Jackie Chan's Son-in-Law

Chapter 96 The Will of Heaven Descends
Yan Cong frowned and shook his head.

“Young Master Chen, my father will most likely not agree with your idea.”

He looked at Chen Qing and said, "My father wants you to work in the Zhenfu Division. He doesn't want you to spend so much time with the White Lotus Sect."

Chen Qing said with a smile, "I wasn't talking about myself."

"Brother Yan, don't worry, I won't get involved with the White Lotus Sect for too long. After I've vented my anger, I won't have any more dealings with them."

Yan Cong asked, "Then who will guide those religious bandits? And who is someone the Zhenfu Division can trust?"

Chen Qing paused.

"This matter is not urgent."

Chen Qing lowered his eyes and said, "After we get rid of those beasts, I will start making arrangements for this matter. As long as Commander Yan agrees, I will do my best to satisfy him."

In Chen Qing's mind, the most suitable person to guide the White Lotus Sect was naturally Mu Xianniang.

This woman was originally a member of the White Lotus Sect, holding a high position within the sect, but she was not a native force from the north.

Moreover, she wasn't particularly smart.

As for whether it's particularly bad, Chen Qing hasn't seen it yet.

Ideally, if the core strength of the Northern White Lotus Sect could be eliminated or crippled, and cooperation could be established with Mu Xianniang, then with the power of the imperial court, this Holy Mother Mu could be elevated to the position of "Master Mu".

Later, she became a partner of the Zhenfu Division, or rather, the imperial court, responsible for restraining and guiding the White Lotus Sect in the north.

Ideally, the White Lotus Sect should be gradually guided towards the direction of the Luo Sect, eventually becoming a folk sect that is still widely spread but less harmful.

Of course, in this process, Chen Qing could act as an "intermediary" between the imperial court and this new White Lotus sect, making contact with the White Lotus sect.

Even if the situation is not ideal, at least Mu Xianniang should do her best to restrain the White Lotus Sect in the north, and at the very least, prevent the White Lotus Sect from launching a crazy attack and retaliation against Chen Qing and the Gu family afterwards.

If neither of these two options can be achieved, then Chen Qing will likely have to focus his energy on eliminating the cult bandits for a long time to come.

Even if it takes three to five years, or even seven or eight years, we must completely wipe out these White Lotus cult bandits!

After listening to Chen Qing's words, Yan Cong roughly understood them and then nodded, saying, "I will go to my father in a little while and explain Young Master Chen's thoughts to him."

Chen Qing first hummed in agreement, and then said, "The leader of the White Lotus Sect asked me to write a novel for them. I've started writing these past few days to see if I can get in touch with the higher-ups of the White Lotus Sect."

He looked at Yan Cong and instructed him, "Brother Yan, you must have someone keep an eye on He Family Village outside the city."

Seeing Chen Qing's expression, Yan Cong nodded solemnly: "Young Master Chen, rest assured, the case of the cult bandits was originally a task assigned to my father by His Majesty. In the entire Zhenfu Division, and even in the entire capital, no one is more concerned about it than my father and me."

He looked at Chen Qing and took a deep breath.

"If this matter is handled well, I will definitely treat you to a drink, Young Master Chen!"

Chen Qing smiled and then asked, "Brother Yan, I'd like to ask, since our Zhenfu Division has no imperial order, can we investigate any illegal activities by officials?"

Yan Cong thought for a moment and replied, "Anything related to the case is fine."

"Well."

Chen Qing recounted what he had seen at the manor outside the city yesterday, then whispered, "Brother Yan, without the protection of the government, they couldn't have kept it hidden for so long. As long as the Zhenfu Division investigates, they will surely find the truth."

Yan Cong wrote it down with a serious expression, then bowed to Chen Qing and left Chen Qing's room.

After he left, Chen Qing went to his desk, thought for a while, then took a piece of white paper and wrote down five characters.

The Maitreya's Path to Enlightenment Sutra.

After writing these five characters, he blew on the ink to dry it, squinted his eyes, and muttered to himself.

"I wonder if that Master Yang, who writes about saints and cult leaders, or about primordial golden immortals, can understand it..."

…………

In the blink of an eye, a few days passed, and it was the seventh day of the first lunar month.

Yan Qianhu, dressed in a purple robe, stood respectfully before a young man. He bowed deeply and said, "Your subject Yan Hu pays respects to Your Majesty!" After saying this, he bowed his head even more respectfully.

The young emperor, hands behind his back, yawned, glanced at Commander Yan, and said indifferently, "The New Year's celebrations aren't over yet. What brings you to the palace to see me?"

The New Year's festival doesn't end until after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. During this time, all government offices in the capital are closed. In the entire capital, only the Yiluan Division is still operating.

Commander Yan bowed to the emperor and said, “Your Majesty, two years ago I was ordered to investigate the cult bandits. However, the cult bandits are cunning and often have multiple dens. In more than a year, we only captured a few leaders and put them in the imperial prison. The rest of our achievements were minimal.”

"Thanks to Your Majesty's great fortune."

Commander Yan bowed his head and said, "In the past few days, there has been great progress in the matter of the cult bandits. I have found that some officials in the county governments of Daxing and Wanping, including Zhou Mao, the magistrate of Daxing, and Zheng Bi, the assistant magistrate of Wanping, have more or less been involved with the cult bandits!"

The young emperor was taken aback at first, then flew into a rage. He turned and glared fiercely at Commander Yan, shouting, "A county magistrate under the emperor's nose is involved with religious bandits?!"

Commander Yan lowered his head and said, "They... probably don't know that the people they're having affairs with are cult bandits. Those cult bandits disguise themselves, send them money and gifts, and even give them concubines in exchange for their protection."

The emperor sneered, "You've really made something of yourself!"

Commander Yan continued, bowing his head, "Before the New Year, His Majesty ordered me to meet Chen Qing, who came to the capital with Prince Zhou. I have already met with him. Sure enough, the White Lotus Sect bandits have contacted him."

"During this period of frequent contact, I believe I will soon be able to reach the higher-ups of the cult."

"His Majesty."

At this point, Commander Yan paused and said, "Chen Qing has a proposal, which I dare not presume to make. Please give your instructions, Your Majesty."

The emperor raised an eyebrow: "What is it that even a commander of a thousand men in the garrison can't decide?"

"tell me the story."

The commander of the Northern Garrison is a prominent figure even in the capital, wielding considerable power. There are few matters that he cannot decide.

Commander Yan lowered his head and said, "Chen Qing's idea is that there are too many people who believe in the White Lotus Sect in Jingzhao Prefecture and Zhili area. They cannot be killed or eradicated. His idea is that a portion should be eradicated first, and then the court... through the Zhenfu Division, should secretly support the forces within the White Lotus Sect."

"Then gradually take control of the White Lotus Sect and guide it to stop doing evil, or do less evil."

"This way, if any illegal activities occur again, the Zhenfu Division will be aware of them immediately."

Upon hearing this, the emperor stroked his chin, then glanced at Commander Yan and said indifferently, "Is this matter something you brought up to me because you didn't want to take responsibility?"

If it were something that was a sure thing, Commander Yan would never have mentioned Chen Qing's name in front of the emperor, thus giving Chen Qing an opportunity to appear in front of the emperor for no reason.

It was precisely because this matter was unstable that Commander Yan brought up Chen Qing. If His Majesty the Emperor were to get angry because of this, it would have nothing to do with Yan Hu.

Upon hearing this, Commander Yan lowered his head deeply, neither denying it, but simply saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"

His Majesty the Emperor pondered for a moment before saying calmly, "Chen Qing does have some ideas. The Zhenfu Division is most in need of people with ideas. In the next few days, you will officially add him to the Zhenfu Division's register."

"As for what he needs to do."

The emperor thought for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "You can handle it as you see fit. If you can do it well and completely eliminate the threat of the cult bandits for me, I will reward you handsomely."

At this point, the emperor returned to his seat, tapped the table, and said, "The matter of these county officials should not be brought to the Imperial Prison for the time being, lest it cause too much of a commotion. The Garrison Command should first look for evidence. Once the evidence is sufficient, whether it is the Imperial Prison or the Three Judicial Offices, they will be able to bring these wicked people to justice."

"Um…"

At this point, the emperor pondered for a moment and asked, "Regardless of whether or not we want to cultivate religious bandits, we still need to kill a batch first. When does your Zhenfu Division plan to make your move?"

After thinking for a moment, Commander Yan replied, "Your Majesty, it should be within the next month or two."

"Alright, when the time is right, let me know and I will send someone down to oversee this matter."

Commander Yan was somewhat surprised and asked, "Whom does Your Majesty intend to send...?"

His Majesty the Emperor stood up and said with a smile, "It's just a nominal appointment; he's no one else."

“My cousin who just arrived in the capital.”

(End of this chapter)