A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu stepped forward. “Tantai.”

“What happened to the ‘Miss?’” Zhang Yuelu asked.

Qi Xuansu rarely took the initiative. “I suddenly feel a bit estranged calling you ‘Miss Tantai.’ Why don’t I address you by your courtesy name?”

Zhang Yuelu thought about it before saying, “You know, my original name wasn’t Zhang Yuelu. It could have been Zhang Yuexin, Zhang Xinyue, or Tantai Chu. So my courtesy name has nothing to do with the name Zhang Yuelu. When I came of age, my father gave me a courtesy name based on the name Zhang Xinyue, which came from Sage Danyang’s poem, A Glimpse of Penglai. Have you read it?”

“Sage Danyang.” Qi Xuansu tried hard to recall the lessons at Wanxiang Daoist Palace. In terms of poems, Sage Danyang, Sage Changchun, and Elder Lu were mediocre compared with the other poet masters. However, since they were the founders of the Daoist Order, they had the advantage of having their works taught at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace. Thus, Qi Xuansu should have some impression of that poem.

Zhang Yuelu did not remind him and merely twirled her fingers around a strand of black hair in front of her chest. At this time, Qi Xuansu’s good memory as a Rogue Cultivator came to the fore. He said, “Xinyue means pure heart. Is it this phrase, ‘The brightness of the life lamp surpasses that of daylight. Let the pure heart break through the heavens?’”

“Yes, that’s it.” Zhang Yuelu smiled and nodded. “My courtesy name is Qing Xiao, which means the heavens. That’s the reason I don’t use my courtesy name often. My name is Zhang Yuelu, which is one of the 28 constellations. But my courtesy name is Qing Xiao, which has nothing to do with the stars. Most people will be curious, but I can’t possibly explain the origin of my name every time. It’ll be too troublesome, so I’d rather not use it. That’s why very few people outside my family know about it.”

“I’m very honored to know your courtesy name, Qing Xiao.” Qi Xuansu beamed.

“It sounds strange.” Zhang Yuelu felt a little uncomfortable, but she did not stop Qi Xuansu from using her courtesy name.

Qi Xuansu asked, “By the way, what show are we watching today?”

“The Peony Pavilion, it seems.” Zhang Yuelu took out two theater tickets and waved them.

Qi Xuansu had never watched The Peony Pavilion before, but he heard it was a classic, so he did not know what to comment on and merely said, “A classic.”

Zhang Yuelu remarked, “That’s expected. If the Hall Master bought the tickets himself, given his age, he would only like the classics. But if someone gave him these tickets, they would have bought something classic because they would go along with his interests.”

Qi Xuansu laughed. “So, we’re stuck with watching a classic either way. Are there any contemporary ones?”

“Yes.” Zhang Yuelu nodded. “I heard there is a new show that tells the story of the Daoist Order and the Confucian School, set at the end of the previous dynasty.”

Qi Xuansu was interested. “That’s rare.”

“I haven’t seen it. I just heard some general comments about it.”

Zhang Yuelu explained, “When the conflict between the Daoist Order and the Confucian School intensified, the Daoist Order sent a Rogue Cultivator, Liu Jinyi, to join the Confucian School as a spy. Coincidentally, the Confucian School also sent Xie Yun’an, a descendant of an aristocratic family, to join the Daoist Order as a spy.

“Since these two spies had strong support from the Daoist Order and the Confucian School, they were promoted quickly to the middle ranks in just a few years. During the second uprising in the Imperial Capital, the Confucian School sent people to secretly arrest Zhang Baizhou.

“Liu Jinyi risked his life to help Zhang Baizhou escape. But after this incident, the Confucian School realized that there was a Daoist spy among them. While conducting an internal inquisition, they also hoped that Xie Yun’an could find clues from within the Daoist Order.

“But at this time, Xie Yun’an already sensed the inevitable decline of the Confucian School and was unwilling to go down with them. So he decided to leave the Confucian School and become a true Daoist priest.

”On the other hand, Liu Jinyi was pressured by a Confucian Hermit and was hanging by a thread. The Buddhists believed in Avici, which is also called the Eternal Hell, where one’s suffering is endless. A person whose identity doesn’t belong to him is like living in an endless hell. He fears that others will expose his identity, even in his dreams.

“He will only be able to leave this eternal hell and find himself again by escaping from this gray area.”

At times, a casual remark could be taken seriously. Qi Xuansu’s expression was unchanged, but he gradually sank into a bad mood. That was because this play reminded him of his own identity. He was a member of the Qingping Society who had infiltrated the Daoist Order. He had two identities and lived in the gray area of morality. In that case, wasn’t he also in Eternal Hell?

He could not help but wonder. Did Zhang Yuelu notice something? Is that why she purposely mentioned this?

For a moment, Qi Xuansu was a little flustered. He could barely control his expression to prevent Zhang Yuelu from seeing anything strange about him.

Zhang Yuelu asked, “So, what do you think?”

Qi Xuansu forced a smile and said, “The first time I’ve heard about these two individuals is from the Holy Xuan Cards. Liu Jinyi and Xie Yun’an are both spy cards. But I wasn’t aware of such a backstory.”

Zhang Yuelu suggested, “There’s still some time before the show starts. Why don’t we sell these two tickets and go see the new show?”

Qi Xuansu was wary, but he did not show it. “Is that appropriate? After all, the Hall Master gave you these tickets. Will he get angry if he finds out that we sold the tickets he gave us?”

“It’s fine. The Hall Master is not a petty person, and he has no time to care about such trivial matters.” Zhang Yuelu said nonchalantly, “It’s just a show anyway. As long as we use the money for good purposes, we will still be living up to the Hall Master’s expectations.”

Qi Xuansu did not dare to object too much, lest he arouse Zhang Yuelu’s suspicion. He knew that Zhang Yuelu had a keen intuition, so he could only nod in agreement. “Alright, then.”

“Follow me.” Zhang Yuelu turned and walked toward Taishang Place.

Qi Xuansu had no choice but to follow Zhang Yuelu. This was the first time Qi Xuansu had been to Taishang Place. He felt that it was indeed deserving of its title as the top neighborhood in Jade Capital.

Everything, from the streets to the buildings, was exquisite and comparable to Xuan City. Since it was the Xiayuan Festival, both sides of the streets and various buildings were adorned with brightly lit lanterns. It was like a city that never sleeps. Unlike other neighborhoods, Taishang Place was not completely a residential area. It also had some community areas, like the theater, chess clubs, teahouses, painting clubs, book clubs, and so on.

However, when Qi Xuansu asked about it, Zhang Yuelu responded in a disdainful tone. “They’re merely a front for evil deeds.”

Qi Xuansu understood. With his attention diverted, he wanted to find out more, which indirectly calmed his own uneasiness.

Zhang Yuelu glanced at Qi Xuansu and said, “A pot of tea costs 100 Taiping coins. Can you afford it?”

“Are the tea leaves made of gold?” Qi Xuansu asked in surprise. “This is daylight robbery!”

Zhang Yuelu sneered. “Although I’m not from a wealthy family, I have heard that some teas are much more expensive than gold. I heard about a kind of tea that came from the only few old tea trees left in the world. The annual harvest is less than six kilograms. Isn’t it precious?”

While they were talking, they could see a two-story building in the distance.

Zhang Yuelu pointed at it. “This theater is actually called Tianyin Tower. The land in Taishang Place is precious, so the rent is very expensive.”

The Tianyin Tower was located at the intersection of three streets, with Yuyang Street on the left and Shaochu Street on the right. It was also facing Ziran Street, where Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu came from. This was a prime location.

At this time, Tianyin Tower had red lanterns hung high in front of the building. It was bright and noisy, with a crowd of people constantly flowing inside.

Qi Xuansu was surprised by this sight. “It’s so lively! I didn’t know there were so many rich people in Jade Capital.”

Zhang Yuelu mocked. “Oh, this is nothing. All people have to do is charge 200 Taiping coins per head for a recommendation.”

Qi Xuansu knew that Zhang Yuelu was slighting him about what happened between him and Sun Yongfeng before. He coughed slightly and changed the topic. “Should we also imitate these ticket sellers?”

There were several ticket sellers in a dark corner, constantly asking people if they wanted to buy tickets.

This scene was completely different from the cold Jade Capital in Qi Xuansu’s memory.

Zhang Yuelu led Qi Xuansu toward the ticket sellers and said, “Actually, it’s usually not as lively. Today just happens to be the Xiayuan Festival, so there are more people outside, celebrating.”

When a ticket seller saw the couple, he took the initiative to greet them and ask, “Do you want a ticket? A back row seat costs 30 Taiping coins, and a standing ticket in the back row costs 10 Taiping coins.”

This was nearly twice the price of the normal fare.

Zhang Yuelu took out her own tickets and shook them slightly.

“Box tickets on the second floor?” The ticket seller’s expression changed slightly. “Since you two have tickets, why did you come over here instead of watching the show?”

Only then did Qi Xuansu realize that the theater tickets were divided into a few grades. Since these tickets were most likely a gift from someone to the Hall Master, they were box tickets because they could not possibly expect the respected Hall Master to squeeze in with an audience on the first floor.

Zhang Yuelu said, “I’m not buying tickets. I’m selling them.”

“Selling tickets?” The ticket seller was startled.

Zhang Yuelu offered. “I’ll sell these two tickets to you at the original price, for only 200 Taiping coins.”

The ticket seller was first startled, then delighted. That was because it was virtually impossible to buy box tickets on the second floor, no matter how early one queued for them.

Such tickets were given out and prearranged long before the tickets were sold. In other words, these tickets were limited and invaluable. The original price was 100 Taiping coins, but he could resell them at double or triple the price.

“Seriously?” The ticket seller still could not believe it.

Zhang Yuelu got impatient. “Do you want it or not? If you do, give me the money. If not, I’ll find someone else.”

“Yes, I want it!” The ticket seller was afraid that she would leave, so he quickly took out two large cash notes and handed them to Zhang Yuelu.

Zhang Yuelu gave him the ticket and smiled at Qi Xuansu, waving the two cash notes.

Qi Xuansu sighed. “You sold the tickets after all. You might as well have listened to me in the first place.”

Zhang Yuelu rolled her eyes at him. “You wanted to sell it for money. I’m selling it to buy a pair of tickets for another show. It’s not the same!”

After that, Zhang Yuelu led Qi Xuansu away from Tianyin Tower and went to a small theater with a deserted entrance. Since it was a big day for Tianyin Tower, the business in this small theater was very bleak, so there was no need to find ticket sellers. They could just buy tickets normally, and it was quite reasonable.

Zhang Yuelu spent 50 Taiping coins to buy two box tickets on the second floor. Then she entered the small theater with Qi Xuansu.