"En!" Chu Ling'er nodded, she understood Chu Chen's meaning. She was too young to take revenge, so she had to hide her identity.
In the imperial palace, Huangfu Changfeng, accompanied by guards, arrived at Huangfu Chen's sleeping quarters to check on his injuries.
After examining Huangfu Chen's injuries, Huangfu Changfeng found that they were not very serious and was relieved.
"Chen'er, you are seriously injured this time and it will be difficult to recover in a short period. Remember not to cause trouble again," Huangfu Changfeng cautioned.
"Your son understands. Please rest assured, Father," Huangfu Chen said respectfully, his face full of guilt. "Your son has failed your expectations and caused you heavy losses."
Huangfu Changfeng sighed and said, "Alas! This is not your fault. Who would have thought that the Chu family had such a powerful expert! We underestimated that good-for-nothing. If I had known, I would never have done such a foolish thing."
"Father, is the Chu family that terrifying? Why do I always feel like they are not that strong? Especially Chu Yunfei, he is just a useless person!" Huangfu Chen asked doubtfully.
Hearing Huangfu Chen's words, Huangfu Changfeng's expression turned grim, and a trace of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.
Huangfu Chen noticed this detail and his heart trembled violently. Did his father intend to go to war with the Chu family?
"The Chu family is just a small noble family. It's as easy for us, the royal family, to crush them as it is to crush an ant!" Huangfu Changfeng said coldly, every word filled with intense killing intent.
Chu Chen, hiding in a corner not far away, heard these discussions. A furious rage surged in his heart, and for a moment, he almost couldn't resist rushing out. But he knew that doing so would be futile. His only hope was placed on his father. As long as his father could rescue his mother, there might still be a chance for the Chu family.
"Why is the royal family targeting the Chu family?" Chu Chen couldn't figure it out. "Never mind. When I have enough strength, it won't be too late to find the answer. I must rescue my mother!"
Chu Chen clenched his fists, his eyes shining with determination. He then quietly retreated from the imperial palace. Night fell, and the stars filled the sky.
He entered the imperial palace. He had observed carefully earlier; the palace guards were strict, and formations were even set up.
In a palace deep within the imperial palace, a man clad in golden armor, with a majestic demeanor and handsome features, sat on the dragon throne.
"Your Majesty, your subordinate has investigated clearly. A strange incident occurred in the palace today," a young man in luxurious robes walked into the hall and knelt on one knee to report.
"Oh? What strange incident?" The emperor frowned slightly, asking with interest.
"Your Majesty, it is said that the young master of the Chu family, Chu Chen, escaped pursuit. Chu Chen's whereabouts have been very secretive recently!" the brocade-clad youth said. He was Qin Guang, the emperor's confidant, responsible for monitoring Huangfu Chen's movements.
"This kid is indeed not dead. He has a tough life!" The emperor's pupils contracted sharply, and he said in surprise, then a cold smile curved his lips. "No matter how he struggles, I'm not worried. He can't make any significant waves and is not worth considering." The news that Chu Chen was a good-for-nothing had spread throughout the royal city, and no one looked up to him. In the emperor's eyes, he was just a clown.
"Your Majesty, your subordinate suspects there might be more to this," Qin Guang pondered for a moment and said, "When I was ordered to apprehend Chu Chen, I unfortunately missed him. There was an expert assisting him. Since then, Chu Chen's whereabouts have completely disappeared, and even the Chu family couldn't track him. This is rather strange."
Hearing this, the emperor's brow furrowed even deeper. "Since he has an expert assisting him, we won't be able to catch Chu Chen. Let's put this matter aside for now and destroy the Chu family first. Chu Yunfei is already a cripple, and Chu Ling'er is just a woman with no threat. As for Chu Chen, we must guard against his return in the future!"
"Your subordinate obeys!" Qin Guang cupped his fists and then bowed and retreated.
Outside the imperial palace, Huangfu Chen wandered around the palace for a while. Finding no opportunity to act, he quietly slipped back to his room to sleep.
"Damn it, the imperial palace is so heavily guarded. How should I sneak in?" Lying on his bed, Chu Chen pondered. Suddenly, he thought of a way: impersonate the emperor's nephew.
Chu Chen immediately got up, went to the dressing table, disguised himself as a young eunuch, and changed into a gray-brown eunuch outfit. The imperial palace had a rule against wearing red robes, but Chu Chen didn't need to worry about these things.
"Haha, it feels so comfortable. I didn't expect that wearing a eunuch's outfit would feel so different," Chu Chen grinned, extremely satisfied. After changing his clothes, Chu Chen recalled the etiquette of eunuchs in his mind, then pushed open the door and slowly walked towards a main road in the palace.
The imperial palace was vast internally and divided into various areas. Chu Chen shuttled through different areas, pretending to be afraid and avoiding the patrolling guards.
"Hmm? Is that the Imperial Garden?" Chu Chen looked up ahead. At the end of the Imperial Garden was a large vermilion gate. The gate was carved with nine lifelike dragon reliefs, as if they were alive, exuding a domineering and sharp aura.
"The Imperial Garden in the palace is much larger than the Chu family's garden," Chu Chen marveled inwardly, not daring to get too close, and could only stand on the periphery. In the center of the imperial palace was a well, surrounded by rockeries and trees, with beautiful scenery that was pleasing to the eye.
Chu Chen looked at the surrounding environment and his eyes suddenly lit up. He had discovered a loophole. "With so many patrolling guards, I can't sneak in. The only way is to create a big commotion!" Chu Chen narrowed his eyes into slits, a hint of ruthlessness in his gaze. "However, this is a forbidden area of the imperial palace. If I barge in rashly, I might be killed on the spot."
Chu Chen stroked his chin in thought, his gaze fixed on a large rock by the well. His eyes rolled, and a plan formed in his mind.
"Whoosh!" Chu Chen leaped up and landed steadily on the large rock. He then crawled and looked towards the well. After observing for a while, Chu Chen finally found a flaw.
"There's actually a gap here!" Chu Chen's face showed joy. He immediately took a black cloth from his storage bag and tied it over his face. Then, he slowly moved along the large rock and finally squeezed into the well.
"Plop!" Chu Chen fell into the well. The well was very deep, several dozen feet deep, and its walls were all built with special stones. Chu Chen's body was submerged in the water, dripping wet, as if he had been fished out of the water.
"Hoo!" Chu Chen took a breath. At this moment, his ears twitched slightly, and he heard footsteps. He immediately held his breath and hid behind a large rock.