A Pawn's Passage

After Zhang Yuelu reported her findings to the Dazhen Mansion, she had to bring Qi Xuansu home. Regardless of how reluctant she was, it was time they faced her parents.

Zhang Yuelu took out the gift she had prepared and gave it to Qi Xuansu. She told him about the price and origin of the gifts in detail so as not to expose any flaws.

The two of them walked down the mountain path to Shangqing Town, which was located on the mountainside. According to Zhang Yuelu, the view would be very different if they were to enter Shangqing Town from the front. If they had climbed from the Nanji Temple, they would see a huge archway and a stone tablet, with many traces of artillery bombardment.

This was due to the internal fighting between the Daoist sects before the Holy Xuan united the Daoist Order. The Quanzhen Sect had launched a massive attack on the Zhengyi Sect in the past when Zhang Jingxiu, the Heavenly Preceptor of the time, was not in the Dazhen Mansion.

Xu Wugui, who was the Earthly Preceptor at that time, personally sneaked into the Dazhen Mansion and destroyed the protective formation. Then, Quanzhen Sect disciples brought artillery and bombarded Shangqing Town, resulting in the destruction of more than half of the town. Later, the Zhengyi Sect rebuilt Shangqing Town, but they purposely left behind traces of the attack to serve as a warning to future generations.

As the two of them walked down the mountain, they did not get to see the damaged stone tablet.

Qi Xuansu asked, “So, were the Heavenly Preceptor and the Earthly Preceptor incompatible?”

Zhang Yuelu explained, “Yeah. At the time, it was called the ‘Battle Between Heaven and Earth.’ After Xu Wugui ambushed the Dazhen Mansion, the Zhengyi Sect retaliated by launching a massive attack on Beimang Mountain, forcing Xu Wugui to abandon his home base and flee. In the end, the two preceptors fought to the end and died together.

“After the Holy Xuan united the Daoist Order, he appointed a disciple of the Earthly Preceptor Xu Wugui to be the first Great Sage of the Quanzhen Sect. She happened to be the one who commanded the bombing of Shangqing Town back then. You’ve played the Holy Xuan Cards, so you should know of her.”

Qi Xuansu nodded and asked, “How is the relationship between the Zhengyi Sect and the Quanzhen Sect now?”

Zhang Yuelu looked at him strangely. “Didn’t you study history in the Wanxiang Daoist Palace? After the Holy Xuan integrated the Daoist sects, he tried all kinds of methods to eliminate past grudges. He suppressed the dissidents of the Zhang family and the Li family, promoted peace talks between the Zhang family and the Li family, and facilitated marriage between the Heavenly Preceptor and the Earthly Preceptor at the time.

“The Earthly Preceptor at the time was the Great Sage Shangguan, so her portrait and spirit tablet are enshrined in the Chongyang Palace of Immortality as well as the ancestral temple of Dazhen Mansion. That’s why it’s still justified if I were to join the Quanzhen Sect.

“There was also another reason for this. The Taiping Sect and the Li family were too powerful. If the Zhengyi Sect and the Quanzhen Sect continued to fight among themselves, the Taiping Sect would just reap the benefits in the end. Then they could take advantage of the chaos to hold the position of Grand Master for the third time.

“Therefore, the past grievances between the Zhangyi Sect and the Quanzhen Sect were set aside for the time being. It would not be too late to bring these up again when the Quanzhen Sect or the Zhengyi Sect becomes more powerful someday.

“In short, the two behemoths have their conflicts, but they are still on good terms. Although they have not formally formed an alliance, they are considered quasi-allies. Because of this, some people think that the Earthly Preceptor only promoted me as a show of goodwill to the Zhengyi Sect.”

Four months ago, Qi Xuansu was still wandering around the world by himself, so he did not care much about the politics within the Daoist Order or his own rank. After listening to Zhang Yuelu’s explanation, he had another doubt.

He asked, “Even if the Taiping Sect is influential, they can’t be that powerful, right? I’ve never noticed an unequal proportion of Taiping Sect disciples compared to the other sects. So the three sects should be roughly equal.”

Zhang Yuelu explained, “The Taiping Sect has a good relationship with the Imperial Court through marriage alliances. The Holy Xuan’s wife was the eldest daughter of Emperor Gaozu. The Great Xuan Dynasty has had eleven emperors thus far, and six of the empresses were from the Li family. The current empress dowager is the grandniece of the Imperial Preceptor. There were also five princesses who had married into the Li family, becoming the matron of the family.

Qi Xuansu was surprised. “I didn’t expect the Li family to be related to the royal family. Now that Sage Qingwei has just entered the Imperial Capital to meet the emperor—”

Zhang Yuelu already knew what he was going to say, so interjected, “In the past, the Imperial Court’s support for the Taiping Sect and the Li family was unspoken. But now, the Li family wants this relationship to be acknowledged openly so that the Emperor, as the Great Sage Ziji, can publicly intervene in the election of the Grand Master.

“Do you think that Sage Qingwei’s visit to the Imperial Capital this time is to form an alliance with the Emperor? The Li family and the Qin family have long been allies. This meeting with the Emperor is just for show and to test all parties. If they weren’t already allies, the Emperor would not have taken such a great risk to intervene in the Daoist Order’s affairs. Sage Qingwei isn’t so capable of persuading the Emperor in one meeting either.”

Qi Xuansu thought about it carefully and commented, “That’s why Sage Qingwei’s meeting with the Emperor is a big event related to the Daoist Order’s future. Perhaps there will soon be unrest within the Daoist Order.”

The Taiping Sect would not have taken so much risk for a meeting with the Emperor if the Emperor was not already a relative. The Taiping Sect could leak the news of the meeting first to gauge everyone’s reactions. If there was no reaction from the other Daoist sects, they would seize the position of the Grand Master. But if there was a strong reaction, they would have to put these plans aside for the time being.

While talking, Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu had already entered Shangqing Town. Zhang Yuelu put her hood back on to cover her face. Qi Xuansu followed suit to avoid unnecessary gossip.

Soon, the pair came to the gate of an ordinary residence with a double entrance. Since it was her own house, Zhang Yuelu pushed the door open and walked straight in.

The house was still the same as before. There was only one servant cleaning the yard. When the servant saw someone coming in, he was startled for a moment. After Zhang Yuelu took off her hood to reveal her face, the servant beamed with joy. “Miss, you’re back! You even brought a guest with you. I’ll inform the Master right away.”

Zhang Yuelu led the slightly nervous Qi Xuansu to the main hall.

Soon, a middle-aged man who resembled Zhang Yuelu walked in. He was slender and elegant, with a somewhat melancholy temperament. Although he had some white hair, he aged nicely, like fine wine.

Zhang Yuelu stood up and greeted the man. “Dad!”

This man was Zhang Yuelu’s father, Zhang Juqi.

Qi Xuansu quickly stood up and saluted him. “Nice to meet you, Uncle Zhang.”

The man smiled and nodded, giving off a friendly vibe.

Qi Xuansu finally understood why Madam Tantai chose to marry this man.

“You must be Tian Yuan, right? Qing Xiao has mentioned you before in her letters home.” Zhang Juqi was amicable. He stretched out his hand and said, “Please, have a seat. Qing Xiao’s mother and cousin went Downtown.”

Qi Xuansu was still holding the gift that Zhang Yuelu had prepared in advance. In normal circumstances, the matron of the house would receive the gifts. But Madam Tantai was not around. That was why Qi Xuansu stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do.

However, he quickly thought of an idea. Although Madam Tantai was not around, Zhang Yuelu could represent her mother to receive the gift. Thus, he handed the gift back to Zhang Yuelu and smiled. “This is my first visit here, so I brought a small gift as a show of respect.”

Zhang Yuelu took the gift she had prepared, feeling strange and awkward as well. For a moment, she did not know what to say.

Zhang Juqi did not refuse the gift. Instead, he said, “Tian Yuan, thanks for the gift. It must be quite an expense.”

Qi Xuansu looked at Zhang Juqi and wondered what cultivation level he had. He made a mental note to ask Zhang Yuelu later if her father was a Heavenly Being.

For some reason, Zhang Juqi was still a fourth-rank Daoist master, unlike Zhang Juping, who was already a third-rank Daoist master. Zhang Juqi seemed like the kind of man who would not get involved in politics and did not put on airs. His demeanor also reminded Qi Xuansu of his late master, so the two men got along well.

Regardless of their social status, men could not resist discussing the state affairs and expressing their opinions when they gathered. They would ponder how they would handle things if they were in positions of power and criticize how others handled situations. It was such a common trait among men that many taverns and teahouses in the Imperial Capital had signs that read, “No Discussing State Affairs.” This was to prevent some people from talking nonsense and causing trouble.

Qi Xuansu did not care about politics back then, but after entering Tiangang Hall, he became particularly concerned about it due to Zhang Yuelu’s influence. Thus, he was also not exempt from this behavior.

The conversation between the two men gradually shifted from how Qi Xuansu met Zhang Yuelu to the development of Tiangang Hall.

Zhang Juqi remarked, “Wuzhou, Jiangzhou, and Luzhou are under the jurisdiction of the Governor of Jiangnan. It may not be a good thing for these three states to be managed by one person.”

Qi Xuansu was startled for a moment. He turned to look at Zhang Juqi and asked, “Uncle Zhang, why do you say this?”

Zhang Juqi elaborated. “Jiangzhou and Wuzhou have different cultures, but because we belong to the same governor, we are grouped together. Don’t you think this resembles the Daoist Order with the three major sects? The Li family, the Shen family, and the Lu family were originally three separate sects, but now they all belong to the Taiping Sect and view others as outsiders.”

Qi Xuansu did not know what to say for a moment, so he could only look at Zhang Yuelu.

Zhang Yuelu disagreed. “This is not the Holy Xuan’s fault. He established the three sects as a temporary transition, intending to merge all the sects eventually. However, the rise of Buddhism disrupted the Holy Xuan’s plan. The successive Grand Masters did not have the Holy Xuan’s power, so they were unable to integrate the three sects. That’s why we still have the three major sects to this day.”

However, Zhang Juqi did not mean to talk about this problem, which had been the root of troubles in the Daoist Order for centuries. He changed the topic. “But looking at the big picture, do people see the Daoist Order as being ruled by one of the three major sects?”