have to go through the process.”

The tall prosecutor picked up his coffee and took a sip. He was sitting very relaxed, and it was quite a large sip.

After he put down his coffee, he smiled and said, "You can try the prosecutor's office's coffee. We still have time to make a decision."

The president nervously picked up his coffee and took a sip; it tasted pretty good.

Seeing that the chairman's mood seemed to have eased and relaxed a bit, the tall prosecutor continued, "You know, people have many complex emotions. They may have pity, compassion, and tolerance, but procedures and processes don't."

"It's a cold process where everyone has to follow the procedures and rules, and strictly follow them, which will cause you to... lose a lot of opportunities."

"Perhaps your lawyer is an excellent lawyer who can help you regain some of your reputation, salvage your image, and reduce your sentence."

"But...buddy, what if?"

"What if he tells you some big lies that make you think the Attorney General is like a brother to him, but in the end he can't keep his word?"

"You'll be in there for four or five years, and you'll be restricted from parole. Do you know what that means?"

The tall prosecutor looked him up and down. “That means when your family sees you again, there’s a high probability you’ll be living in a small box, and a cheap one at that.”

“I’m not trying to scare you. I’m just telling you what I know and what I’ve seen with my own eyes.”

"You can choose whether or not to wait for your lawyer to arrive. We promise not to interfere further."

The president was deeply shocked by what he said. His instincts told him that he should let the lawyer know about this, but his survival instincts told him that he should not listen to the lawyer.

After a long struggle, probably seven or eight minutes had passed, he finished the coffee in his cup and asked for two cigarettes.

As he finished smoking his second cigarette, he seemed to have made a decision.

"If... I sign that confession, what will probably happen to me?"

The tall prosecutor gave a very gentle smile. "Just as I said, a fine, imprisonment, no more than a year, and parole will be allowed, much earlier than expected."

“Those big shots don’t want to kill you. If they wanted to kill you, you wouldn’t be alive now. They just want to use what you’re going to face to warn those fools to stop doing this. That’s all.”

"If you cooperate with him to get what he wants, do you think he will still misbehave towards you?"

After listening to what the tall prosecutor said, the chairman was already persuaded.

He considered it for a while, then took a deep breath and said, "I...I'm willing to plead guilty."

As he said these words, he felt something rapidly slipping away from his body; he knew it was everything he once possessed.

Status, reputation, influence, future...

These things are all saying goodbye to him, and even if he is granted early parole, he will not be able to continue living here, in this city, in this state.

He needs to move to another place immediately to escape people's disgust towards him.

(End of this chapter)