Jackie Chan's Son-in-Law

Chapter 153 Secret Imperial Envoy
Outside the Imperial Study, Chen Qing was chatting quietly with Yan Hu.

For the Zhenfu Division, entering the palace was not a rare event, so Yan Hu was not particularly nervous. He chatted casually with Chen Qing about the events that had happened in the Zhenfu Division recently.

Chen Qing clasped his hands in front of him, facing the direction of the Imperial Study, and said with a smile, "I heard from Yan Cong that Miss Mu already has some White Lotus Cult members under her command. If this continues, Lord Yan will soon achieve another great feat."

Yan Hu's face was also turned towards the Imperial Study. He said with a smile, "Zizheng is flattering me again. In the end, it's all your credit. What does it have to do with me?"

Chen Qing kept his eyes straight ahead.

"Even if I were still in the Zhenfu Division, wouldn't I still be under Lord Yan's command?"

"In the case of the cult bandits, more than half of the credit goes to Lord Yan."

Yan Hu finally turned to look at Chen Qing, then looked at the Imperial Study and said with a smile, "After you're done here, Zizheng, why don't you go back to the Zhenfu Division for a visit? I heard from Yan Cong that the people in your Hundred-Household Office miss you terribly."

"They want to eat and drink."

Chen Qing smiled and said, "After leaving the palace, I will go to Manxianglou to order some dishes to be delivered. I won't go myself; we need to avoid suspicion right now."

Yan Hu was about to speak when the door to the Imperial Study suddenly opened. He coughed softly and looked ahead.

Ahead, the garrison commander Tang Can helped the distraught and pale-faced Chen Huan out of the imperial study.

Chen Qing and Yan Hu exchanged a glance and stepped forward together.

Yan Hu clasped his hands in a salute to Tang Can, saying, "Lord Zhen."

Chen Qing also bowed, but he could only bow to Chen Huan first. After bowing slightly, the eldest son of the Chen family called out meaningfully.

"Father."

Upon hearing Chen Qing's voice, Chen Huan suddenly snapped out of his daze, his gaze falling on Chen Qing's face. He let out a long sigh: "Good, good."

This was the second time the father and son had met since they parted ways in Huzhou. The last time, Chen Qing was completely unable to fight against Chen Huan and even had to hide in the Gu family's cellar to avoid being captured by the Chen family's servants and taken back to Huzhou.

At this moment, they met again at the entrance of the Imperial Study, but the relationship between father and son was completely different from the last time.

Chen Huan's voice was hoarse: "You've really made something of yourself."

Chen Qing remained calm and composed, ignoring Tang Can's words and instead turning to bow and greet him, saying, "Greetings, Marquis Zhen."

Tang Can waved his hand and coughed, "In the palace, what's the title of 'Marquis'?"

The title of "Commander of the Garrison" is a respectful term used outside the palace to describe his great power. If the emperor heard this title in the palace, it would be considered inappropriate.

Tang Can patted Chen Qing on the shoulder and said with a smile, "His Majesty is waiting for you inside. Go in."

"I will escort your father back to his residence."

Upon hearing that Tang Can was going to send Chen Huan back, Chen Qing astutely grasped some key information.

The emperor... seems not to be making things difficult for Chen Huan, at least not for now.

Chen Qing clasped his hands in a fist salute to Tang Can, then glanced at Chen Huan and said with a smile, "Thank you for your trouble, Lord Tang."

After saying this, he took a deep breath and walked towards the Imperial Study. Yan Hu followed behind him and entered the Imperial Study. After entering the study, Yan Hu knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have brought Chen Qing."

The emperor was reviewing Chen Huan's written confession when he heard Yan Hu's voice. He said calmly, "I understand. You may leave now."

Yan Hu immediately bowed his head in agreement, got up, and left.

After he left, Chen Qing knelt down and bowed, saying, "This humble subject, Chen Qing, pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

"Common people?"

The emperor put down the confession in his hand, looked up at Chen Qing, and said indifferently, "Why didn't you wear those clothes today?"

Chen Qing bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I know that this is a robe bestowed upon a centurion of the Zhenfu Division. I am now a commoner and dare not wear it."

“Yesterday, I only wanted to wear this garment one last time before returning it to the Zhenfu Division.”

At this point, Chen Qing lowered his head and said, "When Lord Yan led me into the palace just now, I returned the Qilin robe to Lord Yan and asked him to take it back to the Zhenfu Division."

Upon hearing this, the emperor gave Chen Qing a deep look, wanting to say something but unable to find the words.

Because Chen Qing did not do anything out of line throughout the whole incident, he was dismissed from his post but his bestowed robes were not revoked.

Moreover, the reasons he just gave were reasonable.

The emperor opened his mouth, but after a long while, he finally said in a muffled voice, "Yan Hu has taken back the robes I bestowed upon you?"

Chen Qing immediately replied, "Your Majesty, Lord Yan would not dare to do that. He instructed me to return it to Your Majesty, which is why I brought this up."

Young Master Chen lowered his head and said, "The Qilin robe cannot be worn by a commoner. Please take it back, Your Majesty."

The emperor chuckled in exasperation.

"You scoundrel, you're full of wicked thoughts, you can always be right no matter what you say!"

After saying this, the emperor sat back down in his seat and said in a muffled voice, "Get up and speak." Chen Qing responded and obediently stood up.

His Majesty the Emperor scrutinized Chen Qing, but couldn't find any reason to criticize him. After a moment's thought, he said helplessly, "Come closer."

Chen Qing stepped forward as instructed, and the emperor pushed Chen Huan's confession in front of him, saying indifferently, "This is what your father just wrote down. Take a look."

Chen Qing nodded, carefully read through it, then his expression changed slightly, and he murmured, "Such a thing is true..."

He smiled bitterly at the emperor and said, "I never imagined that a mere centurion of the Zhenfu Division would be involved in the power struggle among the cabinet ministers. I am truly terrified."

The emperor glanced at him and said in a muffled voice, "Who told you to investigate Prime Minister Yang?"

Chen Qing immediately bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, earlier in the palace, Your Majesty said that after I have set up my Hundred Household Office, I should begin to investigate the high-ranking officials in the capital. By then, my Hundred Household Office will be basically complete."

Hearing him repeatedly refer to himself as a "commoner," the emperor felt extremely uncomfortable and frowned, interrupting him, "You shall submit to me."

"Yes."

Chen Qing immediately changed his tune and continued, "After my Hundred Household Offices were fully established, and the White Lotus Sect matter was mostly settled, I decided to make some preparations and sent the Imperial Guards to gather information."

"I am not only investigating Prime Minister Yang, but also the cabinet ministers, the six ministries and nine ministers, and other important officials in the capital. I intend to investigate them all."

"It's just that my centurion's office has too few guards under his command, so we haven't had time to make any moves yet."

Upon hearing this, the emperor sneered, "You really have a lot of nerve."

Chen Qing replied calmly, "Serving His Majesty, I am naturally bold."

"it is good."

The emperor clapped his hands, pointed to Chen Huan's confession on the table, and said, "Your father just confessed that his accusation against you was a false one."

"If it's a false accusation, why don't you defend yourself?"

Chen Qing immediately lowered his head and said, "The Holy Dynasty governs the world with filial piety, and I should naturally follow the way of filial piety. My father has sued me, and regardless of the cause and effect, I am already unfilial, so I dare not argue."

The emperor stared straight at Chen Qing, and after a moment, chuckled, "You rascal, you're really slippery."

Chen Qing said solemnly, "It's not that I'm cunning; it's that since I started serving Your Majesty, I've always been cautious and dared not make any mistakes."

"OK OK."

The emperor waved his hand and glanced at Chen Qing: "If you keep pretending to be stupid, you'll be treating me like a fool."

Chen Qing then lowered his head slightly and remained silent.

The emperor stood up, put his hands behind his back, and said, "I have already sent people to Huzhou to investigate the facts. Once the people from Huzhou return, I will have a reason to reinstate you."

Chen Qing thought for a moment, then shook his head slightly and said, "Your Majesty, my father's confession alone is enough to clear my name. Your Majesty must have your reasons for not using this confession."

"If my duties have any impact on the political situation, I am willing to resign."

If Chen Qing is reinstated, then Chen Huan's previous accusation will naturally be considered false. Logically, Chen Huan should be charged with deceiving the emperor, and further investigation could potentially affect the political situation.

“You are not in the imperial court, so you are unaware of what is happening there.”

The emperor waved his hand and said calmly, "Most matters in the court are not taken so seriously. After some time, when this matter is brought up again, as long as I don't say anything, no one will continue to pursue the matter."

"And no one will object."

The emperor said calmly, "Those people in the court are best at playing dumb. You don't need to worry about this."

"Keep the clothes I gave you."

The emperor walked around a few times with his hands behind his back, then looked at Chen Qing and said in a deep voice, "From now on, focus on your duties and stop trying to be clever. If I really want to punish someone, I don't need any reason or logic."

Chen Qing bowed deeply: "Your subject understands."

"I have always been conscientious and diligent, and have never dared to be negligent."

The emperor grunted in agreement and continued, "For the next period of time, you should not be idle. The White Lotus Sect matter should still be handled, and the matter of the Zhenfu Division's investigation should still be investigated."

"Just investigate the people who need to be investigated. I will give you a list later, and you can investigate according to the list."

At this point, he walked to his imperial table, took out a gold medal, and tossed it to Chen Qing.

"It will be convenient for you to run errands. You can take it and use it first. I have already spoken to Tang Can."

At this point, the emperor, who had already won big in this turmoil, finally couldn't help but smile.

"From now on, you will be working in secret for the time being, and the Zhenfu Division will do its best to cooperate with you."

Chen Qing quickly reached out and took it, then lowered his head.

"Your humble servant will certainly do his best in serving you!"

(End of this chapter)