The Demonic World I designed

Within the court, a vast palace was filled with sheets of paper, where a round-faced oddity, pale as dough, kept writing something with relentless speed, akin to a printing press in motion.

The newly built Imperial Palace was already too small, leading to many concubines lacking their own palaces, quite a modest affair, yet this odd man was allotted a chamber as grand as that of a consort.

Suddenly, the strange man's busy hands paused, staring blankly at the sheet of paper before him for several seconds, then a smile crept over his face, "How interesting..."

He then wrote: Imperial Scholar Chen Qing recruits Wei Gongcheng, the cripple of the Wei family.

After he wrote it down, the sheet of paper instantly turned into a paper crane and in the next second, it flew out of the palace as if it were a living bird, revealing the extraordinary scene within the palace walls, where countless paper cranes and white rabbits transformed from sheets of paper automatically scampered out, guarded only by rows of black-armored guards responsible for record keeping.

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"Is Lord Chen...recruiting me?"

The question was direct, and Chen Qing hadn't expected it, pausing momentarily. It seemed the other party, though thoughtful, was a military general who didn't much care for beating around the bush.

But that was alright...

Chen Qing nodded frankly, "If the general thinks so, that is fine too!"

"Ha..." Wei Gongcheng laughed out loud. He didn't look down on the other party. Although this young man was new to the official circles, his intelligence was exceptional—in Wei's estimation, not inferior to Wang Ye. Even without the talent of a magician, he was bound to succeed at court in the future.

But to approach him now, with nothing to his name, wasn't that a bit too presumptuous?

"General Wei is unwilling?" Chen Qing looked at him and smiled.

"Why does Lord Chen think I would be willing?" Wei Gongcheng looked back amusedly.

"Guessing..." Chen Qing looked towards the spot where Weichi Peng had been sitting and said lightly, "Lord Wang has spoken to me about General Wei. Though you come from the position of a concubine's son, your talents far exceed those of legitimate heirs. At the mere age of nine, you became the deputy to the previous Patriarch Weichi, serving two generations and with bright prospects. If nothing unexpected had occurred, with General Weichi's promotion to head of the Imperial Guards, you would at least hold the position of deputy."

"With such a shining track record, even a generous family would grow discontent. Is that not so?"

Wei Gongcheng's smile stiffened, and he gazed somberly at Chen Qing, "You've certainly investigated thoroughly."

Indeed, his conspicuous talents from a young age had made his legitimate brothers target him. Had it not been for the Patriarch Weichi's favor, taking him to the barracks early on, he might not have grown up but instead been ground down to death by his stepmother.

After all, in a major family, a too-powerful consort's son was taboo!

If he could have maintained his momentum as Chen had said, following Lord Weichi Peng's rise to deputy commander of the Imperial Guards, he would have a voice no legitimate brother could match despite his status as a concubine's son.

But he was now useless...

"General Wei's days in the Capital City might be quite unpleasant if you decide to stay," Chen Qing remarked.

"Lord Chen need not concern himself," Wei Gongcheng retorted coldly. "Though I am crippled, I have endured hardships these years, and the Weichi Clan will not treat me unfairly."

"Does General Wei plan to retire at the Weichi Residence?" Chen Qing chuckled, "It could be slightly better than returning to the Wei Family, but if Lord Weichi is not around, it would still be quite hard to bear, not to mention somewhat improper, would it not?"

Wei Gongcheng frowned, looking at Chen Qing for a long while before finally saying, "I'm very curious, what would Lord Chen want with such a 'useless' person like myself?"

"Don't belittle yourself so..." Chen Qing gently patted Wei Gongcheng's shoulder, "General Wei is a formidable figure, and formidable people should not so easily disparage themselves."

Wei Gongcheng was taken aback and then his eyes suddenly bulged!

The black-armored guard tilted his head in confusion, looking at Wei Gongcheng's somewhat excessive reaction. Surely Lord Chen's words hadn't been enough to cause such turmoil, had they?

What had happened?

"Has Lord Chen arrived?"

In the midst of the eerie atmosphere, the rich voice of Weichi Peng echoed, and Chen Qing looked over to see the other's towering figure forcing him to look up.

Honestly, the lack of height since his transmigration, barely reaching one meter seventy, had always been his greatest dissatisfaction.

"Are you here for official business?" Weichi Peng asked, looking towards Wei Gongcheng with a hint of shame in his eyes. He had strongly opposed the family assigning a new deputy commander, but to no avail. He knew all too well that by changing the deputy commander, Wei Gongcheng's status would become embarrassingly awkward.

"Yes..." Chen Qing nodded, "And I took the opportunity to pay a visit to the Old Madam as well."

"Please, this way..." Weichi Peng led the way, seemingly a little reluctant to spend more time with Wei Gongcheng.

After they left, Wei Gongcheng remained in a daze, not because of Weichi Peng's avoidance—since it had started the day before, he'd grown accustomed to it.

The reason for his agitation and subsequent daze was Chen Qing's pat on his back.

It was no illusion. With that pat, something had pricked his numb lower body!

But his lower body had been without sensation for a long time, and the Imperial Physician had declared recovery almost hopeless, yet what was that just now...

The black-armored guard looked expressionlessly at Wei Gongcheng, watching for a long time without understanding, hesitating before ultimately not recording anything, then turned and followed the footsteps of Chen Qing and the others.

Only Wei Gongcheng was left muttering to himself, "Lyuzhou..."

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"Please take a seat, Lord Chen!" Though Weichi Peng was a warrior and quite headstrong, he couldn't dismiss someone whom both Wei Gongcheng and Wang Ye held in high regard, so he poured tea personally.

Chen Qing was a little startled as Weichi Peng poured three cups of tea, offering the last cup to the deputy commander at his side yet notably ignoring the guard who accompanied Chen.

That guard was sent by the Royal Family. Was he really being so rude?

Chen Qing, not daring to be rude when the other party was, quickly poured some tea and looked over his shoulder at the person behind him, "This brother must be thirsty, right? Have a cup of tea to moisten your throat..."

The guard was slightly taken aback, and silently said nothing, but the newly appointed deputy general behind Weichi Peng chuckled, "Does this lord not know?"

Chen Qing was startled and just about to ask what he was supposed to know when he saw the guard blink, his eyes turning pure white, like those painted on paper, startling Chen Qing so much that he almost threw the cup of tea in his hand.

"Indeed, the lord is not a native of the Capital City, so it's normal not to know some common knowledge here." The deputy general's mouth curved into a small smile, "All the black-armored guards in the Capital City are artificial beings created by a technique of a Grand Sorcerer in the palace, the lord need not bother with them..."

"I see, what a vast and varied world..." Chen Qing pretended to have an epiphany, but his eyes flashed with a hint of doubt.

This was no technique!

Chen Qing quickly realized in his heart, a paper figurine—Mister Paper Folding from the Five Great Demon Artisans!

Unexpectedly, the Imperial Court would use a demon to monitor the Capital City, quite intriguing...

"Let's talk about the important matter..." Weichi Peng frowned. He wasn't accustomed to the deputy general's arrogant tone, especially towards his friend. Even if that friend was of humble birth, it wasn't appropriate to scold him in front of guests, so he had to change the subject...

"Lord, where do you plan to start the investigation?"

"From the list of candidates..." Chen Qing swallowed a sip of tea and nodded, "There are only three days left before the Crown Prince's concubine selection, and the candidates must have already been determined. If the Thousand-Faced Fox wants to disrupt the selection, it must be among them."

Weichi Peng nodded, about to say that it made sense when the deputy interrupted, "Isn't the young lord being too presumptuous? What if the fox is just trying to cause chaos and doesn't actually want to risk its own skin?"

Chen Qing frowned. What did he mean by 'young lord'? In what way was he 'young'?

"Wei Gongyan..." Weichi Peng's voice carried a chill, "If you continue to be disrespectful, roll back to where you came from!"

The deputy was startled and quickly stood up to apologize, wondering inside: wasn't it said that the general looked down on scholars?

Chen Qing sneered and continued, "I've just received the notification to take over the case, and I don't know what the list of candidates looks like. Does the lord know where to get it?"

Weichi Peng was taken aback, then tapped his head, "It should be obtained from the Ministry of Rites, but at this time, the Ministry might have already closed. I'll directly take you to the Minister of Rites to get it."

Before Chen Qing could nod, a servant hurried over, handing him a list, "Young master, General Wei Gongcheng sent it for you."

Chen Qing took it, laid it on the table, and said, "It's the list of candidates for the selection. General Wei is indeed thorough, having prepared it in advance."

Weichi Peng's eyes flashed with realization; indeed, ever since Wei Gongcheng started following him, he hadn't had to concern himself with such details.

The deputy named Wei Gongyan was taken aback, a shadow crossing his expression. The man had become useless and was still trying to stay active, was there any point?

"There're quite a lot of people!" Chen Qing frowned, noticing the list contained at least a hundred names. Was the Royal Family holding a mass selection?

When would he finish investigating this?

"Young master!" Just as Chen Qing was complaining to himself, the same servant hurried back over.

"What now?" The deputy asked irritably.

"It's... it's... Minister Fei from the Ministry of Justice. He came by and said he needed to see you."

"Why didn't you say so earlier!" The deputy suddenly widened his eyes, "Hurry and invite him in!"

As he spoke, he hastily led the servant towards the gate, leaving Weichi Peng with furrowed brows behind him. He wasn't someone who cared much for the small details, but the Wei Family's newly assigned deputy general truly was irritating...

Chen Qing was also speechless. Emotional intelligence—how did his family raise him?

As an outsider, it wasn't his place to comment, so he changed the subject, "Seeing the general's reaction, this Minister Fei must be quite famous, right?"

Mmm..." Weichi Peng nodded, "Right now in the Imperial Court, there are two people who are the most prominent: one is Wang Ye and the other is him."

"Oh, is that so..."

"Are you thinking of recruiting Wei Gongcheng?"

"Cough..." Chen Qing almost choked on his tea, "You can hear that from such a distance?"

"Wei Gongcheng has high ambitions; it might be difficult for you to recruit him..."

"Haha, I was just saying it casually..." Chen Qing quickly laughed it off, as it was rather embarrassing to be caught talking about poaching someone right in front of them.

"Thinking that General Wei is in a bad mood, if there's nothing else, perhaps he might want to go to Lyuzhou to relax; I didn't mean anything else..."

"If you are serious about recruiting him, I'll help you talk to him!"

Chen Qing was immediately stunned, "Really?"

"But it still depends on your abilities!" Weichi Peng smiled, "Taking on this mission, do you know what it represents?"

"What does it represent?"

"It means you have become the Magistrate of Lyuzhou. If you fail..." Weichi Peng's smile became somewhat ferocious, "I'm afraid your esteemed head might have to stay in the Capital City!"

Chen Qing paused for a moment, then stood up and solemnly bowed, "Then the general must promise me, if this case is resolved, you must really help to persuade him..."

Weichi Peng's smile froze, slightly surprised as he looked at the other man.

So many capable people in the Imperial Court didn't dare to guarantee that they could find the Thousand-Faced Fox, yet this youngster... was brimming with confidence!!