Chapter 197 Forcing her to show herself?

Upon hearing the words "Shen family" mentioned in their conversation, Shen Qingci felt a sudden chill and all sleepiness vanished. She immediately got up, not even bothering to put on a coat, and went straight out the door.

Outside the door, Chu Jichen was sitting in a wheelchair, while Ye Lan stood respectfully to his side, both of them looking rather solemn.

Chu Jichen and Ye Lan both looked up when they heard the door open.

Seeing that Shen Qingci came out wearing only a thin undergarment, Chu Jichen frowned subconsciously and reached out to hand her the thin blanket from his lap.

Shen Qingci ignored her and asked directly, her gaze sharp: "I just heard you mention the Shen family."

She paused, her voice cold: "What happened to the Shen family? Has something happened?"

Chu Jichen remained silent for a moment. Seeing her resolute expression, he knew that the matter could not be hidden, so he did not conceal it. He simply said in a deep voice, "This morning, a force of about one or two thousand soldiers suddenly appeared outside the city. They... are claiming to be the private army of the Shen family, saying that General Shen's death was a frame-up. They now have evidence and have come to clear the name of General Shen's family and avenge them."

Upon hearing this, Shen Qingci suddenly laughed, but there was no warmth in that laugh, only endless coldness and mockery: "Shen family private soldiers?"

"Where did the Shen family get any so-called private soldiers?"

She looked at Chu Jichen, her eyes clear, "These one or two thousand soldiers, are they just putting on a show for us?"

"Even if the Shen family truly had a private army, they would never be so foolish as to think that a mere one or two thousand men standing outside the city could besiege it? Or force Emperor Yongming to reopen the investigation into the Shen family's affairs?"

"This is a deliberate attempt to smear the Shen family's reputation under the guise of their private army, all to test me and force me to show myself."

Chu Jichen looked at her and saw that she had seen through everything in an instant. A hint of approval flashed in his eyes, but then turned into solemnity.

He smiled and said slowly, "Only you know that the Shen family doesn't have a private army. But those people outside, whether it's Huo Yunzhan, Liu Wenyuan, or even Emperor Yongming, all insist that such a private army exists."

"Now that these people have appeared outside the city, claiming to be clearing the name of your Shen family, those uninformed people will still think that these are the Shen family's troops."

Chu Jichen's voice deepened: "Once the people subconsciously believe that these soldiers are the Shen family's soldiers, then their every word and action outside the city will represent the Shen family in the eyes of the people."

Shen Qingci's gaze suddenly turned fierce.

Chu Jichen is right. When those soldiers appear like that, everyone will think they represent the Shen family.

At that time, they only need to provoke her Shen family slightly outside the city to easily accuse them of "holding up troops and plotting rebellion"!

The Shen family is gone, yet they've gone to so much trouble!

Chu Jichen continued, "Just as you guessed, their appearance outside the city was likely to force you to show yourself. Qingqing, what are your plans?"

Shen Qingci pondered for a moment, a resolute glint in her eyes: "I want to go and see."

Chu Jichen nodded and did not object: "It's fine. However, my leg is too conspicuous to go. Let Ye Lan disguise yourself with you and take you to the city gate to have a look."

"Since we're going to the city gate, we naturally have to pretend to be city wall guards."

Ye Lan immediately understood, and before long, he found two real city wall guards from somewhere and had them disguise him and Shen Qingci according to their appearance.

Fortunately, Shen Qingci was tall, so his disguise as a slightly shorter man didn't look out of place.

After disguising themselves, the two headed straight for the city wall.

They quietly changed their positions and successfully took up atop the city wall.

Shen Qingci looked into the distance and indeed saw the "Chen" character flag fluttering in the wind not far away.

Below the city, the so-called "Shen family soldiers" were all wearing armor of different styles, with face masks on their faces. Their ranks were loose, and they looked more like well-trained bandits than soldiers.

The leader, riding a tall horse and wearing a hideous demon mask, was shouting loudly towards the city wall.

"Soldiers on the city wall, listen up! We are the personal guards of General Shen Jingxuan, the Grand General of Dingxi! The Shen family was a family of loyal martyrs, but they were framed by treacherous people and slaughtered! This is an injustice beyond belief!"

His voice was powerful and resonant, carrying inner strength, and clearly echoed throughout the entire city tower.

"Now that we have solid evidence, we implore Your Majesty to thoroughly reinvestigate General Shen's treasonous crimes and clear the Shen family's name!"

"At the same time, we have heard that the general's orphan, Miss Shen Qingci, is being humiliated in the Marquis's mansion! We will never allow this!"

"If the Great Zhou court insists on stigmatizing loyal and righteous men, on subjecting their descendants to bullying, and on ensuring that General Shen cannot rest in peace even in the afterlife, then we will have no choice but to resort to some... extraordinary measures!"

Shen Qingci listened to that impassioned speech and found it utterly ridiculous.

She sneered, and then resorted to extreme measures.

Such a rabble would probably be wiped out before they even got through the city gates.

But they only made threats; they didn't actually fight.

It's clear they're determined to solidify the reputation of the Shen family for treason!

Shen Qingci gave Ye Lan a wink, and the two of them left the city wall without lingering any longer.

They quietly changed into ordinary people's clothes and blended into the bustling crowd. Shen Qingci did not return to the manor immediately, but went directly to find Zhuque.

Zhuque was checking the accounts in a private room of the teahouse when she was startled to see Shen Qingci enter! She stood up abruptly, her face filled with undisguised shock and fear: "Master? You... how did you get here?"

She hurriedly closed the door, lowered her voice, and asked urgently, "Outside...there are rumors that you and the Regent were ambushed and kidnapped by assassins on your way out of the city to seek medical treatment!"

Shen Qingci lifted her eyelids slightly, poured herself a cup of tea with an indifferent expression, and said in a flat voice, "It's just a rumor."

She raised her head, looked at Zhuque, and asked bluntly, "Are you aware of what happened outside the city?"

Zhuque nodded hurriedly, his expression turning serious: "Your Majesty, I am aware of the situation. This matter came too suddenly. I was just wondering whether I should try to contact Miss Wanqing to see how to deal with it. Now that Your Majesty has arrived, what should we do about this?"

Shen Qingci's fingers tapped lightly on the cool tabletop, making a soft "knock-knock" sound.

She slowly raised her head, her clear phoenix eyes gleaming with an all-knowing light: "Zhuque, you control the most well-informed network in the entire capital. This matter... is exactly where you'll be needed."

"Your subordinate... will obey your orders, Master!"

A sharp glint flashed in Shen Qingci's eyes. She spoke slowly, her voice calm and decisive: "I need you to do three things immediately."