Page 24

Is it for real?

Having just arrived in the Capital City, Chen Qing heard Wang Ye talk about the court assembly and was immediately bewildered.

He had originally planned to lay low in the North, but from what Wang Ye said, if he could successfully handle the Thousand-Faced Fox case, could he directly become the Magistrate of Lyuzhou?

Hiss…

Chen Qing felt it was somewhat dreamlike, yet at the same time, he felt somewhat conflicted.

Honestly, he definitely wanted to be promoted since the path he wished to take required a certain rank, and the higher his rank, the faster his power would increase.

But the downside was that the place wasn’t that great…

Although the environment in the North was poor, after all, it was heavily guarded; Yan Cloud was a crucial battleground that the Imperial Court had not easily won, so it would surely be highly valued, and there would definitely be countless descendants of distinguished lineages stationed there, meaning the forces behind the Thousand-Faced Fox probably couldn’t reach that far.

Lyuzhou was different, though.

Although the mountains were clear and the waters clean, and the finances were ample, the drawbacks were also quite obvious.

As seen in Mister Hua Pi’s example, the region of Jiangnan might now be rampant with demons, and with the enemy having laid out plans in Lyuzhou for many years, even if Hua Pi was dead, there would certainly be other arrangements in place.

Plus, with some backup plans from the forces behind him, staying there was extremely risky!

“Did Duke of Qin recommend me?” Chen Qing curiously asked.

“Hmm…” Wang Ye nodded, though he was a puppet body, for some reason, Wang Ye’s movements were becoming smoother and more coordinated lately, making him seemingly indistinguishable from a real person.

“Actually, I wanted to ask, since when did Lord Chen form a connection with Duke of Qin?”

“I don’t even know who he is, okay?” Chen Qing rolled his eyes.

As the son of a farming family, his knowledge of the Imperial Court’s situation was limited, and it seemed the court intended to downplay the reputations of those nobles, so he rarely heard of the feats of the several Dukes.

Hearing this, Wang Ye nodded, “That’s for the best.

Duke of Qin has significant power, almost the epitome of military merits, but in these troubled times, it’s better not to get involved with him…”

“Why?” Chen Qing asked curiously.

Wang Ye was patient and explained Duke of Qin’s current status and predicament in detail, leaving Chen Qing constantly surprised.

The gist of it was that during the battle for the realm, there was a very powerful figure who claimed to be King of Qin and almost had the momentum to unite the land, but at the last moment, he was exposed as a demon.

This revelation caused great chaos, and many families underneath immediately rebelled, coupled with a counterattack from external forces.

In less than half a year, the once mighty King of Qin was forced to death.

After the death of King of Qin, his forces were divided among a few big families under him.

The two strongest among them were the current Imperial Siao Family and Duke of Qin Lumings’ Lu Family!

This was originally the start of another chaotic warlord battle.

However, at a critical moment, the Lu Family gave up the desire for domination and, with their prestige, led many of King of Qin’s former officials to the Siao Family.

Together, they gathered about eighty percent of King of Qin’s forces, and within ten years, they settled the Central Plains and established the Great Jin Dynasty!

According to Wang Ye, Duke of Qin was very modest and sensible after the founding of the dynasty, not only refusing the enfeoffment of a king with a different surname but also accepting only the title of Duke.

He lived a reclusive life and never formed factions.

Even so, five of the eight Dukes had close relationships with him, and the Lu Family’s Tianlin Guards became the most powerful army in Great Jin!

After listening, Chen Qing’s head buzzed.

This was certainly a script where if he didn’t rebel, his family would be doomed to execution…

Are you insane?

What have I done to provoke you?

Why recommend me for no reason?

“I…

haven’t offended the Duke of Qin, have I?” Chen Qing asked with a mournful face.

This was literally…

a massive scapegoat falling from the sky…

“That’s hard to say…” Wang Ye laughed: “Do you know who the Jiangnan Academic Commissioner is?”

“The Academic Commissioner?” Chen Qing recalled, “According to General Wei, it seems to be Lu Hongqing…

Wait, no way?”

“Yes!” Wang Ye said slowly while sipping tea, “They are from the same family; he is the fourth son of Duke of Qin, born from a concubine.”

“Eh?” Chen Qing felt a chill in his heart.

“But he’s not well-regarded,” Wang Ye said indifferently.

“It is said that this son, born from a concubine, was severely abused by Duke’s principal mother.

His mother, a minor concubine, was killed under some pretext, and his full-blooded sister also died under various pretexts imposed by the principal mother.

After passing the Imperial Scholar exam, he moved out of Duke’s residence and reportedly never returned.

Later, due to his special potential, he was favored by the former Minister of Personnel, who personally trained him, and became the youngest Academic Commissioner in our Great Jin at only thirty-four!”

Hiss…

Chen Qing took in a breath of cold air upon hearing this.

This matter was complicated…

The son of Duke of Qin was the Academic Commissioner, and specifically the Academic Commissioner of Jiangnan.

Could this Lyuzhou incident be related to him?

Why did Duke of Qin suddenly recommend me?

What connection is there?

The more he thought about it, the colder Chen Qing felt.

There must be a big shot in the Capital City supporting the Thousand-Faced Fox incident.

Considering what Wang Ye said, the suspicion on Duke of Qin was significant, and now he deliberately recommended me, what exactly was he planning?

Seeing Chen Qing’s surprised look that didn’t seem feigned, a flicker of something inexplicable crossed Wang Ye’s eyes.

He had investigated Chen Qing before their meeting, and theoretically, there shouldn’t be any entanglement with Duke of Qin.

But that fellow was extremely skilled in disguising, and some things were really hard to say…

“According to the final decision made, the investigation will be conducted by Pei Jun, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice, together with you, and Weichi Peng will primarily be responsible for ensuring your safety!”

“Ensuring my safety…” Chen Qing looked at him, puzzled.

The man in front of him, by unknown means, had made Weichi Peng help cover up the Ghost Doll incident.

Now the Ghost Doll was hidden in the mountains outside the Capital City, unable to protect him for the time being, so he indeed had to rely on Weichi Peng.

However, he was more concerned about another matter.

“Lord Wang is not involved in the investigation of the Thousand-Faced Fox?”

After all, he was the one who initially handled the case, but from what the other party said, he was completely excluded.

Wang Ye smiled as he looked outside, and Chen Qing followed his gaze, suddenly seeing a guard clad in black hiding in the shadows, holding a book and recording their conversation…

Chen Qing swallowed hard, grateful that he hadn’t said anything he shouldn’t have…

It seemed that the people above didn’t fully trust Wang Ye’s current situation, but that was understandable, given that the Thousand-Faced Fox incident concerned the nation’s foundations, and they couldn’t take any risks…

“That Lord Pei Jun…

cough, is he easy to get along with?” Chen Qing inquired.

After all, he hadn’t yet entered officialdom, and as a peasant boy, he knew nothing about such intelligence.

“Lord Pei Jun is talented and skilled in techniques beyond me, and he’s also a cousin of the Crown Prince.

You can rest assured, he is absolutely trustworthy.”

Chen Qing: “…”

A top-tier influential clan, doesn’t sound reliable in the slightest…

“Weichi Peng is mourning at the spiritual hall today, and the Imperial Court has given him half a day for it, so you can have your officer notify him to assist with the investigation this afternoon.”

Chen Qing was silent for a few seconds before asking, “Where is the Weichi Residence?”

“Do you plan to visit?” Wang Ye laughed, “Given the urgency of the situation, it’s not your place to go and build rapport.”

“The Demon Fox went to the Weichi Residence after all, it might have left some traces.”

“I see…” Wang Ye looked at the guard taking notes, who nodded slightly, and Wang Ye then said, “Then have your officer take you there…”

—————————————–

“So this is the Weichi Residence…” Chen Qing looked up at the plaque, noting that the entire residence had an imposing and robust presence, fitting the style of a Martial Family.

According to what Wang Ye said, the Weichi Clan is trusted by the Royal Family, inheriting not only the Duke title but, by tradition, also handing over the head of the Imperial Guards duties to the Weichi Clan.

Therefore, Weichi Peng was transferred early from the north to Jiangnan because even if the Emperor was magnanimous, he wouldn’t allow one family to hold both the head of the Imperial Guards and a key military general in the border army!

At that moment, the Weichi Residence was adorned with white silk, clearly indicating mourning.

His guess was correct; the Old Madam of the Weichi Clan had fallen victim.

This made Chen Qing even more eager to grow stronger.

If even a family of the Duke could suffer casualties, the world was indeed a dangerous place…

“Has Lord Chen arrived?”

As he was reflecting, a familiar voice came; Chen Qing looked up and was taken aback.

It was an acquaintance, Wei Gongcheng, whom he had used in Lyuzhou.

But the other party looked in poor condition, sitting in a wheelchair, pushed by someone from behind.

“General Wei’s injuries haven’t healed yet?” Chen Qing approached with concern.

He had seen Wei Gongcheng unconscious before, but it didn’t seem like there was any major external injury, so why did it look like he had to sit in a wheelchair?

“This…” Wei Gongcheng bitterly shook his head, “The secret technique of feigned death causes great damage to the spine.

The doctor said it’s highly likely irreversible.”

“Uh…” Chen Qing’s expression stiffened, a hint of guilt rising in his heart.

The other man was actually pretty decent, but when he used him to lure out Mister Hua Pi’s accomplices, he hadn’t hesitated, and he couldn’t help but feel he seemed much colder than in his previous life…

“It was my lack of consideration…”

“It’s not Lord’s fault.” Wei Gongcheng smiled, “It was my overconfidence.

If I had secretly communicated with General Weichi in advance, I wouldn’t have been forced to resort to the secret technique of feigned death…”

Saying this, he looked inside, “Are you here to see the General?

He’s mourning in the spirit hall, I’ll take you there.”

Chen Qing nodded and followed slowly into the residence, but what puzzled him was that both Wei Gongcheng and the servant pushing the wheelchair seemed to have no awareness of the black-clad guard following behind Chen Qing, as if they couldn’t see him at all.

Even if he’s just a minor guard, being sent by the higher-ups, he should be given some respect, right?

Thus, they made their way to the spiritual hall, and from a distance, Chen Qing saw Weichi Peng kneeling inside.

“He’s delivering a eulogy, Lord, please wait a moment…” Wei Gongcheng said warmly.

Chen Qing nodded, then curiously glanced at a person beside Weichi Peng, surprised to find that the man bore a striking resemblance to Wei Gongcheng!

Observing Chen Qing looking at that person, Wei Gongcheng explained, “That’s my elder brother, Wei Gongyan.

By tradition, every generation’s eldest son of the Tianpeng lineage must be accompanied by someone from the Wei Family.

Given my current situation, I can no longer follow the General, so the family had to send someone else…”

Chen Qing’s lips twitched, great…

There goes his livelihood.

He wasn’t sure if the other party was deliberately playing the victim, but Chen Qing felt his dwindling conscience was being repeatedly hammered all the way there.

“What does General Wei plan to do now?”

“Me?” Wei Gongcheng was taken aback, then he bitterly smiled and said, “What plans could I have?

A disabled military general can only retire early, right?”

“If it’s retirement, then the General might as well get out for a change of scenery, cheer up a bit.”

“Get out for a change of scenery?” Wei Gongcheng was again surprised.

“Uh-huh…” Chen Qing smiled, “If the investigation goes smoothly, according to Lord Wang, I should be taking office in Lyuzhou.

Lyuzhou has beautiful mountains and clear waters, more suitable for convalescing than the Capital City.

Would the General like to accompany me there?”

At these words, Wei Gongcheng was dumbfounded for quite a while before he finally looked at Chen Qing with a stutter, “Is Lord Chen…

recruiting me?”

Meanwhile, the black-clad guard remained expressionless, his pen and paper stiffly recording: Chen Qing, recruiting Wei Family’s son Wei Gongcheng…