61Chapter 61 Chen Xi's Counterattack, Thunderous Force
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The people in Weiyang Palace remained calm; they did not know that someone was about to stir up a monstrous wave—a wave that even the Emperor, or even the Empress Dowager who had long resided deep in the palace, seemingly intimidated by the Chen Clan but actually accumulating strength, could not escape, was about to sweep through.
Chen Yun, however, vaguely sensed something.
He turned his head to look at Chen Xi, who was sitting there, sighed softly, then straightened his body and continued to close his eyes to rest.
At this moment, he no longer needed to "say anything" to express his attitude.
His presence here was his attitude.
Whatever Chen Xi wanted to do, the Chen Clan would fully support him!
This was the confidence of the Guandu Chen Clan!
Chen Xi felt Chen Yun's gaze, and his heart was slightly touched.
He touched his chest, and the slight beating of his heart within his chest made him feel powerful once again.
A millennium-old aristocratic family naturally needed to be established, but...
If possible, "Chen Cheng" still wanted to save the Qian Shou amidst the vast dust of the long river of history!
Perhaps thousands of years later, these Qian Shou would not have any record in the vast historical books—after all, history was too immense, and most famous officials could not even be recorded in history.
Many times, a short paragraph in a textbook was a person's entire life.
And... it was the lives of those who had made outstanding contributions.
But Chen Xi did not care.
He knew that perhaps no one would care thousands of years later, but at present, someone would definitely care.
So he did it with pleasure.
Therefore, when many officials had finished reporting their affairs, and there was nothing left to discuss in the imperial court, as the officials quietly waited for the Inner Attendant next to Emperor Jing to announce the end of the court session, Chen Xi slowly stepped forward.
Perhaps he could not feel the atmosphere at this moment, but the surrounding officials could.
Zhou Yafu, who had been conferred the title of Tiao Marquis after his return and had taken over the position of Grand General, raised his eyebrows.
He looked at Chen Xi, whose aura was magnificent and solemn, and whose expression was like a sky where an inkstone had been overturned.
He slowly straightened his body.
It seemed... something interesting was about to happen.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, I, Chen Xi, have something to report."
Chen Xi raised his head and looked directly at Emperor Jing.
He saw the astonishment in Emperor Jing's eyes and knew that Emperor Jing had guessed in that brief moment that what he was about to say must be a world-shaking event, but he didn't care.
He just recounted what he had seen and heard, word by word.
The matter Chen Xi spoke of began with an outing, but the matters he referred to were not limited to just that one outing.
When everyone first heard Chen Xi speak of "extravagance and waste," they were somewhat disdainful.
After all, they had money and were willing to spend it, so what?
That wasn't illegal, was it?
But... when they heard the core of the matter, their hearts were already pounding like drums.
"Thump—"
"Thump—"
"Thump—"
A series of heartbeats like drumbeats sounded, making some of the officials in the imperial court a little scared.
They quietly lowered their heads, their eyes furtively scanning around, wanting to hide themselves, but then resenting that the blue bricks under their feet were too thick.
They even resented Xiao He, who had built the palace back then—Zan Marquis, Zan Marquis, why were you so honest when you built Weiyang Palace, making the ground so sturdy?
They couldn't even drill out from underground!
Why were these people so shocked and fearful?
Because Chen Xi, starting from "extravagance and waste," gradually began to question.
He posed a question, and then, as if talking to himself, answered it.
The question was: "According to Princess Guantao's fief, even with subsidies from Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager, it would not be enough to afford such extravagance and waste."
"My father, the Guandu Marquis, has a fief of 50,000 households; I have a fief of 8,000 households; the Qing Marquis has a fief of 3,500 households, and my great-grandfather was the head of the Marquis of Distinction; even with records spanning many years, we cannot achieve such extravagance and waste."
"Princess Guantao has a fief of over 6,000 households, and her husband, the Tangyi Marquis, has a fief of merely over 1,000 households.
How can she afford it?"
And the answer was: "Princess Guantao, selling offices and titles."
Just these eight characters were like a thunderclap striking the imperial court, leaving everyone astonished and speechless.
No one dared to speak.
They looked at Chen Xi standing there as if they were looking at a "brave warrior," and in fact, in their eyes, Chen Xi was indeed a brave warrior, and the bravest in all the land.
But... for the Chen Clan to do this, it didn't seem so surprising...
The Chen Clan was indeed qualified to do such a thing, and according to the character of the Chen Clan members, they were indeed capable of doing this.
Emperor Jing's expression quickly turned solemn.
Whether he knew about the "selling offices and titles" matter or not, at this moment, he had to feign such an expression, because if he truly knew and was involved...
He probably wouldn't be able to earn the title of a "Wise Ruler" in this lifetime.
"What?!"
Emperor Jing was furious, slamming the desk in front of him, his entire being like a bristling lion: "How can such a thing exist?!"
He looked at Chen Xi and said, "Does Chen Qing have corroborating evidence?"
Chen Xi smiled slightly.
He had already guessed the Emperor's reaction, so he was well prepared.
He directly presented the "evidence" and then looked at Emperor Jing and said, "Your Majesty, the evidence is here."
He even began to "call out names" one by one in the imperial court.
One, two, three, four, five...
A total of thirteen people were all called out by Chen Xi.
This did not mean that Princess Guantao only sold these thirteen positions; it just meant that... among the people Princess Guantao sold positions to, thirteen were already qualified to attend court!
When they heard those people being called out one by one, not to mention Emperor Jing, but just the officials present, everyone was filled with disbelief.
Had Princess Guantao's power reached such a point?
It wasn't that no one suspected the person sitting on the throne, but at this moment... no one spoke, because those who could attend court were not so foolish.
"This is outrageous!"
Emperor Jing, having finished reading the evidence in his hand, roared incessantly, like a furious tiger.
He clearly expressed his anger at his "territory" being infringed upon.
"Summon Princess Guantao here!"
"I want to see who gave her such audacity!"
....
....
At the Princess's residence at this time,
Princess Guantao was patting her chest, making a guarantee to the person in front of her: "Just rest assured!
I, Princess Guantao, take money to do business, and there will be no second thoughts!"
"Tomorrow, you just wait at home, and I guarantee you will receive the order for your appointment as County Magistrate!"