After his discharge from military service, Chen started submitting his works to newspapers and magazines for publication. In the end, his talent was discovered by Ping Hsin-tao, publisher of Crown magazine, who advised Chen on painting popular subject matter.
那時法國漫畫家柴波正在我國旅遊，他在聯合報和皇冠雜誌上，發表一系列以日本、香港、中華民國觀光見聞為主題的漫畫，我看了非常喜歡。心想在軍中也有不少趣事，何不也用漫畫把趣事記下來。」