Jackie Chan's Son-in-Law

Chapter 142 Establishing a Foothold in the Zhenfu Division

Given the current situation in the capital, anyone with a modicum of intelligence can see that the young emperor is secretly vying with his veteran ministers.

This kind of struggle is unavoidable for those at the top; those sitting in their positions must fight for it.

Even if it's not for this dynasty, not for themselves, but for the future dynasties of the Great Qi, for their descendants, generation after generation, they must fight for it.

The Ming Dynasty in another world was like this. From beginning to end, the power of the emperor and the power of the ministers were constantly vying for power. However, as the emperors of later peaceful reigns became more and more lenient, by the time of the Hongzhi Emperor, the emperor had lost control of the Beijing garrison. After that, the power of the emperor continued to weaken. Even when there were occasional rebounds, it was difficult to resist the general trend.

Later on, an even more bizarre scene unfolded: the Zhu Emperor was easily soluble in water.

The current struggle between Jiang and Qi is similar.

The power struggle between the emperor and his ministers is not necessarily about the current reign of Emperor Jingyuan, nor is it necessarily about a specific person or position.

What we're really fighting for is the boundaries of power.

Simply put, those civil officials outwardly addressed the emperor as the "Holy Son of Heaven," but in their hearts, they did not believe that the emperor was truly a wise and benevolent being. What they were dedicated to was keeping imperial power in a cage.

Let the emperor become a jade seal, a stamp.

The emperor, of course, wanted to have absolute power and to hold all authority in his own hands.

This kind of covert struggle was the most common scenario in the middle period of most dynasties.

It's not about fighting for a single dynasty, but for an entire dynasty.

Whoever suffers a crushing defeat here, in the next dynasty, their descendants will likely curse their ancestors or predecessors in their hearts for being weak and incompetent.

That is why getting involved in such a struggle is actually quite dangerous. A small person caught in the middle can be easily crushed by the storms that are for the big shots.

In such a struggle, Chen Qing and Chen Huan were actually insignificant figures.

Chen Qing took the initiative to get involved because he had no other way to advance and no other path to take, so he had no choice but to go all out and take a gamble.

Chen Huan, having passed the imperial examinations twice, had far too many choices.

As long as one can let go of the desire for power and take a step or two back, even if one still goes to a local area and becomes a prefect, one would still be a Marquis of Five Hundred Miles, a local emperor!
Why get involved?
If Chen Qing were in Chen Huan's position, he would be eager to pack up and flee the capital right now.

Unfortunately, his cheapskate father was obsessed with officialdom and hadn't realized the truth at all. Even if he had, he might not have been able to escape unscathed.

Miss Gu stood to the side, taking out the prepared dishes one by one from the food box. As she arranged the dishes, she looked at Chen Qing and said softly, "Elder brother, eat quickly before it gets cold."

She couldn't quite understand what Chen Qing was saying.

It wasn't because she was stupid or dumb; it was simply because the information gap between the two was too great. Miss Gu had no idea what Chen Qing knew, so naturally she didn't understand what Chen Qing was saying.

The biggest gap is the information gap. As long as some information is concealed, even the smartest person cannot deduce the truth and may even think the most distorted things.

Chen Qing smiled and agreed, then pulled Gu Pan to sit down.

Xiaoyue covered her face and turned her head away from looking at her young mistress and son-in-law.

Chen Qing leaned closer and whispered something in Miss Gu's ear. Miss Gu was both surprised and delighted: "Really?"

"When have I ever lied to you?"

Chen Qing said with a smile, "Don't tell anyone about this yet. We'll use it when they come looking for trouble."

Gu Pan nodded first, then gritted her teeth slightly: "Then...when?"

Chen Qing thought for a moment and said, "Right now, I have a lot of things to do, which will take up a lot of my energy. Moreover, the White Lotus Sect matter has not been resolved yet. You and Uncle Gu are not safe right now."

"At least until I've dealt with the White Lotus Sect and made sure there are no future troubles."

Gu Pan looked at Chen Qing without speaking, but her eyes conveyed a questioning tone.

Chen Qing said with a smile, "If things go smoothly, by the end of this year."

"If it's slow, it will be next year."

He held Gu Pan's hand and whispered, "Don't worry, Pan'er, I'll take care of everything."

Gu Pan thought for a moment, nodded and said "Mmm", then got up and looked around Chen Qing's room, asking, "Did Da Lang sleep here last night? Where's the bed?"

"In the inner room."

Chen Qing stood up and led the master and servant to the inner room, where there was a simple bed with bedding scattered about.

Gu Pan and Xiao Yue helped Chen Qing make the bed. After the bed was made, she pulled Chen Qing aside and asked cautiously, "Big Brother, what does His Majesty look like?" Anyone who grew up in this era would inevitably be curious about the emperor's appearance, and Gu Pan was no exception.

Chen Qing leaned closer, kissed her ear, and said with a smile, "Next time I have the chance, I'll bring Pan'er to see her in person."

Gu Pan blushed slightly, turned her head to look at Xiao Yue who was looking up at the sky, and slowly nodded.

"it is good."

…………

In the afternoon, Chen Qing saw Gu Pan and Xiao Yue off. After they left, he returned to his office and picked up a document from the table.

This is a detailed report on the White Lotus Sect incident. It needs to be submitted to Commander Yan, who will then decide whether to submit it. However, the handwriting on this document is not Chen Qing's.

It was in the morning that Chen Qing dictated, and Miss Gu transcribed it for him. Comparatively speaking, Miss Gu's handwriting was much better than Chen Qing's.

As Chen Qing stepped out of his office with the document in his hand, seven or eight subordinates approached him. One of them winked at Chen Qing and said with a smile, "Boss, your wife is really beautiful. She looks like a woman from Jiangnan."

"Very gentle and graceful."

Someone else chimed in with a laugh: "That's right, that's right. I overheard the boss talking to his wife at the door just now. Although I couldn't understand a word, it was much gentler than the Beijing dialect."

Huzhou dialect is a Wu dialect, so they naturally couldn't understand it very well.

Chen Qing ignored them, simply waving his hand and saying with a smile, "Go away, don't fool around, go do what you're supposed to do."

After dismissing his subordinates, Chen Qing arrived at the entrance of Commander Yan's residence. After inquiring around, he learned that Commander Yan was training his subordinates on the drill ground. Chen Qing then went to the drill ground and indeed found Commander Yan there.

"Lord Yan, these are the confessions of the people we arrested the night before last, and all the evidence has been properly prepared."

Chen Qing said with a smile, "We can convict them now."

Why was the Imperial Prison of the Zhenfu Division so terrifying?
Because the Zhenfu Division has independent judicial power, meaning that the Zhenfu Division can arrest people, investigate, and judge them on its own!

As long as the evidence is sound, the Zhenfu Division can sentence someone to death without any procedural issues.

This is also why those officials in the outer court both feared and criticized the Zhenfu Division. In their view, the Zhenfu Division was an irregular and barbaric institution.

After taking the document from Chen Qing, Commander Yan glanced at it and then said with a smile, "Miss Gu has left?"

Chen Qing scratched his head: "Does the lord know?"

Yan Qianhu said with a smile, "Of course I know that Yan Cong brought him in."

At this point, Commander Yan did not mention the White Lotus Rebellion case, but instead asked, "Yesterday, Prince Jiang came to the Zhenfu Division to see Zizheng. Was there something important?"

"It's nothing important, the young master just invited me to have a drink."

Upon hearing this, Yan Qianhu nodded and said with a smile, "It's good that you're alright."

"You handled this case of the religious cult leader very well. I will submit the documents tomorrow and see if they can reach the Emperor."

At this point, he glanced at Chen Qing.

"There are too many people around here, let's go somewhere quiet to talk."

Chen Qing responded with a "yes" and followed behind him. When they arrived at a secluded spot, Commander Yan asked as they walked, "How is Miss Mu doing now?"

"It has been proceeding according to the original plan, and Brother Yan has been responsible for most of the communication with Miss Mu."

Chen Qing said solemnly, "If all goes well, we may see results this year. The capture of so many cult members this time is all thanks to Miss Mu's lead."

"Hmm, you buried the line well."

Commander Yan patted Chen Qing on the shoulder and said with a smile, "With this achievement, those who are envious of you within our Northern Garrison will shut up."

He put away the documents, looked at Chen Qing, and said seriously.

“This time, Zizheng has once again given our commander a lot of face. If there’s anything I can help you with in the future.”

Commander Yan patted his chest.

"Just ask."

(End of this chapter)