Chapter 297 I'll stay here
Without any hesitation, Qingming knelt on one knee, his voice firm and powerful, "I will be a member of the Shen family for all eternity, and I will only be loyal to the Shen family and to my master."
Upon receiving this promise, Shen Qingci's expression softened slightly.
Qingming knew why Shen Qingci had asked that question. She composed herself and lowered her voice, saying:
"Last night, after darkness fell, His Majesty ordered that the Empress's dowry and all her belongings be moved into the palace. On the surface, it seemed to be just a routine arrangement for the Emperor and Empress's daily life, and there was no news of anything particularly significant happening."
“However,” Qingming changed the subject, “the master asked us to find a way to place some people in the palace. We went through some trouble and did manage to get some people in to replace some inconspicuous palace servants, who stayed in various parts of the palace.”
“This morning, one of the eunuchs we placed in front of the emperor was required to stand guard at the entrance of the Golden Hall during the morning court session.”
"It's probably because the eunuch we chose was a spy planted in the palace. Before dawn, someone came to deliver a message to him, asking him to pass on a message to their master..."
Shen Qingci's gaze sharpened slightly: "What news?"
Qingming slowly said, "The news is that when the Empress moved into the palace last night, the palace servants were taking stock of her belongings and found a very hidden compartment in the sandalwood coffin that the Empress brought into the palace. Inside that compartment was something that looked like a token engraved with the Shen family totem."
Qingming lowered his head, concealing the surprise and doubt in his eyes: "Our people didn't know who their master was either, and they didn't dare to intercept it without permission. So, after secretly consulting His Majesty, they sent the message out verbatim to... Huo Yunting."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingci narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze instantly turning dark and brooding.
She knew her things better than anyone.
That sandalwood coffin was a keepsake left by my mother. There was indeed a hidden compartment inside, but there was no token in it at all.
The token Qingming described, engraved with the Shen family totem, was something she had never seen or even heard of.
Shen Qingci recalled how she and Chu Jichen had recently conspired to push Qingming, a member of the Shen family's secret service, into the imperial court, where she was publicly proclaimed as the leader of the Shen family's private army and even to lead troops into battle.
She understood almost immediately.
That token must have been deliberately placed there by Chu Jichen!
This move was incredibly risky, yet also extremely ruthless.
The first objective was to draw out the spies lurking before the emperor and eliminate the eyes and ears around him.
The second objective, and the most crucial one, was to make Huo Yunting and the others believe that all the rumors about the Shen family's private soldiers were true!
The Shen family's private army does exist, and the troop deployment order that can command this army is also real, and it is in Shen Qingci's hands!
If the Shen family's private army really exists, then Huo Yunting and his men will definitely not sit still.
They could never stand by and watch Qingming actually recruit a large number of soldiers a few days later and hand them over to Qingming, who was the commander of the Shen family's private army.
Once the Shen family army is rebuilt, and Qingming, as the rightful commander of the Shen family's private army, regains command, Huo Yunting's bargaining chips will become worthless.
Chu Jichen is forcing them.
We must force them into a corner and take action within the next few days!
Having figured this out, Shen Qingci felt a slight chill run down her spine, yet she couldn't help but admire Chu Jichen's methods.
She took a deep breath and nodded: "Okay, I understand. This token is both bait and a death warrant."
Seeing that Shen Qingci's expression was solemn but not flustered, Qingming felt relieved and quickly asked, "Does Master need me to do anything?"
Shen Qingci closed his eyes slightly and asked in a deep voice, "How many people from the Shen family's secret service can you mobilize in the capital right now?"
"Not many," Qingming answered truthfully, "only a few hundred people, about eight hundred. The rest are scattered in various places and cannot be gathered in a short time."
Shen Qingci nodded, tapping her fingers lightly on the table.
With over eight hundred men, if placed on a battlefield where two armies clash, they wouldn't even make a splash.
However, if these eight hundred-plus people were used effectively in the capital, they might achieve unexpected results.
But it's not easy to use them well; you have to plan carefully and allocate them properly.
Shen Qingci had some plans in mind. She opened her eyes and looked at Qingming with clear eyes: "Okay, I understand."
"I don't plan to leave the capital. I'll stay here."
"Master?!" Qingming exclaimed in astonishment, "But it was His Majesty's arrangement..."
Shen Qingci raised her hand to stop her from speaking, and quickly ordered, "Listen to me. I'm not leaving, but I need you to cooperate with me in putting on a show."
"Let me think about what to do first, and I'll let you know when I've decided."
"But now you've been placed in the open, in the public eye, and become the target of everyone's criticism. It's probably not easy to contact you secretly like before; it's too easy to be exposed."
Shen Qingci's gaze was intense: "After you go back, find me a deputy immediately. Find someone who is as knowledgeable about the Shen family's secret service as you are, and who can also command the people in the Shen family's secret service. Have him go into the shadows and serve as my liaison with the secret service."
"As for you," Shen Qingci looked at Qingming, "you will now stand completely in the open! During this time, do not come to me again, and do not try to contact me. You only need to cooperate with His Majesty and perform this act well!"
"Yes!" Although Qingming was worried, military orders were absolute, so she immediately accepted the order and quickly disappeared into the dawn.
No sooner had Qingming left than the bodyguard Chu Jichen had arranged to escort him arrived in a hurry.
He looked somewhat anxious and whispered, "Your Majesty, the city gates are open. There are many people entering and leaving the city now, so it's relatively safer."
"If we wait any longer, the people who came into the city to sell their goods will leave to go home, and there will be fewer people coming and going from the city. Our group will then stand out. Your Majesty, please set off quickly!"
Shen Qingci sat motionless at the table, holding a cup of tea that had gone cold.
"I'm not leaving," she said calmly.
"Then...what?" The guard froze, thinking he had misheard, and stared at Shen Qingci in astonishment. "Your Highness, what did you say? You're not leaving? But His Majesty has ordered that you be escorted to the other residence..."
Shen Qingci slowly raised her head, her gaze calm and profound: "I know what Chu Jichen wants to do."
“He wanted to take advantage of my absence, use himself as bait to lure out the snake from its hole, and completely eliminate the hidden danger.”
Shen Qingci stood up, walked to the window, looked at the gradually brightening sky outside, and said in a low voice: "But we don't actually know Huo Yunting and the people behind him. Doing this will inevitably carry great risks."
"If I leave the capital and go to that remote villa, a large number of elite men will have to be assigned to look after me. In this way, the defenses around Chu Jichen will be weakened."
"More importantly, if there is any sudden change in the capital, it will be difficult for me to return immediately from outside the city, and I may even become a weakness that the other side can use against me."
Shen Qingci turned around, looked directly at the guard, and said in an unquestionable tone, "Didn't you say this was your base and very safe? Then let's stay here, it's the same."
"I will stay here with the Shen family's secret forces as his backup plan. If he wins, I will wait here for him to take me back to the palace; if he encounters trouble..."
A fierce glint flashed in Shen Qingci's eyes: "I can also mobilize manpower immediately to attack from the flank and provide him with support!"
"Go and close the door. From now on, we'll stay here and not go anywhere!"
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